But can I outsource my indigestion?

Pasadena Councilman Victor Gordo likes columnist Robert Rector's suggestion we outsource Pasadena's council. (link is to Bob's blog, where his print columns are archived)

As long as it means taking his $1,270.52/mo to India, where it will keep him lousy with samosas.

"I think we need to establish a task force to review the idea," he says. "That's the Pasadena way."

Weekly Kevin Uhrich spares nuance in his obligatory take on outsourcing Pasadena reporting:

Are rewritten press releases really news? Are two people who happen to live in another country and can apparently write in English better than native-speaking Macpherson really reporters? For that matter, is Macpherson actually a journalist?

The answer to all of those questions is no.

Kevin makes the case for why Pasadena Now isn't journalism, but did anyone ever confuse it with such? It's a community bulletin board where everyone can sound and look as good as they'd like. Which is fine.

James has made it clear he isn't interested in publishing things that might get him "in trouble" and gives the impression he once removed an article after receiving a complaint from the Old Pasadena Merchants Association.

Someday I'm going to publish a coffee-table book of all the outrageous, furious demands that hit my inbox.

My favorite, emergent argument is that long-distance reporting will be "more objective." And it's true, given that self-styled media critics -- the red-faced and sweaty kind that fume about our bias when we don't just reprint The Official Reckoning -- have turned 'objectivity' into a euphimism for superficial and not insightful.

By that logic, I should consider a career as a sports writer, given my complete ignorance of any and all things athletic. But, damn, I'd be objective!