Senate expected to delay digital TV transition date

[shiner]

Originally posted by: MovingTarget

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

Why is television being treated as a right? Can't afford the boxes? Too damn bad, read a book.

because of the Emergency Broadcast System... the government has to have a method of notifying you of a emergency.....

There's a thing called radio and the emergency sirens.

...which was sufficient in the days when people sat around in their livingrooms listening to the radio. Nowadays, radio only hits a significant portion of people driving as opposed to in their homes. A more comprehensive approach is needed. Hence, television EBS. As far as sirens go, those don't reach everywhere and only convey that there is a POSSIBLE danger without carrying any other information, which is inadequate to solely rely on.

If someone doesn't have a working television chances are they will have a radio on. I know once when I was living in a townhouse there was a problem and the cable feed was cut or jacked up or something, too long ago to remember, for nearly 2 weeks. I had a radio on that entire time in the evenings while I read.

 

[PokerGuy]

This is like the removal of a bandaid. The slower we remove it, the more the pain endures. Take it off and move on.

 

[OutHouse]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

Why is television being treated as a right? Can't afford the boxes? Too damn bad, read a book.

because of the Emergency Broadcast System... the government has to have a method of notifying you of a emergency.....

There's a thing called radio and the emergency sirens.

what is this 1942?

 

[spidey07]

Originally posted by: Citrix
what is this 1942?

You're always supposed to have a battery powered radio (hand crank even better) to make sure you can listen to broadcasts. I thought this was common knowledge?

Sirens go on, turn on the radio.

 

[halik]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

Why is television being treated as a right? Can't afford the boxes? Too damn bad, read a book.

I think the problem is that switching to digital will adversely impact the people that don't have them, regardless of whether TV is a right or not (i.e. you're worse off ex-post.)

 

[Schadenfroh]

Dear goodness, the "change over" should have occurred years ago. If I was a shareholder in the companies that purchased that spectrum, I would be very angry with the feds right now.

Originally posted by: Citrix
what is this 1942?

Sirens and radio are still highly effective at alerting the population. Does one also want mandatory text messages to cellular phones to alert of severe weather / emergencies? Tornado sirens come alive, grab the portable radio and head for the hallway.

Originally posted by: spidey07
You're always supposed to have a battery powered radio (hand crank even better) to make sure you can listen to broadcasts. I thought this was common knowledge?

It is in my family's home. Battery (with hand crank recharge) flashlight and AM / FM radio. It is handy during emergencies, used it plenty during Katrina to avoid wasting batteries.

 

[Denithor]

Actually the reason is so people can continue to veg out watching "American Idol" instead of rioting in the streets about the economic disaster.

 

[fskimospy]

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian

Originally posted by: MovingTarget

Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

I think a more logical move would be to allow one coupon to be redeemed post purchase by each household that has yet to receive any instead of holding up everyone that's ready for this change to go through. I don't like government waste, I can't STAND government slowing progress.

Why post-purchase? Seems to me that it would be more open to fraud that way. Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of people mailing in receipts from walmart/target/BB and expecting a check in the mail? Sending out prepaid cards like they had been doing that can only be used to purchase a converter box actually makes sense. It cuts down on the possibility of fraud and the necessary manpower to verify all those receipts...

But yeah, fund the program and give people a 1-month or so deadline to apply, and let the chips fall where they may. I would support, however, restricting the coupon cards to 1x per household for the latecomers though...

"Latecomers" were still 40+ days ahead of the changeover when the coupons ran out, and many have been waiting for better boxes beyond the one model Walmart carries in store. The government is pocketing $17 Billion from this changeover, there's no excuse for either a delay or not having coupons available for everyone who needs one.

shinerburke, this isn't a government hand out, this is a government responsibility.

It's a hand out.

The government is mandating a change that will disable the function of TV sets that people have purchased, with no commensurate benefits to return to them. Normally when the government does this to states, they call it an 'unfunded mandate' and it's something that everyone hates. Seems like if the government is breaking your TV on purpose, they should compensate you by restoring it to operation.

 

[Perknose]

Originally posted by: Denithor
Actually the reason is so people can continue to veg out watching "American Idol" ...

Which, in a salute to growing unemployment, will be retitled, "Idle American."

 

[Cheeseplug]

Technically the government isn't breaking the tvs, they still work just fine. Hell, they will still receive analog stations just fine... though only a handful of low-powered stations will still transmit analog.

 

[BBock727]

Originally posted by: MovingTarget

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

Why is television being treated as a right? Can't afford the boxes? Too damn bad, read a book.

because of the Emergency Broadcast System... the government has to have a method of notifying you of a emergency.....

There's a thing called radio and the emergency sirens.

...which was sufficient in the days when people sat around in their livingrooms listening to the radio. Nowadays, radio only hits a significant portion of people driving as opposed to in their homes. A more comprehensive approach is needed. Hence, television EBS. As far as sirens go, those don't reach everywhere and only convey that there is a POSSIBLE danger without carrying any other information, which is inadequate to solely rely on.

Well if you cant afford a digital computer box, you damn well better buy a $5 radio to listen for emergencies. I can't stand socialism. Tough if you cant watch tv. I don't want to pay for you.

 

[BBock727]

Originally posted by: eskimospy

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian

Originally posted by: MovingTarget

Originally posted by: Gonad the Barbarian

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

I think a more logical move would be to allow one coupon to be redeemed post purchase by each household that has yet to receive any instead of holding up everyone that's ready for this change to go through. I don't like government waste, I can't STAND government slowing progress.

Why post-purchase? Seems to me that it would be more open to fraud that way. Can you imagine hundreds of thousands of people mailing in receipts from walmart/target/BB and expecting a check in the mail? Sending out prepaid cards like they had been doing that can only be used to purchase a converter box actually makes sense. It cuts down on the possibility of fraud and the necessary manpower to verify all those receipts...

But yeah, fund the program and give people a 1-month or so deadline to apply, and let the chips fall where they may. I would support, however, restricting the coupon cards to 1x per household for the latecomers though...

"Latecomers" were still 40+ days ahead of the changeover when the coupons ran out, and many have been waiting for better boxes beyond the one model Walmart carries in store. The government is pocketing $17 Billion from this changeover, there's no excuse for either a delay or not having coupons available for everyone who needs one.

shinerburke, this isn't a government hand out, this is a government responsibility.

It's a hand out.

The government is mandating a change that will disable the function of TV sets that people have purchased, with no commensurate benefits to return to them. Normally when the government does this to states, they call it an 'unfunded mandate' and it's something that everyone hates. Seems like if the government is breaking your TV on purpose, they should compensate you by restoring it to operation.

Auto companies make it so your car cannot continue to run for 100 years, do you require them to buy your next car for you? If you have an old analog set, odds are you got it many moons ago. Forget about converter boxes. Pick up a cheap HDTV set that can be had for $500.

 

[dahunan]

HOW CAN THE GOVT STEAL THE WHOLE SPECTRUM FROM THE PEOPLE

ya'll should quit whining about this shit. HOW does it harm you if there is a DELAY... please explain?

 

[fskimospy]

Originally posted by: BBock727

Auto companies make it so your car cannot continue to run for 100 years, do you require them to buy your next car for you? If you have an old analog set, odds are you got it many moons ago. Forget about converter boxes. Pick up a cheap HDTV set that can be had for $500.

Huh? Your analogy makes no sense. This isn't a TV that broke by chance, this is a TV that was broken by design. If a car company that I bought a car from came in and smashed my engine apart with a sledgehammer, you best believe they would be buying me a new car.

The government has mandated a shift of broadcasting type that renders something you bought inoperable. It has in effect rendered your TV broken for the purpose that you bought it, and it has done so deliberately. To compensate people for this is only reasonable. What's funny is that you think when the government changes things that people should just go out and spend $500 to have the exact same functionality that they had before. Maybe I can think of something better to do with my $500 then spend it on some dumbass TV.

 

[CitizenKain]

Originally posted by: BBock727

Originally posted by: MovingTarget

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: Citrix

Originally posted by: shinerburke

Originally posted by: MovingTarget
If you support that government coupon program for the converter boxes, then this is a logical move. The program ran out of $$ and thus many people who wouldn't otherwise be able to get the converters, won't.

Why is television being treated as a right? Can't afford the boxes? Too damn bad, read a book.

because of the Emergency Broadcast System... the government has to have a method of notifying you of a emergency.....

There's a thing called radio and the emergency sirens.

...which was sufficient in the days when people sat around in their livingrooms listening to the radio. Nowadays, radio only hits a significant portion of people driving as opposed to in their homes. A more comprehensive approach is needed. Hence, television EBS. As far as sirens go, those don't reach everywhere and only convey that there is a POSSIBLE danger without carrying any other information, which is inadequate to solely rely on.

Well if you cant afford a digital computer box, you damn well better buy a $5 radio to listen for emergencies. I can't stand socialism. Tough if you cant watch tv. I don't want to pay for you.

Do explain how this is socialism. It is always incredibly entertaining to hear it from people like yourself.

 

[fskimospy]

Originally posted by: CitizenKain

Originally posted by: BBock727

Well if you cant afford a digital computer box, you damn well better buy a $5 radio to listen for emergencies. I can't stand socialism. Tough if you cant watch tv. I don't want to pay for you.

Do explain how this is socialism. It is always incredibly entertaining to hear it from people like yourself.

I'll explain it for him: He has no idea what the definition of socialism is and this somehow matches his made up definition.

 

[dualsmp]

Can't let people actually start thinking for themselves if the TV goes dark. Got to keep the propaganda flowing until all of the clueless drones are ready for the switch.

 

[Schadenfroh]

Originally posted by: dahunan
HOW CAN THE GOVT STEAL THE WHOLE SPECTRUM FROM THE PEOPLE

ya'll should quit whining about this shit. HOW does it harm you if there is a DELAY... please explain?

Analog channels take up more space than digital channels, more channels can be broadcast in digital than analog of the same space. It is not so much the government stealing the spectrum from the people, it is a few analog signals wasting space where as digital broadcasts can be so much more efficient. There will be significantly more space available for new channels and other uses once the inefficient analog broadcasts are gone.

 

[CitizenKain]

Originally posted by: eskimospy

Originally posted by: CitizenKain

Originally posted by: BBock727

Well if you cant afford a digital computer box, you damn well better buy a $5 radio to listen for emergencies. I can't stand socialism. Tough if you cant watch tv. I don't want to pay for you.

Do explain how this is socialism. It is always incredibly entertaining to hear it from people like yourself.

I'll explain it for him: He has no idea what the definition of socialism is and this somehow matches his made up definition.

I know, but I always love hearing it from them.

 

[StageLeft]

haha 6.5M. To be fair, I'm aware of it, but I can see how a person who doesn't watch a ton of tv may not be. I know the gov never sent (at least I didn't receive) a letter warning about it.