So if you don't listen to "All Things Considered" on NPR, every Thursday the show runs letters written in by listeners. One particular guy basically said, in reaction to the covering of the Writers Guild Strike: "Who cares? God forbid people who work for TV don't get paid and god forbid new shows stop coming on. Maybe then people will start to READ, or for once families will stop watching TV and START SPENDING TIME TOGETHER."
Are we still on this? I thought that the "evils of TV" thing was so 1980's. I was under the impression that we'd made peace with how much TV we watch for two reasons: a.) it's not as frightening as all the drugs and sex the teenagers are having and b.) TV is awesome. "The Wire"? "Project Runway"? It would be concerning if everyone sat around for 18 hours a day watching "I Dream of Genie" or "The View", but can you blame anyone for wanting to watch all the good stuff that's on?
Don't get me wrong. I "read." I even do it for fun. But I don't get what that guy thought was so much better about books. Books can drive families apart just as easily as TV can. Who hasn't come to their father for a heart-to-heart chat only to be interrupted with "GO AWAY: I'M READING," either said verbally or embroidered on a throw pillow?
Anyway, my point is that if you need an annoying, holier-than-thou stance to take, just update yourself and get over the "Kill Your TV" thing. And don't go with "Bush stole the election" because we're on to other stuff as well. I recommend something involving smoking, cell phones, foie gras or even the Internet. Leave TV alone. Or, in a cruel twist of irony, it will rise up and kill you.