Ok, I've been holding off on mentioning anything for a few months now, but what the hell is up with the "citizen journalism" website iBurlington? It's become really, really, really, really lame.

The only people who've posted there in 2007 are "Johnny," the nudist guy who started the now-defunct Brokeback Mountain in Vermont campaign, and perennial "third-party" (or fourth or fifth party) candidate Cris Ericson.

Check out the last three "news" items on iBurlington:

US HISTORY IN THE MAKING - HURRY TO MONTPELIER RIGHT NOW!!! posted 4/25 by Cris Ericson.

MARCH 20 WAR PROTEST ANNIVERSARY, posted 3/20 by Cris Ericson.

BABY HORSES ARE BEING SLAUGHTERED RIGHT NOW!!!!!, posted 2/24 by Cris Ericson (and that's a bad thing, although you might be confused by the exclaimation points).

Ericson writes:

PREMARIN FARMS OUT WEST TAKES URINE FROM PREGNANT MARES TO MAKE THE ESTROGEN REPLACEMENT HORMONE PREMARIN.

THE BABIES FROM THESE MARES ARE USUALLY SLAUGHTERED.

I FOUND THIS INFORMATION AT MYSPACE.COM
PROFILE USER # 71746065
about a horse named Spooky.

GOOD LORD ALMIGHTY IF THIS IS TRUE,
THEN SHIP ALL THOSE BABY HORSES TO VERMONT
AND RAISE AND CARE FOR THEM HERE
TO USE FOR TRANSPORTATION
AND REDUCE AUTOMOBILE AND SNOWMOBILE EXHAUST POLLUTION!!!

Boy, citizen journalism sure has caught on in Burlington!

Check out iBrattleboro and (to a lesser extent) iPutney and My Richmond to see some of Vermont's more successful citizen journalism endeavors.