I have a theory, and I'm curious to see if you all think it's bunk.

 

I think TV has entwined itself around western society so much that it's (indirectly) caused a lot of problems - obesity being one. Friendlessness being another. It's become "acceptable," even expected, that people watch a few hours of TV a night at least ("you mean you didn't see American Idol last night?? You mean you don't watch "Lost"?? You don't have TV?!? How do you LIVE?!") instead of what we used to do as a society (well before my time) - walking, talking to people, hanging out with friends.

 

I've noticed my parents and grandparents spend most of their free time watching TV, and are envious of my healthy social life. They tell me all the time "Don't lose those relationships! Or you'll get old and lonely." ("like me" is implied when they say it, which is sad).

 

My husband and I have a TV - it's huge and gorgeous, but it's a "monitor," meaning it doesn't have a tuner. We don't subscribe to cable - we used to, and it was like breaking a freaking addiction when we turned it off. We still use it for movies, and tv-on-dvd shows we want to watch, but I've noticed it's so much easier (and cheaper) to turn it off after a show when you don't have 300 channels to flip through, seeing if something else might be on that might be interesting. I used to flip through and watch something I DIDN'T like, just because nothing else was on. What a waste of my life! I could be out in the sun, walking, or hanging out with friends, or reading, or skating, or rafting, or, or, or...

 

I still play video games (World of Warcraft, Silent Hill, soon GTA4), but I've noticed my appetite for those have waned considerably since I've started walking every day.

 

Note: I would bite someone if they tried to take away my Ipod. I don't think technology is bad AT ALL, but this is all to say that I think TV habits in western (particularly American) society has become extremely unhealthy.

 

What do you think?

indiwarrior, your theory is sound (I wouldn't vouch for its originality, though). ;)

No, I'd be really surprised if it was original. :) I'm sure it's been said billions of times! But it's still there, and getting worse I think.

The only time I ever watch TV is when I am working out. I've leveraged Comcast OnDemand and my Zune to keep me in touch with the few shows I actually follow, since I can never guarantee at what time I'll be home to work out, and I have not invested in DVR. If I went to a gym, I'd probably listen to music. That is what I did in college. But I've had a major home gym for 12 or 13 years, and I prefer to watch my favorite shows over listening to music when I'm working out at home.

I've never seen Heroes. I'm way behind on Lost. I don't watch any TV comedies. The various-and-sundry Law and Orders and CSIs fly under my radar (save for the original CSI, which I occasionally watch via OnDemand). And I don't have a clue what is popular Reality TV–wise. But I certainly get a lot more done than I would have if I knew what was going on on TV.

I spend my free time mostly researching and writing for myself (instead of for my boss). I do go out with friends from time to time, but what not watching TV gives me most of all is not a social life or outdoor adventures, but rather time to do with my life what I really want to when the workday is over: I'm finishing my novel. (That's what happens to people in their 30s, I think: they start realizing it might be time to actually do the things they always said they were going to do with their lives.... That's how it is for all of my friends, anyway. And I always said I would be a published novelist.)

So, ironically, when I am watching TV I am also the least sedentary that I am all day. I work out hard when I'm watching TV. I've never been overweight. But the rest of the day and night, I pretty much sit on my bottom and type.

In the summer I do hike, I go to the zoo, etc. But by and large my exercise is indoors, late at night, after work but before I turn to writing for myself. I work 60+ hours, so even my weekends are generally spent indoors.

As for video games, I think Pac Man was the last one of those that I played. OK, maybe it was Pitfall. Either way, it was a LOOOOONG time ago. I do subscribe to cable, though, because I need my OnDemand—and the Sci-Fi Channel for Battlestar Galactica and Stargate. What can I say? I'm a 35-year-old, female closet sci-fi nerd (which means I also watch Boston Legal, because what self-respecting sci-fi nerd doesn't love William Shatner? Don't answer that: I prefer to live in blissful ignorance.)—but with fabulous fashion sense and some fierce abdominals.

I'll get outside one of these days, remember what the sun looks like, and reconnect with people. It will just be after that six-figure book deal comes in. (Hey, a person can dream, right? ) And after my friends manage to pull themselves away from their own pet projects and come up for air.

I'm a nerd too, petite, :) femnerds unite!!

 

My poison in Babylon 5. Oh Bruce Boxleitner! * mmmmrow * lol

Original Post by indiwarrior:

I'm a nerd too, petite, :) femnerds unite!!

My poison in Babylon 5. Oh Bruce Boxleitner! * mmmmrow * lol

Love that show! Farscape is my true passion. But Babylon 5 is great. :)

I don't think television is inherently evil. It's not a state-altering drug, so any addictive properties are purely characteristics of the individual. The same with internet activity, video games, sports, other hobbies. Sounds like a matter of values to me.

Waiting for GTA4 tonight too :]

TV is certainly part of the problem.  It certainly gives us a reason to park our butts on the couch and scarf down chips or other high calorie / low nutrition junk food.

But the obesity problem is more than that.  The human body is so amazingly efficient, and we live in a world (most of us in the first world, that is) where food is so plentiful and so easy to obtain that we can't help but gain weight.

I lived with obesity for years until I finally bit the bullet and decided to do whatever it took to regain a normal weight. 

What it takes, for me, is an hour of exercise every day and a near vegan, near sugar free diet.    (Near vegan because meat is incredibly caloric, and near sugar fee because sugar is even more caloric than meat.)

I agree that tv is part of the obesity problem.  I also think it contributes to the general apathy of many segments of the population, especially in the United States.  People are so consumed by their television that they forget that there is anything going on in the 'real' world.  Also watching tv you are constantly bombarded by advertising and subliminal pressure to be a super consumer and drive yourself into further and worse deepening debt....  whew... sorry for the speech I am studying political economy and I will admit I am a little bit of a conspiracy theorist.... I actually watch very little tv and have severely decreased the amount of tv my children are allowed to watch... They only watch maybe 3 hours a week and still my 5 year old tells me what products I should by because they kill 99% of germs or make you magically thin.... commercial brainwashing of the youth

I think i'm living proof of the evilness of tv.  I was a tv addict - 2-3 hours a night, couldn't turn it off.   I sat on the couch and snacked like crazy, crips, cookies, cakes, etc.  I was about 10-15lbs overweight. 

Then the writer's strike happened.  It was the BEST thing that has ever happened to me.  I turned off the tv and started exercising and realized i was putting a whole lot of junk into my body. 

Now that tv shows are slowly coming back i've been VERY selective about what I watch.  I mostly tape everything i want to watch (HIMYM, The office, Scrubs, Lost, and Moonlight) and can just fast forward through the commercials or watch it online.  Next fall I won't pick up any other shows (bye bye Heroes and Pushing Daisies). 

Petite, try watching Buffy.  When i lift weights at home I always watch Buffy and its so motivating for me.  Seeing Buffy kick butt makes me want to work that much harder.

Babylon 5 wasn't all that.
Deep Space 9 was better ;)
Farscape was pretty cool, though...

(and ooo.. feminerds ;D )

Sorry, but not had chance to properly read through :(

I wanted to go against the grain as an exception...

I am currently watching the snooker, and since you don't really need to hear the commentary I use exercise equipment whilst watching it.

If I want to watch the program, I do crunches, pressups etc...

TV saved my life :)

Original Post by hkellick:

Babylon 5 wasn't all that.
Deep Space 9 was better ;)
Farscape was pretty cool, though...

(and ooo.. feminerds ;D )

OK, so I confess that I think B5 S1 is the worst season of television—ever. I'm exaggerating, but still.... I never finished it. But I've enjoyed B5 a lot more as I've moved along into the later seasons. It's been fun.

DS9 was better, though. I adored that show, especially the later seasons.

Especially that last season, huh, Petite? Curses that they ENDED IT THERE. I was all "GAH!!!!"

I don't like it because it triggers binge episodes. I don't have it at the moment. I just watch shows off the internet instead.

Farscape was pretty awesome. I remember when it used to show on BBC2 straight after Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Best TV night ever )

Original Post by hkellick:

Especially that last season, huh, Petite? Curses that they ENDED IT THERE. I was all "GAH!!!!"

Jadzia Dax was the best female character in Star Trek, IMHO, so the final seasons are tainted by her untimely demise. *Breathe in, breathe out* But I really did love the last few seasons, with Bashir/O'Brien, Garek's interaction with the crew, Weyoun, and the Dominion politics. I still miss that show....

Television isn't evil. I MISS STAR TREK!!!! (Well, not Enterprise, or Voyager for that matter. But still....)

(I loved Buffy, too. )

Seriously, sci-fi TV had a lot to do with my decision to major in English and Creative Writing and to become a writer. Star Trek inspired kids to become astronauts, engineers, scientists.... TV isn't all bad.

To get back onto, you know, the subject.. I think television or video games or whatever, is as much a friend or enemy as you allow it to be. If you can't watch TV without binging, it's probably a bad thing. If you can take something good from it, though, I don't see that it's that bad.

Personally, I'm a PC Gamer. I don't spend time in front of the TV, but I DO spend time in front of a monitor. I rarely eat anything during my sessions because I stay glued to the computer (I've taught myself to drink water, though, so that's not too bad.)

So, I guess my answer is... it depends. Television's no more the enemy than the Calorie is. Everything in Moderation. :)

(And yeah.. Voyager and Enterprise never did it much for me either.)

I would encourage anyone who likes video games to get a wii. I have lost an inch on my waist and toned up on my chest area playing the boxing for a maximum of 40 mins about 5 x a week and it's a fun way to exercise.

And before anyone says you cannot get the adequate amount of exercise playing it or it doesn't burn fat, well, the physical evidence is on my body...well, actually it's off my body but whatever. ;)

Original Post by hkellick:

So, I guess my answer is... it depends. Television's no more the enemy than the Calorie is. Everything in Moderation. :)

 

I agree.  I don't let my kids veg out in front of the TV, but I do like to let them watch enteraining stuff on a limited basis, and definitely educational stuff.  My oldest son loved the Planet Earth series, and loves learning about animals on Animal Planet.  I really have to limit the TV my youngest watches, as he is autistic and overly stimulating activities tend to turn into an OCD behavior, but it has helped in increasing his receptive language, and even some vocalization.

Not to get back off topic, but I thought DS9 was great too - Sisko kicked @ss. 

Well I have a TV at home that I never use (I always download my shows onto my computer and I dont watch that much shows in the first place) and I only watch TV at the gym.. I love the gym tvs it keeps me not as bored out of my mind. o.O

 

My dad used to have a rule about me and tv when I was smaller (like an hour a day) and I had to sneak around watching PBS hahaha.

we have TWO tv's in our entire house.  one is in my daughter's room and it's basically there for looks.  it's plugged into an outlet that doesn't even WORK.  the tv in the living room is plugged in, but has no cable, satellite, or rabbit ears.  we have no "TV" in our house.  my daughter does watch movies, everyday, but she's 3.  i take the time to take her outside and play so she doesn't JUST veg out on the couch watching tv all day. 

my co-workers can't believe that i don't watch tv and ask me everyday, "what do you do when you get home?" 

simple.  i cook.  i clean.  i take care of my kid.  i go outside and enjoy the warm weather.  i play softball.  i run.  i BURN CALORIES. 

tv isn't evil...it serves a good purpose for some things, but it can also hold you back from doing so many more fun things.