Cable Firms Dupe TV Addicts

* I feel sorry for the thousands of individuals who have become duped and addicted by their cable television rip-off companies. The cry for intervention by authorities will fall on deaf ears due to the inherent strength and value of special interest lobbying and the political clout of the cable industry.

The cable industry feeds the consumer bits and pieces of thrills and chills until viewers build their lives around the programming. Then the cable company changes the format, raises the rates or otherwise disrupts the programming until viewers (who have become addicted at this point) feel that they have no other choice but to deprive their budget even further and pay the higher cable costs.

ALLEN ROBERT CARROZZA

Ojai