Welcome to the November RN&R!
As we sent this issue to press, it did not look like the government shutdown was likely to end anytime soon. I’m concerned for the furloughed workers. Finances are so tight for Transportation Security Administration employees around the country that, in Las Vegas and other cities, airports now have impromptu food banks and donation bins.
I’m also worried about the half-million Nevadans who almost certainly are not getting their SNAP benefits in November. But I do appreciate Mark Earnest’s cover story. He spoke with people who provide food aid and other services in our region about exactly which services they’ve had to cancel as a result of federal budget cuts and executive orders.
In other news: The next RN&R, the December issue, will be our last regular print edition. You can read more about the details in Jimmy Boegle’s Note from the Publisher.
I’m wistful to bid farewell to the actual, IRL, hardcopy newspaper, but I also know that the way news is disseminated has always been changing. Remember the Gutenberg press? Remember town criers? OK, I don’t either. But I do remember the days before cable news and the 24-hour news cycle shook the Earth. (I was 9.) Things have changed a lot since then. But independent, local news is still here.
At RenoNR.com, we will keep bringing you news and perspective, along with the most comprehensive arts and culture coverage you’ll find in these parts. We’re going to need your help, though. To-do list item No. 1: Please sign up for our email newsletters at renonr.com, if you’re not already on it.
And when you’re done reading this issue, put a note on your calendar to pick up the December issue in a month. We have something special planned for you, and it’s going to be a keeper.