Grumpy Editor

Bit of Americana fades; Ringling Bros. folds big top in May

 

A long-running piece of Americana will disappear in May: Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey circus, sadly notes Grumpy Editor.

Performances by exotic animals along with death-defying acrobats and flashy costumes --- for years set up under a “big top” --- have been a staple of entertainment since the mid-1800s. Performers and animals traveled by train and were greeted with much fanfare in towns around the U.S.

High operating costs and the decline of ticket sales "made the circus an unsustainable business for the company," says CEO Kenneth Feld.

A major factor in declining attendance was mounting criticism from animal rights groups that triggered phasing out of performing elephant acts last year. The elephants were sent to a 200-acre conservation farm in central Florida between Orlando and Tampa.

Feld points out after "the transition of the elephants off the road, we saw an even more dramatic drop" in ticket sales.

Several animal rights groups repeatedly criticized, picketed and sued Ringling Bros. for its treatment of performing animals.

The animal rights group, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), spent years petitioning against the treatment of circus animals.

The Humane Society of the United States, another longtime critic of the show's animal welfare practices, acknowledges Ringling Bros. made changes over the years, but asserts the changes didn't happen quickly enough.

"It's just not acceptable any longer to cart wild animals from city to city and have them perform silly yet coercive stunts," says Wayne Pacelle, president and CEO of the Humane Society. "I know this is bittersweet for the Feld family, but I applaud their decision to move away from an institution grounded on inherently inhumane wild animal acts.”

 

IN CASE YOUR FAVORITE NEWS OUTLETS MISSED THESE…

Look for busy reporters in Washington on Friday as thousands of demonstrators are expected to show up at 12 security checkpoints and a 2.5-mile parade route in an effort to “shut down” the nation’s Capitol with the inauguration of Donald Trump as president…In reviewing his prepared remarks, The Daily Caller notes President Obama referred to himself 75 times in his farewell address Tuesday night. Meanwhile, CNSNews.com says “President Obama, the man who has embraced ‘change’ throughout his presidency, used the word 16 times in his farewell speech”…Following blistering criticism of CNN and BuzzFeed for reporting on explosive but unsubstantiated information, Trump calls for “more honest reporting” by media in the wake of “fake news”… Trump has asked Britain to send Winston Churchill’s bust back to the White House so he can return it to the Oval Office. Soon after moving into the White House in 2009, Barack Obama replaced the wartime leader’s image with one of Martin Luther King…The Washington Examiner reports Trump may kick the press out of the White House briefing room and into a different space nearby after he takes office. Possible sites mentioned are the White House Conference Center or a location in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building, located next door to the White House…TMZ reports an 18-year-old White House visitor was bitten in the face by the First Family's four-year-old Portuguese water dog Sunny. A half-inch gash under her left eye required stitches…In London, the BBC is assembling a team to fact check and debunk deliberately misleading and false stories masquerading as real news.

A problem with repeats on TV:

CNN headline at bottom of screen, three hours AFTER President Barack Obama made his farewell speech:

Awaiting President Obama’s final speech to the nation.

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Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus Will Shut Down in May

END OF AN ERA 'Greatest Show on Earth' closing after 146 years

Harry Reid turns up rhetoric in Nevada cattle feud

Senate majority leader Harry Reid, of Nevada, who was mysteriously quiet during a week-long standoff involving a Nevada cattle rancher and the Bureau of Land Management that ended (at least temporarily) April 12, suddenly became quite vocal over the past week --- following the abrupt BLM pullout --- with a series of  interviews from Reno to Las Vegas, going so far as to label those who sided with rancher Cliven Bundy in the cattle-grazing feud “nothing more than domestic terrorists,” observes Grumpy Editor.

About 300 cattle in the BLM roundup were returned to Bundy after the week-long “bullying” by the feds.  

Reid’s almost daily attacks last week grabbed front-pages and broadcast news leads in the state and elsewhere, especially after the Nevada Democrat appeared at a Las Vegas Review-Journal “Hashtags & Headlines” luncheon at a major Strip hotel on Thursday.

Attendees paid $40 a head to hear Reid answer questions directed at him by a Review-Journal liberal columnist. 

While Reid received wide coverage of his “domestic terrorists” phrase, there was no mention of the range dust being kicked up when the BLM rode in with 200 armed agents, including snipers positioned in the hills plus growling police dogs along with use of tasers and helicopters at Bundy’s ranch in Bunkerville, 80 miles northeast of Las Vegas.  Since 1870, the Bundy family’s herd has been grazing on that Clark County land.  

The BLM and its hired “cowboys” went to the ranch to start rounding up Bundy’s 908 cattle grazing on 1,200 square miles of remote mountains and desert managed by BLM and the National Park Service.  Early reason for the roundup was triggered by supposed endangerment of the desert tortoise.  Then the emphasis switched to Bundy not paying grazing fees for 20 years.

Major media stories in the past week did not mention Reid’s close ties with the communist Chinese and the possibility of a major solar facility locating on the vast sun-bathed grazing land that also contains rare minerals along with the tortoises.  (See the April 14 Grumpy Editor on earlier developments at the Bundy ranch and mention of Harry Reid in the headline over a revealing Infowars.com story --- a day prior to the BLM pullout.)

Reid was linked to a proposed $5 billion solar plant in southern Clark County two years ago.  That operation, later shelved, involved a Chinese energy company.

Interestingly, in the same edition that reported Reid’s “domestic terrorists” description of Bundy backers, an illustrated Review-Journal feature focused on about 750 sheep dispatched to the hills on the western edge of Carson City, on the western side of Nevada, to munch on invasive grasses to reduce risk of wildfires as the fire season nears.

No comment from Reid on those grazing animals that belong to a four-year-old Gardnerville sheep farming company.

 

In case you missed these…

WESTERN POLITICAL LEADERS SEEK LOCAL CONTROL ON LANDS.  Allied with the Bundy feud with the feds in Nevada, The Salt Lake Tribune reported Friday that more than 50 political leaders from nine states convened in Utah’s capital to discuss their joint goal --- wresting control of oil, timber and mineral-rich lands away from the feds. "The urgency is now,” declared State Rep. Ken Ivory (R-West Jordan, Utah) who organized the summit with Montana State Sen. Jennifer Fielder (R-District 7).

 

LOS ANGELES GETS ANOTHER DAILY.  First editions marking the Wednesday debut of the Los Angeles Register were hawked on Los Angeles City Hall grounds --- across the street from the Los Angeles Times building. The paper will be sold at more than 5,500 retail outlets and vending machines. It’s the first new daily in the City of Angels since the Daily News turned into a daily in 1981.  The Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, a long-time daily, folded in November, 1989.

  

MEDIA PEOPLE ON THE MOVE.  Fox News re-signed Chris Wallace to a multi-year deal to continue anchoring Fox News Sunday.  He has anchored the Sunday morning program and contributed to Fox News’ political and election coverage since joining the network in 2003…Radio host Laura Ingraham joined ABC News as a contributor and will continue as guest commentator for Fox News Channel, often filling in for Bill O’Reilly on The O’Reilly Factor…Dee Dee Myers, one of former President Bill Clinton’s press secretaries, was named head of corporate communications and public affairs for Time Warner Inc.’s Warner Bros., Hollywood’s largest studio.

 

U.S. NEWSPAPER REVENUE CONTINUES DOWNWARD.  Newspaper Association of America said the industry’s 2013 revenue slipped 2.6 percent to $37.6 billion.  Print advertising revenue last year sank 8.6 percent to $17.3 billion but circulation revenue gained 3.7 percent to $10.9 billion.

 

GET READY FOR THE LOCAL ANGLE.  A newspaper editor in the west ran a distant police beat story in yesterday's edition like it happened down the street.  A woman in Dover, N.J. --- that’s 2,300 miles from the breaking news, headline-conscious editor --- reported that on the first date with a man she met on the Internet, Joel (last name unknown), swiped her TV set and dog. 

Now the editor is hoping for a follow-up.

National Coffee Day 2012 serves abundance of free cups

With all the fast-moving worldwide events and pressures going on these days, how about a soothing break in routine with a FREE cup of coffee --- favorite beverage (at least during work hours) of editors --- today, tomorrow or Saturday at a number of locations around the nation, poses Grumpy Editor. 

It’s all part of Saturday’s National Coffee Day 2012. 

Take your choice of with or without caffeine. 

Getting a jump on the official day are participating McDonald’s Restaurants that will be passing out free small cups of coffee today and the rest of this week. 

Joining in one day ahead of the official National Coffee Day are participating 7-Elevens tomorrow.  The outlets will serve free 20-ounce cups of coffee from 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. 

Then on Saturday, others join in marking National Coffee Day, including: 

Participating Krispy Kreme outlets with free 12-ounce cups of the classic American beverage.  Of course, the 75-year-old retailer will try to lure visitors to munch on one of its sweet treats.

Don’t drink coffee and still want to celebrate? 

Well, Saturday also is Confucius Day, observing the philosopher born in China in 551 B.C. 

So drop by a Chinese restaurant and pick up a fortune cookie.

See what your future holds.

Maybe with a little tea.

National Lighthouse Day allows time to sniff sea air

In offsetting the “heavy” news this week, Grumpy Editor reminds that today is National Lighthouse Day --- a happening probably overlooked in your local newspaper or broadcast outlet. 

For those near the water, it’s a splendid time to visit the beacons that guide ships to harbors, especially vital during foggy or stormy periods. 

Check your local Coast Guard office for tours and activities marking the establishment and importance of lighthouses. 

Not sure about the location of the closest lighthouse? 

Go to www.us-lighthouses.com that lists 432 sites with guiding lights for sailors. 

On this day in 1789 Congress approved an act for the establishment and support of lighthouses. 

Well before that date, still-functioning Boston Light was built in 1716 on Little Brewster Island in outer Boston Harbor.  It received a facelift in 1783 after Revolutionary War damage. 

Another old timer guiding ships over the years is Sandy Hook (N.J.) lighthouse.  It went into operation in 1764. 

Maine, where two dozen lighthouses overlook its rocky shores, celebrates its own lighthouse day on Sept. 15. 

More than 15,000 people visited light stations in the Pine Tree State at last year’s annual event.

 

Salty talk in the office grabs spot on ABC radio news

With all the happenings in the world --- ranging from a small earthquake in the Los Angeles area to pre-Olympic Games activities --- what’s a piece on “swearing at work can harm your career prospects” doing as one of the major news events heard Wednesday on top-of-the-hour ABC News on radio, wonders Grumpy Editor. 

Anyone who is on a company payroll or wearing a suit in job hunting should be well aware that repeatedly uttering naughty words is not tolerated in the business world. 

(An exception might be when brass at a major Madison Ave. advertising agency, for example, is notified it is losing a big account.) 

Yet, grabbing the attention of ABC News on a hot July day was a press release from CareerBuilder, Chicago, noting 64 percent of employers say they would think less of a worker who repeatedly uses curse words, while 57 percent say they'd be less likely to promote someone who swears in the office. 

Seeking more information, Grumpy Editor finds the Harris Interactive survey includes more than 2,000 hiring managers and 3,800 workers in companies of various sizes, according to CareerBuilder which describes itself as “the global leader in human capital solutions.” 

Noteworthy, though, is that the survey reports 51 percent of workers swear that they swear in the office.

(Perhaps that’s after they receive their paychecks.) 

Some 95 percent confess they cuss in the presence of co-workers, 51 percent say they do so in front of the boss, although workers were least likely to use expletives while facing senior leaders (13 percent) and their clients (7 percent), according to the survey.

(Saying salty words in front of a vice president is a sure way to get replaced.)

Among other survey findings in modern office culture:  Men are more likely to swear at work (54 percent) vs. women (47 percent); Washington, D.C. (home of Congress, the White House and 13,000 registered lobbyists) is the top-swearing U.S. city, and 35 to 44-year-old workers rank as the top swearing group.

 

Bill Press takes jabs at The Star-Spangled Banner

Don’t look for Bill Press, liberal talk show host and political commentator, to sing the national anthem (such as prior to a major league baseball game) any time soon, because he finds The Star-Spangled Banner is embarrassing with the “military jargon” in the lyrics, notes Grumpy Editor.

Although he is far from carrying a tune, he takes a swing at the patriotic song, calling it “absolutely, monumentally unsingable.”

Press, a former chairman of the California Democratic Party (1993 to 1996), is kicking up a storm of reaction, mainly on the Web (and not much in print), following his choppy rant on his Tuesday “terrestrial radio” broadcast in which he declares:

 

“Bombs bursting in air, rocket’s red glare, it's all kinds of, you know, a lot of national anthems are that way, all kinds of military jargon and the land there’s only one phrase ‘the land of the free’ which is kind of nice and ‘the home of the brave,’ I don’t know. Are we the only ones who are brave on the planet? I mean all the brave people live here. I mean it’s just stupid I think. I’m embarrassed. I’m embarrassed every time I hear it.”

 

One wonders if Press even stands when the national anthem is played.

On the Fox News Channel yesterday, conservative columnist Michelle Malkin on Fox & Friends calls Press’s attack on the national anthem to be a “teachable moment” and an example of “how much hostility these people have towards patriotism in this country.”

The Star-Spangled Banner in 1889 became the official tune played at the raising of the U.S. flag.  Lyrics, set to the tune of a popular British song, came from a poem by Francis Scott Key in 1812.

As for Press’s popularity these days, Talkers magazine ranks him No. 77 on a list of talk radio show hosts.

 

Children can continue driving tractors on family farms

Credit the Labor Department’s withdrawal of a dopey 85-page proposed rule that would have affected children doing routine duties on family farms to a report by The Daily Caller’s Paul Conner, mentions Grumpy Editor.

 The planned regulation would have drastically changed the extent to which children could work on family farms and learn valuable skills.

Editorial writers on major city newspapers --- far from rural farms --- were quiet on the development, apparently unaware of the planned rule.

As Conner explained it:  “The rule would have dramatically changed what types of chores children under the age of 16 could perform on and around American farms. It would have prohibited them from working with tobacco, operating almost all types of power-driven equipment and being employed to work with raw farm materials.”

Sen. John Thune (R., S.D.) said the proposal would “ultimately undermine the very fabric of rural America.”

The Labor Department said the decision to withdraw the rule “was made in response to thousands of comments expressing concerns about the effect of the proposed rules on small family-owned farms.”

Appearing Friday on Fox News, Sen. Jerry Moran (R., Kan.) said “farming is a family operation” and that’s where “kids learn the work ethic.”  He said 18,000 comments went to the Labor Department last week.

In a statement from his office, Moran said, “If this proposal had gone into effect, not only would the shrinking rural work force have been further reduced, and our nation’s youth deprived of valuable career training opportunities, but a way of life would have begun to disappear.”

 

Bennington (Vt.) Banner columnist marks 86 years writing

 

We don’t stop writing when we get old…

We get old when we stop writing.

That variation of a George Bernard Shaw line comes to mind with word that Bennington (Vt.) Banner columnist Harriette Leidich, who celebrated her 100^th birthday last week, continues to produce copy --- via typewriter --- for “Senior Moments,” notes Grumpy Editor. 

Recognized as the oldest active newspaper columnist in the U.S., she started her writing career at 14 with her father’s Iowa newspaper. 

Over the years she knew her way around newspaper production, too, including operating a Linotype that set type from hot lead.  It was an important back-shop machine from the late 1800s before fading in use during the 1970s. 

Leidich has been writing her column, a collection of mostly small town matters, since 1995 in the Bennington Banner one of MediaNews Group’s 57 daily newspapers in the U.S. 

Her July 17, 2006 column explained the background for her column. 

“Sometimes one needs to step back and take a closer look at what they write for publication,” she pointed out.

“This has been the case with my Senior Moments columns. Seems that as I grow older and as the world changes its many patterns and modes of living, one gets a bit jaded. When friends called to inquire if I had passed on, I decided to tell you that I am quite alive and always interested in what is going on in this world.”

 

Century-old Laurel (Miss.) Leader-Call stops presses

With the final press run yesterday of the century-old Laurel Leader-Call, Laurel, Miss., another small-town is left without a newspaper, observes Grumpy Editor.

The publication covered Laurel, population about 20,000, and Jones County.

Founded in August, 1911, as the Laurel Daily Argus, the Laurel Leader-Call was owned by Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc., publisher of about 90 daily newspapers and more than 200 non-daily newspapers in 22 states, mainly in the eastern part of the country. 

The Laurel Leader-Call, which operated with a slim staff of 18, saw tough publishing times ahead last September when the daily went to a four-day schedule:  Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Sunday. 

It bowed out with a front page “Special Commemorative Final Edition” with a headline reading:  “Thank you for welcoming us into your lives and sharing your memories.” 

The farewell opening page reproduced 30 front pages from its century of providing news to the community.

 

Details from 1940 U.S. census go on Internet April 2

Not as speedy as the monthly U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ employment figures currently released for the previous month, the U.S. Census Bureau on April 2 makes available --- via the Internet --- details of the 1940 census from the National Archives, notes Grumpy Editor.

Why the extra long delay?

Official reason:  “Strict confidentiality laws ensure that census records are only unsealed after 72 years have passed."

The 1940 census involved more than 120,000 enumerators who tallied information on 132 million people of which an estimated 21 million are alive today.

Compilation was done the old-fashioned way --- without computers.

It wasn’t until 1951 that the first large-scale computer --- a UNIVAC 1101 with a price tag close to $1 million --- was delivered to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The UNIVAC, short for Universal Automatic Computer, was considered to be the first capable of storing and running a program from memory.  (UNIVAC became a division of Remington-Rand Inc.)

The census form in 1940, a year before the start of World War II, contained 34 questions directed at households plus 16 others aimed at 5 percent.

After the lengthy Great Depression (which started in 1929), one of the most sensitive questions in 1940 dealt with personal income.

So it was placed at the end of the survey.