Principles of Justice
Dear Suckers:
Amazingly, I was able to predict the future correctly, and the City
Council did pass a bill voiding parking and traffic tickets that are
more than five years old. Only Councilmembers Carol Schwartz and Jim
Graham spoke against the bill, and in the end only Councilmember
Schwartz voted against it. Given the disastrous state of the Department
of Motor Vehicle's records and the unlikelihood that people who are
presented with phony tickets against them would have proof dating years
or decades back that they paid a ticket or that the ticket was
dismissed, this was the only fair outcome. But Mayor Williams threatens
either to veto the bill or to exercise a pocket veto during the
Council's summer recess.
A general principle of Anglo-American jurisprudence was stated by
Blackstone as, “It is better that ten guilty persons escape than that
one innocent suffer.” But under the Williams administration, citizens
are presumed guilty, and its principle of fairness is that it is better
to force ten innocent people to pay fines they don't owe than to let one
guilty driver go free. Much better, because it means profits for the
city. Read Barbara Williamson's story below, and heed the advice that
she was given by DMV — it will be easier for you to pay a ticket you
don't owe than to get us to correct our records, so you may as well pay
up. Even more injustices are on the way — last week I heard that a
friend was denied reregistration on his leased Toyota because DMV
claimed that Toyota owed the District government money. Only the
intervention of a Councilmember forced DMV to allow him, as an
exception, to renew his registration. I assume that others who have
leased Toyotas will get the same run-around, since it seems to be the
luck of the draw whether drivers get a DMV clerk who believes that
individual DC drivers who lease cars are responsible for the claimed
debts of the companies from which they lease. Good luck to you.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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If there was any question as to why we continue to stay or near the
top of the murder-rate capital of America list, it should have all but
vanished last week with the MPD's announcement of lowering the murder
closure rate goal to 50.9 percent. I have taken a look at the closure
rate numbers of other cities in the US, and even a composite of the
eight largest cities (much larger cities than our own) closes about 53
percent of cases. Essentially Chief Ramsey is saying that we are
striving to be the worst in the nation, not only in murder rate (where
we have already established ourselves as one of the dubious elite), but
now in our ability to make arrests on those crimes. With crooks having
50-50 chance of getting away with it, it should come as no surprise that
our murder rate is already 26 percent higher this year than at the same
time last year.
Given a projected total of 250 murders this year, a closure rate of
50.9 percent would yield 127 closures. A more acceptable 65 percent,
which is still less than the nationwide average, would lead to about 162
arrests, or 35 more than the current plan. Perhaps if Mr. Ramsey were to
step out of Rock Creek for a few days to serve his own constituency, and
not the national media, he could help solve those additional cases
himself and save himself a lot more embarrassment. Thanks, Mr. Mayor,
for creating your scorecard, because it really does make it clear who is
doing their job, and who wants to just fudge the numbers.
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What’s Wrong with 100 Percent?
David Pansegrouw, dpansegrouw@atpco.net
What is wrong with aiming for 100 percent? I work in a production
environment in the private sector. Accuracy of 99 percent is just
meeting expectations here. Not much room for slipping up. Why shouldn't
100 percent be the goal for DMV or the police? Who says goals should be
easy? What about the people whose needs were not met? Who volunteers to
be the one who does not receive services despite paying taxes and being
up to date on all fees, etc.? Who finds it acceptable that the murder of
their family member is not solved? Don't rush to the front of the line.
As to Ramsey's declining “goals” for homicide closure — which
is not a measure of convictions but of cases closed -- simple math tells
me that there are a number of murderers walking around DC without a lot
of concern of ever being caught. That bothers me in general and very
specifically. My next door neighbor was murdered in his house and the
case has never been closed. A good friend of mine is permanently
bedridden, incapable of taking care of even his most basic needs
himself, as a result of someone who couldn't shoot straight enough to
kill him. Case is not closed and frankly I do not think the police have
ever had any real interest in closing that case.
Never mind the little inconveniences like when I was mugged (covered
with blood, emergency room) and no detective ever called, despite
assurances from the officers that responded, and three stolen cars all
found with little to absolutely no help from the MPD. Oh, but yeah, the
Chief is doing remarkable things and oh, by the way, let's give him a
bonus. Guess I should just lower my expectations, and get over it too.
Too bad my boss doesn't pay me that way!
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What the Mayor and Council Don’t Want You to
Know about the 2012 Olympic Bid
Scott McLarty, scottmclarty@hotmail.com
The Mayor's “One City” slogan is an example of something called
“the manufacture of consent” — engineered consensus in support of
the Williams agenda that he wants to see confirmed on Election Day.
Nowhere is that more urgent than in Hizzoner's promotion of DC's bid for
the 2012 Olympics, a scheme which has the support of the DC Chamber of
Commerce, Board of Trade, Federal City Council, and DC Council, not to
mention suburban chambers of commerce and city halls, http://dc2012.doceus.com/WhoWeAre/Who.html
— the region's business elite and their errand boys and girls in
public office. What about the rest of us? Do the citizens of DC deserve
to hear some public debate over the bid? Here in a nutshell is why some
of us have been protesting.
July's Grand Prix auto races at RFK Stadium are a dry run for the
Olympic bid's lack of accountability. The DC Sports and Entertainment
Commission and city officials forced the races on neighborhoods near the
Anacostia without a public hearing, without an environmental study, and
with no input sought from local residents about the noise and pollution
from racing cars or the traffic and crowds invading their streets. In
the same vein, Williams & Co. have kept DC residents in the dark
about the how the 2012 Olympics will affect DC's finances and quality of
life — who will lose, who will benefit. Sure, we'll get some public
hearings — after the bid is a done deal and all the contracts signed.
According to a May 31 Post editorial, the Sports and
Entertainment Commission “is virtually a law unto itself” and a
potential “monster,” adding that “the imperial Sports and
Entertainment Commission — thanks to pliant elected leaders — never
had it so good.” The US Olympic Committee is a private entity that
conducts all business in secret, ignores the public, and only speaks to
business elites in cities bidding for the games.
The layout of DC taxpayers' money for the Olympic bid will run well
into the billions, for new sports facilities, security, accommodations,
roads and parking lots, promotion, etc. A.D. Frazier, who led the
fundraising effort for Atlanta's successful 1996 bid, estimated in June
2000 that a bid for the 2012 Olympics “could cost $3 billion” in
public funds. According to the GAO, security for the Salt Lake City
winter games cost US taxpayers over $300 million. Meanwhile, we've
already seen the dismantling of DC General Hospital; closing of schools
and underfunded education (including recreation and athletics); ban on
the purchase of school supplies from March through September 2002; cuts
in public library hours. When the Mayor and Control Board destroyed DC
General in 2001, they opened up land for Olympic use (“City Unveils
Plan for DC General Site,” The Post, March 21). DC residential
areas will be leveled by construction for the Olympics, especially
middle and low-income neighborhoods. In Atlanta, an estimated 30,000
residents were evicted when 10,000 housing units were razed for the 1996
Olympics, including 4,000 public housing units. Charles Rutheiser,
author of Imagineering Atlanta, told The Village Voice
that the 1996 Olympics “allowed the downtown gentrification Atlanta
business leaders had long sought.” Anita Beaty, head of the Atlanta
Taskforce for the Homeless, said, “The developers use the Olympics as
the biggest development project they've ever had an opportunity to
engage in. And then it's a steamroller. It keeps rolling.”
No environmental impact study has been undertaken to determine the
likely effects of traffic, pollution and congestion, square miles of new
asphalt, run-off into the Anacostia, etc. that the Olympics will bring
to DC. According to the San Francisco Bay Guardian, “[t]he
Olympic Games have always been a bad thing for the region that hosts
them. They involve massive long-term changes to regional infrastructure
to accommodate a two-week influx of tourists and athletes.” Helen
Jefferson Lenskyj, author of Inside the Olympic Industry, claims
that “the whole agenda [of the Olympics] is dominated by
multinationals.” Here are some sites and articles for further
research:
“Athenian Dreams or Trojan Horse?” by Neil de Mause, The
Village Voice, December 13, 2000, http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0050/demause.php.
Inside the Olympic Industry: Power, Politics and Activism.
Book by Helen Jefferson Lenskyj, http://www.sunypress.edu/details.asp?id=60254.
“Stop the DC 2012 Olympic Bid!” Steve Donkin, DC Statehood Green
mayoral candidate, http://www.dcwatch.com/election2002/donkin06.htm.
The Best Olympics Ever? Social Impacts of Sydney 2000. Book by
Helen Jefferson Lenskyj, http://www.sunypress.edu/details.asp?id=60615.
“Hide Your Poor — the IOC's Coming!” The Village Voice, July
18, 2001, http://www.villagevoice.com/issues/0129/jockbeat.php.
“Sport and Corporate Environmentalism: The Case of the Sydney
Olympics” by Helen Jefferson Lenskyj, http://www.breadnotcircuses.org/sports%26environment.html.
“Ring Toss — How Olympic Insiders Betray the Public Trust” by
Andrew Jennings, http://www.breadnotcircuses.org/jennings.html.
Field of Schemes: How the Great Stadium Swindle Turns Public Money
into Private Profit. Book by Joanna Cagan and Neil De Mause, http://www.fieldofschemes.com.
###############
Open Letter to Tony Williams on DMV
Barbara Williamson, barbara131@prodigy.net
I am writing to advise that the latest enhancements to the District
of Columbia Department of Motor Vehicles are severely flawed. On Friday,
June 28, 2002, I embarked upon a maddening odyssey that borders on
insanity. I appeared at the Brentwood DMV to renew registrations for two
vehicles. I sat in the drive-through line for more than 45 minutes. When
I arrived at the service window, I provided the necessary documentation
— renewal applications, insurance information, etc. I was informed by
the attendant that my registrations could not be renewed because there
was an outstanding traffic violation in the system. He provided me with
a printout of the supposed infraction.
I immediately recognized the information as identical to a problem I
resolved over a year ago. Specifically, the citation I received was
issued to a Mazda (not my vehicle) bearing a license plate belonging to
my 1979 Benz. I advised the attendant that this error had been called to
the attention of Adjudication Services on K. Street, NE over a year ago.
At that time, I filled out the forms as requested and was advised that
the problem would be resolved. I heard nothing further from
Adjudication. Nonetheless, the attendant informed me that I should pull
my car out of line and go into another facility on the premises and
speak with a Ms. Palmer. I waited to see Ms. Palmer for about an hour
and 45 minutes. When I spoke to her about the problem, she told me that
I needed to file a Motion to Vacate a Default Judgment form with
Adjudication Services. Although I had done this a year ago, Ms. Palmer
advised that I needed to repeat the process. Along with the form to
Vacate Default Judgment, she provided me with a Registration Information
Request to take to Adjudication. She further advised that since my
registration would expire on June 30, 2002, it might be better to pay
the $45.00 fine and avoid the headaches, as there would be a “zoo”
at Adjudication as well as at the DMV facility on Monday. It was then
about 5:00 p.m. I left DMV Brentwood and went to Adjudication Services
since they are open until 7:00 p.m. rather than wait until Monday. Once
there, I provided the attendant with the documents Ms. Palmer had given
me. I received a printout containing the registration information and
was told that the problem would be resolved. I appeared at Brentwood DMV
on Saturday morning and was again advised that the citation remained in
the system and that Ms. Palmer would not be in until Monday. Monday
morning, I attempted to meet with Ms. Palmer, who had not yet arrived. I
spoke instead to her assistant. She remembered that I had been there on
Saturday. The assistant tried to get to the bottom of the situation, but
was told there was nothing they could do until the citation was removed
from the system.
I returned to Adjudication, this time speaking with a Ms. Fowler, the
Secretary to Ms. Claytor (Hearing Examiner). I explained to Ms. Fowler
the efforts I made to resolve the problem and gave her the paper work
that I had received. Ms. Fowler researched the problem via computer,
found the original citation, and verified that the citation did, indeed,
reference an incorrect license number. Ms. Fowler said to me that she
had taken the citation out of the system. With that, she told me I could
leave. I immediately proceeded to DMV Brentwood. When I arrived at the
service window (truly expecting the citation to be gone), I was told
again that the citation remained in the system. I returned to DMV
Brentwood and again met with Ms. Palmer. I apprised her of my efforts to
resolve the problem. Upon checking the system, Ms. Palmer found that the
problem remained unresolved. She reminded me that she had told me on
Friday that problems would persist and again insisted that I should pay
the fine and avoid all the frustration. I told her I would not. If the
ineptitude I experienced in dealing with this problem was representative
of what I could expect in future, I might never see the $45.00 again.
Now beyond wits end, I decided that I needed to get something from
Adjudication to verify that the problem was resolved. I asked Ms. Fowler
if I could get a printout of the information she found on the computer
or anything that would assist me in getting my registration renewed. At
this point, Ms. Fowler informed me that she couldn’t do that and that
Ms. Claytor would have to “call Lockheed.” “Who is Lockheed?,” I
asked. She told me that Lockheed was the company Ms. Claytor had to call
to get the citation out of the system. At this point, I was too
frustrated to believe and ceased all attempts to pursue the problem any
further.
You will notice that the word “again” appears many times
throughout this letter. This is deliberate! I want you to know how often
I had to repeat these futile processes. Effective government does not
operate in this manner. I would suggest that the watermark appearing on
DMV stationery, Drive to Excellence, be replaced with Drive to Insanity.
###############
Will the Real District Residents Please Stand
Up
Susan Ousley, Slousley@aol.com
A July 4 story says, “In the District, court officials now use
rolls of registered voters, registration lists of the Department of
Motor Vehicles, tax rolls from the Office of Tax and Revenue and some
lists of public assistance to assemble a master 'wheel' of potential
jurors.” And yet, “Of . . . 1,200 summonses, 569 were sent to
incorrect addresses. . . .”
If those addresses aren't correct, seems like getting jurors is not
the only problem here. Where did the bad addresses come from? What is
being done to keep those addressees from continuing to vote, carry DC
tags/plates, get inappropriate tax benefits, and receive unwarranted
public assistance?
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Angel from Montgomery and Don’t Write on Me
Mark David Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
Two articles in July 5-11 issue of City Paper got me to read:
“Angel from Montgomery,” and “Don't Write on Me.” The first, by
Mark Francis Cohen, is about Congresswoman Connie Morella's role on the
House Subcommittee on DC of the House Government Reform Committee, and
her history of a mostly non-interventionist policy regarding DC local
affairs. The second, by Mike Kanin, is about the Council measure to add
“No Taxation without Representation” to DC's flag until DC achieves
equal rights. Both articles are well written, and I enjoyed reading
them.
Cohen points out that Congresswoman Morella chose the position on
DC's oversight committee with hesitation. He says this is a sign that
her party has under rewarded her: “The fact that the eight-term
Morella runs the Government Reform D.C. subcommittee indicates how
little progress she's made up the congressional food chain.” She is
more of a Rockefeller Republican and does not affiliated with
conservative Republicans, who seem to send many DC residents into
frenzy. DC tends to get along with the Morella-style Republicans, and
has proven its ability to elect “Republicrats” (I think Colbert King
coined that term some years ago). Stand Up for Democracy's Anise Jenkins
points out that these oversight committees shouldn't exist in the first
place. Since we have these committees, I for one would like to know
significantly more about each member and the area that elected them. It
is time for DC's annual budget passing ritual in Congress. Sigh. Time to
get that budgetary autonomy bill passed.
Kanin makes an argument against adding words to the DC flag. He
argues that “putting the slogan on the flag would re-reveal the
District's passive-aggressive civic mind-set, which has brought us such
favorites as the control board. After a while, self-pity starts to sound
like self-congratulation: We're D.C., we get taxed, we get no vote, and
we are miserable.” He finds it whiny. Karin likes the current flag —
he and friends have it tattooed on their right forearms and like the
clean and simple design that says, “We are from Washington, DC.”
Karin associates the slogan with voting rights, and points out that if
we want statehood, “we need to respect our own assets. We need to show
people that there's more to this city than its lack of voting rights.
The District of Columbia has a past. An identity. A character, chiseled
out of swampland.” I like Karin's observation about and commitment to
DC's cultural identities (putting aside the fact that DC wasn't chiseled
out of swampland!). But I support adding carefully thought out words to
the DC flag — for socio-political and historical reasons. It is too
bizarre to fly General Washington's shield, over a District named in his
honor, which is denied the basic rights he led a war to win. When DC
adopted the flag, it was a good thing; it gave DC a symbol equal to
states. But now it needs to do more. I love the current design, and
Kanin may take comfort in the fact that the legislation will have a
provision that will change the flag back to its current honored design
as soon as DC achieves equal rights, so some day, his tattoo will be
current again (and meanwhile, it will be historic). DC has waited over
200 years to be admitted to this Union on a fair and equal basis. Adding
words will advance a discussion about DC's status. I know words on DC's
flag will make it more difficult to implement DC flag tattoos. I like
the idea of a DC flag tattoo and wonder where I can get one. My
suggestion is that we get some temporary rub on tattoos so people can
test out the DC flag tattoo idea for a few weeks before going for the
plunge. They would last longer than the stickers. Get ones with and
without words!
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In Case of a Semi-Emergency
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
Your best bet, evidently, in the case of a semi-emergency in DC is to
stick your thumb in your mouth, crawl under your bed, and get into a
fetal position. Despite seven phone calls to alert authorities in DC
early on Sunday morning and speaking to three live persons, I was
directed to call three numbers that did not answer and the crisis was
not resolved. The crisis was a large dying crow flopping around on the
ground on Butterworth Street, NW, as I made my early a.m. trek. The bird
was obviously near death and its demise might well be attributed to the
West Nile Virus.
My call to the local police was met with the suggestion that I call
the non-emergency police number. They referred me to Animal Control. At
Animal Control I was asked to call the Health Department. The number
they gave me was not a working number. Calls to the Health Dept. were
all answered via voice mail telling me what the office hours were and to
leave a message. Starting over I was connected to the Police Emergency
Command. They said they would contact Animal Control. Stay tuned for the
next edition of themail. I'll report on my Monday a.m. walk down
Butterworth to see if the crow has been picked up.
###############
Does anyone know how much under DC law your rent can be increased?
Trying to understand if the 30 percent increase letter I just received
is legal?
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I thought you would be interested to know that the set of
encyclopedias that I offered last week in themail to someone who could
use them went to the 5th grade class of Francesca Dixon at Mary Church
Terrell Elementary School. Terrell uses a classical curriculum that
includes Renaissance, English Revolution, and American Civil War
history, literature and art. I got four thoughtful responses and would
recommend that anyone who has high quality (even if dated) reference
books look around, because there are people who can find them good
homes.
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Statehood Party
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
In spite of the high heat and humidity, I watched the whole Palisades
Fourth of July Parade. Every candidate running for office this year was
in the parade along with every imaginable group (except the Scottish
Israelite Society, notable by its absence). Every marching unit, save
one, received polite applause, and sometimes, as when Tony Williams
marched by, a real roaring ovation. The one unit that went by in total
silence was the DC Statehood group carrying a large DC Flag. No one
applauded. In fact, there were not enough folks in the Statehood group
to carry the large flag, and one side of the flag was dragging on the
ground. There's a real message here, folks. No one at the parade wants
DC to be a State.
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Emergency Services Moola
Paul Williams, pkelseww@aol.com
David Sobelsohn wrote about being billed for EMT services directly,
and if it was usual. I think its the norm. As the human that was hit by
lightening last summer, I have lots of new found experience with EMTs
and the such. Not only did my EMT service charge me to drive me in an
ambulance to a waiting helicopter, but the helicopter service charged me
for the flight, and for actual miles flown, if you can believe it.
Shortly after my discharge, I was sent over two dozen bills from
different EMT services and hospital departments. The rudest one I think
was from a Cablevision billing service, which tried to collect a $2.80
per day for my hospital TV; I got out of that one by explaining that not
many patients are watching soaps in the ICU. With all that said, the EMT
personnel are credited with saving my life, so if I need to pay for a
while on outstanding bills, then its a small sacrifice to make. I'm
lucky I live in a country where I can have an ambulance with qualified
personnel that can rescue me at a moments notice!
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Reply to Question on Ambulance Service Billing
Erik S. Gaull, egaull@starpower.net
As a Nationally Registered Paramedic with years of experience on a
national and international level consulting on the operations of
Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems, I can assure you that it is
entirely normal that a jurisdiction send a bill for care rendered by an
EMS unit. If the charges are only $300, then DC is billing substantially
below what many other jurisdictions charge. Of course, the charge should
depend on the level of service you receive. Advanced Life Support (i.e.,
paramedic-level care) can be as high as $750 in some areas; Basic Life
Support (i.e., basic care rendered by emergency medical technicians)
should run less than $500 in most areas.
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As long as candidates don't use too many signs, what's the problem
with putting campaign posters up? It's part of democracy in DC —
getting your name out to the voters. Campaigns have an incentive not to
flood the streets with posters and to remove them after the election
because they're accountable to the voters (and may be again in the
future) whereas commercial advertisers have little incentive to care. I
guess Dwight Singleton is the exception to this rule; he put up an
obscene and illegal amount of signs on Military Road in Rock Creek Park.
The signs aren't litter and aren't meant to offend; just keep an eye
on them. If someone is putting up too many or doesn't take them down,
report them. Otherwise, just be happy that people are willing to run for
office to represent you.
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Following Simple Instructions
Phil Carney, philnopus@erols.com
The DC Board of Elections provides simple instructions to every
District political candidate about DC laws for posting political posters
in DC public space. By following these regulations, you will ensure that
your campaign signs will serve their intended purpose as civic reminders
of the importance of exercising the right to vote rather than as
unfortunate signs of environmental blight and potential litter.
The easiest violation to spot is the law that requires no more than
three campaign posters per one side of a block. (DCMR Title 24 108.10 No
more than three versions or copies of each sign, advertisement, or
poster shall be affixed on one side of a street within one block.) I
suggest that we start an ongoing feature in themail to continue until
all campaign posters have been removed after the election, probably
sometime in 2003. Let’s have two categories: 1) Too dumb to follow
simple instructions, too dumb to be elected — for candidates who are
too dumb or too disrespectful to follow simple instructions and comply
with DC laws. 2) Competency count for DC Government — to tally the
number of $35.00 tickets for each illegal campaign poster written
against our political candidate law breakers by DPW.
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Board of Elections and Ethics Responds
William O'Field, Public Information Officer, DC Board of
Elections and Ethics, wofield@dcboee.org
In the June 24th issue, Mr. Ed T. Barron wrote that, when he recently
called the DC Board of Elections and Ethics to find out how to change
his voter registration, he was unfortunately told that he is “not a
registered voter in the computer of the Board of Elections.” The
Board's representative who received his call made a mistake. He is on
the voter roll and has been for several years. We are very sorry for the
error. I encourage all voters who have questions about their voter
registration or about the September 10 Primary and the November 5
General Elections to call the Board at 727-2525.
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Excuse me, although it has been a few years since I've passed that
way, I don't believe that there is a statue of George Washington at the
juncture of Massachusetts and Nebraska in front of American University.
It should be General Artemas Ward for whom Ward Circle was named.
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General in the Circle
Jerry A. McCoy, Washingtoniana Division, sshistory@yahoo.com
Mr. Leonard is confused. That is not George Washington in “Ward
Circle” at the intersection of Massachusetts and Nebraska Avenues, but
Artemas Ward (1727-1800), the first commander in chief of the American
revolutionary army during the battles of Lexington, Concord, and Bunker
Hill in 1775 (George Washington did not take over until a few months
later, in July).
###############
As a proud 1998 graduate of American University, I can tell you with
certainty that the statue in Ward Circle next to AU's campus is Artemas
Ward, not George Washington, as Bill Leonard stated in the June 30
edition. (Ward is well-known on campus: AU's yearly carnival is known as
Artemas Ward Weekend, and the large classroom building adjacent to the
intersection is the Ward Circle Building.)
Ward, who led the Massachusetts forces against the British at the
beginning of the Revolutionary War, might be a lot more famous today but
for a quirk of history. Both he and George Washington were among the
nominees to become commander-in-chief of the Continental Army, a
position to which Washington was ultimately named by the Continental
Congress. Ward became the highest-ranking soldier under Washington, and
later served in both the Continental and federal Congresses. He died in
1800. If things had turned out differently, tourists might today be
visiting the Wardton Monument in Wardton, DC, and wondering just why
some guy named George Washington merited a statue at the top of
Massachusetts Avenue.
I got details on Ward's life at the following web sites: http://www.multied.com/Bio/RevoltBIOS/WardArtemas.html
and http://members.aol.com/tnsor/generals.htm.
###############
The outdoor sculpture at Ward Circle is not of George Washington. It
represents General Artemas Ward (1727-1800), an officer in the French
and Indian Wars who went on to become governor of Massachusetts. In
1775, he resigned as governor and became commander of the Massachusetts
troops leading them in the siege of British-held Boston during the
Revolutionary War. He was later made a major general by George
Washington, but due to poor health he resigned his commission and took
part in Massachusetts politics. He served in the Continental Congress
and later the national Congress.
Sculpted by Leonard Crunelle (1872-1944) and dedicated November 3,
1938, the sculpture was funded in 1927 by a gift of $50,000 from a
Harvard alumnus. Because the price of bronze rose so dramatically just
before World War II, sufficient funds were not available to make a much
larger equestrian memorial. Ward Circle was specially constructed for
the sculpture. More information about the sculpture can be found at http://www.siris.si.edu.
Click on “art inventories / search” and type in “Crunell,
Leonard” (but without quotes) in the “Enter Keyword Terms.” The
Ward sculpture is the second item.
[Wendy Stengel, wendywoowho@yahoo.com,
also contributed this information, and Bill Leonard, bl43a@nih.gov,
gave references to two web biographies of Ward at http://www3.bc.sympatico.ca/robertkline/gen-ward.html
and http://bioguide.congress.gov/scripts/biodisplay.pl?index=W000127.
Thanks to everyone for this clarification. I admit to my further
confusion — I always thought that Ward Circle was named for Artemus
Ward, the humorist and satirical writer, not Artemas Ward the general.
— Gary Imhoff]
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Parents, Parsons, and Playing Fields
Len Sullivan, lsnarpac@bellatlantic.net
Does the future of our city depend on the current mix of DC's
parents? Is DC getting further out of line with the regional playing
field? Is religion getting too political at the expense of its own role
in urban life? What brought the 1979 Killer Rabbit back to mind?
NARPAC's answers can be found in the July update of its web site at http://www.narpac.org/INTHOM.HTM.
Liven up. Be part of the solution. Get positively involved.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Baltimore/Matanzas Sister City Events
Timi Gerson, tgerson@citizen.org
These are Baltimore events, but worth the trip if you're in DC. 1)
The Baltimore-Matanzas Sister City Association, Maryland-Cuba Friendship
Coalition, Howard County Friends of Latin America, and the First
Unitarian Church invite you a Cuban dinner in honor of the 13th Pastors
for Peace caravan to Cuba. Sunday, July 7, 7 p.m., First Unitarian
Church Hall, Charles and Hamilton Streets, downtown Baltimore. $12
donation for members of above orgs, $15 non-members. Membership
opportunities will be available at the door. Info: 410-366-8818,
410-381-4899.
2) The Baltimore-Matanzas SCA Summer fund raiser: A Night in Matanzas
at the Latin Palace, 509 South Broadway, Fells Point. Dinner, dancing,
door prizes, and mojitos. Sunday, August 11, 5:30 to 10:00 p.m. $30 per
person payable in advance to Baltimore-Matanzas Sister City Association,
PO Box 33231, Waverly Station, Baltimore, MD 21218. Tickets mailed with
SASE. Info: 410-366-8818, 410-233-2749, http://www.baltimore-matanzas.org.
This is our major summer fund raiser, so come out and support cultural,
educational, and artistic exchanges between our two cities. It's People
. . . Not Politics, hon.
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Happy Hour Benefit Announcement for
dcbaseball.org
Erin K Barlow, BarlowE@GAO.GOV
As a part of the Summer Happy Hour drive for dcbaseball.org -- we are
having the a Happy Hour Benefit at the Rock, 717 6th Street, NW (6th and
G), July 18th, 5 p.m. to whenever. Live music from the funk band DOS and
The Comptroller General. Dave Walker will be attending and has donated a
"lunch with the CG" as one of the raffle prizes. Other prizes
include yoga membership, massage, dinner certificates and more. The Rock
has also generously donated the first keg of beer.
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CLASSIFIEDS — FOR SALE
1996 Ford Aspire, 5 speed, metallic blue, 43,000 miles, in great
condition. Perfect student car. All maintenance records available. Only
$2,500. Call 364-5809, ask for Beatrice.
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CLASSIFIEDS — SERVICES
Need Help With Your Computer Needs At Home Or
In The Office?
Nick Chang, nick@embassy.org
PC hardware/software installation and upgrades; maintenance,
troubleshooting and network support; Back-up and archive your files and
E-mail on CD-ROM; setup computer network for the small office; build
customized database in Access or other programs; web training and web
page development; Reasonable rates. Excellent references. Contact nick@embassy.org
or 237-0130.
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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
Lacrosse Team Wanted
Patricia Chittams, pchittams@yahoo.com
I have a teenaged son who really, really, wants to continue playing
Lacrosse. However, there are no Lacrosse teams with DCPS (not counting
the one women's team at Wilson), and I know of no local team that he
could play with. Does anyone know of any team he could play with? Does
anyone want to start a Lacrosse Team? Any suggestions would be helpful.
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I'm looking for a fencing contractor that does good quality work to
replace about 32 feet of cedar fence and a gate (so a pretty small job).
The fence we currently have was put up by one of the big companies in
the area and the workmanship isn't great. Can anybody recommend someone?
Please respond to the E-mail address above.
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