To "wish the best" means to me that they are so inept or star crossed or whatever that no matter how much of the best they get they will still mess it up. Just like Trump messes. He was the winner. Now look what he does with it. Can not fix "snake bite."
We are in sad and tumultuous times indeed. I unsubscribed from the Post a couple weeks ago, after 40-plus years of reading it. The Bezofication finally got to be too much. Ruth will be fine; the remaining readers of the Post will be the ones suffering from her loss.
I left them behind over the endorsement issue, hoping that I was overreacting, but nothing since has caused me to second-guess myself. Democracy dies indeed.
“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Thomas Jefferson
"And I wish you both the best as you steer this storied and critical institution through troubled times."
It should have read:
I hope you will both be hit by a speeding bus and will spend the rest of your lives severely disabled and living in a sub-par, roach infested assisted living facility, whose funding has been revoked by the trump administration for capitulating and destroying a storied and critical instruction.
I have a dream -- unrealistic, but I think you'll like it. Bozo continues to tear away at the Post's soul, and subscribers dwindle to very few, which means advertisers all leave. Bozo notices he's not making any money from it, so he puts it up for sale. All the current and former staffers of integrity pool their pennies and buy it for cheap. And restore it to its former glory!
I had you up to who buys it. The usual buyer of a newspaper these days is a hedge fund that that strips it to the bone and makes money by selling off its real estate. That has happened all over America. Alternatively (e.g., the Baltimore Sun) it's bought by an ideologue who uses it to promote his right-wing causes.
That's why, in my dream, I have the noble current and former staffers buy it. I think we'd all agree that one large piece of the problem these days is ownership by corporations that just don't get journalism (or don't care).
Kate, I see a couple of major issues with your scenario. First, what is the source of cash that current and former staff might tap to outbid a hedge fund? I can't come up with an answer. Second, even if we assume that current and former staff can outbid hedge funds for the Post, what business model will they use? If we are to believe Bozos, the paper is currently operating at a loss. Any new owner would need a business model that combines some manner of revenue enhancement with cost control. Serious cuts for staff salaries and benefits would be likely. Would the Post be able to retain its staff under such conditions? I want your scenario to succeed, but I don't know how it can, given the issues.
Well, I did say in my preamble that it was unrealistic. But continuing in I-can-dream-can't-I mode, let's just say some good, idealistic rich person lends our heroes the money to buy it for cheap (but said rich person does NOT own it). And once that happens, all of us who canceled our subscriptions immediately re-up. And when the advertisers see that, they jump on board. And when the new Post says to us, "Would you pay a little more to help get us up and running?" we all say "Of course!"
Blunt? The letter is cordial. There is no mention of butt-kissing. There is no prediction that Bezos will kill the Post. There is no mention of the horse Bezos rode in on.
David Ignatius opened his chat today by saying he will stay as long as he can write what he wants. I guess he’ll soon suffer the same fate as Ruth Marcus.
Jeff Bezos stood on the podium with Dear Leader, and now is doing what Dear Leader does: replacing experts with loyalists, as Gene put it. The letters from Bezos and Will explicitly directed that. It is a time for craven, obsequious sycophants, and the experts can transform, or leave.
Becoming more and more
The Washington Past.
Democracy Died in Darkness Brought to You (almost overnight) by Prime.
"I wish you both the best..." Well, I do not wish them both the best. I wish them both open sores and pestilence.
As do I. Marcus is a class act. She’s taking the high road and I do wish HER the best!
Only the best open sores, and best pestilence.
A variation on the theme of "well, bless your heart."
To "wish the best" means to me that they are so inept or star crossed or whatever that no matter how much of the best they get they will still mess it up. Just like Trump messes. He was the winner. Now look what he does with it. Can not fix "snake bite."
The Washington Post's new slogan: "We Are the Darkness".
We are in sad and tumultuous times indeed. I unsubscribed from the Post a couple weeks ago, after 40-plus years of reading it. The Bezofication finally got to be too much. Ruth will be fine; the remaining readers of the Post will be the ones suffering from her loss.
Appalling. Democracy dies in the Amazon reign forest.
I left them behind over the endorsement issue, hoping that I was overreacting, but nothing since has caused me to second-guess myself. Democracy dies indeed.
“Every time a newspaper dies, even a bad one, the country moves a little closer to authoritarianism…”
--- Richard Kluger
“Most of us probably feel we couldn’t be free without newspapers, and that is the real reason we want newspapers to be free.”
--- Edward R. Murrow
“Were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.” Thomas Jefferson
I can only disagree with her last sentence:
"And I wish you both the best as you steer this storied and critical institution through troubled times."
It should have read:
I hope you will both be hit by a speeding bus and will spend the rest of your lives severely disabled and living in a sub-par, roach infested assisted living facility, whose funding has been revoked by the trump administration for capitulating and destroying a storied and critical instruction.
You're too kind, Trevor. You want them to live.
I kinda wanna see the bastards suffer, too.
Ruth Marcus is extraordinarily diplomatic, and has class and grace.
I have a dream -- unrealistic, but I think you'll like it. Bozo continues to tear away at the Post's soul, and subscribers dwindle to very few, which means advertisers all leave. Bozo notices he's not making any money from it, so he puts it up for sale. All the current and former staffers of integrity pool their pennies and buy it for cheap. And restore it to its former glory!
I had you up to who buys it. The usual buyer of a newspaper these days is a hedge fund that that strips it to the bone and makes money by selling off its real estate. That has happened all over America. Alternatively (e.g., the Baltimore Sun) it's bought by an ideologue who uses it to promote his right-wing causes.
That's why, in my dream, I have the noble current and former staffers buy it. I think we'd all agree that one large piece of the problem these days is ownership by corporations that just don't get journalism (or don't care).
I suspect that the do "get it" and "do care." Just not like we do. It is all about money and power.
Kate, I see a couple of major issues with your scenario. First, what is the source of cash that current and former staff might tap to outbid a hedge fund? I can't come up with an answer. Second, even if we assume that current and former staff can outbid hedge funds for the Post, what business model will they use? If we are to believe Bozos, the paper is currently operating at a loss. Any new owner would need a business model that combines some manner of revenue enhancement with cost control. Serious cuts for staff salaries and benefits would be likely. Would the Post be able to retain its staff under such conditions? I want your scenario to succeed, but I don't know how it can, given the issues.
Well, I did say in my preamble that it was unrealistic. But continuing in I-can-dream-can't-I mode, let's just say some good, idealistic rich person lends our heroes the money to buy it for cheap (but said rich person does NOT own it). And once that happens, all of us who canceled our subscriptions immediately re-up. And when the advertisers see that, they jump on board. And when the new Post says to us, "Would you pay a little more to help get us up and running?" we all say "Of course!"
Blunt? The letter is cordial. There is no mention of butt-kissing. There is no prediction that Bezos will kill the Post. There is no mention of the horse Bezos rode in on.
Pravda has opened a D.C. branch, I see. Disgusting. Bezos should be run out of town on a rail.
David Ignatius opened his chat today by saying he will stay as long as he can write what he wants. I guess he’ll soon suffer the same fate as Ruth Marcus.
Jeff Bezos stood on the podium with Dear Leader, and now is doing what Dear Leader does: replacing experts with loyalists, as Gene put it. The letters from Bezos and Will explicitly directed that. It is a time for craven, obsequious sycophants, and the experts can transform, or leave.
Huge loss. Best of luck to Ruth - she will be missed.
I'm going to miss Ruth and the Post. It is horrible that the paper is being dragged down. I commiserate with all the staff. You don't deserve this.