The Death of a Newspaper

For those of you not from C-rad, it may come as a shock (or a "so what") to you that Colorado's oldest newspaper (nearly 150 this year), the Rocky Mountain News was shown to the door on Friday.

One columnist, Mike Littwin writes about the paper not just closing doors, but dying. He laments the downfall of the paper and pines for its days of glory.

Who is the culprit in this sad tale of job loss and despair? The economy? The Internet? Of course not. The suits. That's right, everyone, big bad business men are always the black-hearted criminals who have no qualms stamping out the hopes and dreams of their inferiors and then sprinkling the ashes over distant sees. The executives, those over-paid and under-worked tyrants; they are to blame! If they had half a heart they would see the folly of their ways . . .

This comment I found at the bottom of the column is a little harsh but I think that it's rather poignant:

Had he known how much pain and suffering it would cause the newspaper industry I’m sure former Vice-President Al Gore would never have invented the Internet. But hindsight is always 20/20 and since then he has gone on to a much, much bigger invention: Global Warming.

There’s never a good time to lose your job but this may be one of the better ones because President Obama has promised to redistribute wealth in America by taking from those who produce and giving to those who don’t. Under that guideline Mr. Littwin should make out very well, indeed.

Finally, as a champion of the common man it’s important to remember the common man’s reaction when hearing Mr. Littwin had lost his job: “Who?”.

Schadenfreude on steroids.

To conclude, I make an analogy: Should we resurrect the 8-track or the VHS so that the many plants and workers who so gallantly brought about their days of glory may resume their noble labors?

Yes, as Colonel Mustard would point out, "You can't make an omelette without breaking a few eggs; every good cook will tell you that."

I am saddened by the hardworking man's loss of employment just as much as the next guy. However, there are some things that have to go the way of the dodo for society as a whole to benefit.

We all clamor in our green sweats for the industrialists to "go paperless!" and yet we scratch, hiss, and boohoo whenever the axe inevitably falls upon those makers of paper.

Finally, as a the cliche goes:

YA CAN'T HAVE YER CAKE AN EAT IT TOO!