With all the stories buzzing out of Washington lately, there was bound to be a few that managed to run under the radar.

After all, journalists as well as the public at large can only really focus on so many at a time and in an age where a news cycle isn’t measured in hours but in minutes, some stories that (on a normal day) would spark public outrage are left largely ignored.

Net Neutrality is one of those stories.

If you’re not exactly clear on what Net Neutrality is, you’re not alone. It’s technical, it’s jargon filled and it’s very, very boring.

But it’s important.

In brief (and in layman’s language) Net Neutrality are the laws in place from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) that prevents internet service providers (ISPs) from arbitrarily deciding which websites run at which speeds.

For example, say your ISP is Charter Communications. Now, say Charter was in negotiations with Netflix to pay them more money and Netflix refused, under the current laws they could not slow down Netflix’s internet speed as incentive.

Make sense? No? Well, try this one on for size:

This is how Reddit user kvw260’s 9-year-old son explained it …

“Pretend ice cream stores gave away free milkshakes. But you had to buy a straw to drink them. But that’s okay, because you still get free milkshakes. One day you’re drinking a free milkshake and you look down and the guy that sold you the straw is pinching it almost shut. You can still get your milkshake, but it’s really hard and takes a lot longer.

“So you say, ‘Hey! Stop that!’ And the straw guy says, ‘NO! Not until the ice cream store pays me money.’ And you say, ‘But I already paid you money for the straw.’ And the straw guy says, ‘I don’t care. I just want more money.’”

The 9-year-old isn’t wrong.

Net Neutrality laws were put in place to protect the consumer as well as to ensure new internet start ups have the same shot as established companies when it comes to reaching potential customers.

When it comes to Google vs. Bing, most people have a preference — but not because one moves faster.

Well recently, the FCC has begun to undo the regulations on ISPs and the public is not freaking out nearly as much as it should.

“In a 2-1 vote along party lines Thursday, the FCC’s Republicans voted to propose a new review of the rules, with the goal of loosening the regulations on the industry,” NPR reported. “As dozens of protesters outside urged the agency to stop the proceeding and keep the strict oversight, FCC Chairman Ajit Pai argued that the current rules represented a ‘bureaucratic strait jacket’ on the industry.”

Except, it’s not.

There’s no evidence the so-called “bureaucratic straight jacket” has negatively affected big name service providers other than to keep them honest.

What this all comes down to is yet another example of a government institution (in this case, the FCC) putting corporations ahead of people, specifically, you — the consumer.

So what can you do? Well, right now … nothing.

While the FCC was originally accepting public comments (via an incredibly convoluted pathway) on their website, on May 11 the commission released a statement informing the public that comments relating to “Restoring Internet Freedom” are prohibited during what they are referring to as ‘The Sunshine Period.”

Basically, the FCC invoked an obscure procedural rule to limit when and how public input on this important issue could be given, saying: “The Sunshine Agenda period for the Restoring Internet Freedom Notice of Proposed Rule-making will begin on May 12, 2017, and will continue until the Commission releases the text of the Notice of Proposed Rule-making or removes it from the meeting agenda.”

The notice also states that “presentations, including comments, that are received during the Sunshine Agenda period and do not meet an exception to the Commission’s rules will be marked in the Commission’s Electronic Comment Filing System (ECFS) as ‘SUNSHINE.’ These presentations will be associated with, but not made a part of, the record in the proceeding.”

Bottom line? Net Neutrality affects everyone and this is an issue every American — whether they use a laptop, desk top of smartphone — should be concerned about.

It’s time to start paying attention.