I will always remember the first reaction I got from someone when they found out I had no TV, it was a co-worker about 6 years ago… he was gobsmacked and blurted, “but where does your sofa point to?!”
For your information, it points towards other seats, so that when people are sat in them they can talk to each other instead of staring at a screen, ignoring each other and stuffing their faces mindlessly. Some of them point towards windows to look out of, other’s are cosy corners to read in, fancy that.
Since that first reaction, there has been a whole flurry of bewilderment from those learning about my lack of television, each one even sillier than the last. It got me thinking how people have become so attached to these electronic noise boxes, they can’t even imagine a room without one in it.
Sometimes I ask about the fastidious fascination with this device, only to receive replies like, “Oh I don’t even watch it, I just put it on for background noise.” Or, “I use it to switch my brain off after a hard day.” Amongst other answers as to why people don’t just get rid of their tellies… not one of them really making any sense to me.
I can’t think of anything worse than subconsciously taking in any of the marketing and propaganda on television. Let alone actually choosing to turn your brain into mush with the mind-numbing programmes, disasters and fake news and adverts upon adverts. This big black hole of woe that takes up a whole wall, or is present in every single room of some people’s houses isn’t much better when it’s off either.
Aside from all the studies stacking up that warn of the health implications TVs and screens have on our bodies. It really is one of the easiest ways to control the population, to solicit a reaction, or cause a distraction. The only way to start to free yourself from this madness is to #killyourTV (and quick, before it kills you).
It’s honestly one of the easiest and most liberating things to do to resist the folly we are witnessing all around us. Without a TV one finds a number of other passions to spend their spare time on. Why not start something you always wanted to do instead of staring blankly at flashing images and people screaming at each other?