Lincolnite

Boy oh boy did I feel sorry for The City Limit Band on Friday night. They tried to put on a good show out at Southpointe, but that's tough to do when you've got a 100-degree sun staring you in the face, you're standing on bricks that have baked in the sun all day long, and you're playing for a tiny brave-but-over-cooked crowd. Not to mention the fact that they were going head-to-head with Ribfest. Well guys, I don't know if you felt appreciated at the time, but I thought you played well. Here's hoping your next gig is a little more pleasant.

Andrew Borakove thinks the Lincoln Journal Star is biased against women:

Despite the many letters to the editor from residents outraged at the Journal Star’s recent coverage of the young woman who allegedly left her newborn at the hospital, it is obvious that your paper continues to show a double standard, and dare I say, an obvious bias against women.

Go ahead and read the rest.

Members of Congress love their pork. Fortunately, two out of Nebraska's three Representatives -- Lee Terry and Adrian Smith -- showed a little restraint this year. Rep. Terry voted against pork 46 out of 50 times. Rep. Smith wasn't too far behind at 42 out of 50. But the man who represents our district didn't do so well. Representative Jeff Fortenberry voted against pork only 19 out of 50 times; that is, he voted in favor of pork 62% of the time. That's especially interesting when you consider ol' Fort's stand on taxes and spending:

My priorities are good tax policy, fiscal responsibility, and policy reform to deliver important public services to those in need while prudentially managing revenues. I believe allowing families and persons to save, spend, and invest more of their own money strengthens the economy. Taxes should be simple, reasonable, and moderate. The evidence is clear: tax relief has stimulated economic growth and increased productivity and federal revenue. As your Congressman, I voted to prevent tax increases on families and small businesses. I have supported estate tax relief to protect family-owned businesses and farms and allow all Nebraskans to pass their earnings to future generations. Government can and does do many good things. Yet spending your money should be done with a spirit of fiscal discipline. I recently supported legislation (the line-item veto) that gives the President the authority to eliminate wasteful spending items and allows Congress to revote on the measures. I believe this is one way to encourage fiscal prudence and increase lawmakers’ accountability to taxpayers.

Among Fort's preferred pork: $1 million for the Center for Instrumented Critical Infrastructure in Pennsylvania, despite the fact that the Center's existence could not be confirmed by the man who asked for the money.

Urgh, I'm a little off schedule this morning, so there won't be much for postings this morning. Sorry 'bout that. I'll pull a Nebraskan and talk about the weather. How 'bout that heat and humidity? Nice, isn't it? Look for heat index values above 110 on Saturday. That actually makes me glad to have to sit in a classroom most of the day. Oh, now is probably a good time to remind people that Nebraska does not experience "95% humidity" in the heat of the day. We're usually in the 30%-50% range. I know that doesn't sound very exciting, but it's still awfully dang hot. By the way, the musical reference for the title of this post is pretty obvious. But nobody caught the "Boys and Girls Together" reference from the other day. That one came from a tune on Chase's self-titled first album. Come on, surely I'm not the only one who owns that album. Can I see some hands...?

Sentences you don't plan to hear:

"If your son doesn't stop biting kids he won't be allowed to come back to the Y."

Maybe I'm a bad parent, but the first thing I did when I heard that was burst out laughing. For one thing, the mental image of shrimpy little 15-month old Robbie walking around and nibbling on other kids is pretty amusing. And then there's the woman's reaction to Robbie biting one kid. I may be mistaken, but I was under the impression that kids bite each other now and then. They're experimental that way. Kids skin their knees; they have tantrums; and they occasionally bite. Threatening expulsion after one incident seems a tad over-the-top. That's like threatening to put a puppy to sleep after it playfully nips at your finger. Plus, it's a little refreshing to see that Robbie is trying new foods. Not that I condone biting, of course. If we ever catch Robbie biting someone he will be punished to the extent you can punish a 15-month old. We've had pretty good success with our discipline techniques so far (knock on wood!), so I don't see why we can't nip this behavior in the bud, if there's even anything to nip. Robbie aims to please; he is typically mortified to discover that he did something that makes mom and dad mad. Anyway, here's hoping our little cereal biter doesn't become a serial biter. At the rate prosecutors are charging kids with crimes these days, little Robbie could find himself with a rapsheet before he's two.

The Capital City Ribfest starts today outside Pershing Auditorium. Would anybody care to join me for some good food -- most of the vendors have more than just ribs -- and good company? I will be at the front gate entrance near the YWCA on N Street at Noon. I'll be the six-foot bald guy wearing an orange polo, and Mr. T will be my goofy-looking sidekick. Even if you don't get there at Noon, I do hope you'll say hi if you see me.

Lately there have been a few crashes on I-80 near the Platte River. As a result, the speed limit in that area is being lowered. But that news isn't very interesting. What caught my eye was this:

Drivers frustrated with delays caused by the work zone probably will be happy to hear construction may end sooner than planned, [Nebraska Department of Roads spokeswoman Mary Jo] Hall-Oie said. "We're hoping it could be done yet in December of this year as opposed to fall of next year," she said.

That would be some ten months early, give or take a couple months. If true, somebody buy those construction workers a box of donuts! Do you think we could get that construction crew on the O Street bridge replacement project?

The City Council passed a $132 million budget yesterday. Did they get it right?

Well that was fun! Thanks to everybody who showed up to the very first (and certainly not last) Lincoln Recess. I think there were ten of us, plus two random dudes from Wells Fargo who joined us for a couple rounds of jump rope. Oh, and raspberries to Mr. T who decided to show up five minutes after the rest of us had headed back to our offices. You can find photos of the event over at Flickr under the tag lincolnrecess. Don't forget, Ribfest starts tomorrow. I'll plan to be there at noon. More info (such as a meeting location) in the morning. Thanks again, everyone!

It's recess day! Who: You, your co-workers, your dog, and anybody else you can find. What: Recess! When: Noon today Where: 14th and Q, in the former Star Ship 9 location Why: Who needs a reason for recess? Come one come all to the First Annual (Monthly? Weekly? Daily?) Lincolnite Recess Extravaganza! Come on out to 14th and Q and have a ball (or a Frisbee) with a bunch of goofy folks from all across Lincoln. Meet Lincolnite regulars like Karin and beerokid while reliving the glory days of your youth. Don't want to get all sweaty? That's ok, come and blow bubbles or draw with sidewalk chalk. Also, don't forget lunch at Ribfest tomorrow at noon. See you there! (Mega bonus points if anybody can identify the reference in the title of this post.)

You can blame three of us if this doesn’t work

That's County Commissioner Bob Workman, speaking on behalf of himself, Larry Hudkins and Bernie Heier, on the topic of new money being sent to the Lancaster County Events Center. So Bob, if things really don't work out as you've promised, will you have the integrity to step down immediately and voluntarily?

The Lincoln Fire Department gets picked on quite a bit, often for good reason. So it is good to see that LFD's ambulance service is breaking even this year. Compare that to last year's $1 million in the red. Not that that gives us reason to pop out the champagne; after all, "breaking even" isn't exactly what we were promised when the City yanked ambulance service from the private sector's hands six years ago. Let's hope this is the start of a positive trend.

(Note: This entry will stay will stay on top throughout the week.) There are not one, but two opportunities to meet up with your fellow Lincolnites this week:

1. On Wednesday we will be having recess at the new Starship Memorial Adult Playground (aka the ugly parking lot at 14th and Q). Bring your jump rope, your bouncy balls, and your sneakers and join us for a little goofy recreation. Time is TBA, but let's plan on meeting around Noon.
2. On Thursday we will be meeting at Ribfest for a little finger-lickin' goodness. Again, time is TBA, but figure on meeting around Noon.

I hope to see you at one or both events! Details of each will be posted as they become available.

Mayor Beutler and the City Council have found themselves in an unpopular position as they decide whether or not to cut services to seniors in the form of removing 22% of the Lincoln Area Agency on Aging's budget. Mayor Beutler has to make cuts somewhere to keep his no new taxes (this year) pledge, and new taxes aren't going anywhere in the Council. There isn't much wiggle room. I won't haggle over whether or not cuts to LAAA are a good thing. Plenty of people are fighting about that elsewhere. I want to know if there are alternatives in the community that can (relatively) seamlessly replace the services proposed to be cut. What options are out there? Are they able and willing to step in where the government is backing out?

Bored by the current sandwich offerings in Downtown Lincoln? Two new options just opened up: Bread and Cup specializes in homemade breads and soups served "simply". No frills here. Well, there is one frill: owner Kevin Shinn has a blog. Look for Bread & Cup at 8th and S in the Historic Haymarket. Roost Sandwiches features "the world's most intense, original gourmet sandwiches". Fourteen unique sandwiches grace Roost's menu. Find Roost at 1451 O Street. Best of all, both Bread & Cup and Roost are local. Drop by and say hi, won't you? (Images are from each respective restaurant's website.)