Washington, Baby, DC
Dear Babes:
A long issue earns a short intro. Instead of writing myself, I'll
refer you to Eleanor Clift's web-only article on the Mayoral race at the
Newsweek site: http://ad.doubleclick.net/adi/newsweek.msnbc;kw=front;sz=200x105;ord=37486717604?.
Clift writes: “In Washington, how you handle an embarrassing incident
sometimes has more impact than the event itself. Williams’s
high-and-mighty reaction enraged voters more than his initial blunder.
Some of my neighbors who supported him four years ago are threatening to
stay home and not vote on Election Day. I, for one, have been toying
with writing in the mayor of my dreams — maybe Kofi Annan or Bruce
Springsteen.” And, “I’m afraid there is an ugly race ahead. Race
and poverty are so intertwined that to pull them apart is impossible. A
neighbor of mine said she hoped Williams concentrates on the wards in
the city 'where people can spell.' The whiter, wealthier wards will
support Williams; the downtrodden and poorer neighborhoods will back
Wilson, who is former mayor Barry’s minister.”
Sam Smith has added to his web site the full article comparing Marion
Barry and Tony Williams from which I quoted in the last issue of themail.
It is available at http://prorev.com/freedcx10.htm
and http://prorev.com/barryx.htm.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Spending on DC General Hospital
Carolyn Curtis, cabcurtis@aol.com
I would like to remind the community about the costs of privatizing
DC General Hospital. Base cost: $86,000. Capitol improvement loan to
Doctors Community Hospital: $11.8 million to build a trauma center and
to improve the neighborhood health centers. Twenty percent is forgiven
each year that the contract is in place, so that in five years the city
will have given away $11.8 million to Doctors Community. By the way,
August 31 will be the one-year anniversary of the date when the trauma
center was to have been completed. It still has not been done. Trauma
subsidy: $1.3 million each year to arrange for trauma services.
Emergency room subsidy: an additional $50 each time a patient is seen at
DC General Hospital emergency room and Greater Southeast emergency room.
Based on figures of ER visits at DC General Hospital alone, this is
approximately $5 million/year. Cost to Doctors Healthcare for rent of
the property, building, and equipment: $10/year.
Quality of care has taken a severe nosedive. If you visit the web
site for JCAHO, you will find that the accreditation visit done in
February gives Greater Southeast a conditional acceptance without any
rating attached. This requires additional surveillance and is down from
the 84 rating that GSECH had before. By the way, the 84 rating was the
lowest for any hospital in DC.
Ability to obtain health care for anyone who needs it is no longer
possible. Eligibility for the Health Care Alliance is equivalent to
eligibility for Medicaid. In other words, if you are a family of four
making $35,000, you are not eligible for health care through the Health
Care Alliance.
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It is illegal to have more than three campaign posters per block and
it is illegal to have more than one poster on a light or traffic post.
Candidates can have posters “back to back” but posters by the same
candidate on top of each other (thus denying space to other candidates)
are not legal. As a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Shadow
Senator, I was required to sign a pledge to adhere to the DC Municipal
Regulations (24 DCMR 108) governing campaign posters. I was glad to sign
this pledge to obey these regulations. These poster regulations can be
viewed on the Clean city web site, http://www.cleancity.gov.
Leslie Hotaling (Director of Public Works) and Vincent Spaulding
(Clean City Coordinator) sent a letter to all political candidates on
August 5 requesting “that you remove your posters not in compliance by
August 19, 2002.” The fine is $35.00 per poster for each infraction.
Let us hope that Ms. Hotaling, leslie.hotaling@dc.gov,
and Mr. Spaulding, vincent.spaulding@dc.gov,
(671-1403) rigorously enforce these regulations starting on August 19,
2002. We can help by sending E-mails to them and the scofflaw candidates
listing locations and names of candidates who are not adhering to the
regulations. All candidates promised to adhere to the campaign poster
laws when registering to run for office.
Candidates who violate the regulations should not be given an
advantage in our election process by not adhering to our campaign laws.
Ms. Hotaling and Mr. Spaulding must immediately start enforcement of
their letter that was sent to all candidates on August 5. This can be
done by immediately fining candidates $35.00 per sign who are in
violation of the campaign poster regulations.
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No Signs in the Hood
Dawn Dickerson, ddd668@aol.com
Rock Creek Park may be littered with campaign signs, but yet again
residents living in perceived low income neighborhoods have been written
off by local politicians. I live in the 200 block of Q Street, NW, (Ward
5) which I affectionately refer to as “the hood” and the only
campaign sign in my neighborhood is a sign for Eleanor Holmes Norton
that is sitting in the yard of a house in the 400 block of Q Street, NW.
I'm happy not being bombarded with all the campaign literature, but
just wanted to point out the divisiveness in the politics of the city.
It always seems that the opinions (votes) of folks living in upper
northwest always take precedence over the opinions of folks living in
perceived lower income neighborhoods. Guess what . . . I vote too! I'd
hate to see some of you lose the election because you didn't do enough
to include all potential voters in your reelection plans (Barry did get
that part right if nothing else).
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As for the campaign signs on Military Road with three on each pole, I
wrote about these the day after they were put up back on June 28. I
called the citywide telephone number and got a claim number. It has now
been almost two months. Blatant violations of campaign sign law, they're
still there. By the way, the light poles on North Capitol Street are
covered with them also; I called about them also, nothing done. Guess
we'll have to wait till after the election to see if they actually take
them down within the stated time frame.
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Clean City, My ***
John Whiteside, johnwhiteside at earthlink dot net
According to DC's Clean City Initiative, my street is “moderately
clean.” (You can check yours on the city web site.) I thought of that
today when I came home to discover that once again, recycling was not
picked up, the boxes that have been sitting in front of my house for two
weeks (broken down according to city regulations) are still there, and
I've got a purple bin full of crap that people have been tossing all day
to contend with. My solution? The whole bin is going in a big plastic
bag to be picked up next trash day (I hope) — if the city can't pick
up recycling, I'm not participating anymore.
As always, my street is covered with litter. No surprise — the city
won't bother to enforce truck restrictions (I suspect because it would
inconvenience those building the Convention Center to actually enforce
laws), traffic enforcement is a joke, walk signs are out all over the
neighborhood. Why would I expect to live on a street that's not covered
with trash? And this is in Logan Circle, one of the more affluent parts
of town; I shudder to think what must go on in poorer neighborhoods.
My question to those running for mayor is this: what will you change
about the delivery of these basic services, and why will it work better?
I won't vote for anyone who can't answer that question, and so far, not
a single candidate is even talking about it.
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Strauss for the Humdrum Job of Being a DC
Shadow Senator
Mark David Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
Perhaps it was the uneventful election season. I paid no attention to
a topic I followed like a bloodhound last year: Congressional
appropriations of DC's budget. This is the annual event you can count on
to witness exclusive legislative authority in action. DC's Senator Paul
Strauss is part of the DC shadow delegation that has the humdrum job of
leading DC down the yellow brick road to statehood. (He has a small
three lawyer shop that represents labor unions and tenant associations,
the Law Offices of Paul Strauss and Associates.) He filled me in. This
year, Strauss reports that the Senate version of DC's appropriations
bill “contains more federal dollars for DC and fewer home-rule
intrusions than in previous years.” Youthful Senator Many Landrieu, in
a tight race in Louisiana, proved to be DC's home rule friend for a
second year — with little to gain personally. As the daughter of a
former mayor of New Orleans, she is savvy and knowledgeable about
complex urban issues. Strauss reports that Democrats were united with
Senator Landrieu. Former Chair Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-TX) tried to
impose a spending restriction on attorney's fees related to the DCPS
budget. Mike DeWine (R-Ohio) took a pro-DC home rule opinion (thank you
Ohio — I'll be delighted to tell my friends in Cincinnati), as did
Senator Byrd (D-WV — kudos to the King of Appropriations who last year
took the opposite position). Thanks to principled Republicans and
Democrats, DC's budget emerged from the full Senate Appropriations
Committee on July 25 in better shape than in recent years. Specifically,
Strauss reported, there were no restrictions on the Corporation
Counsel's ability to use DC money in voting rights lawsuits, no AIDS
prevention/drug treatment/needle exchange restrictions, no Boystown
zoning intrusion, and no domestic partners restrictions. There is more
federal money for Charter schools, the DC Court, public interest lawyers
paid by DC Court who represent neglected children in the welfare system,
and for clean up of the Anacostia Waterfront.
In fact, one of the most prominent events for voteless DC in Congress
is the DC Appropriations bill. This is where most DC autonomy issues are
fought, using rhetorical and logical skills. Strauss communicates
regularly with Senators, mainly by meeting with staff and committee
staff. When he communicates formally, he gives written testimony which
is printed in the Congressional Record. He also provides information to
Members informally in the hearing rooms and hallways. The goal is to —
at minimum — protect the DC budget as approved by the mayor and
council, and attempt to get the federal government to contribute a fair
share of the cost DC pays to host it. Strauss praised Democratic
Senators Wellstone, Feingold, Lieberman, Durbin, Schumer, Landreiu, and
Republican Senators Thompson, DeWine, Specter, and Brownback for their
support.
Tactics needed in the DC Congressional shadow delegation involve
interpreting federal law, strategy and relationship-building, protest,
and sometimes civil disobedience. Strauss is a well-known figure at the
grassroots. He regularly attends events of DC's democracy advocates and
listens to them to find out what they care about. For example, he filed
an amicus curiae in the Adams v. Clinton case, and he supported
the DC Democracy Seven. His volunteer office, famous for the many
interns who gain experience while tracking legislative issues, pressed
staffers and members on the issues in team with the shadow delegation
and DC Delegate Eleanor Holmes Norton. She will soon lead the House
effort to improve on the Senate version and delineate the concept of DC
home rule. Strauss said that for his first term, he had to spend the
better part of it fighting with other DC officials and residents to
restore what home rule DC had before 1997. In the next term, Strauss
wants to continue to press for expanded rights. He is hopeful that the
national elections will result in a favorable climate. Senator Strauss
said he is now consumed with seeking reelection. He is hoping he doesn't
have to spend much in the campaign so he has more funds to finance the
office of the shadow senator. I would like to see the shadow offices
funded by the DC government, with public discussion of priorities and
coordination. However, there is a Congressional rider that is blocking
funding that would need to be removed in the House, and there is little
support for funding the shadow offices among DC's elected officials.
They apparently believe there is little support among the DC electorate.
In any case, Paul Strauss will get my vote to continue his work in the
Senate for another term.
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Do the Figures Lie?
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aol.com
The lively discussions about the merits (or otherwise) of red light
cameras is an ongoing debate. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety
(IIHS) has released study data that seems to confirm that there are far
fewer accidents in cities that employ red light cameras. Ah, but are the
liars figuring? The study by the IIHS includes accidents only in the
space between the cross walks. That ignores accidents, like rear ending,
which occur before the cross walks and in the spaces before the
intersection. Further analysis of data when these pre-intersection
approaches are included now show a marked increase in rear ending
collisions in cities with red light cameras that offset the benefits of
the cameras. So much for statistics. It seems the benefits of the
cameras do not flow to drivers but only to the companies that get a
share of the loot collected from the fines and the community collecting
the fines.
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As for Joan Eisenstodt's remembering the 311 number, it's not
necessarily a big help anyway. Last Sunday night my husband was taking
out our trash and recycling in preparation for our neighborhood's early
Monday morning pick up when he discovered a smashed cash register with
money in it (just lots of change, no bills) at the bottom of our bin. We
immediately called 311 to tell the police about it and to alert them
that the bin contents would be picked up early the next morning. A very
sullen woman responded to my husband's phone call and kept asking him,
“What do you want me to do about it?” Exasperated, my husband
finally explained that the register might be an indication that a crime
was committed and that it could be evidence that the police might need.
No go. So I then called our local police station. The officer I spoke to
thanked me for my call but said that he was not authorized to dispatch a
car to our house. He asked me to call 311 again and insist that I speak
to a supervisor and ask for a car to be dispatched. On the second call
to 311, I spoke to someone more helpful who volunteered that she would
have a crew dispatched to our house immediately. And she did; they
arrived within 10 minutes. However, the three phone calls took over
twenty minutes and left my husband and I supremely unimpressed with the
311 system.
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Why is it that even a simple thing such as sending the Election Guide
and I suppose checking on the validly of the list be fouled up? The
Board of Elections and Ethics sent a Guide that arrived on August 13 —
one day after the voter registration and change of address deadline of
August 12.
I wonder how many city employees live in PG country? That seems to be
part of the problem. Those that do live in PG County appear to look down
on city residents. I understand Congress won't allow a rule to make
people working in the city live here. (Another four years of Williams
will mean they could not afford to live in the city.) But why can't
Williams and friends tell us how many city employees live outside the
city along with a complete profile/census of city employees. What do
they have to hide? There is no reason why this can not be done! It
should be done!
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This Business About the Mayor
Alan Heymann, alan@alanheymann.com
I've been reading themail since I moved to the District a couple of
years ago, and I rarely speak up amid the anger, negativity and
pettiness that seem to pop up in your E-newsletter. Hell, if one were to
read only themail, one might wonder why people who live in what's
obviously the worst city in America spend so much time writing and
complaining about it, instead of packing their homes up and moving to
Montgomery County or Atlanta.
But this time I have to ask a question. You spend so much time
talking about what's wrong with the city, while very seldom proposing a
solution. Now you've succeeded in helping to get Mayor Williams thrown
off the ballot. I won't defend the actions of his staff or his
petition-gatherers, but I have to wonder: did you consider what the next
steps would be, if the mayor didn't make it on the ballot, or didn't get
elected?
Gary, who should be mayor, if not the man you spend so many E-mails
complaining about? Are you suggesting that you could do a better job
yourself, or that anyone could do a better job? If so, who is it? Or,
are you again just concerned with proving a point and being right,
regardless of the availability of a solution?
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For Better and For Worse
John Whiteside, john at earthlink dot net
Sam Smith rattles off a list of things that have gotten worse under
Williams. How is he measuring these things? He includes DMV, which in my
experience, has gotten so much better than it is miraculous, though it's
far from perfect; and the public schools, which are a mess, but at the
same time, haven't we seen test scores go up at a number of schools?
Those saying “things are better” or “things are worse” need to
tell us how they are measuring them. If it's just by their gut feelings,
chances are the determination is based more on whether you like Tony
Williams or not rather than any actual changes.
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A Bureaucracy Incapable of Improvement at the
DMV
Pete Ross, peteross@prodigy.net
As a candidate for the Democratic nomination for Shadow Senator, I
continue to campaign at the DMV inspection station on Half Street in
Southwest Washington. After my two letters to themail, Ms. Hobbs Newman
(Director of the DMV), Ms. Anjell Jacobs (Deputy Director of the DMV),
Mr. Fred Loney (Senior Manager at the Inspection Station), Mr. King
(Senior Supervisor at the Inspection Station), and several other
individuals agreed to meet with me at the DMV Inspection Station on
August 15. I made several recommendations, all of which were rejected as
being impossible to implement. For example, I suggested that there be a
telephone number that residents can call to find out how long is the
wait at the DMV Inspection station. They stated that this was not
possible. They then explained to me how residents can get scheduled
appointments to have their cars inspected at the DMV Inspection Station
without having to wait in line. I challenged someone from their upper
management to come with me to ask residents waiting in line to verify if
this procedure were being implemented. Suddenly, when I made this
request, nobody from the DMV management was willing to come out and take
a spontaneous survey with residents waiting in line to verify if the
procedures that they outlined to me were being implemented. They all had
urgent appointments.
Having campaigned at the DMV inspection station daily for several
weeks, I have learned that there are many good employees among the line
workers, but the complete upper management needs to replaced, starting
with Ms. Newman. For example, Ms. Newman never responded to a letter
from Councilmember Mendelson requesting clarification concerning
procedures for exchanging zone parking stickers. Government employees
who do not respond to letters from DC Councilmembers are out of touch
with the people that they serve and need to be replaced. Ms. Newman
responded to me in an E-mail that the reason that the inspection station
on West Virginia will not reopen for another year is because
"specialized equipment that we need cannot be built and delivered
quickly". Car dealers (there are a lot of them in the United
States) and all fifty of the other states have inspection and testing
stations that use similar equipment. I have spoken to several incumbent
candidates and asked them why don't they campaign at the inspection
station. They stated that they would be afraid of being blamed for the
problems at the inspection station. The long lines at the inspection
station should be a major campaign issue. This affects residents of all
wards. It is criminal that we do not have representation in Congress,
but it is just a criminal that we citizens of Washington are subjected
to three-hour waits (in 95 degree weather) at the DMV inspection
station, all because of poor planning and a DMV bureaucracy that is
incapable of making improvements.
I am organizing three rallies at the DMV Inspection Station. They
will be at 9:00 a.m. on August 21, 28, and September 4. I hope that I
will not be there by myself. It is time to make this a campaign issue.
How can we expect the Federal Government to respect us citizens of DC if
our local government treats us with such contempt at our own DMV
Inspection Station in the shadow of the United States Capitol Building?
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I agree [with Ed T. Barron], it is near to impossible for a citizen
to obtain methadone treatment in this city, however, I don't agree with
your suggestion "Forming a raid squad" as a start. The open
air drug markets are the end of the line, and these pawns will be
immediately replaced by the original source. Let's ask the police to
locate and attack the source!
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Illiteracy in the District: the Core Problem
Len Sullivan, lsnarpac@bellatlantic.net
Bill Haskett's concern for literacy in DC (themail, 8/14) based on
Courtland Milloy's recent article in the Washington Post, is a
valid one which we have addressed several different ways on our NARPAC
web site. The five levels of “functional literacy” were established
by the federal government in 1988, and the results of the first national
survey (1992) were published by the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL).
(visit http://www.narpac.org/PEI.HTM#literacy).
The gauges are more than just reading. For instance, at the lowest level
(Level 1), a person can “locate the expiration date info on his
driver's license,” but “can't locate two pieces of information in a
sports article.” Thirty-seven percent of DC residents were judged to
be at Level 1 and another 24 percent at Level 2. Only the state of
Mississippi was worse with 30/34. This has clear implications for DC's
electorate and workforce. Nationwide, Level 1 included 43 percent of all
below the poverty line and 70 percent of all prisoners, while 75 percent
of all food stamp recipients were at Level 1 or 2. The 2002 survey is
ongoing.
But we believe Haskett is right to say this can't be blamed just on
poverty: after all, the poor do not pay for their kids' education.
NARPAC concludes that poverty and illiteracy are both effects and that
the cause of both is the lack of education of the parent(s). There is
near perfect correlation between total household education level and
total household income across the US (with no distinctions for race),
and there is a high correlation between kids' performance in school and
poverty (i.e., lack of education) at home (visit http://www.narpac.org/PEPI.HTM).
Tragically, this is frequently a self-perpetuating cycle (not always, of
course). It has led to very high school dropout rates, high crime rates,
very high teen pregnancies (and more school dropouts), and a staggering
number (near 70 percent) of out-of-wedlock births . This often results
in several DC kids being raised by a single, functionally illiterate
mom, and they go on to repeat the cycle. (visit http://www.narpac.org/PERENTS.HTM).
While one can properly cluck about the lack of any adult education
program in the DC school system for many years, (i.e., no attempts to
“recall its defective products”), there is no way to hold the school
system responsible for the kids' home environment. Often the schools are
trying to produce a successful kid from “faulty input materials”
(excuse my crude parallels). The Williams administration clearly
understands this and is trying to improve schools and neighborhood
environment together. The real question is, where are the local leaders
that could better influence community sociological development, and why
are they trying to blame local government for their own neighborhood
failures?
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I grew up in DCPS, and while in elementary school at Ben W. Murch I
was the member of a singing group called the “Special City Singers.”
We only sang one song and it went a little something like this:
A special city needs special city, people like you and me
Who live together and work together in Washington, DC.
There were many other verses that I can't recollect. The song was
written by Ms. Cerline Rose and was performed at the District Building
for Mayor Barry (he didn't show up). Our performance included a big
finish where the twenty or so third graders proudly waved DC flags they
had hidden up their sleeves.
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A bit of levity, perhaps, to take all our minds off of the endless
controversies of DC politics (I've had
enough already). I've been following the thread about our city song
and can't help but be reminded of a very kitsch indy rock song about our
fair city. Appropriately enough, it's entitled “Washington DC,”
begins with a cheerleader-like spell-out, and is performed by a group
called the Magnetic Fields:
WASHINGTON, baby, DC!
WASHINGTON, baby, DC!
Washington, DC, it's paradise to me.
It's not because it is the grand old seat
of precious freedom and democracy, no no no.
It's not the greenery turning gold in fall,
the scenery circling the Mall.
It's just that's where my baby lives, that's all.
Washington, DC, it's the greatest place to be.
It's not the cherries everywhere in bloom.
It's not the way they put folks on the Moon, no no no.
It's not the spectacles and pageantry,
the thousand things you've got to see.
It's just that's where my baby waits for me.
WASHINGTON, baby, DC!
WASHINGTON, baby, DC!
Washington, DC, it fits me to a T.
It's not the people doing something real.
It's not the way the springtime makes you feel, no no no.
It ain't no famous name on a golden plaque
that makes me ride that railroad track.
It's my baby's kiss that keeps me coming back.
It's my baby's kiss that keeps me coming back.
No paeans to the monumental city here. And, despite nearly three
years in the UK, I still, and always will, come back.
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DC and Detroit Have Augustus Brevoort Woodward
in Common
Mark David Richards, Dupont East, mark@bisconti.com
According to an article by Vivian Baulch in The Detroit News, http://detnews.com/history/woodward/woodward.htm,
Chief Justice Augustus Brevoort Woodward, the first Chief Justice of the
territory of Michigan (and known in DC under the pen name of Epaminondas)
was described as “A wild theorist fit only to extract sunbeams from
cucumbers.” Woodward was a Virginian who moved to Washington City. He
was a friend of Thomas Jefferson. In DC, he argued against Congress
assuming exclusive legislative authority over DC and his description of
why (below) indicates that he was a man of foresight. He arrived from DC
to Detroit after a fire that destroyed the small settlement of about
2,000 in a territory of 8,000. Woodward had a small copy of the Peter
L'Enfant plan, which he used as a reference in rebuilding downtown
Detroit. Today, Woodward Avenue commemorates and testifies to his
influence. According to an article from the University of Michigan law
school, http://www.law.umich.edu/JournalsandOrgs/rg/111401/name.html,
his influence was greatest in the legal field. He is also credited as
“the man most responsible for the roots” of UM, which he called “Catholepistemiad,”
meaning “universal science.” Ironically, Congress gave Woodward
exclusive legislative authority in the territory ruled by an appointed
Governor and three appointed judges. Like in DC today, laws in the
Michigan territory were subject to Congressional veto. In one ruling,
Woodward declared that, because there was no treaty between the US and
Great Britain regarding the return of escaped slaves, any slave who
escaped across the river gained freedom in the US under the Northwest
Ordinance. Detroit became an important terminus of the Underground
Railroad. Woodward would likely be pleased to see the former territory a
state. I can only wonder what he would say about DC. Maybe he would
ungracious enough to say, “I warned you that your freedom was more
important than those tax breaks you keep hoping for!” I am not aware
of any tributes to Augustus Woodward in DC — but he should be
commemorated as part of DC's local history. Can anyone tell more about
Mr. Woodward and his time in DC?
Here is what he wrote under pen name in “Enquiries into the
Necessity or Expediency of Assuming Exclusive Legislation over The
District of Columbia” (1800): “The effect of an assumption then, is
to reduce us [DC] to that political situation, which Americans
deprecate; we are to be governed by laws, in the making of which, we
have no participation; we have no share in the state governments, of
which we have no reason to complain, for we are separated from them; but
we have no share in electing the members of congress, who are
exclusively to legislate for us. We are reduced to the mortifying
situation, of being subject to laws, made, or to be made, by we know not
whom; by agents, not of our choice, in no degree responsible to us, who
from their situation, and the circumstance of having other constituents
to serve, are not likely to be very tender of our rights, or very much
alive to our interests. We resort in vain to the constitution, for the
means of relief; from that instrument, we cannot hope to have our
situation ameliorated.”
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Ward One and At-Large Council Candidates Forum
Elizabeth McIntire, elizabeth@innercity.org
ANC 1A Invites you to attend Ward One and At-Large Council Candidates
Forum on Wednesday, August 21, at 7:00 p.m. at Columbia Heights Village
Community Room, 2900 14th Street, NW, (at Harvard). Bring your questions
and concerns . Moderated by Jerry Phillips, Public Affairs Director of
Clear Channel Radio, the first hour features Ward One Candidates Jim
Graham, Dee Hunter, Tony DePass, Hector Rodriguez, and Shelore Williams,
the second At Large Candidates Phil Mendelson, Al-Malik Farrakhan, Mahdi
M. Shabazz, Dwight Singleton, and Beverly Wilbourn. For further
information, call 588-7278 (ANC 1A voice mail).
################
Ward 6 Candidate Forum
Grier Mendel, GMendel@aarp.org
On Wednesday, August 21, at 11:00 a.m., AARP DC is offering one of
the few opportunities to compare the candidates in Ward 6, one of DC's
most competitive council races. Sharon Ambrose (D), Keith A. Perry (D),
and Jenefer Ellingston (Statehood-Green) will join the AARP DC Candidate
Forum at the Westminster Presbyterian Church, 400 I Street, SW. They
will be questioned by a panel of four AARP members about key concerns of
DC’s older voters: prescription drugs, predatory lending and nursing
home quality. Audience members also can ask questions as time permits.
###############
Meet and Greet Eugene Kinlow, At-Large DC
Council Candidate
Tonya Jackson, tonyajacksondc@hotmail.com
Please come out to a meet and greet for At-Large Council Independent
Candidate Eugene Kinlow at Mt. Pleasant’s Bella Roma Restaurant and
Bar (downstairs) on Tuesday, August 20, from 7:00 to 9:00 p.m. Eugene
Kinlow, Independent DC Council Candidate, currently serves as a trustee
to the University of the District of Columbia and is a former trustee of
the Committee of 100 on the Federal City. He was appointed by Mayor
Anthony Williams to the DC Commission for National and Community
Service, the Mayor’s Transit Oriented Development Taskforce, and is
currently a member of the Mayor’s Environmental Council.
Sponsored by the Coalition to Repair and Reopen Klingle Road, and
Friends of Cleveland Park, Mt. Pleasant, Crestwood, and Shepherd Park.
Questions? Contact Jeanne Ingram, 986-5710.
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Takoma Policing Meeting
Dodie Butler, dodie_b@yahoo.com
Violent crime on the streets radiating out from Takoma Metro does not
just hurt those of us who live in Takoma, DC. People from Lamond-Riggs,
Shepherd Park, Brightwood, Manor Park, and other DC neighborhoods either
walk home from the Metro, take buses from there or walk to cars parked
around Takoma, DC. Takoma Park, Maryland, residents are just as likely
to be hurt walking home as we are — in fact much of the crime in the
area has been moving back and cross the line constantly, as we all know.
A government-problem-solving meeting will be held on Monday night, 7
p.m., Takoma Baptist Church, Piney Branch and Aspen Streets NW.
Councilmember Adrian Fenty has taken the lead. DC Mayor Williams; Takoma
Park, MD, Mayor Kathy Porter; Fourth District Commander McCoy; Takoma,
MD., Police Chief Creamer; and other officials from Metro, DC government
and Maryland government will be there.
Katie Hill's family is setting up a fund to raise money to buy safety
equipment and lighting for all District of Columbia school yards,
starting with Takoma Elementary. If you can't come, but would like to
make a donation, make a check out to the Katie Lynn Hill Memorial Fund,
and send it c/o Plan Takoma, PO Box 60159, Washington, DC, 20039.
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Observe the anniversary of September 11 and the anthrax attacks with
an arts-based event for your school, community group, organization, or
business. Institute for Transformation Through the Arts is a consortium
of storytellers, visual artists, dancers, actors, musicians, writers,
and creative arts therapists who are trained to use the arts for
healing. We are pleased to offer creative arts healing events and
ceremonies for our community as we remember the events of September 11.
You can find suggestions for ways to observe this anniversary on our web
site: http://www.arts-for-life.org.
Click on “Arts for Life September 11 Events” on our home page. To
apply for an event for your group, call 667-3766 now or E-mail Dr.
Juliet Bruce at juliet@arts-for-life.org.
###############
On September 14th, join thousands of cyclists on a 14- or 36-mile
car-free bike tour of the monumental spaces, river fronts, and
neighborhoods of Washington, DC. Giant Food BikeDC is a fully supported,
family-friendly event open to riders of all abilities. Register by
August 23rd and receive a free Giant Food BikeDC T-shirt! The first
10,000 registration will be eligible to win a new bike from Specialized!
The sites you’ll see, 100 percent car-free! Potomac River front,
George Washington Memorial Parkway, Georgetown; White House; America’s
Main Street, Pennsylvania Avenue; US Capitol; Anacostia Park and River
front; National Mall; thousands of happy cyclists!
Proceeds from the tour go to support the advocacy efforts of the
Washington Area Bicyclist Association (WABA) and the National Capital
Area Food Bank. The nation's oldest and largest local advocacy group,
WABA has been working hard to make the Washington region a safer place
to ride since 1972. The National Capital Food Bank has been providing
critical services to individuals and families since 1982. For more
information and registration, or to volunteer for BikeDC, please visit http://www.waba.org.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — HOUSING
Winter House Swap, DC for Ireland
Cheryl Donahue, cdonahue@iol.ie
Looking to swap my house on the west coast of Ireland for house in DC
(prefer Capitol Hill) from late October 2002 through January 2003. My
house: warm, bright, modern, 3 bedroom, 2 1/2 bath, open fireplace, and
spectacular view looking back toward Dingle town over Dingle harbor,
with the mountains beyond. Completely separate office space with
high-speed Internet connection. Your house: comparable, high-speed
Internet connection a must, on Capitol Hill (preferred). Will consider
other neighborhoods such as Cleveland Park and Woodley (near Metro).
Perfect for writer or other mobile worker who wants to get away from it
all for awhile. Contact me at: cdonahue@iol.ie
for discussion.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — VOLUNTEERS
Chess for Children
Faith Williams, faithmw@yahoo.com
The Southeast Branch Library would like volunteer(s) to teach chess
to school age children after school. Call me at the library, 698-3374,
or at home, 362-0189.
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