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Works in Progress was produced during its first years by an open collective of activist members of the Olympia and Evergreen community. Here are some, pictured clockwise from the far left: Tom Freeman, Pat Tassoni, Al Zimmerman, Lon Freeman, Barb Belleteire, Chris Russo, Dave Campbell, Sylvia Smith, Matt Love, Kelsie Love, Evelyn Montague, Martin Saillard. In the center: Pat Holm and Teresa Jennings. - When they got an invitation to a Wrap Party celebrating and saying farewell to Works in Progress, a lot of people expressed shock and dismay. There were two kinds of people: the ones who said they loved the paper and would miss it, and the ones who blamed current WIPsters for “shutting it down.” Well, a group of four WIP readers (activists all) proposes to continue the paper in some form (see box on page 4) so we needn’t concern ourselves with the latter.
But the former? Let’s take up their cause. Why do they love WIP? Let us count the ways:
- the quirky headlines.
- interesting reprints I’d never see otherwise.
- absence of stereotyping
- actual investigation of local government actions.
- edgy cartoons.
- the covers! the random covers!
- good writing that doesn’t insult me.
- I find at least one great article in every issue.
- that it covers stuff no one else does
- it’s paper. I can read it with my coffee
- that it finally gave up those whole pages of nothing but print
- sometimes it has Spanish
- because it doesn’t respect politicians
- it’s a mystery where it comes from
- it’s kind of homey
- comes right out and says stuff
- Marxist rants!
- that article with pictures of US flag underwear
- it knows who the good guys are and it’s not the usual suspects
- has a sense of humor. doesn’t have a “line”
- the only decent coverage of local politics
- I feel like it’s really the peoples’ paper. My paper.
Now your turn: I love WIP because: _________________________
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