I am writing this post from my new office on the 28th floor of the Russell Investments Center in downtown Seattle, where I have just started my first day of steady part-time work for America’s premier self-loathing plutocrat, Nick Hanauer. I have been hired to put my research, analysis, and writing skills to work advancing a broad range of public policy issues—obviously, income inequality and gun violence prevention, for example—but notably, not education reform, because Nick is totally deluded about charter schools, so it’s not even worth the two of us having that conversation.
So yeah, I have sold out, in the sense that I’m being paid decent money to help Nick advocate on issues for which I have previously advocated for free. But rest assured that I am still the same arrogant, know-it-all, incorruptible, holier-than-thou Goldy, and I will continue to use my powers solely as a force for good, not evil. Only now I’m getting paid for it.
So suck on it, Goldy-haters: I’ve landed on my feet.
What does this mean for HA? Well, obviously I’ll have a bit less time for blogging. But it’s not like I’ve been blogging full time since leaving The Stranger, anyway.
Over the past several months I’ve been paying the bills through various freelance journalism and ghostwriting gigs, and in fact this job leaves me free to continue to take on interesting freelance work, time permitting. But more importantly, this job also leaves me free to blog about whatever I want—even, say, the ever more pervasive and destructive role of big money in politics.
Which brings us to the purpose of this post: think of it as a form of voluntary public disclosure. I’m certainly under no legal obligation to tell you who pays me and for what, but if I’m going to continue blogging—particularly on pet issues like income inequality and gun violence—then my readers deserve to know that I’m being paid by this really rich guy to work on issues like income inequality and gun violence. It’s only fair.
But let’s be clear, Nick is not paying me to blog. As always, all opinions I post here to HA are my own. And he’s certainly not paying me to be passionate about his issues—no amount of money can buy that. What he is offering me is a really great opportunity to continue to make a difference on issues I care deeply about, while earning a decent living in the process. And that is an opportunity I’d have to be stupid to pass up.
So there you go. Full disclosure. I am a sellout. Sorta. Make of it what you will.
Do you still need donations? The donations link is still up.
Awesome Goldy!!!
I wish the best for you both with your new “bully pulpit!”
(ps-he DOES know you are a fire breathing sometimes not politically correct, opinionated…well, you get the drift, doesn’t he?)
Is there a web page or something we can link to?
Congrats!
@1 I don’t need donations. Though they are always welcome and appreciated.
@2 Nick knows exactly what he is getting. (Then again, so did The Stranger, and you see how well that ended.)
Since you wrote this from his office, doesn’t that mean he IS paying you to blog?
We (speaking for myself only, of course) both congratulate you, Goldy, and absolve ye [complicated gesture].
Use your income for good, and for shiny imported electronics as well. Ite in pace…
(oh… and you shouldv’e run for office instead)
“So suck on it, Goldy-haters: I’ve landed on my feet.”
You are the Howard Stern of bloggers. I mean that as a compliment in case you hate Howard Stern.
Congrats!
Wonderful. I miss reading you at The Stranger, and am glad you have another steady gig. (It may even pay better.)
Keep up the good fight.
Thrilled! Congrats.
@6 Maybe I wrote it on my lunch break?
@5 Of course I meant “want” not “need.” That’s obvious; HA has been here for 10 years, with or without donations. It came out wrong when typing it — even the smartest rabbits have bad typing days — and the #@$%& edit button timed out before I could fix it. Which is why I NEED more than five (5) #@$%&!!! minutes to edit my comments. If you don’t give me more than five (5) #@$%&!!! editing minutes, more shit like that will get through, you can count on it. And when, if ever, are we going to get ITALICS back??? I don’t like ALL CAPS and neither do a lot of other commenters. But what I mainly want to say here is five (5) #@$%&!!! minutes ain’t enough, which is why that came out as “need” instead of “want.” It takes longer than five (5) #@$%&!!! minutes to change “need” to “want” when you don’t have fingers and have to type with furry paws that were made for running not typing. Some websites give me several days and most give at least 15 minutes.
@10 That’s Stranger’s loss. Hanauer is more solvent anyway.
@ 13 RR
Educate yourself.
@15 I’m an intellectual, not a computer geek. I know why Grant turned south instead of north after Cold Harbor and about Chinese strategy in the South China Sea. I don’t know squat about HTML.
Meh. Was going to point out a pointer on HTML but it wont’t let me use plain text for the commands.
Good luck Goldy! We need more like you.
re 16 — Same here. I’ve forgotten more than I ever knew.
WaMu Center ? Be careful. Lots of bankers and dangerous bike lanes.
Awesome! I’m so happy for you Goldy!
And our remaining trolls are sooooo sad..
@22 Let’s make ’em even sadder.
Congratulations, and your dog better be getting a steak this week.
Miss ya, dude! Congrats on the official gig.
You’re too irascible to be bought.
And congratulations!
Hanauer’s lucky and so are you– he’s even more righteous than Buffett or Gates Sr.
I’ve been grinning nearly non-stop on your behalf this evening (because there’s nobody around right now to point and laugh). Ten or fifteen years from now when you fetch up like Rahm Emanuel or David Plouffe, we can say we knew you when.
Seriously, this is good news, and go get ’em.
Goldy, as one Philly man to another,
Puddy very happy for you. Puddy hopes this becomes FTE! Now if someone could find a job for the monomaniacal crazed idiot @20&@21, the world would be a better place!
Kumbaya!
Congratulations, Goldy. You’re a pleasure to read. Go out and do some great work!
@29 The “monomaniacal crazed idiot @20&@21” is two different posters. You need grammar tutoring. Or reading glasses, and maybe also a psychiatric exam.
Good for you Goldy. You deserve to make a decent living. My estimation for Nick Hanauer just moved up a notch or two.
I was really hoping you bought the Seattle Times at a bankruptcy auction, but this sounds good too.
Maybe Nick will buy you the Times as a Christmas bonus. Can’t be worth more than a Wallingford craftsman at this point…