An Editorial - Have Some Compassion, People!

6/13/09 2:02 AM

Wow, are we a harsh bunch.

As the editor of both this effort, and Tri-State Media Watch, and no, I'm not affiliated with the Enquirer...I was stunned today.

Not that the switch was happening. I was glad to see it come to fruition so we could stop talking about it.

Not that there were a few thousand still unprepared for the switch. I expected that. After all...I read the Nielsen study released Wednesday, which said 19,685 households in the Tri-State weren't ready two days ahead of the switch.

No, what amazed me was the lack of compassion...from the Enquirer TV/Media Blog, to the Skyeyeweather.com Forum...and I'm sure it was repeated nationwide...a refrain that went something like this:

"I don't feel sorry for those having trouble today. They've had YEARS to get ready for this."

Well, of course we've had it pounded into our heads that we would switch to DTV-only broadcasting. Congress and the FCC kept moving the date, in an attempt to have as many ready as possible.

But think about this. I heard several people say today that they first knew about it in 2003, when the original timeframe was sometime in 2005. Okay, I won't dispute that.

But...do you know someone with dementia? Or Alzheimer's? Do you realize how much trouble people with these diseases HAVE with some of the slightest tasks? It isn't THEIR fault they wound up with either of these. Nor is it really their fault they weren't ready for DTV. Think about it. Those with Alzheimer's start out with mild symptoms - but they gradually increase over time. Maybe they were ready for DTV - but because of Alzheimer's, forgot about their cable/satellite/whatever, and have just let it lapse, and they have nobody in their lives to help them!

Now to share a personal part of this...

My grandmother is in the early to possibly middle stages of Alzheimer's. At this point, we believe she is in stage 4, maybe 5. She might not make it another year or two.

What if the DTV switch had been postponed another 1-2 years from now? Do you realize that people with Alzheimer's, or dementia, have trouble remembering information? It's the nature of these disorders...you forget things quickly!

No matter how much you try to beat the DTV switch into their heads...and the information about the converters, etc....they wouldn't remember it 10 minutes from now, MUCH LESS 12 hours later when they could CALL someone for assistance. Yes, the average person with Alzheimer's lives 4-6 years post diagnosis...but some make it 20 years or more!

And this says NOTHING about the other types of dementia...

Point is this: Have some compassion. There were some, after all, who even if they DID hear about the switch, could not remember it or what to do about it due to dementia or Alzheimer's. And I bet you the elderly, is the majority of people caught by the switch...