Printing Hate Columns

[Kire]

While the great newspapers experience a spiral of decline in readership and advertising, there are some print vehicles that are meant to supplement current offerings, especially in the print media. One such vehicle is the so-called penny savers, presses that are collections of ads for local pizzerias, ambulance chasing law firms, down-and-out real estate companies, and a variety of other small businesses. In return, the penny saver press is given out at the registers or at the doors of stores.

In Hamilton there is one such publication nicely called "Our Town," which uses the title of the charming and bittersweet play by Thornton Wilder. But the similarity ends there with the name. "Our Town" has its share of poor jokes and humor reminiscent of the worst in the old "Reader’s Digest." However, the most onerous part is the lead essay that reflects the bizarre rantings of somebody called Robert Beierle of some group called Creative Insight.

In its July 4th issue, an "Our Town" essay discussed every rumor, innuendo, and assorted nastiness one has trotted out about the president of the United States. It was like reading a joint sheet of Fox Network, the New York Post, and the rightist wing essays that blot out the Wall Street Journal. It is as if Rupert Murdock brought a penny saver to add to his empire.

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