I had heard about this Friday night and wanted to let Cindy know we are just a bunch of cottenninnyninnymuggins who are filled with snark, but she blogged about it. Uh oh.

Google Your Life Away

My coworker wrote a funny story today about the time people spend surfing the web looking up stuff and wasting time.

Micah mentioned that he googled himself. Maybe it’s a journalist thing.

I googled myself recently, too. I found a bunch of columns I’d written for the paper posted on other sites — which was nice. And then I found this which wasn’t so nice.

BOMB Cindy Lange-Kubick? Is that an acronym?

I told my sweet daughter about all the nastiness and she asked me if she should post nice things about her mommy. Or go beat them up. I told her thanks but no.

But now I know that there are people out there who think I’m: a) a crappy writer b) ugly and c) hate-worthy.

I guess there’s a lesson there in the perils of googling, especially ones own self.

Sigh……

Sorry things got a bit mean there. We like you CLK, you add a bit of brightness to the LJS.

I have sent an apology email to her. I am ashamed.

HUG Cindy Lange-Kubick

Matt Wills is one cool cat. It is always a pleasure to ride with him and man can he ride. He is one of those who do 100 + mile rides on a single speed like it is a trip to the store for a soda. Heck of a huge article in the LJS talking about how his family gets around by bike most of the time.

Today, Matt, a 37-year-old architect, and Karen, a 37-year-old assistant student involvement director at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, pedal virtually everywhere.

They commute to work. They use their bikes to run errands. They take turns transporting their two children, ages 6 and 3, to and from day care, swimming and ballet lessons.

Wills rides his bicycle year-round, regardless of the weather. He grows a beard in the winter to protect his face from the harsh Nebraska winds.

“When it snows 4 to 6 inches, it can be difficult,” he said. “Once last year it was too deep, so I ran to work with my backpack. I like running.”

People tell Wills they think he’s “insane.”

“Most of them view bikes as toys,” Wills said. “But to me, they’re about transportation and recreation.”

Then a letter to the editor today about the article

Let’s all try biking more

Thanks for the excellent article on bikes as transportation in the Sunday A.M. section on July 20!

Matt Wills and his wife are wonderful examples of how we can have fun, get exercise, avoid polluting and save money by biking — to work, to the store, to day care!

I applaud Matt and Karen Wills, Bob and Mary Torell, Matt McClure and all the others who bike to work. I urge others to consider trying it just for a couple of days.

For those who worry about danger, I point out that you can cut your risk by 80 percent by following the rules of the road — stopping at stop signs and red lights, riding on the right with traffic, yielding when entering the street or turning, using the full lane when it’s too narrow to share, riding in a straight line, and being careful.

Also, more than 80 percent of the bike collisions with cars in Lincoln occur when the cyclist is riding on the sidewalk — it’s two to eight times more dangerous to ride on the sidewalk. Collisions to cyclists riding in the street are actually very rare.

Bicycles are not toys — they’re legally vehicles — and very useful ones! Get out on your bike and ride!

Bob Boyce, Lincoln

Letters, 7/16: Stop NASCAR to save gas

Some good comments over there

We keep hearing that we must conserve gas to help lower oil use and price. They say they want us to drive 55 mph to lower fuel use.

Then why doesn’t the government stop NASCAR racing? Consider all the fuel traveling from one race to another, in their motor homes, the fuel used in qualifying and the fuel used to run the race itself. Also, the fuel used by those fans who go to watch the races.

There must be many thousands of gallons of fuel wasted for each race.

That would reduce American fuel use more than what the normal drivers can save.

Is NASCAR that important to us that we can’t do without it?

Len Hoggatt, Lincoln

A)I don’t want a man that’s going to use the Koran to be sworn in as President instead of the Bible.”

Q) Where did you get this information that Barack Obama wanted to be sworn in on the Koran?

A) From one of our Church members that’s keeping up with what his comments are and you know he wouldn’t even do the Pledge of Allegiance. He refused.

then you have this amazing letter to the editor.

Candidate not a true patriot

I would like to know how anyone could possibly cast a vote in favor of someone who is running for the office of the president of the United States, aka the commander in chief of the Armed Forces, who, on national television, refused to place his right hand over his heart during the playing of the National Anthem.

He also does not wear a flag pin, as do the other candidates.

Any true American patriot would not vote for him.

Roger Kopf, Nebraska City

Gotta give major props to folks who replied on the LJS website.

The Rev. Dr. B. William Barth tells me so:

I read the Jan. 19 Lincoln Journal Star article, “Go online, get ordained,” with a mixture of anger, judgment and deep sadness.

To me, Mary Kay Wood and all of her ilk have demeaned and cheapened the ministry of the church by her frivolous “pay for paper” certificate to perform weddings. The young couple that asked her to do this betrayed their total lack of understanding of the church, its ministry and 2,000 years of tradition. How sad for us all. And today, these people aren’t alone. Their number is growing, I am afraid.

Who am I to speak thus? I spent five years in two seminaries earning two master’s degrees. I have been ordained for over 41 years and am still active in ministry in my church. In addition, I have a Ph.D. from the University of Maryland and have spent over 30 years as a marriage and family therapist licensed in Maryland, before moving back to Nebraska.

Over the years I have performed many, many weddings, have logged countless hours in the therapy room. This “ordination by Internet” business is a travesty.

I am sure the ceremony was very sweet, even “meaningful.” I know how hard marriage can be and I wish the couple well. But I would ask Ms. Wood to retire from her new career and advise her son to do likewise. A little damage control here!

But, on the other hand, maybe they are on to something. I have been thinking of a third career myself. I’ll bet there is a place where I can get licensed to become a brain surgeon with just the click of my mouse. I’m sure there are plenty of folk looking for a cheap and easy lobotomy. This could be a lot of fun!

SCS member getting his letter published dealing with the censorship.

Is it because all golfers are gay?

I am sure most of those who freaked out and commented on the story splainin why there was an article in Spanish think Saddam was involved with 9/11, that we found WMD’s, that they hate us for our freedom, and that gays are destroying our marriages.

The article was printed in English and Spanish.

On Thursday, we learned from Lincoln police that a lack of accurate information about the killing of Maria del Rosario Moreno was leading to fear and confusion among some Spanish-speaking people in Lincoln. Some erroneously thought a killer was still at large, for example.

We considered printing a story about the case for our Spanish-language publication, Hispanos Unidos. But the next issue of that newspaper will not appear until next week, too late to do much good for people in need of immediate information.

Link

Christianity is only hope

The Lincoln Journal Star Web site asked us to sound off on Karl Rove. We met Karl Rove when he was in Omaha, and he is a fine gentleman. Really, he is not guilty of anything except for being a big threat to liberals, which is why they hated him so much.

I disagree that Rove is guilty of “polarizing tactics.” In America, conservative means to support our Constitution while liberal means to change it, so who is guilty of polarization?

Have you noticed that liberals blame conservatives for the very things of which they are guilty? Such tactics shift the attention and blame from themselves. Have we been so misled not to recognize this? Jesus would say it’s the blind leading the blind.

Really, liberals today would define our founding fathers as extreme right-wing conservatives, because at least 50 signers of the Declaration of Independence were devoted Christians.

Fact is that some have chosen to take the side of liberalism with all of its anti-God and immoral stances. Another fact is that biblical Christianity is the only hope for this perverse and strife-torn world.

Oscar E. Blomstedt, Lincoln

The Paul Fell dismissal at the Journal Star is causing some public discussion. In today’s paper there is what may be the best letter to the editor I’ve ever read. Hilarious! Look for the Roger Welsch letter.

professor talksalot posted this little gem on SCS.

from the LJS Your health: Stay hydrated and healthy

salty wrote on June 27, 2007 2:02 am:
” Sometimes color and odor is simply not enough. I have found that by tasting less of than a teaspoon of a loved ones urine, you can tell if they have kept themselves properly hydrated or not. If it tastes as salty as the chicken noodle soup at Village Inn, I generally advise them to drink more water. If it’s any less salty, I generally will let them know that they are drinking enough liquids to stay hydrated. DO NOT drink your own urine, it is very dangerous. It is a poison expelled by your own body. Why would you think of drinking your own urine? “

man I love that the LJS lets you comment on stories.