News and How I Get It

I stopped getting the newspaper delivered some time ago - it was piling up and going unread more than it was being read - and, by the time I did read it, the news was old.  So my news reading is now done online.

I must say that the experience is entirely different!  I used to enjoy sitting down with the paper - opening the sections, snapping the pages in half and settling in (however, I've discovered our paper is now MUCH smaller that it used to be and not only in the amount of content - but the actual physical size of the page - not nearly as satisfying!)  The online version gives the same information (without many of the pictures but that's ok) along with comments from readers.

I read the comments (even those from people I consider to be on the fringe or even over the edge) but I don't find that they add a lot to the discourse.  Many are rants, many are totally off-topic and most contain extensive misspellings (a pet peeve). 

Recently the news concerning the budget has been in the news.  MPOW is a small portion of the overall budget and that part is not getting a lot of play (which may or may not be a good thing) but there are cuts and recommendations for revenue increases that have elicited a great deal of ire among the commenters.  I'm not certain what I think about all the coverage - I know what we're giving up and I know what the additional revenue will provide - but I am also a resident of this locale - and I'm not sure that I want increases in my tax rates either. 

This economic mess has been horrible - we've been lucky here, we've not been dramatically affected until now - and it may just be that drastic efforts are needed all around.  I'm willing to do my part as long as everyone has to participate! 

Anyway - days of my getting a daily newspaper are over - but I'm still uncertain that the online version is a truly acceptable alternative.  Maybe I'd be happier if the comments added to the story and provided thoughtful discourse - but, based on what I've been reading, that's just not going to happen.