February 18, 2009 marks the deadline for converting all television signals to digital.  The government that taxes us to death has decided that people still receiving their TV via airwaves should have the cost of the digital/analog convertors subsidized.  The effect of this will be higher costs for the conversion boxes because the manufacturers will have a diminished incentive to keep costs down.  Television is not a necessity, and even if it was, there is absolutely no reason for the government to subsidize the equipment. 

The greatest impact of the digital conversion will be on viewers of non-digital televisions who receive their signals over the air. Beginning Feb. 18, 2009, they will be forced to buy a special converter box, subsidized by the government, to receive their channels.

To make matters worse, the FCC is trying to mandate how the cable industry provides conversion for customers still using analog televisions.  The cable industry already has a financial incentive to provide the service at the best cost possible, or it will risk losing customers. 

Perhaps, a protest is necessary to expose the folly of this program.  I would love to see the results if all cable customers cancel their service prior to February 18, 2009 and apply for the government subsidized convertor boxes.  After receiving the boxes, people could then sign back up for cable and sell the convertors on eBay to offset some of their ridiculous tax bills.  The initial howls of discontent from the resultant shortage of boxes would be priceless.  As would the response of our Nanny politicians. 

The fall of the Roman Empire had a lot to do with economic ruin.  One of the components was the government trying to overcome discontent by subsidizing entertainment for its citizens.  It appears that our government will not be finished until it also completes the road to economic ruin due to market interventionist policies.  A country can not survive and have a robust economy when the government keeps increasing the redistribution of wealth schemes.

Read it all:  FCC Chair Promotes Post-Digital TV Rule - washingtonpost.com