iconLog In  |  Register

Smile Politely Returns ... More to Come

Posted in OPINION by Smile Politely Editors on Sunday, January 11, 2009 at 7:00 pm

Welcome back. And thanks for being patient while we packed up for the holidays to take a little breather and redesign our home on the web.

Scroll down. Click around. Some things are different. Others are the same, but look a little sharper.

Notice that our spiffy new website allows you to take advantage of more than a few new features. We're now featuring articles on our home page. Each day we'll choose one article to single out; if you only have time for a brief visit, we recommend you start with the featured article. There will be plenty of additional new writing posting throughout the day in "The Latest" section, which is just below our daily featured article on the home page.

You can now also sign up as for your own user account. You'll find that Smile Politely becomes a more enjoyable and interactive experience after you click the "Register" button in the upper right-hand corner and create your own profile. You can then fine tune your profile by adding personal info about yourself or uploading a photo or avatar. In addition, you can also send private messages to other registered readers. The registering process is quick and painless, we promise.

Also notice in the righthand column we've added a nifty feature that tracks our most recent comments and our most popular articles. Also, our improved search engine should make locating Brandon T. Washington's chili recipe a cinch.

Stay tuned, too. We'll be rolling out more new features over the next few weeks. We're excited about our relaunch, and look forward to hearing your thoughts. Please be patient while we work out the bugs, and in the meantime, if you notice something that's not working properly, click the "Contact" button in the upper right-hand corner and let us know.

2 comments

Add A Comment

Most Recent Opinion Comments

{username}

nicely done Mr. Johnson.

Posted by Richard Lui to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

...faith in humanity restored. Thanks E.

Posted by Ahh... to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

Some question about what this matter says about our local population. Although I am not exactly part of the “CHIEF Yesterday-Today-Forever” Crowd, I am familiar with them and understand how they think. They would perceive the backwardized spelling of Fighting Illini as Incredibly Offensive, since many of them …

Posted by e. wayne johnson to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

Whatever - I’m white and yer just a person to me. All I’m seeing here is an outlet for some seriously demented passion. Who cares, he got busted and served, move on. We’re just people these days - this shits gotta get old sometime…

Posted by Whatever... to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
{username}

One could argue that Nepermann was exercising 1st amendment rights and that the destruction of the display was “protected speech”, not merely vandalism.  One could even abstract Nepermann’s actions as a form of “art”. To me, the whole thing has the nature of a conflict of ideas and …

Posted by e. wayne johnson to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
Lisa Bralts-Kelly avatar

Nicely written, but - wow, that bottom photo!

Posted by Lisa Bralts-Kelly to the entry 'Risking it on 07/02/09.
{username}

I have three adult sons and was a young man myself once. We all did stupid things and didn’t get caught. But unless you are a young man of color, those who advocate for the lesser charge are missing a huge point. How many young men of color …

Posted by Durango Mendoza to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
Seth Fein avatar

Mike - I purely speculated that he might be fucked for life, if Rietz did the thing that seems to be the most rational: charge him to fit the crime with a felony for stealing and damaging a work of art, and doing it with intent to further …

Posted by Seth Fein to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
{username}

I typically fly out of Chicago for convenience and environmental reasons.  Since any flight I would take from Willard tends to stop in Chicago, it’s more efficient to take the train or carpool to Chicago.  Plus, I have heard several accounts of a flight delay from Willard to …

Posted by Zeleni to the entry 'The bus less traveled on 07/02/09.
{username}

Mike: I wouldn’t personally pay $16.5K to $18.5K for a restored mid 70s Cadillac Eldorado convertible, but that doesn’t mean that those numbers aren’t the appraised value in the current market. Check the Christies site for the results of the May 13, 2009 auction (sale# 1997) and you …

Posted by Anna Barnes to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.

Most Popular Opinion Articles (60 days)

  1. Life, liberty, and the pursuit of property featured_postPosted to Opinion by P. Gregory Springer on 05/11/09
  2. Walking and waving in C-U featured_postPosted to Opinion by Dan Schreiber on 05/07/09
  3. Things you can steal in C-U for a misdemeanor charge featured_postPosted to Opinion by Smile Politely Editors on 06/30/09
  4. Bury the funeral procession Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 06/04/09
  5. Loud fast rules Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 05/19/09
  6. No Ivy for SCOTUS Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 05/12/09
  7. The time of the Signs Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 07/01/09
  8. Why gays are morally superior to Christians Posted to Opinion by Dan Schreiber on 05/21/09
  9. The Utilitarian case for higher taxes featured_postPosted to Opinion by Caleb Curtiss on 06/22/09
  10. A question of political identity Posted to Opinion by Jared Collins on 06/15/09

Most Recent Comments

Seth Fein avatar

Sorry for the delay on links, folks! Article now formatted in the way it was intended to be presented!   Have a great 4th!

By Seth Fein to the entry 'Learning the art of Charcuterie on 07/03/09.
{username}

Here is a link to Laurence’s blog.  His writing is at least as good as his food.  http://www.thislittlepiggy.us/

By Suzanne to the entry 'Learning the art of Charcuterie on 07/03/09.
{username}

“There are no to finer words in the english language than “encased meats” my friend.“

By av509 to the entry 'Learning the art of Charcuterie on 07/03/09.
Joel Gillespie avatar

Part 2 will run Monday, and Part 3 will run Tuesday. Enjoy your holiday weekend!

By Joel Gillespie to the entry 'Safe Haven: rest for the weary on 07/03/09.
{username}

nicely done Mr. Johnson.

By Richard Lui to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

Thanks for writing this- I hadn’t heard about it at all yet.  I’m looking forward to the upcoming parts.

By Debbie to the entry 'Safe Haven: rest for the weary on 07/03/09.
{username}

...faith in humanity restored. Thanks E.

By Ahh... to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

Some question about what this matter says about our local population. Although I am not exactly part of the “CHIEF Yesterday-Today-Forever” Crowd, I am familiar with them and understand how they think. They would perceive the backwardized spelling of Fighting Illini as Incredibly Offensive, since many of them would …

By e. wayne johnson to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/03/09.
{username}

Whatever - I’m white and yer just a person to me. All I’m seeing here is an outlet for some seriously demented passion. Who cares, he got busted and served, move on. We’re just people these days - this shits gotta get old sometime…

By Whatever... to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
{username}

One could argue that Nepermann was exercising 1st amendment rights and that the destruction of the display was “protected speech”, not merely vandalism.  One could even abstract Nepermann’s actions as a form of “art”. To me, the whole thing has the nature of a conflict of ideas and values, …

By e. wayne johnson to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
{username}

When it comes to racism, you politically correct popinjays are the worst kind of racists. The two robots in question are not even black in colour. They may speak like hiphop stars and ‘don’t do much reading’, but how do their personalities refer to black people? I am sure …

By WX to the entry 'Transformers 2 — More robotic nonsense on 07/02/09.
Lisa Bralts-Kelly avatar

Nicely written, but - wow, that bottom photo!

By Lisa Bralts-Kelly to the entry 'Risking it on 07/02/09.
gillian gabriel avatar

oooo.  thanks, i was not aware of this.  v. good to know.

By gillian gabriel to the entry 'On the bubble on 07/02/09.
{username}

I have three adult sons and was a young man myself once. We all did stupid things and didn’t get caught. But unless you are a young man of color, those who advocate for the lesser charge are missing a huge point. How many young men of color get …

By Durango Mendoza to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
K. Chi avatar

If the campus setting deters you from Evo Cafe, you can also get bubble tea at Xinh Xinh Cafe (a Vietnamese restaurant near Urbana’s Schnucks grocery store).  They serve a variety of other drinks from southeast Asia.

By K. Chi to the entry 'On the bubble on 07/02/09.
Seth Fein avatar

Mike - I purely speculated that he might be fucked for life, if Rietz did the thing that seems to be the most rational: charge him to fit the crime with a felony for stealing and damaging a work of art, and doing it with intent to further damage …

By Seth Fein to the entry 'The time of the Signs on 07/02/09.
Heather Dillon avatar

You’re welcome, S. Potter! After spending a couple hours with Jesse and Abby last weekend, I was like, “Wow. This just makes sense (even though other media sources have painted a different picture).“

By Heather Dillon to the entry 'Safe Haven: rest for the weary on 07/02/09.
Doug Hoepker avatar

Anxious to read parts 2 & 3.

By Doug Hoepker to the entry 'Safe Haven: rest for the weary on 07/02/09.
Doug Hoepker avatar

Good column, and good luck with this initiative. I have a hard enough time getting drivers to pay attention to me on a bike, and I’m moving faster, sometimes blinking, and typically at their eye level. Plus I’m sometimes wearing funning looking, tight clothing.

By Doug Hoepker to the entry 'Proposing a pact between runners and drivers on 07/02/09.
{username}

I typically fly out of Chicago for convenience and environmental reasons.  Since any flight I would take from Willard tends to stop in Chicago, it’s more efficient to take the train or carpool to Chicago.  Plus, I have heard several accounts of a flight delay from Willard to Chicago …

By Zeleni to the entry 'The bus less traveled on 07/02/09.

Most Popular Articles (14 days)

  1. Things you can steal in C-U for a misdemeanor charge featured_postPosted to Opinion by Smile Politely Editors on 06/30/09
  2. Adventures in tasting Champaign featured_postPosted to Culture by Mica Swyers on 06/23/09
  3. The time of the Signs Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 07/01/09
  4. The Utilitarian case for higher taxes featured_postPosted to Opinion by Caleb Curtiss on 06/22/09
  5. My wrist has a heartbeat, too Posted to Opinion by Rob McColley on 06/23/09
  6. Safe Haven: rest for the weary featured_postPosted to Culture by Heather Dillon on 07/02/09
  7. The Art Institute of Chicago’s newly-opened Modern Wing? Meraviglioso! Posted to Arts by Kristin McCann on 06/26/09
  8. Beer, BBQ, and great Blues music Posted to Food & Drink by Kelly James Shirley on 06/26/09
  9. Heat no match for Horse’s Ha Posted to Music by Brenda Koenig on 06/26/09
  10. Transformers 2 — More Robotic Nonsense Posted to Arts by Chuck Koplinski on 06/29/09

Recent Searches

  1. cole elsinore (2 Results)
  2. elsinore (59 Results)
  3. fernandez (2 Results)
  4. cake (88 Results)
  5. Canopy Club (176 Results)
  6. "scott mutter" (1 Results)
  7. boardman (38 Results)
  8. bike flat (17 Results)
  9. urbana (893 Results)
  10. seth fein (36 Results)
  11. fireworks (14 Results)
  12. fucked for life (8 Results)
  13. nepermann (5 Results)
  14. tent (865 Results)
  15. save haven (21 Results)
  16. tent (865 Results)
  17. calendar (63 Results)
  18. Cristy william (26 Results)
  19. charles lane (9 Results)
  20. charles lane (9 Results)

Log In



Auto-login on future visits

Forgot your password?