Cable Company

Three neighbors and we suffered a loss of cable service when our cable line was struck by lightning about 5 weeks ago. They put in a temporary line within a day or two. They never came back to bury it, so we hounded them to get an appointment for 10/11. They showed up that day to bury the line, but the subcontractor had too short a line, and could not get to the switch on the pole behind a 6 foot fence in neighbor's yard so he just left. We were to get permission from the neighbor for them to enter his yard and he said yes.

Another 10 days went by and no performance. We started calling long distance and could not get an appointment. Yesterday, I asked for an office in town to go talk to, and they gave me the address. After work I stopped there and it was 30 minutes before a woman manager came out to talk to me. She apologized and gave me the number to the subcontractor and said I could call them myself.

I wanted her to take care of it, rather than pawning it off on me, so I said I would try but if this did not work, I would go up the chain and to municipal and state utility regulators to solve this. She got mad, glared at me and said: "Don't threaten me." I responded that I had not threatened her, but promised to take it further if nothing clicked. I left the store before she called the cops to have me removed.

Today, I called that subcontractor 4 times. I finally talked to him and said let us get this done. An hour later a technician supervisor was out at the house, and the new line was buried, but they still could not get the switch on at the neighbor's pole. They wanted me to call the neighbor tonight to get the gate unlatched at the bottom too, so they could enter.

I have not been able to reach the neighbor tonight. I went outside and looked at the fence. I left three more voicemails to have them remove three boards on my side, go in and flip the switch and I would put the boards back on. Or they could put one ladder against a post and another ladder on the other side, and go into the yard and flip on the switch. They did not call back tonight but the cable installer did. He was mad; they were blaming him for the fiasco, and said they were too lazy to go through the fence or over the fence.

If they are, I will open the fence for them and repair it afterwards.

We have 25 phone calls into this outfit, to get this far.

I am dogged and will not give up. My reflections are that this kind of stick-to-it-tiveness is what is required by future individuated supercitizens to devolve institutions, and to make bureaucrats, tyrants and democracy work for them as they assert their liberty, power, independence and self-reliance. A few thousand such focused, principled supercitizens, and America would be free, civil, prosperous and run by the rule of law once more.