TV license

[Lord 342]

Public broadcasting is a joke. I did some volunteering with what we have here called an "Access Cable Channel"; a channel set up so that people can make and air their own programming. It is supposed to be educational, etc. It is useless. The programming is utter shite and the people couldn't be arsed to learn how to do anything properly so even though they're using $5,000 professional gear the stuff still looks like it was shot with a 1985-vintage Vidicon camera on the "low-light" setting hand-held by a 14-year-old after 4 Adderalls*.
The "PBS" stations also are pretty much a joke; claiming that they have no commercials yet interrupting the most interesting/entertaining shows to beg for money, then offer to sell you the complete program for an inflated price without the incredibly long donation speeches. At least some adverts are funny, and they don't last long.
The idea of the TV tax is draconian and bizarre; I wonder how many people pay it. Honestly I was surprised it was still around, and that countries other than the surveillance-happy (highest percentage of CCTV Per Capita) UK have it.

*Adderall is a perperation of mixed amphetamine salts used to treat ADD and as a general stimulant; sort of a super "pep pill". It is often in aeroplane emergency kits in case the pilot begins to fall asleep. I realized that prescription drugs often have vastly different names in foreign countries.

 

[JR Jansen]

we have "kijk & luister geld", or look & listen money/tax.

it's a rather small amount of money each year for maintaining the public channels. i dont really mind it. there's a lot of public tv and radio, and quality is acceptable.

Over here (Belgium) they abolished that tax (kijk- en luistergeld) a few years ago. Reason. Becaus they thought it was, as The overseeer said, a 'relic of older times' and because it was an 'unfair' tax. The reasoning behind the latter was that, allthough it wasn't a big amount of money, those with a high income had to pay the same as those with a low income. Instead of revising the tax for different income brackets, they found it simpeler to abolish it alltogether.

 

[SuAside]

Over here (Belgium) they abolished that tax (kijk- en luistergeld) a few years ago. Reason. Becaus they thought it was, as The overseeer said, a 'relic of older times' and because it was an 'unfair' tax. The reasoning behind the latter was that, allthough it wasn't a big amount of money, those with a high income had to pay the same as those with a low income. Instead of revising the tax for different income brackets, they found it simpeler to abolish it alltogether.

lol, didn't even know that.

appearantly it was indeed scrapped a few years ago. it didn't bother me none when we still had it though.