On Fri, 29 Aug 2008 17:59:43 -0800, "SteveB"
toquerville@zionvistas wrote:

I ****ing give up on the press in the United States.
snip
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Interesting responses, but such lapses are to be expected as the
US media attempts to "right size" down to where they can make a
profit to pay off their huge leveraged buyout/consolidation
loans. Interesting mind set in that many of the papers are also
reducing the circulation of their papers and then complaining
when the ad revenue decreases again. For example the Kansas City
Star and the Dallas news are both major papers in their area [KC
Star in my area now], but to cut expenses, they cut press runs
and distribution and then were "shocked, shocked" when their
revenues fell. WTF???

The older journalists and copy editors have been retired/axed and
have been replaced with new college grads with "journalism"
majors (and little else). For the most part the new hires do the
best they can, but have limited experience in any field, and in
any event, agreement with the ideology of the new owners is far
more critical than any field of knowledge [e.g. the WSJ].

This appears to be a common trend throughout all areas in the US,
but you are more aware of the [affects/effects] of trend in the
media because you have some knowledge of the particular area
reported. Just remember that this covers all the other areas
about which they report "news" including politics and economics.

Unfortunately this trend of "saving money" by hiring cheap help
[and firing the better paid, but competent] does not appear to be
limited to the media and Circuit City, but includes the
hospitals, law enforcement, automobile and aircraft manufacture,
etc. Some recent examples are the surge in people with chest
pains and shortness of breath dying in hospital emergency rooms
after waiting for treatment for several hours.

Old Marx brothers routine that is still true today:

You want good? I got good.

You want cheap? I got cheap.

You want good and cheap? I no got good and cheap.


Unka' George [George McDuffee]
-------------------------------------------
He that will not apply new remedies,
must expect new evils:
for Time is the greatest innovator: and
if Time, of course, alter things to the worse,
and wisdom and counsel shall not alter them to the better,
what shall be the end?

Francis Bacon (1561-1626), English philosopher, essayist, statesman.
Essays, "Of Innovations" (1597-1625).