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June 19, 2002

Enforcing Clean Hands

Dear Hand Washers:

Yesterday's press release from the Mayor's office shows that another old joke is true: you can get even a stubborn mule's attention if you hit him across the nose with a 2'x4'. Mayor Williams and Department of Motor Vehicles Director Sherryl Hobbs Newman have agreed to fix two DMV problems that they say don't exist. Instead of forcing people to conduct DMV business online by deliberately making it difficult to deal with the agency in person, the administration will hire additional personnel to work DMV's windows (although it is unclear how long those new employees will be kept past the primary election). The Mayor will also announce tomorrow (Thursday) that he has reached a compromise with Councilmember Carol Schwartz to forgive at least some of the highly questionable, years-old “unpaid tickets” that the city recently “discovered,” and not to require citizens to pay at least the very oldest of these tickets before renewing their licenses. Two other problems will not be addressed. The administration still insists that DMV's new computer system, Destiny, is working perfectly; and it also insists that DMV's employees do not display any abruptness, rudeness, or bruqueness toward DC's citizens.

A third serious problem will continue to plague DC's citizens for years, since not even the City Council recognizes it as a problem. That is the Williams administration's reinvention of the Department of Motor Vehicles into what Director Newman calls “a premier enforcement and collection agency.” The door to this was opened in 1996, when the City Council passed the “Clean Hands” Act. As you may recall, there had been several reports of companies that owed significant amounts in fines, back taxes, or other obligations continuing to do business with the city and to get city contracts. In response, the City Council passed a law that essentially said that you couldn't get a license or permit if you owed more than $100 to the city. The intention was that deadbeat businesses would have to pay up in order to renew their business licenses. But the law didn't place any limitation on which obligations or which licenses were affected. So the Williams administration has now decided — without any public debate or even prior notification — that it will use the Clean Hands Act to deny driver's licenses, non-driver's identifications, and automobile registrations to ordinary citizens if the city claims that they owe money.

That makes the DMV the primary collection agency for the whole government, eclipsing the Office of Tax and Revenue and all other departments. After all, even if you're not a driver, you are a non-person if you don't have a DMV license. Have you ever tried to open a bank account or cash a check without a driver's license or state-issued ID? The only appeal at DMV, if you don't owe what they claim, is to a DMV employee whose attitude is that citizens are always wrong and what the computer shows is always right. The amount of money that the government will be able to extort from its citizens would blind any politician. But do we really want the DMV to enforce all laws, rather than just traffic laws? Do we really want it to collect all city taxes, fines, and fees, instead of just driving and parking fines? Should the Department of Motor Vehicles be the 21st century equivalent of debtor's prison? And shouldn't someone have asked us first?

A personal note: thanks to the many people who sent encouraging messages to Dorothy and me, but I'm not going to publish them here; as I wrote, this isn't about us.

Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com 

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Help! DMV Inspection
LaTanya D. Wright, latanya7@juno.com 

My auto inspection sticker expired in April 2002. Unfortunately, I was taking my last law school exams at that time at Rutgers in New Jersey. The first time I was in DC again was Wednesday, May 29, 2002. I waited patiently it the long lines only to find that my CV joint was damaged, so I did not pass the inspection. I received a temporary sticker giving me twenty days to either repair the joint and have the car reinspected or to return for another twenty-day sticker. Knowing that in the next twenty days after May 29th I would be going back to NJ, packing to return back home to DC, graduating, hosting family in NJ, driving and moving back to DC, unpacking once I arrived, starting bar review classes, and studying for the bar, I knew I would not have the car fixed. So I asked the inspector what I should I do. He told me to return by the date, pay $25.00, and get another twenty-day sticker.

On June 18, the 20th day, I went to the SW reinspection station and asked the person directing the cars into the lot if I had to get on line again or just go inside for another sticker, since I had not fixed the joint. He told me to get in line. I do so. I got in line, waited a little over an hour, arrived at the checkpoint, and was told that I would not be able to get another twenty-day sticker because, even though the sticker says “Reinspect by June 18 2002,” the system won't generate a new sticker until June 19th. I must return again tomorrow, get in line again, for an hour or so in my hot car, just to get to the checkpoint to again tell the inspector I haven't yet fixed the damage. Then I can receive another sticker giving me twenty days to make the repair. I was told by three different inspectors that even if I had fixed the joint, the system would not allow a new sticker to print until June 19th. I was told that, even though the sticker says, “Reinspect by: June 18, 2002,” the actual expiration date is midnight, meaning that the system won't even generate another sticker until after midnight. Between midnight and the time I go back on June 19 to stand in line again just to get a sticker, I can get a ticket for failure to have a valid inspection sticker. And doesn't this mean that on June 19th, I must pay a late fee?

The sticker really should say “Reinspect on and only on June 19, 2002.” I'm outraged, tired, and frustrated, and not looking forward to sitting another hour in my car (when I'm supposed to be studying for the bar) waiting in line just to get a sticker.

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Scam at the DC Office of Tax and Revenue
Anise Jenkins, anise828@aol.com 

The DC Office of Tax and Revenue sends out fraudulently worded delinquent tax notices, consciously creating a situation which will result in many DC residents unnecessarily losing their homes in the upcoming July 2002 real property tax sale. I received a “Notice of Delinquency and Final Bill for Delinquent Real Property Tax Prior to Tax Sale” which stated that, “We are notifying you that unless all ('all' in bold face letters) taxes in arrears and taxes appearing on the enclosed notice are paid within 30 days from the date of this notice, the subject real property will be ('will be' underlined) auctioned at the July Tax Sale.” The next paragraph reads, “If full payment is made in the amount appearing on the Final Delinquent Real Property Tax Bill Prior to Tax Sale, the subject property will not be auctioned at Tax Sale (bold faced).” This letter was dated May 10. Therefore, a logical interpretation of the letter meant that if I did not pay the total amount appearing on the tax bill by June 10, my house would with no exception be sold in July!

Knowing that at that time I did not have the total amount, I called the Office of Tax and Revenue and was told by a clerk that I only had to pay the amount on the bill that read “2001 Unpaid,” which was less than half the total amount due. When I pointed out to her that letter stated I had to pay the total amount, she kindly volunteered that, “they are just trying to make people pay it all, but your house will not be listed or sold if you just pay the unpaid amount on the bill, not the total.” I did not want to lose a home that I had struggled to keep for the past nine years at a tax sale, if I could possibly help it, so I did something that I never do , which was to borrow what I did not have from friends. I paid all but $100 of the total appearing on the tax bill on June 10, because that was all that I had on June 10. On June 14, I took what I had left of my paycheck down to the Office of Tax and Revenue to make another partial payment, preparing myself to beg a clerk to find some way to make an exception for me since I owed so little. When I was called to speak to the clerk, she pulled up my record and said, “You are paid up. You don't owe anything until June 30! Your house will not be auctioned.”

It is completely unethical for the DC government to misrepresent a tax collection policy. Both times I spoke with a clerk they were kind and sympathetic and were not surprised that I had interpreted the letter as I had. My concern that many people may have already given up on even trying to pay any of the taxes, knowing that they cannot pay the total, and have instead made arrangements to move or sell their homes before the July tax sale. How many seniors and single mothers are in their homes now wondering what they are going to do now that they have missed the June date (according to the letter) to pay the “total amount” rather than the lesser amount of “unpaid” category, when perhaps they could have raised the lesser amount?

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I Don’t Exist?
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com 

When I called the Board of Elections to find out how to change my voter registration, I was told that I am not a registered voter in the computer of the Board of Elections. Yikes!, I said. I have a voter registration card in my hand and have voted in every election, save one, in the last fifteen years. How is it possible that I am not in the computer (and who else has been dropped into the black hole)? I am now downloading the materials to reregister, this time as a Dem, so that I can vote for Kathy Patterson in the Dem Primary election in September. I have, at various times been registered as a Dem, a Republican, and an Independent, in order to support different candidates in primary elections. No, I have never been a Greenie or a Commie (does the Communist Party still exist?).

The message is clear that the computers at the Board of Elections may be a bit wacky. If you intend to vote in the upcoming elections, you might check to see if you are a registered voter by calling 727-2525.

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The Stealth Candidate
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com 

Since May 10, when the DC Board of Elections made petitions available for all candidates in the September primaries, political observers have wondered when and where Mayor Williams's petitions would be circulated. No one has been seen with Williams petitions at Metro stops, community events, Eastern Market, or even at the annual Democratic Party Kennedy-King banquet. Even the Mayor's political operatives weren't certain who in the campaign hierarchy was in charge of getting the 2,000 petition signatures that have to be submitted by July 3.

Rest assured, the Mayor will make a formal announcement of his candidacy this Saturday at noon at his campaign headquarters at 7th Street and New York Avenue, NW. As for the petitions, Scott Bishop, the logistics director in the DC Office of Emergency Management, is supposedly taking leave from his job in order to oversee their circulation. At a recent campaign strategy meeting, members of the campaign committee acknowledged that in the initial roll-out of petitions in Wards 4 and 5, efforts to secure signatures from black voters and in black neighborhoods had been especially difficult, with a third of those approached refusing outright to sign the petitions and delivering anti-Williams lectures to the circulators.

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Efforts to Pass Constitutional Amendments to Expand Political Rights for Washington
Mark David Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com 

My paper on efforts to solve DC's “issues” via Constitutional amendment is at http://www.dcwatch.com/richards/0206.htm

I've written segments on retrocession, statehood, and amendment. I'll post statehood next. This paper may contain more detail than most want, but you can always scan it to get a sense of the past 200-year effort. Despite its length, for the most part, I do not address race, gender, and class issues that were associated with each historic period, however defined, and were certainly a part of the story. For most of the history, white male property owners established and managed the priorities and called the shots. I am without doubt, however, interested in the discussion of identity issues, including gender, race, and class issues, as related to past and current remedy proposals.

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Wilson HS Graduation Violations Update
Erich Martel, ehmartel@starpower.net 

The following may be hard to believe, but true. Please send messages to Dr. Vance and Dr. Seleznow, et al. (addresses in last Sunday's posting, http://www.dcwatch.com/themail/2002/02-06-16.htm). On Monday afternoon, June 17th, I was informed that a DCPS “Investigation Team” was present at Wilson HS and wished to see me. I went and met the team members (three retired DCPS administrators and two current counselors from Cardozo H.S.) The committee head was Mr. Porter, a former head of the counseling department. Mr. Porter said that they wanted to hear from me. I was cautiously optimistic. For the first time since May 10th, when I sent the first packet of graduation deficiencies to Drs. Vance, Seleznow, Bonner, and Tarason, I was being asked for verbal input. We discussed procedures and decided that I would talk to them on Tuesday morning.

Monday evening, I prepared a description of the standards I used for determining if a student had met a specific graduation requirement. I appended additional directives from the central administration and a more efficient analytical form I had developed. Tuesday morning, I went to the room where the "Investigation Team" was located; Mr. Porter came to the door and informed me that they had all the information they needed and I would not have the opportunity to share information with them. I was dumbfounded. It never occurred to me that I would be invited to speak and then disinvited when I arrived. I stated to the group that I had received additional information of violations from my colleagues since the summaries of violations had been sent. I was told, in response, that they had all the information they needed. The casual disrespect shown me in that episode did not reflect a search for documented accuracy, but something very different. That was a disappointment.

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Digital Divide Award
Phil Shapiro, pshapiro@his.com 

Just wanted to share some happy news with the community here in themail. Last weekend I flew down to Austin, Texas, to receive an award for the digital divide work I've been doing; see http://www.his.com/pshapiro/ctcnetaward.gif. I was humbled and surprised to receive the award, as I know there are dozens of others doing great things here in DC and elsewhere. The organization that gave me the award, Community Technology Centers' Network (CTCNet), is one of the leading national organizations working to bridge the digital divide; see http://www.ctcnet.org. CTCNet currently has over 600 affiliate member organizations. Annual dues are $100/year. CTCNet's annual conference will be in DC next year in June. I'm happy to chat on the phone with anyone here in the DC area interested in learning more about CTCNet. There are already a bunch of CTCNet affiliates in the DC-area. We could always use more, though. The icing on the cake? Bought myself a way cool new iBook laptop with the award money.

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Something Smells in Spring Valley
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com 

A mere 150 yards north up on Massachusetts Avenue, there was an armored car heist last week at about 3:30 in the afternoon. The robbery occurred right in front of the First Union Bank at the Spring Valley Shopping Center. There was some video coverage that evening on the local TV channels but nothing in the Post until Saturday. The details were a bit scarce save to say that a car had forced the armored car off the road and the armored car stuck a tree. I saw the video pics of the truck which had sustained very minor damage. The stately five-foot-diameter oak tree lost a little bark where the big armored car bumper struck the tree at relatively low speed.

Now here's what smells bad to me. The stolen money, a bag containing 210 grand (lunch money in Spring Valley) was inside the locked up armored car. One of the perps brandished a .38 caliber revolver. A .38 caliber pistol is not is not an anti-tank weapon and is hardly more effective against an armored car than a water pistol. And yet, somehow, the bag containing that money somehow migrated from inside the armored car and into the hand of the three robbers, outside the armored car. Very strange, since the armored car drivers are taught to hunker down and keep the car locked up in any robbery attempt. Did the driver get out to exchange license plate numbers and registrations with the driver who had forced him off the road? Or, was there a fourth perp in this scenario, with the fourth perp being one of those who was inside the armored car? Maybe it's a four-way split of that loot.

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Statues
Agate J. Tilmanis, atil@loc.gov 

What are these colored elephants and donkeys doing around town? Are they supposed to represent Washington, DC? Washington was named after our first president, George Washington. Where is there a statue of him in DC? There will be a statue of Tomas Masayk at Massachusetts and 22nd, NW. The Ambassador of Argentina has requested that a memorial to Eva Peron be placed in a pubic space in the Dupont Circle neighborhood. Does anyone know where there is a statue of George Washington in this city?

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DC Tax Returns
David Hunter, Hunterontravel@hotmail.com 

Two weeks ago I also was told the same thing as Ed Barron, that because I filed on the 15th of April, don't expect quick any quick action. However, instead of DC owing me money, I owed money to DC. Not surprisingly, realizing they had a check in the mail, two days after I called, my check went through. However, not for the $250 amount, but for $1469.86! Imagine my surprise. Got it worked out in another two days and a couple of bounced checks later.

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Dirty Bombs
Klaatu, klaatu@earthops.net 

Thanks very much to Len Sullivan who posted an excellent bit on appropriate response to dirty bomb attacks. Having been one of the people raised in the suburbs since the early 1960s, I have understandably given the issue of post-nuke survival a great deal of thought and research. Unlike the folks downtown, it was quite possible that I would have survived a direct strike and my primary risk would be fallout. Sure I'm paranoid, but I'm also prepared for the unthinkable.

Things to do to prepare: 1) If possible, have someone on your block obtain and learn how to use a Geiger counter. 2) Stock cans of both clear acrylic, and blaze orange, spray paint. 3) Stock toilet-paper and save some old coffee cans of a size that will accommodate a roll of toilet-paper with a relatively tight fit, as well as plastic sheeting and weatherproof duct-tape. 4) As with the Y2K preparedness, stock some canned food and bottled water, but store these in shrink-wrap if possible. A radio and batteries are a good idea, of course. Step 4, below, should really be step 5 here.

Response: Don't panic, but get inside. Don't go anywhere even if you are known to be in the hottest zone. The last thing needed is for people to spread radioactive particles outside of the predictable fallout plume. 1) If at home, close all windows. If at work, do the same unless your building is airtight, in which case get to the engineer's office and get the A/C turned off. The most dangerous elements of a dirty-bomb attack will probably be airborne no longer than eight hours. The greatest danger will be inhalation of particles kept circulating by high-volume building A/C, especially particles which fallout into the street-level air-intake grills. 2) If not at home or not in a building, get home or get into a building, sit tight for eight hours. Thereafter, if possible, contact someone with a Geiger counter and prepare to organize to do a sweep. Once the immediate fallout settles, your primary task is to detect, immobilize, and mark hot spots. These will probably be barely-visible or microscopic. Sweep with the Geiger counter inside homes where the windows were left open or the A/C was left on, if you find a hot spot particle, cover it with clear-acrylic spray paint to immobilize it, and then paint a blaze-orange X in a circle with the X on the hot spot. It's most important to mark or clear inhabited environments. 3) If you're in restaurant work, destroy all food which was outside of containment at the instant of the blast — don't throw it away, destroy it so that nothing will think of ingesting it — or bag it all together and double wrap it and freeze it. Remove no food from containment for at least twelve hours; get a Geiger counter to check the prep and containment surfaces before removing the food/drink. 4) If things look really bad, use plastic sheeting to air proof some small interior room. Then pull the inner cardboard cores half out of rolls of toilet-paper, punch a hole in the coffee-can plastic lid which will exactly fit the cardboard core, attach to the roll of toilet paper, insert toilet paper into coffee can and seal lid into place, punch holes around the outside of the bottom rim of the coffee can. Instant filter element! Make a bunch of these. Also make a bellows pump out of a large cardboard box and some plastic sheeting, and place the filter elements so that air from outside of the box is drawn in through the side of the box, through the cardboard cores into the inside of the coffee-can, through the toilet-paper, through the pump, into your safe airspace. Those who can afford it can probably buy better systems, but in a pinch this might do you some good. The overriding motif is “containment, containment, containment”; contain yourself until things settle, and then search and contain the particulates. Paper and wood should be all of the protection you need, since there will be no gamma or X radiation, as those are products of a nuclear blast. Your biggest worries will be particles of alpha emitters, and alpha is stopped by paper.

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My Letter to DCRA Director David Clark
Nick Keenan, Shaw, nbk at gsionline dot com

I read recently in the City Paper that your department is now ticketing vacant properties where the weeds exceed four inches. There are two vacant properties near my house that we have been trying for years to get the city to take action against, but for years inspectors from your department have told us that there is nothing they can do. The addresses of these properties are 1539 and 1543 7th Street NW. They currently both have weeds in the front well in excess of four inches, so I would appreciate it if you could have an inspector visit them and ticket them. They also have a host of other problems, particularly 1543, which is not weatherproof, fireproof, or rodent-proof, as the law requires, is an active rat harborage, is strewn with garbage, has loose bricks on the facade, and has non-exterior-grade live electrical work exposed to the elements. However, your inspectors have repeatedly told me over the past four years that they will not ticket any of those conditions.

I applaud the decision to have your department now ticket for weeds so that some enforcement action can be taken against long-standing neighborhood nuisances like these. I would like to encourage you to go further. Weeds are a purely cosmetic problem. The reason that vacant buildings are a nuisance is not that they are ugly, it is that they endanger the health and safety of their neighbors. They harbor rodents and criminals. If they are not secure against the elements they undermine the structural integrity of neighboring properties. About once a year, a building in my neighborhood will collapse. Then there is fire. In the past four years, there have been four fires in nuisance properties on my block, resulting in damage to ten houses. I am withholding my address from this letter, because in the past when I included my address in letters to your department it led to confusion, with my property becoming the subject of enforcement rather than the properties described in my letter. If you have questions I can be reached via E-mail or at 667-1946. Please let me know if you have any questions.

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Rent Control
Ron Eberhardt, RGE1022@aol.com 

In response to the writer whose rent is increasing at alarming rates, my understanding of DC rent control law is this: landlords with fewer than four units may get an annual (fee) permit to opt out of DC rent control. Others are under the law. I believe the current rent increase cap, under law, is 3.3 percent for this year. It changes each year.

Contact the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs, Housing Regulation Administration 941 N. Capitol Street, NW, 7th Floor, 442-9505 for specific information. They are very helpful both on the phone and in person. If your landlord is outside of the law and refuses to bow, you may file a Tenant Petition/Complaint with this agency at no charge under Section 216, DC Law 6-10.

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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS

Conversations With Newsmakers
Kathy Sinzinger, NewsDC@aol.com 

Join us this Friday after work to chat with this month's special guest — Patricia Elwood, vice chairman of the powerful National Capital Planning Commission — at The Common Denominator's “Conversations With Newsmakers.”

Conversations With Newsmakers is a free, monthly networking opportunity for both unstructured and loosely structured conversation about local public affairs. This month's event is Friday, June 21, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at Ellis Island Restaurant and Pub, 3908 12th Street, NE, in Brookland (about half a block off Michigan Avenue and within walking distance of the Brookland/CUA stop on Metro's Red Line). Free parking is available on and off the street. No reservations are required for this free event. Cash bar, and Ellis Island will have its full dinner menu available for anyone who arrives hungry. For questions or directions, call Kathy Sinzinger at The Common Denominator at 635-6397.

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Upcoming Washingtoniana Division Slide Lecture!
Jerry A. McCoy, sshistory@yahoo.com 

The following illustrated slide lecture will be held in the program room of the Washingtoniana Division, Room #307, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library. The lecture is scheduled for Monday, June 24, from noon-1:00 p.m. We hope to see you there! “Theaters of Washington, DC: From Airdomes to Palaces.” Lee H. Rogers will present an illustrated slide lecture on the history of Washington, DC, theaters utilizing images from the Robert A. Truax collection. Sponsored by the Staff of the Washingtoniana Division and the Washington Star Collection, Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library, Room #307901, G Street, NW, 727.1213.

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Graduate/Professional School Workshop for Interns, Hill Staffers and Others
Steve Goodman, steve@topcolleges.com 

If you are thinking about applying to graduate school, then you should attend Steve Goodman’s summer 2002 Capitol Hill workshop: Successful Strategies for Applying to Graduate School, The Capitol, Room HC-7, Friday, June 21, 2002, 11:30 a.m.-1:00 p.m., $10.

You will learn about how to make the most of your past accomplishments, how to create a winning admissions portfolio, and how to separate yourself from others in the applicant pool. We only offer this on the Hill once per summer, so don’t miss it. Please call 986-9431 or E-mail steve@topcolleges.com to reserve a space.

[This ad is reprinted from the last issue because the time and place were inadvertently omitted. — Gary Imhoff]

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Democrats of a New Generation
Amber Nightingale, anightingale73@hotmail.com 

Does the anti-worker, antifamily, anti-environmental agenda being pushed by the Bush Administration and the conservatives who control Congress got you down? You’re not alone. This agenda has angered hundreds of thousands of people across the United States, and they are speaking out and supporting candidates who will stand up to the Administration and the House Leadership. Gloria Totten, Executive Director of the Progressive Majority, will speak to DNG members about the Progressive Movement in America, the outlook for the 2002 mid-term elections, and what is at stake for the Democratic Party in November on Tuesday, June 25, 6:30 p.m., Democratic National Committee (DNC), 1st floor Board Room. The DNC is located at 430 South Capitol Street, SE. (Metro: Orange or Blue line to Capitol South)

This event is free. Please RSVP to membership@dngonline.org or call DNG, 907-9088 by June 24th. RSVP not necessary but appreciated. Democrats of a New Generation (DNG) is Washington’s premier networking group for young Democratic professionals. Composed of a diverse group of young Democrats, DNG members have the opportunity to learn about Washington's political culture through participation and contact with leaders in the political community. DNG is dedicated to developing our members professionally, serving our community, and opening a dialogue between members and established leaders of the Democratic Party. As an all-volunteer run organization, DNG works in collaboration with like-minded member organizations that represent an array of professional and political interests. Join today! We are seeking members who want to become active participants in DNG. Visit us online at http://www.dngonline.org

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2002 Congressional Baseball Game
Karen A. Szulgit, kaszulgit@ilsr.org 

Thursday, June 20th (game time 7:05 p.m., gates open 5:30 p.m.). Prince George's (Bowie Baysox) Stadium, Bowie, Maryland. Tickets $8. Available from Coach Sabo's Office (5-4755) or Coach

Oxley's Office (5-2676). Directions: From Capitol Hill, take Independence Avenue to 295 North. Take 295N to 50 East to US 301 South. The stadium is 1/2 mile south on US 301. Free bus service to and from the game, departing and returning to the Rayburn Horseshoe on South Capitol Street. First bus leaves at 5 p.m., last bus leave at 6:30 p.m. Buses leave for the Rayburn Horseshoe immediately after the game.

Tentative Roster: Democrat Roster, Martin Olav Sabo (MN), Manager; Joe Baca (CA), Brian Baird (WA), Sherrod Brown (OH), Lacy Clay (MO), Michael Doyle (PA), Tim Holden (PA), Jay Inslee (WA), William Jefferson (LA), Christopher John (LA), Mike McIntyre (NC), William Pascrell (NJ), Adam Smith (WA), Bart Stupak (MI), Mark Udall (CO), Mel Watt (NC), Anthony Weiner (NY). Republican Roster: Michael Oxley (OH), Manager; Joe Barton (TX), Kevin Brady (TX), Shelley Moore Capito (WV), Tom Davis (VA), Jeff Flake (AZ), Virgil Goode (VA), Melissa Hart (PA), Kenny Hulshof (MO), Ernest Istook (OK), Mark Kennedy (MN), Jack Kingston (GA), John McHugh (NY), Jim Nussle (IA), Chip Pickering (MS), Richard Pombo (CA), Adam Putnam (FL), Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (FL), Jim Ryun (KS), Bob Schaffer (CO), Pete Sessions (TX), John Shimkus (IL), Bill Shuster (PA), Chris Smith (NJ), John Sununu (NH), John Sweeney (NY), Todd Tiahrt (KS), James Walsh (NY), Zach Wamp (TN), Heather Wilson (NM), and Senator John Ensign (NV).

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CLASSIFIEDS — LOST AND FOUND

Found: Youth League Medal
Paul J. Fekete, pfekete@samuelsinternational.com 

In front of Janney School, gold medal on red, white and blue ribbon. Looks like it was awarded in one of the youth leagues in the area. Contact: Paul Fekete, 686-1759.

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CLASSIFIEDS — VOLUNTEERS

Need Your Help Saturday
Sarah B. Barnett, sarahbarnett1@starpower.net 

Hope you have a few hours free on Saturday, June 22. Pediatric AIDS/HIV Care, Inc., an after school facility located at 450 M Street, NW, is having a work day from noon to 3 p.m. The stairwell (five stories) has been primed as has the sitting room. We want to cover both areas with one coat of paint. (The second coat can be applied at our next work day, Saturday, July 27th.) If you'd rather not paint, Gerri Graves, the Executive Director, is always in need of help with research, writing grant proposals and/or other administrative tasks. The play room closets can be cleaned out and rearranged. The windows can be washed. Vacuuming from the art therapist's room down the stairs is a great upper body exercise! Less exercise and very helpful is vacuuming the play room, the class room, kitchen, administrative offices, etc. Our computer guru will be in the computer room and happy for any assistance. There are several groups of people (interns, junior high/high school students and others) who need to put in hours of volunteer time. Pediatric Care is a wonderful place to do just that on our work days. It is a 501(c)(3) organization. If you know others who need or want to volunteer their time, please bring them along on Saturday. We welcome new faces. The Executive Director delights in showing newcomers around, explaining what the staff is accomplishing. If you would like more information, please telephone Pediatric AIDS/HIV Care, Inc. at 347-5366.

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CLASSIFIEDS — PLEASE RECONTACT

Bike People
Sally Berk, sally@toad.net 

Would the people who live near the cathedral and who told me they want my two old bikes please contact me again.

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CLASSIFIEDS — FOR SALE

Key Strength Trainer 2000 Weight Bench, Bar, Mat and 255 LB, Weights
Kate Zimmer, kzimmer@resolv.org 

Key Strength Trainer 2000 Weight Bench, Bar, Mat and weights. Heavy duty oversized tubing. Sturdy no tip front and rear stabilizer. Scratch and chip resistant electrostatic finish. Comfortable high density foam pads. Weight bar safety hooks and retainer spring clips. Exercises: leg extension/curl, crunch, chest press. $200.00.

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Samsonite Garment Bag for Sale at $125
Paul Brown, pmb@his.com 

This is the top-of-the-line model from Samsonite's 700 Series, Silhouette 7 collection, featuring the "Soft Spin" wheels, a telescoping aluminum handle and a retractable strap to attach your laptop or briefcase. (A shoulder strap is also included.) It opens like a book and the huge interior (42 x 23 x 4) has lots of compartments and a spring-loaded rod that will accept any type of hanger. There are also giant zippered pockets on the outside of the bag. Indestructible black ballistic nylon exterior. This is a seriously heavy duty garment bag for the hard core road warrior who needs to carry lots of stuff. Used about three times, then I upgraded to a Halliburton Zero hard side. Luggage stores on the web offer this bag for $260. See: http://www.luggagesource.com/IBS/SimpleCat/Product/asp/product-id/316233.html. My price is less than half and I'll deliver it anywhere in the Washington Metro area. Sorry, not interested in shipping it.

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CLASSIFIEDS — HOUSING

Telecommuter’s Dream
Barbara Potter, BarbPotter@aol.com 

Tired of city living? Thinking about moving to the peace and quiet of the country? 4BR, 3BA brick home with view of the mountains near Charlottesville, VA. Easy access to airports and services. House is wired, has hot tub, garage and workshop, fabulous gardens and great, efficient space. Wired. Look at http://www.montaguemiller.com/php-bin/search/search.php?type=home&id=795 or call Barbara Potter at 540-832-3368.

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CLASSIFIEDS — SERVICES

Small, Minority, Women, and Veteran Owned Business Wanted
Theodore Swan, Jr., ahjgroup@earthlink.net 

The AHJ Group will assist your business in becoming certified to bid on government contracts with the federal, District, regional governments and Maryland state government. Our services include certification package development and submission. For information, contact The AHJ Group at 271-5522, Monday-Friday 11 a.m.-8 p.m.

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