Comments on: Why I Want to Trash my TV

By: Bajaraja

Bajaraja — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 10:05:52 +0000

After moving out of my parent’s house I don’t have a television or a cable or satellite subscription. I wouldn’t use or care for one either.
I’m usually at Uni, at my job, working on a project for a client, talking/hanging out with friends online and offline, playing video games (but not too much), reading books (anything that I find interesting), reading research/white papers (again, anything that interests me), programming/designing/building/development DIY projects, and starting up my server hosting business, which has taken off quite successfully.

Basically, thanks to no TV, I can do anything I want. People say TV rots your brain, and it’s true! Your intelligence lessens and you become sedentary and complacent. You lose that energy, that charisma. Books offer a wealth of information that I believe anyone could benefit from.
Just do whatever you feel interested in. I recently took up guitar lessons and I LOVE IT!

If there’s ever anything that I really want to watch I just download it from sharing sites or more likely, stream it from sites like Netflix and Hulu. It’s awesome!

I think I’ll take up video game development and independent film making as hobbies next. I mean, come on! Life is too short as it is; why waste it watching brain numbing crap?

By: SUJITH

SUJITH — Thu, 24 Sep 2009 10:43:17 +0000

i and my wife are opposer for having tv which in one way destroys relationship which improves with regular talking among the family members which has become a rarity now

By: Susan

Susan — Tue, 22 Sep 2009 17:16:58 +0000

Wonderful post! I am in awe of Liz(#10,) Frugaltexan (#20,) Steven (#21,) and Wicklow Wench (#26.) You guys are heroes, I aspire to your level of living.

By: Matthew

Matthew — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 12:48:08 +0000

I work in an IT related field. That being said, I watch international television programming on my computer; however, given the option of watching it on my larger LCD television, I would switch in an instant. As for people who enjoy A la carte programming, I think I prefer television as an entertainment medium as it limits the scope from which I must choose what to watch. This makes for easier decision making for me. Plus it adds a novelty factor that allows me to, with very little effort, find new programming that I might enjoy. The internet alternative for finding new programming is… well, I suppose I haven’t yet found a good substitute.

By: Cindy M

Cindy M — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 11:46:39 +0000

Excellent column. As someone who has worked from home on the internet 8 hours a day and then some for the past 15 years, I can’t tell you much I look forward to retirement just to get away the keyboard/monitor. When not working, I do anything BUT sit in front of any screen these days and have lately seriously thought about getting another job outside my home. I’ll be moving to cheaper housing (selling my home) and could swing going back to school, though I’m not what to get into. I do a lot of walking and have noticed how little activity I see in the neighborhoods; nobody seems to go outdoors even on nicer days. (That’s another topic, think about how it would be with no AC like back in the day, ha-ha, folks might actually come outdoors again. But no, I’d not want to give up air conditioning completely just yet). I did find it easy to get rid of cable and rediscovered reading. Anyway, how can it not be healthier mentally and physically to get up and move around whenever you can no matter what your age?

By: Is the Computer the New TV? - SavingAdvice.com Blog

Is the Computer the New TV? - SavingAdvice.com Blog — Thu, 17 Sep 2009 07:03:01 +0000

[...] week, I wrote an article about my desire to do away with my television. I was pleasantly surprised by most of the responses. It seems that many of my readers are not TV [...]

By: Gail

Gail — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 23:11:53 +0000

I’ve actually found that as I have limited my TV viewing (we only have access to videos and DVDs, no cable or antennae, etc)I’m not get one thing done. I’m not getting my hand stitching done. I used to do a lot of it while watching TV but without the TV to watching, I’m reading more or going off to the sewing room to actually sew. I’ve just never liked to do hand embroidery, etc. in a room without something on TV.

By: minny

minny — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 12:02:31 +0000

We have a TV in the living room, but I dearly love to have a TV in the kitchen. I cook from scratch, make bread and do lots or preserving and making. All the chopping and stirring is much easier if the TV is burbling away in the background.

Never had a TV in the bedroom. My children never did either and now as adults they don’t. If someone is ill and in bed then it’s different and the kitchen TV gets put in there. If it is not me ill, I then chop, peel and stir to the radio!

By: Free Your Mind

Free Your Mind — Tue, 15 Sep 2009 02:34:14 +0000

Yes… things that used to be luxuries are now made out to be necessities. This is due to propaganda, and people are getting rich from it.

Most people nowadays wouldn’t last 3 seconds in society 30-20 years ago (maybe 10).

Reading is a beautiful thing. Family time is a beautiful thing.

Electromagnetic Chaos is not.

A lot of people would be much healthier and more financially sound if they would return to the ways of the old school.

By: Wicklow wench

Wicklow wench — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 19:03:32 +0000

I belong to that 1 per cent of the population have no TV!
We have not had one for over ten years now and do very nicely without it. We do have broadband, and a DVD player – but no connection to either terrestrial or satellite entertainment. Our kids have never known a TV in the house – but are well able to catch up on YouTube with their friends’ current obsessions.
As a result, we have no subscription bills, a great library, our kids read loads, and we are avid scrabble, crossword and monopoly addicts.

And after reading through the comments – I realise I suffer very little ‘pester power ‘ from my pre-teen children as they are not seeing ads on a regular basis.

To be quite honest – I find television very annoying now when I am in other peoples houses….