Pearls Before Swine by Stephan Pastis for July 08, 2014

I only have broadcast TV, which includes movie channels, classic TV-show channels, international news channels, and more. I don’t need cable, and I’ll never pay for it.

Unfortunately, here in rural life, we can only get three channels (and two are PBS) since the nation went all digital – even with a good, outdoor antenna. We’re over 50 miles from the nearest city that broadcasts television. So cable or DISH/DIRECT TV is more or less necessary. Only having dial-up is a bore, too. Satellite internet is ’way too pricey.

I don’t have cable and watch only Hulu and Netflix. If I want sports info I look it up online as well…can even get most games online so I don’t miss cable to much anymore.

I didn’t even have a TV for 18 months. I’m still trying to adjust to having one again. I can’t ever find a channel I’m subscribed to with something on I want to watch.

This is why I know cable companies and the goobermint doesn’t give three sweetarts about consumers. There isn’t a person alive who doesn’t want an a la carte option, but it will never happen despite cable companies already demonstrating the technology exists with their single month premium channel options.

I only have free-to-air TV and almost never watch it, but I do wish I had Palladia for the music programming. … just not enough to pay for all 700 other channels and ESPN along with it.

Personally, I’d rather get rid of ESPN and get the other 699 channels. From what I’m told, ESPN’s strong-arm tactics account largely for the ever-rising price of cable service.

Give it up Rat, ESPN is a shadow of its former self. I never watch it anymore.

Refusing to support all 700 channels when you only want one is like refusing to pay for the ‘social contract’ of supporting your 700 neighbors who want government services but you’re the only one with a professional job. So buck up, sissypants.

Directv advertises it is reliable. Yet every time it rains hard, snows a few inches, or the lights blink on and off it takes 15 minutes or more to get it up again. And in our area our lights blink on and off at least once a week, very irritating.

I don’t watch TV and I’ve never used the internet either.

Dingo353, I am curious as to how your comment showed up if you have never used the internet. Are the comics streamlined to your mind?

I pay $119 per month to DirectTV to watch the Braves games and Fox News Channel. I would gladly do without all of the others.

Look at today’s Non Sequitur.

I grew up n the 50s when TV was free and the commercials were few and tolerable. Now I am rural enough that I don’t get any; nearest city is 200 miles. With today’s constant barrage of mindless commercials I don’t miss it at all.

Why shouldn’t the cable companies stick it to you? You’ve been taking it all these years, and taking it, and taking it, and taking it…. If I were paying for cable, I sure wouldn’t complain publicly and advertise that I was a dope.

Stephan didn’t only compare Bombast to Rat, he let Bombast WIN over Rat – and no one ever gets over on Rat. So, yeah, cable companies are more evil than the most evil we know about.

My folks first got a TV in 1953. There was one channel in town. Then one day we discovered there were two. O frabjous day! Now we have close to a dozen broadcast channels and infinite cable channels, and still nothing worth watching.

Strange. I was sure that this conversation would bring out the guy from my old newsgroup who surfaces in every TV discussion to remind us that he hasn’t owned a TV set since 1985. I hope he’s okay.

There should be a package if channels you pick. Each channel costs a certain ammount of money so you only get the channels you want and not pay for the others

Read a book.

You gotta be pretty much of a d.a. to watch tv and a d.a. grande if you watch sports.

That put Rat in his place!

xxx

Great hearing about all you independent types that never watch TV etc. But not point of cartoon which is corporate/gummint run TVlike everything in our democracy. Point of joke is that corporate runs marika and is more then a worthy foe but more like a machine with no way to rage against it. Cable companies being obvious example.

Better look into it. That service is the internet’s “TV guide”. It will point you in the right direction, but it’s not the service you think it is.

Oh, and a PS—I do have an HD antenna, but I get fewer channels with it than I got with rabbit ears and a teeny TV before the switchover. Also, anytime we have high winds or rain, the antenna gets moved just enough so I don’t get anything.

I’m glad I don’t watch television.

The one thing no one has commented on yet, THIS WASN’T FUNNY, AGAIN!

Remember when you’d go to channel 3 and let the channels scroll through? Those were the days…

Interesting comments… I have antenna TV with about 60 channels, though only half aren’t foreign language or shopping networks. That’s still more care to watch. Throw in Netflix & I barely have time to comment here!Live sports are the main thing that keeps cable going…

Finally—some corporate honesty.

Get DISH, Rat.

How do you know someone rides a bike to work and doesn’t have TV? They’ll tell you.

YouTube, DVDs, Netflix…only thing I’d want from cable is the Hub network.

i’ve known two kinds of people that don’t watch tv. the smallest group are people who have no interest in anything but themselves. they are woefully uninformed, yet seem to always know what other people should be doing. the larger group are people who think tv is network sitcoms and reality shows. they have no idea what is actually available on all those channels. just because you find nothing to watch at a specific moment does not mean there is nothing ever worth watching.

Finally! A worthy opponent! Our battle shall be legendary!