RARE PHOTO OF A REMOTE CONTROL FROM THE 70'S

 

LACK OF RELIABLE SERVICE FROM COMCAST /XFINITY SUCKS 12FEB19

MY post on comcast's & xfinity's facebook pages, and I keep posting them as replies to anyone who is suffering from the lack of service from comcast / xfinity.

‎Karl Slatts‎ to Xfinity

January 27 at 1:11 PM · 

Switching to comcast / xfinity is one of the worst decisions I have ever made. I have been a customer for about 4 months and have had to make literally dozens of phone calls to comcast / xfinity "customer service" and "technical service" and have had "techs" to my home 4 times and still when I turn on my TV too often get NO SIGNAL. The last time was Friday, 25 JAN 19. I am still waiting for the "supervisor" I spoke to, Tranetha, to call me back with information when the issues she said they are aware of will be fixed. It is also an ongoing battle to get credits on my bill for service not provided. And their "internet service" is nothing like what it is supposed to be. I have been and will keep telling people not to switch their service to comcast / xfinity.

Karl Slatts Karl Slatts
Today at 10:37 AM
I SUGGEST everyone with comcast/xfinity log in to their account, go to view help & support, go down the page to account & billing support, then down to talk to an agent to get a call. Once you have them on the line make the billing department aware of the issues you have with xfinitie's/comcast's lack of service and demand a credit on your bill. You must call them every day you have a problem with their tv and/or internet "service" and be sure to let them know the problem has been going on for over an hour to get a credit for the day. I just got off the phone with them and have a credit for 26 days of outage from 8 JAN to 12 FEB for a credit of $77, my last bill I got a credit of $95. I also reported problems the past 2 days and have a tech scheduled to come to my home for the 5th time this Friday as they still are not able to provide the service they sell. Switching to xfinity/comcast is the worst consumer decision I have ever made. MAKE them pay for their lack of service!

HOW TO LIVE GREENER from the NRDC 1JAN16

WE all want to do better environmentally, here are some realistic suggestions from the +NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council) , on of the premier environmental action organizations in the U.S. Few of us can do all of these things, location and personal economics are factors that have to be considered, but there are things here that some of us can do, and some will save us money and improve our personal health. 


And there is much indeed to be happy about this year! Thanks to the generous support of NRDC members, activists and supporters like you, NRDC is going into 2016 well prepared for the tough environmental fights we face on the road to a sustainable future.

Like many of you, I suspect, the New Year always makes me think about the things I'd like to do better. This year, after our incredible successes at the Paris Climate Talks, I am thinking in particular about what I can do—personally—to reduce my impact on the planet.

Conveniently, I work for a place that has all the expertise I need to make that ambition a reality. I asked our conservation experts to give me some tips to share with you on how to live greener, and they came back with these seven great ideas below covering everything from food waste to fuel economy.

One of the most important things we learned in Paris was that even seemingly small decisions—from towns, communities, neighborhoods or even ourselves—can have a huge impact for the environment. Building the healthy, clean future our families deserve begins with the smart decisions we make right now.

I hope you'll join me in dedicating 2016 to bold conservation action and another year of resounding environmental victories. With you on our side, we can't lose.

Sincerely,

Rhea Suh
President, NRDC

---

Dana Gunders Senior Scientist and author of the Waste Free Kitchen Handbook Clean Your Kitchen In the U.S., 40% of the food we produce gets thrown away—a huge waste of energy, land, water ... and money. Addressing the problem can begin right in our own kitchens. If your kitchen is cluttered, chances are you can't find food, which means that it will probably go uneaten. Remedying the situation is easy. Begin by donating foods that you never touch to a local pantry, clean out your fridge, and kick off the year with a clean kitchen that you're inspired to use. When it comes to food, remember: Eat it, share it, just don't waste it!

 

Lena Brook Food Policy Advocate Say No to Antibiotics in Your Meat The meat industry's chronic overuse of antibiotics creates an environment that can cause drug-resistant bacteria to multiply—and that poses a threat to us all. But thanks to the growing demand for responsibly produced meat, we're now seeing significant improvements in antibiotics stewardship. Keep the drumbeat going in 2016 by buying products with the USDA Certified Organic, USDA Process Verified Never Ever 3, or Animal Welfare Approved labels. These third-party certified products come from farms where routine use of antibiotics is prohibited. If you don't see these options, ask the grocery store to carry them.

 

Luke Tonachel Senior Analyst and Director, Clean Vehicles and Fuels Project Need a New Car? Go Greener Low gas prices may save us money at the pump today, but banking on this trend to last is bad news for your wallet—and the earth's climate. If you're in the market for a new car this year, look for the highest fuel economy car that meets your needs. Of course, the cleanest vehicles are the ones that don't burn gas at all, and plug-in electric vehicles are a best bet for fuel efficiency. But any way you look at it, cutting fuel use reduces carbon pollution and protects the planet today and tomorrow.

 

Noah Horowitz Senior Scientist Cut Your TV's Electric Demands The typical American "TV ecosystem"—two big screen TVs with attached cable boxes and game console—consumes as much electricity as one or two new refrigerators. But it doesn't have to be that way. Disabling your TV's automatic brightness control (ABC) feature can reduce energy use by 50%. Turning off its quick start feature can lower electricity consumption by another 10 to 25W. And using the automatic power down feature on your video game console will save even more money. These easy steps will shrink your carbon footprint, lessening your household's climate impact.

 

Erik Olson Director, Health & Environment Program and Senior Strategic Director, Food & Health Eat a Little Less Meat Our food choices can have a real impact on our environmental footprint. To protect your health and the environment, start by eating less red and processed meat. If all Americans cut just 1/4 pound of beef out of their diets each week, the reduction in carbon emissions would be enormous—about the same as taking 4 to 6 million cars off the road—and helping to blunt the worst effects of climate change.

 

Mark Izeman Director, New York Urban Program Get Outside! We take care of what we love, so falling in love with nature is a great first step toward protecting wildlife, wild places and the environment. Plan a hike or even a vacation to a National Park, a State Park or a National Forest. In New York, where I work, residents live close to some incredible parks—some of my favorites being the Palisades Interstate Park, the Catskill Park and the Minnewaska State Park Preserve. Begin in your own backyard, with a stroll to the nearest park or community garden. Either way, take friends and family. Getting people outside is a great way to open their eyes to the natural world and build public support for conservation efforts.

 

Sylvia Fallon Director, Wildlife Conservation Project, Land & Wildlife Program Make Your Backyard a Butterfly's Delight Monarch butterfly populations are in precipitous decline. Why? In large part because industrial agriculture is killing off the native milkweed plants on which monarchs depend for food. You can help create a safe corridor for monarchs and sustain them on their journey by planting local, native milkweed right in your backyard (literally). And to do even more, avoid using dangerous glyphosate weed killers—like Monsanto's Roundup—and choose alternatives that don't harm the environment.

The mission of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is to safeguard the Earth: its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends.

PASS THE TELEVISION CONSUMER FREEDOM ACT 23MAI13

I don't know anyone who is happy with or approves of their TV provider. I have never heard anyone speak well of them and the "service" they provide. But Sen McCain R AZ has introduced a bill, The Television Consumer Freedom Act, to encourage TV providers to give us TV a la carte! For everyone who bitches about your TV package from your provider, here is a chance to tell your Senators to support this bill and get it passed through Congress. Click the link...

Tired of paying for crappy reality shows like America's Worst Tattoos? Too bad. Right now there's nothing you can do about it. We Need the Freedom to Choose Our Cable Channels. If you want cable channels that carry, say, Major League Baseball games, you have to purchase a cable package that also includes channels like Fuel TV, the low-rated network that features motocross and surfing coverage, and Chiller TV, the channel that's "scary good." Maybe you like motocross, surfing and scary movies. Other people like Lifetime, HBO or VH1 Classic. Yet despite their individual preferences, cable subscribers are forced to buy hundreds of channels in a cable “bundle” to get the few channels they actually want. Does this make any sense? Not to us. Thankfully Sen. John McCain has introduced the Television Consumer Freedom Act,1 a bill that would allow us to pay for cable channels individually, giving us more control over what we choose to buy and watch. Forced bundling is a symptom of our dysfunctional, competition-free cable system in which content providers (ESPN, Fox News, HBO) collude with cable companies (Comcast, Time Warner Cable) to push us into paying for hundreds of channels we don’t want — and to keep our cable and broadband bills climbing higher and higher. Sen. McCain’s bill wouldn’t outlaw bundling. But it would provide incentives for cable companies to offer an “a la carte” option in which consumers would pay only for the channels they want. Save Some Money: Tell Your Senators to Support This Pro-Consumer Bill. As we discussed in our new report,2 our cable bills continue to skyrocket. Since the 2008 recession, the price of expanded basic cable service has increased at three times the rate of inflation. Consumers have complained about this situation for years. And now we can do something about it. Tell Your Senators to Support the Television Consumer Freedom Act. Thanks, Josh, Derek, Amy and the rest of the Free Press Action Fund team www.freepress.net P.S. You can count on the Free Press Action Fund to fight for consumer protections. We don't take money from business, government or political parties and rely on the generosity of people like you to fuel our work. Please consider donating $10 today. Thank you! 1. "Senator McCain Releases New 'a La Carte' Cable Bill," May 9, 2013. http://act.freepress.net/go/14580?t=8&akid=4256.9767049.E1-COE 2. S. Derek Turner, "Combating the Cable Cabal: How to Fix America's Broken Video Market," May 2013.http://act.freepress.net/go/14581?t=10&akid=4256.9767049.E1-COE

The Free Press Action Fund is a nonpartisan organization building a nationwide movement for media that serve the public interest. The Free Press Action Fund does not support or oppose any candidate for public office. Learn more at www.freepress.net.

Where's the Outrage? from HUFFPOST 18AUG11

THIS IS A FANTASTIC COMMENTARY ON HOW STUPID AMERICANS ARE. My job requires me to deal with the public, domestically and internationally, on a daily basis and over the past 10 years I have noticed just how dumb Americans are, especially when compared to people I deal with in other countries. The Americans I have to deal with concerning international matters (my primary job) are the worst, they can't comprehend the international date line, time zones, most of the time have no clue where other countries are and are amazed another countries business laws apply to Americans doing business there. It is pathetic, frustrating and embarrassing. So let's keep cutting the education budget and soon we will be the nation the plutocrats controlling Capital Hill want; docile, dumb drones unaware of what we once were as a nation because it is no longer taught in our schools. 
What explains the ongoing absence of outrage among the general U.S. populace, who watched like lemmings as the truth about the Iraq War came to light, the various absurdities related to the Great Recession unfolded, and continues as the USS America slowly sails toward the edge of an economic abyss? The answer appears to be a combination of political apathy, sheer ignorance, a lack of sophistication, and a high degree of comfort on the part of the average American that shields them from reality.
According to the Federal Election Commission, between 1960 and 2008, national voter turnout has declined from 63 percent to 57 percent for presidential elections, and from 47 percent to 38 percent for midterm elections. Fewer eligible voters are taking an interest in the political process in the United States, which is mystifying given the free flow of information, the transparency of the process, and the stakes involved. Why is that?
Anyone who has watched "Jay Walking" on the The Tonight Show (and knows the difference) must be shocked to see the degree of ignorance among the average person on the street in this country. Rather than being humored by watching how genuinely uninformed people are, I find the exercise pathetic. From the significance of the fourth of July to the identity of Joe Biden, the sad fact is that the average person in this country really has no clue about basic history or who is leading our country. Can it therefore be any surprise that the average person has no idea what is happening in the corridors of power in Washington? Perhaps that is what the politicians are banking on.
A 2009 Harris poll indicated that only 43% of Americans read a newspaper every day. Of the top eight newspapers by circulation in the U.S., number two is USA Today, number five is the San Jose Mercury News, and numbers seven and eight are the Daily News and New York Post -- none being the bastion of sophistication. Nielsen Media Research conducted a ranking of the most watched television programs in the United States between January 1964 and February 2010. Six of the top twelve were sporting events (five of the six being the Super Bowl) and the top two were the finale of M*A*S*H and an episode of Dallas (in 1983 and 1980, respectively). According to Arbitron, the number one radio show in the country based on number of listeners is America's Top 40. According to movieweb.com, all of the top 40 highest grossing films in history in the U.S. have been either science fiction or animation (with the exception of Forrest Gump, at number 23).
How reasonable is it to assume, then, that a person who doesn't read a newspaper on a regular basis, doesn't know the face or name of the Vice President, and prefers science fiction to non-fiction may be expected to know much or care about the political process in this country? The truth is, the average American likes to be entertained; he/she doesn't like or want to know much about 'serious' things, and knows very little about international affairs. According to WikiAnswers, just 27 percent of Americans possess a passport, and the majority of these people use their passports to travel to just three countries: Canada, Mexico, and the UK. So, not only is the general American public not focused on its own politics, it knows virtually nothing about the world, which is quite convenient for those who craft U.S. foreign policy. A public who doesn't know the difference between Austria and Australia isn't very likely to object to dollars spent or actions taken in places they've never heard of nor been to.
The politicians who go on the stump proclaiming to speak on behalf of the American people saying "the American people in their great wisdom want..." don't know what they are talking about, or are deliberately spinning the political process. The truth is, the average American doesn't have much knowledge or wisdom, and simply wants to be left alone and entertained. They have adjusted to the 'new normal' and seem satisfied so long as their daily pleasures remain uninterrupted. So, where is the 'outrage' among the American public? It doesn't exist. If the truth about the Iraq War, being trampled upon by the Great Recession, and heading for economic Armageddon doesn't bring them into the streets, nothing will.
Daniel Wagner is CEO of Country Risk Solutions, a political risk consulting firm based in Connecticut, and author of the forthcoming book Managing Country Risk.

Follow Daniel Wagner on Twitter: www.twitter.com/countryriskmgmt

Caught in the Act & What's Behind Newport TV's Covert Consolidation? 28 &14JUL11

MORE on the campaign to stop media consolidation and the reaction from some of the TV networks caught in the act by FreePress. Check this out and the story about Newport, FL...

Since its launch last month ChangetheChannels.org has been making serious waves.
One broadcaster tried — and failed — to shut down our videos. And activists like you have uncovered more than 20 new cases of covert consolidation in cities across the country!
More emails have been pouring in from others wanting to investigate broadcasters who may be illegally cutting corners on local news in their communities.
The next few months will be crucial as the Federal Communications Commission reviews its media ownership rules. That’s why we need you to continue to shine a light on covert consolidation.
We need to show the FCC exactly how newsroom consolidation undermines independent journalism and harms communities.
Already your efforts have exposed this practice in cities like Burlington, Vt., Knoxville, Tenn. and Montgomery, Ala. (For details check out our growing database at ChangetheChannels.org.)
To make our case we rely on your help. Email me at channels@freepress.net if you’re interested in reporting on abuses, collecting video evidence and telling your own story. Free Press has compiled a Change the Channels Toolkit to help you document covert consolidation, mobilize friends and neighbors and educate lawmakers. You can download the toolkit here: freepress.net/files/ctc_toolkit.pdf
Please join me in exposing covert consolidation and demanding FCC action.
Thanks for all you do.
Libby Reinish
Program Coordinator
Free Press
www.freepress.net

What's Behind Newport TV's Covert Consolidation?

Libby Reinish and Mike Soha, July 14, 2011

When Free Press’s Change The Channels initiative shined an uncomfortable spotlight on Newport TV’s business practices, the company responded with threats and demanded that YouTube take down our video exposing it. In the week since, buzz has been building around how Newport used a baseless copyright threat to try to silence a critic.

The Change The Channels campaign highlights covert consolidation going on in over 80 communities involving 200 stations. It is worth looking into why Newport reacted so strongly to being identified as a covert consolidator. 

Take a look at the Change The Channels covert consolidation map and you’ll see a pattern. Newport has six Shared Services Agreements in place with stations owned by a company called High Plains Broadcasting. Coincidence?  Unlikely.

Here’s how Newport used covert consolidation tactics to maintain control of TV stations it acquired from mega conglomerate Clear Channel Communications. In 2006, Clear Channel announced plans to sell all of its 42 TV stations. Providence Equity Partners, a $22 billion "global private equity firm," created a new company to acquire and manage the Clear Channel stations. That is how Newport Television was born. 

The acquisitions placed Newport in violation of the FCC’s media ownership limits in six media communities. But Newport found a way to maintain control over the stations, notwithstanding the FCC’s rules.

Newport sold the six stations to a newly minted company called High Plains Broadcasting (which, not coincidentally, has a permanent board seat for a representative of Newport’s parent, Providence Equity Partners).  In a simultaneous move, Newport and High Plains entered into Shared Services Agreements for all six stations. This “sell to rent” tactic rendered High Plains essentially a just name on the license, while Newport continues to run the stations by controlling programming and operations.

What’s the result of this scheme? Let’s look at Jacksonville's WAWS and WTEV - the two stations who we featured in our video that so upset Newport.

WAWS (the local Fox affiliate) and WTEV (CBS) share content, a single newsroom and reporting staff. Their main website is a joint operation - www.actionnewsjax.com – where you can see their shared news staff and both logos listed at the top. And while WAWS also has it’s own site, the two websites are nearly identical. The only major difference between them is the color schemes.

So what kind of local news do WAWS and WTEV provide? Looking at the joint ActionNewsJax website for Monday, July 11, their "top stories" were; a 16 pound baby born in Texas, an elderly woman killed, a couple fight over the outcome of the Casey Anthony trial, a house fire, and a story about a man who called 911 after seeing a toddler take a sip of beer. Other featured stories on their site included stories like "World's ugliest dog," "trial begins for girl strangled by python," and a "barking cat video".

The Newport/High Plains deal reduces local media competition and diminishes the quality and quantity of independent and diverse TV news sources in places like Jacksonville. What’s more, Newport and its shell company High Plains Broadcasting have made a killing by consolidating newsrooms and undercutting their service to local communities. That’s why they don’t want us shining a spotlight on what they are up to. 

This summer the FCC has an opportunity to close the covert consolidation loophole that lets companies get away with these types of shady deals. Help us keep up the pressure to end covert consolidation.