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Czarjorge
Joined: 01 May 2007
Location: I now have the same moustache, and it is glorious.
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 Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:21 pm Post subject: Is television killing "America"? |
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I have a Russian friend and we were talking the other day about the state of political discourse, or lack there of, in America by everyday Americans. He said something I thought was really astute.
"The problem with America is good television."
Not TV, but good TV. He made the point that in Russia and Spain, two places he's lived, he might only watch one or two hours of TV a week. Now that he lives in Iowa he watches more than twenty hours a week.
"I just always have the TV on. There's always something worth watching."
I'm looking forward to not having TV to fall back on. |
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igotthisguitar
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Location: South Korea (Permanent Vacation)
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| Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:30 pm Post subject: |
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| Televalium (the "PLUG-IN" DRUG) |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:55 pm Post subject: |
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| It's an interesting hypothesis. Certainly TV is a distraction. Is it responsible for the level of discourse? I don't know. TV has played a major role in changing the nature and content of the discourse. It's mostly fluff and sound bites now. |
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Masta_Don
Joined: 17 Aug 2006
Location: Hyehwa-dong, Seoul
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| Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 6:58 pm Post subject: |
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| That's just being lazy. I have about two friends back home addicted to TV, and that's it. The rest are addicted to drugs/sex/stealing/vandalism. |
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igotthisguitar
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Location: South Korea (Permanent Vacation)
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| Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 7:00 pm Post subject: |
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I find about 10% of the cable broadcast PRO-gramming (i'm being generous here) even worth watching. Mostly documentary, historical shows & the like.
The rest of the channels are either filled up with repetitious, dull & hollow consumerist brainwashing, or shallow "reality" TV ... fluff.
Here's a thought:
A few years back, the CCP adopted as its official policy, a big push to have TVs in EVERY Chinese household by 2010 
Why?
Freedom? Democracy? |
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jinju
Joined: 22 Jan 2006
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| Posted: Tue Nov 13, 2007 7:10 pm Post subject: |
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| TV can be fun but ultimately it is passive entertainment and as such pretty worthless. |
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Ya-ta Boy
Joined: 16 Jan 2003
Location: Established in 1994
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| Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 3:39 am Post subject: |
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I have about two friends back home addicted to TV, and that's it. The rest are addicted to drugs/sex/stealing/vandalism.
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Your friends are clearly not in Iowa. |
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Julius
Joined: 27 Jul 2006
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| Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 4:12 am Post subject: Re: Is television killing "America"? |
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| Czarjorge wrote: |
| the state of political discourse, or lack thereof, in America by everyday Americans. |
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| "The problem with America is good television.". |
Surely a steady supply of good informative TV would increase peoples awareness of politics?I suppose it might dull other faculties, however.
Personally I was raised without TV and always resented the fact all the other kids had them. I mean, half of what kids talk about in the playground is TV shows. I used to even lie and pretend I'd seen the latest movie or whatever just to keep up.
But in hindsight I'm glad it happened. I think I did a whole lot more in the outdoors because of it. |
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igotthisguitar
Joined: 08 Apr 2003
Location: South Korea (Permanent Vacation)
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| Posted: Wed Nov 14, 2007 4:46 am Post subject: |
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Good for you Julius!  |
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Czarjorge
Joined: 01 May 2007
Location: I now have the same moustache, and it is glorious.
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| Posted: Sun Nov 18, 2007 5:34 pm Post subject: |
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| Ya-ta Boy wrote: |
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I have about two friends back home addicted to TV, and that's it. The rest are addicted to drugs/sex/stealing/vandalism.
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Your friends are clearly not in Iowa. |
Actually we have all that in Iowa.
Drugs: Ottumwa, IA and Wapello County was the largest producer of methamphetamine in the midwest one year in the early nineties. GO CIVIC PRIDE.
Sex: The high school here actually has a daycare for all the teenages mother's benefit.
Vandalism: Not just vandalism, but ingenious vandalism. Someone let the air out of my tire, not so much it couldn't be driven on but enough to be apparent, and then presumably using a pair of pliers, pinched the tip of the tire stem so I couldn't reinflate it. That's a kind of metavandalism right there.
Stealing: In a town this boring stealing is one of the few exciting things to do. |
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