Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.
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@blakeyrat I can see a potential argument against it being a tax, since you can choose not to watch live TV or iPlayer, and therefore not have to pay it. But I could also choose to live in a caravan rather than a house and not pay council tax, so it's not a great argument
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@jaloopa said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Like I said, the last couple of times I've switched mobile provider I've had to prove I'm over 18 and opt out.
I'm 90% sure I didn't when I switched to ID mobile. I did it online, so its possible I automatically checked/unchecked the box and didn't think about it again. Oh noes evil government overreach!
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
You seriously don't remember that thread with RaceProUK? I guess I apologize for not having goldfish memory.
I'm sorry. I doubt I was even in that thread. I certainly don't have any recollection of it. And for some reason, it never occurred to me that
The twists and turns of logic British people will come up with to claim they don't pay a tax on TV, or that the BBC isn't a State-funded television network, are amazing.
would refer to something one British person said some time ago in a thread I have no recollection of ever seeing. Silly me.
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@gwowen said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Silly me.
That was silly of you.
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@jaloopa said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
you can choose not to watch live TV or iPlayer, and therefore not have to pay it.
At least in theory. I have read (I don't live in the UK, so I can't judge the accuracy of the statements) that the collectors will claim, "You're lying. Of course you have a TV. Everybody has a TV. You're just hiding it to avoid paying the tax. Now pay up!"
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@hardwaregeek yeah, but you don't have to let them in.
When I was growing up, we weren't on the main electric grid and had a 12 volt DC system through the house. This meant that we used black and white TVs as they're a lot easier to run on 12 volts than colour. A black and white TV license was cheaper than a colour one, so we also got some skeptical looks and suspicion that we were just doing it to save money
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@scholrlea said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
My Fellow Merkins tend to to take things like border checkpoints as an excuse to say, "hold my beer".
Last time I went to Canada, to visit a friend who lived there, I ended up stopped at the border checkpoint for nearly 5 minutes while the guy asked me, over and over again, a bunch of variations on "are you bringing anything you're going to sell here?" "No." "Are you sure you're not bringing anything with you?" "Yes." And so on. I seriously have no idea what that guy's deal was.
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
I love this conversation every time it happens.
The twists and turns of logic British people will come up with to claim they don't pay a tax on TV, or that the BBC isn't a State-funded television network, are amazing.
Technically it's a fee, not a tax.
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@hardwaregeek said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
I have read (I don't live in the UK, so I can't judge the accuracy of the statements) that the collectors will claim, "You're lying. Of course you have a TV. Everybody has a TV. You're just hiding it to avoid paying the tax. Now pay up!"
The enforcers are, as I've already said in this thread, astoundingly unethical. They don't, in general, give a damn whether you need a license or not, only whether you can be persuaded to pay for one. They have few legal powers but an appalling track record of bullying, giving deliberately misleading and confusing information, and also of just quietly leaving and not coming back if you show them an ounce of spine.
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@hardwaregeek said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@jaloopa said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
you can choose not to watch live TV or iPlayer, and therefore not have to pay it.
At least in theory. I have read (I don't live in the UK, so I can't judge the accuracy of the statements) that the collectors will claim, "You're lying. Of course you have a TV. Everybody has a TV. You're just hiding it to avoid paying the tax. Now pay up!"
I got about 5 threatening letters and then a guy called at the door. Told him the TV wasn't used for broadcast TV and off he went. Nothing since.
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@hardwaregeek said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
"You're lying. Of course you have a TV. Everybody has a TV. You're just hiding it to avoid paying the tax. Now pay up!"
They will do that. But if you stand your ground, there's essentially very little they can do. The only legal recourse they have is to attempt to prove you've got a TV - this is sometimes possible because when I buy a TV the vendor is obliged to take my name and address and send it to the licensing people.
Which, technically, makes it harder to buy a TV in the UK than it is to buy a semi-automatic firearm in the US
Full Disclosure - I have a TV and a TV licence. For that, I get to help fund the BBC. It's possibly the best value for money I spend every year.
Full Disclosure - I don't own a semi-automatic firearm.
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@gwowen said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Full Disclosure - I don't own a semi-automatic firearm.
Just fully-automatic then?
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@gwowen said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
The only legal recourse they have is to attempt to prove you've got a TV - this is sometimes possible because when I buy a TV the vendor is obliged to take my name and address and send it to the licensing people.
They would still need to prove that the TV is hooked up to an aerial or otherwise able to receive broadcast TV.
You can own a TV that's either sitting unused or only connected to e.g. a DVD player, games console, or anything that's not broadcast TV, and not require a license. To comply with the letter of the law, it would need to be unable to receive broadcast TV.
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@carrievs said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
and also of just quietly leaving and not coming back if you show them an ounce of spine.
Considering we're talking about British people, I'm guessing they don't go away very often.
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@gwowen said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
I get to help fund the BBC. It's possibly the best value for money I spend every year.
Really.
Because this is on their Twitter feed just this morning:
Summary: guy who British people love because his ancestors murdered people until he became dictator met a girl on a blind date and is now getting married, here's some random other people who have nothing to do with him who also at some point in their lives had blind dates.
Quality journalism there. So glad you paid for this.
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@gwowen said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
when I buy a TV the vendor is obliged to take my name and address and send it to the licensing people.
I have a TV and a TV licence. For that, I get to help fund the BBC. It's possibly the best value for money I spend every year.
How much is a TV license ?
And how much of that really goes to the BBC.Not sure if you help fund the BBC or just the guy collecting the licenses
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@carrievs said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
They would still need to prove that the TV is hooked up to an aerial or otherwise able to receive broadcast TV.
Yes, they would. What they'd do at that point is either:
i) Nothing, if your explanation is vaguely kosher sounding, or if you're old, or otherwise vulnerable. They do actually take that fairly seriously these days, because the PR of chasing an old deaf lady for her license fee does not look good in the papers. There are plenty of others to go after.or
ii) start a magistrate SJP proceeding against you (assuming they were able to gather sufficient evidence that you were lying).
Then you get to enter an innocent plea - with any evidence that you use your TV for something else, or whatever - and you get to rock up to a magistrate and explain your circumstance. The magistrate gets to decide whose story is more plausible, and you either get acquitted or fined with an extra ÂŁ120 in costs.
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@jaloopa said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
I could also choose to live in a caravan rather than a house and not pay council tax
Not according to The Housing Enforcers (I think this episode, but I can’t check because I’m not in the UK and can’t be arsed to find a proxy server that will let me view it).
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
: guy who British people love because his ancestors murdered people until he became dictator
Hey, get your facts right. We like William because his ancestors murdered people until he became dictator. We like Harry because he dresses like a Nazi sometimes
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@dcon said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
If they move north, they'll have to switch from Budweiser to Coors…
Pretty sure that's what happens when you move from the coast to the Rockies.
Eeeeeaaasst bound and down!
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@jaloopa said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
I don't deny that the TV license is a tax, or that the BBC is state funded.
You should compare notes with RaceProUK. Get on the same page.
It's been a long time since I've seen @RaceProUK. I hope she didn't die in a gas station explosion or electrocuted by an outlet she forgot to switch off.
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@boomzilla said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@dcon said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
If they move north, they'll have to switch from Budweiser to Coors…
Pretty sure that's what happens when you move from the coast to the Rockies.
Eeeeeaaasst bound and down!
Just remember that Down East isn't. (for those furinurs, that's Maine)
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Summary: guy who British people love because his ancestors murdered people until he became dictator met a girl on a blind date and is now getting married,
So? Is that really a good thing to judge someone on?
Put another way, how far back in your family tree would you have to go before finding someone who did things you wouldn't be proud of? And what does that have to do with what sort of person you personally are today?
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@masonwheeler said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
So? Is that really a good thing to judge someone on?
Since he hasn't divested himself of all those ill-gotten gains, yes.
@masonwheeler said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Put another way, how far back in your family tree would you have to go before finding someone who did things you wouldn't be proud of?
I don't know.
@masonwheeler said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
And what does that have to do with what sort of person you personally are today?
I've benefited greatly from my parents' wealth and color of my skin and etc. I am cognizant of that.
And yet somehow the BBC doesn't tweet about me 14 times a day. Why is that.
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
Summary: guy who British people love because his ancestors murdered people until he became dictator met a girl on a blind date and is now getting married, here's some random other people who have nothing to do with him who also at some point in their lives had blind dates.
Even by your standards, that is some weak ass trolling. 2/10.
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
And yet somehow the BBC doesn't tweet about me 14 times a day. Why is that.
You're not that interesting…
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@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
You're not that interesting…
Which is particularly sad, because his online persona exudes that tragic odour of "Look at me! I'm so edgy!"
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@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
And yet somehow the BBC doesn't tweet about me 14 times a day. Why is that.
You're not that interesting…
TBF, neither are the royal family
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@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
You're not that interesting…
And Mr. "oh I'm a Windsor hold your pinky out while drinking tea" is?
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@timebandit Yeah, those appear to use the same "pulled out of someone's arse" figures as the original one.
Like I said, if they were accurate then every single road right down to unclassified farm tracks would have a camera every 80 metres.
Also, London is not the UK.
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@gordonjcp Here's a good article with sane bounds, that also throws some nice shade on the original "study" that you still see quoted all the time.
http://www.arc24.co.uk/how-many-cctv-cameras-actually-are-there-in-the-uk/
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
You're not that interesting…
And Mr. "oh I'm a Windsor hold your pinky out while drinking tea" is?
Well, how many people did your ancestors murder and what did they achieve from it? Yeah, he's definitely more interesting than you.
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@blakeyrat said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
@dkf said in Enlightened English Speaking Nations. Or something.:
You're not that interesting…
And Mr. "oh I'm a Windsor hold your pinky out while drinking tea" is?
No, he isn't either. It's going to make the news here even more moronic than usual. But him being boring doesn't make you fascinating. ;)