281–290 of 337 posts
Random association: Somewhere, I saw "leaves the top third of the first page blank without being asked to do so" as a sign that the person you are recruiting as a spy already works for the opposition. Maybe that goes for the bottom of the page as well. =)
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This fee is hot topic in Germany. Our French friends also enjoy ARTE[1] but seem not to suffer anymore from this ridiculous fee. Actually I’m surprised that the Swiss fee is even higher, despite everything in the Swiss is expensive. [1] Big parts of our public television suck. But ARTE is awesome ! * Borgen * Occupied * Mit offenen Karten * Karambolage * … PS: ARTE is watchable outside of France and Germany in a lot…
While the public television may suck, it still pays for the only real Independent news coverage in Germany. No matter what you think of the ARD or ZDF and their management boards, the work of the Deutschlandfunk and regional broadcasters is outstanding and a pillar of a free democracy. I hate having to pay for distribution licenses for soccer games, but if that ensures continued support for high-quality journalism, s…
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Many European countries are worse about it than the UK; even people who do not own a television are required by law to pay. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licence
This fee is hot topic in Germany. Our French friends also enjoy ARTE[1] but seem not to suffer anymore from this ridiculous fee. Actually I’m surprised that the Swiss fee is even higher, despite everything in the Swiss is expensive. [1] Big parts of our public television suck. But ARTE is awesome ! * Borgen * Occupied * Mit offenen Karten * Karambolage * … PS: ARTE is watchable outside of France and Germany in a lot…
Random association: Somewhere, I saw "leaves the top third of the first page blank without being asked to do so" as a sign that the person you are recruiting as a spy already works for the opposition. Maybe that goes for the bottom of the page as well. =)
Now I'm curious: Why leave the top third of the first page blank? For spy stuff?
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On-topic? Every reply seemed evasive to me. (Regarding how he got them to reply at all, this is required by law of public authorities.)
Hilarious that every time, they responded in a way that was technically on-topic, but totally ignoring the actual questions being asked. Like someone found one word in OP's question, then mindlessly recited a random form response associated with that word.
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They wear a shirt and tie. No weapon. You don't have to answer the door to them. You don't have to let them in. However they are generally lieing scumbags who suggest that they are allowed in. If they catch you watching TV they will report you for a £1000 fine and a criminal record. Failing to pay it will land you in prison. I spent years without a license, you don't need one for YouTube and Netflix. I unplugged the…
Sounds like a waste of public resources. Are you supposed to pay if you watch live TV over streaming services instead of using an antenna?
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> A Licensing officer may call at your property not to collect the letters but to check that you are not watching a TV. Just the thought of this is funny. What kind of uniforms do TV Officers wear? Do they get to carry a weapon? What happens if they find you watching a TV? Amazing.
They wear a shirt and tie. No weapon. You don't have to answer the door to them. You don't have to let them in. However they are generally lieing scumbags who suggest that they are allowed in. If they catch you watching TV they will report you for a £1000 fine and a criminal record. Failing to pay it will land you in prison. I spent years without a license, you don't need one for YouTube and Netflix. I unplugged the…
Not strictly true, if you watch television channels live over YouTube you need one
https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/topics/w...
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The absurdity in the UK is that it's a License fee and that there is this whole absurd enforcement system. In other countries it's a tax if you don't pay it, you are essentially not paying your taxes. I am OK with a universal tax for a universal service even if I don't use that service. What I am not okay with is fraudulent threatening letters, weirdos creeping in the bushes trying to see if I am watching TV and goon…
Had a white van with huge antennas parked out front for a few days when they were refusing to believe that a large share house of young people didn't watch TV. This was in 2015. We didn't own a TV nor watch. The van soon left after a few days but left a full bottle of yellow liquid. Makes a fun story, but yeah they threaten you a bunch and it's quite sad.
Even if they could “detect” TV in your house they’d have no way of knowing if it’s a live broadcast or streaming/on demand.
It may have been an OB van or something else.
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I interpreted the parent as suggesting "just pay for it out of general tax revenue", which makes a lot of sense to me. No additional administration and enforcement required.
This is how Australia's public broadcaster is funded. But it means politicians directly decide its budget, which makes it a political football.
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What's when more mental is that they are essentially all funding state propaganda agencies and so you're literally paying to be propagandised. Not that much of none state media is really that much better to be honest.
We all pay to receive propaganda, be it governmental or not. A private TV channel will spread the ideology of their owners, and it is usually an ideology that is useful to them.