Boston Mayor Thinks New Laws the Solution to a 20-Cent-per-Day Increase

I heard this on NPR this morning, then read it this evening on the consumerist this evening.

http://consumerist.com/2011/05/sick-of-rate-hikes-boston-mayor-asks-fcc-to-let-city-regulate-cable-prices.html

The basic facts are that over the past 3 years, the price of basic cable has soared 60% over the past 3 years.

Don't get me wrong, 60% is a lot, it means that if you were paying $10, you're now paying $16 per month, which works out to an annual increase of $72.

But let's put this in perspective, a $6 per month increase is...$0.20 per day.

Again, I don't want to paint Comcast as anything other than a money grubbing corporation ('cuz that's probably what they are) but if we're going to get all angry about something, shouldn't we have a solid understanding about the magnitude of the thing that's making us angry?

Said another way, would anyone have gotten angry if the consumerist led with this paragraph:

In the city of Boston, where most residents only have access to Comcast service, the price of basic cable has soared over the last three years by 20 cents per day. So the city's mayor, Thomas Menino, has asked the Federal Communications Commission to let the city regulate the cost of cable.

It's pretty hard to get all worked up about 20 cents per day, isn't it? Now Thomas Menino wants to create more work for the city...does Boston have a labor surplus?

From the opposite point of view, if the Cable isn't worth $72 per year more...don't buy it! I find it interesting that in this age of obesity that we want a government body to regulate an industry that enables inactivity.

Well, that's my 60% for tonight. Sorry for the poor writing!

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