(there was a pun in that title...anyone get it? *holds for applause*)
I can very much appreciate the work he does (maybe not his work per se, but writing in general) and whether it's fun or not, there is that weight of stress and worry when trying to do your job. He has a 5 year old son, he needs to be able to help provide for his family and when the writers were on strike, the money wasn't coming in. I don't see any issue with sounding "whiny" or bitching about the way his craft is viewed. At the end of the day, their #1 job is to make money to support their lives.
To me, it doesn't matter what the job is--if it's your job, there is an inherent amount of stress that comes with it whether you're Lebron James, Zach Galifianakis, or Joss Whedon.
I also enjoyed the cheap shot by the New York Times trying to illlegitimize (delegitimze?) the entire strike by attacking the credibility of the writers "scarves and dickies" or something along those lines, I've since closed the article. Whether it's working in a coal mine or writing for "Law and Order: SVU", if you work your ass off, you should be compensated fairly.
Mike
If the creatives/writers wish to operate as a guild/union and negotiate collectively, they must first realize that the market price for MOST of their mediocre work is going to be quite low. There are those exceptional FEW writers who deserve the large salaries associated with their profession... Then there are the people who think they are really good writers but, in reality, their sitcom story-lines suck and they fail at garnering my attention.