The average US household has more TVs than people. Half of US homes have three or more sets, while only 19% have one television. The article didn't even bother listing a percentage of homes with no TV at all. The "average household" (which consists of 2.55 people) has one of their 2.73 TVs on for more than 8 hours a day. Individual people are watching more than 4 hours a day. While I believe the statistics, I have to wonder -- just what the hell are all these people watching? There are a few standouts in the TV lineup, but I'd rate most of the content somewhere between banal and craptacular. Even when I want to watch TV, it is difficult finding something on that is worth watching.
We're in that small minority of people who only have one TV, and that suits us just fine. We only have the one TV, but we have four computers. You have to have your priorities straight. I think music (or silence) makes a better sonic background than some inane sitcom rerun you've seen six times before, or some vacuous airbag of a news anchor sensationalizing some insignificant tidbit of a soundbite. Instead of using the tube to lull/dull yourself to sleep every night, try opening a window and listening to the crickets sometime. You might like it.
4 comments:
Hurray to you! I completely agree. We have three TVs (the main one and each in my children's bedroom), BUT there's not one in my room (by choice) and the kids can't watch TV at night. They can read a book if they're bored and guess what? They DO!
I think if people watched less TV, they'd read more. I think reading should be a priority in anyone's life. Except for Smallville. Gotta have my Smallville fix. Haha.
The mrs. and I have only one TV out in the living room. For a while we didn't have cable, but we still watched. I think it would be easier if we didn't have one at all. Then we would read more and write more.
I grew up having a 13 inch B&W TV, and we had to ask permission before watching it. There was no watching it every night. I read about 6 books a week.
Now I live alone, and I have two TVs. I watch entirely too much television. I read about a book a month, but I listen to two or three a month in my car.
It takes me about a month to get through a book also (as you can see from how long they stay up in my sidebar). I'm not sure why I don't have more time to read. I don't watch much TV. The computer is one of the distractions, as is meal preparation, and crossword puzzles and/or sudoku puzzles. Plus playing with the cats, doing stuff in the yard, going out to the pub, etc.. I don't know how people with kids keep up with everything...
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