OK I'm not picking on the Post and this will be the last thing I say about them for a while

So here's the situation:

Like almost every other newspaper, The Washington Post is losing subscribers for their print edition. There's that.

Washington, D.C. has a serious shortage of local business coverage. A few months ago, the Post cut back to a single page and that leaves the Washington Business Journal. Alone. So there's that too.

So it would seem that one good way to boost print circulation would be to create a top-notch business section, like the New York Times. (You need to accept that for the next part of this to make any sense. If you don't accept it, go straight to Question 7 and thank you for your participation.)

So the Post launches a new Capital Business tabloid with much fanfare. A weekly insert in the print edition. Hooray! Never mind whether I think it's any good or not, it seems like a good idea. But get this:

You have to pay extra to get it! Like $46 a year or something.

Let's review, shall we? Given an opportunity to generate increased interest in their print edition by improving it and therefore boost circulation and therefore boost ad revenue, the Post opted to try get people to spend even more money on something that's not all that great anyway.

They may know their way around putting out a great newspaper, but sometimes it seems like the brain trust at the Post doesn't know its ass from third base about marketing.

OK, you can go back to sleep now.