No TV, Cont.

This is mostly my response to Doogie and Prof X from the earlier NO TV thread.

I’ve been out of town since I posted last and didn’t get to read their responses until just now.

Doogie wrote:
I read fiction, too. Are you silly enough to think that all non-fiction is automatically more worthwhile than all fiction, in the same way you think the internet is somehow more worthwhile than TV?

No, not at all. I only stated that I read non-fiction because most of what my peers read for personal reasons is pure drivel in the guise of fiction. I’ve read lots of fiction also. I hate to sound non-original but Hemmingway is a favorite of mine. When I was younger I was a total TSR nerd(lol).

Internet more worthwhole than TV? Yes, in my personal case. You see, I don’t have an internet hookup at home anymore. The temptation was too great for me and I ended up wasting extrodinary amounts of time on-line. (downloading stupid shit, reading jokes, and of course, the all-enticing porn) I now surf on the boss’s time (believe it or not but with permission!) or at school only. So now all of my on-line time is spent here (yes yes, I know), over at Rugged, or researching school related topics.

Doogie wrote:
Again, you aren’t the pretentious douchebag I was referring to. You seem like a clueless, idealistic college kid.

I really hate to say this but, yes, I was being a pretentious douchebag. For that I’m sorry. As far as being an idealistic college kid, again, yes. I’ve gotten into trouble with that one before. Life would be sooooo much easier if I just didn’t give a fuck about half of the things I hold dear. Unfortunatley, I do give a fuck about them and I tend to stick up for my beliefs. This inevitably causes friction with those around me. Maybe with age I’ll learn to just relax/accept/and enjoy the world for what it is. Until then TV will continue to hold no place in my world.

Professor X wrote:
I watch news commentary more than anything and probably spend less than an hour total each day looking at the television during the week. If you view this as causing “ill effects” then you need serious mental help.

OK Prof, you do have a point there. However, most people arn’t as disciplined as you. That original one hour will, over time, turn into two and then into three hours. Slippery slope? yes, indeed! Besides, my main odjection to TV viewing isn’t necessarily the content but rather the advertisements. We can’t/shouldn’t shelter ourselves from all advertisements but I feel that the ones on TV are the most invasive, persuasive and just plain baffling of them all. Besides, we can allways catch up on current events via newpapers and news internet sites.

Professor X wrote:
Yaaay, you’re in college! I’ve been there, loved it, lived it, and have the tee-shirt to prove it. Hell, I had a shoe box filled with panties also but I was beginning to think keeping them was a little juvenile so those got tossed out years ago.

We can’t all be college grads. Some of us are still going through the process, you know? I commend you for undergoing it yourself. In my personal opinion college is more than just a mere trade school. It forces you to read and think about things that you may not have on your own. That’s almost always a good thing. This doesn’t mean that I think that college is the end-all/be-all of education. One should strive to spend their entire lives trying to educate themselves. This doesn’t always happen however, thus college is a nessesity to becomming a well-educated, well-read individual. An “elite” of sorts.

Unfortunately, from a strictly “trade-school” mentallity a BS/BA degree nowadays has digressed to the same status as yester-years HS diploma. So what can one do in order to rise above the herd these days? Lots, but I believe that boycotting TV is but one small step of many that one can do in order to get himself out of the herd. I’ve read that by the age of 65 the AVERAGE American will have wasted 9 years of thier life in front of the TV! That is simply unacceptable. How many college degrees, books read, relationships formed, contemplative hours could have taken the place of that TV time? I understand that this isn’t representative of you or some others on this site. But then again, I think that anyone who regulaly reads the “T” is better than average to begin with.

Bottom line is that I feel that A)TV advertisements are the worst of the worst and B)Time spent, or most likely wasted, in front of the TV can and should be spent bettering yourself in a variety of ways.

BUT I do understand that with the right TV programming and a disciplined enough individual TV viewing could be benificial. With that in mind I also wish to appoligize to you for my previous errogant statements. I was out of line.

Depends. If you watch a specific show its ok. I hate when people turn the tv on and use it as background noise… it just seem to suck up all the mental energy in a house.

[quote]Beatnik wrote:
Depends. If you watch a specific show its ok. I hate when people turn the tv on and use it as background noise… it just seem to suck up all the mental energy in a house.[/quote]

For sure. You ever notice how once the TV gets turned on a “hush” encompases the room? Doesn’t matter if there was a conversation going on or not, once it’s on the brains get turn off.

Also, I realize that periodically everone needs to just turn the brain off and zone. Some do this with drugs or alcohol. Some do it with trash novels or magazines and most do it with the TV. Whatever, to each his own. Live and let live, right?

http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28694

[quote]IL Cazzo wrote:
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28694[/quote]

Thank you. No one cares that you don’t have a TV. No one is bothered by the fact that you don’t have a TV.

What annoys 99% of the planet is that people who don’t have TVs feel the need to tell every fucking person they meet about it.

[quote]harris447 wrote:
IL Cazzo wrote:
http://www.theonion.com/content/node/28694

Thank you. No one cares that you don’t have a TV. No one is bothered by the fact that you don’t have a TV.

What annoys 99% of the planet is that people who don’t have TVs feel the need to tell every fucking person they meet about it.[/quote]

Well, first of all I agree with you. I view these people with the same disdain that I view certain religious folks who knock on my door to preach to me about thier views.

Secondly, I’ll assume that you think that I’m doing something like this since you didn’t say otherwise. I didn’t start the original thread on this topic, someone else did. Since I stumbled upon a conversation that my peers (you all) were [i]already[i] engaged in and one I happen to have strong feelings on
I contributed to the thread…Beleive me I keep my lips zipped regarding my multiple quirks when talking to people in the real world. Doing so really cuts back on my daily stresses. Besides, it’s usually not worth the effort.

Thirdly, I started this here second thread mostly to clarify my views, defend my position, [i]and[i] to be a man and to appoligize to two individuals whom I had offended with my ignorant statements in the original thread.

Il Cazzo, assuming that your post was indeed directed at me and not at that asshole in the link; Did you actually read this entire thread before posting?

Not directed at you or anyone specifically…just more of a general thought…some people who don’t watch tv, spend more time talking about it then I do watching tv.

I didn’t get that vibe from you however.

cool