Is Broadband the New Running Water?

Take a think of this: unemployment has been hovering around 10% (underemployment has been even higher - around 17%) for a while. Now, imagine you are either unemployed or underemployed. How would you go about looking for a job? Would you ask your family and friends or perhaps take a look at the local classifieds in the morning paper?

Or, if you're like most of us, would you hop onto your computer and head over to monster.com or careerbuilder.com?

But what if you didn't have access to the Internet?

Last Tuesday, HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan discussed the importance of broadband access for all. Arguing that Internet access in the 21st Century should be approached the same way as highways in the 1950s, he recommended bringing broadband to federally-assisted housing. Currently, 77% of the country has access to the Internet, which seems like a lot, until you realize that 87% of South Koreans have access to the Internet. And, like most countries, their speeds are faster.

I for one applaud the effort, but there are naysayers who disagree and think that the Internet is only a toy and not a necessity. But this same argument - that any new technology is not an entitlement - was made about electricity, telephones, and even running water. Would anyone really be willing to say that electricity is not a necessity in a modern American home?

What do you think? Is broadband access a modern necessity?