A few weeks ago, Lane discovered a new publication floating around the city's bars. In a format almost identical to hers, the upstart publication, Lounge Lizard, included a roundup of the city's watering holes. What's more, once Lane started to read the comments, she instantly recognized them--as her own writing. Lane called it "verbatim duplication." Lounge Lizard's editor even included her typos.
Barfly has filed a "cease and desist" order against Lounge Lizard, telling them to recall their "carbon copies." PB
two-WHEELED TRAGEDY Last week, Oregonian columnist S. Renee Mitchell turned her bi-weekly space over to her readers so they could vent about bicyclists. When one reader, Dawn Lewis, left an agitated voicemail, Mitchell put her unfiltered comments into the paper: "The bicyclists in this town drive me crazy," stated Lewis. "I would love to see one of them get hit by a bus. Not killed but just a little shaken up."
Two days later, this mean-spirited wish came partially true when a bicyclist was killed by a Tri-Met bus. The accident occurred in broad daylight on Friday at NE Halsey and 126th Avenue. At the time, the bicyclist was in the bike lane but traveling in the wrong direction.
The accident comes at the end of a summer that began with two separate fatal bike accidents. In both, the drivers were allegedly intoxicated. In late June, Lindsey Llaneza was traveling 70 mph along residential SE Belmont when he plowed through three bicyclists; two were killed instantly. A repeat drunk driving offender, Llaneza did not stop until an officer spotted a bike lodged under his van's bumper. According to a breathalyzer, his blood-alcohol tripled the legal limit.
Llaneza faces two criminal charges of manslaughter, but the case has been postponed until December 8. Rumors have started that Llaneza hopes to beat the rap. One alleged defense that he may mount is that he was not driving the van at the time. PB
