Forbes magazine used to get many links from me and an endorsement any time anyone asked me what biz magazine should be read. Forbes made some yeoman efforts to adjust to internet delivery, and their ad pages seem to be fattening (but at what fees?)
For the last several years, they have had little of interest, and it dawned on me with this current edition. It says BILLIONAIRES in big letters across the front. Turn the page and there is ANOTHER cover with the same copy but a different billionaire. And then again! Six different covers for one edition, each with a different billionaire! and the seventh page is an ad featuring a billionaire. Eighth page is an ad for private jets. See a pattern yet?
Their look back back-page features a cover from 2002, on the topic of... billionaires!
As I went to throw out the current copy I noticed last edition, featuring the headline "$15 Trillion Gold Rush." How? Redefine money. Oh. The definition of money is not yet debased enough? Actually, I've being saying for a while that part of our problem is not defining money accurately, and Forbes rather goes the other way: get rich through obfuscation.
The masthead motto for Forbes back in the day was something like "With All Thy Gaining, Get Wisdom" or something close to that. A quick route to stupid or evil or both is to let definitions slip. Forbes is now obviously selling fantasy, what with Main Street wiped out by Wall Street.
I'd recommend Forbes take the lead away from their superior in business reporting, the Van's Shoe advertising agency, and begin reporting on people building businesses on main Street again. It would necessarily have to become a center of anti-fascist thought, but why not, someone has to do it.
And they would be doing good while doing well.
Feel free to forward this by email to three of your friends.
For the last several years, they have had little of interest, and it dawned on me with this current edition. It says BILLIONAIRES in big letters across the front. Turn the page and there is ANOTHER cover with the same copy but a different billionaire. And then again! Six different covers for one edition, each with a different billionaire! and the seventh page is an ad featuring a billionaire. Eighth page is an ad for private jets. See a pattern yet?
Their look back back-page features a cover from 2002, on the topic of... billionaires!
As I went to throw out the current copy I noticed last edition, featuring the headline "$15 Trillion Gold Rush." How? Redefine money. Oh. The definition of money is not yet debased enough? Actually, I've being saying for a while that part of our problem is not defining money accurately, and Forbes rather goes the other way: get rich through obfuscation.
The masthead motto for Forbes back in the day was something like "With All Thy Gaining, Get Wisdom" or something close to that. A quick route to stupid or evil or both is to let definitions slip. Forbes is now obviously selling fantasy, what with Main Street wiped out by Wall Street.
I'd recommend Forbes take the lead away from their superior in business reporting, the Van's Shoe advertising agency, and begin reporting on people building businesses on main Street again. It would necessarily have to become a center of anti-fascist thought, but why not, someone has to do it.
And they would be doing good while doing well.
Feel free to forward this by email to three of your friends.
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