From: frank.kennedy@u2u.lonestar.org (Frank Kennedy)
Newsgroups: rec.video.satellite
Subject: csc-1
Date: 3 Sep 92 00:17:00 GMT
Reply-To: frank.kennedy@u2u.lonestar.org (Frank Kennedy)
Organization: USER-TO-USER PCBoard (214)492-6565 (USR DS v32bis)


 From : Al Stahl                    1:325/1201              28 Aug 92  00:14:00
 To   : All                                                 29 Aug 92  11:37:20
 Subj : TVA P.R. RE: CABLE

                        TVA
                IMMEDIATE RELEASE
                1730 K St. NW. #304
                Washington, D.C. 20006

August 27, 1992
AN OPEN LETTER TO:
Mr. James Mooney, President
National Cable Association
1727 Mass. Ave. N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20036

Dear Mr. Mooney:

  Granted, your industry has some of the most self-serving,
buccaneering, wheeler-dealers in America commerce; TCI's officers
shuffling corporate assets in and out of their pockets, serving as
directors (and, hopefully, borrowers) for BCCI front corporations,
Time-Warner executives paying themselves tens upon tens of millions
of dollars in annual compensation. Such facts are well-known.

  MONOPOLY, MONEY AND MUSCLE! Using all three, your industry would
make the robber barons of old blush in shame; just ask the good
citizens of Morganton, N.C. or other localities with the will to
fight to overcome cable TV's market abuse.

  Now your industry is deliberately, flat-out lying to your customers,
using the imprimatur (report) of the US Commerce Department. The
cable TV industry cooked up phony data, passed it through the hapless
hacks in the bureaurocracy and BINGO; your disingenuous, down
right-false ads (boxed off for added emphasis) claiming; "The U.S.
Department of Commerce estimates this legislation could mean
increased costs of $23 to $51 per year for each cable subscriber."

  SHAME! Thank God for the expos'e of yesterday in the Washington
Post.

  The cable TV industry knows the the Cable TV Consumer Protection
and Competition Act of 1992 will lower costs to consumers because
it will give the local elected officials the power again to hold
down your monopoly-induced-continually-rising-costs-to-the-consumers;
it will break-up industry's restraint of trade in the sale of
programming, as a result of cable TV buying up, or into, the companies
producing the news, sports and entertainment viewed by 60 million
American families.

  I know with an industry that has been gouging monopoly profits
from its comsumers, averaging over 50% a year, it is difficult to
give up such a government-gifted bonanza. I understand, also,
that after being beaten 4 to 1 in both the U.S. Senate an House the
temptation is strong to cheat, to add some statistical steroids to
your arguments. But, hold fast to the truth: RECANT THE LIES in
your advertisements to the American people. Win, lose, or draw,
your industry will hold its head a bit higher and gain a measure
of needed respect.

With Regards and Respect,

Gary Frink, President

                        a Public Interest Consumer Organization
----------
the above forwarded by the CSC for informational purposes.

Gary Frink of the TVA has requested the above be dissimenated
as widely as possible.
--- FMail 0.90
 * Origin: Bit O' Bytes BBS St. Albans, VT.  802-524-7294  1:325/1201
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