D.C.’s FinestDear Neighbors: If you follow the papers, watch television, listen to the radio, or poke your head outside the door every now and then, you may notice that public safety is falling apart in this city. What’s been a slow, steady descent over many years seems to have hit critical mass with the slaying of Officer Gibson by the Ibex club, the kidnap/murder of the 12-year-old boy, and the police department’s total inability to hire new officers or spend federal money to improve the force. How bankrupt is leadership at the police force? One source tells me that security workers at the notorious Ibex club were often off-duty cops—making spare change to make up for their pay cuts. It’s gotten that bad, folks. Ensuring public safety is probably as much art as science—with a little luck thrown in. But when it comes to big city crime folks, your District is an outlier, a statistical aberration, a freak. I’ll repeat an earlier stat. New York City expects fewer than one thousand murders this year with a population above seven million. The District is on a pace for between 400-500 murder with 7 percent of the N.Y.’s population. Other scary facts. Violent crime—for whatever reason—has been dropping precipitously and almost uniformly across the country since the late 1980s. I crunched enough crime numbers for a study last year to know. Ironically or sadly, the worst crime cities tend to be the medium sized communities in North Carolina—the same communities that spawned Senator Faircloth and Rep. Taylor who "plan to tell us" how to fix our crime problem. I’m pretty well convinced that Barry’s to blame for the city’s deteriorating public safety—heck, I blame him when my Lotto number doesn’t hit. But I’m very surprised by the lack of public outrage over this issue. Not to scare you, but your lives are in danger. OK, maybe it hasn’t hit that point for some of you, but try this—your property values are in danger. There, feel worse now? What are your thoughts readers? What do the police tell you in conversation? How safe are your neighborhoods? Moreover, what do you think needs to be done? And by whom? ****************** You may recall that frequent contributor Stephanie Faul is the recent award winner in the National Press Club’s short story contest. Well, what should cross my email screen the other day is an email flotsam/jetsam (in other words, Stephanie didn’t send the message) announcing that her award winning story—The Promised Land—has been published on the web by a new electronic magazine, Cogsom—The Information Byway to Computers, Coffee and Cognoscenti. You can find it—and read it—at the following address: http://cogsum.com/bee.html Congratulations. By the way, the editorial staff at dc.story encourages shameless self-promotions. Right Jeff? That’s a great idea, Jeff. ////\\\\\////\\\\////\\\\\/////\\\\ Also free! dc.movie: Free movie passes, short movie reviews, and movie discussion. Send an email message to story@intr.net to subscribe. Cheers, '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' Recycling If you missed the Post’s story about the abandonment of recycling in the District, it’s no wonder: It was on page B-5 of last Saturday’s paper. This is about the worst news judgment I’ve ever seen. Why can’t the Post cover local news? ---- Recycling Centers The material below appeared in Saturday’s Washington Post. Notice there are no recycling centers in Upper NW. The following list gives locations where recyclable materials may be dropped off, along with the hours of operation and materials accepted. ABC Salvage, 65 N St. SE; 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays, 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturdays; glass, paper, aluminum cans.Bonded Recycling, 2115B Bryant St. NE, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays; glass, paper, aluminum. Eagle Maintenance, 6130 North Capitol St., 24 hours a day; glass, paper, aluminum. Super Salvage, 1711 First St. SW, 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, 7 a.m. to noon Saturdays; scrap metal. James Taylor Trash Service, 5201 Hayes St. NE, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. weekdays; glass, paper, aluminum cans. Reynolds Aluminum Trailer, 514C Rhode Island Ave. NE, 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays; aluminum. The following outdoor locations are accessible 24 hours a day; they accept only glass, except as noted. Environmental Protection Agency, 401 M St. SW, plastic, too. ----- Finance and Revenue Sob Story Even from afar, I am cheered to read that Tony Williams cleaned house at his department. One of the many straws straining this camel’s back before my move to Arizona last summer was a lien placed on me for DC taxes — after I signed a Draconian payment agreement of $1100 a month specifically to avoid a lien. The woman I was dealing with — whom I sincerely hope and believe will be among the fallen — blamed it on "the computer." But when I got above her head, they said breezily, "No way, she’s the only one who could have filed that lien. She did it to you deliberately." Bye, honey. Out here in sunny Chandler, Arizona, by the way, the deliver compost barrels to you free, offer house plant and garden advice by phone, and are talking about abolishing all taxes. How they figure that, I don’t know, but I like the sound of it after DC. ----- Handicapped Parking Much of the problem to disabled parking is the use of the rear view mirror hanging tags and how they are distributed. It is my understanding that in Maryland a disabled person gets a license plate and two hanging tags for their other car’s rear view mirrors. Since the disabled person often owns only one car the hanging tags go to close relatives or the highest bidder. I have also seen high performance office computer systems, scanners and color printers used to copy the same hanging tags, which are then cut out, laminated and hung on the rear view mirror just like the real thing and since the parking attendants cannot get inside the car to examine it they have to take it on faith that it is the real document which it very closely resembles. I’m not sure how a DC police officer / parking attendant could challenge a MD/VA handicapped sticker even if the person looked to be quite sound of body. When someone with a handicapped sticker gets a ticket they mail it in to the ticket adjudication address with a Xerox copy of their hanging tag, even if it is a counterfeit, tag and the ticket is dismissed I wonder what the law is on this issue?? ---- Iona Senior Center My complaint about tearing down the old police station on the corner of Albemarle and 42nd St. is officially withdrawn. I decried the tearing down of a building that I thought should have been modified. Even at its best a completely refurbished old police station would never have been large enough to accommodate the plans that have been incorporated into the new structure. It’s a very large structure, in comparison, but very tastefully done and a complement to the neighborhood. This looks as nice as any country club house I have seen and, if as well done on the inside as it is on the outside, it will be a great place for the seniors of NW D.C. Being among the actuarially unchallenged I might just join up and make a visit when they have a grand opening. The building also hides the back of Hechingers, one of the lesser attractive views of that neat new store. Well done Iona. ---- Young Conservative Letter The Young Conservative Letter is a free monthly email newsletter for young conservatives under the name Jefferson. Subscription requests should be send to listproc@u.washington.edu with subscribe jefferson email address name in the body of the message. For example: subscribe jefferson khgwin@aol.com kathleen gwin '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' dc.queries Need a Home for March & April My non-smoking, clean friend’s lease is up at the end of February, so she needs a room or apartment for two months, until she moves to Arizona. She can pay $400-$450 or barter with ballroom lessons. Jenna Norwood norwood@ari.net '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' dc.events Cleveland Park Library—Hyperlinked Announcement Details about upcoming children’s events at the Cleveland Park Library can be found at http://www.his.com/~pshapiro/dc.story/announce2.html Jill Bogard, President Friends of Cleveland Park Library jill_bogard@ace.nche.edu ----- The John Eaton Home and School Association invites you to the Fourth Annual John Eaton Elementary School Auction. It will take place on March 1, 1997 at 6:30 p.m. at the Kennedy-Warren Ballroom, 3133 Connecticut Avenue, NW. This is a silent and live auction to benefit John Eaton. Hors D’oeuvres and Cocktails will be served. Complimentary Parking and shuttle bus service are available at the National Zoo Parking Lot next to the Kennedy-Warren. Leila Afzal leila.afzal@noaa.gov ----- Zoo Lecture In recognition of Women’s History Month, Elaine R. S. Hodges, a scientific illustrator at Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, presents "Natural History Illustration: Observing the Fine Details." Scientific illustration is a central facet of the study of natural history. Observing intricacies of natural objects requires a human hand, accurate perception, and talent. Ms Hodges provides insights into one of the important behind-the-scenes jobs at museums and zoos as well as explores how women have contributed to this field. Thursday, 6 March 1997 7:30 p.m. Education Building National Zoo Enter at Connecticut Ave. Park in Lot A. Free, but please RSVP by calling (202) 673-4801 or sending e-mail to nzpem053@sivm.si.edu Office of Public Affairs, National Zoo Washington, D.C. 20008 (202) 673-4866, FAX (202) 673-4607 ----- Footlights—A Modern Drama Discussion Group Come join us to discuss plays from the modern theater! Each month we meet for dinner & a discussion of a play written in the last century. This month we’ll be discussing David Mamet’s "American Buffalo," soon to come out on video starring Dustin Hoffman. Mamet won the Pulitzer Prize for "Glengarry Glen Ross." We’ll be meeting Monday, February 24, at La Madeleine French Bakery in Bethesda. For further information e-mail dsobelso@counsel.com or call (202) 484-8303. David Sobelsohn dsobelso@counsel.com '''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''' dc.market Parking Space In Cleveland Park, Reasonably priced, secure, indoor garaged, with garage card, in Conn. Ave. apartment building. Either e-mail me or call Ron Spadafora at (202) 466-3688. Leslie Ruskin shanti.ruskin@lmco.com ---- Navigating the Information Jungle: $195 Off Terrific program. Feb. 25-26, 1997, Westpark Holiday Inn, Rosslyn, VA. Presented by Nat’l Capitol Chapter of Assoc. for Information and Image Mgt. Price: $100 or best offer (v. $295 regular rate). Please call (202) 362-7433. Jon Katz katz@erols.com ----- Valentines Day Special Give your Sweetheart the best gift ever - a wonderful massage for BOTH of you at 15% off. The soothing atmosphere of BodyWise BodyWorks is conveniently located at 3701 Connecticut Avenue. February 14th, 15th Reservations Please. Call Jenn at 202-966-6113. Jenn Weed jwweed@nmaa.org ----- Hockey Ticket Available I have a voucher good for one (1) $25 ticket to the Monday February 24 game between the Washington Capitals & the Boston Bruins. I’ll let it go to the highest bidder. Let’s start the bidding at, say, $5. David Sobelsohn dsobelso@counsel.com ================= dc.story is a discussion group. The opinions stated are the sole responsibility of the authors. dc.story does not verify the information provided by readers. ---------------- For fast, reliable Internet services and cutting edge Websites contact Michael Mann at Internet Interstate mmann@intr.net. Web: http://www.intr.net ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ dc.story—Your Electronic Backfence http://www.dcstory.com Kibitzing by Jeffrey Itell (story@intr.net) Copyright © 1997 by Itell Communications, Inc. All rights reserved |
Send mail with questions or comments to webmaster@dcwatch.com
Web site copyright ©DCWatch (ISSN 1546-4296)