BBC? Biased? No Way!

[FredKarno]

the fascist BBC

I think it was 'frustrated poet' who said summat about not having to pay the fee to the BBC if you didn't have a channel or whatnot.
News to me! As far as I know, if here in what is laughably called the 'UK', you have a telly, you have to pay the hundred-odd pounds 'licence fee'. Oh sure, if you are above a certain age (is it 70? - can't remember), then you don't have to pay nowt. If you are blind, you can get a masive 10 percent off. Otherwise you must pay!
You must pay, whether you watch the BBC not at all. You must pay.
If there is more than one telly in the house, you must pay for that too!
'Frustrated poet' - are you a socialist? You tell lies. I know, I live here. The BBC has its own form of police, that hound people with millions of letters saying they must pay, or we will send you to jail. I know loads and loads of people who try not to pay this poll tax. Oh yes, the socialist BBC makes no distinction between rich and poor! We all (with the exception of the over 70? and the blind (incredibly generous ten percent less) have to pay the same.
The BBC's police must cost tens of millions a year, what with their countless millions of posts and propaganda ads on the telly saying pay up or else! And their spys-vans with detection equipment patrolling.
You yanks won't beleive this, but the hallowed BBC know when you move house and track you down. I was astonished when I moved into my present abode, and within days they knew this!
This pisses me off big time. Especially when I think that the BBC is a socialist organision - an extension of the Labour Party. Sure, they have their civil wars, and pretend to be non bias. They are very clever at disguising this, and fool most people, which is very easy.
I am well plastered now, but I remember Ned's posts in this thread. You are right on mate! Your comments are true!
Hellfire, I've typed all this due to a sense of rage.
Socialists say 'we will engineer your souls'. They know the power of the telly, which sucks your soul out and replaces it with the mindless garbage that they wish. But careful now, Fabian like.
It is not just the BBC!
Eric Blair did not forsee enough.

[Gibsie]

Hooray for plastered posts!

If you can get a TV that is specifically designed to not receive BBC signals then you don't have to pay your license fee; however that's not an easy thing. Just de-tuning your TV wouldn't absolve you of having to pay the license fee. You don't have to pay more if you have more than TV though, that would be insane.

As for the BBC's secret police... it's very nearly all propaganda. their main way of finding people without licenses is to look at records of people who have once owneda TV license and don't any more. Not exactly expensive. I am also informed they have two vans in the entire UK, and last time they were anywhere near my area, some students knocked on the van's door and when they opened it up they found it was just a guy sitting in it, no special detection equipment, just there to make people think the BBC were no to them. To create the paranoia you so expertly espouse

[MikeH]

Re: the fascist BBC

Originally posted by FredKarno Oh sure, if you are above a certain age (is it 70? - can't remember), then you don't have to pay nowt.
If you are blind, you can get a masive 10 percent off. Otherwise you must pay!
You must pay, whether you watch the BBC not at all. You must pay.
If there is more than one telly in the house, you must pay for that too!

It's free if you are over 75

It's 50% off if you are blind

You don't have to pay for extra TVs in the house, unless it's some kind of seperate residence.

[the_ceebs]

So for the £10 per month you get at least 7 TV stations

at least 8 radio stations, Local radio, the BBC websites.

arts festivals, music festivals. all for the price of a second set from a satelite system.

what are you whining for

[Alinestra Covelia]

That having been said, I think the BBC does benefit from not being beholden to a corporation. The US television media (with the exception of PBS) is firmly in the hands of an ever shrinking number of powerful companies.

I can't comment on BBC's domestic reporting (it's been nearly four years since I last lived in the UK) but their international reporting seems much less biased to me than any US TV station.

Of course, I'm willing to admit that maybe they are biased, but in the same direction as me - this also would lead me to believe that they are unbiased.

[Ned]

Fred, thanks for the compliment.

Defenders of the BBC: Can you imagine the reaction of the American people if they were told they would have to pay $200 per year per TV set to support PBS? Can you imagine?

You Brits need to learn something about freedom and liberty? At times you need to fight for it. You need to elect MPs who are committed to ending your enslavement to the Fascist BBC. Fight, you wimps, fight!!!!

[MikeH]

The BBC is a bargain. Two words:

NO ADVERTS

[Ned]

Originally posted by MikeH
The BBC is a bargain. Two words:

NO ADVERTS

Bargain? You have no idea. None.

You are slaves.

[MikeH]

[MikeH]

Ned: does your government force you to pay tax to pay for public services? If so by your own logic you too are a slave!

Funniest thing I've read here in days that is.

[Drake Tungsten]

Sorry Mike, but having experienced both systems, I have to agree that TV taxes are a bunch of ****.

[Imran Siddiqui]

Defenders of the BBC: Can you imagine the reaction of the American people if they were told they would have to pay $200 per year per TV set to support PBS? Can you imagine?

If you look at your cable bill, I believe there are fees. Now it may not be $16 a month or so, but they do take out for public brodcasting in that.

Btw, that doesn't make us slaves.

[Ned]

Imran, I have DirectTV. I don't pay a single dime for PBS. They have to give it away because no one will pay for it.

Now, on the other hand, Bravo has just come out with an HD channel. They have been running full length operas every day it seems. I am f*cking blown away. Bravo, Bravo.

I also pay an extra $2 or so a month for a bunch of channels like the History and Discovery channels. I watch these quite a bit.

One thing I never do is watch PBS.

[Dauphin]

Originally posted by Ned
Fred, thanks for the compliment.

Defenders of the BBC: Can you imagine the reaction of the American people if they were told they would have to pay $200 per year per TV set to support PBS? Can you imagine?

You Brits need to learn something about freedom and liberty? At times you need to fight for it. You need to elect MPs who are committed to ending your enslavement to the Fascist BBC. Fight, you wimps, fight!!!!

The cost is per household, not per TV set. The BBC is not the only recipient of the TV licence fee.

Let's leave that by the by for the moment. Remove all stations that receive licence fee money and there would only be 1 channel on the free to air TV.

[Ned]

Dauphin, I am sure private enterprise would soon fill any voids. Broadcast TV does quiet well here in the US and in Brazil despite commercials.