Make The Transition - To Liberation!

So the powers that decide such things are going to change the way television is broadcast. I urge you to join me in rejecting it. Not because I don't like digital television, but because I don't like broadcast television at all. Do you? Really? Or are you just lazy?

What hooks you? Sports? Soaps? That half hour or hour (or two hours?) after work when you just want to relax with a "Raymond" or "Seinfeld"? For me it was sports, especially baseball, and NBC's Thursday night comedy. But was that all I watched? Well, no. Once I have the option, TV becomes sort of a default leisure activity. I'm watching "Family Guy", "Hawaii-5-O", etc. Why? Am I glad I watched those shows? No. Was it worth it? No. Would doing almost anything else have been more meaningful? Yes.

Do you really like "Law And Order"? No, you don't. You just think you do. I used to think I liked "Just Shoot Me" and "Will And Grace". If I see those shows now it's like seeing an old girlfriend you're embarassed about having even given the time of day. Why did they seem so appealing? No clue, but these feelings cause me to not currently watch "30 Rock" and other shows that currently seem appealing but will probably make me feel eventually that I had wasted my time.

If you still need some television, as I admit I do, I can heartily recommend netflix, which is cheaper than most cable plans and a thousand times more user friendly. And you won't find yourself up at two in the morning watching useless, moronic junk for no reason. Unless of course you intentionally put Roadhouse or Judge Dredd in your queue, at which point you are beyond my help.

So join me in making February 17, 2009 Liberation Day instead of Conversion Day. Tell THE MAN exactly where he can hook his digital cable. Just say no. Trust me, you'll be happier. If nothing else, it'll all be on the internet soon anyway if it isn't already.

Appendix A: Technology I currently don't have:

Watchable broadcast television (extremely poor reception w/o cable or antenna)
CD/Cassette/mp3 player in car (AM/FM only)
Lawnmower
High Speed internet at home
Appendix