A Government Bailout for the Media?

I do not reckon that older men will log onto the internet to see if they made the "obit" page. Logging on to the internet to check the obituary pages indeed seems peculiarly morbid. So,there is one morbid argument for keeping the print media, in this case local newspapers, functioning. This morbid argument hints that local newspapers, for instance, should be supported at the local level, such as by the municipal or county governments, or perhaps the local Lions or Elks clubs.

I noticed PBS is mentioned in the second posting. I recall that just before the Oklahoma City bombing that PBS was ranting almost incessantly about the anniversary of the Dresden bombings...school children et al. PBS actually had Kurt Vonnegut's "Slaughterhouse" movie scheduled. So this indicates some independence from government censorship can be obtained despite government support. Well, this argument is just too morbid.

Personally I have some keepsake print media such as: a NEWSWEEK magazine with the USS Pueblo crew on the cover, a San Jose Mercury News paper headlining the October '87 stock market crash, and a front page of one newspaper headlining V-E day with the missingness of the USS Indiana as a small inset article on the frontpage. So, these items could be tradeable or sellable whereas a 10MB Adobe file would be so much flotsam on the seas not unlike the Pueblo or Indiana.

Again on a personal level, I worked at Henry J.'s Permanente Cement plant when Hanson PLC owned it. Subsequently I worked at the Davenport, Ca, cement plant when RMC PLC owned it. Both plants are heavily dependent on government sales such as for airport runways and interstate highways. One can view this debacle as government subsidies or government sales. As well, the current infrastructure bailout/stimulus package is nothing more than "business as usual" for various cement plants and Granite Construction and the US Government with the caveat now the politicians are using "business as usual" to buy votes. To the private sector's credit I made some big bucks when "we" poured ADOBE's downtown San Jose twin towers, however, even bigger bucks from the Mineta/San Jose Int'l Airport runway pours and California's Highway 85 completion.

Has anyone checked on the US Government "subsidy" to the battery industry? $4-5 billions/yr perhaps!

Well this morbid post for governments subsidizing locally printed obituary pages/print media is turning into a morbid rant. However, Henry J.'s health foundation is sufficient proof that over the long term wise/honest men and women can turn government subsidies and sales into long term public benefits.

I recall Mortimer B. Zuckerman stating on Larry Kudlow's cabletv show that HOPE makes a good breakfast but a lousy supper. We should hope then that our strong belief in our business leaders and our commitment and loyalty to one another and the nations goals will be the sustaining factors in these crises.

Stephen E. Trebaol of CA 8:42PM July 28, 2009