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September 1, 2004

Councilmembers

Dear Councilmember Watchers:

In this issue of themail, I'm breaking a couple of the basic rules for two councilmembers, Vincent Orange and Carol Schwartz, whose submissions close out this issue. Normally, submissions to themail are limited to two or three short paragraphs, but I'm letting them run on at greater length. Normally, I also lightly edit submissions for grammar and punctuation, but I haven't touched either councilmember's message. Orange is asking for a retraction of Dorothy's reporting about his remarks at the Ward 5 Democrats' meeting [themail, August 29], but you can't retract what's true. Several people reported Vincent's remarks on race and the city council to Dorothy, and they stand by what they said. Vincent is just lucky that Dorothy only wrote about what he said during the public portion of the meeting, and didn't write what they said he told them in private.

As for the rest of what Vincent said about Carol Schwartz, what he writes in his E-mail is worse than what Dorothy reported, but Carol takes care of that sufficiently in her reply to him. Isn't the election season interesting?

Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com

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Quiet Candidates
Peter Orvetti, orvetti@gmail.com

We received our Primary Voters Guide the other day, and I was surprised to see how many candidates did not bother to submit statements -- or rather, which ones didn't. I expect fringe candidates to be a bit flaky in this regard, but I was baffled by the fact that incumbents in competitive races (Harold Brazil, Sandy Allen) did not take the time to have a staffer send over some boilerplate platform summary. I imagine that for many voters, this guide is one of their few sources of information on the candidates; it seems like bad strategy at best, and indifference to the electorate at worst, for incumbents to take a pass.

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DC Voters, Beware
Keith Jarrell, k.jarrell01@comcast.net

DC voters should beware! In the fray are people that are secretly positioning themselves to fulfill their own future aspirations. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with doing this unless you use city funds, such as being on payroll as a current councilmember, to do so. I am insulted by current councilmembers that while on city payroll seem to use everyone and everything to their future advantage. It’s disgusting and immoral! Votes, positions, and even supporting other councilmembers' various positions shouldn’t be based on how the outcome could help you in the future but on what is best for the city and its people. Clearly, it is time for change. Various issues have come before council and have passed, many not for the improvement of the quality of life but to satisfy the future aspirations of the bill’s author.

Given this, I challenge you to think about Jack Evans and the $40 million grant to the Corcoran Gallery for an expansion it could not even fund itself, to be paid by tax from the hotel occupancy tax. Just how many years does the Councilmember think it will take in added hotel occupancy taxes to pay for the added funds? I can tell you a long, long time. Secondly, baseball! Do we really need or can we really afford all this hoopla to try and bring baseball back to DC? A new stadium, parking infrastructure, roads, parking, Metro expansion, not to even mention the displacement of people that could currently live in and around the proposed site. and all that it would take, for this trivial return.

Perhaps Evans has some money left in the hotel occupancy tax purse to help pay for yet another project that completely overlooks the needs for more hospitals and better nursing homes, as well as better roads and more road repaving. Why can’t our elected official first think of the people of this grand city? Why can’t they first think about city services, caring for the disadvantaged, and improving the city for everyone, instead of first spending money we don’t have to bargain for yet another big project that we could well do without. We already have a new Convention Center with a 200 million cost overrun mainly because of a lack of real insight into potential over costs. Remember too, that there is still no development for a Convention Center Hotel to adequately house the visitors that we are eagerly trying to get to our city. It is reported that we have had to lessen the size of the groups we are working to get because we can’t house them due to the lack of a Convention Center hotel. Was any of this really thought about? What where they thinking when a contract was awarded to Marriott to built the hotel when land to build on was not even secured?

Perhaps the baseball team and a new stadium are mere overgrowths of the new convention center idea and should be in line behind that project's being finished! I really hope that DC voters open their eyes and vote for positive change this September and this November. I certainly they go forward with the same positive change in 2006 as well.

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Close Quarters
Ed Dixon, Georgetown Reservoir, jedxn@erols.com

It seems awfully cozy when the treasurer of Brazil 2004 is also an appointed Board member of the DC Sports and Entertainment Commission. Jack Mahoney received an opinion from the DC Board of Elections and Ethics on just that relationship last August. Mahoney was told he could collect and report funds but that at no time should the two roles merge. This advice was given in the midst of a Inspector General investigation of the Sports Commission for lacking managerial merit and mismanaging public funds. Two members of the Commission resigned and Mahoney rose to the top. Mahoney has denied the Sports Commission acted with undue haste on a baseball deal. But baseball proponents' concern over a time frame has always been paramount. And the Commission has been part of that. Councilmember Evans pointed out the importance of Brazil's term on the Council in relation to rushing the baseball stadium deal recently in the Post. Just this month, Mahoney has given the maximum $1000 contribution to the Brazil campaign as allowed by law. At this point, it's hard to imagine that Mahoney still sees Brazil 2004 and the baseball deal as separate.

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More Food for Thought
Harold E. Foster, Petworth, harold.foster@ppd.mncppc.org

Clearly many of those posting here are agonizing over their electoral options in the upcoming Democratic primary, especially for at-large councilmember. The dilemma is similar to that of Nader supporters in 2000 (and possibly again this year): how to vote your conscience and true preference when all that would do is probably ensure that another, far less satisfactory, candidate will be elected. Or, in this case, reelected. I confess to being torn between voting against Harold Brazil, as opposed to voting for someone who best reflects my interests and concerns but who, practically speaking, probably won't win.

This campaign is the best argument for instant run-off ballots that I have come across since the 1990 mayoral campaign. If we had IRBs here, people who wanted to support, say, Sam Brooks could vote for him but then express a second preference that would matter only if no candidate won an absolute majority in the first round of the election. IRBs, sometimes called preference or cumulative ballots, have become a more common topic after the Florida disaster in the 2000 presidential elections. And, while there are a number things that are broken in the electoral system here in DC, I am beginning to think that going to IRBs or, alternatively, run-off elections, is the most urgent item on the agenda here.

And, again: some history for those who might be skeptical of this reform. Had there been IRBs in 1978, Marion Barry might well had never been elected mayor. Of course, the flip side of that is that Sharon Pratt Dixon-Kelly most likely would also have not been elected in 1990. But, then, she probably would not have even been a candidate (never mind a front-runner) in 1990 if we had had IRBs in 1978, right? Of course the keep-it-simple-stupid version of what I am advocating here is to simply have run-off elections, although the expense of doing that must be considerably greater than simply reconfiguring our ballots so that we vote once for our first and second (or first, second, and third) preferences. We need to do something, so this time around let's try the right thing.

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Voting and Voting Records
Keith Jarrell, k.jarrell01@comcast.net

An important note about Brazil's and Evans' voting record. On the resolution introduced by Councilmember David Catania, pertaining to the MPD deploying 60 percent of our police officers to street duty to protect our homes and our lives, Brazil and Evans voted no! Unfortunately, this resolution failed to gather a majority. But if you look up the vote, it is certainly frightening to see who among the older (longer serving) Councilmembers did not vote to support it. The vote, I think, shows who was seriously concerned about our protection and who was not (http://www.dccouncil.washington.dc.us/images/00001/20011206143536.pdf).

I really invite people to take the time to look through this information and see who really is doing their job, who is really concerned about your welfare, and who is out for the money and donations to their campaign.

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A Resource for Candidate Forums
Susie Cambria, scambria@dckids.org

The League of Women Voters' web site, http://www.lwvdc.org/, is a terrific resource for those who want to hear from candidates and plan an election-related event. You will find on the site views of candidates on issues posed by the DC League's Democracy Network, voter information (a link to the DC Board of Elections and Ethics) and, of course, fora. Please share this information and add to the calendar as you schedule voter education events.

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Property Tax Cap
Brigid Quinn, brigidq@yahoo.com

I can't understand Ed Lazere's opposition to a percentage cap on property tax liability [themail, August 29]. It is not necessarily those with the most expensive homes who gain the most benefit. It is those with the highest increases in their assessments that gain the most. Believe me, someone owning a home with an assessment that increases from $150,000 to $300,000 is going to feel that they have gotten a great deal of relief from the 12 percent cap, and probably won't begrudge relief to the person whose $750,000 assessment goes up to $900,000. Equity and fairness dictate that anyone who experiences an assessment increase above the cap should benefit from tax relief. Those whose homes have high assessments, and thus bear a larger tax burden, should not be penalized.

What is truly egregious about the law under which the existing 12 percent gap operates is that those who bought their homes in tax year 2003 do not benefit at all. This is a clear inequity, and one that Jack Evans, chair of the council's Committee on Finance and Revenue, has agreed to rectify.

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Reading the DCFPI Tea Leaves and More
Len Sullivan, lsnarpac@bellatlantic.net

This follows up on Ed Lazere's recent analysis of DC's income disparity compared to thirty-nine other major US cities, and his recent defense thereof against others' comments [themail, August 29]. First, although DC's ratio of richest to poorest quintiles topped the list in 1999 among forty US cities (by a relatively small amount), DC was still third from the top among the richest quintiles, and also thirteenth from the bottom of the poorest quintiles. More interesting, however, is that among the three middle income quintiles combined, DC is only tenth from the top, and hence above the forty-city average. This further weakens the persistent self-serving myth that DC's middle class somehow skipped town and left the city unable to fend for itself.

Second, it is the plight of the poorest quintile that needs resolution, even if not by DCFPI's recommended steps (higher minimum wage, more local low-paying jobs). DC has got to stop pretending it's an island kingdom, and start sharing the burdens of poverty with its more prosperous neighbors. In this regard, it is more germane to compare DC's household income distribution with that of its suburbs, not other cities. Among DC's inner suburbs (Arlington, Fairfax, Montgomery, and PG, plus Alexandria), DC had 80,000 (37 percent) of the 217,000 households with incomes below $25,000 in '99, but only 41,000 (11 percent) of the households with incomes over $100,000. Hence, for every two households in need, there were about five wealthy suburban households to help foot the bill, but in DC, only one such household. (The 52-59 percent in the middle have only about a 10 percent difference in average income.)

The tidiest arithmetic solution to balancing the burden of poverty would be for 40,000 of DC's poorer households to trade places with 15,000 of the inner region's middle income households, and 25,000 of those making over $100,000. If DC tries to fix the rich/poor balance by just adding middle and upper income households to match the suburban ratio, about 255,000 new taxpaying households are needed (above the 205,000 non-poverty households DC had in 1999). That would produce a population probably over 1.1 million, as well as perhaps 250,000 more cars! It isn't a practical solution (either). But some constructive form of "up or out" is unavoidable.

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Response to Post by Dorothy Brizill
Victor Reinoso, Director of Education Initiatives, Federal City Council, vreinoso@federalcitycouncil.org

In response to Dorothy Brizill’s assertion [“Political Potpourri,” themail, August 29] that the Federal City Council (and I by extension) supported vouchers, charter schools, and the mayor's takeover of school governance, let me set the record straight: as an organization, the Federal City Council has not taken a position with respect to either vouchers or mayoral control of DCPS. With some two hundred members, the Federal City Council has members on all sides of these issues. The Federal City Council does support high-performing public charter schools. It has consistently advocated for strict accountability of these schools, including calling for the disciplining or closure of schools that either fail to educate their students or misuse public funds. I do not support either vouchers or mayoral control of DCPS.

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Dorothy Brizill’s Report on Hearsay
Vincent B. Orange Sr., vorange@dccouncil.us

Your column “Political Potpourri” dated August 30, 2004 represents an outright falsehood on the events that transpired at the Ward 5 Democrats meeting. You were not present at the meeting however you stated in your column, “[i]n his remarks, Orange blasted at-large Councilmember Carol Schwartz for what he termed her opposition to Ward Five economic development — by which he meant her opposition to trash transfer stations and a slots emporium in the Ward. Orange also railed against “that white city council,” and indicated that Thomas's candidacy would be the start of an effort for blacks to take council seats from whites . . . .”

The above “hearsay” statement you are attributing to me and reporting on never happen. Ward Five economic development and slots emporium were not discussed during my brief period at the meeting. Ms. Schwartz's opposition to trash transfer stations and a slots emporium were not an issue. Moreover, your racist statement that you conjured up doesn't make any sense. As you very well know, I generally vote with Jack Evans, Linda Cropp and David Catania. Generally, I vote against Kevin Chavous and Adrian Fenty on the issues. We are African Americans with different views.

The Ward 5 climate is not conducive to Carol's politics at this point in time. The issues that have been expressed that resulted in a Harry Thomas Jr. campaign are a lack of attention to Ward 5 Waste Transfer Station issues; lead in the water; lack of a lead pipe replacement fund at no cost to the homeowner; non city-wide distribution of the Brita Pitcher for lead free water; a smoke-free DC; Ward 5 inspection station renovation disaster; the attempt to close Ward 5 Fort Meyer Construction Co.( and the lost of 600 jobs); voting against early childhood education; and Carol's undermining of the Levy vote and disrespect to the Orange family.

The issues at the Ward 5 Dems meeting were not racial. They were quality of life issues. These quality of life issues have no color. Black or white, gay or straight, rich or poor, we all want a good quality of life.

You also know that Ward 5 resident John Ray is on the VLT side and Ward 5 ANC Commissioner Regina James is on the other side, both are African Americans. Both are strong Vincent Orange supporters. I have taken no position on the VLT (in fact, Ward 5 is split down the middle on this issue) however, I will hold hearings on those issues that relate to my chairmanship. I have drafted legislation where only DC residents can circulate petitions and gather signatures. I tend to look to a balanced approach to resolving issues.

Please, please, please do not conjure up racist statements which are meant to divide and conquer. We at the Council have bended over backwards to maintain racial harmony. What is very bothersome about your column is the lack of investigation. You did not bother to inquire of me or my office about the meeting. Clearly, the purpose of your column could not be served with the “TRUTH”.

I will forward to you an e-mail response to Rick Rosendall which goes into further detail on what transpired at the Ward 5 Democrats meeting and a report from DPW Disposal Division regarding “Odor Emanating from Fort Totten Transfer Station”.

After examining the materials, I request a retraction of statements you attribute to me.

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Response to “Dorothy Brizill’s Report on Hearsay”
Carol Schwartz, schwartzc@dccouncil.us

Vince, I don't know what is going on with you right now, or who or what has gotten to you. You know as well as anyone how hard I have worked on quality of life issues that are important to the residents of Ward 5, and I believe that they — if not you — choose to recognize that.

To paraphrase you, “clearly the purpose of your (e-mail) could not be served with the 'TRUTH.'” But the truth is — and you are very aware of this — that I have tried repeatedly to get the W Street trash transfer station closed, even though my role as a Councilmember does not allow me to accomplish this. You also know that it is the courts that have allowed it to remain open, with legal help from attorney and Ward 5 resident John Ray.

You also know full well that I tackled the issue of lead in some residents' water as soon as the problem was reported, and worked diligently to ensure that it was addressed promptly, thoroughly and fairly. I worked with the Executive to get outside help where appropriate, and the donation of water filtering pitchers was one result. I was not the one who distributed these pitchers, but I did endorse that they be distributed first to at-risk populations in the most affected areas. This was the responsible thing to do. And the Council passed legislation that I worked on with Councilmember Brazil to establish a fund to provide financial assistance to homeowners who need such assistance (with the most at-risk populations coming first) so that lead pipes can be replaced. This was the responsible thing to do.

You yourself did not sponsor or co-sponsor legislation that would ban smoking in all District bars and restaurants, and you yourself co-sponsored legislation I introduced that would provide tax incentives to bars and restaurants that adopt smoke-free policies.

The situation involving the reconstruction of the Northeast Vehicle Inspection Station has also been in the courts because of a contract dispute between the Executive and the original contractor. I recently held a hearing on this matter and have pressed repeatedly for progress on this station, which — you will recall — I pushed to have rebuilt and reopened, just as I pushed for a complete and environmentally sound renovation of the Fort Totten trash transfer station, and made sure money was in the budget for that purpose.

Fort Myer Construction broke the law by reweighing the same asphalt over and over again and then charging us as much as four times the amount we should have been paying for it. The Executive held them accountable, you tried to let them off the hook, and I agreed with the Executive that law breaking should have consequences.

I have not voted against any responsible proposals for early childhood education in the District.

It was the Mayor who nominated Mr. Levy to the Library Board. When Mr. Levy came in to introduce himself to me and ask for my support, I told him I would not support him unless he apologized to you. Subsequently, I learned from both Mr. Levy and from the Mayor, who had called to ask for my vote for Mr. Levy, that Mr. Levy had tried to meet with you, but that you had refused the request and that he had sent you a letter instead.

I have always supported responsible economic development in Ward 5. I did oppose the slots initiative, and I did so actively and vocally (see attached documents). I opposed it, in part, because the gambling mecca it would have created would have provided 75 percent of the profits to the few, mostly out-of-town investors. They wanted to get richer on our backs, and on the backs of those willing to lose their hard-earned money on long-shot chances. Although you state in your e-mail you have “taken no position on the VLT,” your actions related to the publication of the DC Register on this issue speak otherwise.

Vince, this experience has been very sad and disappointing given our good working relationship over the past six years, and the timing of it has been especially unfortunate given my recent circumstances.

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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS

National Building Museum Events, September 6-7
Brie Hensold, bhenhold@nbm.org

Monday, September 6, 9:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. Student Design Competition. Teams of students from the Washington, D.C., area’s four accredited schools of architecture will participate in a day-long design competition held in the Museum’s Great Hall. Each team will consist of one student from each school. Museum visitors can view this eight-hour charrette – an intensive design session – in progress, as the teams work on a design project announced that morning. Winners of the juried competition will be announced at an award ceremony and reception at the architecture firm HNTB-Washington, DC, on Thursday, September 9, at 5:00 p.m. Free. Drop-in program. The award ceremony and reception on September 9 require registration. To register, contact AIA/DC at 202-667-1798 or E-mail info@aiadc.com. HNTB is located at 421 Seventh Street, NW.

Tuesday, September 7, 6:30-8:00 p.m. Paul Goldberger on the Rebuilding of Lower Manhattan. Paul Goldberger, dean of the Parsons School of Design, is a Pulitzer Prize-winning architecture critic for The New Yorker. His new book, Up from Zero: Politics, Architecture, and the Rebuilding of New York, tells the inside story of the rebuilding of the World Trade Center and lower Manhattan focusing on the plans, personalities, cultural history, and business story. After the program, Goldberger will sign copies of his book. $12 museum members and students; $17 nonmembers. Prepaid registration required. At the National Building Museum, 401 F Street, NW, between 4th and 5th Streets, across the street from the Judiciary Square Metro (Red Line). Wheelchair access is available through the G Street entrance.

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DC Public Library Events, September 7
Debra Truhart, debra.truhart@dc.gov

Tuesday, September 7, 7 p.m., Mount Pleasant Neighborhood Library, 3160 16th Street, NW. Local poets read from their works published in D.C. Poets Against the War: An Anthology. The anthology's founding editors, Sarah Browning and Michelle Elliot, are the featured speakers with poets Melanie Riviera and John Murillo. Public contact: 671-0200.

Tuesday, September 7, call for time, Tenley-Friendship Neighborhood Library, 4450 Wisconsin Avenue, NW. Local author series featuring Ethelbert Miller. Adults. Public contact: 282-3090.

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AARP Ward 8 Candidate Forum, September 8
Grier Mendel, gmendel@aarp.org

AARP DC is offering the opportunity to compare candidates running for the Ward 8 District Council seat, one of the District’s most competitive races. Candidates will be questioned by a panel including AARP members about key concerns of DC’s older voters: ensuring prescription drug affordability, improving nursing home quality and assisting grandparents raising grandchildren. The forum will be held on Wednesday, September 8, at 11:00 a.m., at the Washington Highlands Library, 115 Atlantic Street SW. Audience members will have the opportunity to ask questions as time permits. Candidates Sandy Allen (D), Marion Barry (D), William O. Lockridge (D), Jacque Patterson (D), Joyce Scott (D), Sandra "SS" Seegars (D), and Cardell Shelton (R) have RSVPed.

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Smokefree DC Happy Hour and Membership Kickoff Meeting, September 8
Bob Summersgill, bob@summersgill.net

Smokefree DC will hold its first happy hour and membership kickoff meeting from 6:00-7:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 8 at Mimi's in Dupont Circle (2120 P Street, NW). The event is designed to give you an opportunity to meet others who want a smokefree DC and learn how to get more involved in the cause. Bring your friends, family, neighbors and coworkers.

Mimi's is going smokefree not only for our meeting, but for good, starting September 8. Owner Andy Shallal has three other restaurants in the District, all of which are smokefree (Luna Cafe, Luna Grill, and Skewers). However, none of them has a bar area, as does Mimi's. Even if you can't make our meeting, please stop by Mimi's and tell Andy that you support his decision to protect his workers and patrons from the harms of secondhand smoke.

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Neighbors, Inc., Candidate Forum, September 9
Susie Cambria, scambria@dckids.org

On Thursday, September 9, at 6 p.m., Neighbors, Inc., is sponsoring an all-candidates forum at the Takoma Baptist Church, located at Aspen Street and Piney Branch Road, NW. Neighbors, Inc., is joined by cosponsors Brightwood. North Portal, Manor Park, 16th Street Heights, Crestwood, Concerned Neighbors, Plan Takoma, and other neighborhood and civic associations. The at-large council candidates, shadow representatives, etc., and school board candidates will be invited to present their platforms and answer questions. Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority will have a voter registration table with information on how people can get assistance to go to the polls on election day.

Neighbors, Inc., a community group that started in the 1950's to counter block busting, now works as an umbrella organization with other civic associations. It also donates funds to schools, libraries, and various projects in northwest Washington, DC. For further information contact Rosemary Reed at 234-1212, Rosemaryreed4@hotmail.com; Loretta Neumann, 882-9274; or Susan Learmonth, 722-1042.

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The SpeakEasy Open Mic, September 14
Brad Hills, bradhills@washingtonstorytellers.org

The SpeakEasy Open Mic Daily Constitutional: Stories about Everyday Life in the Political Process, at HR-57 Center for the Preservation of Jazz and Blues, 1610 14th Street, NW (between Corcoran and Q Streets), Tuesday, September 14, 8:00 p.m.

Join us for an evening of truth, lies and general political scuttlebutt as the SpeakEasy Open Mic Series at HR-57 kicks off its 2004-2005 Season. Featured storyteller Danny Rose will tell stories about his experiences on Howard Dean's presidential campaign and Lorelei Kelly talks about her involvement in the underground democracy movement in East Berlin. “For years stories have circulated that US Senator Key Pittman actually died before the election. His friends, so the story goes, kept his body in a bathtub filled with ice at Reno's Riverside Hotel so that his Senate seat could remain Democratic. . . .” Guy Rocha, Nevada State Archivist and Dennis Myers, Journalist.

Ticket price, $5 (corkage: $3 per person); purchase at the door (doors open at 7:30 p.m.). Street parking. Metro Red Line (Dupont) or Green Line (U Street/Cardoza). On the first of each month, we will begin taking sign-ups for that month’s Open Mic. Call the WST Office to reserve a space.

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DC Women’s Agenda Forum, September 29
Heidi Goldberg, hgoldberg@wowonline.org

DC Women’s Agenda presents The Strength to Survive and Succeed: DC Women and Their Families, A Forum Series Dedicated to Issues Surrounding Women and the Challenges of Supporting Themselves and Their Families. Please save the date for our fourth forum, Working Women: Employment Challenges in DC, moderated by Wider Opportunities for Women and the DC Employment Justice Center on Wednesday, September 29, 5:30-7:30 p.m., at Capitol View Branch Library, 5001 Central Avenue, SE. By Metro: Benning Road on the Blue Line, walk two to three blocks to the library. By bus: 96, 97, U6, and W4.

For more information please contact Heidi Goldberg, Director of Local Programs and Policy, Wider Opportunities for Women, 464-1596, ext. 110, hgoldberg@wowonline.org; or Karen Minatelli at the DC Employment Justice Center, 828-9675 ext. 16.

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CLASSIFIEDS — HELP WANTED

Movers Needed, DC to California
Rose Kemps, rkemps@yahoo.com

I have a small load of furniture I need moved to my storage space in Los Angeles from my storage space in Alexandria, VA, on the last weekend of September. You can either be a mover with space in your truck, or somebody wanting to do a trip across the US — all details worked out. Please, serious inquiries only. Include phone number.

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CLASSIFIEDS — SERVICES

Professional Computer Consultant
Ernesto Gluecksmann, ernesto@infamia.com

I am a professional computer consultant available for after-hours, one-on-one coaching. I have over ten years of industry related experience and three years as an on-call consultant for variety of companies and individuals. If you are like most working professionals, you may simply be too busy to keep up with the latest technology trends. Let's cut to the chase and get you answers you need, now.

Many fear the embarrassment of exposing their lack of technical know-how and avoid getting help. I can answer your questions discreetly, after-hours at your place of business or home. Most simply need someone to help them work a little smarter. Together, we can assess how you do your daily work and find more efficient ways of getting things done, staying organized, and using your computer to its potential. I am also available weekends and business hours. I can take calls and E-mails seven days a week. No question is too basic, no concept is too esoteric. Call 301-996-4646 or E-mail ernesto@infamia.com.

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CLASSIFIEDS — RECOMMENDATIONS

Refurbish a Bathroom
Mariuccia Chiantaretto, mariuccia@comcast.net

I need to refurbish an old bathroom. I would love to get some references about people you can change tiles, old showers, etc.

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