Bronxites Have an Alternative to Cablevision!

No, we're not reporting that another less-evil corporation has started providing cable tv services in the Bronx (except for Verizon Fios in very limited areas)...we're talking about cutting out cable all together.

In this morning's Round'em Up, we lamented the fact that Cablevision has an unfair monopoly in the Bronx. Well, one BD Reader got quite fired up and sent in the below missive about Bronxites' alternatives to Cablevision - just quitting cable completely. Our feisty BD Reader makes some great points and also offers what services he/she utilizes with regards to phone and internet.

Break the cable cycle!

Tell those greedy suckers to suck it!!! I hate cable and how it rips people of consistently!

We use Verizon internet - 31.99 a month and it seems fast enough -- the speed really depends on how fast your computer goes. We then use Vonage for our phone system ($25). We save like $50 a month not having cable -- we had the triple play for one blissful year of my life -- oh my god -- my eyeballs were about to rot out from all the TV watching! and then they raised the price and I was like screw this!!! I tried to bargain with them (why would I pay more when I can go elsewhere?) and then it finally dawned on me that people are addicted to cable like crack. I swear people will let their house go into default and eat food out of cans rather than cut off their cable and use the money for healthy things in life. So just say "no" and hook up to your coop's antenna. You are so lucky they provide an antenna. So many coops make you buy cable! Grrr!

I get so mad to because the Bronx is one of the poorest counties in the country and we are bitching about living wages and not allowing biz to come in to employ the residents, but no one will stand up to the ridiculous biz practices that rip off residents. Cablevision is a rip off with its mono. Plus, you are paying for commercials. Who ever came up with the biz model is a genius. Let's sell people crappy tv shows on top of making advertisers pay us to play ads on those stations. I know it employs people and provides them with a living wage, but I think we should tax the F*&^ out of cable services and use the tax revenue for our parks and community centers. I really just want people to stop paying money to the cable companies. You can watch most shows on hulu and online. Grrr!

Anyways, the cable guy who comes around our neighborhood door to door is my buddy and I even talked to him about how lame life is when you are addicted to that crap. He was confessing that he goes home and just zonks out in front of the TV. I gave him some sympathy since that was in the middle of winter and what are you suppose to do? It was fine if he enjoyed the TV shows, but he like "nah, some shit is so useless." He really sounded depressed. But anyways, he told me that HGTV and the Food Network's contract was up with them and the stations were demanding a 300% increase in their fees. He said it was unfair, but it sounds like regular biz practices to me. I mean ask as much as you can for your services when you are at the height of your popularity. The networks were not doing anything wrong - Cablevision has to pony up -- which I think they just came to a compromise in the fees. C'mon, isn't it genius that ABC is raising their rates right before the Oscars so cablevision is the goof in the situation?!?!

Viva la network tv stations!

--BD Reader

Thanks BD Reader! Here's hoping the info you've provided will be enough to give the BoogieDowner household the power we need to wean ourselves off the crack-like euphoria we experience whilst watching the catfights of the Real Housewives series, or the boardwalk brawls the classy kids of Jersey Shore fame provided us with this winter.

~ErLu