Cynicism Abates in themail
Dear Washingtonians:
I regret to report that the motto vote has been inconclusive. No motto got
a majority, and in themail, unlike in our municipal elections, a plurality vote isn't
sufficient to elect a winner. However, since votes were scattered all over the place, only
two mottos got votes in the double digits. That means that we settle this the democratic
way — with a run-off.
“Justicia omnibus,” the city's current motto, got only one vote,
even after I made a special note in the last issue that it hadn't received any votes. But
the astounding news, to our constant readers, is that our usual cynicism and skepticism
didn't dominate the voting. We can propose witty and wry sayings — “You're in
the wrong line” and “The computer is down” are two of my favorites, and
“Murphy's law at work for you” was definitely a crowd pleaser — but we vote
more seriously. No, the two front-runners speak to our general and seemingly permanent
political condition, rather than to what we can only hope is the temporary ineptitude of
our local government.
“DC — The Last Colony” and “Taxed Without
Representation” are the leaders. I really think that we can convince the Council to
pass a resolution making either one of these the motto of the District, if we can show a
popular preference for one or the other. Because we're in Thanksgiving week, let's
postpone the voting for one week, and have the campaign instead. Send in your best
argument for making “Taxed Without Representation” or “DC — The Last
Colony” the official motto of the District of Columbia, and influence the electorate.
No one wrote in about shuffling chairs on the Council Committees. I
understand; that takes some serious thought. Take your time. But do think about it. In the
meantime, you may want to read “The Economic Resurgence of Washington, DC: Citizens
Plan for Prosperity in the 21st Century,” the plan by the city's usual crew of movers
and shakers that was released last week and that may or may not determine what will happen
in your neighborhood. It's online at http://www.dcwatch.com/govern/dhcd9811.htm
. What do you think of it? Let us know.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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In a recent issue of themail, Steph Faul asked about the status of
initiatives to ensure the accuracy of the voter roll. Earlier this year, the Board of
Elections and Ethics compared the District's voter list to that of Montgomery County and
Prince George's County. The comparison found that approximately 6,000 people appeared to
be registered in the District and in one of those neighboring jurisdictions.
The Board contacted all of the potential double registrants and has used
the information it received to remove more than 3,000 voters from the D.C. voter list.
Non-respondents were referred to the U.S. Attorney's office for investigation and possible
prosecution. The Board will undertake similar comparisons between the District and Anne
Arundel, Frederick, and Howard counties. Virginia privacy laws prevent the Board from
mounting a similar initiative with Virginia counties. The Board has also begun a data
exchange program in which the Bureau of Motor Vehicles notifies the Board when someone
surrenders a driver's license because he or she is moving out of the District. The Board
can then initiate the procedures, governed by federal law, to remove the person from the
voter list.
Councilmember Kathy Patterson, chair of the Council's Government
Operations Committee, also added funds to the Board of Elections' FY 99 budget to (1)
purchase data from the Social Security Administration's Death Master File, and (2)
purchase data from the U.S. Postal Service's National Change of Address data base. These
initiatives will aid the Board in its efforts to maintain an accurate voter list.
[Full disclosure: Jason is the Committee Clerk for the Council's Committee
on Government Operations. — Gary Imhoff]
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On Tuesday, November 17th, almost one hundred grassroots activists
gathered together at St. Luke's Methodist Church to elect the new members of the Ward
Three Democratic Committee (they will meet on Nov. 24th to elect officers). The election
produced an infusion of new blood from volunteers from the Williams, Mendelson and Bryant
campaigns. Also, 16 out of 18 precincts passed a resolution demanding the District Council
refrain from approving all appointments to Boards and Commissions until after the
inauguration of Mayor-elect Williams. Only in one precinct (Pct. 9 - Spring Valley) was
there hostility to Mayor-elect Williams right to have his choices appointed. I hope the
Council pays attention to this spontaneous, grassroots action.
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The First Step
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
Chief School Administrator, Arlene Ackerman, has taken the first
significant step in evolving the DCPS into a viable school system. She is allowing the
school principals to conduct formal evaluations of all classroom teachers to determine
which ones are capable and effective in the classroom. These evaluations are clearly
needed in the DCPS. The most effective and objective way to conduct them would be by the
use of an independent evaluation team that is unconnected to the DCPS, a team comprised of
proven and experienced teachers, board members and administrators. If such an independent
team exists, or could be formed, it would be the fairest way to conduct these evaluations.
A likely fallout of these evaluations will be the need for quite a large
number of qualified teachers in the District. To meet this demand, in parallel with these
evaluations, there should be a whole new way of recruiting teachers and inspiring them to
come to the DCPS. Perhaps a whole new view should be taken of just who should be
considered qualified to teach in the DCPS. There is an abundance of retired military
personnel in this area, many of whom are very qualified and experienced as effective
classroom teachers. Yes, they lack the so-called “credentials” that are
traditionally required to qualify as a teacher, but are these “credentials”
really necessary? We will need to replace the clearly unqualified teachers and in a very
short time since it is unlikely that a poorly performing classroom teacher would be able
to reinvent oneself in the ninety days those teachers will have to get up to snuff. There
are two other steps that must quickly follow the first one taken and these steps will be
the subjects of my two allotted paragraphs in next Wednesday's edition of this e-pub.
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More on Suburbanites and Us
Cathy Vidito, cvidito@wef.org
Lee Perkins' comments reminded me of something. I play in a band and every
time we get a gig at the Black Cat, people who live outside the city think it's way too
far to drive from Arlington to the Shaw neighborhood. VA and MD control a large part of
how the city is run. In my opinion, Metro is not really public transportation, it's
commuter transportation, as anyone who's tried to figure out how to get home after the
last movie show in Dupont Circle knows.
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Does anyone here remember the signs in NYC about Don't Block the Box
— I've been walking to meetings during morning rush hour and am amazed at the number
of drivers who don't seem to understand the concept of leaving space in the middle of the
intersection so other cars can get through — any one have ideas of how to tackle this
one? My next cause is how to ensure we pedestrians can get across streets that do not have
traffic lights — another consequence of our ever increasing traffic problems.
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Hail to the Chief
Mike Hill, mhill@nbm.org
Regarding Chief Ramsey's closing of the Wilson Bridge, it seems to me that
all of this comes down to one major point: how much is a human life worth? Is it worth
your being inconvenienced for an hour, two hours, three hours? Would this whole mess have
been billed as a “life or death human drama” if the jumper had not been a young
black man, despondent about losing a custody battle with the unmarried mother of his
child? Would we have been willing to give up more time if the jumper had been a white
middle-class Hill staffer? What does it say about commuters from the outer suburbs that
the only thing they can focus on is how much time was “wasted” trying to save a
life? And what does it say about us urbanites that we are stooping to discuss this
incident on the same terms?
In the final analysis, Chief Ramsey's job is to protect the public
welfare, and human life. I want to thank him for seeing the larger ideals that his job
description requires him to uphold and acting accordingly, no matter who was
inconvenienced.
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Two Paragraphs are Sometimes Enough
Rob Fleming, rfleming@dclink.com
In case you missed it, the Washington Post now reports that the Wilson
Bridge was closed at the request of the Alexandria Police. Of course, they buried the
story in the District Weekly, page 3. So how about that, Mr. Tolerance for Disorder Moran?
What we really have is a tolerance for abuse.
The same issue reports that DC Police have had a grammatical error in
their ID badges (oh! the horror!). The Post also reports (elsewhere) that some people
don't think ANCs do their jobs well. Maybe they are just living up to their oaths of
office. Because of a typo, I swore that I “will and faithfully discharge the duties
of the office.“ The usual oath is to “well and faithfully.....”
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Jim Moran tends to say stupid things, but he's a good Congressman. Before
you wish him away over his last verbal blunder, take a look at his record. Even with his
vote on the Clinton impeachment, he remains extremely popular and is likely to be with us
for a long time. As one of his constituents (I live in Arlington) I'm glad. The stupidest
thing about his remarks, actually, was that if you look at his district — largely
Arlington and Alexandria — you'll find people a lot more like Washingtonians that
other Virginians. (His district is, in fact, a whole lot more racially and economically
diverse than DC, and in general a lot more urban than, say, Ward 3.)
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Don't blame me. I did not vote for Jim Moran.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
The Congressional Chorus will be giving “A Christmas Festival”
of American carols and songs of the season at 8:00 PM on Saturday, December 19th, at the
Capitol Hill United Methodist Church, 421 Seward Square, SE. The program will feature Dave
Brubeck's exuberant “La Fiesta de la Posada,” complete with mariachi band.
Tickets are $10, but $5 for seniors and students over 12, and free for children 12 and
under, so plan to bring the whole family to this concert of beautiful and joy filled
music. For information, call 703/237-2213.
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Pro-Life and Pro-Choice Together
David Sobelsohn, dsobelso@capaccess.org
Can pro-life and pro-choice activists work together towards such shared
goals as reducing the rate of teen pregnancy and educating the public about adoption? Find
out on Saturday, January 23, one day after the 26th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, when
Common Ground of the Nation's Capital holds a one day workshop at American University. The
general public is invited; there will be a nominal charge. CGNC is the local affiliate of
the Common Ground Network for Life & Choice, a national group that brings together
pro-choice and pro-life activists for peaceful dialogue and cooperative action.
Participants in CGNC include Frederica Mathewes-Green, syndicated columnist & former
communications director, Feminists for Life, and Ann Stone, president, Republicans for
Choice. For further information about the January 23 dialogue contact Megan Park, mpark@sfcg.org .
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CLASSIFIEDS — HOUSING AND OFFICE SPACE
Apartment/Room Wanted
Sarah Layton, sllayton@us.net
Non-smoking, professional male is relocating to DC around December 3 and
needs a place to live for about 6 months (at which time he will be buying a home so his
wife and kids can join him). He will be working in the Watergate Building and needs to be
close to public transportation since he won't have a car. He is looking for a place for
$500/month or less where he would, at the least, have his own bathroom. If you know of a
place or have some ideas, please e-mail cstalder@cerner.com Thanks!
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Rental Sought — Beginning Early/Mid Dec.
Joan Eisenstodt, jeisen@aol.com
Friends moving back from Santa Fe are looking for a 2 bedroom, 2 bath apt.
(or house, which could be a little bigger), balcony or some “outdoor connection”
would be great! Off-street parking a huge plus. Neighborhood preferences: Dupont or
Kalorama, Hill, Woodley, near Metro is best. Want to pay $1300 tops; would of course
prefer less. Very reliable, no pets. Home owners and have great references, including me!
Must have by 2nd week Dec.! I'll forward email. Thanks.
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Quiet Office For Rent. BodyWise BodyWorks has separate office available.
Reasonable rates, one block to Metro. Bring your health/healing practice to our oasis in
the city. Call Jenn 202-966-6113
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CLASSIFIEDS — FOR SALE
Great old Kimball upright — nice tone, beautiful quarter-sawn oak
case with bas relief oak leaves; needs a tuning and for three keys to be re-connected.
Priced to move: $200. Maple, Childcraft crib and matching changing table. Five years old,
almost pristine (remarkable given the ferocious children who slept within). $130 or best
offer. (202) 255-2215; bonorris@hotmail.com.
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