Will This Week's Sho-down be a Ho-Down?

[karlsie]

I'd like to welcome the new members to our slowly broadening circle of Subversify writers. You've been invited to participate because we saw a distinct ability to think independently and creatively. We wekcome your input. There's nothing more stimulating to the thinking process than listening or reading other points of view. Each weekend, i generally summarize what has been discussed via the various Internet communications.

A lot of new subjects have been suggested for future exploration, including media exploitation, medical abuse, and an in-depth coverage of the housing situation. Have we flogged Christmas to death yet? No, i don't think so. I'm sure everyone has a special harp to play for the holiday season. While exercising our right to be naughty, let's also look ahead to coming issues. A balanced presense of variety is what attracts a large readership to a magazine. I think our writers have done a splendid job in handling the aspects of current news. The adverse sujective aspects of consequences and objective analysis have been splendid. I commend the social department for touching bases with a variety of issues. I strongly encourage follow ups as social issues, like current news, evolve. There is never just one side or two, but many and the truth lies somewhere in the middle; at least, i'd like to think so.

Grainne, i would like access to some of your foster parenting resources as i'm contemplating an article that would cover how foster parenting became such a powerful entity. A hint for the political savvy, if you want a jump on it, check your 'strawman' records.

I think we need to place some firm rules in place concerning commentaries. They need a separation. Political and social commentaries are usually written in third person from a position of information and expertise on the subject matter. Some social commentators write from the area of first person experience, but still with a background of expertise. Commentaries can, and often are humorous, but if they are written solely as a personal observation, they need to be categorized as humor or input, depending on how well the form stays within the guidelines of composition. Featured commentaries should take on the aspects of an article or essay. This would present an orderliness to the expectancy of the reader as s/he surfs around on the page. Some readers take an enormous enjoyment out of the short commentaries of input and expression; and it becomes their prime target for viewing the website. Others will prefer more detailed analysis. If we keep our detailed articles in the featured department, the reader will come to expect a certain type of informative, well researched delivery.

Another idea would be to separate the commentaries into opinion and humor pieces. This way, personal opinion pieces could be grouped together, separate from humor, and separate from knowledgable social or political commentaries. My mind cries out for organization within this area as it seems a little bit jumbled to me.

Okay. I'm still suffering a bit from brain drain and i'm sure i haven't covered all the areas we discussed this week, plus this continuing abysmal feeling that i'm beginning to suffer a failure to communicate, but i hope i've delivered at least a little fuel for thought. There has been some discussion about giving out assignments. When my brain is functioning enough, i'll create an assignment board. Anyone who wishes to cover a particular subject may say so, although i don't wish any writer to feel compelled to choose among the potential topics. If you have one of your own, by all means, post it.



I think we need to concentrate on how we'll handle commentaries. Commentaries written in first person, subjective

[grainnerhuad]

I will go and pull those resources up and get them to you this weekend. I have some at the office in professional journals. That is quite and undertaking, the child welfare system and how they got power. The short answer is we gave it too them under heavy influence probably subliminal by the likes of Fred Rodgers and Childless Social Workers working out their own mommy issues through legislation.
I see Mitch's Ghost with way more time on its hands in the afterlife beat me to the POV on the Christmas season. But now I'm thinking about a piece on Holiday Hangover.
Living in CA I have been thinking of this housing issue constantly and have been impacted by it myself. Let me know what you think about the piece I sent you. I hear that you are wanting a more in depth look at it. Given time I could probably do that, but would like to know what aspects people are most interesting in hearing about. I myself like the human interest aspect, but you may want more of what happened aspect.
As far as commentaries, I think they too are vital, they should have their place and be presented as a Point of View article.

[karlsie]

I'm hoping the piece you sent is in reference to the welfare article, because i haven't received any other. Grainne, i thought your foster care article was an excellent example of caseload coverage. You presented the problems, examples of cases within the problems, and a summary of what could be done to improve the situation. This type of coverage can be found in mags from Reader's Digest to Discover. If it's good enough for Discover, it's good enough for me!

My own interest in the California situation is the motor home dwellers. I've heard California has the highest number of homeless; that there are motor home camps, people who drift from block to block as they are told to move, living out of motor homes and campers while still going to work, as well as retirees who have sold their homes to buy motor homes and travel cross-country, living on their retirement pay. I'd love to hear a personal interview type coverage of the motor home crowd. I'd like to know what the average Californian's viewpoint might be on this subject. I'd like to know what steps, if any, are being taken to alleviate this situation.

Each state has its own dynamics and problematic situations behind the real estate collapse. I don't think we can have a uniform measure of legislative action in finding solutions. But as we understand the demographics of the individual locations, perhaps we can better see just what steps need to be taken.