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Chris Jones: "Being Poor Sucks"

Discussion in 'Journalism topics only' started by YankeeFan, May 29, 2012.

  1. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I'm not saying anybody could get to spend the day with the cup, but I'm guessing that just about anyone here who wanted to could find a way to hold it, put it over their heads and even drink out it if they so desired.

    I would be curious how many newsrooms the cup visits in a year. I'm guessing the number is very, very high...
     
  2. typefitter

    typefitter Well-Known Member

    Points of Order:

    1. Even I'm sick of hearing about myself on here, and I can talk about myself a lot.

    2. I have been poor, and I have been rich, and I'll take rich every single time. "More money, more problems?" Bullshit. If you're not begging to eat, you have fewer problems than people who are.

    3. I tweeted that in response to this article, which is yet another celebration of some vagabond writer's life committed mostly by people who want to call themselves writers but do no actual writing, or at least no writing that is paid for and read:

    http://thoughtcatalog.com/2012/things-you-should-know-before-you-date-a-writer/

    4. Unless you win the Cup, you cannot hoist it or drink out of it. You can touch it. The actual Cup is on the road more than 300 days a year. (The Hall of Fame has a replica on display the rest of the time.) If you want to see it, at some point, it will be within your immediate vicinity. Unless you live in Hawaii. The Cup has not been to Hawaii, as far as I could figure.

    5. I'm sure it helped that I work for ESPN. However, the NHL also did this for the National Post newspaper in Toronto many years ago. The league knows the Stanley Cup is its best ambassador. The NHL is also the most media-friendly of the four big leagues, at least in my experience. I can't say for sure, but my guess is they would have done something like this in any league city.

    6. This business is built on asking questions.

    7. Being poor still sucks.

    8. I am pretty fucking far from being a Republican.

    Thank you for reading,
    CJ
     
  3. When I was in college, I honestly didn't care whether I made much money or not, so long as I was going to be writing.

    Now, as I'm about to turn 30 and have a family to support and enjoy things like a decent home, the occassional vacation and steak once in a while, I absolutely abhor the fact that so many people in this business wear their poverty like a badge of honor. We work damn hard but do it in an industry that has devalued itself so much that the only way we can live with it is by telling ourselves it's funny in some way.
     
  4. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    I made the mistake of hoisting the cup when it was in our newsroom a zillion years ago. I did not drink from it, because that just seemed to be overdoing it, even though most of the people in the office did.

    Our hockey writer told me about not hoisting it right after I'd done it, and I was embarrassed for a few minutes until I saw people pouring soda into it to drink...
     
  5. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    I would love to know how many years ago this was.
     
  6. Mizzougrad96

    Mizzougrad96 Active Member

    Probably about 15.
     
  7. 93Devil

    93Devil Well-Known Member

    Good story.
    Taking it to schools was a wise choice.
    I like the pictures in your twitter feed.

    Keep posting here. Don't let the few that fuck with you run you off.

    And, no, I am not crazy about all of your back page stuff, but no one can ever bat 1.000.
     
  8. LongTimeListener

    LongTimeListener Well-Known Member

    That's because there is another crop of people in their early 20s who are willing -- no, thrilled -- to do your job for less than what you're making now. And when they turn 30, there will be another group of people in their early 20s who will be willing -- no, thrilled -- to do their job for less than what they're making at age 30. And on and on.

    It won't ever change. Remaining poor and continuing a writer is a lifestyle choice. Maybe it doesn't deserve scorn, but it doesn't deserve sympathy either.
     
  9. JC

    JC Well-Known Member

    Was it a player who brought it in?
     
  10. J-School Blue

    J-School Blue Member

    I do worry a lot about how the craft of good writing and good journalism is being devalued, and how the writers involved allow themselves to be treated poorly by their employers because they buy into the idea that it's the price of doing what they love.

    Doesn't make me a Republican. ;) I could spin it as a belief in the value of labor, but it's not that either. You can attack the idea that work - and art - has dignity and worth that should be compensated according to a person's effort, value and ability from either a liberal or conservative end and you arrive at the same place.

    Being poor sucks, as does being tricked into devaluing your own worth by an entire business model.
     
  11. HC

    HC Well-Known Member

    J-School: You have encapsulated the thoughts to many in the arts. And it reminded me of this:

    [​IMG]
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Dec 15, 2014
  12. Mystery Meat II

    Mystery Meat II Well-Known Member

    If he can't find a free fart app, then he really isn't trying.
     
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