Print Industry Hubris

So, I’m reading the always amusing PrintCEO blog, and almost had to re-swallow my lunch in reaction to the cloying, rose-colored insanity that I tripped over. Check it out, if you dare, by clicking this.
Here’s the comment I did not reply with, but wanted to.

Before a chorus of “Amen, Brother” starts, I’d like to say this:

You say “our industry can and will not only survive but thrive and prosper as never before.” What evidence do you have of this?

How exactly will that happen? Employment is falling, newspapers are closing, magazines are dying, high schools and colleges are no longer teaching the craft, most of the money advertisers have left is going to the internet… THE SKY IS FALLING.

The industry can no longer “hope” its way out of a bad situation (on all fronts) nor can the industry rest on its legacy as the most important vehicle for communication between people. We are not the kings, anymore. The industry has rested on its laurels for too long, and we’re being swept into a whirlpool by the internet and mobile phones.

I’d imagine a similar piece could be written by the prognosticators of the typewriter, telegraph, or horse and buggy industries.

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