Colin Dabkowski

@JDale_Shoemaker @HeyRaChaCha I see what you're saying, and I'd say you might have an argument if the money was funding a general food tourism campaign rather than a pay-to-play scheme with no guarantee of *any* positive benefit.

@colindabkowski @HeyRaChaCha Normally I would agree but VBN’s normal expenditures are aimed at boosting tourism, which generates hotel tax, which funds VBN. It’s a closed loop. Personally I think it would be cool to try for an award that would draw food tourism. Money otherwise goes to like, tv ads in Ohio

This is an extortion scheme and it's wild to think people support this use of public dollars. Any award you have to pay for is worthless.

@JDale_Shoemaker @HeyRaChaCha When we think in terms of public dollars, we need to also think about public benefit. The public benefit here, if any, would be negligible. If restaurants want this kind of publicity, they can figure out how to pay for it themelves.

@colindabkowski @HeyRaChaCha Maybe so. And maybe I’m being snobbish here but I do think Buffalo could get a cultural status boost if it had a restaurant with a star. We’ve got at least one or two with a solid shot. Granted, if none win, it’s demoralizing. But I do think it’s worth trying for

@RobCGalbraith @JDale_Shoemaker @HeyRaChaCha Right? This right in their lane. But good move by them to say no.

@JDale_Shoemaker @colindabkowski @HeyRaChaCha Michelin is the type of scam VBN is usually the perfect mark for. I was honestly surprised they had the sense to pass.

Also, most awards that you don't have to pay for are useless.

@Charlie_Reports What I detest are context-free salary lists of the kind routinely published in Business First and other publications as clickbait. These people are paid a lot and it "feels" a certain way? OK. Put it in rich and proper context and let us decide.

@Charlie_Reports The only thing I'd want, and I know you're responsible enough to do it, is enough context to understand what those numbers mean, where the money comes from, where it's going, and a look at similar jobs in similar sized communities. 1/2

Forty employees of Erie County made over $200,000 last year, according to some initial research I have been doing. 40. Seems like a lot. What do you think? Is this something you would like to know more about? Just trying to see what people are interested in.

@CharlotteAlter The vast majority of journalism in U.S. newspapers is formulaic, uninteresting, and totally ripe for the AI incursion. The question is not whether AI should write it, but whether this type of stenographic nonjournalism-- its own style of slop! -- should be written at all.

This used to be the work of junior journalists. Aggregating other news stories, scanning press releases for newsworthy nuggets, cross checking with sources, checking facts, writing it all up… that was my job as a junior reporter for many many years. Doing that work taught me how to write and think. Now that AI does it, who will even have the chance to develop real journalism skills anymore? wsj.com/business/media…

It’s okay for hard things to be hard. On the subject of AI and writing, I like the way George Saunders puts it:

@nickftorsell I mean I assume that's why you follow me

Sometimes I'll just make prolonged eye contact with someone at work and they'll show up in suggested follows on instagram

I still think about this book. It is important for me to tweet that I still think about this book.

I would say this is unsustainable, but at this point many people I know have sustained it almost for their whole (wildly productive) careers. Is this success? I can't guess, but I probably don't have the constitution. I don't know how they keep going, but I am glad they do.

It's tough to explain the mental and physical drain and anxiety that comes from spending your *entire career* believing that it will soon come to an end, only to go on to work another day. "Maybe tomorrow?" That's how most newspaper reporters feel most of the time.

Love this interview with Tina Brown from @LuluGNavarro: nytimes.com/2025/11/15/mag…

Once in a while I think about trains.

@nickftorsell This is obviously the most important thing to discuss right now. After this we will go back to our effete bespoke word laboratories and figure out how to squeeze another "Buffalo" into the "Buffalo buffalo buffalo Buffalo" sentence. EVERYTHING IS FINE.

Love logging on to twitter and seeing a bunch of writers and English majors argue whether 60k is enough salary for an independent lit mag to offer a managing editor.

It’s incumbent upon anyone who has ever been ostracized, anyone who believes in human dignity, to protect trans people and prevent the extremists in our country from traveling any further down this dark path. If you’ve read history you know where it leads. We cannot allow it.

What could possibly go wrong?

@nickftorsell I am relieved to know this

@colindabkowski The Decemberists were made in a lab to annoy me specifically so no you're not alone

Twitter music arguments are funny because a lot of it just boils down to everyone having vastly different taste. Saw someone say Vampire Weekend and Grizzly Bear were "music for normies" but then saw they loved Titus Andronicus, a band I find incredibly tedious and pretentious.