I have chosen to stay and suck

A flurry of scrappy contentiousness whipped up by a recent post reminded me of something that's confounded me for a while now: the irrational loyalty that low-to-medium-level Reader staffers cherish for their employer. I really feel for these people. Clearly they've internalized the ideology of their oppressors, and their careers are paying the price.

Look, if you're one of the non-sinecured non-dinosaurs on the staff, you have absolutely no reason to feel loyal to the Reader. Take a look around: How much turnover do you see among the higher-level positions? I haven't scrutinized the masthead, but if Rosenbaum/Joravsky/Margasek/etc are any evidence, there isn't a whole lot of turnover.

Low turnover in the upper ranks = few opportunities for advancement. So even if you're terrific at your job, you're never going to snag one of those top-level sinecures. Even if you're better than Rosenbaum/Joravsky/Margasek/etc -- and let's face it, it's hard not to be -- you're never going to rise to their level. Because they've got those jobs for life, or until a better opportunity comes along -- which it never will, because they suck.

Just something to think about.