More Snow and More Schools
Dear Shovelers:
There doesn't seem to be any consensus on whether the last snow removal
has been effective or incomplete. That's the half-filled glass syndrome that Larry Seftor
refers to below. Now that we have another light snow, maybe we'll see whether practice
makes perfect. However, I'm don't really want to get enough snow in any winter for the
Department of Public Works to become perfect. That’s too much snow, even for Buffalo.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Metropolitan Baptist
Susan Ousley, slousley@aol.com
Dear neighbors, I post reluctantly. I believe religious groups' locations
and comportments are best left to their members. Background: Metropolitan Baptist Church
leaders posted its likely move on its web site almost two years ago (when parents and
neighbors first asked Principal Worthy to give the kids back their play space). Not
everyone at MBC agreed with the move idea. How handy that some of the neighbors were, as
my daughter says, pink. It didn't matter that family members attend MBC school, that my
sons were in MBC's scout troop (I sold cake at the bake sale, bought food for camp outs).
It didn't matter that grandmas raising grandchildren, El Salvadorans,
Ethiopians, and third generation residents all support the kids. It didn't matter to
Arlene Ackerman; or to Maudine Cooper, who never answered to a single letter from her
appointed position, but pulled strings in the background. It didn't matter to the Post
reporter who was given names and numbers of 25 quite varied residents who support the
children and didn't call a one. (The resident she portrays as not supporting our efforts
actually staunchly supports the kids.) Every playground bully knows you go after what is
different — especially if you need to raise money you might not otherwise get.
The law says school space is to be used for children and never to the
detriment of children. A street was closed to make the playground; even in 1935,
Commissioners recognized that kids needed more space to play. Question: Most of us know of
religious or nonprofit groups in this city that are working to help kids. Certainly there
are hundreds of them in Shaw. Quietly, day after day, helping. Do those groups expect to
have the right to break the law because they help people? Suggestion: Rather than breaking
the law to fit the needs of one congregation, let us hold up to the light all the groups
that are still here, still working for children. Let your readers tell us about them. What
are they doing well? How do they work with their communities? If there have been problems,
how have they been worked out? How have they adjusted to shifting neighborhood patterns?
What could we all do better together?
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Metropolitan and Garrison Playground
Adam J. Marshall, adam.marshall@yale.edu
Naomi Monk writes that the potential move of Metropolitan Baptist Church
would represent a huge loss for the black community and our city as a whole. She's right
— Metropolitan is a great community asset — but I think she has based her
argument on a set of faulty principles. “It appears from what I have read,” she
writes, “that those who want the kids to play soccer and others must have their way
and they do care what unjust means they take to do it.” Following this line of
thinking, the community activists who want Garrison Elementary to have a decent playground
are responsible for running the church and its parishioners out of the neighborhood.
As a DC taxpayer, I believe that our schoolchildren have the RIGHT to a
decent education, which includes the use of a safe, well maintained set of facilities. If
the preservation of that right means the withdrawal of petty parking privileges for a
group of people — many of whom are neither DC residents nor taxpayers — so be
it. I'm not affiliated with the effort to reclaim the playground, but I strongly support
those neighborhood activists who are working to do so, because our CHILDREN MUST COME
FIRST. The minute we allow a politically and racially charged fight to overshadow the
rights of children, we lose sight of the most important thing — the boys and girls
who represent our city's FUTURE. I believe there is a way to restore the Garrison
playground while keeping Metropolitan Baptist as a cornerstone of the Shaw community.
However, no deal should be struck that places the price of compromise on the backs of DC
schoolchildren.
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A Few Dates in DC School Governance History
Mark Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
Here are a few items I came across yesterday by visiting the Historical
Society's book sale. Along with reports listed, the key source is the Government of DC
Organization Handbook, 2nd Edition, Executive Office of Mayor Walter Washington, Nov.
1, 1977 — a really great resource the Mayor's office should consider updating. This
list is incomplete. Is anyone aware of a comparative study of DC's school governing
structures and their effectiveness?
1804: Council establishes 13-member School Board: 7 picked by the City
Council, 6 by financial contributors.
1845: Council establishes 4 school districts, with 1 Board of Trustees with
representatives from each District.
1858: Council redefines districts, provides for appointment of School Board with enlarged
duties by Mayor.
1878: Congress sets up 19-member Board of Trustees of Public Schools, appointed by
Commissioners.
1900: Congress sets up 7-member Board of Education appointed by Commissioners. Power to
appoint 1 superintendent and 2 assistant superintendents.
1906: Congress sets up 9-member Board of Education, composed of DC residents appointed by
the Supreme Court of DC. Appointees changed in 1936 to District Court of U.S. for DC, and
again in 1948 to U.S. District Court for DC. (Act of June 20, 1906, is the Basic Authority
of current School Board — 34 Stat. 316, ch. 3446, as amended).
1954: Bolling v. Sharpe invalidated the use of racially separated educational facilities
in DC.
1956: Board of Education embarks on the Track System (“ability grouping”).
1966-1967: Hobson v. Hansen — Julius Hobson sues Superintendent Carl Hansen, the
Board, and DC judges for unconstitutionally depriving the poor and black school children
of equal education opportunities. Board did not appeal on advice of Corporation Council.
Hansen resigns, appeals on his own behalf, loses appeal. DC appointed Board of Education
releases report on DC schools by Teachers College, Columbia University (“Passow
Report”).
1968: Congress sets up 11-member elected Board of Education — 3 At-large, 1 per Ward.
70% registered voters go to polls for first election in which 53 candidates run. Power to
appoint superintendent.
1968-69: 19 Reports of the Executive Study Group for a Model Urban School System for DC
approved by Board, after involvement of the “professional and general communities”
in the generation of new proposals based on Passow Report.
1976: DC Law 1-35, DC Public Postsecondary Education Reorganization Act amendments
includes compensation of Board members; contracting and reprogramming powers.
1989: Our Children, Our Future report released by the DC Committee on Public Education
(set up by Federal City Council).
1992: A Time to Act released by DC Committee on Public Education.
1993: BESST: Bringing Educational Services to Students — DC Public Schools
Educational Reform Agenda by Superintendent Franklin Smith.
2000: ?
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When thinking about changing a system it is always helpful to look to
other systems that mirror that possible change. So what are some examples? Well, the New
York City Public Schools have a board of education, and they are always in hot water. From
what I hear, the public school system there isn't exactly a model of efficiency and
learning. With that being said, the debate between appointed officials and elected
officials can be analogized to the judicial system. In some states judges are elected,
such as Louisiana and Texas, while in others the judges are appointed. There are arguments
for both sides and politics and money are omnipresent in both situations; however, I can
say that it is easier for a judge to do what he thinks is right if he does not have to
worry about an election. Every so often criminal defendants' rights are sacrificed for a
certain judges aspirations and the next election year, and this is my concern with elected
school boards — that children's needs will be sacrificed for re-election, whether
willingly or not.
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What happens when the appointed school board is appointed by a future
Marion Barry or Sharon Pratt Kelly?
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School Governance
Andrea Carlson, BintaGay@aol.com
This is how Tony Williams's plan (or Kevin Chavous's plan) would improve
education for children in DC's public schools: at least the buck would stop somewhere. If
Williams doesn't produce better schools under his plan, he won't get reelected. As it
stands, you can complain about unclear, impossible, or capricious DCPS policies and
practices until you're blue in the face — to the Superintendent (who will ignore
you), to the School Board (who will say “Tsk, tsk,” and do nothing), to the City
Council (who will fire off letters to the Superintendent demanding an explanation, but
will be ignored), to the Emergency Board of Trustees (who will ignore you), to the Control
Board (who will ignore you). Also, it makes sense that the kind of people who could really
fix things would agree to serve for a year (but wouldn't be willing to run for office). As
for my own children, I've decided they stand the best chance of getting a good education
in a public charter school, which involves parents in meaningful ways, is responsible for
managing things according to what is best for children and sound business practice (like
paying valued employees their due). It's no mystery that charter schools are increasingly
viewed as an effective means of school reform.
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School Governance — Accountability and a Voice
Anne Herr, HerrAnne@aol.com
Here’s an additional two cents. As a DCPS parent, I feel the status
quo — an Emergency Board of Trustees (yes, inept and secretive) and a superintendent
who is accountable to no one (or to everyone, depending on your point of view; the result
turns out to be exactly the same) is unacceptable. The prospect that the term of the
Emergency Board will be extended while we sort all of this out is extremely worrisome.
Whatever changes we make should promote clear accountability, genuine community
participation, and improvements in the schools themselves.
When a system is really really broken it often becomes difficult to
distinguish between micromanagement and oversight. In a system like DCPS — where
there are no clear policies, no defined procedures, no transparency, no recourse, no due
process, no predictability, no avenues for parents or others to resolve concerns or get
accurate information — what is the role of an oversight body? Somebody — whether
it's the elected school board or a board appointed by the mayor — is going to have to
ask a lot of questions and do a lot of independent verification to ensure that policies it
establishes are actually being followed. In an environment where a body that does anything
other than rubberstamp becomes instantly vulnerable to accusations of micromanaging, real
oversight is no easy task.
The elected school board has serious flaws, but it's senseless to blame
the school board for all the shortcomings of the schools — especially since it had no
authority since 1996 and the situation in the school system has not improved in the
meantime. That said, making one institution — such as the mayor's office —
responsible for school funding as well as for policy and oversight — is appealing in
terms of accountability and, if supported by the voters, is not necessarily an affront to
democracy. Giving an elected school board the taxing authority school boards in other
jurisdictions have, or some other form of influence over the school budget, would be
another path to increasing accountability. Continuation of the fragmented authority the
school system currently functions under promotes neither democracy nor the best interests
of children.
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I think one of the dark undercurrents of living in DC is the need of
citizens to jump on any sign of competence as an indication that we have turned the
corner. For instance Margaret Siegel takes the plowing of her street (and that of a
friend) to prove that the city has turned a corner on snow removal. Perhaps a little more
careful consideration is needed before we declare victory and move on to the next problem.
My view from a little driving in DC is as follows. 1) Many roads were plowed, but many
were not. Although my street was plowed (!), within a three block radius of my house most
streets were completely untouched a full week after the storm. 2) Although I got plowed,
we saw neither sand nor salt to deal with the refreezing of runoff. At a minimum all the
intersections should have been treated as soon as possible. 3) The salt that didn't get
placed on my street obviously ended up in Georgetown, where the streets had so much salt
that they looked like they were painted white. 4) Our rural neighbors (a co-worker with a
house near Oatlands, for example) routinely get plowed within a day of a storm — but
DO NOT have to give up trash collection in the process. Why do we high density, highly
taxed urban dwellers need to put up with less? 5) Ten years ago my street in DC used to be
routinely plowed, salted and sanded after snow storms. Until I (and my neighbors on nearby
streets) ROUTINELY get that level of service again, I will argue that our DC Government
still has a long way to go.
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I was surprised and delighted when a snow plough came down 33rd Street,
NW, around 9 am Wednesday and by noon the street was dry and clear. It's the first time I
can remember in 30 years on the street that a plow actually came in time to make a dent in
the snow. Alas, when my husband ventured out on Thursday, thinking all the streets would
be clear, he was dismayed to find the surrounding streets a big mess (including hilly
Northampton, Oliver and well-traveled McKinley). So, I'll grade the effort a C+.
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On the night of January 26th three snow plows came down 34th Place, N.W.,
caravan fashion. The third truck had its plow raised in the air. The caravan left about 4
inches of snow on the street and left the north end clogged against right-hand turns. And
that's the way it was.
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Margaret Seigel wrote: “I'm in shock and delighted at the same time
— at 9 am today, a snow plow came down Ordway Street, clearing a path. And a friend
in Barnaby. . . .” Hm, I wish I lived on your block of Ordway! 'Cause mine (2700
block) has yet to see a plow of any kind. In fact, Channel 7 even set up a camera at the
end of my block to get shots of cars skidding out of control. If a plow went down Ordway
Street, I wish it had crossed Connecticut and gotten my street. Of course, I don't drive,
so I don't really care that much, but it's no fun for people visiting me!
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Proud of Plowing
Linda Harllee, XPLRRN@aol.com
I am very proud of the city's improvement in snow removal. The main streets are cleared
much more efficiently than ever before. As a native Washingtonian, residing in the
District for 34 years, this is the best that I can remember. I still think we have work to
do when it comes to the sidestreets. My parents live in North Portal Estates off of 16th
street, NW, and there was a snowplow on their sidestreets on Tuesday. That is great for my
parents; however, there are no buses that needed to travel those streets. There are still
many sidestreets in other areas of the city that need clearing to allow persons to get
their buses to work, school, etc. I would love to know the formula that DC uses when
prioritizing side street snow removals.
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Too Soon to Praise Snow Response
Dan Parker, dandc68@hotmail.com
I really want to know if it is too much to ask that when the salt trucks
ride through the neighborhoods that they lower their plows and also push a little snow
while they are at it. I also think the city should formulate a plan to help out the local
pedestrians who have to deal with city sidewalks, and the intersections where all the snow
accumulates. They are most likely voters, as opposed to car-bound, speed-obsessed
commuters. Any mayoral candidate with a snow blower who comes down my sidewalk, plows
around the metro stops, or clears a few pedestrian intersections has my vote and
admiration.
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Because mine is a home office, I was spared direct experience of the
traffic horrors shared by so many in the region on Tuesday, January 18. I am fascinated to
read explanations of how so little snow could have been responsible for such prolonged
congestion. All the explanations blame driver and/or official incompetence. I don't think
so. I would attribute the mess primarily to the region's dirty little secret:
ever-increasing congestion in all seasons, leaving ever less slack whenever the flow is
disrupted for any reason. The snow left a thin blanket throughout the region, so its
effect was uniform. The solution isn't driver education and enforcement, my friends, it's
controlling sprawl.
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Snow (and Garbage)
Ann Loikow, Cleveland Park, john1@erols.com
I witnessed another miracle in that my street, Rodman Street, N.W., had a
DC snowplow go up it Tuesday night! During the blizzard of 1996, my neighbors and I had to
chip in and hire someone to plow as no District snowplows were to be seen days (almost a
week ) after the storm ended. Last year a police officer who spun out on my block called
in the sand trucks and plows for the glare ice that often forms there (lots of shade, plus
a hill, and normally a very slow melt).
On the garbage front, another story. Because of the first
“dusting” storm last week that tied up everyone on Tuesday, we had no trash or
recycling pickup on Wednesday (why I'm not real sure, as everything was pretty clear by
then). This week, DPW's staff was working around the clock to clear city streets on
Wednesday so no trash pickup for the second week in a row. The lack of recycling is the
bigger mystery as that is supposedly handled by a contractor, not city employees. Where
were they (two weeks running)?
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From Curb to Curb
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
John Whiteside, formerly from D.C. but now in the “burbs,” asked
me if my street got plowed. Well, living right on Massachusetts Avenue has the advantage
of getting a promptly cleared, sanded and salted roadway right at the end of your plowed
in driveway. I resumed my early morning 2.7 mile walk today after my return from a two day
business trip to the “Big Apple.” My walk is half through AU Park and half
through Westmoreland, just across the great divide in Bethesda.
What a difference a few yards makes in terms of the quality of snow
clearing, sanding and salting. The streets of Westmoreland are completely bare from curb
to curb (those folks taking advantage of the ability to get their cars off the streets in
front of their homes) compared to many of the AU streets, untreated five days after the
storm, in D.C. that still have many patches of barely removed snow (now ice patches and
lumps). Maybe we should secede to MD, then we'd get those nice services and be able to
vote for real representation in Congress and the Senate.
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Snow Removal? Ha!
Joan Eisenstodt, jeisen@aol.com
I was on the only plane that left Dulles on Tuesday — an adventure in
itself. But reports from home are that 5th Street, SE, has not yet been touched. More,
what happened to consideration for neighbors? My spouse shoveled our walks in my absence
[really .. it wasn't planned that way! — I'd have rather shoveled than spend 8 hours
in the Denver airport to get another flight!] and said that few sidewalks on our part of
the Hill were touched. It seems a little thing but . . . sheesh.
###############
It's Saturday night and no plow, sand, or salt has come to my street. Cars
are still getting stuck. I'm on the 2000 block of Belmont Road, NW, between Connecticut
Avenue and 20th Street in Kalorama Triangle. I've called the DC Government twice as well
as my councilman's office. In fact, in my 20 years here, I don't think we have ever been
plowed. I'm now wondering if we are even on the schedule for plowing. Any suggestions on
how to get results?
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One can't help but be impressed by the snow removal efforts of the city.
Pretty amazing turnaround. However, the citizens don't get as high grades on clearing off
the sidewalks in front of their houses. Isn't there a law on the books that sidewalks
should be cleaned within a certain number of hours after the storm? Little old ladies
really take their life in their hands to try to navigate the packed snow on the walkways
to get to a bus stop. It's far easier and safer these days to drive!
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Winners and Whiners
Bob King, rhayk@aol.com
Hats off to Tony Williams, clearly a winner for Washington. I have had
little to say about how bad D.C. government was in the past, because it was mostly bad,
embarrassingly bad. There was nothing to point to with pride and little to suggest hope.
There is now. He wears funny hats, and bow ties, has a great sense of humor, and he cares
about the job he has. He has the most important job in Washington and he is doing it
proud. OK, this mayor touched my heart (the cardiovascular type) with a snow plow. I live
on a street in Chevy Chase so quiet only Marion Barry's tax assessors found it. Tuesday it
snowed. Terrible noise . . . snow plow on my street, lost no doubt. Wednesday early am,
another, and later still, another. It is a cold embrace to have a snow plow deliver this
mayor's invitation to participate as a citizen in Washington. But, it was effective and
the invitation is welcome.
Looking back last year, a hurricane (name unrecalled) followed by trucks
picking up tree limbs and then a street sweeper. Wow! Crews trimming city trees and
mulching branches. Hmmmm. Strange looking trucks removing debris from storm sewers. Maybe
not aberrations or window dressing. These are things which touch me in upper NW. They make
me read more about those things which do not affect me but have caused me shame as a DC
resident. Atrocities in homes for the retarded. Annual contender for murder capital of the
world. Ineffective schools administered by multiple ineffective caretakers. Foster care
tragedies. A fire department unable to administer its budget for essential equipment.
Peers laugh and ask if that is why I live in DC.
Until Tony Williams came along, I could only cower as a guilty
coconspirator. I now almost feel able to say, WE are working on it. Mayor Williams cannot
do everything, but his beginning is positive and, from my vantage, visible. So, maybe this
newsletter could devote a little more time to praise the winners. The whiners have had
more than equal time.
[Department of full disclosure: Bob King was until recently the Mayor's
Ward Five coordinator, and now works for the DC government. — Gary Imhoff]
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Margaret Siegel writes that “at 9 am today, a snow plow came down
Ordway Street,” (etc.). Some of us may know which day she means. It's common for
folks to use terms like “today” in themail. But the day we send in our
submission will almost certainly not be the day someone (besides Gary) reads it. So a
little suggestion: say which day you mean, as in “today (Tuesday).” Actually,
since the snow started early Tuesday morning (January 25), and lasted most of the day
Tuesday, there's a difference between snow removal Tuesday and snow removal Wednesday.
Wednesday is good. Tuesday would be phenomenal — or wasteful, depending on your point
of view.
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“To The Congress,” a Poem by John
Proctor, 1919
Mark Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
You can fee the Filipino, And good old Ireland, too;
You can free the German nation And monarchies taboo;
You can plant the flag of freedom Wherever sets the sun —
But that won't help the people Who reside in Washington.
The Filipino has a vote And governs, in a way;
And Ireland should have freedom, I'll Admit, without delay.
But we who dwell in freedom's land, And pay the nation's debt,
Can't even vote upon a law To make us dry or wet.
Why Congress passes all our bills — And we the bills must pay;
But we have no voice in Congress, Whose laws we must obey.
And how this fact is reconciled With equal liberty
Has always been a problem that No mortal man could see.
We cannot vote for President, Or have a single say,
Except to pay expenses for Inauguration day.
Our school board and our judges, And the ashman — even he
Is not selected by the folks In Washington, D.C.
Now, really, Mr. Congressman, How would you like this deal?
If Congress took away your vote, You'd be the first to squeal.
Democracy, you will admit, Does not discriminate,
And the golden rule is still in force And not yet out of date.
'Tis truly nice to shed the light For which our people fought —
On foreign soil, in distant lands, Where freedom should be taught.
But while enthusiastic, and For liberty you thirst,
Just let the far-off people wait And give us suffrage first.
###############
I must concur with Harold Goldstein's reaction to JePhunneh Lawrence's
latest posting, part of which could have been interpreted as a direct, personal threat
against Mr. Goldstein. Mr. Lawrence's January 2 comments (about the three DC
councilmembers who opposed the nomination of Willie Wilson to the UDC board) were so
loaded with invective that I felt they should not have been published for fear of turning
themail into a hate forum. In contrast, Mr. Goldstein's response to that posting was well
measured and without any of the racial overtones of which Mr. Lawrence accused him. I
challenge Mr. Lawrence to skip the name calling and instead pinpoint what in Mr.
Goldstein's posting he found to be “racially derogatory threatening, and
offensive.” Of course, that's what Mr. Goldstein requested too, and look at the
trouble it brought him!
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Democracy for Elian Gonzalez?
Naomi J. Monk, NMonk10501@aol.com
I believe that the United States is the greatest palace on earth to live
and I would not wish to live anywhere else on the continent. I do take exception to those
in the United States using Elian as a weapon against the Cuban government and Elian's only
living parent: his father. Wherein I believe that Elian will have a better future in the
US, I believe that justice will only prevail if Elian is returned to his only living
parent: his father in Cuba, like yesterday. I believe that Congress and others in the
United States need to spend the same energies to help millions of poverty children, and
other children in need in DC and elsewhere throughout the United States and the world.
###############
Contrary to the ideologists who fear the sky is falling, NARPAC concludes
DC's democratic processes are working relatively well. Nudged by their overseers, DC's
elected officials are slowly and awkwardly converging on a sensible plan to rescue the
DCPS from their predecessors' collective mistakes. The DCPS is clearly a national disgrace
and deserves emergency assistance, justifying suspension of democracy's normal cumbersome,
all-inclusive process. It is continuing to turn mostly disadvantaged youth into
second-rate adults unable to compete in our changing national socioeconomic milieu. Were
these “products” toys, appliances, or cars, they would be subject to mandatory
recall. Were they chemical spills, they would be subject to emergency remediation. DCPS
needs all the professional, apolitical help it can get from inside and outside DC. Such
help can only be appointed. One person must be in charge, accountable, and overseen.
Everyone else should march to the same drummer.
The first challenge is to pick a board of truly regional or national
repute. NARPAC notes that the controversy over the mayor's UDC Board choices focused only
on the one clearly political appointment (the seemingly unchristian Rev. Wilson), ignoring
the more qualified appointees — none of whom, incidentally, would have run for
election to that board. The second challenge is to set criteria for declaring the crisis
over and revisiting more democratic luxuries such as a redesigned, possibly elected,
school board. Four years of balanced budgets seems to have been a sensible — albeit
seriously incomplete — precondition for DC's Control Board to become inactive. NARPAC
suggests that “normal” control of DCPS only be considered when the grade
performance of every last DC public school has, for four straight years, risen to the
national average. Surely our nation's capital city should settle for no less than the
solid American norm — about 20% below the average of our own metro area's suburbs!
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Fresh Fields Wine Dinner at Rupperts Restaurant, 1017 Seventh St., NW, has
been postponed due to the snow storm last Tuesday. The new date is February 1, 6:30 PM.
French wines (Bordeaux and southwest regions), four course dinner with wine tasting,
$75.00 (includes tax & gratuity). Ticket sales through Fresh Fields. Please call
301-984-4874 ext 3029. If any of you couldn't make it last week, here's your chance!
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Tasting Society International February Calendar of
Wine Events
Charlie Adler, wine@tastedc.com
1) Luscious California boutique wines and gourmet tasting, February 3rd,
Thursday, 2000 fresh oysters, teriyaki grilled salmon, shrimp, imported cheeses, and more.
All paired with small production wines! Taste Tablas Creek, Arcadian, Viader, and other
top labels, 15% off on purchase of wines tasted (attendees only), all within Dean &
DeLuca's glassed-in Cafe, 3276 M St., NW, Washington, D.C., 7-9 PM, $45, in advance, tax
and tip inclusive. 2) 1st Annual Washington D.C. International Wine Festival, February 12
and 13, 2000, Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, 1300 Pennsylvania
Avenue, NW. Over 200 wineries from around the globe, over 800 wines for you to taste, 15
specialty wine and food seminars (additional charge), celebrity chef demonstrations at the
cooking stage. $40 per person per day for the Grand Tasting, $60 for both days at the
Grand Tasting, $5 handling charge per order. 3) February 23rd, Wednesday, “Wine
Basics 101,” Radisson Barcelo Hotel, 2121 P St., NW. Valet Parking, Metro Dupont
Circle (Red Line), 7-9 PM, $39 per person. Our most attended event! Reservations: http://www.tastedc.com or call 202-333-5588.
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Join War College instructors in discussing America's role in global
disputes in the Fairfax County Public Library's “Managing Global Conflicts: Conflict
and the New Millennium” lecture/discussion series. Part one of this three-part series
takes place at 7:30 p.m. this Thursday, February 3, at the Dolley Madison Library in
McLean. Register for this free program by calling (703) 356-0770.
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CLASSIFIEDS — SPACE
Trial lawyers group seeks one-time one-day meeting space for about forty
people in D.C. for Saturday, February 26, 2000. Nothing fancy needed; just a heated room
with chairs, and convenience to parking and the subway. Will consider hotel, university,
or church. Please E-mail or phone in your ideas to me at jon@markskatz.com and (301) 495-4300.
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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
Car Rentals/Baltimore Transport
David Sobelsohn, dsobelso@capaccess.org
I'm recently carless and have tickets for “Tannhauser” in
Baltimore the evening of Saturday March 18. What's the cheapest rental car company in the
DC area? It'd be cheaper, I think, than Amtrak. Alternatively, is there any themail
subscriber planning to go up to Baltimore that evening? We'd meet you at a Metro and pay
for gas and parking.
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