Local Blog Observations

File this one under the Blogger Geek category.

I do spend some time reading local blogs, and to that end I wanted to point out two observations:


Observation 1 - James Rising...I think he is/was a radio guy, but I have to confess that I don't listen to all that much radio these days...has a terrific blog that you can find HERE.  It reminds me of Andy Palumbo's blog (HERE).

I have a tendency to write in long, multi-thought sentences.  Blogs by guys like Rising and Palumbo remind me that shorter, more succinct sentences are almost always better for this medium.

Observation 2 - There is a very popular local blog called The Lu Lac Political Letter that is written by a veteran area media & news guy named David Yonki.  I believe that the intent of the blog is to cover politics and Luzerne and Lackawanna counties.  You can link to the blog HERE. I met Mr Yonki at a prior "Blogfest" and he seems like a wonderful guy.  Anyway, before all "dem Haynas" out there getting their collective panties in a twist I want to preface what I am about to say with the following...IT IS AN OBSERVATION NOT A CRITICISM...okay?  (taking a deep breath here) There is an almost complete absence of any "Lac" and it is almost entirely all "Lu".  That's okay, but the bottom line is that the blog really is one that just covers Luzerne County politics.  I did once find a reference to Lackawanna County (the prison, specifically) in November of last year, but the references are otherwise few and far between.  Maybe it should be called "Lu and Occasionally Lac" or "Lu and Lac of Lac" or something similar.  Maybe the "Hayna Gulch Political Letter".  Don't get me wrong, as I actually like reading the blog.  It's just that it really does cover politics in  the Greater Wilkes-Barre area (also known as Luzerne County) and not really anywhere else to the same degree.

Now will I rectify observation #2 by writing a "Lac of Lu Political Letter" (Get it?  It would cover almost all Lackawana County stuff, hence "Lac of Lu"...anyway, I thought it was cute).  Hell no!  It true "Spirit of the Internet" fashion I will simply be part of the problem, not part of the solution.  Put another way, I have absolutely no desire to write about politics with any degree of frequency outside of what strikes my fancy at any given moment.  I'm like that, given my stated attention span of roughly 5 minutes.

Now I can see the fan mail now.  So as a service, I'm going to respond to criticisms of what I've noted above in advance.

Criticism 1 - How dare you criticize that blog!  He's been writing it for a long time.
Response 1 - I'm not criticizing anything.  I'm simply pointing something out.  I haven't said that just covering politics in Luzerne County is bad; I've simply stated that the blog really doesn't cover politics in Lackawanna County, and as a result it maybe slightly mis-named.

Criticism 2 - You haven't earned the right to criticize that blog.
Response 2 - This isn't sixteenth century Europe, and as a result there are no prerequisites required for providing feedback in this day and age.  I don't follow anyone 16 feet behind (literally or figuratively).  What's more, I don't give a squirrel's nut if some one had a blog or message board back in the early 90's or whatever other trivia may be thrown my way and as a result is somehow beyond the occasional piece of constructive feedback.

Criticism 3 - Well if you don't like this, then write one of your own!
Response 3 - No.  See above.

Criticism 4 - You suck, your blog sucks and you can't write to save your life.

Response 4 - (1) Only when drinking out of a straw. (2) Tell me why if you like or, conversely, simply don't read it then. (3) You obviously have mistaken me for someone who actually claims to be a good writer.  I readily confess to being hack when it comes to this stuff.  I revel in my amateur status.  It is my red badge of courage.  Next.