Stackpole on The Future of Commercial Printing

From Wired for Leadership:
    "There's still plenty of life in commercial printing albeit not in the same historical sense we used to know. I don't get much junk mail in my Outlook inbox mostly because I filter the daylights out of my inbound e-mails. That's a problem for advertisers and others who think e-mail promotion can replace print promotion. While we are sure to see shifts in the future, direct mail still delivers $10 in revenue for every $1 spent. The mistaken trend by some to eliminate direct mail as part of their marketing plan only serves to showcase those firms still using the medium to their advantage. I don't know about you but I got more than my share of holiday catalogs and bought plenty of gifts at their websites. The data is clear---direct mail drives online commerce---for catalog marketers and retail. The world of printing is changing, but printers are the most resilient and innovative entrepreneurs on the planet. I wouldn't count them out anytime soon."

 Kerry Stackpole, CAE IOM President - Printing & Graphics Association MidAtlantic

Oxnard Public Library Hosts Ben Franklin Exhibit

The traveling exhibit “Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World” will be on display at the Main Branch of the Oxnard Public Library from December 17, 2009 to February 17, 2010. Here is a great opportunity to look into the life of this uniquely American genius, Benjamin Franklin. The exhibit has 1,000 square feet of photographs, artifacts and documents. It will also feature films about Benjamin Franklin and talks from Franklin impersonators that will be informative and entertaining for children and adults. The link above will take you to the Oxnard Public Library site which lists a schedule of events surrounding the exhibit.

One of the reasons I chose to make Benjamin Franklin a featured part of my blog, apart from the obvious one that I am in the printing business, is that I felt he was the embodiment of so many American ideals. He was proud of his "leather apron" status as a tradesman and wary of inherited titles or inherited wealth. He believed each man was responsible for himself, but also organized his community to take care of common problems. He cautioned against creating a dependent poor class, but was very generous and charitable with his time and money. He was not quick to join the movement toward revolution, but when he did, he put his entire heart into it, risking all that he had.

Franklin was not perfect. His family life certainly left a lot to be desired. But the public Benjamin Franklin was the near model American. Industrious, intelligent, civic minded, generous, ambitious, courageous, practical and inquisitive, Benjamin Franklin was precisely the kind of person it took to forge a new country based on democratic ideals.  "Greatness" is a term often associated with conquerors and political leaders. It is not often associated with Benjamin Franklin. He is too much the common man, too much like us. But therein is precisely where his greatness lies. Go see the exhibit at the Oxnard Public Library.

The Top Ten Stories or People I Don't Want to Hear Any More About in 2010

Here's a list of the top 10 stories or people I really don't want to hear any more about in 2010:

10. Rod Blagojevich
  9. Nadya Suleman
  8. Jon & Kate Gosselin
  7. The Balloon Boy
  6. Roman Polanski
  5. The Salahi's
  4. Levi Johnston
  3. Charlie Sheen
  2. Carrie Prejean
  1. Tiger Woods

For good measure, at number 11, I'll throw in anyone named Kardashian. Please feel free to submit any names you would like to add.

Blue Moon to End 2009

2009 ends on a blue moon. A blue moon is the second full moon in a month. Since the lunar cycle is about 29.5 days, an occasional month will contain two full moons. When that happens, the second full moon is considered the "blue" moon. Blue moons are a relatively rare occurrence; hence the expression, "once in a blue moon." For a deeper perspective on blue moons, follow the links.

A Happy, Healthy and Prosperous New Year to all.

Happy Holidays to Everyone

This is a winter scene from upstate New York. After a heavy snow, these deer found the best forage on the snowmobile paths. The paths were closed to snowmobiles to allow the deer to forage.  It is a intriguing picture, but is there also a lesson here? We have all been through something of an economic winter storm, and maybe we need to look for opportunities where we might not have expected them in the past. Or maybe this is a reminder of the beauty of the natural environment that is in our power to preserve or destroy.