AINT IT THE TRUTH MAMA!!!

Mama, the thing about analog being dead is yet another example of the paternalistic gubmint deciding what's good for us. Washington made the decision that the TV airwaves would be 100% digital.

Reason cable is not a problem is that your cable box is already rigged to accept the digital (or, colloquially, HD) signals. Any new television is also ready to accept it.

Old ones, those that required an antennae are not. So your choice is to either buy a new set, or apply for the coupon that gives you a $15 discount on a required fourty dollar purchase.

Once again, I'm from the government. I'm here to help you.

Now then, in terms of paying for TV (why the hell(o) do we have to pay to watch tv?). You don't. Nobody says you have to have cable. That's a choice you make. And cable is provided by a private enterprise company that exists to make money. So, if you want the convenience of having a hundred plus channels not worth watching, you have to pay for the priviledge.

Same if you use a dish. Somebody paid to put those satalittes up there, and to provide the receptor boxes, etc. Why should they give it away?

As far as paying for tv - it's gotten to the point that if you don't have cable you have nothing to watch but news and infomercials which have flooded the tv stations worse than spam!

The local stations make more money from infomercials - and if there are any movies on for the weekend - they play the same ones both days - over and over again. No longer do you get the Monday night movie, (and every other day like they used to) on our local stations.

News, informercials, mega-church services on Sundays - sports (if not blacked out) - and not very interesting.

Before cable - you got to watch tv - and see many different programs and see many different movies.

We have a relatively new employee. Why the boy was hired I still haven't figured out. Oh, well, I will leave that part of it alone. He has had an Ipod glued to the side of his dang head since the day he began. The supervisor ignores it completely. Yet I have heard her complain to a coworker that she speaks too loudly. I have worked with this gal the 15 years and no one has ever complained before.

This over-grown, boy-kid sings while he listens to the da** Ipod. Also, he lets out these loud burps after lunch. Doesn't matter where or in front of whom, he does this. I want to swat him beside the head and teach him some manners that evidently his parents failed to teach him. His office is littered with 2-litre Pepsi bottles, cookies, all sorts of food packets. I believe the world has gone crazy. This behavior has NEVER been permitted there and it is only this kids that gets away with it. No, thought of that, she is not interested in him personally. She is near 60 years old and he is in his early 20's. If she is then she is crazier than I thought. Now, believe me I have my faults, all of us do. But at least I know how to present myself in a professional manner because I am. It no longer seems to be appreciated.

Also, I am the owner of a cell phone. I have had triple by-pass heart surgery and don't want to have a problem and not be able to call for help. Mine is for emergency calls only. They all should be. I seen so many folks who appear to think it is "cool" to have a cell and to be talking on it. They will grow up one day, hopefully

I'm sorry, Mama, but I have to wonder if we're living in the same world.

Until fairly recently I worked third shift at a motel. I don't have cable here, but did there.

With almost 100 stations available there was practically nothing to watch. About half of the stations are merely sales tools: QVC and its many, many, clones. Most of the rest were either full- or part-time infomertials.

Don't know if you're aware of this, but even the Food Network goes that route. Programming (that is to say, FN's "see how many shows we can repeat until people get nauseous" marathons) ends at 4 in the aunt emma. Infomercials then take over until regular daytime programing starts at 8 or 9, depending.

All in all, out of 99 stations I'd say there were, at most, 8 or 9 offering real content. Not saying how good or bad the content was. But the fact is, I get much more content, proportionately, from the 4 regular networks then I ever did on cable.

Which is one reason I don't have it.