patrick.net

Philistine says

Intelligent, creative people tend more and more to have no/fewer children. The implications are staggering.

For more information on this watch Idiocracy.

CaptainShuddup says

Well for what it's worth, I've never ever heard a Republican say anything remotely close to suggesting such oppression.

Hmmmm...Really?

Would you say that the deportation, torture and/or jailing of political opponents would be more oppressive? Because on this very board it is advocated (and not tongue-in-cheek like Dan's "oppressive" comment) by a "Republican" on this thread.

Or if that is not enough for you, how about the wholesale immediate executions of "most" of the people in prison, as advocated by a "Republican" here.

coriacci1 says

just turn the damn thing off! throw it out!
save money!
the biggest joke is that you pay for the privilege to watch that crap, pbs included!
just get rid of the damn idiot box for good.
you don’t need it.
it needs you.
when the digital changeover happened, we just said no thanks.
what a relief to not have the thing blasting drivel shit in the living room anymore!

Moving from one house into another about 3 years ago I warned my children (18, 13, 5) that I was not going to subscribe to any type of television service. Internet, yes, but tv - no.

About a month after moving my then 13 year-old came to me and said "Mom, I don't really miss television." I considered that a victory.

Fast forward 3+ years and my children spend time reading, socializing, being active, and using their imagination. Our lives do not revolve around parking our @sses on the couch at a certain time because we have to numb our minds with some pseudo-celebrity drivel. My children do not come to me begging for the latest doodad featured in a commercial or expecting a party such as shown on My Super Sweet 16. When we want to watch something, one of us will propose a “movie night” and we’ll make a conscious decision to pop some popcorn, gather in the TV room, and hang out while watching an agreed upon movie or a few episodes of a Netflix show.

A much better way of life. And I get to spend the money I save on manicures and massages, woo hoo!

Try it - you'll like it!

exflirt says

When we want to watch something, one of us will propose a “movie night” and we’ll make a conscious decision to pop some popcorn, gather in the TV room, and hang out while watching an agreed upon movie or a few episodes of a Netflix show.

I am curious how often you end up having "movie" nights.

We don't have any TV service either, but usually end up watching plenty of Netflix. The kids maybe about 4-8 hours a week, but the adults much more (after the kids are in bed).

We do movie nights about every 10 days or so.

I watch occasional Netflix (about 6 hours per month) on any number of devices, usually not the TV, though. I find I'm more inclined to do this on my tablet while lying by the pool if I don't have a book to read :-)

My kids will watch about 6 - 8 hours of Netflix per week, including weekends, so it's not too bad. The thing I like the most is that we've cut the tether. I'm not ignoring things that I need to get done in order to sit down to my favorite addiction at a specific time. Also, if my daughter needs my time or attention for any reason I give it to her instead of relegating her needs to commercials. Cuz Netflix is always available and for cheap, too!

Also, many times we watch one of those stunning, mind-boggling "Planet Earth" movies that are educational and encourage conversation and thought. I enjoy that my kids talk with me about them for days afterward, asking questions and reflecting on what we watched. We wouldn't be relating that way if we were watching the Kardashians on tv. Then my daughters would be asking questions that I wouldn't want to answer, ha!

leo707 says

exflirt says

When we want to watch something, one of us will propose a “movie night” and we’ll make a conscious decision to pop some popcorn, gather in the TV room, and hang out while watching an agreed upon movie or a few episodes of a Netflix show.

I am curious how often you end up having "movie" nights.

We don't have any TV service either, but usually end up watching plenty of Netflix. The kids maybe about 4-8 hours a week, but the adults much more (after the kids are in bed).

I am also greatly relieved not to have any TV in the house, and no cable bill.

We had Netflix for a while, but the kids were watching mainstream TV crap that just makes me cringe, so I cut it off. Streaming movie selection wasn't that great either.

Now I just go the library on Fridays and check out a bunch of DVDs. And we use vast amounts of DSL bandwidth for YouTube, etc.

Philistine says

Scary thing is that the people most likely to have kids--and most likely to have the most kids--are people living in Honey Boo Boo country and The Ghetto. Intelligent, creative people tend more and more to have no/fewer children. The implications are staggering.

Hey, the English used to say stuff like that about the Irish all the time, especially while they were exporting large quantities of food from Ireland during the famine. Kind of justified taking their food while they were dying.

So how did it turn out in the end? Yes, the Irish proliferated in America, which has about 40 million people of Irish descent (like me) from about 1 million Irish immigrants. Irish American birth rates plummeted as the women became more educated and less religious. My dad was the last of eight kids. I'm one of four. I have two kids myself. And without an English aristocracy milking and shearing them like animals, the Irish here did better and better, till now they are almost the very definition of mainstream Americans, and in fact do a little better on average than most Americans.

If you want iront, note that "Idiocracy" star Luke Wilson is himself Irish-American:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luke_Wilson

The Republic of Ireland itself also recovered from the famine and went on eventually become independent and then one of the most prosperous countries in Europe, even with its current finanical problems. The old English landlords were mostly dispossesed and the land given to native people.

But in Northern Ireland, where the wealthy citizens of invading English origin still have utter contempt for the native people and still demand unearned land rents from them, the Irish remain the underclass.

There's a lesson in there.

And in the corner they're advertising the show "Sister Wives." It's about a jerk who has several wives and thinks he's hot shit.

Or, as we call it in Utah, the neighbors.

it's a battle!!!!

octomom has gone to rehab, a luxury she can afford due to a dvd she made that features her masturbating. Lindsay Lohan's father, the hot mess patriarch of a hot mess family with tons o' addiction and super bizarre fame whore behaviors, is claiming that he helped to convice the freak to go to rehab.

http://www.tmz.com/2012/11/02/octomom-rehab-alone-michael-lohan-nadya-suleman/

FYI, ya'll know that elliemae loves a a good masturbating joke as much -even more so- than the next guy. But I cut my right hand off when she made the dvd...

These people are nuts. Simply nuts.

There's a lesson in there.

study up bigsby.

Stupid is as stupid does!

Melmakian says

elliemae says

These people are nuts. Simply nuts.

Hear! Hear!

Yes, but who is more the nut. The nut, or the nuts who watch the nuts show.

leo707 says

Yes, but who is more the nut. The nut, or the nuts who watch the nuts show.

Thank you Obi wan Kenobi. Meesa gonna watch Boo Boo.

Melmakian says

Dan8267 says

Meesa gonna watch Boo Boo.

Dude...with Disney in charge of Jar-Jar now, I wouldn't be offering up any creative ideas they might take seriously.

Just sayin'...

Good point.

In related news Angry Birds Starwars just came out.

Mick Russom says

Welcome to the sewer pipe of media owned, written, produced and broadcast primarily from New York and Los Angeles.

Too bad that show is about hicks from the rural Georgia. "Baby Pageants" are far, far more popular in fly-over country than they are on the Coasts. These things happen in West Virginia but seldom in Boston. Remember that crazy witch ex-model from WV who killed her kid and tried to blame it on terrorists? Her child was a "Baby Pageant" contestant, too.

It might be produced in LA and NY, but the "baby pageant" crap originated in Southern Culture.

elliemae says

And in the corner they're advertising the show "Sister Wives." It's about a jerk who has several wives and thinks he's hot shit.

Or, as we call it in Utah, the neighbors.

Shit, I would have a headache, having been told to take out the trash or move something heavy from multiple women. Count me out.

elliemae says

octomom has gone to rehab, a luxury she can afford due to a dvd she made that features her masturbating.

Maybe she was just trying to hatch some eggs from the refrigerator.

I don't have time for TV. I'm too busy reading stupid comments or posting stupid comments.