Do you not buy food at the supermarket because it is always about money for the corporation?

Do you really not want a better information infrastructure because some corporation might make a profit on SERVICES provided?

OK..... I guess you win this one. :)

I, for one, am just happy our Congress doesn't have anything more important to worry about.:rolleyes:

Um...who has a useless TV? The ONLY televisions that will be "useless" when they do the switchover will be the handheld battery TVs. That's it. No more. That's the whole enchilada.

So, exactly which TVs were you referring too? Then you can tell us which taxes you were referring too...

L O L ! :D

And if somebody will tell them that if they don't want to try to figure out how to rig up that infernal converter they can just go buy an HDTV and hook their rabbit ears up to it, they will probably just run out and do that in the interest of expediency and simplicity.

I wouldn't be surprised if many/most of 'em have done that already.

What I'd like to know is why does the dang coupon itself have to be so frickin' elaborate/costly? Why not just a black and white coupon printed on card stock?

All "reasons" given that an elaborate plastic card with a hologram on it are a drop in the bucket compared to "blah, blah, blah" will be frowned upon. I want reasons it can't be on card stock.

I do! SmileWavy Damn thing died a few years ago and I have no interest in fixing it. I have a feeling it's the tube. I have a nice 32" paper weight.

Card stock coupon is easily forged using color scanner, photoshop, and decent printer.

Mike - they auctioned off parts of the old TV spectrum. The air waves belong to the public - just like navigable waters do, so it was really a "lease" or right to use them.

Sure, I want a better information infrastructure - and digital does that (unless you live in a fringe area -- some rural folks are screwed). But, when you give away something public, you need to be sure it is fair to everyone - including the unsophisticated, poor and rural parts of the public.

I just wish they'd gotten it over with (my selfish POV). At minimum, I hope we have a moratorium on the digital transition advertisements!

OTOH, I don't stare into the tube much in the summer anyway.

Supe would rather starve to death first! :D

I bet about 2 days after the switch you'll find people can't give away the converters. People who have the converters and some money will get fed up with the drops in the signal (the digital edge) and get cable. Craigslist will be awash with the converters.

The rest of you cheap bastards just buy a damn converter and deduct the $100 from your taxes.!!!! *

****this is not tax advice****

I think one 'overlooked' aspect of the transition is the education on antenna requirements. Analog signals just sort of get crappy in the boonies. With digital, you need a decent antenna setup (couple hundo to buy and have installed?) to go with that subsidized converter box.

I love the digital signal on my plasma. It looks great and provides a couple 'extra' channels.

I agree that many will get cable after messing with antennas. I have spent a couple hundred bucks, many hours and many trips up to the roof to perfect my OTA HD viewing.

I can now say that my OTA HD is awesome. Virtually no signal drop. The screen flashes once in a great while but never freezes or pixelates like it did when I first started my design.

I TOTALLY do not see the point of HD. It's still the same crappy programming no matter how good the picture is. If the content still sucks (99% of the time it does) what's the point?

I imagine it's great for movies though, but not so good I'm going to run out and blow $1,000 to get it.

So???? They send you two... would it be a huge scandal is somebody bought 3 or more converters on discount?

I just don't get it.

BTW, I said a black and white coupon printed on card stock. :p

1) Television is a standard of emergency communication, like radio, and must remain free. Yes, it's full of crap, but it's also the only way to tell people that it's going to freeze that night, or there's a hurricane coming. It's still a primary source of basic and emergency information for the nation.

2) If people started getting 3 free converters instead of 2, then the funds would be depleted, and they'd have to tap into other government funds (ie. tax money). They did not want to do that, so they worked hard to prevent such abuse of the system.

3) The whole coupon thing fell on it's face, and we're seeing the aftermath now. When people were doing the right thing, requesting coupon, then finding out that there were no converters even for sale before the 90 day limit was up? That's a managerial error of the highest degree.

4) If they really wanted all of the poor old grandmas to buy expensive new TVs, why would they even bother with this whole coupon thing? Just tell the old bats that they NEED a new $400 TV to ever know anything going on again.