|
GET YOUR TIN CAN AND WIRES: This story was a preview of what was to come with the bankruptcy of Frontier.
Be sure to keep your old phone book
By Bob Weaver July 2019
Going backward.
It seems to be insult to the injury, Frontier's latest phone directory has eliminated, yes eliminated, the listings of residential phone customers.
It's a tiny thin publication, with tiny print.
The newly published phone book just includes businesses and public entities.
Go figure when asking the WHY question. Seems like driving another nail in the Frontier coffin, maybe by purpose on the road to bankruptcy?
Frontier says customers can look-up residential phone numbers on the internet, for most, in this rural area, that means Frontier internet service that's shaky at best.
We did look for the internet Frontier "book" for Calhoun, not to be found.
After all, residential phone customers are a wasteland for robocalls and scammers anyway.
Rural residents should gird their loins when it comes to 21st Century (or even 20th Century) technology, with limited cell service to a few areas.
Cell service barely improved in Calhoun in 25 years or more.
Landline service in most rural areas of WV is getting worse and sketchy, while politicians make their annual announcements (since 1990s) that real broadband is coming to your neighborhood soon.
Rural residents would do well to think about remote devices placed on hilltops to bring cell service to valley dwellers, or go to satellite or internet phone systems.
It might be important to remember that electric did not come to rural WV with a 50 year delay. The federal government finally got on board with the REA and brought the modern convenience. If that didn't happen, we might not have electric yet in rural areas.
While rural folks are great survivors, the safety and security that most take for-granted is collapsing.
Maybe we will forced to depend on our neighbors once again when we have a problem.
Meanwhile, the WV-PSC has announced a company to perform an long overdue audit of Frontier West Virginia and Citizens Telecommunications Company of West Virginia, after receiving tens of thousands of complaints.
Yet another class action lawsuit has been filed regarding poor performance. | 
