Since my heart attack and open-heart surgery five years ago, I have been doing my best trying to stay healthy.  I make it a point to eat right and exercise daily.  More often than not, my best exercising takes place at the fitness center.

When the COVID-19 outbreak came along, the fitness center temporarily closed. When it reopened, there were reduced hours, mask regulations to contend with, and the TV remote was now permanently kept behind the counter where the recreation staff worked.  From then on, only the employees could operate the TV remote.  If a fitness member needed a channel change, he had to request staff assistance. When asked, the staff never acted imposed upon while helping, and this was how things remained for a long time.

But just weeks ago, things changed.  It was going to be up to the center manager to decide each morning what the four televisions would carry during the course of the day.  It was also decided that the four televisions on the wall were not to be changed, not even by regular staff.  And guess what!  The same four channels are on the same four televisions.  It never changes!  The winners are: 

1. food network 
2. HGTV (Home & Garden Television)
3. Local ABC
4. Local NBC

I doubt there was any market research that went into the decision of what four channels best reflected the wants and needs of the fitness center membership.  Feeling as though my membership rights were being usurped, I was determined to get to the bottom of the new TV rules.  So I started asking questions.

The fitness center employees were not real forthcoming about why the change in policy had suddenly occurred.  You could even say they were mum on the subject.  On the other hand, there were some intriguing rumors going around among those who paid for the privilege of exercising at the facility.  

There were two interesting stories circulating.  One story claimed that there had been an almost altercation between two members as to what news channel was to be viewed: CNN or FOX.  The other story had the same two "gentlemen" nearly reaching blows because of loud snarky comments regarding what was being said on one of those stations — sort of a non-televised almost fight between a Trump-supporter and a Biden man. 

And this was, according to the rumors, why the powers that be at the fitness center had changed their television policy.  They had decided that the best thing for everyone was to ban the watching of national news stations!

That was when I had my own personal revelation about this entire TV debacle.  I realized the fitness center was trying to create a nonpolitical safe space — a neutral zone where all could be mellow.

Assuming this to be the case, and I have no reason not to, I came to view these four channels in a different light.  It was my feeling that these four channels were selected because they were considered safe.

Let's face it: who is going to square off over what is being said on the food channel or HGTV?  But there is the matter of the two local channels, ABC and NBC.  And this is where even their best laid plans of political neutrality came to naught.  Just because the local ABC and NBC affiliates are not national news channels is not to say that they are not biased or inflammatory. 

Take ABC.  They host The View, a leftist daytime talk show featuring the likes of Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar.  Then there is This Week with George Stephanopoulos.  Stephanopoulos, a onetime senior adviser to President Bill Clinton, is anything but objective.  And the "POWERHOUSE ROUNDTABLE" segment?  It features Donna (sneak Hillary the debate questions ahead of time) Brazile and Chris (give Obama a hug) Christie.  For me, and any red-blooded American, definitely inflammatory.

NBC is just as bad.  Mainstream media are mainstream media.  For me, and any red-blooded American, definitely inflammatory. 

If the fitness center is really looking for safe space for all, then ABC and NBC have to go.  So what should their replacements be? 

I've been giving this a lot of thought, and I think ABC should be replaced with the Golf Channel.  I find watching golf relaxing.  And watching grown men and women chase a golf ball can't get one into too much trouble. 

As for NBC, it should be replaced by the Hallmark Channel.  The Hallmark Channel would be perfect for the fitness center.  It lowers men's testosterone levels and turns them into Jell-O.

As far as I am concerned, the solution to the fitness center TV problem has nothing to do with finding the safest TV channels for their members to watch.  This is wrong thinking.  Right thinking is to stay the course and enforce the common rules of civility.  

As for me, I'm not looking for a safe space at my fitness center.  I just want to exercise and visit.  And I'm not looking to stop membership.  I've been somewhat frustrated by this whole thing, and I wanted to have some fun shooting holes in their "logic."

On a final note, I'm not necessarily done complaining.  I recently suggested the fitness center consider purchasing new treadmills with built in televisions.

Image via Pexels.