Everything You Need to Know
Dear Knowledgeable Readers:
If you haven’t paid attention to the mayor’s race before now, I
envy and admire you. You haven’t missed anything, because this week
several major articles have been published that tell you everything you
need to know.
The Washington Post published two profiles of the major
candidates. Its institutional bias was obvious in the articles’
placement in the paper. Tim Craig’s profile of Vincent Gray, “With
Grit and Diplomacy, Gray Pushes Through Agenda,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/19/AR2010081906730_pf.html,
was published on Thursday at the bottom of the front page. Nikita
Stewart’s profile of Adrian Fenty, “Mayor Adrian Fenty, Late in
Tough Reelection Campaign, Tries to Make Amends,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/21/wAR2010082102601.html,
was published Sunday, the highest circulation day, as the lead article
above the fold on page A-1. Nevertheless, the articles got equal
placement on the web site, and they are both fair and balanced, with
quotes from supporters and opponents of both candidates that give the
strongest cases for and against them.
Today’s Post also pairs Adrian Fenty’s campaign piece, “A
Strong Foundation, But No Time to Slow Down,” http://tinyurl.com/27gfltc,
with Vincent Gray’s article, “Better Results by Working as ‘One
City,’” http://tinyurl.com/24tk4nk.
Stewart observes in her profile that Fenty’s promises to be more open,
a better listener, and more collaborative in the future are a new
development. That is borne out by Fenty’s own article, which alludes
to it only in two sentences near the end. The new promises don’t come
from Fenty’s experiences over the past four years, but from focus
groups meant to shape the campaign’s advertising. If you want to take
advantage of the opportunity, act soon; it is a limited time offer that
expires on primary election day.
The state of DC public schools is a major issue in the campaign, and
that’s why Bill Turque’s critical examination of whether the
Fenty-Rhee school reforms have really been a success, or have been an
illusion supported by the skillful manipulation of statistics, is so
important: “Fenty’s Political Fortunes Tied to Success of DC School
Reforms,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/18/AR2010081806726.html.
Post readers who follow the coverage of schools by Turque, his
predecessor on the schools beat Theola Labbe, and his colleague Valerie
Strauss can be well informed about school issues; unfortunately, the Post’s
editorial board doesn’t seem to be able to learn from its own
newspaper’s coverage. Colbert King’s examination of Turque’s
findings, “DC Mayor Contest Must Get Substantive on Schools,
Corruption,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/20/AR2010082003002.html,
shows how a less biased and more thoughtful editorial board could profit
by paying attention to its reporters’ good work.
The last major article this week is Alan Suderman’s cover story in
the Washington City Paper, “Is Adrian Fenty a Jerk? Politicians
Say He Is. The Question for the Rest of Us This Fall Is, Should We Care?”
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/articles/39616/is-adrian-fenty-a-jerk-politicians-say-he-is-but.
Fenty’s supporters no longer argue that he is not a jerk; instead they
say that being a jerk is admirable, that being a jerk is a requirement
to be a good political leader. He has to be divisive to be decisive. He
has to use corruption and cronyism to be good at construction
contracting. Cities can’t be governed democratically. Instead, a city
needs a strongman who will run roughshod over others in order to get
things done. Fenty’s disregard and disrespect for others, including
his own supporters, isn’t a flaw, but an advantage. All right, if that’s
your argument, stop acting superior to and sneering at the people who
supported Marion Barry for four terms as mayor. You’re no different
from them.
Gary Imhoff
themail@dcwatch.com
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Last Saturday, August 21, the Ward 8 Democrats held a meeting and
endorsement vote for candidates for mayor, council chair, and at-large
members of the council in the September 14 Democratic primary. The
meeting at Matthews Memorial Baptist Church was extraordinary in two
respect — the large number of Ward 8 residents who attended the
meeting and the thorough trouncing of Mayor Fenty. In the past, Ward 8
residents have not turned out in large numbers in primary elections. For
example, only 27.01 percent of Ward 8 registered Democrats voted in the
September 12, 2006, primary, compared to 46.62 percent of registered
Democrats in Ward 3. In 2002, only 23.46 percent of registered Democrats
in Ward 8 voted in the primary. Therefore, it was quite extraordinary
that on Saturday, a lovely summer afternoon, more than five hundred
people attended the Ward 8 straw poll. A common refrain uttered by the
ward’s community leaders throughout the day was that the ward was
sending a message to the media and the various campaigns: “So you
think we don’t vote; we’ll show you.”
With respect to the endorsement vote, 350 ballots were issued to Ward
8 registered voters. Sixty percent of all votes cast, or 188 votes, was
needed to secure the endorsement.) The results were, for mayor: Leo
Alexander, 2; Adrian Fenty, 59; Vincent Gray, 244; Sulaimon Brown, 1;
Ernest Johnson, 0; and write-in, 1. For council chair: Kwame Brown, 227;
Vincent Orange, 53; and Dorothy Douglas, 14. For council at-large:
Michael Brown, 68; Clark Ray, 95; Phil Mendelson, 144; and write-in, 3.
Ron Moten of Peaceoholics, a DC government contractor and Fenty
campaign strategist, was largely relegated to the sidelines. Because the
Ward 8 Democratic Committee did not allow “same day voter
registration, Moten wasn’t able to bring a cadre of young people to
vote, as he had done at the Ward 8 candidate forum and straw poll on May
15. As a result, Moten spent most of the afternoon outside on a
bullhorn, taunting Gray supporters as they entered and left the church.
Immediately following most candidate forums and meetings, Mayor Fenty
holds a rally with his campaign staffers and supporters. On Saturday,
when Fenty tried to gather his staff on the sidewalk just outside
Matthews Memorial, he was completely surrounded and overwhelmed by Gray
supporters who chanted the refrain to N Sync’s song “Bye Bye Bye,”
suggesting that Fenty’s days in office were coming to an end. Unable
to be heard, Fenty and his Green Team were forced to retreat to a
parking lot adjacent to the church, where they posed for group photos
(see http://www.twitpic.com/2gx1pv)
and braced for the inevitable bad news from the straw poll.
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A Leopard Doesn’t Change Its Spots
Karl Jeremy, mayandkarl@gmail.com
Four years ago we forgave an apologetic Adrian Fenty when he admitted
he had mismanaged a client’s money while he was its appointed
guardian. Today, he’s guilty of the most blatant exhibit of cronyism
by any mayor of this city. His habits have not changed. It’s a shame
the Trout Report won’t be released before the September primary,
because it will disclose the pay to play development deals that have
fattened the pockets of the mayor’s fraternity brothers. Sinclair
Skinner, a concern during the first campaign, is still around, but now
driving a Porsche and no longer living over his failing dry cleaning
establishment. The Trout findings won’t come as a surprise but they
will confirm what so many have been saying, “The Mayor lacks
integrity.”
The Anacostia River Cleanup Fund and the Tree Fund have both fallen
victim to the mayor’s sticky fingers, which prompted David Alpert of
GreaterGreaterWashington to write on June 2, “It’s always tempting
to just use the revenue [Anacostia River Clean Up Fund] for other
purposes. The mayor tried to do the same with the performance parking
revenue, which has to go to local neighborhoods to get support for the
policies in the first place,” http://greatergreaterwashington.org/post.cgi?id=5395.
The Anacostia River Cleanup and Protection Act of 2009 Fund is intended
to restore and protect the Anacostia River and provide wetlands
restoration, trash traps, storm drain screens, etc., and also pay for
the distribution of free reusable grocery bags to low-income, elderly,
and otherwise needy DC residents. The mayor used the proceeds to fund
DPW’s street cleaning budget. The Tree Fund is another dedicated pot
of money the mayor appropriated. Over a half million dollars was taken
from the fund to cover general fund shortfalls. Mark Buscaino of Casey
Trees noted, “The loss of $539,000 equates to about 2,000 replacement
trees. Fenty and many DC council members have touted their ‘green’
goals, promising green jobs, green neighborhoods, and a fishable,
swimmable Anacostia River. Mr. Fenty also set an ambitious and
attainable tree canopy goal to cover 40 percent of the city, for which
he deserves credit. With this budget action, however, we must ask
whether these promises are serious initiatives backed by sustained
funding, or empty promises. I urge the mayor and council to restore the
Tree Fund money and plant the 2,000 trees that residents and those who
paid fees into the fund are owed,” http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/06/26/AR2010062603678.html.
Public school progress has been the one area where the mayor has felt
really comfortable trumpeting success and spending at will. In spite of
the fact enough money has been spent to send each student to private
school, the recent AYP scores indicate things are not significantly
improved across the city, and especially in Wards 7 and 8. Instead there
is mass job insecurity among teachers, success is being claimed for
programs Clifford Janney began and the tyrant in charge has little in
her own educational portfolio and must be called Schools Chancellor
rather than Superintendent of Schools. Ward 3 residents, recognized as
the mayor’s support base, seem oblivious to the fact that only schools
that were previously performing well continued to perform above AYP
requirements while other Ward 3 schools remained or fell below the mark
in reading, math, or both. These results do not demonstrate significant
improvement considering the gross amount of money thrown at improving
public schools and the number of magazine covers that have featured the
Chancellor’s image. Voters needs to recognize there is no guarantee
Michelle Rhee will remain in Washington after her September 4 wedding
when she must decide which mayor has her favor. She needs to be honest
about her plans rather than holding voters hostage. A leopard doesn’t
change its spots and Adrian Fenty cannot change character flaws that
have developed over thirty-nine years. It’s time to elect a mayor with
integrity, and Vincent Gray has my vote.
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Eleven Effective Mayoral Skills
Alvin C. Frost, alvincfrost@msn.com
The position of DC mayor requires a number of important skills and
characteristics in order to be successful. The District government had
fiscal 2009 revenue of $9 billion for governmental activities and almost
28 thousand employees under the mayor’s control. If the District were
a private business, it would be a Fortune 500 corporation. As a result,
it must function as though it is a corporation, while also operating as
a not-for-profit organization. The mayor, as the chief operating
officer, is responsible for creating and managing the budget, in
addition to directing the many different employees that must respond to
both the critical and day-to-day needs of the residents of Washington,
DC, in addition to the many visitors who commute to work or visit the
city, and to the federal government that is headquartered here.
I am suggesting these eleven effective mayoral skills that should
help the next mayor to accomplish all of the important things that the
people of Washington, DC, need done. These eleven skills are: 1)
Conceptual — the mayor must have the ability to use information to
solve problems, identify opportunities for innovation, recognize problem
areas and implement solutions, and select critical information from
masses of data, understanding the government uses of technology. 2)
Human — the mayor must have the ability to interact effectively with
people. Great managers interact and cooperate with staff and employees.
Because mayors must deal directly with people, this skill is crucial.
Mayors with good human skills are able to get the best out of their
people. They know how to communicate, motivate, lead, and inspire
enthusiasm and trust. These skills are equally important at all levels
of management. 3) Technical — technical skills are required for the
mayor to understand the nature of the jobs that people under him have to
perform. The mayor must understand that, at his level, the conceptual
component, related to the functional government areas, becomes more
important, and, although the technical component becomes less important
at his level, it is critical for his managers and supervisors. 4)
Decision-Making — an effective mayor is characterized by the ability
to make good decisions. A mayor considers all of the different factors
before making a decision. Clear and firm decisions, combined with the
willingness and flexibility to adapt to circumstances and adjust
decisions, when necessary, create confidence in the mayor. 5)
Communication — the mayor’s ability to transform ideas into words
and actions creates credibility among citizens, colleagues, peers, and
subordinates. Listening to others and asking questions, oral
presentation skills, and familiarity with written and graphic formats
are critical.
6) Effectiveness — contributing to government mission and
departmental objectives, customer focus, and multitasking; working at
multiple tasks at parallel, negotiating skills, project management,
reviewing operations and implementing improvements, setting and
maintaining performance standards internally and externally, setting
priorities for attention and activity, and time management are all
necessary for mayoral effectiveness. 7) Competent subordinates —
effective mayors are not threatened by capable contemporaries or
subordinates. They understand that their organization is only as strong
as their weakest link. The mayor must surround himself with accomplished
and effective managers and subordinates, and then allow them to do their
jobs. 8) Ethical and moral — high moral standards frequently
distinguish effective mayors from manipulative, combative-type leaders
who tend to use flattery, compliance, confrontation, indirect threats,
and their position to manipulate subordinates and the public. Good
mayors lead by example, and not by empty platitudes and excuses. 9)
Experienced — good mayors have one consistent characteristic that
allows them to be effective: relevant experience. Whether doctors,
lawyers, CPAs, teachers, or mayors, they usually have relevant
educations and experience in various organizations and positions before
they achieve the top position in city government. Individuals with
relevant and effective experience are able to rely on past situations to
inform them as to how to deal with current situations and to plan and
prepare for the future. 10) Financial management — mayors have a
fiduciary responsibility to balance the budget and to also be effective,
both for today’s operations, but also in preparing for future
challenges. Irresponsible spending today limits future options, while
insufficient spending today allows for current problems to worsen in the
future. The mayor must balance current spending with effective saving
for the future. 11) Team building — a mark of a good mayor is that he,
or she, has to be able to provide consistent motivation to his team,
encouraging them to attain excellence and quality in their performance.
A good mayor is always looking for ways to improve operational standards
and effectiveness.
I suggest that District voters either use these eleven effective
mayoral skills to evaluate the 2010 candidates for DC mayor, or that
they develop similar skill lists on their own. In any case, I strongly
recommend that DC voters go well beyond differences in age, personality,
supporters, funding, etc., in order to decide which mayoral candidate to
support and/or vote for.
###############
DC’s Child Prostitution Rates Are Among the
Highest in the Country
Mai Abdul Rahman, spotlightoneducation@yahoo.com
In the past, child prostitution was limited to poor developing
countries in faraway continents, but our prolonged poor economic
conditions have contributed to the rise child prostitution in the US and
DC in particular. Experts estimate the average number of children
sexually exploited in the US is two hundred thousand, http://www.sharedhope.org/dmst/documents/SHI%20National%20Report_without%20cover.pdf.
Tens of thousands of young children are sexually exploited in the US
daily, http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/422/index.html.
Unfortunately DC’s child prostitution is among the highest in the
country, and merits serious consideration by DC city officials and
legislatures.
The Declaration of the World Congress Against Commercial Sexual
Exploitation of Children (1996) considers child sexual exploitation a
form of “slavery” and defines child prostitution: as “sexual abuse
by the adult and remuneration in cash or kind to the child or a third
person or persons. The child is treated as a sexual object and as a
commercial object.” According to the UNICEF, children living in
poverty are highly vulnerable and willingly or unwillingly engage in
sexual activities to fulfill key need such as food, shelter, and to earn
money to “ simply survive,” http://www.unicef.org/events/yokohama/outcome.html.
In DC, poor children are traded and sexually exploited. In 2009 the FBI
rescued over 45 teenage prostitutes, some as young as thirteen, in a
nationwide, three-night sweep called Operation Cross Country. Operation
Cross Country took place in DC as well as other states, http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel08/innocencelost062508.htm.
In 2008, the DC Human Trafficking Task Force discovered thirty-two cases
of children sexually exploited by older men in DC. Child prostitution is
likely to increase with the worsening economic conditions our city is
facing, and the factors that lead to child prostitution get little
attention from city officials and legislators. Dealing with sexually
exploited children is confounding our schools’ psychologists and
counselors, who are ill equipped to address this alarming phenomena. I
learned first hand of the rise in child prostitution rates in the
2009-2010 school year, where I encountered school counselors and
psychologists perplexed by the increase in the number of students forced
into prostitution to make ends meet, secure shelter, food, or
transportation money.
In DC, two factors have contributed to child prostitution among
school-aged children: poverty and homelessness — two problems our city
has yet to come to grips with. In DC more than 23 percent of children
live below the poverty line (at $21,800 for a family of four), http://www.legalclinic.org/about/facts.asp.
Although DC is among the top twenty cities with the highest cost of
living along with Baltimore and New York City, DC’s TANF (welfare)
benefits for a family of three are inadequate at $428; Baltimore’s is
$565, and New York’s is $691. Meanwhile DC’s homeless rates are
highest in the country. In 2009 more than sixteen thousand residents
were homeless. Surprisingly many of them are employed and 37 percent of
them are families with children in a city that only provides 162 units
for homeless families. In addition, there are approximately three
thousand stand-alone homeless children vying for 64 emergency shelter
beds and 78 units of youth housing. The Washington Legal Clinic for the
Homeless’ 2010 survey found “homeless individuals were turned away
from emergency shelter 25 times each night,” http://www.legalclinic.org/about/facts.asp.
Meanwhile studies suggest that 30 percent of homeless children living in
shelters are victims of sexual exploitation and more than 70 percent of
homeless children forced in the streets are forced to engage in “survival
sex” to secure food, housing, and transportation.
The impact of child prostitution is devastating to young children and
takes a heavy toll on their physical and mental health. Our city needs
legislators aware and prepared to address the root causes of DC’s high
child prostitution rates determined to pursue and secure DC’s
federally appropriated funds, such as the TANF “Emergency Contingency”
fund established in the federal stimulus legislation — that DC has yet
to fully take advantage of. These federal funds will augment DC’s
declining revenues, maintain and/or restore low-income families and
child services, and assist local nonprofits to meet the rising demands
for their services. Legislators must muster the will to mobilize
available support from a broad range of stakeholders including federal
and local agencies, nonprofits, academicians, and educators to generate
the political momentum necessary to deal with DC’s high rates of
sexually exploited children.
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Having grown up in a town with town hall meetings I can confidently
say that “ain’t no way” that town hall is one word, or that “town
hall meetings” is any fewer than three words.
“Blindside” is a verb; one word, I agree. “Town hall” is a
meeting at a hall in a town. Forgive me for overstating the obvious. At
least no one’s using “town hall” as a verb yet, as in, “you’re
townhalling me.”
You should keep a copy of the Oxford Dictionary! The online
dictionaries are mostly awful.
###############
As Gary puts it so well, blindsided by a spellchecker (or spell
checker or spell-checker). They are handy things, but their blind side
is lexical categories, a.k.a. parts of speech. The Online Etymology
Dictionary, http://goo.gl/zH6d,
says that the verb form (blindside) first attested in 1968, is “written
as one word.” That same OED gives the split version (from c. 1600)
only for the much older noun, which may also be one word, especially in
Britain. The other OED (Oxford English Dictionary) also lists the
noun form as two words or one word, but shows that the verb has always
been one word (sometimes hyphenated).
Even Hollywood has grokked this distinction: Blindside (1986)
starring Harvey Keitel, but The Blind Side (2009) with Sandra Bullock
and Tim McGraw.
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CLASSIFIEDS — EVENTS
Online Discussion of Trash
Preparation/Collection, Debris Clearing, and Sandbags, August 25
Kevin Twine, kevin.twine@dc.gov
The Department of Public Works (DPW) Solid Waste Management
Administration will respond to residents’ questions regarding trash
and debris collection and sandbag distribution during hurricane season
on Wednesday, August 25, at 12:00 p.m. DPW’s emergency preparedness
officer also will provide tips and information to help keep residents
safe and prevent water damage to their property
Residents can join or follow the discussion at http://dpw.dc.gov/livechat
once the chat session begins. Wednesday, August 25, 12:00-1:00 p.m. This
is the seventh in a series of monthly online chats with DPW Director
William O. Howland, Jr., and other DPW officials. Future topics will
address household hazardous waste, leaf collection, snow, and other DPW
operations.
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Department of Parks and Recreation Events,
August 27-28
John Stokes, john.astokes@dc.gov
August 27, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m., Congress Heights Recreation Center,
100 Randle Place, SE. Teen Time Cookout and Softball Game for ages
thirteen through eighteen. Members of the Congress Heights teen club
will enjoy music, food and a friendly softball game amongst their
friends and peers in the community. For more information, call Thomas
Bolden at 645-3981.
August 28-October 16, 9:00 a.m.-7:00 p.m. 2010 Pop Warner Little
Scholars/Washington DC Pop Warner League, citywide, for ages five
through fifteen. This is the beginning season of the DC Pop Warner
Football League. For more information, call Kevin D. Clark at 498-2243.
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