Ad Hominem
Dear Kindly Posters:
Kirsten Sherk wrote to ask my opinion of whether a message in the
last issue of themail were “an unnecessary ad hominem
attack,” and whether it violated any of themail's guidelines. (The
message encouraged Ed Barron to carry through on his threat to move out
of town.) As I've often written before, themail doesn't have many
guidelines aside from keeping the topic local and the message short.
Even so, we've had remarkably few vicious ad hominem attacks
here, compared to the vitriol that frequently threatens to engulf many
E-mail lists. I've only occasionally felt moved to write to a
contributor to ask him or her to reconsider a submission, and when I do
write I usually suggest that a case for his position can be made more
effectively by concentrating on the issue rather than on the personality
of an opponent, and that personal attacks diminish only the attacker.
But if presidential candidates routinely ignore this good advice, why
should contributors to themail be any different?
In any case, people who engage in controversy should expect to be
controversial, and I'm confident that Ed found the reply to his message
amusing rather than insulting. By the way, it's time to repeat that
stories that you break in themail have a way of showing up in other
media. On Monday and tonight, Ed's story about Homeland Security money
being used to buy thousand-dollar bicycles for the mayor, his press
secretary, and three other mayoral aides showed up on WRC-TV. And a
story about Phil Carney's war on rats in Dupont Circle, which Phil has
written about here, was in the Metro section of the Post on
Monday. Break some news yourselves; let us know what's happening.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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US Park Police, Continued
Phil Greene, pgreene@doc.gov
Last Tuesday's Washington Post reported on the strain that
national security/counter-terrorism efforts are placing on the US Park
Police. I read the article with interest, hopeful that mention would be
made about the closure of the Ellipse roadway, and the allocation of
Park Police (as well as Uniformed Secret Service) to guarding this area.
No such luck. The Ellipse has been closed since September 11, open only
to White House employees with a special permit. Approximately two
hundred parking spaces ring the Ellipse roadway. Prior to 9/11, the area
was accessible for public parking after 3:00 p.m. and all day on
weekends and holidays, and was reserved for White House employees prior
to 3:00 p.m. on weekdays. Since enforcement was lax, many non-White
House types would park in those spaces, taking their chances at not
getting a ticket (or very often, anyway). Apparently, White House
staffers weren't happy about their parking spaces being taken by the
masses, and I cannot blame them. But the closure of the Ellipse, in my
humble opinion, is nothing more than a blatant land grab (or, rather, a
parking space grab) by the White House. I can think of no legitimate
national security interest here; the Ellipse is hundreds and hundreds of
yards away from the White House, Treasury, and Old Executive Office
Building, and to have its entrances either blockaded or guarded by over
a dozen officers, with car engines running, in the name of security is a
bit of a sham. White House employees wanted their parking spaces
protected, and used 9/11 to ensure it, plain and simple. I am all for
security, don't get me wrong, but this seems like overreaching dressed
up as security. What's especially unfortunate, now that the holidays are
here, is that parking spaces for the National Christmas Tree are even
more difficult to find, if not impossible, especially since the
Washington Monument lot has been closed indefinitely (behind that
hideous, rambling eight-foot wooden fence).
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On Monday, December 8th, I learned that the three libraries in my
area were forced to close during the weekend because their boilers broke
down and it was too cold for the librarians to stay in the buildings. I
also learned that at least in NE Branch library, the boiler is new but
that either the parts are defective or the repairmen don't know what
they are doing. Apparently the Library system doesn't manage the
boilers; the Office of Property Management does. Does anyone know
anything about this? Has anyone else heard about libraries closing
because of boiler problems?
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New Book on Washington
John Cleave, jhcleave@aol.com
A new, different, gift book on Washington reached local bookstores at
the weekend. “Gorgeous,” “stunning,” and “handsome” are
accolades already given to Washington: Scenes from a Capital City
by John Cleave (illustrations) and Benjamin Forgey (introductions) (ISBN
981-4068-71-3). The book presents 180 unique watercolor-like and
sketch-like images (actually digitally derived from photographs) of
familiar and lesser-known corners of our nation’s capital, each
captioned. These are supported by a penetrating and upbeat overview of
the growth of the city by Forgey, architecture critic of the Washington
Post, and his introductions to the succeeding chapters which cover all
parts of (the original) DC.
On the Kojo Nnamdi show recently Barbara Meade of Politics and Prose
described the book as “wonderful” and “beautiful” — and a
bargain. It is an Olsson’s Buyer’s Choice selection in their Holiday
Gift Guide. Published at $25.00, major bookstores are selling it for
$20.00 through December. Do take a look. Sample sketches can be found at
http://www.narpac.org/INTHOART#JHCLEAVE.
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It Only Took A Year and a Half
Ed T. Barron, edtb@aoldotcom
After reporting the smell of gas on the corner of Fordham Road and
Massachusetts Avenue, NW, and along Mass. Ave. down past the Crate and
Barrel, over a year and a half ago, there is finally some effort to
locate the leak and fix it. It must be some hellacious, hard to find
leak. There are major excavation holes all along the pipeline along the
route on Mass. Ave. I even posted no smoking signs on the bus shelter at
that corner to avoid having some careless smoker (and maybe even part of
Crate and Barrel) being launched into space. Alas, the bus shelter was
removed.
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Too Bad About the License Plates
Harold Foster, Petworth, harold.foster@ppd.mncppc.org
The DC Government has reserved some of the letter series that begin
each vehicle license plate for those who for whatever reason opt not to
have the motto “Taxation Without Representation” on their vehicle
plates. “BB‘ apparently was the first “no motto” series. And,
now that that series is apparently exhausted, I have begun to notice
that the next no-motto series seems to begin with “BJ.”
I also have noticed, though, that my suggestion to the Mayor that he
— well, actually DMV — assign the next no-motto series to “BS”
wasn't adopted. Pity.
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Our Whiny Voting Rights Problem
Mike Lowe, mike_lowe@hotmail.com
This is regarding Patrick Thibodeaux's story about explaining our
license plate to an outsider and finding him unimpressed with the
District's lack of voting rights. Considering that Patrick considers it
our "whiny voting rights problem," and a "useless,
confusing, and irritating slogan," one could be forgiven for
suspecting that he didn't make a very compelling case.
I have actually found the opposite to be true. Most people with whom
I speak consider it ridiculous that the residents of the nation's
capital lack the freedoms that the rest of the country take for granted.
The argument becomes more compelling when you list the many ways that a
lack of representation and true home rule do harm to District residents
(e.g. inability to tax commuters, inability to fund referenda, etc.).
The best way to convince others of the justness of our cause is with a
combination of conviction and facts. Seems like even some District
residents could use a dose of both.
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InTowner Update
Peter Wolff, Intowner@intowner.com
This is to advise that, although several weeks ago we informed you
that the November issue content had been uploaded to our website,
because of a couple of glitches, neither the “Scenes from the Past”
feature nor the complete archive of restaurant reviews were included in
that update. Those problems have been alleviated, and both those
sections are now current. We regret the delay and possible
inconvenience.
The December issue will publish on Friday, the 12th, and we will be
E-mailing our advisory shortly thereafter.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
St. Elizabeths Hospital Tree Lighting
Ceremony, December 11
Linda Grant, linda.grant@dc.gov
The public is invited to attend the December 11 lighting of a
thirty-foot Colorado Blue Spruce on the St. Elizabeths Hospital campus
as patients, staff and neighbors join together to celebrate the holiday
season. The majestic tree has been growing on the hospital’s campus,
near the Chapel, for more than fifty years. The tree lighting ceremony
will feature holiday music performed by patients and other Washington
musicians. Thursday’s ceremony marks the return of this traditional
activity to the Anacostia neighborhood where St. Elizabeths Hospital has
been located for almost 150 years. Last month, the tradition of hourly
bell ringing was restored. St. Elizabeths Hospital is operated by the
Department of Mental Health, Martha B. Knisley, Director.
The tree lighting ceremony and holiday music performance will be held
on Thursday, December 11, at 5 p.m., at St. Elizabeths Hospital Chapel,
2700 Martin Luther King, Jr., Avenue, SE. Enter through Gate 4. For
further information about the Department of Mental Health, please visit
our web site at http://www.dmh.dc.gov.
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TechTalk: Spin to Win, December 13
Barbara Conn, bconn@cpcug.org
Public Relations, PR, publicity, spin, media relations -- these terms
are often thrown around conference rooms and board rooms, but what do
they mean, and, more importantly, what can they do for -- or against --
your bottom line? "Spin To Win -- 10 Ways Public Relations Can Help
Build Your Business" will be led by Linda Dickerhoof, President of
Signature Strategy, Inc. During this event Linda will share secrets of
getting good publicity for your organization without spending a lot of
money. In addition, a Washington Business Journal rep will attend
and answer questions following the main presentation about how you can
use WBJ to get your message to your public.
Gather your friends, colleagues, and family members and bring them to
this Saturday, December 13, 1:00 p.m. (check-in: 12:30 p.m.), TechTalk
of the Capital PC User Group (CPCUG) Entrepreneurs and Consultants
Special Interest Group (E&C SIG). This FREE TechTalk will be at the
Cleveland Park Library (Second Floor Large Meeting Room) at 3310
Connecticut Avenue, NW -- just over a block from the Cleveland Park
Metrorail Station on the Red Line. For more information about this
TechTalk, the speaker, CPCUG (a 501(c)(3) nonprofit educational
organization), and to register for the event, visit http://www.cpcug.org/user/entrepreneur/1203meet.html.
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Rally to Save Gates Shelter, December 15
Parisa B. Norouzi, parisa@wishdc.org
Mayor Williams plans to close the Gales Shelter on December 19.
Approximately two hundred men and women are currently staying at the
Gales Shelter. Join Gales Shelter residents and concerned allies for a
rally and vigil in support of keeping the Gales Shelter open this
winter! Monday, December 15, 6:30 p.m., at Gales Shelter, 65
Massachusetts Avenue, NW, Metro Union Station stop. Speakers will
include Gales residents, DC Council members, religious leaders, and
other concerned individuals. Join us! For more information contact T.J.
Sutcliffe at SOME, 797-0701 x 107.
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Thirtieth Anniversary of Home Rule, December
16
James Bubar, jbubar@aol.com
The D.C. Affairs Section of the D.C. Bar will host a reception in
recognition of the thirtieth anniversary of the signing of the
District's Home Rule Act (signed by President Richard Nixon on December
24, 1973). The event also will honor the life of Mayor Walter E.
Washington. The reception will be held on December 16, from 6 to 9 p.m.
at the Wilson Building, 1350 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, in Room 412.
There will be a brief discussion about how it happened and what is
next for the District's local governance structure. Invited guests
include the Honorable Walter Fauntroy (first elected District Delegate),
the Honorable Eleanor Holmes Norton, Johnny Barnes (former staffer of
the Congressional District Committee), Julian Dugas, and Dr. Ronald
Walters. There will be light hors d'oeuvres and refreshments. Cost is
$15 for section members, $20 for nonsection members, and $15 for
government and nonprofit employees. Reservations (credit card payments
only) may be faxed to the D.C. Bar at 824-1877
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CLASSIFIEDS — FOR SALE
Twin bed for sale. Good condition. Comes with box-spring. Asking
$100.
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CLASSIFIEDS —WANTED
My telephone just broke and I need to replace it. Does anyone have a
used regular telephone that they want to give away or sell? Contact me.
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If anyone has an old backyard play set that's no longer in use,
wouldn't mind parting with the sliding board (presumably detachable,
usually plastic) and would be interested in selling it, let me know.
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CLASSIFIEDS — SERVICES
My name is Kelly Marshall and I am a new dog walker in the Mt.
Pleasant area and surrounding neighborhoods. I charge $10 a day for
walking and am available between 11 a.m. and 4 p.m. daily to walk dogs
that don't already have a regular walker. Please give me a call at
641-7362 or E-mail kellym2u@mac.com
to set something up.
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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS
I'm looking into getting cable Internet access and would be
interested in hearing about people's experiences with Comcast and
Starpower. (I'm not considering DSL because I want to bundle digital TV
signals with Internet access.) A few years back there was some
discussion here about the relative merits of the two firms. Can anyone
give me an update on recent customer experience with these firms'
Internet, TV, and long distance phone services? Any and all information
would be appreciated. I live in the AU Park/Tenleytown area, if location
is an issue in cable services quality. If responding to me directly,
please use my AOL address.
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