Franklin School - Get Off The Pot
This morning’s news roundup on Greater Greater Washington included this link to a story in the Examiner (ugh, I hate linking there) about the long-suffering ...
The District
Marion Barry Is The Problem With Ward 8
Councilmembers in the District of Columbia hold an inordinate amount of power, so the current battle over the boundary between Ward 6 and Ward 8 is no surpri...
Goddamn Gentrifiers
By some measures, Heather and I are long-time residents of the District of Columbia. We moved into a small condo on the 1200 block of 13th Street NW in March...
We Don’t Need No Stinkin’ Statues In The Capitol
In a move one might describe as “adding insult to injury”, or perhaps as “petty and dickish”, the House has graciously decided that the tax-paying-but-unrepr...
Dear Councilmember Bowser, Please Raise Our Taxes
Dear Councilmember Bowser,
The Marion Barry: A Shot In Honor Of The Former Mayor-For-Life
It’s been a big news day for the former mayor-for-life. The investigations into his use of earmarks have finally boiled over with the release of the Bennett...
Vacant and Blighted Property Testimony
Councilmember Bowser and Councilmember Evans held a joint hearing yesterday on B18-546 and B18-448. Both bills are an attempt to better define who gets hit...
West Nile Virus in Logan Circle
If you thought moving to Logan Circle meant trading mosquitoes and West Nile virus for prostitutes and robberies, think again! I received an email from Laki...
DC Council Cutting Vacant Property Tax Just As It Starts Working
Hot on the heels of my ebullient post that the vacant property tax was starting to bear fruit comes the news that the Council is going to cut the tax. And i...
Vacant Property Tax Working Exactly As Intended
Vacant properties are a huge problem in the District, especially in the inner core neighborhoods like Logan Circle and Shaw. In addition to being both unsig...
Naturopathic Medicine in the District of Columbia
I doubt many of you have heard of B18-0060, the Practices of Medicine and Naturopathic Medicine Amendment Act of 2009. I hadn’t either, until it was brought...
Desi Deschaine - You Will Be Missed
I write with a heavy heart that our good friend Desi Deschaine has passed away. As a staffer for Mayor Williams, and later Councilmember Jack Evans, Desi ti...
Blame for the Metro Crash
The Metrorail system is deeply inculcated into the fabric of transportation in the DC Metro Area. Everyone uses it, at least once or twice. It is a testame...
DC Alerts Does It Again
I am really not intending to make this blog a running commentary on DC Alerts, but sometimes my hand just gets forced. Though my last post on the issue was ...
DC Alerts Is Ready For the Zombie Apocalypse
I was pretty harsh on DC Alerts in my last post. And I stand by that. But say what I might about DC Alerts, I do have to give them props for one thing: The...
DC Alerts Needs To Take Its Role Seriously
The idea behind Alert DC’s text-messaging/email alert system is a good one: Broadcast information about emergency situations to interested and/or affected pa...
Two Birds With One Stone: What To Do With Vacant Properties
This is one of those posts where the title is disproportionately long with the post itself, but whatever.
Anecdotes in the Great Meter Debate
Though we usually walk most places, since we are without cars, Hedda and I will hop into a cab more often than many. The impending switch from the archaic zo...
Bizarro World: No Stadium for the D.C. United
We must be living in Bizarro World, where Stupid Ideas rule the day, simply to spite Good Ideas for being too good. The Post is reporting that talks between ...
You Are Not The Most Important Person in The District
I appreciate the varied ways our communities communicate, and the ready accessibility of the public officials and government enabled via electronic communica...
Free Parking on 4th of July
It seems that DPW is going to be closed tomorrow, and that means that MPD will be responsible for enforcing parking. And since they generally have bigger fi...
The Asshole from Texas is Right
Let’s get this out of the way first: I want voting rights. I’m angry over my disenfranchisement, and I seethe at paying taxes without a vote in the matter. T...
Fenty Inaugural Ball - Kind of a Drag
Hedda snagged a couple of tickets to the Fenty Inaugural Ball this evening, and took me along as her date. It was a “black tie optional” evening, and we opte...
My Idea to Bridge the Metro Budget Gap
With all the hubbub over possible massive fare increases on the Metro, I feel like I should throw my two cents in. After all, without a car, public transit i...
Voting When It Doesn’t Matter
It’s election day, my first in DC, and I voted this morning. I was musing with Hedda on our way to the polling place about how depressing it is that our vote...
Gunshot Sensors in D.C. - Buy These Instead of Cameras
The Post has an article talking about gunshot sensors that have been installed in the District to help combat the most violent of crimes. It’s a really cool ...
Please Leave the Logan Circle Traffic Lights Off
After the manhole explosions in the neighborhood on Saturday, the power was out on 13th Street north of the park. That included the traffic lights around Log...
I Am A Human Rights Violation
Once again, the United Nations has smacked down the United States for denying me and my fellow DC residents voting representation in Congress. This time, how...
My First Ever Letter to the Editor
Last week’s City Paper had a really good article entitled “A Line in the Sandbox” that discussed some of the trials and tribulations of a particular DC Publi...
D.C. Smoking Ban Almost Law
Well, Mayor WIlliams has decided to niether sign nor veto the smoking ban. In most jurisdictions, this would mean that the law would take effect. However, th...
Fix The Libraries and RFK Stadium
So here’s a great idea! Why not take the $535 million in public funds slated for the new baseball stadium, and instead of throwing it down the tubes, spend i...