For the last two days, the SBC Global network has been having severe problems, cutting us off from our server for most of the business day:

We would love to have a redunadant cable modem link to the Net via Cox, except for one small problem; our landlord refuses to let Cox onto the premises. Cox has said they “don’t have an agreement with the landlord”, so they can’t provide us service. We’re guessing that the landlords have some sort of “agreement” (kickback) with SBC that they don’t have with Cox, so they line their pockets, and we feel the pain. I wonder if the Public Utilities Commission would have some jurisdiction there? Has anyone else had this experience, where essentially a monopoly is created by your landlord’s business practices?

You’ll notice I don’t blame SBC for this. I guess it’s because I’ve come to accept flaky Internet service from any provider, and our solution has become to get redundant flaky links, in an attempt to create one good one.