The Unsuitablog

Exposing Ethical Hypocrites Everywhere!

Sabotaging Television With A Click

Posted by keith on March 25th, 2009

Imagine The Fun You Could Have!

I think I can truthfully say that television is the means by which greenwash, and other forms of anti-environmental propaganda, reaches people most effectively: magazines, newspapers and billboards are certainly grevious offenders, but as we subvert more and more of our lives to the great glass teat in the sitting room (the bedroom, the kitchen, the dining room, the pub, the car…) we become ever more receptive to what is coming out of it, even though we may not think we do.

Television is where the greenwashers go if they really want to get their message over to the maximum number of people in the most insidious way possible — which makes television, public television in particular, an obvious target for sabotage. You might not be able to get into peoples’ homes (although, as this article suggests, it would make a fine project) but, as this article from The Sietch Blog shows, everyone can have a go at freeing peoples’ minds…

I have had some interesting discussions with people who don’t like what I say in my book about sabotage. In a nutshell, sabotage, or probably more accurately, “undermining” is a vital activity in allowing a sizeable number of people to regain control of their lives that are otherwise being controlled by the forces that ensure we follow our current, destructive path. Sabotage of the things that control us is therefore, fundamental to creating large-scale change.

The way we have been taught, especially in recent years, to view anyone interfering with the workings of civilization as “terrorists” is a travesty. Sabotage for the sake of creating something better, no less than in order to ensure humans have a future on Earth, is no more negative than growing your own food or refusing to buy new goods; and is a lot more positive an action than, say, voting, which changes nothing except the superficial appearance of the political system.

And in case you think sabotage in order to give people their minds back is going to be difficult, here’s an example of something that everyone can do easily, quickly and without getting caught – and if you do get caught then what’s the worse that can happen? “Officer, I caught this individual switching my bank of televisions off!” Clearly a capital offence.

TV-B-Gone — and I make no excuses for advertising a product, because it’s one that could really change things — switches televisions and other remote controlled screens off. Simple. And it does it brilliantly…

This turns 17 off in 2 minutes at an electronics fair:



This clip shows how to use it through windows:



And this one, which I think is the best of all, shows how to use it in places where, surely you would get caught, but are not!



You can buy TV-B-Gone directly from the www.tvbgone.com or on your local eBay site.

I’ve just ordered one, and It’ll be attached to my house keys, so it’s always there when I get the urge. Go on, you know you want to do it!

You would be amazed how many times, and in how many different places, I have used mine…

3 Responses to “Sabotaging Television With A Click”

  1. Apodidae Says:

    Great little thing. I went to pick my daughter up from school. 5 off and not back on within an hour.

  2. Anonymous Says:

    The TV-B-Gone is a hilarious device. I also found out that Comcast cable boxes are all “keyed alike” in that one and the same remote works on ALL the cable boxes! This means that with a universal remote, once you crack the code for one cable box, you have the “key to the kingdom”. I developed a “suicide bomber remote” with a hat that has the IR LEDS and the remote I strap on like a suicide bomber under a shirt. With magnet wire leading to the hat hidden by long hair, nobody can see it when I mess with cable boxes. Combine the “suicide bomber remote” with a TV-B-Gone, you can launch a 2 prong attack!

  3. keith Says:

    Brilliant idea, the hat. Much more discreet. I manage to take out about 25-30% of the TVs in a typical electrical store before it gets suspicious. Best of all is pubs showing rolling propaganda – the range seems to be 10m or more.

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