The cell towers around me go out if there's merely a strong storm. I won't count on them during a SHTF situation. Even if the towers don't go out due to damage, the huge traffic during a SHTF situation on the cell networks will cause them to fail.

As we all know, it's a good idea to have multiple means of communication. When I become independently wealthy, I'll have everything I want, including cable, satellite, satellite phone, radio, bunny ears, plain old telephone system and whatever else.

As for now, I'll be switching to Dish Network if my cable goes out one more time. The cable guy just came by and claimed that this fix will be the last one. We'll see. Going basic with rabbit ears is not an option for me because I want my sports channels, and I also like some of the other channels, like comedy, history, etc. Watching sports and sports news is one of my simple pleasures in life.