TIME has published its list of the 25 best (and five most overrated) blogs of 2009.

I’ve sent this link to a lot of people, several of whom echo my own reaction that this is my new favorite site.

Sam Hoffman’s introductory note indicates this will be a 20-joke project. I hope it continues far beyond that modest mark.

I don’t know how I missed this news, but evidently it was announced a couple of weeks ago that MAD Magazine will now be published quarterly beginning with issue number 500.

Sounds to me like an intermediate step on the way to cancellation, and it’s a shame. MAD began in 1954 and taught a couple of generations how to view the world through a satirical eye.

I suppose we can blame the Internet for the death of MAD, but at a time when it feels like we’re living in something a golden age of comedy — from The Onion to The Daily Show to  The Colbert Report to 23/6 and so many others — it feels like MAD should be thriving more than it is. Maybe the Usual Gang of Idiots simply couldn’t shake the stigma of being part of the pre-Web era.

… in which we continue yesterday’s post regarding the issue of hiring a full-time employee vs. a consultant or independent contractor. In case you missed it, go ahead and read the post. We’ll wait.

Ready? Good: Here’s what Rodger Roeser, owner and President of Eisen Marketing Group, had to say about the issue:

“This is a no-brainer in this economy. Hiring a firm (graphic, PR, advertising, marketing) is just soooooo much more cost-effective. You’re only paying for the work you need done. There’s typically a finite beginning and end. Agency doesn’t drink your coffee, never calls in sick. Much more expertise, WAY less overhead.”

Karen Tripi Associates, an executive recruiter since 1985, seems to agree with Rodger: Jamie Serino over at KTA forwarded a press release noting that the company has just launched “a new division that specializes in finding the highest quality marketing professionals for contract, freelance and short-term project positions. ”

“In this challenging time, companies are looking for alternative staffing solutions,” said Karen Tripi, President of KTA. Evidently.

Harriet Cohen of  Training Solutions, a boutique consulting firm, notes that “the benefit I bring to my clients is the ability to be up on the trends and experts, and to be able to offer current state of the art high level staff at lower prices. I also offer more objectivity, in addition, I can tell the truth more easily without fear of being fired or labeled. I am finding more companies are outsourcing those foundation or creative programs that are adjuncts to their business and it frees them to focus on their business.

“The flip side of the argument,” Harriet notes, “is if the assignment is sensitive or deals with really understanding the culture and there isn’t a lot of time to get up to speed then internal is the way to go. Overall if the work can be done quickly efficiently and reliably by an outsourced agency thereby freeing internal staff to work on what is most important for the success of the company then outsourcing is the way to go.”

Meanwhile, something of a middle ground is noted by Jamie Pennington of Flexible Executives, who presents “a possible third option: Instead of hiring full-timers or signing up for lengthy retainers, the market seems to be moving toward hiring help on an as-needed basis, i.e. flexible executives. Marketing is our biggest category, with clients calling on our executives (who average 18 years experience, are fully vetted by our company, and proven leaders in their fields) being brought in as consultants on a project basis as demand warrants.

“For instance,” Jamie continues, “a company is launching a new product and needs to conduct market research, or hire a seasoned PR executive to handle the campaign – enter a flexible executive who comes in with a defined scope of work, outlined deliverables, no minimums and no retainers. Virtually all projects are priced not to exceed the total amount, without worrying about hourly fees.”

Finally, Joni Daniels of Daniels & Associates offers this sage advice:

“Any change will involve some start up costs (money, training, orientation) so that has to be figured into the decision,” Joni observes. “Focus on your current needs: Do you need a proven track record? Do you have enough work to keep someone active and productive full time? Do you foresee growing needs or know exactly what you need and don’t need input as to additional services/products? What happens if the individual leaves? (Can you endure time loss while a replacement is found?)

“There is no ‘right’ answer but there is a ‘best’ decision depending on the answers to these questions.”

Thanks to everyone who responded to my HARO query — I appreciate you all taking the time to offer your comments and share your insights — and thanks again, HARO: You provide an excellent service.

Back in December, I posted “11 Things To Keep In Mind During This Crappy Economy.” Here’s number 10:

Remember that every hardship also brings opportunity. Those articles in number four above have a lot of good stuff in them, but here a more practical way of looking at things. Yes, the economy is sucking wind. Yes, a lot of companies are freezing their marketing department hiring or maybe even doing layoffs. But guess what? Tons of work still needs to get done. So if you’re an independent contractor or consultant, you’re in pretty good shape. If you’re an independent contractor or consultant who isn’t part of the 90 percent that’s crap, you’re in very good shape.

It makes sense to me. If I’m in need of significant ongoing copywriting, for example, I have a choice: Bring on a full-timer or work with someone on a retainer basis. If I bring on a full-timer, I have someone in the office, but I also have to pay the cost of providing benefits. If I work with someone on retainer, I have to give up some measure of control, but I save some money and I probably get someone with deeper experience and expertise.

For my $.02, if I’m hiring, I’d prefer to go the retainer route. In this economy, deeper expertise at lower cost seems like a winner. But I wonder: Am I leaning in that direction simply because that’s the nature of my own business? Is something that seems to make perfect sense to me complete anathema to the world beyond my own virtual office?

So I decided to find out. Using the excellent HARO service, I posted the following query:

As a hiring company, you’re faced with a choice between retaining an independent marketing/PR consultant (greater experience, higher work quality, less time in-office) or hiring a full-timer (less experience, higher costs due to benefits and office space). Question: Which is your preference? More importantly: Why?

The responses started popping into my inbox just minutes after the HARO mailing dropped.

“My preference is for [independent contractors] and has been since 2000 when the trend seemed clear,” said Kathleen Carroll of The Branding Clinic. “Big companies are going to increasingly identify and focus on their core competency and outsource all those other activities.

“From a company perspective: It is better to hire independent talent –- you get the best talent at the best price,” she continued. “If a firm has someone on the payroll, they are most likely to staff that person to the job even if that person is definitely not the right person/talent for the assignment.

“IC arrangements assure the cream rises to the top. It incentivizes the IC to keep skills current and relevant so that companies continue to hire them. Sorta capatilism at its best!”

Donille Massa, Director of Marketing for Niagara Conservation, wrote to say that “having managed both independent and full-time PR consultants, there is no doubt that you get more results from retaining an independent consultant. In every case, they have always been more experienced, more focused, more knowledgeable and have had more PR contacts than a full-timer.

“Their use of time has always been much more efficient,” Donille continued, “and the cost savings is significant to say the least.  I have also found that independent consultants are much more professional and their writing skills have far exceeded those of a full-timer. It has also been my experience that PR consultants work much better independently, rather than having to punch a clock.”

Those are just two of the many responses I received to my query. Tomorrow (since this post is already longer than usual for even a long LOHAD post) I’ll present (as radio legend Paul Harvey says) — the rest of the story.