I would like to know how op-eds matter. I'm not being sarcastic--they just strike me as takes among many other such takes. I suppose being written by someone of importance and published in a paper of record gives them authority, but who do they really influence? Once again, it's a serious question. I don't agree with what Bezos has done, he's an idiot, but I don't see how it should matter to me unless it affects actual reporting.
Op-eds are indicative of the kind of news coverage that the publisher wants. It's going to change and the Washington Post, which inspired my career choice -- I wanted to be like Woodward and Bernstein -- will stop being a light. I don't believe that a newsroom that's run by Bezos will be allowed to conduct the kinds of investigative work that we need done. Democracy really does die in darkness.
Exactly this. I worked for a paper in South Florida as a photojournalist and I remember approaching people who would tell me my paper was a liberal rag that they hated. I was too young and ignorant to understand how they came to that conclusion, but now I understand that it was from reading the opinion pages of the paper.
When I worked in community newspapers, I absolutely loved it when both sides of an issue told me I was biased against them. It meant I my work was balanced and gave both sides a clear view. It happened a lot. I once had the mayor of a town yell at me, "Whose side are you on?" And I said, "I don't live in your town. I don't own the restaurant you won't give a liquor license to. And I don't eat at that restaurant either. I'm not on anyone's side."
Wired has been great! It’s one of the few outlets that’s been covering the federal government purge accurately. My guess is because they’re used to covering wonky niche stuff.
And yeah, if I wanted a trash free market shilling op-ed page, I’d resubscribe to the WSJ. Is there really a dearth of columns covering the benefits of the free market? FFS.
What gets me with these oligarchs is that if I had all their money, the last thing I’d be doing is camping out at OPM or running a newspaper op-ed page. Some days, the only solace I get is knowing that these men will eventually be relegated to the dustbin of history as they have done little to better society.
Dark days, indeed. I had already canceled my WAPO subscription, and unfortunately, I do use Prime quite a bit because things just aren't available in local stores, especially in Eastern Oregon. It seems like there is a sticking point with regard to how people respond to these egregious issues, and by people I mean Democrats. The old school civility stuff has never really worked, particularly because people like Trump, Musk, McConnell and others knew that Dems would go that way first. This is also evident with protest - just the fact that protests on campus were called riots is a problematic framing. My own campus has a whole civility campaign, mostly because they don't know how to have difficult conversations. I think there is something more needed than the interactions between politicians. Bezos' move here signals that he doesn't care about multiple perspectives, and is bowing before Trump for maximum gain. I think I am becoming a Bernie Bro. More likely an Elizabeth Warren woman.
FWIW, I have found that most things are available from other online stores than Amazon. It takes some wading through search results, but I haven't bought a thing from Amazon in over a decade and don't go into stores in person anymore (can't risk catching Covid, I already have health problems). There is no ethical consumption under capitalism, I know, but I've loathed Amazon since they were operating at a loss so they could artificially cut their prices and put bookstores out of business.
Yes! This is my next step. My kindle is hanging in there and I briefly thought about giving it to someone and buying a Rakuten Kobo, but then thought twice about buying something when I didn’t yet need it. All my books come from the library and I canceled by Amazon Prime. Once I move past the kindle, Amazon is deleted completely.
I have some items on Subscribe and Save with Amazon. I started searching the company websites for these items and found I can use them instead. Costco also has things I buy from Amazon, Target and Walmart on their website.
Also, you can order from Amazon without paying the escalating Prime fee. If you order a certain dollar amount, shipping is still free. Several years ago I did the math and found out that for us, we were just handing Amazon money needlessly.
I agree! I've been trying to do without Amazon for a few years, and Target, Ebay, and Etsy, plus going directly to the manufacturer, have worked for me nearly 100%. I've also done stuff like ordering shoes from Amazon, returning them saying they don't fit, and purchasing them from the manufacturer. (They were regular price at Amazon because I wear the average size, but discounted from the maker.)
FWIW, Amazon makes a majority of its earnings on AWS, which is scary in its own right because so many companies and government agencies use it. I canceled my Washington Post subscription. I subscribed to Wired a few weeks ago and try to financially support as many independent writers and journalists as I can. But I still use Prime because it is easy, I watch the shows and the bigger box alternatives aren’t better — and I sense I’ll get to a point where I stop justifying it and quit it
we're about to cancel our amazon subscription. we reminded ourselves that, back in the day, we made do with what we could find in our small iowa town. we live in a larger city now but that still holds true. sure amazon can get me some things that i probably can't find here but do i really need them? unlikely. it's a very tiny poke in the eye to mr. bezos. he probably won't feel a thing but i'll feel better about myself.
Today is a good day to cancel my Amazon subscriptions. I switched to eBay and sometimes pay a little for shipping, but I won't miss Prime. Shutting off my billionaire products and services hits them where it hurts the most. I'm not subsidizing the obscenely wealthy any more until they're getting properly taxed.
There's a super-convenient WF near me, but they're terrible now. They've steadily taken out any unique product I would make a special trip for. They have no reason for them to exist, as far as I'm concerned.
The only liberty Jeff Bezos values is the freedom to make as much money as obscenely possible without sharing any of it through taxation to support the society that protects him and provides his consumers. It's all about HIS fucking RIGHTS and zero about HIS fucking RESPONSIBILITIES. And he doesn't give a damn about HER RIGHTS because that doesn't push his earnings enough. Unsubbed from WaPo when they snubbed VP Harris. I will vote brutally with my money.
There's a legitimate debate to be had, but it's just about impossible in this toxic climate. Personal liberties and free markets are good things, liberal values, but they don't mean what the oligarchs think they mean. Free markets are not the same thing as capitalism, and markets need policing to stay free, to preserve opportunity for all. And personal liberties don't include the right to harass and oppress others. Nor can you really be said to have personal liberties if you have to struggle just to stay alive for economic reasons. That all of this isn't self-evident and universally accepted tells me the language is just cover for the same old people with privilege and power taking advantage of others. That's what we need to be talking about as a nation. Whatever language we use to describe it.
They don't stay free (and they aren't free for many people from the beginning). Winners always try to protect their positions, deny opportunities to others, and exploit their advantages with predatory behavior. I think if our side lets them claim the mantle of liberty for all that it's a political mistake.
If he drives more readers away, it's only a matter of time until he starts blaming ex-readers for not being willing hostages to his self-interested agenda.
Indeed, "billionaire deflection" and "corporate welfare" are the less-coded and more accurately stated themes of WaPo's op/ed philosophy. Making Gilead Great Again -- since the time of President Denali, at least.
Preview of tomorrow's headlines: Why Immigrants Keep Punching Themselves And Making Me Loot The Treasury. Guess the author?
Bye, Whole Foods and prime
As long as Bezos keeps his hands off the political coverage I don't care that much about opinion, to be honest.
It's all connected and unfortunately, even if you don't read the op-eds, it does all matter.
I would like to know how op-eds matter. I'm not being sarcastic--they just strike me as takes among many other such takes. I suppose being written by someone of importance and published in a paper of record gives them authority, but who do they really influence? Once again, it's a serious question. I don't agree with what Bezos has done, he's an idiot, but I don't see how it should matter to me unless it affects actual reporting.
Op-eds are indicative of the kind of news coverage that the publisher wants. It's going to change and the Washington Post, which inspired my career choice -- I wanted to be like Woodward and Bernstein -- will stop being a light. I don't believe that a newsroom that's run by Bezos will be allowed to conduct the kinds of investigative work that we need done. Democracy really does die in darkness.
Exactly this. I worked for a paper in South Florida as a photojournalist and I remember approaching people who would tell me my paper was a liberal rag that they hated. I was too young and ignorant to understand how they came to that conclusion, but now I understand that it was from reading the opinion pages of the paper.
When I worked in community newspapers, I absolutely loved it when both sides of an issue told me I was biased against them. It meant I my work was balanced and gave both sides a clear view. It happened a lot. I once had the mayor of a town yell at me, "Whose side are you on?" And I said, "I don't live in your town. I don't own the restaurant you won't give a liquor license to. And I don't eat at that restaurant either. I'm not on anyone's side."
Wired has been great! It’s one of the few outlets that’s been covering the federal government purge accurately. My guess is because they’re used to covering wonky niche stuff.
And yeah, if I wanted a trash free market shilling op-ed page, I’d resubscribe to the WSJ. Is there really a dearth of columns covering the benefits of the free market? FFS.
What gets me with these oligarchs is that if I had all their money, the last thing I’d be doing is camping out at OPM or running a newspaper op-ed page. Some days, the only solace I get is knowing that these men will eventually be relegated to the dustbin of history as they have done little to better society.
So tired of this shit. "Oligargle my balls" said a friend of mine. Indeed.
Dark days, indeed. I had already canceled my WAPO subscription, and unfortunately, I do use Prime quite a bit because things just aren't available in local stores, especially in Eastern Oregon. It seems like there is a sticking point with regard to how people respond to these egregious issues, and by people I mean Democrats. The old school civility stuff has never really worked, particularly because people like Trump, Musk, McConnell and others knew that Dems would go that way first. This is also evident with protest - just the fact that protests on campus were called riots is a problematic framing. My own campus has a whole civility campaign, mostly because they don't know how to have difficult conversations. I think there is something more needed than the interactions between politicians. Bezos' move here signals that he doesn't care about multiple perspectives, and is bowing before Trump for maximum gain. I think I am becoming a Bernie Bro. More likely an Elizabeth Warren woman.
FWIW, I have found that most things are available from other online stores than Amazon. It takes some wading through search results, but I haven't bought a thing from Amazon in over a decade and don't go into stores in person anymore (can't risk catching Covid, I already have health problems). There is no ethical consumption under capitalism, I know, but I've loathed Amazon since they were operating at a loss so they could artificially cut their prices and put bookstores out of business.
Me too! And when my Kindle broke, I bought a Nook and deleted my Amazon account completely.
Yes! This is my next step. My kindle is hanging in there and I briefly thought about giving it to someone and buying a Rakuten Kobo, but then thought twice about buying something when I didn’t yet need it. All my books come from the library and I canceled by Amazon Prime. Once I move past the kindle, Amazon is deleted completely.
okay, okay. I will try harder. 😁
I have some items on Subscribe and Save with Amazon. I started searching the company websites for these items and found I can use them instead. Costco also has things I buy from Amazon, Target and Walmart on their website.
Also, you can order from Amazon without paying the escalating Prime fee. If you order a certain dollar amount, shipping is still free. Several years ago I did the math and found out that for us, we were just handing Amazon money needlessly.
I agree! I've been trying to do without Amazon for a few years, and Target, Ebay, and Etsy, plus going directly to the manufacturer, have worked for me nearly 100%. I've also done stuff like ordering shoes from Amazon, returning them saying they don't fit, and purchasing them from the manufacturer. (They were regular price at Amazon because I wear the average size, but discounted from the maker.)
What is the problem with buying from small businesses on Etsy?
FWIW, Amazon makes a majority of its earnings on AWS, which is scary in its own right because so many companies and government agencies use it. I canceled my Washington Post subscription. I subscribed to Wired a few weeks ago and try to financially support as many independent writers and journalists as I can. But I still use Prime because it is easy, I watch the shows and the bigger box alternatives aren’t better — and I sense I’ll get to a point where I stop justifying it and quit it
we're about to cancel our amazon subscription. we reminded ourselves that, back in the day, we made do with what we could find in our small iowa town. we live in a larger city now but that still holds true. sure amazon can get me some things that i probably can't find here but do i really need them? unlikely. it's a very tiny poke in the eye to mr. bezos. he probably won't feel a thing but i'll feel better about myself.
I guess he’ll be standing up for trans women now? Cuz they’re REALLY men, after all. 😒
That’s an excellent point!
These assholes hate trans women, 'cause our existence threatens their fragile male egos.
Today is a good day to cancel my Amazon subscriptions. I switched to eBay and sometimes pay a little for shipping, but I won't miss Prime. Shutting off my billionaire products and services hits them where it hurts the most. I'm not subsidizing the obscenely wealthy any more until they're getting properly taxed.
And I'll shop Trader Joe's over Whole Foods every day all day long.
There's a super-convenient WF near me, but they're terrible now. They've steadily taken out any unique product I would make a special trip for. They have no reason for them to exist, as far as I'm concerned.
The only liberty Jeff Bezos values is the freedom to make as much money as obscenely possible without sharing any of it through taxation to support the society that protects him and provides his consumers. It's all about HIS fucking RIGHTS and zero about HIS fucking RESPONSIBILITIES. And he doesn't give a damn about HER RIGHTS because that doesn't push his earnings enough. Unsubbed from WaPo when they snubbed VP Harris. I will vote brutally with my money.
There's a legitimate debate to be had, but it's just about impossible in this toxic climate. Personal liberties and free markets are good things, liberal values, but they don't mean what the oligarchs think they mean. Free markets are not the same thing as capitalism, and markets need policing to stay free, to preserve opportunity for all. And personal liberties don't include the right to harass and oppress others. Nor can you really be said to have personal liberties if you have to struggle just to stay alive for economic reasons. That all of this isn't self-evident and universally accepted tells me the language is just cover for the same old people with privilege and power taking advantage of others. That's what we need to be talking about as a nation. Whatever language we use to describe it.
Yes. Unfettered free markets are bad!
They don't stay free (and they aren't free for many people from the beginning). Winners always try to protect their positions, deny opportunities to others, and exploit their advantages with predatory behavior. I think if our side lets them claim the mantle of liberty for all that it's a political mistake.
An important opening line, "Whose liberties need protecting, Jeff?"
More stories about men? 🤮🤬🙄🤯 I think he’ll be high in the ranks for Doofus of the Week voting.
They really just need one boilerplate story: Man gets what he wants, is still mad
If he drives more readers away, it's only a matter of time until he starts blaming ex-readers for not being willing hostages to his self-interested agenda.
😹
Elon is the world’s biggest welfare queen. The thing they spend their time railing against is what they actually are.
Indeed, "billionaire deflection" and "corporate welfare" are the less-coded and more accurately stated themes of WaPo's op/ed philosophy. Making Gilead Great Again -- since the time of President Denali, at least.
Preview of tomorrow's headlines: Why Immigrants Keep Punching Themselves And Making Me Loot The Treasury. Guess the author?
Every accusation really is a confession
sources tell me Bezos is concerned about his numbers in the Dingus poll and wanted to do something to move the needle
"Personal liberties" is Bezos-speak for "hands off my rich white male privilege!"
"Free market" is Bezos-speak for "I can pay my employees chickenshit and make my drivers piss in soda bottles on company time "
Democracy dies in the shadowy darkness cast by piles on piles of cash
Your writing is fire again and I'm here for it! I subscribed to Wired. IT'S ONLY $10!