Turns Out, I Hate TV

Today, I learned that I actually hate TV.

Yep - that's me, the guy who seemingly cannot shut up about the golden age of TV we live in right now.  For three hours today, I was in the presence -- with the sound on -- of the other side of that coin.  A local broadcast channel, beginning with the early evening "newscasts", on through the network news half-hour, and wrapping up the time watching Wheel! Of! Fortune!

So here's what I don't ever, ever see when I am watching all that TV that I rave about:  Local news, which is pretty rough.  TV network news, which is probably the main reason Pumpkin is in the White House as opposed to some other accommodation federally-managed but a little less luxurious, like, maybe Allenwood.  And the truly worst of the worst, the bottom of the sh*pile... commercials.

I do use TiVo for the one thing it's really good at - making sure commercials are not part of our viewing experience.  Today's experience included pharmaceutical ads that would get their makers sent to prison in civilized countries and political ads that make dirty politics play out in your living room until you want a shower just because of what has been on your screen.

So when I watch non-premium (i.e., ad-supported) channels, I erase their ads from my stream.  If the originators don't like that, then they can go back to the advertisers and ask for ad content that is not absolute pollution to the eyes and ears.  But they won't do that, so I will never stop skipping ads.  I will purchase no service with unskippable ads (looking at you, Hulu).  If that means one day I have no service I can purchase at all, then so be it.