thread: I don't want a TV at home-anyone else?

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  1. #1
    Registered User

    Nov 2005
    Ontario, Canada
    1,624

    We've been without one for about 7 years now. We do have a TV in the basement, but it doesn't get any channels. We use it for DVDs. I sure don't miss the mindless sitcoms and the irritating super-sexualized commercials. Of course, we never had cable, so we didn't get the really interesting channels, but you can find a lot of the educational and informative stuff online anyways. I keep up with the news online as well.
    DH and I spent the evening, after the kids were in bed, on the front porch swing, drinking coffee and visiting. In every house we could see on our street, the blue light was flickering. Everyone else was watching TV. They missed a lovely evening!
    I don't think you'll ever regret pitching the TV. I wouldn't say that there's nothing good on ever, but I haven't found that our lives are lacking at all for not having one.

  2. #2
    Registered User

    Dec 2010
    588

    I had no tv by choice for about 3 years
    We got one when my first child was maybe six to eight years old.
    It is great to play kids DVDs and for them to watch ABC2
    Before that we would watch DVDs on the laptop.
    However the tsunami and hurricane katrina and we had to hear about from friends days after, we found people are so overwhealmed by footage on tv of these events they don't talk about them

  3. #3

    Mar 2004
    Sparta
    12,662

    I grew up without a TV and since our children came along we have lived without TV for various reasons at different times.
    TBH I haven't noticed that my children are better behaved or more active when we don't have the TV.
    Our current set up is that the boys can watch TV before I get up in the morning and they can choose 1 hour each over the weekend. Some mornings they go to the mosque and/or the park with DH so they don't watch every morning.
    We also watch DVD as a family most Saturday nights and they watch footy etc with DH.

    They have actually learnt lots from TV because they like Horrible Histories and nature docos.
    I find it useful because I can use it as a reward/bribe and withdraw TV privileges as a consequence for unacceptable behaviour. It's also useful for sick children who just need to lie about to recover and when they are a bit freaked out and need to unwind for a little while before they can focus on an activity or outside play. On those days when they can't seem to stop aggravating each other and doing my head in it can be a great circuit breaker.

    Soo.... in short, I agree with N2L (as always lol) that it's not the medium that is the issue.
    I don't use it for news because TBH it's not news it's just another entertainment program. The boys aren't allowed to watch MTV or Rage etc because I can't stand the messages about women that the music industry generates.
    I'm all about censorship lol.
    Last edited by Phteven; May 10th, 2013 at 12:40 PM.