There is an opinion column in their papers called "The Nose," which is anonymously authored. It's generally humorous, but the January column was mean-spirited and crossed a line regarding Ward 6 Councilmember Tommy Wells. The author displayed serious windshield perspective in criticizing Wells' advocacy for modes of transportation besides the automobile. Wells is accused of "hat[ing] The Nose's car" and is told to "stop Twittering and start ignoring the voices of Greater Greater Washington." Lyrics to a poorly-done parody of the Beach Boys' "Fun, Fun, Fun" follow the complaining.
The kicker, though, is the ending. The author says:
By the way, word on the Internet is that a Councilman on a bike is worth at least 10 points. That's even better than an old man or a stroller mommy. Just saying.I don't know about you, but that sounds like an invitation to commit bodily harm to a member of our city's legislative body. Tony Kornheiser made a similar attempt at humor a year ago when discussing the bike lanes on Pennsylvania Avenue, and it led to anger and disgust. Kornheiser apologized, and even had Lance Armstrong on his show to discuss why this wasn't really funny.
You can disagree with the inclusion of bike lanes on certain streets in the city. You can debate whether there is a "war on drivers" in the city. But saying the equivalent of, "Hey, it'd be really cool if someone were to purposely hit a man on a bike with their car" is sophomoric, offensive, and if you ask me, worth a visit from the police to determine if there is actual intent to target a public official. Unfortunately, the author of this diatribe is known only to the editors of the Capital Community News family of papers. I'd encourage you to express disappointment directly to the author by emailing TheNose@HillRag.com or to the editor at editorial@hillrag.com.
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