Fox TV vs. Brighthouse Networks for Cash - SLB to Me!

There is an ongoing battle of the wills between Fox Television and cable provider Brighthouse Networks over customers, also known as CASH! Fox wants a sum of money per customer for the signal they provide to Brighthouse. Basically, they want a piece of the cable carriers pie. Television spots by Fox have painted a negative picture of Brighthouse saying that they will be no longer carrying the Fox programming as of today, as a matter of fact, and that Fox viewers on BH will be denied American Idol, college football games, House, etc. How awful of BH to do that to it's customers. How awful indeed that in order for customers to receive the signals in the first place BH must run cable, provide hardware and support just to name but a few. Fox, on the other hand, has to provide a signal to BH for them to broadcast to their customers. Sounds pretty simple and logical to me. Now my question is this. Why should BH pay them a damned penny for programming that's being paid for by advertising dollars to Fox already. Wouldn't that be like having to pay $1 at the pump each time for the ability to pump gas into your car to the government and then pay the tax that's already on the gas? That, to me, sounds like a WIN, WIN situation for Fox if they can pull that one off. One the other hand I have a solution to the whole problem.

My solution is this. Brighthouse will pay the requested fee to Fox for the signal that they pass along to their cable subscribers AND Fox will pay Brighthouse a percentage of the advertising revenue for the shows that they broadcast to the customers would would never see the ads without BH getting the signal to them! If this is not amenable to Fox there is another way they can .....wait a second. I'm sorry, this section is for the companies that advertise on Fox. They need to calculate the percentage of viewers that will NOT get the signal if Brighthouse does not relent and DEDUCT it from their advertising expense since they will be reaching far fewer viewers than before. Will this make Fox Television happy? Who gives a damn what makes them happy, it's all just plain old greed. Maybe someone is trying to regain lost capital to Bernie Madoff by requiring the end-user(the viewer) to pay the bill for stupidity. I don't know and I don't care because I use DirecTV and it doesn't effect me at all. I do, however, sympathize with the cable customers caught up in the greed of Fox.

My final thoughts on this are something that I haven't heard anyone mention yet. If Brighthouse agrees to make a payment to Fox they will be forced out of business and cable service will become too expensive to acquire for home viewers. Why is this? Simple, why shouldn't CNN, ABC, NBC, CBS, BBC America, Logo, HGTV .....the list goes on and on, get their piece of the pie that Fox required for them? If I ran one of those networks I'd be sure as hell up there demanding my cut if Fox is getting one. Fox is no better or entertaining than any other network so it should be equal across the board or nothing at all. I formally bestow upon Fox Television the first ever on this blog, the SLB Award! Cheers mates! Hope you enjoy the negative notoriety your getting for your 'poor us' stories on your news programs.

Satellite Kicks Cable to the Curb!

Satellite TV has mushroomed out as the premier method of obtaining clean digital signals for today's high end televisions and business waiting/service areas. With the huge selection of digital offerings it's rather hard to resist! I've had DirecTV in my house since 2002 and haven't looked back to cable since and my tax accountant even has Directv Business in her waiting area. Talk about breaking up a dull appointment! The reason I switched in the first place was that when the summer heat in Florida finally broke for the cooler nights of late fall I'd have to call the cable company to come tighten the coax cable in the street because, as the technician said "with the heat all summer and now that it's getting colder the wires are tightening up and the connection gets loose due to the contraction of the metal". What? I lived in Massachusetts and never had that happen, but never had the Florida heat either.

My dentist has satellite in the exam/treatment rooms and that's one of the reasons I go see her for my teeth. That and she's a very good dentist. She used to have the local cable company which had the same shows on all the time. It got to the point that the only thing worth watching was the news. I do find the distraction a plus as I don't think about the procedures as much because I can always find a show that interests me on the sat programming. The Direct TV for Business is a smart idea for business owners who have customers that get bored easily and appreciate a good attention getter that meets their interests. I know the Residential DirecTV, like I have, is partnered very well with the Commercial DirecTV and is seem-less to the viewer. I know there have been incentives for Direct TV Business customers in the past and it may be worth checking into so you can save some cash and please your customers with a wide selection of digital programming. To complete the digital experience that satellite provides I would suggest making sure that the appropriate television be used to get the best from the best. Today's prices are very reasonable for digital monitors, unlike a few years back when it was state of the art, today it's standard.
I've inserted several links for you to explore at your leisure to find out how DirecTV and satellite can help your business and please your customers and patients!

Service vs. Excellent Service

Today reaffirmed my decision 6 years ago to drop cable and go satellite for my television watching. With the cable I was calling at least 2 to 3 times a year with reception and cabling issues that never seemed to be permanently corrected. I took a gamble and dropped Brighthouse Networks and opted in to Directv. I never had satellite and didn't know anyone at the time who did have it, except for the C Band, big backyard dish, receivers. Those kicked butt in the day. The past few days I have had a problem with one receiver. It seemed that the signal would go from good to bad to good, etc, etc. I called the number at DirecTV and got a tech person who set up an appointment for the next day between 12 and 4 p.m.! Specifically between 12 and 4, not before and not after, they would be there. I got a call at 2 p.m. that he was on the way and he was there in 10 mins. So far, so good! He looked at my dish and knew he needed to replace the LNB module and went in the house and said I needed a new receiver, which he had with him. He replaced the LNB and set up the new receiver in under a half hour. Fantastic! Total cost to me? Not a blessed thing because the equipment was covered due to defect.

I'm finding that the programming I'm getting with the Direct TV is actually cheaper than with the cable service and every channel is digital, not just certain ones. Yes, I know everything is digital now, but I was digital with the satellite before it was required to be digital. The technician even set up my vcr that hasn't worked right in a long, long time for nothing. Who does something for nothing these days? Not too many, unless they work for a charity or something. I'm just very happy with the service and programming I get from the DirectTV provider and I didn't mind adding HBO to my service for a few months while my mother-in-law is visiting us. Dollar for dollar I like the picture quality of basic satellite over basic cable, it's quite noticeable and the price was cheaper than the cable service. No brainer! Today was a day when I got Excellent Service for my television subscription.

Swiss Court Approves Bail for Child Molester After Conviction!

Polanski wins bail in Switzerland, stays in jail
Nov. 25, 2009, 10:28 AM EST

GENEVA (AP) -- A Swiss court granted Roman Polanski bail on Wednesday, accepting $4.5 million to allow him to remain under house arrest at his chalet. The director will stay in prison for up to 10 days while the Swiss government decides whether to appeal.

The Swiss Criminal Court reversed its previous rejection of bail, saying it was confident the large cash guarantee would compel Polanski to remain at his chalet in the Swiss resort of Gstaad under house arrest and monitored by an electronic bracelet.

The court said it still viewed him as a high flight risk.

The verdict does not affect the Swiss Justice Ministry's ongoing assessment of whether Polanski should be extradited to the United States for having sex in 1977 with a 13-year-old girl. Polanski fled sentencing in Los Angeles a year later.

"The 76-year-old appellant is married and the father of two minors," the court said as it considered Polanski's offer of a cash bail secured by his apartment in Paris. "It can be assumed that as a responsible father he will, especially in view of his advanced age, attach greater importance to the financial security of his family than a younger person."

The court said Polanski would be subjected to "constant electronic surveillance" at his chalet and an alarm would be activated if he leaves the premises or takes off the bracelet.

But Polanski wasn't immediately released by the Swiss Justice Ministry, which ordered him arrested Sept. 26 as he arrived in Zurich to receive a lifetime achievement award at a film festival.

Reprinted from: MSN Movie News 25 Nov. 2009.

Redneck Philosophy by Jeff Foxworthy

You know you’re a redneck when:
1. You take your dog for a walk and you both use the same tree.
2. You can entertain yourself for more than 15 minutes with a fly swatter.
3. Your boat has not left the driveway in 15 years.
4. You burn your yard rather than mow it.
5. You think “The Nutcracker” is a vice on the work bench.
6. The Salvation Army declines your furniture.
7. You offer to give someone the shirt off your back and they don’t want it.
8. You have the local taxidermist on speed dial.
9. You come back from the dump with more than you took.
10. You keep a can of Raid on the kitchen table.
11. Your wife can climb a tree faster than your cat.
12. Your grandmother has “ammo” on her Christmas list.
13. You keep flea and tick soap in the shower.
14. You’ve been involved in a custody fight over a hunting dog.
15. You go to the stock car races and don’t need a program.
16. You know how many bales of hay your car will hold.
17. You have a rag for a gas cap.
18. Your house doesn’t have curtains, but your truck does.
19. You wonder how service stations keep their rest-room’s so clean ?
20. You can spit without opening your mouth.
21. You consider your license plate personalized because your father made it.
22. Your lifetime goal is to own a fireworks stand.
23. You have a complete set of salad bowls and they all say “Cool Whip” on the side.
24. The biggest city you’ve ever been to is Wal-Mart.
25. Your working TV sits on top of your non-working TV
26. You’ve used your ironing board as a buffet table.
27. A tornado hits your neighborhood and does $100,000 worth of improvements.
28. You’ve used a toilet brush to scratch your back.
29. You missed your 5th grade graduation because you were on jury duty.
30. You think fast food is hitting a deer at 65.


Reprinted from The Superficial Gallery at this link. Excellent website that's worth a visit or two or three or so!

Who Can Name This Character From Boston TV? Boomers?

Why it's FEEP!

Sago Palm White Spots

I'm writing this article only because there are still people destroying their Sago palms because they think they're dying of white spot disease. I saw one person a couple of streets away rip out a once large, beautiful Sago because the plant died due to white spot.

What is Sago palm white spot? It's cycad aulacaspis scale infestation(also known as Asian cycad scale and sago palm scale), which is a pest not a disease. Originally from Southern Texas it has migrated to northerly regions that can sustain a Sago in the winter months. The Sago, contrary to popular belief, is not a palm but a cycad.

Wikipedia defines Cycad as: Cycads are a group of seed plants characterized by a large crown of compound leaves and a stout trunk. They are evergreen, gymnospermous, dioecious plants having large pinnately compound leaves.

Left untreated the scale pest can destroy a Sago in as little time as a month. The white scale pots are unmistakable as they look like severe dandruff in the middle of the plant, spreading out onto the green of the branches. Essentially, the scale sucks the life out of the plant until it's no longer able to sustain it's life anymore.

Treatment options are many. Ones that actually work, few! Various schools and extensions recommend herbicidal sprays and oils, even pressure washing the plant to dislodge the scale. I don't know about you but getting hit with the spray of a pressure washer hurts me so what will it do to the slender shoots of the plant? There is an alternative that I found on ONE post on the Internet that actually worked! It didn't cost and arm and a leg and it's easily found in any stores pet department that sells Hartz Mountain products.

Hartz Ultra Guard Plus Flea & Tick HOME Spray. I must be specific here because there are 2 kinds of this spray, one that will work and one that won't. The one for the dogs will burn the plant, evidently it's stronger. You MUST get the one for the Home, not the pet! Last year my Sago was so white I thought I'd have to dig it up to prevent it from spreading but I surfed first and found this spray. I applied 2 treatments a day apart when it would be dry outside, not rainy. I still have that Sago in the yard and I treated it today due to new white spot popping up. The end of the week the plant will be all green, no white left. I've used it and it works and the spray bottle will last you several seasons and is not expensive. Sago's aren't cheap and if you want to keep yours alive this is an economical way to do it that won't hurt the plant. See photo below for product description.