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November 28, 2007

Autocracy

Dear Autocrats of the Breakfast Table:

“I signed on for reform; I didn’t sign on for autocracy,” said Councilmember Jim Graham at the angry city council breakfast with Mayor Fenty today. But autocracy is what he got. Councilmembers were warned not to give Fenty the limitless power he asked for over the school system, but they didn’t listen. Now they are reaping the results of their folly. (See the postings by Dorothy and by Mai Rahman, below.) Fenty, Rhee, and Reinoso have made their decisions about which schools to close, which programs to end, and which programs to expand. They haven’t talked to parents, or residents of the city, or even councilmembers, because they don’t think they have anything to learn from them and don’t believe they need to. The plans have been made; they have been announced; and councilmembers and citizens will hear and obey.

Citizens voted for Fenty, and that’s the last say they’ll have over school governance. Councilmembers voted for Fenty’s school takeover, and that’s the last say they’ll have. All the inconveniences of democracy are behind us now, and we are graced with the efficiency of autocracy. There was an old joke, a joke with a truthful edge, about how communist dictatorships took root in a democracy. The joke was that communism was a system of “one man, one vote — one time only.” Fenty, Rhee, and Reinoso take that joke seriously. They think they can make their decisions in secret, behind closed doors and without the participation of the people, and then impose those decisions.

They are seriously mistaken. Democracy isn’t a system of occasional votes; it’s a fully rounded system of continual participation, of citizens guiding their government rather than being autocratically ruled by it. Last year, I thought that it would take three or four years for it to become evident that the mayor’s takeover of the schools was a mistake. But the arrogance and high-handedness of Fenty, Rhee, and Reinoso make it likely that the mistake will be evident within the year, even to those who championed it on the council, and to all but Fenty’s blindest acolytes.

Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com

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Gandhi Should Be Fired
Shirley Rivens Smith, srs-usasc@rcn.com

I would hope our city is not so afraid of what others will say about us that we will keep someone who has proved that he and Williams weren’t as good as their talk. Taxpayers should start looking at our government leaders and their commitment to us. We need and can hire a competent person in DC as our Chief Financial Officer. As an retired accountant and finance officer in DC government, I know there are persons working in DC government that can do the job.

Crooks take advantage of a situation. We continue to hire people who aren’t qualified and who are not part of the system and put them over people. Most employees continue to do their work and complain. The crooks saw that the superiors were incompetent and took advantage of the system. There’s no way Gandhi and Williams are as qualified as they were held up to be. Gandhi should be fired!

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The Big Swindle
Le Eckles, e929@peoplepc.com

Just a nano point on the Tax Office big swindle. I keep hearing reference made to how “sophisticated” it was — that even an in-depth audit would not have uncovered it, etc., etc. — but not any follow-up sense of urgency or concern that this might be the tip of an iceberg. If this would get past an audit — twenty plus million dollars — there might be a lot more similar scams in other offices of Tax and Revenue or other agencies.

There has been no mention of a complete shakedown of any of the outgoing streams of taxpayer dollars that might be churning out millions via schemes, sophisticated or not, being picked up by audits as presently practiced. Now we’re being fed daily updates and anecdotes about how many red flags and smarmy things were common practice in this office — sophisticated my keister!

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Back to School
Dorothy Brizill, dorothy@dcwatch.com

At a press conference at the Wilson Building today, Mayor Fenty and School Chancellor Rhee announced several initiatives intended to “renew, revitalize, and reorganize DCPS.” These initiatives are summarized in a press release that Fenty, Rhee, and Deputy Mayor for Education Victor Reinoso released jointly (http://www.dcpswatch.com/mayor/071128b.htm). Prior to the press conference, Fenty had a contentious breakfast meeting with the councilmembers, who expressed their anger that they had not been consulted and had not even been properly informed of the mayor’s plan. Instead, they learned of the plan to close twenty-four schools by September only by reading Theola Labbe’s article in this morning’s Washington Post (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/27/AR2007112702387.html). At the breakfast meeting, mayoral staffers distributed another paper that detailed the plans for closing schools to councilmembers, but denied copies to members of the press and public (http://www.dcpswatch.com/mayor/071128c.htm).

At the press conference, in response to my question, Reinoso detailed the process by which the Fenty administration developed the plan. According to him, while councilmembers and the public had been given no opportunity to have any input into the plan, there had been extensive consultation with insiders such as Chancellor Rhee’s office; Deborah Gist, the State School Superintendent; the DC Office of Planning; the 21st Century School Fund; the Urban Institute; and the Brookings Institution.

The mayor’s office intends to discuss the plan and to "engage the public in a series of community meetings," between December 10 and 19, prior to Christmas.

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Chancellor Rhee’s November Surprise
Mai Abdul Rahman, maifordcschools@gmail.com

On November 13, public school parents were surprised to learn of Chancellor Rhee’s attempts to privatize and restructure more than twenty-five of our neighborhood schools (many of which are Ward 4 schools and include Wilson High School) and convert them to charter schools. How did this come about with so many well-meaning parents and school advocates following every aspect of the Rhee-Fenty educational plan closely and attentively? And what can we do to improve our schools with thoughtful well planned initiatives?

Recent public school discussions in the media, among parents, and the general public, have been dominated by the debate over failing schools. They have contributed to an across-the-board declining confidence in the effectiveness and responsiveness of DCPS. In addition, the reduction in the role and the responsibility of our local school board, irrespective of the effectiveness and efficiency of prior boards, has left the local school community, parents, activists, advocacy groups, teachers and school staff with limited power, reach, and influence.

Despite these difficult realities and school shortcomings, there exists a shared belief that education is important and is a valued future investment in the development of our city’s human and social capacity. Understanding that education is still prized and paid by our tax dollars, DC public school parents have to take the lead in facilitating a local dialogue about the impact of school closures on our children and neighborhoods. Community engagement on the effect of the new governance structure and Rhee’s initiatives on our local schools is healthy and productive.

With few exceptions, charter schools have been proven to produce poor outcomes and poorly run schools. Their institutional weakness have been revealed by the failure of most charters, fiscally and administratively; by the recent guilty plea of Brenda Belton, director of DC Charter Schools; the closure of five additional charter schools; and the public accounts of the well placed Washington Latin School. With these realities in mind, DCPS parents and the public must be provided adequate opportunities to scrutinize Rhee’s proposed charter initiatives or any other plans.

In DC, three assumptions exist about the status of public education. One is the necessity to improve and reform DCPS, the second is the current failure of DCPS schools to offer quality education that will help produce superior students prepared to join the work force or higher educational institution. The third and the most widely held assumption by DC taxpayers and legislatures is the high cost of public education. Parents and tax payers have demanded that Fenty, our councilmembers, Rhee. and the State Education Office address all three matters efficiently and decisively. But our calls to improve our schools should not be misinterpreted by Rhee or others as an abdication of our rights to be informed, question, inquire and examine school proposals.

City officials’ current attitude of indifference to Rhee’s school efforts to privatize our schools will prove fatal in the long run if her initiative is not well vetted before implementation. Parents, advocates, and the community have to participate fully in analyzing planned policies that will have an impact our schools. The current void of parental and community involvement has contributed to parents’, teachers’, and administrators’ perceptions of ineffectiveness. Education is a public investment; DC parents and the general public must not be overlooked by Rhee and other city officials.

We urge Chancellor Rhee to engage the school community instead of engaging the few through E-mails and last-minute meetings. Establishing a comprehensive school district communication plan that engages the parents and school advocates widely would offer parents and activists an opportunity to understand her initiatives and for her to understand the impact her school policies have on our schools and neighborhoods.

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Fenty Shells Out Holiday Spirit Early
Robert Kabel, press@dcgop.com

Mayor Adrian Fenty’s administration has more than tripled the number of public employees earning $175,000, according to a recent report from the Washington Examiner [http://www.examiner.com/a-1070312~Fat_paychecks_under_Fenty_s_watch.html]. Three employees make over $200,000, one of whom is terminated University of the District of Columbia President William L. Pollard, who earns $236,000.

DC taxpayers are making a list, checking it twice. Fat pay checks are naughty and the DC taxpayers just won’t be nice. DC is now facing financial instability with the largest corruption case coming to the surface. The mayor should set an example and show taxpayers he means business by reducing some of these bloated paychecks.

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Voluntary Agreements, Continued
Jack McKay, jack.mckay@verizon.net

Recently I wrote that “live music and dancing are banned in Mount Pleasant” by voluntary agreements (themail, November 18). Laurie Collins, the author of these restrictions, denies this: “There is no ban on live music in Mount Pleasant restaurants,” she writes (themail, November 25). Indeed, responding to intense neighborhood pressure to relax its death grip on entertainment in Mount Pleasant, Laurie’s Mt. Pleasant Neighborhood Association now offers a minuscule bit of live music: from noon until 3 p.m. on Sunday afternoons, and “on special occasions no more than twelve times per year between the hours of 9:00 p.m. and 11:00 p.m.” Two hours once a month is the MPNA quota for live music in the evening. Furthermore, any music “shall be performed at a volume level that allows patrons to talk at a conversational level,” and may be offered by “no more than four musicians.” Wait, there’s more: “Prior to each special occasion, Licensee shall notify MPNA in writing . . . advising the nature of the occasion, the entertainment to be provided, and date of the event.” That’s to alert their vigilante squads, no doubt. The total ban on dancing remains: the restaurateur ”shall not provide an atmosphere for dancing, or a dance floor for dancing, or permit the moving of tables and chairs for the purpose of dancing.”

Only one Mount Pleasant restaurateur has agreed to this pittance allowance of live music, and he’s very unhappy that he did so. In two hours, he cannot cover the costs of hiring even a small musical group, so the ban remains, in practice. Hundreds of Mount Pleasant residents, represented by several neighborhood organizations, as well as the Mount Pleasant ANC, are fighting the MPNA-imposed ban, supporting three restaurants that want the MPNA “voluntary” agreement terminated. (How "voluntary" is this agreement, if the restaurant cannot escape it?) The ABC Board is caught in the middle of this battle, burdened by a liquor license law that has no provision for a contest between neighborhood groups with rival, incompatible, “voluntary” agreements.

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Memory Lane
Lea Adams, workinprogress247@mac.com

I enjoyed the Zippo piece (themail, November 25), and am delighted that Gary felt compelled to insert his ramblings down memory lane in place of the absent entries for themail’s editorial contest. I also enjoyed the comments about Natwar Gandhi’s much discussed oversight in oversight, and what, if any action should be taken in response. How about, instead of taking away his job and leaving ourselves Gandhiless (only a fool exchanges an old, faithful Zippo for a new box of matches), we determine the exact amount his faux pas cost us, and reduce his salary accordingly.

But, more than any of the conversation about what-to-do-about-Gandhi, I jumped for glee to read the name Tassos for the first time in decades. Oh, the rush of memories! I’d trade one evening at Tassos preceded by a stroll through bongo beats and chess games in pre-yuppified-gentrified Dupont Circle for a dozen reservations at restaurants I can find just as easily in Seattle. And, while I’m dreaming, throw in anything with couscous at Calvert Cafe when Mama Ayesha was in the kitchen or mingling with her guests, a Greek salad at the Astor on M Street, and a huge Cuban dinner for under $10 (a glass of red wine included) at the Omega on Columbia Road. For those who weren’t there, sorry you missed it. ‘nuff said.

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Street Cleaning Suspended for Winter
Nancee Lorn, nanceelorn@yahoo.com

The DC Department of Public Works (DPW) announced that weekly signed residential mechanical street cleaning will end for the season Friday, November 30. “No parking/street cleaning” restrictions will be lifted and motorists may park along posted, alternate-side, daytime street sweeping routes without being required to move their cars on street-cleaning days. Residential street sweeping is suspended for public safety concerns during the winter. Sweepers emit a fine spray of water to keep dust down as they sweep; but when the temperature is at freezing or below, sweeping is discontinued to prevent freezing and accidents to vehicles and pedestrians.

Overnight sweeping scheduled for the District’s major roadways, such as Pennsylvania, Georgia, Constitution, and Independence Avenues and others, will take place as usual all winter, weather conditions permitting. Motorists are urged not to park in these areas during the posted overnight sweeping hours.

By suspending the street sweeping program, DPW personnel will focus on leaf collection, which began November 5, and the upcoming snow removal season. Residents and business owners will be notified when street sweeping resumes again in the spring of 2008. For more information about DPW services, visit the agency’s web site at http://www.dpw.dc.gov.

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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS

Woodridge Library Book Sale, December 1
Suzanne Griffith, glades@verizon.net

The Friends of the Woodridge Library is having a used book sale on Saturday, December 1, from 9:30 a.m. until 4 p.m. We have tons of books in all kinds of categories (novels, history, self-help, cooking, romance, history, children’s books, and more) plus videos, DVDs, CDs, books on tape — lots of great stuff!

The library is located at the corner of Rhode Island Avenue and 18th Street, NE. All proceeds from the sale will benefit the library. Call 541-6226 for more information or send an E-mail to woodridgefriends@yahoo.com.

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Freddie Mac Foundation’s Adoption Expo, December 1
Susan Punnett, susan@kidsave.org

The Freddie Mac Foundation is hosting a free Adoption Expo for prospective parents interested in domestic or international adoption, as well as for adoptive parents seeking support. Saturday, December 1, noon to 4 p.m., Grand Hyatt Hotel, 1000 H Street, NW. Free admission.

Exhibitors include public and private adoption agencies, adoption support services, renowned adoption authors, and adoption information agencies. For more information, visit http://www.FreddieMacFoundation.org.

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Gifts for Good Market, December 1
John Tobe, hhrlt2@yahoo.com

The “Gifts for Good” market will be held at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School this Saturday. It features over twenty charitable organizations offering alternative gifts that benefit people in Washington and all over the world.

Some of the “gifts” include adoption of endangered animals through the World Wildlife Fund, two sets of school uniforms for a needy child in India ($15) through Global Giving, stocking the toy chest at Dr. Bear’s Toy Chest at the Children’s National Medical Center, buying building material for Habitat for Humanity, and many other worthy charities. Open to the public and all proceeds benefit the participating charities.

This Saturday, December 1, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., St. Patrick’s Episcopal Day School, 4700 Whitehaven Parkway, NW (off MacArthur Boulevard). For more information, please visit http://www.dcgiftsforgood.org.

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DC Public Library Events, December 1-4
Kandace Foreman, kandace.foreman@dc.gov

Classic movies, Saturday, December 1, 12:30 p.m., Francis A. Gregory Neighborhood Library.

Saturday Technology Training Sessions (STTS). Demonstrations of new assistive technologies and group training. All ages who use assistive technologies. Saturday, December 1 and 15, 1 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Library, Adaptive Services Division, Room 215.

Saturday Movie Matinee, ages 6-14, every Saturday in December (1, 8, 15, 22, 29), 2 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library Children’s Division, Room 200.

Dana Gioia, author of “Can Poetry Matter?” and Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts reads and discusses poetry. Monday, December 3, 6:30 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library, Great Hall.

Maggi Ann Grace, author of State of the Heart: A Medical Tourist’s True Story of Lifesaving Surgery in India, Tuesday, December 4, noon, Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial Library, Second Floor East Lobby.

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What Is This Thing Called ICSIC?, December 4
Susie Cambria, scambria@dckids.org

Join DC ACT at our December 4 forum, What is this thing called “ICSIC,” and why should human services providers and advocates know about it? The purpose of this event is to get the community up to speed -- from those responsible for creating the ICSIC. Staffers from the Office of the Deputy Mayor for Education will present on the ICSIC and then answer questions from the audience. This is a must-attend event for providers and advocates. Learn how to navigate this new budget and policy framework. The forum is being held from 10:00 a.m. to noon at the True Reformer Building, 1200 U Street, NW. Registration is required. More information on the forum and how to register are on-line at www.dckids.org in The Latest.

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UDC’s Annual Holiday Concert, December 12
Judith Korey, jkorey@udc.edu

The University of the District of Columbia will present its annual holiday concert at 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, December 12, in the University Auditorium, located on the University’s campus at 4200 Connecticut Avenue, NW.

The concert is the University’s annual holiday gift to the Washington, DC, community and is free and open to the public. The UDC Chorale, directed by William Jones, starts the evening with a program of choral music, followed by the gospel sounds of The Voices, directed by Gerry Gillespie. The UDC Jazz Ensemble, directed by Allyn Johnson, closes the program with big band jazz sure to spread the holiday spirit.

The University Auditorium (Building 46 East — Van Ness Campus) is conveniently located on Metrorail’s Red Line at the Van Ness/UDC station. Contact Judith A. Korey at 274-5803 or jkorey@udc.edu for additional information.

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Annual Christmas Bird Count, December 15
Anne Anderson, mobileanne@earthlink.net

Having read Gary’s ramble, I wondered frantically about what I could send in to avoid the next one. So let me tell you about the 108th annual Christmas Bird Count that will take place in the DC Metro area on December 15. This is the oldest and biggest citizen scientist project in the world. People who sign up to help with the count are included in the counting circles all over the country. We are amateur birders who contribute to our nation’s understanding of the changes in bird life by going out and identifying and counting every bird we see on that one day. We welcome newcomers who will be placed in a group with an experienced birder to help identify birds. The results are collected from each counting circle and compiled into an annual report, which gives a snapshot view each year of the state of our resident birds. Participants who register and pay $5 receive a copy of the annual report. There are various sector leaders who coordinate small sections of the metro area so that counters can cover roughly the same areas every year and make it manageable for busy people to take part. We go out, rain, shine, sleet, snow, and count what we see. I think it will be very interesting to see if there are major differences in what we see this year, since the fall has been so warm. If you are interested in participating, please go to the web site, http://www.audubon.org, and click on Christmas Bird Count found in the Birding Calendar link.

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Holiday Wreath Sale and Brookland Celebration of Lights, December 16
Richard Layman, rl.brookland@yahoo.com

Fresh Canadian balsam holiday wreaths, 24", will be available November 27 through December 23, or while they last for $20.00. Order from Brookland Main Street by phone (526-4848) or E-mail, Brooklandcdc@aol.com. Our elves deliver and install.

All proceeds support this year’s "Celebration of Lights," a trolley ride through Brookland to enjoy our holiday lights, hot chocolate, holiday treats, roasted chestnuts, all donated from our community, and of course photos with Santa!

Celebration of Lights in on Sunday, December 16, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m., at Brookland Visitor Center, 3420 9th Street, NE.

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