Quick thoughts

The newspaper merger is clearly bad. How bad? We'll discuss that Monday.

The deciding factor

The rallying cry among merchants is that downtown Rogers will be saved by service. If that is true, salvation is on its way.

Take the latest example. We'll compare Friday's Goblin Parade in downtown Rogers with Saturday's trick-or-treating at the Promenade.

The Goblin Parade was a triumph of cooperation and enthusiasm. The merchants were in prime form with candy bowls at just about every door, and those from outside the downtown filled in the gaps between shops. My daughter walked away with a tremendous amount of candy, including some of the "good stuff" like miniature candy bars that cost a lot for independent businessmen and women whose customer traffic hasn't been exactly steady.

At the Promenade, granted, we arrived about an hour into the event (which was scheduled to last four) and found businesses already out of candy. Others weren't participating. But the real kicker was what we found in my daughter's bag. One shop (no names to protect the clearly guilty) dropped in a coupon. Another put in perfume samples. You did just read that, and it wasn't a typo. This was, for the Promenade shops with their nameless owners, a marketing opportunity.

To the extent I am able, I will shop in downtown Rogers, where I know the shopkeepers are focused on community, not money.