Free digital boxes for everyone!

[Deathcricket]

http://www.week.com/about/hdtvfaq/17863519.html

Area retailers are now accepting the federal government coupon for a digital converter box.

The coupon looks like a gift card and is worth forty dollars towards the purchase of a converter box.
The box will be needed for television sets using an antenna to get over the air broadcast signals.
In February 2009, stations like WEEK will be turning off their analogue signal and broadcasting only in digital.
The old analogue TV's need will need a converter box to decode the new digital signal.

"Just come into a store that sells these and we'll swipe your coupon like a gift card and then you'll have to pay the difference with cash or credit," said Jon Hopkins, a video and audio specialist at American Furniture-Electonics-Appliances.

Digital converter boxes start at $49.99.

You can apply for up to two government coupons at week.com

[Deathcricket]

/flame on

I'm just gonna go out on limb here and voice my opinion. This is the stupidest idea I've heard of today. It's TV, not something people need, this is entertainment. Why don't we buy everyone a TV also? Yet another waste of our tax dollars, helping lazy (and probably poor) people sit on their ass.

Tell me why I'm wrong?

/flame off

[rockgremlin]

/flame on

I'm just gonna go out on limb here and voice my opinion. This is the stupidest idea I've heard of today. It's TV, not something people need, this is entertainment. Why don't we buy everyone a TV also? Yet another waste of our tax dollars, helping lazy (and probably poor) people sit on their ass.

Tell me why I'm wrong?

/flame off

he's got a point there...

[Skylinerider]

/flame on

I'm just gonna go out on limb here and voice my opinion. This is the stupidest idea I've heard of today. It's TV, not something people need, this is entertainment. Why don't we buy everyone a TV also? Yet another waste of our tax dollars, helping lazy (and probably poor) people sit on their ass.

Tell me why I'm wrong?

/flame off

Because most emergency information is broadcast on Television. that's why you are wrong.

[Iceaxe]

I got two of the $40 cards sitting here on my desk right now.... I was going to use them for the TV's in my kids rooms.... but then I thought WTF.... just buy the kids new ones next year for Christmas. How wants anther box sitting on top of there TV set. New TV's for the kids rooms are only $125 with a DVD player built in.... You can buy a new TV at walmart with the ATSC tuner built in for under $100.

If the government was smart they would have sent out $40 coupons good for a converter box.... OR.... $40 off the purchase of a new TV.... that would have been money better spent and poured more cash back into the economy.

[Deathcricket]

Because most emergency information is broadcast on Television. that's why you are wrong.

Radio?

I was thinking about it after I posted and your statement is about the only good (if there was one) reason I could fathom also. I just don't like my taxes being used for crap like this. :(

It feels like socialism to me. Perhaps that's a bit strong of a statement, I may have to retract it later.

If the government was smart

[ericchile]

I got two of the $40 cards sitting here on my desk right now.... I was going to use them for the TV's in my kids rooms.... but then I thought WTF.... just buy the kids new ones next year for Christmas. How wants anther box sitting on top of there TV set. New TV's for the kids rooms are only $125 with a DVD player built in.... You can buy a new TV at walmart with the ATSC tuner built in for under $100.

If the government was smart they would have sent out $40 coupons good for a converter box.... OR.... $40 off the purchase of a new TV.... that would have been money better spent and poured more cash back into the economy.

Yea the only ones benefiting from this is large retailers like walmart... Once all these coupons run out or expire watch that 49.00 box go down to 19.00 or nothing because no one will be buying them.

[DiscGo]

/flame on

I'm just gonna go out on limb here and voice my opinion. This is the stupidest idea I've heard of today. It's TV, not something people need, this is entertainment. Why don't we buy everyone a TV also? Yet another waste of our tax dollars, helping lazy (and probably poor) people sit on their ass.

Tell me why I'm wrong?

/flame off

First of all, you are not wrong. You are spot on! But I will attempt to answer this anyway. The government wants the people to have television. They can control the information to the masses. Through TV we can find out why it is that we do not need all of the freedoms we have had, and why it is patriotic to give them up.



When you consider that over half of our income goes to taxes, it is a joke to consider that we are getting rebates. They should just tax everybody 40 dollars less for the year.

You may make the argument that taxing everybody 40 dollars less for the year would cost the Government a lot more because not everybody is going to use one of these coupons, but I would just make the argument that we are still ridiculously over taxed.

[sparker1]

I think the government wants to help those people who lose an existing service due solely to the government's requirement to eliminate analog over the air TV signals. Otherwise, lots of people will complain about having to pay just because of a lousy government decision. For example, I have two analog TV's in my motorhome and can't rely on cable due to frequent moves. I would not be happy to pay $100 just to let the government re-use those frequencies. The coupons make sense to me, so thanks for your tax dollars.