Responsibility
Dear Responsibles:
Ed Cowan, below, argues against the anonymous correspondent with a
law enforcement connection whom I quoted in the introduction to the last
issue of themail. That person wrote that the murder rate went up 10
percent in the last two years, since Adrian Fenty became mayor and Cathy
Lanier became police chief. Ed correctly points out that a direct
connection between Fenty and Lanier and the increase in homicides has
not been shown. But from that he implies a conclusion that I’m not
sure is warranted, that Fenty and Lanier cannot and should not be held
responsible for the rise in homicides.
When and for what should citizens hold elected officials and their
top appointed managers responsible? The question reminds me of something
I wrote in themail five years ago (September 7, 2003): “There’s a
story that I often tell, and some day I’m going to hunt down the
source in which I read it, because it’s a true story that’s too good
to be true, and without the name of the anthropologist who reported it
it’s too hard to believe. This anthropologist told the story of an
African tribe that chose its chiefs by an almost democratic process, at
least in medieval terms. The chief’s position was not an hereditary
post; instead a new chief was chosen by a council of the elders. They
chose the best and wisest member of the tribe, who did not have to be an
elder. And the chief was treated almost like a god. His feet never
touched the ground again, at least outside of his residence. He was
carried everywhere by bearers. He had the best food the tribe had, and
it was fed to him; he didn’t have to feed himself. He had his choice
of the women of the tribe, as many as he wanted. He was the ultimate
judge of the law, and his decisions were final. He lived a life of
luxury and almost unlimited power. Until the rains didn’t come, and
the crops failed. When that happened, it was proof that the chief had
displeased the gods. The tribe took him out into the forest and killed
him, and the council of elders met to select a new chief.”
We’ve moved a little distance from that today; rulers who displease
the gods aren’t killed, they’re simply not reelected. But every day
we hold our elected officials responsible for events over which they may
not have complete control. Did the crime rate, the unemployment rate, or
the school dropout rate go up? The elected officials and their appointed
managers get the blame. Could there have been outside events, events
beyond anyone’s control, that influenced any of these things? Of
course, and supporters of the elected officials and their managers will
undoubtedly point out these events. Is it fair, then, to hold the mayor,
the police chief, the city’s economic officials, or the school
Chancellor responsible if things go bad?
Yes, it is totally fair, because they themselves claim responsibility
for them. To get elected or appointed, they say they know what to do to
reduce the crime rate, to improve the economy, to retain students in the
public schools. They get their jobs by saying that they know how to
control these events, and that they will control them if we give them
the power. Here’s the simple rule: if things were to go right (the
murder rate, the unemployment rate, the school dropout rate went down by
10 percent) would the mayor issue a press release and hold a press
conference to claim credit for things going right? You know he would.
Then, when any of these things goes wrong, he’s responsible and
deserves the blame.
I can’t help noting that government officials in many nations now
claim that they can control whether the temperature of the planet goes
up or down, that government policies have more influence than the sun on
whether the Earth warms or cools. If they claim to have that much power,
then perhaps we are being too lenient in just letting failed government
officials retire from office. Perhaps we should return to taking them
out into the forest.
Completely unrelated and too good to pass up, although I probably
quote from the Volokh Conspiracy blog too often, is an entry that Eugene
Volokh posted on Monday (http://volokh.com/archives/archive_2009_01_04-2009_01_10.shtml#1230619311).
It reads, in full, “On June 18, 1912, Congress passed a law entitled,
An Act to provide for the support and maintenance of bastards in the
District of Columbia.” Volokh headlined the posting, “That Explains
Everything.” Three-and-a-half years from now, we should celebrate the
centennial of this act; we’ve benefited from it ever since.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Following the terrorist attacks on 9/11 in 2001, the US Secret
Service insisted that “in order to prevent future terrorist attacks,”
safety perimeters had to be installed around many of the District’s
federal buildings (the White House, the Capitol, the State Department,
and so on). This resulted in the sudden erection of barricades around
many government facilities and the closure of many District streets.
During the debates over these closures, however, Delegate Eleanor Holmes
Norton and Mayor Anthony Williams tried to represent the interests of
District residents by challenging, mostly unsuccessfully, the efforts of
the Secret Service to impose these street closings.
Today, the Secret Service released its plans for street closings in
DC on inauguration day, January 20, and they’re wildly
disproportionate to any past inaugural closing plans (http://www.wtop.com/?nid=29&sid=1565855).
They’re not just meant to clear the area around the Capitol ceremony
and the Pennsylvania Avenue parade, as they always have been in the
past. Instead, they’re designed to paralyze the city as a whole and to
overburden Metro so much that it will be unusable on that day. Not only
will three and a half square miles of downtown DC be closed to car
traffic, but, in addition, all bridges and major roads linking the
District to northern Virginia will be closed to vehicular traffic. These
plans will inconvenience DC residents and workers, and they’ll make it
difficult for all the visitors to DC to get to the inaugural events they
came to see.
As these plans have been made by the Secret Service and the Obama
Presidential Inauguration Committee over the past few weeks, it has
become increasingly clear that neither group cares in the least about
accommodating DC residents, commuters, and visitors. It has also become
clear that neither Mayor Fenty nor any DC government representative has
played an independent role as a spokesman for our interests, and that
nobody representing the city has tried to introduce common sense into
the overblown, grandiose “security” schemes that will shut down our
city unnecessarily.
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Silence Doesn’t Make the Response More
Palatable
Ashaki Goodall, ashakigoodall@aol.com
Happy New Year in the world of DC education reform! Where are
noisemakers and party hats: DC has a lot to celebrate, doesn’t it?
After all, the city just brought in the New Year with the dubious
distinction of being the lowest ranked “state” for its delivery of
educational services to its constituents. Our overall grade was a D+
with a total score of (gulp!) 68.3. (See http://www.edweek.com
and view the Quality Counts 2009 report.) Looking at areas of policy and
achievement in seven categories (English Language Learners; Chance for
Success; Transitions and Alignment; School Finance; K-12 Achievement;
Standards, Assessments and Accountability; and The Teaching Profession)
the report paints a dismal picture of what has and is occurring in our
city-state’s educational system. And to be clear, this is not an issue
for the District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), under the
Chancellor, to address. It is an issue for the Office of the State
Superintendent of Education (OSSE), the continually neglected and
under-scrutinized government agency established under the DC Education
Reform Act of 2007, headed by Ms. Deborah Gist.
This report tells us that this state education agency has a long way
to go in providing the oversight, guidance, technical assistance, and
sanctions mandated to it by, if nothing else, its acceptance of US
Department of Education dollars authorized under the No Child Left
Behind Act of 2001. But what is unbelievable to me is the silence. Where
is the outcry from the public, the city council, parents, and advocacy
groups? Where is the media coverage by the Washington Post and
other communication outlets? Where is the attempt — although surely
feeble — to explain this ranking? Boy, the celebration seems to have
moved over to where “9th ward” of the District of Columbia resides:
Maryland number one in the country. Mayor Fenty, Deputy Mayor Reinoso,
Ms. Gist, our newly all-elected school board, the city council — it’s
time to wake up from your dazed state and hold the OSSE accountable for
tangible, measurable results. The quality of all of our schools, the
rate of educational achievement of all our students, and the expertise
of all of the instructional force is dependent upon the expectations and
actions of the top educational leadership of our city-state.
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My police sources inform me that Chief Lanier will be fired after the
inauguration and a new chief will be selected by Fenty. You heard it
here first.
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The Devil’s Paintbox
Victoria McKernan, victoriamck@mindspring.com
Just wanted to let you know my new novel The Devil’s Paintbox
will be released on January 13. It is a Young Adult historical novel,
particularly good for boys, but Old Adults will like it too! You can
pre-order now and get a discount on Amazon.com.
What else? Buy from your local bookstore — it’s good for them to
notice it. Buy two from your local bookstore. Ask your library to get a
copy. Give your local library a copy. Write a brief reader’s review
(or bribe/coerce/force your kid to write it) on Amazon.com.
See the starred review in the December 8, 2008, issue of Publisher’s
Weekly, http://www.publishersweekly.com/article/CA6619812.html?
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Finally a viewpoint that I can agree with [Matt Forman, themail,
January 4]. The middle class shouldn’t be allowed to alter their homes
at all in an affordable manner if it sacrifices the least little bit of
historic accuracy. And people with disabilities should get out of our
city and go to a home rather than muck up our neighborhoods. How dare
someone want to build a ramp to the front door or install vinyl windows.
Tacky, tacky, tacky, and it shouldn’t be allowed anywhere in our
sacred city. Thank you, Mr. Forman, for reminding us that these people
are really very rich because their houses have some property value. They
shouldn’t be treated like poor ordinary working folk just because they
own homes and may have some needs and desires for those homes. It is
much better for us to get to drive about the city seeing pristine,
unpreserved, falling-down homes that no one can afford to live in or
would want to live in with the restrictions imposed by the preservation
police.
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Matt Forman argues [themail, January 4] that the Mount Pleasant
couple with the vinyl windows must be wealthy, and therefore should be
compelled to pay whatever it costs for windows “consistent with the
architecture.” Historic preservationists generally assume that anyone
who can afford to live in a historic district must be wealthy enough to
pay the steep costs of historic preservation regulation. Or, as one
Historic Preservation Office decree stated, as they forced a homeowner
to pay over $50,000 for roof repairs, “if Applicants do not wish to
abide by these standards . . . they can sell the realty ‘as is.’”
That is, if you can’t afford the historic preservation costs, sell
your home, move away, begone.
In fact, these vinyl windows currently under challenge meet with the
approval of the residents of Mount Pleasant. The preservationist
aristocracy disapproves, to be sure, but the just-plain-homeowners are
fine with them. As one of this couple’s neighbors wrote, “I found it
hard to pick out which house was at fault, [because] they had matched
the style and character pretty well.” Another wrote, “take pictures
of the front of their house and . . . see if these ‘experts’ can
tell the difference. Taking our good looking windows is crazy.” When I
introduced a resolution at our ANC advising historic permitting of the
windows, my fellow commissioners made me remove a suggestion of
compromise. “Those windows are just fine,” they said, unanimously,
“don’t offer to change anything.”
This is why preservationists don’t want us ordinary folks making
historic preservation decisions, or allowed to vote on historic district
designation. They want to impose their own high standards, with a tacit
assumption that anyone who lives in a historic district must be wealthy
enough to pay the costs. Or if they’re not, they’ll be forced to
leave, and then only people wealthy enough to afford historic
preservation standards will live there.
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Crime and Fenty: Connection Unshown
Edward Cowan, edcowan1114@yahoo.com
Your anonymous correspondent with a law-enforcement connection (themail,
January 4) seems to fall into the fallacy of post hoc reasoning
— after this, because of this — when he or she juxtaposes the
arrival of Mayor Fenty and Chief Lanier with a reported ten percent
increase in “lethal violence” in 2008. “Murders are up ten percent
under Fenty,” your correspondent wrote.
The implication is that somehow Fenty and Lanier are responsible for
the increase. For there to be a causal connection, rather than simple
coincidence, the writer doesn’t explain the nexus: what Fenty and
Lanier have done or failed to do that may have caused, or contributed
to, the increase. Your correspondent offers no such explanation.
As is well known, crime statistics vary from year to year in part
because reality changes, in part because reporting by citizens varies,
and also because record-keeping by the police may be erratic. I am no
advocate for Mayor Fenty and Chief Lanier, but to blame them
persuasively for the rise in “lethal violence,” more is needed.
###############
Post
Reported
Murder Increase
Kimberly Johnson, kmj87@aol.com
[Re: themail, January 4] The Post actually did run a story on
the increase in homicide, albeit under the headline of increased youth
murders, http://tinyurl.com/7pphnf.
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Non-Smart Cards
T. Lassoc, cei76@aol.com
Amen to William Haskett’s comments in themail [“Metro’s Smart
Cards for Seniors,” January 4]. Our sentiments exactly. And what about
tourists and others who ride Metro only occasionally? What a rip-off,
and a considerable inconvenience to boot. The entire set of new rules
and procedures for the SmartCard , transfers, etc., needs to be
rethought and redone, or perhaps undone. DC is supposed to be a city of
highly credentialed persons — presumably competent, intelligent, and
smart. Obviously none works at the policy levels at Metro; or maybe
precisely because they are so-o-o smart, they came up with this new
Smart Card stuff and the ridiculous related rules. The issue of access
(or no sensible access at the moment) regarding purchase of the Smart
Card is huge! And the new rules, supposedly now in effect, are just
another testimony to incompetence and confusion, without regard for the
people — local citizens and others — who use the Metro system. Just
another example of the operation of The Peter Principle in and among
those agencies (and individuals) responsible for serving the public
interest.
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DC Voting Rights
T. Lassoc, cei76@aol.com
Samuel Jordan [”DC Voting Rights: Where’s the Beef?” themail,
January 4] is so right — constitutionally, legally, morally, and
logically. That’s probably why The Post missed the point.
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Touch Typing
Gabe Goldberg, gabe at gabegold dot com
Dan Gamber said [themail, January 4], “Those who cannot touch type
are crippled.” Hardly “crippled” — and using a word like that
can intimidate folks from starting to use computers or anything with a
keyboard. My father was a successful lifelong journalist and author, not
touch typing. I’ve been a computer professional and, for the last
eighteen years, freelance writer, without touch typing. I attended a New
York City magnet tech/science high school. If typing class was offered I
either didn’t hear about it or was more interested in meatier
subjects. I don’t think the lack of touch typing skills hurt my father’s
career or mine, since we’re pretty fast even without using all our
fingers. Would I like to touch type? Sure. But it’s not a big deal
lacking that skill.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
DC Community Heritage Grantee Showcase,
January 8
Lisa Alfred, lalfred@wdchumanities.org
The Heritage Grantee Showcase will show the work of the 2008 DC
Community Heritage Grantees. Thursday, January 8, 6:30 p.m. until 9
p.m., Reeves Center Community Room (U Street Cardoza Metro), 14th and U
Streets, NW
Come to learn about what kind of work your neighboring communities
are doing to tell their own stories and what funds are available to
assist your community group in preserving your history and traditions.
RSVP at http://www.wdchumanities.org
or call 387-8391.
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Professional Networking for the Nonprofit
Community, January 9
Joe Libertelli, jfl@udc.edu
Please join us for the monthly public interest “Eco/Justice”
Cafe, on the first Friday of each month (January 9, February 6, March 6,
etc.), at 6:00-10:00 p.m., at the UDC David A. Clarke School of Law
Firebird Inn, Building 38, B-Level; 4200 Connecticut Avenue. This is a
great professional networking opportunity for the public interest
community, featuring food, music, poetry, beer, an open mic session,
tabling organizations, and more. Music by Mike Bowers (http://www.mdbmusic.com/music.html)
and (maybe) by Maureen (http://www.myspace.com/maureenmusic)
and Jeff DeWeese.. Massages by Lisa Bregman.
There’s still room for free tabling; contact Joe Libertelli at jfl@udc.edu.
Our venue is wheelchair accessible. Suggested donation $15, $10
students, and $5 kids; food and drink included. All ages event; child
activities provided — and powered by kids! To volunteer on January 9,
E-mail Joe.
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DC Public Library Martin Luther King, Jr.,
Events, January 9-12
George Williams, george.williams2@dc.gov
Friday, January 9, 10:30 a.m., Washington Highlands Neighborhood
Library, 115 Atlantic Street, SW. Dr. King Story Time. Enjoy stories,
films and reading activities about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. Ages 1-5. Contact: 645-5881.
Saturday, January 10, 11 a.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, 901 G Street, NW, Great Hall. Kickoff Event: Kings Read. As a
tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., who was a member of Alpha Phi
Alpha Fraternity, Inc., the brothers of the Omicron Lambda Alpha
(District of Columbia Graduate Chapter) will read selections from books
on the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Also, the program will
feature teens in the fraternity’s mentoring program. Contact:
727-1291.
Monday, January 12, 10:30 a.m., Washington Highlands Neighborhood
Library, 115 Atlantic Street, SW. Dr. King Story Time. Enjoy stories,
films and reading activities about the life of Dr. Martin Luther King,
Jr. Ages 1-5. Contact: 645-5881.
Monday, January 12, 11:00 a.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, 901 G Street, NW, e-BIC (Enhanced Business Information Center)
Training Center, A Level. Exploring Entrepreneurship. Register for this
workshop that offers a chance for emerging and existing entrepreneurs to
learn and explore the nuances of self-employment and entrepreneurship.
Emerging entrepreneurs will learn about the key personal considerations
prior to launching a business. Existing entrepreneurs will receive
guidance in reevaluating their thoughts about entrepreneurship and
current endeavors. e-BIC (District of Columbia, US Small Business
Administration and DC Public Library) is sponsoring this program.
Contact: 727-2241.
Monday, January 12, 6:00 p.m., Woodridge Neighborhood Library, 1801
Hamlin Street, NE. The Community Remembers King. Community members come
together to reflect on the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. with
poetry, singing and personal reflections. Neighborhood school choruses
have been invited to participate. Also, see the movie, Martin Luther
King, Jr. All ages. For more information, call 541-6194
Monday, January 12, 8:00 p.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, 901 G Street, NW, Great Hall. Concert: All Souls Jubilee
Singers of the All Souls Church, Unitarian, DC; musical director: Lenard
Starks. The Jubilee Singers of the All Souls Church, Unitarian, DC, will
provide an uplifting evening of music in the spirit and memory of Dr.
Martin Luther King, Jr., and the Civil Rights Movement. Enjoy
spirituals, jazz, gospel music, and compositions by group founder, Dr.
Ysaye Barnwell. Also, see performances of Dr. King’s favorite
selections. All ages. For more information, call 727-1291.
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DC Public Library Events, January 10, 13
George Williams, george.williams2@dc.gov
Saturdays, 2:30 p.m. West End Neighborhood Library, 1101 24th Street,
NW. Tango practice for young adults and adults. For more information,
contact 724-8707.
Saturday, January 10, 11:00 a.m., Martin Luther King, Jr., Memorial
Library, 901 G Street, NW, Room A-10. Author Anne T. Quartararo,
professor of History at the United States Naval Academy discusses her
book Deaf Identity and Social Images in 19th Century France.
Tuesday, January 13, 7:30 p.m., Palisades Neighborhood Library, 4901
V Street, NW. Palisades Library Book Club. For more information, contact
282-3139.
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Hollywood and the Holocaust, January 11
Sarah Pokempner, azepo@aol.com
Avalon In Focus, a new series consisting of single-day premieres of
powerful documentaries and independent films, presents Imaginary
Witness: Hollywood and the Holocaust for one screening on Sunday,
January 11, at 10:30 a.m. at the Avalon Theater, 5612 Connecticut
Avenue, NW.
The film tells the provocative and mostly unknown story of the
sixty-year relationship between Hollywood and the atrocities of Nazi
Germany. With scenes from over forty films, rare newsreels, and
interviews with leading scholars, filmmakers, and witnesses to the
events portrayed, Imaginary Witness takes the viewer on a journey from
American ambivalence and denial during the heyday of Nazism, through the
silence of the postwar years, and into the end of the twentieth century.
A discussion with filmmaker Danny Anker will follow the film. Anker
is the son of longtime Washingtonians Charlotte and Jerry Anker. He grew
up in Potomac, Maryland, and attended Winston Churchill High School. The
cost of tickets is $12 ($10 for Avalon members) and can be purchased in
advance at http://www.theavalon.org
or at the theater located at 5612 Connecticut Avenue, NW.
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Flying in the Great Hall, January 11
Jazmine Zick, jzick@nbm.org
January 11, 9:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m., a day of flying in the Great Hall.
Model Airplane Workshop (9:00-11:00 a.m.) Construct your own
rubber-band-propelled model airplane with the DC Maxecuters, then try a
test flight in the Great Hall. Cost per plane: $8 Member; $14 Nonmember.
Ages 8 and up and Webelos Cub Scouts. Prepaid registration required. To
register, visit www.nbm.org. Flying in
the Great Hall (11:00 a.m.-4:00 p.m.) Watch as the DC Maxecuters fly
their model airplanes in and across the Great Hall! Free drop-in
demonstration program. All ages. At the National Building Museum, 401 F
Street, NW, Judiciary Square stop, Metro Red Line.
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CLASSIFIEDS — DONATIONS
Empower DC, a community organizing project, is seeking office
furniture donations. Our wish list includes, in good condition: desks,
chairs, room dividers/cubicle walls, shelving, and flat-screen computer
monitors. Donations are tax deductible. Please contact Parisa@empowerdc.org
or 234-9119.
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