MICHAEL SWAN: TACOMA OWNS THE WEB >>>

Graffiti artists are the definitive visionaries â€" they were blogging even before Al Gore invented the Internet.

No lie.

What's the difference between painting on a public wall and putting writing, artwork, or pictures of your wanger on a virtual, even more public one? Screen names replace tag names, but the risky allure of anonymous exhibitionism remains the same.

The brain trust behind Tacoma's 253hiphop.com have invented a Web site for the Northwest graffiti community. The new site â€" nwgraffiti.com â€" is user generated providing privacy and community for graffiti artists to share and discuss their work.

Right now our circulation guy is passed out on the cafeteria couch and we’re drawing on his forehead. We should have it posted on the new graffiti site soon.