Open Letter to Kathleen Blanco

While there are strong arguments to be made for the State putting its resources behind efforts to save New Orleans’s atrocious public school system or relieve the increasing wanderlust of its professional football franchise, I feel I must beg you to intervene on behalf of yet another essential Louisiana institution which we may have already lost. I am speaking here, of course, of Timshel. For nearly two years, the steward of this site known to his readers as “Ricky Prado” has provided, for free, a daily comprehensive compilation of news and commentary on Louisiana politics of a quality as high or higher than what they receive from most of the state’s professional journalists. Today, Ricky has announced that he no longer possesses the necessary resources to continue providing us with this service. Governor Blanco, I believe the State can and must do something to save this gem of the Louisiana blogosphere. For only a fraction of the cost of a Superdome renovation or a school system takeover, the State could provide Timshel with a modest annual operating funds grant, and perhaps a new computer, which should be enough to keep it running long after the Los Angeles Saints have won their first Superbowl. In the midst of so much carping in the mainstream media about the unchecked irresponsibility of the “blog people” Timshel is a true example of the best of what blogging can do for public discourse. Louisiana is a poorer place without it. I implore you, once again, to take action.