Kulash, who recently spent time on the Hill with bandmate Andy Ross, explains the central conflict over an open or closed Internet.

“At root there’s a pretty simple question,” he writes. “How much control should network operators be allowed to have over the information on their lines?”

In addition to Comcast’s assault on file-sharing applications, Verizon has blocked text messages sent by NARAL Pro-Choice America to its members, and AT&T, which has censored Pearl Jam concert Webcasts, is now hatching plans to filter and inspect all Web traffic for perceived copyright infringements.

Congress is considering a bill — the “Internet Freedom Preservation Act” — and the Federal Communications Commission weighing new rules on network gatekeeping at this very moment. Both of these processes are open to public input.