An update for the masses
So it turns out that getting a story on the front page of The Whig isn't as tough as I thought it would be. The paper has eight reporters and I've never been there when more than five staff writers were on the clock. It's vacation time, so things are looking good. Surprisingly, staff morale is really high despite the heavy workload, and when things get down to the wire, every one jumps in.
A staff writer is running the city section for a little bit, and she's pretty much taken me under her wing. I'm gonna be sad when the editor comes back, but then I'll have a chance to pitch my own stories and get my foot a little further in the door. In other words, I'm lovin' this gig. I was SO frightened on my first walk to work, and wondered over and over why the hell I put myself up to this. But, I'm happy to report, it's worked out wonderfully. The other writers are actually starting to talk to me, and like actually turning around when I ask them questions instead of just grunting or completely ignoring me. So there's that.
And a lot of them know all about King's, too. Michael Cobden was the editor at one point, and served in several other senior positions. And one of the star writers who's won a national newspaper award and a few Ontario newspaper awards is a one-year alumnus. The court reporter worked for The Herald for a bit, who as an aside has lots of interesting things to say about management there, so he knows lots about the school. Everyone there seems to have nothing but nice things to say. So there's that, too.
There's not much more to report on that front. I love it there and only once wanted to leave at the end of the day so far, which was when I filed like four times on my second day.
***
In other news, I've decided that I'm not voting Liberal no matter who wins the leadership. I've grown to hate Ignatieff, though I don't think he stands a chance. He ran a really shitty campaign. He should have creeped up all slow like, therefore leaving less room for such sloppy blunders. The success of the Liberal Party, at least as of late, has been based on the leader's ability to stay out of the lime light as much as possible. That's why Chretien kicked ass and Martin failed miserably. Talkative politicians who think progressive policy trumps behaviour should have their heads examined.
Plus Ignatieff separated himself way too far from his competitors, which was a really stupid thing to do with such a massive candidate list. So he'll lose the first ballot, just because of the diversity of the slate. Then he'll lose every ballot after that because of his team's ridiculous campaign tactics.
So I don't think we have to worry about a foreigner/war monger running our country. As for the rest, none of them show promise. Kennedy lacks a pulse, Dion can't speak English and Rae allegedly destroyed Ontario and likely doesn't have a great chance there. So I guess I'm forced to vote with my conscience, which leaves me with the NDP. Not that it matters, though. As long as Alexa's running, the socialists will have that riding locked. I'm ok with that, too. She knows how to be in the opposition. She knows how to bitch, she knows how to whine and she knows how to raise a stink. What more could you ask for from any opposition MP?
Regardless, I'm still absolutely fascinated with what happens at the convention. While comparisons to 1968 are absurd beyond words, the end does mean something to the Canadian political landscape, though it's hard to surmise the scope of its influence. I just hope they don't pick a loser as big as Martin, cuz I don't think I can take another year-long campaign any time soon. The US presidential election is coming up pretty quick, and that's depressing. I hope the Liberals can appreciate the weight such a campaign has on the sanity of someone with a distinctively high level of political efficacy.
Alright, I'd just thought I'd rant for a while, cuz site meter tells me daily hits sky-rocketed to an all-time high (more than an avg of 40 page views per day!) when I wrote about about my grandmother. So I hope I didn't disappoint. To be honest, I've been so busy writing and reading about weather, fires and petty cigarette smuggling that I haven't been able to peer out into the wide world with any large extent for quite some time. So I'll try to get on that.
Until next time...
A staff writer is running the city section for a little bit, and she's pretty much taken me under her wing. I'm gonna be sad when the editor comes back, but then I'll have a chance to pitch my own stories and get my foot a little further in the door. In other words, I'm lovin' this gig. I was SO frightened on my first walk to work, and wondered over and over why the hell I put myself up to this. But, I'm happy to report, it's worked out wonderfully. The other writers are actually starting to talk to me, and like actually turning around when I ask them questions instead of just grunting or completely ignoring me. So there's that.
And a lot of them know all about King's, too. Michael Cobden was the editor at one point, and served in several other senior positions. And one of the star writers who's won a national newspaper award and a few Ontario newspaper awards is a one-year alumnus. The court reporter worked for The Herald for a bit, who as an aside has lots of interesting things to say about management there, so he knows lots about the school. Everyone there seems to have nothing but nice things to say. So there's that, too.
There's not much more to report on that front. I love it there and only once wanted to leave at the end of the day so far, which was when I filed like four times on my second day.
***
In other news, I've decided that I'm not voting Liberal no matter who wins the leadership. I've grown to hate Ignatieff, though I don't think he stands a chance. He ran a really shitty campaign. He should have creeped up all slow like, therefore leaving less room for such sloppy blunders. The success of the Liberal Party, at least as of late, has been based on the leader's ability to stay out of the lime light as much as possible. That's why Chretien kicked ass and Martin failed miserably. Talkative politicians who think progressive policy trumps behaviour should have their heads examined.
Plus Ignatieff separated himself way too far from his competitors, which was a really stupid thing to do with such a massive candidate list. So he'll lose the first ballot, just because of the diversity of the slate. Then he'll lose every ballot after that because of his team's ridiculous campaign tactics.
So I don't think we have to worry about a foreigner/war monger running our country. As for the rest, none of them show promise. Kennedy lacks a pulse, Dion can't speak English and Rae allegedly destroyed Ontario and likely doesn't have a great chance there. So I guess I'm forced to vote with my conscience, which leaves me with the NDP. Not that it matters, though. As long as Alexa's running, the socialists will have that riding locked. I'm ok with that, too. She knows how to be in the opposition. She knows how to bitch, she knows how to whine and she knows how to raise a stink. What more could you ask for from any opposition MP?
Regardless, I'm still absolutely fascinated with what happens at the convention. While comparisons to 1968 are absurd beyond words, the end does mean something to the Canadian political landscape, though it's hard to surmise the scope of its influence. I just hope they don't pick a loser as big as Martin, cuz I don't think I can take another year-long campaign any time soon. The US presidential election is coming up pretty quick, and that's depressing. I hope the Liberals can appreciate the weight such a campaign has on the sanity of someone with a distinctively high level of political efficacy.
Alright, I'd just thought I'd rant for a while, cuz site meter tells me daily hits sky-rocketed to an all-time high (more than an avg of 40 page views per day!) when I wrote about about my grandmother. So I hope I didn't disappoint. To be honest, I've been so busy writing and reading about weather, fires and petty cigarette smuggling that I haven't been able to peer out into the wide world with any large extent for quite some time. So I'll try to get on that.
Until next time...
posted by Southwick | 10:18 PM
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