I really value The Echo. A big thank you to all the drudges. I’ve even chipped in lousy $5 a month through PressPatron for years.
Part of your role is to hold power to account. It appears that you generally do so by presenting a glass-half-empty view of Byron Shire Council. This might be less effective than balance, but not sweating nuance must make it easier to get the paper out each week.
I’m not here to change your general tone towards Council, nor defend Council or any particular project, but calling councillors ‘clowns’ and ‘bozos’ only undermines your paper’s authority and reach.
If you think you see a ‘real time collapse of political integrity’ (such melodrama!) then ad hominem attacks only add to it. We should all beware of our tendencies towards cheap mockery, ideology, and tribalism.
Our world is complex and challenging, so it’s inevitable we’ll disagree. But let’s try to do so with respect, reasonable compromise, and cooperation. May cool heads, kind thoughts and wise words prevail – and if you think they’re missing, then lead by example and produce a paper that we can all continue to value.
For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling. 
