No, creative endeavors do not suck money out of other things. Creative endeavors get people to pay money for their own content. No reason Ed can’t write a column that pays for itself. People do it all the time. If this column is such a great idea, why doesn’t the company owners pay his salary? Better yet, have Ed lease/license the Cecil name from the owners and split all the gigantic profit they seem to think is coming. That way the owners get a little cash from a name they aren’t using, Ed will earn whatever the public thinks he and his columns are worth and the owners get a slice of that if he succeeds. Win - win for everyone, even us. If we have to pay double for membership, at least some may go to board enhancements and not Ed’s bank account.