Polite Young Men and Women
Dear Polite People:
The last issue of themail was blocked from delivery to DC government
addresses because of "sexual discrimination," and from
delivery to World Bank addresses because of forbidden language.
Dagnabbit, I've searched throughout that entire gol' dern issue, and
can't find a single gosh darn word that should offend the delicate
sensibilities of DC government employees. Ideas that would offend some
of them, possibly; facts that would affront them, certainly; but not
language.
Ah well, maybe there are hidden meanings that I've missed because of
my coarsened sensibilities. But I am not so dulled that I cannot still
be insulted by E-mail. For example, the E-mail that Dorothy discusses
below from Christia Alou, encouraging Latin American embassies and
organizations that get grants from the Office of Latino Affairs to lobby
the City Council on behalf of Chief Ramsey's pay raise. That insults me.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
###############
A young man gave he his seat on Metro the other day. I write because
this has become so unusual. Gray-haired, and suffering dizziness as an
aftereffect of an inner ear infection, I was extremely grateful and told
him so. When I left the train, I let him know I was going so he could
sit down again. I thanked him once more for giving me his seat. To which
he replied: “My mother would never have forgiven me if I hadn't!”
Thank goodness for mothers and for polite young men!
###############
The New DC Flag Is Ridiculous
Wynn Wagen, w-wagen@lycos.com
So, we now all have to live under the motto “No Taxation Without
Representation.” Wasn't it enough to put it on license plates? At
least they were voluntary. Now we have to appear to endorse a narrow,
vote-getting agenda which is little more that a self-promotion campaign
by local senior Democratic officials.
If we ever get to vote in federal elections, it will be as Columbia
County, Maryland. They will never make us a state, but they just might
listen to the motto and retrocede the current DC to Maryland, just like
they did Arlington, DC, to Virginia 150 years ago. While we would get
the vote, we would certainly lose our distinctiveness, except from an
historical perspective.
###############
Over the past week, the Williams administration has organized
aggressive public relations campaigns and lobbying efforts regarding
several of its initiatives. First, to promote the Mayor's scheme for
public financing of a new baseball stadium for the Washington Baseball
Club, a downtown block party was held on 8th Street on June 9. The event
was sponsored jointly by the Washington Baseball Club and the DC Office
of Planning and Economic Development, and organized by Max Brown. Brown,
the former general counsel to Mayor Williams, has been hired by the
Washington Baseball Club as its lead lobbyist and public relations
flack. At the block party, at least forty percent of the attendees were
DC government employees, most from the Executive Office of the Mayor,
who had been ordered to attend; another forty percent were non-DC
residents; and the remaining attendees were DC business and tourist
officials — and Little League and student baseball players who were
transported to the event by their Recreation Department and DCPS
coaches. Attendees were asked to sign a postcard to the Council and call
Councilmembers in support the Mayor's financing plan, and to testify at
the Council hearing on June 12.
Second, to promote his goal of attracting 100,000 new residents to
DC, on Wednesday Williams launched a new PR initiative, “City Living,
DC Style,” at an after-work event in Farragut Square. The city has
hired the TCI Company, introduced as having worked on the Bush
Inauguration, to run the campaign, which will cost $400,000 to $500,000
this year. The “City Living” initiative is aimed at higher-income
singles and childless couples, who are expected to put fewer demands on
city services than families. Third, after meeting with Education
Secretary Paige and other Bush administration officials, Williams has
begun his public relations campaign to explain his position supporting
vouchers. Last week, the Mayor's cable television channel aired an
hour-long and far from spontaneous chat on the voucher issue between the
mayor and a group of handpicked DC residents.
Fourth, and finally, in an effort to secure Council approval of a new
contract and salary increase for Police Chief Ramsey, the Mayor's office
has turned to the District's Office of Latino Affairs. On Friday,
Christia Alou, the Acting Director of OLA, sent an E-mail (http://www.dcwatch.com/police/030613.htm)
to civic organizations that receive grants from her office and to
embassies from Latin American countries, giving them misinformation
about Chief Ramsey's contract, asking them to lobby Councilmembers in
support of the pay raise and testify in support of it, and asking them
to report to her about the lobbying that they had done: “Chief Charles
Ramsey's employment contract being renewed with the pay increase [sic].
From what I understand, the Chief's salary will be increase [sic] to
more than $200,000 [sic] annually, from the low $100,000 [sic] that it
is presently. Chief Ramsey has been doing an excellent job, and we want
to keep him in the District. The salary increase will not be unusually
high for other jurisdictions, but it is a significant increase that City
Council is now challenging. We want Latinos to come forward in support
of Chief Ramsey and his employment contract renewal for the Tuesday,
June 17, 2003 hearing before City Council. . . .”
###############
The DC government continues to expand its control into every
non-governmental aspect of our lives, including the management of trees
in private yards. What law applies to this? On Sunday, June 1, a tree on
a neighboring rental property fell into several yards. There was damage
to fences, and our properties incurred many other damages and expenses.
The Ruppert Real Estate Company, which manages the rental property,
informed me that this is my problem, not theirs. When I called the DC
Government they wanted to know if the property owner of the fallen tree
had an application pending for removal of the tree. Based on the
condition of the yard and house, I would doubt that. Does any one have a
clue on how these matters are to be handled, other than my making a
claim on my two-week-old home owners insurance policy, and probably
losing my coverage?
###############
Cell Phones and Cab Drivers
Tim Cline, Columbia Heights, timandann at aol dot com
Taxis in New York City contain a card that outlines a passenger's
bill of rights. One item I recall on the list is that a driver is not to
use a cell phone while transporting a paying customer (except for
emergency). Last week, I hailed a cab on Connecticut Ave. to go home in
Columbia Heights. The driver was on the phone when he picked me up and
stayed on the phone the entire time. At the end of the ride, I asked him
if her could get off the phone long enough to tell me what the fare was
— he said, “Six dollars and get the hell out of my cab, I can talk
to whoever I want.” He did not get a tip. Does anyone know if there
are any rules in DC about cabbies using cell phones while they are
carrying fares? Seems sort of dangerous to talk and drive in city
traffic.
###############
Chief Ramsey’s E-Mail
John Whiteside, johnwhiteside at earthlink dot net
Does anyone have an actual E-mail address for MPD Chief Ramsey or the
Mayor? The city's nearly citizen proof web site does a good job of
making it hard to actually contact government officials. I would like to
send an E-mail, not fill in a form which often generates an error and
loses the message you just wrote. These guys must have E-mail, even if
someone else is screening it; it's a shame that they seem to be opposed
to making it easy for citizens to contact them.
###############
How Far We Have Fallen
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aoldotcom
The exhibits and memorabilia at the new City of Washington Museum (in
the old Carnegie Library) are well worth a visit. How interesting to
learn that, at one time, the public schools in DC were considered a
model for the nation's schools. The DC schools, then, were cranking out
very well educated and motivated students. Today, the overall picture is
very bleak. That is not to say that there are not some very good public
schools in the District. There are some fine schools and some fine
teachers.
I take my two grandgals to Key Elementary in NW DC twice each week.
The atmosphere at that school is positively electrifying. Kids bound up
the path and stairs rushing to get to their classrooms. No, they are not
late, they are actually early. At the end of the day the younger kids
rush up to give their teacher a big hug before they go home. When
classes put on a play you can be assured that at least one parent
(generally in go-to-work clothes) for every student will be there. When
the parents run a fair, or other event, the place is packed with both
parents and kids. This is the way it should be in all of the city's
schools. It takes parental interest and participation in the educational
process. That's a big motivator for both the students and the teachers.
How far we have fallen.
###############
After thirty-two years of reading the Metro Section of the Washington
Post, I've decided that the best way to elect officials of the DC
government, and appoint the heads of agencies, is to make sure all are
vetted — making sure that they are all liars, cheaters, greedy,
mendacious, and are basically dishonest. This would eliminate all
discrimination, law suits, and millions of dollars paid to those who
have made a killing, due to terminations of their contracts for the
above. Let's have elections and appointments by the Mayor that are
honest about the dishonesty of the DC government.
###############
Shepherd of a Black Sheep Herd
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aoldotcom
With all the black sheep in Mayor Williams' administration he has
become merely a shepherd wandering around wherever his flock wants to
go. Colbert King, in his comment in Saturday's Post (“The
Incredible Shrinking Mayor,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A57364-2003Jun13.html),
mistakenly refers to Mayor Williams as a Leader. Sorry, Tony, but you
never have been, and never will be, a leader. A real leader get folks to
make things happen that he wants to happen. Nobody follows through on
what Williams says he wants to see happen. A real leader, one who wants
to change the behavior of the city employees, would involve them in
setting the mission and supporting goals for the city and then hold them
accountable for accomplishing all the goals and achieving the mission. I
would expect the mayor to have a much higher pitched voice. He,
obviously, lacks something downstairs.
###############
Streets Near the Capitol
Gabe Goldberg, gabe@gabegold.com
I attended a noon meeting Friday in the Rayburn Building near the
Capitol. I was surprised and inconvenienced by how many streets are
closed, with guards, barriers — permanent or hydraulic — and
rerouted traffic. The area is a large pedestrian and permit-only parking
zone. Of course traffic lights and street signs haven't been updated to
reflect the changes, since the Feds close streets and DC would have to
deal with signage. And perhaps there's hope that at least some streets
will reopen.
The icing on the cake was a fat cop — couldn't tell wither DC,
Capitol, whatever — blowing a whistle at people, telling them that
they'd get tickets for crossing against a red light. Of course, he was
doing that at an intersection where at least two of the four streets
were closed, so there was borderline zero traffic. Yet he made crowds of
people dutifully wait for the green light and walk sign. Maybe they were
filming Candid Camera or maybe he's like the traffic lights, been on
duty since before 9/11, and nobody reprogrammed him to reflect the
street closings.
###############
Does anyone know what's up with the Zoo tunnel bypass trail? It seems
never to be open any more. Every time I try to jog by there, even when
I'm well within the posted hours, it's closed. Beyond that, why should
it ever be closed? This is a real nuisance. Keeping that section of
trail open would be a great boon for safety (not to mention not sucking
tailpipe for 500 yards), and it's hard to understand what the rationale
for limiting its hours of operation in the first place are. Anyone in
the know?
###############
What Is a DC DOT Emergency?
Sharon Cochran, secochran@aol.com
Yesterday, I saw a DC DOT truck with flashing emergency lights and a
siren, (like the police) blast through a red light on Pennsylvania
Avenue, SE. It was during rush hour, so several cars had to run the red
light to let him through. It is one of the intersections with a camera,
so it may be an interesting scenario, for the car drivers to explain to
the hearing officer that they had to run the light for a DOT emergency.
Why kind of DOT emergency would warrant the use of emergency lights and
sirens? Who decides who can have emergency lights and sirens?
May I suggest that all DC social workers be given emergency lights
and sirens too?
###############
New AARP DC Nursing Home Guide
Grier Mendel, gmendel@aarp.org
One of AARP DC's highest priorities is ensuring quality care for
residents of District nursing homes. This past year, the association
reached out to AARP members and volunteers, nursing home residents and
their family members, nursing home providers, religious leaders and
other organizations to explore how to improve care. One suggestion that
arose time and time again, was to develop a clear, practical care guide
for individuals who live in nursing homes. In response, AARP DC has
released “Getting Good Care in DC Nursing Homes: A Guide for Families,
Friends and Volunteers.”
This guide was designed to help anyone who cares about a resident of
a DC nursing home understand the rights of residents in nursing homes
and the laws that protect them; recognize common care problems and ways
to prevent them; learn how to be an effective advocate; and identify
ways of getting help with problems. To order a single copy, please call
1-800-424-3410, ask for publications, and give them the code D17845. For
multiple copies, please call Vanessa Woodard-Kinard at 434-7701 or
E-mail her at dcaarp@aarp.org.
###############
ANC, Police, and Ward Boundaries
Michael Bindner, mikeybdc at yahoo
Part of the difficulty in getting good DC government is that the
wards are too large, the Councilmembers too few and the drive for
unanimity on the Council too great. I suggest doubling the number of
wards to sixteen, electing three members from each ward, with only two
of these from any one party, and aligning ANC boundaries and executive
functions along these boundaries. Additionally, to create real factions
and real debate on the Council, its chair could be elected by the
Councilmembers from among the five at-large members. This would result
in real debate with strong minority parties from both the left and
right, discernible factions in the majority party and the dawn of real
oversight.
###############
Chief Ramsey and the Mount Pleasant ANC
Jack McKay, jack.mckay@verizon.net
On June 4 the Mount Pleasant ANC voted 5 to 1 for a resolution
calling for City Council to withhold Chief Ramsey's pay raise and to
instruct him as to “how police performance must improve.” My
dissenting vote was not a statement of support for Ramsey, but was due
to substantial flaws in the resolution. (Please note: I speak only for
myself, not for the Mount Pleasant ANC.)
First, the resolution blames Ramsey for increasing crime rates:
"violent crime has increased in the District of Columbia since
Chief Ramsey was sworn in in 1998, [and] robbery rates are at the worst
levels since 1997." This implies that the MPD and the Chief have
significant control over crime rates, whereas in truth crime rates are
driven primarily by social and economic factors. Unemployment is up, and
so is crime. Note that crime rates dropped sharply during Larry
Soulsby's tenure, but no one is calling for his return. Second, the
resolution asserts that "auto theft levels in Mount Pleasant remain
at the highest level of any other PSA in the Fourth District." The
statement is quite false, as one might expect when comparing Mount
Pleasant to, say, Columbia Heights and Park View. Aside from that, one
wonders if we should be content so long as other parts of the Fourth
District have higher auto theft rates. The statement is not only wrong,
but selfish. Third, the resolution notes that "approximately half
of those questioned in a recent police union poll expressed that MPDC is
'not very effective' at serving and protecting the community and that
its performance has declined under Chief Ramsey," suggesting that
this is evidence of mismanagement. It doesn't admit that only one MPD
officer in six responded to this survey, and this one-in-six sampling
was self-selected, not random. Nor does it explain that 48 percent of
the respondents thought that the MPDC was either “effective” or
“very effective,” and that 49 percent thought that MPD performance
was either unchanged or improved since Ramsey's arrival. Given the mixed
results, and the small, nonrandom sample of this survey, this poll
really tells us nothing.
As an ANC Commissioner, I believe that the grounds cited for a
resolution are important, and must be valid, or the resolution itself
fails. In this case, a number of the "whereas" assertions in
support of the Ramsey resolution are seriously flawed, and for that
reason I could not support this resolution. Concerning Chief Ramsey, I
really have no set opinion, but I will not be party to an attack on
Ramsey based on such invalid reasoning.
###############
Cops and Women of Dubious Moral Character
Bryce A. Suderow, streetstories@juno.com
I love Victoria McKernan's piece in themail (June 11 issue). I
shouldn't be surprised about cops running a strip club. Four or five
years ago, we had an attempted bank robbery here on Capitol Hill. It
took the cops eight to ten minutes to respond, yet their 1D1 station
house is three minutes away. It turns out that at the time of the
attempted robbery there were at least half a dozen cop cars lined up in
front of Capitol Video. The boys in blue were standing in line waiting
to have their picture taken with and autographed by former porn star
Vanessa Del Rio — for a fee of course. Loose Lips ran the story in his
column, it was aired on TV, and even the Post devoted a paragraph to
this story. The police conducted an investigation of the incident, but,
guess what? They could not find any of the cops involved except the two
that I fingered.
Numerous crack head homeless women have told me that cops have
threatened to arrest them if they don't perform sex with them. In fact
one cop, whom I shall not name tried to arrest a homeless woman for not
having sex with him. She wrestled him to the ground. When he tried to
pull out his mace, she took it away from him and tossed it in the
street. He tried to use his club but she disarmed him and tossed that in
the street too. She also took away his gun and handcuffs and threw them
in the street. Some cops seem to have an fatal attraction to strippers,
prostitutes, and crack whores.
###############
I just read your response to Mr. Fenty's Close To Home piece in the
Washington Post. It does appear that you are doing the best job you can
do. But as my dear mother used to tell us time and time again,
“sometimes your best just ain't good enough.” (Grammatically
incorrect but factually correct) Perhaps you need to ask the City
Council to give you the laws you need to protect us. If so, tell them
exactly what laws you need and ask them to introduce and pass this
legislation. In speaking with many of your Lieutenants and Captains in
the PSA meetings, inadequate laws are a major concern they often
express. The community will ask certain procedures of them and the
officers often respond by saying that the law does not permit them to do
so. Some officers stretch the limits of these limited laws and are
creative in dealing with street criminals, but they also fear the
negative reports that could affect their employment with MPD.
If you need more officers, ask, ask, and keep asking for them! Ask
for whatever it is that you need, want or desire that will enable you to
protect the citizens of the District of Columbia. Implore the Council,
the Congress, and yes even the President of the United States. (As a
matter of fact, you make the list and I'll personally lobby the Council,
Congress and the President to help you get what you need.) I personally
believe that the city needs 5,000 officers, inasmuch as this is the
Nation's Capital and we have to provide service for federal events,
marches, protests, even escorting dignitaries. MPD also needs to be able
to provide coverage for those officers who are in court or on leave. It
has been said that we need a police force comparable to the population
and size of other cities, which puts the figure of officers needed at
around 3,800. But other cities don't have folks marching and protesting
through their city on an almost daily basis. So to ask for funding for a
force of 5,000 is not an outrageous request since we need a great deal
of coverage in our neighborhoods. I can't say that enough. We need
police coverage in our neighborhoods.
Sure, we can call 911 or 311 if a criminal act is being committed,
but it's always a guessing game wondering if an officer will show up in
a timely fashion and will he/she have pencil and pad and be willing to
take a report. What many of the officers themselves are saying to us is
that they are stretched to the max and do not have the needed resources,
nor the will I might add. I do recall a conversation with a PSA
Lieutenant expressing the need for cell telephones for each PSA
Lieutenant so that the citizens could contact them during the actual
execution of a crime. We would call them on their personal cell phones.
However, some officers didn't mind using their minutes and other did
have a problem with the citizens running up their minutes to report a
crime in progress. With homeland security and the ever changing security
alerts now in place, you need much more manpower and equipment! Further,
and I'm not trying to “dog” you, but Chief you need a better
attitude towards the citizens of this city, and that includes the city
council members too. You are not doing us any favors by your presence in
our town. You were hired to serve and protect us.
Even with all the resources that you say you have, MPD is still
outnumbered and outgunned. The neighborhoods are not adequately covered
with a police presence. Driving down the street at 40 mph in the cruiser
with the lights flashing and the drug boys watching from the corner does
not constitute a “police presence.” We don't enjoy criticizing you
or MPD, as we have other things to do. But your best just ain't good
enough. In your response to Fenty, you gave great stats and you talked
about all the good you have done, but why are we the people so afraid?
Why are drug dealers still openly selling their wares in our
neighborhoods? Why are people having so many things stolen from their
homes and cars, being mugged, beat up and, many times, why don't your
people even want to take a report?
Where are these officers on bikes, horses, motorbikes, skates,
scooters, etc.? I don't see them in my neighborhood. No one else has
informed me about police on horses in their neighborhood. (And mounted
police would be great in some of these neighborhoods; trust me on this.)
It's getting rarer than hen's teeth to find a cruiser actually
patrolling the neighborhoods these days, let alone an officer walking
the beat. Yes, maybe you are doing the best you can sir, but your best
just ain't good enough!
###############
Friday afternoon, I received two orders by Judge Eugene Hamilton,
dated June 11, which constitute a major step forward in this case (Peter
S. Craig, et al., v. District of Columbia, et al., DC Superior
Court, Tax Docket 8112-02). First, the judge issued an order granting
our motion to certify this case as a class action -- limited, however,
to contesting assessments for Tax Year 2002. Second, he denied the
District's motion to dismiss petitioners who had not first filed appeals
to BRPAA for Tax Year 2002 assessments.
In the first decision, Judge Hamilton defined the class as “owners
of Class I residential real properties located in the District of
Columbia in neighborhoods encompassed in former Triennial Group 1, as
defined by the Office of Tax and Revenue, who were adversely affected by
real property assessments and taxes levied for the tax year 2002.”
Class I residential properties include all detached houses,
semi-detached and row houses and condominiums. Triennial Group 1
includes one-third of the city's residential neighborhoods, all of which
were reassessed for tax year 2002. “As to such properties,” he
added, “this class action is brought to set aside such assessments and
taxes, to require that the assessment and taxes for tax year 2002 be
derived and computed by statutory market value methods and to obtain
statutory assessments and taxes and refunds for the difference between
the tax as previously imposed and paid [based on across-the-board
'trending'] and the tax that would arise from the use of statutory
market value assessment for tax year 2002 purposes.”
He further found that this class included an estimated 35,000
persons, that joinder of all members of the class is impracticable, that
there are questions of law and fact common to the class, that the claims
of the named petitioners are typical of the class, that the petitioners
and their counsel will fairly represent the class, and that the
prosecution of separate actions by individual members of the class would
create a risk of inconsistent or varying adjudications.
In the second decision, Judge Hamilton dismissed a motion by the
District which sought to dismiss petitioners who had not appealed tax
year 2002 assessments to BRPAA. Noting that the petitioners in this
category “were never told that their assessments were not based on
market value of their own property, but rather were made on an
across-the-board formula, based on undisclosed assessment-sales ratio
studies,"” and that “they were, therefore, effectively denied
any opportunity to secure administrative relief before going to
court,” Judge Hamilton concluded: “Notice of the assessment is
required. Notice must mean reasonable notice, which as a minimum would
require that such notice inform the owner of the current assessed value,
an indication of the reason for any change in the assessment, a
statement explaining the right of appeal procedures, a citation of
regulations or orders under which the property was assessed and the
location of the assessment roll and sales ratio studies referred to and
the hours during which the information is available to the public.”
“Failure of the notice to provide this information would be no
notice and constitute a sham,” Judge Hamilton continued. “To require
notice and exclude [the above elements] did not eliminate the
unavoidable and inescapable requirement that notice be reasonable and
provide sufficient information upon which a reasonable property owner
could exercise appeal rights.”
There were indications at the last status hearing, held June 3rd,
that the judge would be issuing the above orders. At that time, he
indicated that he wanted to put a trial on the lawfulness and
constitutionality of across-the-board trending for tax year 2002 on a
“fast track,” and that he wanted to keep the issues as simple as
possible. He indicated that the decision as to tax year 2002 would serve
as precedent for subsequent cases dealing with tax years 2003 and 2004.
By orders issued that day, Judge Hamilton denied my motions to amend the
original petition so as to include tax years 2003 and 2004. I informed
the court that, consistent with this decision, I would be refiling
petitions challenging assessments for these two years at a future date.
Also, at the June 3rd status conference, Judge Hamilton announced
that he wanted discovery in this case to be completed within 45 days,
with the goal of having the trial in September and a decision by
September 30th. By order issued June 4th, Judge Hamilton ordered that
discovery be completed by July 18th and that the pretrial conference be
held on September 2nd. On Monday, June 9th, I served upon the District
of Columbia 41 requests for admissions, 19 written interrogatories, and
22 requests for documents. In this discovery, as well as in prior
pleadings, I owe a lot to the help of two other neighborhood lawyers,
Steve Truitt and Steve Ives.
In the near future, I will be sending further communications to other
petitioners and supporters of the lawsuit, making specific requests for
help in this case and scheduling a meeting to discuss the case. The time
has come to muster the best case possible. In the meantime, persons
willing to make tax-deductible financial gifts to support the costs of
this litigation should send checks made payable to The Committee of 100
on the Federal City, either to me at the address below or to the
Committee of 100 at P. O. Box 57106, Washington, DC 20037. Other lawyers
and I are handling this case on a pro bono basis. However, discovery and
trial costs will be substantial if they are to be done well. The money
is needed now.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Join Public Allies-DC at Wazuri, June 18
Ian Fisk, itf@aol.com
Please join us at the Public Allies DC annual spring fundraiser and
raffle at Wazuri Restaurant (1836 18th Street, NW) on June 18th from 6–9
p.m. Prize lists and ticket purchase information are available at https://www.thedatabank.com/dpg/10315733/.
Public Allies has been training young community leaders in DC for the
past ten years.
###############
The Emperor Returns, June 24
Patricia Pasqual, changedc@yahoo.com
Please join the DC Center for the Book for an author talk and book
signing by Stephen L. Carter, author of Emperor of Ocean Park. First
published in 2002, the book has been described as a first-rate legal
thriller by Publishers Weekly and was widely read last summer. Carter is
on tour for the release of the paperback edition. He is the William
Nelson Cromwell Professor of Law at Yale University. He is the author of
several books, including Reflections of an Affirmative Action Baby
(1991); The Culture of Disbelief, (1993); Civility: Manners,
Morals, and the Etiquette of Democracy, (1998); The Dissent of
the Governed: A Meditation on Law, Religion, and Loyalty, (1998),
and God's Name in Vain: The Wrongs and Rights of Religion in Politics
(2000).
This free event is Tuesday, June 24 at 6:30 p.m. at the Martin Luther
King, Jr., Memorial Library, 901 G Street, NW. The nearest Metro stop is
Gallery Place, Museums exit. Call 727-1281 for more information.
###############
QuinTango Performance, July 2
Jonathan Darr, jonathan@chaw.org
QuinTango, a DC-based, world-touring tango quintet, will perform on
Wednesday, July 2, at 7:30 p.m. at Lutheran Church of the Reformation on
Capitol Hill (212 East Capitol Street). This performance benefits the
Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, a community arts center and arts education
organization, and features Arts Workshop director Dr. Jeffery Watson on
piano.
Known for its sizzling musicality and captivating narrative style,
QuinTango is the winner of two consecutive Washington Area Music Awards
and is the only tango music group to have given a command performance at
The White House. This will be an exciting evening of quality music
performed for a great cause. Tickets are $20 for adults, $10 for seniors
and children under 12, and may be purchased in advance by calling
547-6839. For more information, visit http://www.chaw.org.
###############
Currently, real property tax increases in the District are capped by
statute at 25 percent per year, which results in a near doubling of tax
bills every three years or so, given recent assessment increases. As a
result, many District homeowners may soon not be able to continue to
afford living in their own homes. Maryland's cap is a more reasonable 10
percent per year. (California's is 2 percent per year, pursuant to
Proposition 13). Bill 15-303 before the City Council would reduce the 25
percent to 10 percent, which I believe is much needed (and probably the
best we can hope to see). The bill was introduced by Councilmembers
Evans and Catania, and cosponsored by seven other Councilmembers —
Ambrose, Fenty, Orange, Schwartz, Chavous, Graham, and Patterson. This
appears to be encouraging, but since it's not a done deal, readers of
themail might want to contact their councilmembers to support the bill,
especially the ones who are not yet on board. Also, there's a hearing on
the bill on July 10. For anyone who wants to testify, contact Schannette
Grant at 724-8058 or sgrant@dccouncil.washington.dc.us.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — FREE
Free to a good home: white computer desk, 2' 3" x 4' 6".
Ideal for student, activist, or home office. The first who can come get
it, gets it. Contact Wayne Turner, 547-9404, E-mail actupdc@aol.com.
###############
CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
Linux
E. James Lieberman, ejl@gwu.edu
I have just installed Linux on my computer. I find the Linux E-lists
out there to be too specialized, and wonder if there are other
cyber-idealists at themail who either want help or can offer it to a
beginner's group.
###############
Cabinet and Lighting Contractor Recommendation
Needed
Glen Engel-Cox, engelcox@hotmail.com
I'm looking for a recommendation for an independent contractor to
build some cabinets and install additional lighting in my condominium
apartment in the American University/Wesley Heights area.
###############
Based on a past posting in themail, I had Claudio Condori do some
work at our house. He was excellent in every way and I would recommend
him as a handyman, general contractor, etc. Claudio Condori,
301-942-7970; pager 240-4671-4973.
###############
themail@dcwatch is an E-mail discussion forum that is published every
Wednesday and Sunday. To subscribe, to change E-mail addresses, or to
switch between HTML and plain text versions of themail, use the
subscription form at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail/subscribe.htm.
To unsubscribe, send an E-mail message to themail@dcwatch.com
with “unsubscribe” in the subject line. Archives of past messages
are available at http://www.dcwatch.com/themail.
All postings should also be submitted to themail@dcwatch.com,
and should be about life, government, or politics in the District of
Columbia in one way or another. All postings must be signed in order to
be printed, and messages should be reasonably short — one or two brief
paragraphs would be ideal — so that as many messages as possible can
be put into each mailing.
