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December 24, 1997

Your Electronic Backfence

dc.story is presented in association with Washington's News Station WTOP-1500 AM and 94.3 FM.

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With your help, WTOP has already raised more than $100,000, this year, for "A Place for the Kids"

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Your tax-deductible donation is being used to rebuild the Metropolitan Police Boys and Girls Clubhouse at 2nd & M, NW--right off New York Avenue.

Help us finish the structural work by listening beginning Monday, Dec. 22, to participate in WTOP's auction for another "Sing & Snore Ernie", as well as a limited-edition "Princess Diana" Beanie Baby.

(Our goal is to raise another $30,000 for backboards, hoops, and bleachers.)

Contributions may be sent to "A Place for the Kids" WTOP Radio, 3400 Idaho Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 All proceeds--every penny--go to the effort.

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Dear Neighbors:

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In this issue,

Cheers,
Jeffrey Itell

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* Here's a special holiday gift idea for the family Matriarch or Patriarch*

Preserve those special memories with "Video History Services". We provide quality audio and video interviewing services for people who wish to preserve their family history. VHS Staff--using skilled interviewing techniques--will capture the warmth, energy, sense of humor and overall personality of loved-ones being interviewed. Photos, home movies & video, favorite music and other memorabilia can be used to edit-together a video biography that tells a colorful story--for the benefit of future generations.

Video History Services: "Helping People Recall the Past for Memories to Last." For more information, please contact Reed Dewey at 202/363-8433 or rdewey@erols.com.

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DC, Death, and Nonfeasance
Carl Bergman cbergman@radix.net

Maybe we should make Jimmy Breslin DC's Medical Examiner. He has the DC touch. His "The Gang That Couldn't Shoot Straight," has the classic postmortem: "He died accidentally when a bullet entered his heart." Not far from our own MPD and ME's work calling the death of a woman found under a floor accidental. Right, she was an overzealous housing inspector.

This Monday's Post made it crushingly clear. Better have your own doctor around when you die. You won't get city hall's attention, even if you drop dead. DC doesn't know who's died, why they died, or how it happened. The implications are stunning, as the Post reported, "families of victims never learn why a loved one is died. The city's posted homicide rate is not what it should be, and those responsible for some killings have never been brought to justice."

It's no surprise. Wherever you plumb the dc government the results are the same: a reckless disregard for mission, accountability, or public responsibility. We've become insensitive to freelancing employees, lost scruples, and traffic tickets that never die. At first, this seems more of the same old.

You'd expect, like the city's unsolved deaths, that the causes of this municipal collapse were many. Hiz honor will gladly accommodate. He'll cite a dozen reasons real and imagined for failure. None his, of course. His first line of defense is, "Congress gave us a bad deal," closely followed by "You can't get good help, anymore." Debating these usually works well enough until public interest fades.

If Marion has covered his other tracks with rhetoric, these won't be hidden so easily. He can't claim he was stuck with either office. He inherited excellence operations and watched/pushed them into squalor. Morale was high, closure rates excellent. The ME's word was respected. No interfering Congress. No structural problems. Good managers got good results.

Barry changed this for the worse, much worse. He made the MPD and the homicide squad, in particular, his personal domain, approving promotions and micro managing. The ME's office atrophied from the same treatment: politics on appointments, neglect on issues. Destruction of these two offices has severe, frightening consequences. They are responsible for basic justice, and we depend on them to know where we stand. Their destruction is not just one more DC mess. We depend on them to speak for those who can't. Who will speak when they don't? This requires more than a consultant report or a reorganization. A council worth its salt would determine if mayoral nonfeasance or misfeasance caused these failures, and act accordingly.

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Potholes and "Outsiders"
Anne Drissel drisselab@aol.com

I'd like to suggest that people who regard visiting non-resident drivers or suburbanites with DC-based jobs as "intruders" not deserving decent roads or other accommodations might try to remember that Washington DC is the nation's capital. This city belongs to all Americans, not just those of us who were born and raised here or who moved here later in life. I believe our responsibility as residents of this city is to protect, improve and celebrate this incredible city for all the people, not just ourselves... and preserve it's beauty for future generations.

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Kathy Patterson's Candor and Big Time Procurement
len sullivan lsnarpac@bellatlantic.net

Like many others, I'm sure, I was delighted to read Kathy Patterson's candid views, but I must admit I do not share them. In fact, legislative bodies cannot fix problems. They can only highlight them and ordain others to do the fixing. Whether one tries to cure an illness with insiders or outsiders seems to me to depend on the severity of the sickness. While very good with bandaids, I know enough to leave organ transplants to professionals.

My own experience in federal government and my NARPAC analysis of the Control Board's "nine agency reports" convinces me that DC's procurement system is totally broken across every agency; a major source of internal discontent; and in need of emergency surgery. Only two of the 222 "professionals" have apparently got the requisite skills. There seem to be only 3 alternatives: replace most of the staff; train some of the staff where possible and replace the rest; or look towards a permanent, ready-made, and much cheaper solution involving fully experienced professionals. I would opt for the last, but in a possibly unique way: why not offer to help form and join a Regional Procurement Agency made up of experts from neighboring jurisdictions, including the federal government? Why not take advantage of those professionals already doing a competent job, and reap the savings of "economy of scale" across the capital metro area at the same time?

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Who Feels Safer?
Steph "Traffic enforcement *is* law enforcement" Faul steph@intr.net

In response to Kathy Patterson's posting in the most recent Story, I want to announce that *I* feel safer. In the past two or three months I have seen significantly increased police presence on the streets in my neighborhood, and have witnessed several incidents where the police were enforcing traffic laws. Both patrolling and traffic enforcement help fight crime, and it reassures me to see the police doing both.

P.S.: About non-profits charging for stuff: AAA gives maps free to members; it's an important and widely used benefit. I have never heard of anyone actually having to pay for an AAA map and would be interested in any stories. In any case, AAA is not a non-profit organization; it is not-for-profit, which is something else, and the individual AAA clubs definitely do make money. The organization for which I work is a 501 (c)(3) non-profit, and we sell things all the time. We don't make any money, but that's because we sell some items below cost. (Don't worry -- we make it up on volume.)

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Tow Those Cars
Tony Ross rosseroo@aol.com

I agree with the notion that the cars parked on Connecticut Ave during rush hour should be towed. I drive south on Conn. from Ordway St. and even one car can cause some major slowdowns. Like Jeff noted, I've seen plenty that were unticketed. Now, I've also seen cars parked in the same spot on Conn. all week with tickets plastered all over. Even if it isn't towed initially, I think no one can argue with the premise that it should be towed the next day.

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Separating Film From Theatres
Mike Hill mhill@nbm.org

In all the talk about whether or not AU can charge for a film series (I think everyone is right, they can) one idea got lost; the importance of saving and celebrating traditional movie houses as neighborhood assets. CVS thinks enough of the quality of these facades and spaces that they are buying them up as sheds fro their wares. While drug stores are necessary, their enrichment of the cultural/social life of a community is negligible, at best (when was the last time you hung out at a drugstore soda fountain?). Also, I question the need for this kind of arts/entertainment use to help anchor the neighborhood around AU. Areas like Brookland, H St. NE, and Shaw are in far greater need, and actually have old movie houses. Can anyone think of a way to preserve them for their original (and worthy) uses?

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AU Charging Admission For Movies
Professor R L Widmann resident of 7th Street SE widmann@spot.colorado.edu

I am in sympathy with Dean Harden at AU. I teach at the University of Colorado at Boulder and we may *not charge admission if we want, for example, to show films outside of classtime to students enrolled in our courses. Student fees are to cover *all charges; individual faculty or administrators may not set extra fees. Back before the availability of video and the numerous Shakespeare films now around and about, CU--Boulder owned the Laurence Olivier *Hamlet,* in 4 reels. I myself had to pay $28 ($7/reel) to get the film out of storage in the Academic Media Services and I myself had to pay the projectionist. I was not charged for use of the classroom in which I showed *Hamlet*.

We have a very fine International Film Series which shows movies on CU--Boulder campus, but they are run through a separate corporation and not through CU. Universities are accountable to taxpayers and to their governing boards and we have to follow the rules and regulations set down. It would be very *nice if AU could just show films that people want to see. But it just isn't as simple as many respondents to dc.story seem to think.

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American Univeristy Cinema
Gregory Conko conko@cei.org

As someone with a little knowledge of non-profit law, and as an American University graduate, I think I can lend some helpful information to the Indie Screenings debate. First, a non-profit organization CAN sell things; this includes selling tickets for an event. The only real restriction is that it can not take in more money in "receipts" than it can demonstrate it has spent on "costs." These costs can include not just the film rentals, but also space and equipment usage, staff, maintenance, and other overhead costs. Furthermore, a dean of the university should know this. If Glenn Harnden, who is Associate Dean of the School of Communication, did, in fact, make such a contrary representation, I'd say its likely that there is another reason why he wants to avoid providing access (just a hunch, so please don't read this out of context), so, even if the relevant portions of the tax code are explained in full, he may still balk. There are, however, other avenues that can be pursued if the SOC attempts don't pan out.

I would recommend, as Ed T. Barron suggests, approaching a university administrator in the facilities department to investigate the possibility of renting space under the auspices of an independent non-profit corporation organized for the purpose of showing independent, "art-house," classic, and/or cult films. The private rental of university space for a money-making event (though not the film idea) has been done at American University before. The group probably would have to be incorporated, however, as the university tends to shy away from dealing with individuals or groups of individuals because of liability insurance issues.

If that doesn't work, there is still another alternative. The AU Student Association already runs a film screening program called the Student Union Board Cinema (Sub-Cinema), now intended for students only. It shows about a dozen or so titles during the two academic semesters--most of which are standard, major release crap. Depending upon the program director's (a different undergraduate student each year) tastes, however, some of the films can veer off the beaten path. I recall seeing a few "worthy" indie and classic films there myself. The program is necessarily limited, however, because it subsists entirely on a finite budget allocated from the Student Association's take of the "Student Fees." With the proper approach, an arrangement may be made with Sub-Cinema to expand its schedule with a more eclectic range of titles, charging non-student audience members a nominal fee.

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So you're interested in that big advertising spot in the beginning of dc.story? Contact Jan Genzer -- the dc.story marketing maven--at Oltjan@aol.com or call him at 202.364.0383.

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dc.events

Save January 8 on your calendar! The Young Jewish Leadership PAC will be having its Election Year Kick-Off Party at the Childe Harold on January 8 from 7:00pm until 10:00pm. This should be a great opportunity to re-establish connections with other young Jewish Republicans and to get our efforts under way for the 1998 congressional elections. The Childe Harold is located just North of DuPont Circle, at 1610 20th Street, NW. Complimentary appetizers and a cash bar will be available. $18 contributions will be requested of non-members and $12 contributions of members. The Young Jewish Leadership PAC is a an organization of young Jewish professionals which raises funds for pro-Israel Republican congressional candidates.

Kenneth Marcus, 202/342-7679, klmarcus@aol.com

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dc.market

Accountant Wanted. A friend, a craftsperson and small business person, desperately seeks an accountant to help her figure it all out. I'm the conduit. Please email suggestions to me and I'll forward to her.

Joan Eisenstodt jeisen@aol.com

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ACLU Needs a Few Bookshelves. Tax-deductible in-kind donations welcome. Even better would be someone who can build a couple to fit our space; we'll pay for the materials.

Art Spitzer 202-457-0800 artspitzer@aol.com

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Laptop Computer For Sale: I am selling an IBM-compatible 486 laptop computer for $350. It is made by AST, and includes a 3.5 inch floppy drive, WordPerfect 5.1, and Windows 3.1. It was originally purchased in late 1993. If interested, email me at mkarlan@cov.com or call me at 202-363-4997.

Michael J. Karlan mkarlan@cov.com

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PowerMacintosh 7200/75 for sale. 8M RAM, 2 hard drives (500 & 250), 2M VRAM, 256k L2 cache, 4x CD-ROM. $600 OBO. Also for sale, Magnavox 14" color monitor, $200 OBO.

Stuart Weiser otter@clark.net

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Massage: Holiday Special! BodyWise BodyWorks has the perfect solution for office, friend, sweetheart: Gift Certificates for a full hour Spoiler Massage. Buy Two, Get A Third For Half Price! Call Jenn: 202-966-6113.

Jenn Weed jennwren@erols.com

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Also free! dc.movie. Free movie passes, short movie reviews, and movie discussion. Send an email message to story@intr.net to subscribe.

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dc.story is a discussion group. The opinions stated are the sole responsibility of the authors. dc.story does not verify information provided by readers.

Kibitzing by Jeffrey Itell. Copyright (c) 1997 All rights reserved.


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