Time marches ever onward, but in what direction? Onward to this Brave New World, where bits and bytes equal cash and cachet, and the physical realm has been replaced by the digital cloud?
Is it news anymore that media outlets are shedding jobs? Like the annual stagnation of the Chicago Cubs, the erosion of jobs in journalism continues unabated, the technological waves lashing and lapping at an ever-dwindling shore.
Like the drowning man watching a rope of salvation recede into the horizon, I've watched from afar with the sense of resigned detachment, that some day the same fate would afflict me.
So far, it has not, and for that I am thankful. But as I read the latest story of a media empire crumbling into decay (www.stltoday.com/business/local/article_344cb82c-ce99-11e0-8ca1-0019bb30f31a.html), I can't help but wonder when this will befall all of us veritable ink-stained wretches.
How long before the "hard copy" versions of newspapers are chopped for good? Reasons given will be many, with many calling it one of environmental friendliness, others leveling honestly that it is not all about going green, rather saving green.
That fateful hour approaches more quickly every day, with each Kindle and iPad shipped to stores, and as each App is downloaded.
So, do yourself a favor, and find an outlet for a newspaper, a gas station, perhaps (those still exist, don't they, since they haven't figured out a way to download fuel, well, unless you count electricity). Anyway, tomorrow, or this weekend, or before it's too late, go to a gas station and buy a newspaper. Plunk down one of those worthless dead presidents (sorry George, we really do love yah!) and buy a transportable snapshot of the world.
Feel the pulpy texture in your hands. Wash off the ink that accumulates from lingering on the Op-Ed page as you contemplate ideas put forth in a column by someone who ticks you off.
Clip a coupon or advertisement to serve as a visual reminder of the people who really support their local newspaper, the moms and pops (and the big guys) who pour their hard-earned $$$s into trying to reach an erudite, educated local customer.
Read all about your most recent local community meeting, be it a city council or school board, and learn what happened without having to go to the time and trouble of actually, you know, showing up for it. After all, a reporter was sent there to cover the gathering -- surely it's worth $1 just for the privilege of skipping it.
Perhaps you will be distracted by a fly while thinking about that opinion column. Go ahead and fold the newspaper while the fly dive-bombs your head.
Can your Kindle do that?
Take a swing and smack the fly.
Is there an App for that?
That is just one of the many tangential benefits to newspaper ownership. Everyone should have the pleasure of experiencing these sorts of thrills, so today, by the power vested in myself (D.C., I believe), I have declared Thursday, Sept. 1, National Buy a Darn Newspaper Before It's Too Late Day. Will you participate?
Set aside the screen for a second (OK, after you've finished reading this; you're almost through!), and consider this:
There surely are psychiatric studies underway or that have already been published exploring the ever-widening digital gap between whatever generation the current one is being called and those of us who of an age, ahem, where we can no longer be trusted.
Would you deprive a young child the joy of killing flies with yesterday's sports scores and a half-filled out crossword puzzle? Would you rip from the hands of a wee lad the one tool of violence he or she can legally possess?
And, if nothing else, think about America's animal community: birds and fish everywhere are counting on you.
So, on Sept. 1, buy a newspaper. You'll be glad you did.
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