May 31, 2004
Imagine PBS and NPR with police powers
I remember the odious BBC television licensing fee from my days in London long ago, but had thought the fee had been repealed. Not so, reports UK-resident Australian Monica White:
For those of you who don’t live in the UK, you may be interested in the phenomenon that is the TV License – I was truly surprised by it a year ago. Essentially, if you have a TV or receiving equipment, you are obliged to pay the government £121 per year to view the BBC channels.
Don’t watch the BBC? I’m afraid that TV Licensing doesn’t believe you. EVERYONE who owns an operational set must watch the BBC. They're compelled to. There’s something in the water.
TV Licensing ‘Enquiry Officers’ also seem to get a hoot out of slapping £1000 fines onto anyone within spitting distance.
Folks, imagine this scenario in America: PBS or NPR radio direction finding vans canvassing your neighborhood, coming to your door, backed up by police powers. Think about it. Posted by Russell Whitaker at May 31, 2004 04:01 PM | TrackBack
Japan has the same sort of fee per TV supposedly to pay for NHK, their version of the BBC.
I was able to avoid it for a while by 1) not knowing enough Japanese for them to make sense, and 2) lying. Friends told stories of hiding and not answering the door when "NHK desu!" came knocking. There doesn't seem to be any warrents for arrest put out for someone who doesn't pay, they just keep coming back until you caught up your $30/month/tv.
...or what that $10, and they took it in three month chunks? I don't remember. I do know it was income-tax deductable. A good accountant is a good person to have.
Curt-
Posted by: Curt Howland on June 1, 2004 11:12 AMAh, yes! The NHK guy! I'd forgotten about that from my time in Tokyo... possibly because I *pretended* to not know any Japanese (you know different about me, of course) and raised a confusing fuss.
He never visited me again.
Posted by: Russell Whitaker on June 1, 2004 11:39 AMYour recollections of NHK are hazy, man. For a start there isn`t a tax deduction for paying that tax. Like everything here in Japan, there is a slippery logic. It`s a deceitful society here and that`s acceptable at so many levels.
So I say to the NHK man `It`s a tax if everybody must pay it?` (in Japanese). NHK man says `No, it`s a voluntary charge.` Right then, I don`t have to pay it. NHK man says everybody has to pay it. Right, so it`s a tv tax? No according to NHK man.
BBC sounds like a fascist state in itself but NHK is just as bad for saying that you have to pay. Law says you do - but this can not be enforced. Logical? Nope, but this society is not logical.
You`ve got it good with the BBC. Good programs (I`ve seen them), variety, something for everybody. NHK? Damn liars. Staged news, implicit racism (both explicit and implicit are acceptable here), a mentality that is about 60 years behind the times, divorced women slandered on their features program with no reply (women`s equality here sits nicely with pre World War 2 Japan norms) and execs helping themselves to the public money.
Damn them, damn their racist channel. I`ve stopped being a sucker. And stop all these privileged UK commentators going on about how good NHK is. Do you live here suckers?
