It's well known that the Boston Globe, owned by the paper in the other city, is in serious financial straits. Should the Globe go under, there are certain columnists I will not miss (James Carroll, anyone?). But I shall very much miss Alex Beam whose dry humor enlivens the morning and goes quite nicely really with toast and English marmalade.As this morning:

Will you be my patron?

 

Perhaps you have read about the economic turbulence jostling journalism. For the past 16 years, my patrons have been the shareholders of the New York Times Co., of whom I am one. But from the looks of it, they/I don't plan to extend their patronage forever. Next month, my patronage package will probably decrease 10 percent, reflecting an unhealthy trend throughout the newspaper industry.

Which is where you come in.I want a patron, a fabulously wealthy rich man or woman, to subsidize my writing career for the next five years. In olden days, Greek poets produced fulsome odes, called panegyrics, celebrating the virtues of the men and occasionally women who paid their expenses. For example: "Great is thy wisdom and the bounty of thy loins, [YOUR NAME HERE]."That's my new motto: Panegyrics 'R Us!

Enjoy the rest.