Congress and Digital Dysfunction

Yahoo news reports the "Senate OKs 4-month delay to digital TV changeover". Look up in the sky. It's a bird! It's a plane! No . . . it's Big Nanny!

"The Senate on Monday voted unanimously to postpone the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting by four months".

Democrats, including the Obama administration,

"have been pushing for a delay amid growing concerns that too many Americans won't be ready for the currently scheduled Feb. 17 changeover."

Too many is defined as an estimated:

"6.5 million U.S. households that rely on analog television sets to pick up over-the-air broadcast signals".

These households:

"could see their TV sets go dark next month if the transition is not postponed."

Whoa! You can't be serious. Congress has "growing concerns" about this? Why?

Congress, rightly or wrongly, mandated the change to digital in 2005. This has been advertised for how long? Every time I turn on PBS, I hear another public service announcement. Congress even authorized a $40 unconstitutional subsidy to motivate Americans.

If people haven't gotten off their butts by now what makes one think another four months will make a difference. Remember, 6.5 million is just 2.1% of the U.S. population. But as Gene Kimmelman, vice president for federal policy at Consumers Union (which publishes Consumers Report), reminds us that:

"millions of Americans — particularly low-income and elderly viewers — will pay the price because 'the government has failed to deliver the converter boxes these people deserve just to keep watching free, over-the-air broadcast signals.'"(emphasis mine)

There you have it. It is the governments responsibility. These people deserve - it is there right as Americans - to keep watching free TV.

Here's a thought. Since it's the governments responsibility to satisfy everyone's "I want my FreeTV!" tantrum, perhaps Congress should authorize, along with its nearly trillion dollar fraud of taxpayers - I mean stimulus package, a government employee to go into every single household and personally verify that the household does not have the dreaded - Digital Dysfunction (DD).

If a household does have DD, the government can rectify the problem on the spot. That way all those lazy couch potatoes can rest comfortably on their ever expanding backsides while keeping their thumb muscle limber and fit.

Or maybe Congress should mind their Constitutional-mandated business and quit trying to save Americans from stupid little "hardships". My guess is that if 6.5 million people's TV sets go dark on Feb. 17th that they will resolve it if they want.

And if they don't, they may just find out that what they thought they might miss wasn't all that important anyway.

Maybe Digital Dysfunction isn't something to be ashamed of.