Back when the staff started at The News-Herald in March of 2000, if someone told us they were going to “check out The Web,” we would have guessed Lake County had a hot new Spiderman-themed bar or night club.

Mmmm …. that would give the phrase, “slinging drinks” a whole new meaning, wouldn’t it?

Now that we have just recently celebrated 10 years at the paper, checking out The Web isn’t just some blossoming trend, it is a way of life for a lot of people.

Being informed or being entertained on the Internet at rapid rates of speed and with incredible convenience these days isn’t just the wave of the future, it’s got the same force as if the Titanic plunged down in your neighbor’s plastic kiddie pool.

And we say, stop fighting the wave, and let it carry you into the second decade of the 21st century.

Let’s all get wet. Or in this particular case, let’s all get wit.

Folks, the Joker in the latest Batman movie installment, “The Dark Knight,” said it best.

Why so serious?

It seems at the present time everything newsworthy in our little slice of the world either revolves around home foreclosures, health care issues, the economy, unemployment or the Browns quarterback situation.

All very scary and disturbing topics of conversation with the ability to cause nightmares for weeks to be sure.

We are suggesting something different. Something lighter. Something that combines wit and Web and can be a quick, Internet-friendly way to take a break from the gloom and doom of reality if only for just a fleeting moment.

All with the click of a cursor or the touch of an I-Phone.

This is that Titanic reaction, folks, if you haven't understood it through the first several posts.

This is DotComedy! And we are here to stay in a social media bear hug sort of way.

It’s often said laughter is the best medicine. Well, we are trying to open an online funny pharm-acy.

This one being perfectly legal and legit, of course, which can’t always be said of those spam-a-licious deals for cure-alls on the Internet that we have all been inundated with at one time or another.

Every week at www.news-herald.com, we're going to take a look at an area news item outside of the box and away from the hardcore news stories you would normally find in the A section of the print editions of The News-Herald and have some fun with it. A tweak here, a turn of phrase there, a raucous rambling and off-the-wall theory here and there and everywhere.

Folks, all we are asking is for you to continue to give News-Herald Dot Comedy a chance. If you like our Web site - which the numbers indicate that you certainly do - and you like to smile, chuckle, giggle or fall out of your chair in hysterics (perhaps wishful thinking on that one) - then stop by and check out the newest addition the News-Herald’s online lineup. And get involved. Comment and tell us what you like and what you don’t like. Tell us what topics or news items you would like to see taken on.

News-Herald Dot Comedy.

The next big thing in online funny pharm-acies. The wave of the future just got a little bit more witty. And we aren't going anywhere.

We've already been here a while, so keep getting on board.

This isn't your run-of-the-mill sinking comedy ship.

Got a problem with that? Take it up with your friendly neighborhood bartender, Spiderman.

- BTilton@News-Herald.com