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Derek Thompson wrote an article which he titled “ The End of TV and the Death of the Cable Bundle” on July 12, 2012 for The Atlantic. The level of TV today honestly just sinks lower and lower. First there are mind-numbing levels of ads.Then the programming is aimed lower than the lowest common denominator.

After the two companies failed to agree on subscribers fees Viacom yanked it’s 19 channels-- including Nickelodeon, MTV and Comedy Central-- from DirectTV. Derek wrote about Aereo, a technology company based in New York City which allows subscribers to view live as well as time-shifted streams of over- the - air television on internet-connected devices. It brings local TV (NBC, ABC, CBS, PBS) right to your phone(iphone) , Mac , iPad, iPod touch etc. This Aereo story is different, its not about cable so much but the distribution of broadcast networks online.

For example Derek made a very good point towards the end of his article about a sports fan who can get the Olympics and NBA and other shows without having to purchase a cable package whenever he wants. That could definitely serve alongside Netflix, Hulu and other services to replace the cable bundle. The internet is ruthlessly efficient at stripping cross-subsidies and allowing the content to shine on its own. Derek really focuses on the fact that newspapers once paid for international coverage with classifieds section and cars you now can go on the internet and view it there on any classifieds site or a car site. The question isn't really if the internet’s unbundling revolution will visit the television industry but when.

Hate Crime

On March 27,2011 reporter Tara Kyle, shared with us all an article of an NYC alleged anti-gay hate crime attack. Damian Furtch, was the 26 year old victim beaten outside of a McDonald's fast food restaurant at 4:30AM on West Third Street and Sixth Avenue. What could he have possibly done to get beaten up by two men? The guys left him with two very painful and disturbing bruise s on both of his eyes and a broken nose. He had to get stitches on his face after the fight.

Mr. Furtch did nothing more than wear pink attire and accessories that night. We can’t help but wonder how this can happen in the Village where gays are welcome to be who they are. Damian stated that he thought he was safe living in the city that he loved but apparently wearing fluorescent colored clothing and pink shoelaces really bothered those guys.

Damian and one of his close friend were at McDonald's waiting for their order when they noticed two guys staring at them. Mr. Furtch stepped outside to make a phone call in efforts to avoid the tension. While his friend waited inside for the food, the two suspects walked out and asked Damian if he had a problem. Damian answered no and emphasized that he did not have a problem with neither of his three friends. The second suspect hit Damian on the face causing him to stumble and that is when the punches began.

But this happened in NYC where everyone walks the streets with no worries. I honestly do not understand why people would do such horrible thing. Is this a way for the “straight” guys to prove their heterosexuality? They cannot possibly think that by beating up/attacking a gay man they will feel more “manly”. What disturbed me the most when I saw the video on TV was that no one did anything to stop the violence. There was a man talking from a pay phone not even a feet away from the attack not to mention the cars that passed by. How could people be so COLD HEARTED. They did not have to jump in the fight to stop it, a simple 911 call could have made a difference. What ever happened to the good Samaritans? What is this world coming to?

After reading the article and even after watching the news I still had so many unanswered questions. Tara definitely had me wanting to know more. I know this is not the first case but I sure hope these ignorant individuals would just grow up and let it go. Unfortunately the sad truth is that these acts do still happen. Some people have no class or compassion for other people at all. Every one of every color, size, gender, sexuality, culture have the right to feel safe not only in NY but the whole world. No one should live in fear.

Mark E. Vogler wrote an article on Eagle Tribune which really caught my eye. The title “Company denies leaving child alone” really worried me as I work with toddlers everyday at a center for child development. Mark describes in his article that a 2 year old child got stuck on a bus for more than two hours Friday. His mother was at home waiting for her son to get dropped off from the day care center he attends. Freddy Recio, the owner of Transerve Inc. a transportation company told police the child was never left alone on the bus.

Ynes (the driver of the bus) says she was running late on Friday and was not familiar with the addresses on her route. A worried mother of a two year old son who was supposed to be home by 415 after leaving the day care center at 330 called the center and bus company numerous times asking where her son was at. The bus company dispatcher told the mother the buses were parked and cleared and there was no child on them. But why wasn’t her son home? Why did it take them two hours later to call this mom with an answer. The kid was finally found and the same bus driver drove the boy back to the daycare where they asked his mother to meet them to be reunited. The mother still asks where her child was and I believe this is question that must be answered.

Mark says the mom told the authorities her son was sleeping and full of throw-up. What disturbed me the most about this article was how clueless this driver and the company where about the kids whereabouts. When the dispatcher called the driver to find out whether she had a boy on the bus from the day care center, Ynes said no- that she had a girl from the day care and a boy from the YMCA in Methuen. The bus driver thought the boy was a girl because he had long hair fastened into a pony tail. The dispatcher called the mother to ask if her son had long hair which she kept in a ponytail. The dispatcher Mary now knew the mother’s child was being mistaken for a female by the driver and immediately called the driver. She told her to bring the boy to the center where his mom would be. What’s not making sense to me is why the driver (who was working her first day at the company) was left alone and not accompanied by a monitor.

The writer left me wanting more information. Unfortunately this is not the first time it’s happened. I see it all the time in the newspaper and all over the news on TV. Kids are being left alone in the bus after school and I just don’t seem to understand how or why. I believe that there should be steps to prevent this from ever happening again. I would assume that the bus drivers would back to the end of the bus before beginning their routes and after dropping off the children. How exactly does this even happen? The company can say whatever they want but that doesn’t mean it’s the truth. Why was Ynes (a new bus driver) left alone? Shouldn’t there be another monitor in the vehicle to assist. How and why did she not know if the child was a boy or a girl? Aren’t these drivers given a Emergency list or something to identify the kids. It’s not like this toddler would have been able to give out his address or name. The driver should be trained and penalized as well as the company.