Responsibility
Dear Responsible Adults:
In the past couple weeks, the Washington Post has taken two
clean and fair shots at the city's government, both in its news and
editorial pages. From September 9 through 12, the Post published
a massive series on the mistreatment and mishandling of children in
foster care by Scott Higham, Sari Horowitz, and Sarah Cohen. This series
was another example of the kind of impeccably and extensively researched
investigations and exposes that only the Post, with its enormous
resources, is capable of undertaking, and that it does so well. (No
matter how much we complain about the inadequacies of the Post's
daily coverage of city events, we have to give it credit for its
featured series.) Last Sunday and Monday, the Post published two
articles, one by Sewell Chan and Yolanda Woodlee, the other by Steve
Twomey, Carol Leonnig, and Petula Dvorak, on the mayor's and the DC
government's failure to respond effectively and coherently to the crisis
of the terrorist attack on the Pentagon and threat to the city.
The administration's response to both of these articles has been
disappointing. To the articles on foster care, the administration
responded with the excuse that it wasn't responsible, because the foster
care system had been under federal receivership. To the articles on
disaster response, the administration's response was that it would ask
the federal government for funding to prepare a plan for emergencies.
Oh, come on. DC politicians can't help sounding like whiny adolescents,
blaming their parents, the feds, for all their problems and for not
treating them like adults. Well, here's a hint for adolescents who want
to be taken seriously: if you want to be treated like an adult, step up
and take responsibility.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
###############
The G.W. Wash
Jonetta Rose Barras, Rosebook1@aol.com
The Fourth Annual Labor-Management Symposium, sponsored by the city’s
Labor-Management Partnership Council (DCLMPC), was held earlier this
week at George Washington University’s Marvin Center. At the
Symposium, it was astounding to see the extent of District officials'
fawning over the school and its controversial president, Stephen
Trachtenberg. Several times Mayor Anthony A. Williams and his deputy
mayor for operations, John Koskinen, urged the audience to praise this
university. GWU has already swallowed two major hotels, several
apartment buildings, and countless homes in its Foggy Bottom
neighborhood, but Williams and Koskinen ignored the school’s voracious
appetite for land. Believe it or not, even Joslyn N. Williams, president
of the Metropolitan Washington Council, AFL-CIO, spoke highly of the
school, overlooking its violation of local labor laws. It was surreal.
Earlier this year, GWU filed a lawsuit against the city, after the
D.C. Board of Zoning and Adjustment ruled that the school had to house
70 percent of all future undergraduates in campus-based dormitories. In
August, a federal judge issued a temporary injunction against the zoning
board order, based on the University's “unexpectedly” high student
enrollment. The school and the city are in negotiations to resolve the
conflict. But instead of even mildly chastising the university for its
obstinacy and uncooperativeness, Koskinen remarked that the city was
trying to help GWU work out its disagreements with Foggy Bottom
residents, whom he disparaged as wanting to see it “turned into a
park” — which is a great insult to residents who have suffered the
university's aggressive efforts to annex all of Foggy Bottom.
GWU has received District government bond financing for several
capital improvement projects, and that funding subjects it to the city's
“First Source Law,” requiring the hiring of city residents and the
creation of apprenticeship programs. The Department of Employment
Services has cited the University for violating that law and flouting
its requirements, but union leader Joslyn Williams didn't see that as a
reason to boycott the event. “It was a matter of making a choice,”
he told me, moments after sharing the dais with Trachtenberg, Koskinen
and the mayor. “I used this opportunity to talk with Steve
Trachtenberg. We have our differences but we must recognize that the
government must function.” Williams says he told the university
president that, “If we did not resolve the matter we are prepared to
do whatever is needed.” Raise your hand if you believe Williams or the
city will ever hold GWU accountable for its hostility to its neighbors
or its law-violating anti-local-worker and antiunion practices.
###############
As a resident of Georgetown, I would like to give a thank you to the
members of the DC National Guard who were stationed through Washington,
and in my neighborhood in Georgetown. They put in some long hours, and
luckily their expert services were never put to the test. It was
reassuring having them here in case of need. It was also a small luxury
having these wonderful men direct our rush hour traffic. Again thank you
for helping DC through the first few days of this difficult period. You
did an excellent job.
###############
Shame on U. S. Park Police
Ron Eberhardt, rge1022@aol.com
While driving to church via the Rock Creek Parkway at about 10:45
a.m. on Sunday, and to my absolute dismay and revulsion, I witnessed the
U. S. Park Police operating radar near the Kennedy Center in the usual
right lanes that take you to Virginia. I was instantly offended for
three very good reasons: (1) In this time of true emergency I KNOW those
four or five officers had much better things to do like guarding our
national treasures from terrorists. And, if they didn't they should be
sent home; (2) Sunday morning, with people on their way to churches on
the Sunday following the attack? Do these people have brains?; (3) These
officers obviously have no sensibility. Persons everywhere are grieving
and mourning for someone if not the country. Less then a mile away
almost 200 persons lie dead in the rubble of the Pentagon. Would these
lug head cops have been writing radar, God forbid, that one of their
officers had been killed ! in the attacks? I seriously doubt it.
I phoned Park Police Headquarters and asked to speak with the watch
commander. Of course I got his voice mail. I then telephoned two
Washington news outlets to alert them express my outrage. Finally as I
was arriving at church I telephoned the Park Police call center to
express my sentiment. The officer answering seemed to “get it” that
this was stupid. He asked for specific details and said he would notify
a supervisor at once. Given this unnecessary enforcement revealing
nothing less then insensitivity and stupidity, I write this in hopes
that other police department heads will read it and instruct their
officers that otherwise discretionary radar writing is unnecessary for
the time being.
###############
Finally, a Big Move at NCRC
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com
The National Capital Revitalization Corporation was established by
City Council legislation on May 5, 1998, for the purpose of fostering
“economic growth and employment opportunities in the District by
retaining, expanding, and attracting business through strategic
neighborhood revitalization policies and actions. . . .” Congress
appropriated $25 million as a federal revitalization grant for the
NCRC's work. It then took President Clinton and Mayor Williams more than
two years, until July 2000, to appoint the NCRC's board members and
install them into office. The NCRC Board then took until January 2001 to
hire Elinor Bacon, its CEO and President, as its first employee.
It may have taken a long time to ramp up its activities, but there
has finally been a major development at NCRC. Although NCRC didn't make
the announcement, was reluctant to confirm the news, and had to be
pressured to release the document, Lloyd D. Smith, NCRC's Chairman of
the Board, resigned on September 11, effective on October 15. Since
Smith was the only member of NCRC's board who had both extensive
community ties and experience in neighborhood economic development, this
undoubtedly means a further delay in NCRC's beginning its work, and it
raises the question of whether NCRC has the ability ever to get its act
together.
###############
Need to Reinstate DC General Hospital
Carolyn Curtis, Cabcurtis@aol.com
With the most recent events that created havoc for our community, it
is most important to note that not only is DC lacking in its ability to
respond to a crisis via its fire and EMS system, but the closure of
inpatient beds and the trauma center has eliminated any public health
resources to respond to another such attack. DC General Hospital was the
closest trauma center to the Capitol. The fact that there are no trauma
facilities at Greater Southeast Community Hospital leaves an entire
section of the city without trauma services. Also note that DC General
Hospital was one on only two civilian hospitals with the capability of
decontamination in face of chemical warfare. This capability is no
longer available. There is a need for DC General Hospital not only for
the uninsured and underinsured, but for such public disasters as
occurred last week.
###############
I read Sean Snyder's E-mail about security in the District's main
buildings. The security at the Library of Congress is also pathetic and
it is only a few blocks from the Capitol building. I frequently enter
the Jefferson Building with a laptop which could easily contain
explosives, but no one checks it because there is no x-ray machine. I
also carry a pocketful of change so heavy it makes my pocket sag — but
the metal detector is so dysfunctional that it doesn't pick up even that
amount of metal. This situation existed before and after last Tuesday's
terrorist attacks.
Don't believe anything the government says about stepped up security.
It's nonsense.
###############
No Big Surprise
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
It's no big surprise to me that the D.C. Government was totally
unprepared for the emergency caused by the attack on the Pentagon.
Everything (like the $80 Million school budget overrun) is a surprise to
D.C. officials. When you have no plans, no missions, no processes, no
real goals, no accountability, you will always be surprised by events.
This D.C. government, like all those that have preceded it, operates by
the seats of their pants. They just shuffle along from one crisis to
another.
What did surprise me was the total lack of preparedness by the
ultimate bureaucracy, the Federal Government at the Pentagon. Armed with
information, at least fifteen minutes before the plane hit the Pentagon,
that a hijacked plane was heading towards Washington, no one evacuated
vital facilities. Instead they watched TV in horror at the unfolding
events in New York City.
It was in NY City that emergency preparedness was at its best. Within
minutes of the first hit on the World Trade Center there was
communication, coordination, and control among emergency response units
and their leaders. It was something to behold and the result of careful
planning and rehearsals by those emergency units. Let's hope that D.C.
can benchmark these effective operations and develop some prepared units
here. All Ramsey could say was “How can you prepare for an airplane
that crashes into one of your buildings?” What a wimp.
###############
A couple days after the terrorist attacks I walked by the recently
dedicated Japanese-American memorial on Louisiana Avenue (between Union
Station and the Mall). The quotes chiseled in stone there are sober
reminders of the danger of rushing to judgment in the wake of national
tragedies. I am hopeful that we, as a people, have learned our lesson
from the sad series of events that the memorial commemorates.
On a more mundane level, while walking through Shaw on my way home on
September 11, I was appalled by the amount of litter, much of it
alcoholic beverage containers, around the perimeter of the playground at
7th and P Streets, NW. I can't remember ever seeing a public space so
totally trashed. Why in the world would the DC Department of Recreation
and Parks ignore such a mess? More importantly, why is the public
consumption of alcohol on such a massive scale tolerated at a
playground?
###############
The tragedy and sorrow of the world this week is overwhelming and
immediate. Things that people suffer in far away places -- the cruelty
of Rwanda, the absurdity of the continued violence in Northern Ireland,
the never-ending ugliness of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict —
entered our lives in a powerfully frightening way. The terrorist attacks
are senseless and too, too much. My heart aches for the dead, for their
families, for their friends, colleagues, coworkers and all the pain that
this is causing in so many peoples lives. And I am grateful to live in a
country where this kind of senseless violence is not normal, where we
are outraged and upset. I think of those images of children playing in
countries where there are wars -- where senseless violence just is, and
I am deeply grateful that is not the case here.
Yet, three days later, this tragedy also reminds me of the importance
of all of us who dream of a more just city to persevere in our dream and
continue to work to make DC government work better. We the people —
the residents of DC and our elected officials — allow needless tragedy
to grind away here in DC, year after year. Unlike most of the world,
“we the people” have the freedom and the right and the resources to
build a more just world, and yet, each year, so many of our DC neighbors
and friends suffer and die quietly. Our collective acceptance of such
ongoing abuse of so many of our DC residents — the child welfare
system, the health care system, the schools . . . we who have so much,
and so much opportunity — during this time of awareness of world wide
injustice, one hope for a better tomorrow is to think globally and act
locally, to refuse to let terrorism and world injustice stop those of us
who believe a democracy can serve as tool to improving the lot of
mankind to stand up in our daily lives to cruelty and injustice, in
whatever ways we can.
Your E-mail today was affirming to me that DC is filled with people
who are loving, smart, committed and kind and that we will triumph in
the face of evil, injustice and human inadequacy. Please continue to
keep us connected, remind us of what matters, keep us outraged, affirm
us in the struggle, and keep us working toward excellence. It does make
life easier to bear — when man's inhumanity to man is made so
painfully real, knowing that dreams of justice are shared by so many.
###############
From a posting on the Takoma DC listserve by Alan Abrams: “How to
conquer this enemy? It can't be bombed into submission. Violence only
nourishes hatred, and insures nothing but escalating terror for our
people. And do we not destroy our own humanity, if revenge drives us to
commit atrocities against other innocent people?
“It would make far more sense to me to bomb this
enemy-relentlessly, massively — to blot out the sky with
parachute-borne pallets of fruits and vegetables, with sacks of
high-protein grain, with basic medical supplies, with bolts of fabric
and cartons of needles, thread and scissors. And all these goods
packaged with emblems of the Stars and Stripes, and printed with
translations of words of freedom — from Jefferson, Adams, and Martin
Luther King.
“How much less costly is this cargo than the equivalent tonnage of
smart bombs or cruise missiles? How much less risky than sending in
troops? How much more effective in achieving security here at home? And
how better to nullify the acts of madness over which we now grieve?”
###############
I'm gratified that people on this list, in contrast to some other
lists in the area, are looking for long-term solutions rather than for
revenge. As a Post reader reminded us over the weekend, Mohandas Gandhi
said “an eye for an eye” only leads to a whole world of the blind.
We need to remind our government that there's very little the military
could do to prevent someone from dropping Ebola virus on Washington from
a private plane.
###############
Ed Barron is right. A correct response to the attacks will require a
broad based coalition involving virtually every nation, and preferably
including UN support, such as that suggested in the Washington Times
article.(http://www.washingtontimes.com/world/20010917-97599642.htm).
Those responsible for the terrorist acts must be held accountable.
However, we also need to forgive even our enemy, as Jesus did. We have
to try to see God's viewpoint toward the world community, and not have a
vengeful or arrogant attitude. It is also necessary to ask God to
forgive our nation for any shortcomings as a world leader, and to show
us what those shortcomings are.
###############
US Public Opinion on Terrorist Attacks
Mark Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
Following is a link to a national poll conducted last week by the Los
Angeles Times: http://a1022.g.akamai.net/f/1022/6000/5m/www.latimes.com/media/acrobat/2001-09/662540.pdf
Accompanying article: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-091601terrorpoll.story
###############
This is to advise that the September 2001 on-line edition has been
uploaded and may be accessed at http://www.intowner.com.
Included are the community news stories, crime reports, editorials
(including prior months' archived), restaurant reviews (prior months'
also archived), and the text from the ever-popular “Scenes from the
Past” feature. Also included are all current classified ads. The
complete issue (along with prior issues back to January 2001) also is
available in .pdf file format by direct access from our home page at no
charge, simply by clicking the link provided. The next issue will
publish on October 12, and the website will be updated shortly
thereafter.
To read the lead stories, simply click the link on the home page to
the following headlines: (1) “DC Health Clinic Records Confidentiality
Compromised”; (2) “Proposed Street Renaming for Latino Police
Officer Ignites Controversy”; (3) “Police to Use GWU Dorms During
IMF Mtg., Students Will Not be Compensated.”
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
John Fleckner of the Smithsonian Institution will be giving a public
lecture and slide talk on the Scurlock studio photograph collection that
went to the Smithsonian at Martin Luther King, Jr., Public Library (901
G Street, NW; Metro Gallery Place and Metro Center stops) on October 10
at 6:30 p.m. The Washingtoniana Division of the DC Public Library is
cosponsoring this talk with the Moorland-Spingarn Research Center of
Howard university. Photograph curators and archivists will be present to
help assess attendees own “problem” photos. Admission is free.
###############
DCPCA Annual Meeting
Charlie Baase, cbaase@dcpca.org
The DC Primary Care Association will hold its annual meeting for
2001, Standing Strong for Health Justice, on October 1, 9:00 a.m. to
2:30 p.m. The lunch guest speaker will be Dr. Marilyn Gaston, Director,
Bureau of Primary Health Care; also during the meeting there will be
presentations of the DCPCA 2001 Reform Agenda and by Dr. Ivan Walks, the
Department of Health, and DC Councilmembers. Find out about health care
issues in DC that effect you! Registration and lunch are free, but space
is limited. RSVP today by E-mailing cbaase@dcpca.org
or by calling 638-0252 ext: 112.
##############
Informal Discussion on Osama Bin Laden, Jihad,
and the Modern Reality of Terrorism
Sister Shazza Nzinga, roachsharon@hotmail.com
The general public is invited to a informal discussion on Osama bin
Laden and Jihad: The Modern Reality of Terrorism. Everyone is welcome to
join in this lively discussion and share their views of this terrorist
and the views on what will or should happen in the days ahead. Come and
share your views and find out more on current events. At Sankofa
Bookstore, 2714 Georgia Ave. NW, Thursday, September 20, 5:30 p.m.-7:30
p.m. For more information call Sister Shazza Nzinga, 986-9605.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — SERVICES
We are a local service that helps buyers and sellers meet locally to
arrange for odd jobs. Looking for someone to help rake the leaves this
fall? Do you need someone to walk your dog or help with other odd jobs
around the house? SilentFrog can help — http://www.silentfrog.com.
We can connect you with local individuals that are interested in working
for you. SilentFrog connects you with a wide variety of local sellers
that can help you get things done. You can find pet sitters, lawn care
assistance, computer experts, organizers, or practically anyone else you
might need to help make your day run more smoothly.
Check out our article in the Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A2033-2001Sep9.html,
or feel free to contact Asher Epstein of Friendship Heights
(301-529-7124 or ashman@silentfrog.com)
if you have any questions.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — INTERNSHIP WANTED
My daughter, an 11th grade student at School Without Walls (near GW),
is seeking an internship for this semester. She held one last semester
at EPA (two are required for graduation), so she has office experience
and can provide references. She's a mature self-starter and would
appreciate hearing from anyone who might be able to consider her for an
internship. Please respond to my E-mail address.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
Do Not Use Allegiance Telecom
Matthew Kessler, matthew@stand.org
Allegiance Telecom has left our organization without telephone
service for 13 days. I have received nothing but lies and excuses from
everyone at this company. Vice President's and President's making
promises with no results. Has anyone else been through this hell with
these people? This has cost our organization thousands of dollars in
lost services and employee wages. I am at my wits end!
If you use Allegiance Telecom I highly recommend you move your
service. Please pass this on to anyone you know who has Allegiance or is
considering switching to them. It is the worst run company I have ever
seen in my life.
###############
themail@dcwatch is an E-mail discussion forum that is published every
Wednesday and Sunday. To subscribe, to change E-mail addresses, or to
switch between HTML and plain text versions of themail, use the
subscription form at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail/subscribe.htm.
To unsubscribe, send an E-mail message to themail@dcwatch.com
with “unsubscribe” in the subject line. Archives of past messages
are available at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail.
All postings should also be submitted to themail@dcwatch.com,
and should be about life, government, or politics in the District of
Columbia in one way or another. All postings must be signed in order to
be printed, and messages should be reasonably short — one or two brief
paragraphs would be ideal — so that as many messages as possible can
be put into each mailing.
