Yesterday, Edelman’s effete uber geek, blog and gadget savant Steve Rubel proclaimed that we are at the dawn of a new era. What follows is the gist of his post “In the Cut and Paste Era, Traffic Happens Elsewhere."  Then, of course, my thoughts.

EXCERPT

Imagine for a moment that you can take any piece of online content that you care about - a news feed, an image, a box score, multimedia, a stream of updates from your friends - and easily pin it wherever you want. Once clipped, you can drop the content on your desktop, an online start page like Windows Live or Pageflakes, “the deck" of your mobile device or even “a crawl” on your Internet-connected television. This isn’t some far off vision. It’s the coming era of the Cut and Paste Web.

However, for all of its benefits, the Cut and Paste Web is potentially more disruptive to big traffic sites than Web 2.0 was. If almost all content can be lifted from one spot and placed somewhere where it’s more convenient to the user, just how will it be monetized? The ramifications reach far and wide. It will impact anyone that wants to attract eyeballs - media companies, brand marketers and community/social networking sites.

[But] don't wait. Start now to make everything on your website embeddable. Traffic is becoming something that happens elsewhere, not just on your site.

MY THOUGHTS

EDITOR’S NOTE: Special thanks to Thomas Williams for the snippet of his beautiful digital art.

LONDON - Next time you're asked whether our profession tackles the tough issues, remember this: Obesity, Diabetes, Hepatic Lipidosis, Arthritis... are all being addressed by a public relations campaign launched today. Half the cats in the UK are now obese and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals intends to do something about it!

According to RSPCA, research now clearly indicates that fat cats are exposed to a number of obesity related disorders. Our rotund little friends are far more prone to diabetes, arthritis and a very serious disorder called Hepatic Lipidosis (fatty liver). In recent years Feline Diabetes Mellitus has become a daily diagnosis in animal hospitals across the country.

What's causing this? Why are cats predisposed to a life of sedentary obesity? Simple: Cats no longer have to hunt to survive and we over indulge them. In nature, acquiring food is accompanied by physical exertion to capture and consume. In recent times the unnatural situation of food excess -- readily acquired and consumed with little accompanying physical exertion -- has become the norm. Regrettably, we are now paying the price.

To address the problem, the Royal Society has teamed up with TV celebrity veterinarian Joe Inglis and launched a PR campaign. Together, they've launched a new website Pets Get Slim and are taking the show on the road to help pet owners take action.

Visitors to petsgetslim.co.uk can upload photographs and stories about their pets and share their weight loss experiences with other owners. Other features include helpful diet tips and exercise suggestions, as well as a pet weight checker and a search facility to find vets who run pet weight clinics in your area. Visitors to the Pets Get Slim road shows can have their pet weighed and learn their animal's ideal weight. Diet information and pet care tips will be shared. The national weigh-in will allow the RSPCA to further assess the extent of the fat-cat problem.

Inglis said seriously, "Pet obesity is not an issue to be taken lightly."

For more information on the issue and when the road show might be coming to a town near you, visit http://www.petsgetslim.co.uk/news/.

COMMENTARY: Ya think PRSA would consider a similar program for C-Level execs in PR?

Michael Keith Deaver, Vice Chairman of Edelman PR, died today of pancreatic cancer at his home in Bethesda, Md. He was 69.

Deaver's family said in the statement that he fought his cancer "with the courage, grace and good spirit that he carried throughout his life."

Born in Bakersfield, California, April 11, 1938, Deaver was the son of a Shell Oil Co. distributor. He received his bachelor's degree in political science from San Jose State College. He worked for IBM, served in the Air Force and later was executive director of the Santa Clara County Republican Party. In 1966, he was part of the gubernatorial staff during Ronald Reagan's term as governor of California. In 1980 he was appointed Deputy Chief of Staff under President Reagan.

As Deputy White House Chief of Staff Deaver worked primarily on media management. Under investigation he resigned from the White House staff in May 1985. He was later convicted on three of five counts of perjury stemming from statements to a congressional subcommittee and a federal grand jury investigating his lobbying activities with administration officials. He subsequently formed Michael K. Deaver, Inc. and became an influential lobbyist. In 1995 he joined Edelman PR, the world's largest independent public relations firm.

He is survived by his wife, Carolyn, and their two children, Amanda Deaver of Washington and Blair Deaver of Bend, Oregon.