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Soapbox Monday: Can anyone escape energy-guzzling TV?

I have a television, although just one. And I like a few shows. But I don't want televisions following me through my day, clamoring for my attention and using valuable energy in the process. Sadly, that's what is happening in our society today.

I have a television, although just one. And I like a few shows. But I don't want televisions following me through my day, clamoring for my attention and using valuable energy in the process.

Sadly, that's what is happening in our society today.

Last Friday, a family member underwent a procedure at a local hospital. I lot of it went wrong, from our being told the wrong time to show up, the doctor not submitting the correct paperwork and one of the medical team being late because his dog ran away.

But what really set the two of us off was the yammering televisions in every waiting room we wound up in. They were blaring loudly. It was impossible to read, to talk, to think. Everyone just sat in the waiting rooms, staring dully at the screens. We were all held hostage by noise pollution.

For a while, I think news was on. Then came Regis and Kelly. The audience was screaming. Regis and Kelly and their guests all seemed to be yelling.

There was no way to turn it down. No way to turn it off.

TVs are everywhere. When I pump gas into my car, sometimes there's a TV atop the machine, trying to get me to go inside and buy unhealthy food. When I get my car serviced, the waiting room has several TVs. The other day, when I was in the grocery check-out aisle, a TV was playing on one of walls. Go into any hotel lobby, and as likely as not there will be a big screen blaring away.

Every now and then, I get press releases from television manufacturers, crowing about how much more energy efficient today's TVs are than their predecessors. But others point out that people in the U.S. are actually using more energy for televisions because they're so much bigger than they ever were ... and because they're everywhere.

I think it needs to stop. What do you think?