Heard President Obama's speech on Afghanistan and why he has made the decision to send 30000 additional troops to that region to fight both the Taliban and Al Qaeda. WOW! Imagine what 300000 troops could do for our border. Imagine what 300000 troops could do for many of our urban streets to encourage our own nation building. Maybe protect our children so that they can go to school, play on the playground or make it to and from the corner store alive and with their purchase. See the oil in these areas impact the US Economy and we have a financial stake in Afghanistan. We have to keep Pakistan safe/secure since they do hold nuclear weapons, but the reality is our hood nation is dying while we are over in the Middle East "nation building".
I know it wasn't an easy decision for President Obama. It really is not aligned with the promises he made and I pushed during his campaign. I know what he reads and sees in front of him is a lot different than what I get as a citizen. Therefore I have to pause and understand that if I trusted him to be our president, than I have to trust that he is making the best decision with the information he has in front of him. He is passionate about the US and wants us to be safe, so I will stand and support him even though I don't understand why Afghanistan's nation building is more important than building our own nation here in the United States of America. I guess the hood can wait, but I doubt if the hood will be silence. How many more will we loose in Chicago? How many more will we lose in East Cleveland? How many more will we lose in East LA? How many more will we lose in St. Louis? How many more will we lose in Detroit? How many more will we lose in Miami? How many more will we lose in DC? How many more will we lose in NYC? How many more will we lose in Baltimore? How many more will we lose in New Orleans? How many more will we lose in Oakcliff? How many more will we lose in Brownsville? How many more will we lose?
Thursday, December 3, 2009
Monday, November 16, 2009
Oprah's Palin Interview - Post Feedback
Just heard what I needed to hear 18 minutes into the Oprah interview. So, Palin admits that the economy was "tanking" during the time of the presidential election campaign. Palin admits that under the Republican administration the nation's economy was in the toilet and that Americans wanted a change from Bush and the republican party.
For the most part it was a good interview and shows just how professional Oprah is. One would never know that she was supporting the other candidate (Obama). I think that Oprah was very fair and balanced during the entire interview.
I don't believe some of the things Palin said, with regard to Katie Couric, but it is her opinion and I haven't read the full transcript of the interview with Couric. I would like to read them so that I can have the full interview. However, I am not convinced that she is as well read as she tried to make herself out to be.
She was a bit stronger in her responses than when she was on the campaign trail to me. The success is that more folk listened to her than they would have normally listened and also, the interview peaked a curiosity about Palin. As a result, her book should do even better when it hits bookstore shelves tomorrow. Going Rogue on sale November 17th.
www.oprah.com for more details on the interview
For the most part it was a good interview and shows just how professional Oprah is. One would never know that she was supporting the other candidate (Obama). I think that Oprah was very fair and balanced during the entire interview.
I don't believe some of the things Palin said, with regard to Katie Couric, but it is her opinion and I haven't read the full transcript of the interview with Couric. I would like to read them so that I can have the full interview. However, I am not convinced that she is as well read as she tried to make herself out to be.
She was a bit stronger in her responses than when she was on the campaign trail to me. The success is that more folk listened to her than they would have normally listened and also, the interview peaked a curiosity about Palin. As a result, her book should do even better when it hits bookstore shelves tomorrow. Going Rogue on sale November 17th.
www.oprah.com for more details on the interview
Oprah Goes Rogue: A Sarah Palin Interview
I have been feverishly working today to have everything completed by 4pm so that I won't miss a single moment of Oprah today. For anyone who has been under a rock this week, Sarah Palin will be her guest today and she will answer all questions on deck on her show. I will be interesting to get a chance to hear Palin speak while not under the "McCain box" that she found herself in during the presidential run. Who knows, I may end up seeing eye-to-eye with her. I am hoping that we can meet on some of the issues that are brought up on the show today. I plan to take a lot of notes. Palin's book Going Rogue goes on sale tomorrow and is already a best-seller. Who knew, but they say that there is a book in all of us, just not a ghostwriter for all of us!
What are some questions you want Oprah to ask Palin? Do you think that Palin said those mean and hurtful things about her youngest son? Are you willing to watch the interview with an open mind?
I would like Oprah to ask Palin what her plans are for 2012? Why she left her position as Governor in Alaska and what message does that send to about her ability staying committed to an elected post? What are her short-term goals for 2010? I have told myself that there is no way that she could say or call her baby son those mean and demeaning names. I will watch today with an open mind and I hope that this interview goes way way way way better than the Katie Couric interview. At the end of the day, I am hoping that she doesn't feel slighted by Oprah's questions and that we all get a better glimpse of "who is Sarah Palin".
Don't miss Oprah today at 4pm @OPRAH
Barbara Walters will also have an interview with Sarah on ABC. Check your local listing for date and time.
Sarah Palin's book "Going Rogue" can be purchased at Wal-Mart for $9 along with other hardcover book titles. Buy it at Amazon.com for the same price too: http://www.amazon.com/Going-Rogue-American-Sarah-Palin/dp/0061939897/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258404043&sr=1-1
Going Rogue contributors include: Amy Alexander, Max Blumenthal, Joe Conason, Eve Ensler, Michelle Goldberg, Jane Hamsher, Christopher Hayes, Jim Hightower, Linda Hirshman, Naomi Klein, Dahlia Lithwick, Amanda Marcotte, Shannyn Moore, John Nichols, Tom Perrotta, Katha Pollitt, Frank Rich, Hanna Rosin, Matt Taibbi, Michael Tomasky, Rebecca Traister, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Jessica Valenti, Patricia Williams, JoAnn Wypijewski and Gary Younge.
What are some questions you want Oprah to ask Palin? Do you think that Palin said those mean and hurtful things about her youngest son? Are you willing to watch the interview with an open mind?
I would like Oprah to ask Palin what her plans are for 2012? Why she left her position as Governor in Alaska and what message does that send to about her ability staying committed to an elected post? What are her short-term goals for 2010? I have told myself that there is no way that she could say or call her baby son those mean and demeaning names. I will watch today with an open mind and I hope that this interview goes way way way way better than the Katie Couric interview. At the end of the day, I am hoping that she doesn't feel slighted by Oprah's questions and that we all get a better glimpse of "who is Sarah Palin".
Don't miss Oprah today at 4pm @OPRAH
Barbara Walters will also have an interview with Sarah on ABC. Check your local listing for date and time.
Sarah Palin's book "Going Rogue" can be purchased at Wal-Mart for $9 along with other hardcover book titles. Buy it at Amazon.com for the same price too: http://www.amazon.com/Going-Rogue-American-Sarah-Palin/dp/0061939897/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258404043&sr=1-1
Going Rogue contributors include: Amy Alexander, Max Blumenthal, Joe Conason, Eve Ensler, Michelle Goldberg, Jane Hamsher, Christopher Hayes, Jim Hightower, Linda Hirshman, Naomi Klein, Dahlia Lithwick, Amanda Marcotte, Shannyn Moore, John Nichols, Tom Perrotta, Katha Pollitt, Frank Rich, Hanna Rosin, Matt Taibbi, Michael Tomasky, Rebecca Traister, Katrina vanden Heuvel, Jessica Valenti, Patricia Williams, JoAnn Wypijewski and Gary Younge.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
President Obama's first 10 months in office
I have heard soooo many people complaining about President Obama. I have heard how they do not feel like he is doing anything in office as The President of United States of America. I have heard that they can't tangibly feel any of his policies. I have argued countless times that it takes more that 10 months to really make an impact. Our economy was bad prior to Obama coming in office, we were already at war Iraq and Afghanistan before Obama was in office and that the country was more divided too prior to Obama coming in office. I will continue to be a stand for the man that I worked to elect the president. Here is a list of some of President Obama's accomplishments over the past 10 months he has been in office (not a year yet).
In just ten short months, President Obama has:
Requested $15 billion in increased funding for the Veterans Administration over 30 years -- the largest increase in history
Signed into law the "VA Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act" which will provide the VA with advance funding-the #1 legislative priority of almost every Veterans Service Organization
Provided $1.4 billion in additional funding to the VA under the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act" that is going directly to improving VA hospitals and clinics around the nation
Expanded VA-healthcare enrollment opportunities for more than 250,000 previously excluded Veterans, and continue to raise this number towards a goal of 500,000.
Launched a major Veterans Employment Initiative that is designed to make the federal government into the model employer of America's veterans.
I am humbled to be one of millions of courageous Americans who have dedicated their lives to serving and protecting our democracy. While there is much left to be done, under President Obama's leadership we have made historic progress towards fulfilling our commitment these patriotic men and women.
Happy Veteran's Day to our troops, men & women who have served in the past and their families. I hope you will take a moment today stand with those who served our nation by getting involved with one of the following organizations: USO, Fisher House, and the Bob Woodruff Foundation.
In just ten short months, President Obama has:
Requested $15 billion in increased funding for the Veterans Administration over 30 years -- the largest increase in history
Signed into law the "VA Health Care Budget Reform and Transparency Act" which will provide the VA with advance funding-the #1 legislative priority of almost every Veterans Service Organization
Provided $1.4 billion in additional funding to the VA under the "American Recovery and Reinvestment Act" that is going directly to improving VA hospitals and clinics around the nation
Expanded VA-healthcare enrollment opportunities for more than 250,000 previously excluded Veterans, and continue to raise this number towards a goal of 500,000.
Launched a major Veterans Employment Initiative that is designed to make the federal government into the model employer of America's veterans.
I am humbled to be one of millions of courageous Americans who have dedicated their lives to serving and protecting our democracy. While there is much left to be done, under President Obama's leadership we have made historic progress towards fulfilling our commitment these patriotic men and women.
Happy Veteran's Day to our troops, men & women who have served in the past and their families. I hope you will take a moment today stand with those who served our nation by getting involved with one of the following organizations: USO, Fisher House, and the Bob Woodruff Foundation.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
VA Teen Charged With Attacking 5 Women - WTH?
I was just reading the Washington Post and read about a teen that has been terrorizing the Virginia area. Where are his parents? Who is his guardian? They need to see what he has been doing and also possibly do some of his time for his crime(s). That do you think? Here is the article below. Love to know your thoughts!
The Associated Press
Thursday, November 5, 2009; 12:22 PM
Prince William County police have arrested and charged a 15-year-old boy for attacking five women.
Police say they arrested the Manassas boy on Tuesday and charged him with three counts of abduction, five counts of malicious wounding, one count of sexual battery and one count of attempted rape. They did not identify the teen.
The attacks occurred between August and November in the Coverstone Drive area of Manassas. The victims range in age from 25 to 36-years-old.
The teen was arrested after the latest incident when police say he attacked a woman from behind and began punching and biting her.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/05/AR2009110502679.html?wprss=rss_metro
The Associated Press
Thursday, November 5, 2009; 12:22 PM
Prince William County police have arrested and charged a 15-year-old boy for attacking five women.
Police say they arrested the Manassas boy on Tuesday and charged him with three counts of abduction, five counts of malicious wounding, one count of sexual battery and one count of attempted rape. They did not identify the teen.
The attacks occurred between August and November in the Coverstone Drive area of Manassas. The victims range in age from 25 to 36-years-old.
The teen was arrested after the latest incident when police say he attacked a woman from behind and began punching and biting her.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/11/05/AR2009110502679.html?wprss=rss_metro
Metro Communications Knocked Out
Metro Communications Knocked Out
Failure blamed on power distribution unit
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Nov 2009, 6:51 PM EST
Published : Wednesday, 04 Nov 2009, 7:55 AM EST
WASHINGTON - Much of Metro's communications system was disrupted Wednesday by the failure of an "internal power distribution unit" that led to a "data center computer," the transit agency said.
Managers at Metro's Operations Control Center (OCC) were unable to make public address announcements to passengers at rail stations. Phone service at Metro headquarters in downtown D.C. worked intermittently for much of the morning.
From approximately 2:45 a.m. to about 10:00 a.m., Metro's bus communications system did not work. Some fareboxes on buses could not read SmarTrip cards. Drivers let those passengers ride for free.
For much of the morning, disabled passengers were unable to call and book rides on Metro Access vehicles. They could not book rides from the website either. The display boards in the Metro Access vans did not work.
Farecard machines at Metro stations would not accept debit cards, and would accept credit purchases only up to $20.
Ironically, e-Alerts, which are used to tell passengers about difficulties in the system, were also not working.
Most rail and bus service, however, continued as normal. The radio communications system on the rail side, which is operated separately, remained working.
As of late in the afternoon, most of the disabled communications systems had been restored.
Spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein says the part that failed was "old", and while managers intended to replace it soon, they hadn't yet.
The following systems are now functioning:
• Metrobus fareboxes are functioning, although some bus operators had difficulty logging onto them earlier this morning. If that was the case, customers were allowed to ride without paying.
• The Bus Operations Control Center had early difficulty communicating with buses on the streets, however bus radios came back into service at about 10 a.m.
• All reservation and dispatch systems for MetroAccess returned to use at about 10 a.m.
• The MetroAccess call center and online reservation system returned to service at about 10 a.m.
• The public address system came back online at 10:30 a.m.
The following systems are not functioning:
As of mid-afternoon, customers were still unable to purchase fare with their debit cards.
Customers have been limited to charge a maximum of $20 at a fare vending machine using a credit card at fare machines.
The NextBus system is not operational.
SmartBenefits are not functioning.
The e-alert system is not functioning.
The outage occurred at Metro Headquarters, 600 5th Street, NW.
On the Net:
http://www.wmata.com/
Failure blamed on power distribution unit
Updated: Wednesday, 04 Nov 2009, 6:51 PM EST
Published : Wednesday, 04 Nov 2009, 7:55 AM EST
WASHINGTON - Much of Metro's communications system was disrupted Wednesday by the failure of an "internal power distribution unit" that led to a "data center computer," the transit agency said.
Managers at Metro's Operations Control Center (OCC) were unable to make public address announcements to passengers at rail stations. Phone service at Metro headquarters in downtown D.C. worked intermittently for much of the morning.
From approximately 2:45 a.m. to about 10:00 a.m., Metro's bus communications system did not work. Some fareboxes on buses could not read SmarTrip cards. Drivers let those passengers ride for free.
For much of the morning, disabled passengers were unable to call and book rides on Metro Access vehicles. They could not book rides from the website either. The display boards in the Metro Access vans did not work.
Farecard machines at Metro stations would not accept debit cards, and would accept credit purchases only up to $20.
Ironically, e-Alerts, which are used to tell passengers about difficulties in the system, were also not working.
Most rail and bus service, however, continued as normal. The radio communications system on the rail side, which is operated separately, remained working.
As of late in the afternoon, most of the disabled communications systems had been restored.
Spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein says the part that failed was "old", and while managers intended to replace it soon, they hadn't yet.
The following systems are now functioning:
• Metrobus fareboxes are functioning, although some bus operators had difficulty logging onto them earlier this morning. If that was the case, customers were allowed to ride without paying.
• The Bus Operations Control Center had early difficulty communicating with buses on the streets, however bus radios came back into service at about 10 a.m.
• All reservation and dispatch systems for MetroAccess returned to use at about 10 a.m.
• The MetroAccess call center and online reservation system returned to service at about 10 a.m.
• The public address system came back online at 10:30 a.m.
The following systems are not functioning:
As of mid-afternoon, customers were still unable to purchase fare with their debit cards.
Customers have been limited to charge a maximum of $20 at a fare vending machine using a credit card at fare machines.
The NextBus system is not operational.
SmartBenefits are not functioning.
The e-alert system is not functioning.
The outage occurred at Metro Headquarters, 600 5th Street, NW.
On the Net:
http://www.wmata.com/
Wednesday, November 4, 2009
Fenty's Parks Contracting Scheme is His First True Scandal. By Mike DeBonis
I was reading the City Paper for DC and came across an interesting article about the Mayor that involves Parks and Recreation. Reminds me of the saying "Be careful on your way up to be kind to those you meet along the way, so that when and if you find yourself descending they will remember how kind you were." Hope the Mayor has been kind because all kind of stuff have come out of the woodworks lately. The Tennis club that he was allegedly responsible for having closed, hiring his fraternity brothers for key projects and now this:
Fenty's parks contracting scheme is his first true scandal.
By Mike DeBonis
Posted: November 4, 2009
Bid Adieu: Parks contracting scheme eschewed standard procurement rules.
(Darrow Montgomery)
Recent Loose Lips
The New Cronies
The story of Adrian Fenty, some frat brothers, and tens of millions of dollars in parks construction.
Posted: October 28, 2009
Out With the Old
The Fenty administration's war with power broker David Wilmot and his nonprofit group home outfit.
Posted: October 21, 2009
Parks and Wreck
How Ximena Hartsock became the first cabinet-level appointee in memory to be turned down.
Posted: October 14, 2009
Send a Letter to the Editor
When Mayor Adrian M. Fenty invokes the term “as fast as humanly possible,” he’s usually not talking about his swim-bike-run times. That’s what he says when asked about the delivery of city services and facilities. Channeling the longstanding frustrations of D.C. residents, Fenty has put his agencies, his minions, on a municipal triathlon timeline: Finish pronto or get left behind.
It’s all good, right? Get those bureaucrats off their asses and serve the people.
Thanks to the Fenty scandal du jour, however, LL and the rest of the city are learning about the dark side of the “humanly possible.”
When Fenty handed at least $120 million in city money to the D.C. Housing Authority, which, in turn, handed it to politically connected contractors with only the faintest whiff of oversight, he was no doubt trying to deliver on his mantra. By doing an end-around on city procurement processes, he’s aiming to cut ribbons on at least 11 neighborhood projects by the summer of 2011, with ground broken on each by this upcoming spring (in the midst, incidentally, of his re-election campaign).
Yet the mayor as endurance athlete—focused, disciplined, driven by hard data rather than parochial politicking—turns out to be the mayor willing to sacrifice any principle of good government in order to get his projects done.
At a contentious D.C. Council hearing on the contracts last Friday, City Administrator Neil O. Albert provided a simple explanation for the contracting scheme: It’s faster, better, and cheaper. The hearing illuminated the ramifications:
• Tens of millions in city dollars were moved around the city budget without independent review.
• Money was handed to DCHA, a ‘quasi-independent’ public concern, which in turn gave the money to a nonprofit subsidiary that engaged in a contracting process that saw little, if any, legal review. For its trouble, DCHA was paid $700,000.
• Management functions were then outsourced to a private company, Banneker Ventures, that was paid more than $4.2 million to do a job—capital project management—that the Department of Parks and Recreation already employs a staff of 11 to do. Banneker is owned by a close Fenty ally, Omar Karim.
• Banneker Ventures, in turn, was allowed to run a subcontracting process with only the faintest adherence to accepted procurement practices, with near complete power to distribute millions of dollars in public money to the contractors of their choice (including, fellow frat pal Sinclair Skinner’s Liberty Engineering & Design). This was done with the input of mayoral officials.
• A contract described the scope of the work to be done for several projects—in some cases costing taxpayers more than $10 million—in a single paragraph of about 100 words. (A top official in the Office of the Inspector General noted that the language was “problematic” and “needs to be redone.”)
• And the whole scheme was created and calibrated in such a way as to elude oversight by elected officials. It took the D.C. Council more than three months to figure out that this was going on under their noses.
The most surprising testimony of the day came from a family-owned local contractor, HRGM Corp. That outfit wanted to compete to build what turned out to be a playing field at the Park View Recreation Center. To get a piece of the pie, it had to comply with the subcontracting process that ensued after Banneker was handed the project management contract. HRGM owner Ramesh Butani and his daughter Rachna testified that the process was essentially a farce—that they were given limited information on what they were supposed to build, that the judging process was opaque, and that there was no attempt afterward to explain why they had lost the bid.
Said Rachna Butani, “It has been unclear to me what value Banneker Ventures adds.…They’re not responsive.…They can’t answer questions.”
She added: “I don’t believe they are professional or capable to handle these contracts.”
Who knows whether HRGM had what it takes to get that field completed on the Fenty clock? What we do know, however, is that the Fenty people hijacked the process, hid everything from public view—and frat brothers ended up with a load of cash.
For the Vincent Grays and Mary Chehs and other Fenty detractors, here’s a felony misstep by the Fenty regime to pile on top of the getting-hard-to-count misdemeanors of the past couple of years. Yet there are a few strands that tie this huge contract scandal with the “mini-messes” that preceded it.
The rec contracting scandal shares an insistence on secrecy with the Dubai trip and the enrollment of the Fenty sons in Lafayette Elementary School. It shares a loathing of the council with the hoarding of baseball tickets and his petulance on oversight issues. And it shares its provincial, proprietary views of what’s legal and illegal with the episode in which Fenty’s buddy played chauffeur in a city-owned vehicle, among other issues.
Each of these easily avoidable screw-ups contradicts the image that Fenty shaped during his 2006 campaign—that Adrian Fenty was the transparent, accountable, pragmatic, get-it-done populist. Rather, he’s acted like an arrogant, power-hungry, win-at-all-costs guy who doesn’t know how to pick his battles, make allies, and otherwise be the “big city mayor” he wants everyone to know he is.
And each time he operates in the shadows, arrogates power to himself, dismisses oversight, and plays fast and loose with the law, he adds beef to the narrative that someone is going to lay down before packed community rooms starting next spring.
Primary Day is Sept. 14, 2010.
Fenty Adopts Bush Tactic
LL and other local observers have gotten plenty of mileage out of comparing Fenty’s executive-power-aggregating habits to those of President George W. Bush.
Both, for instance, have foiled legislative attempts to conduct oversight of their administrations, have been stingy when responding to Freedom of Information Act requests, and have generally tried to consolidate control over their governments.
Let the comparisons continue!
Early in October, the D.C. Council passed the fiscal 2010 city budget, after months of wrangling over how best to deal with a late-breaking drop in city revenue. The process had not exactly been a model of cooperation, with the council jawing about Fenty’s methods of closing the $660 million budget gap and Hizzoner threatening a veto over school-governance matters.
But even with the final vote, the bickering hasn’t ceased. On Oct. 15, Attorney General Peter J. Nickles dispatched a 13-page memo to Fenty, who in turn sent it to Gray. The document lays out no fewer than 16 provisions included in the budget legislation that Nickles and his lawyers found to be objectionable—including six measures, he announced, that the executive branch should ignore completely due to “problems, including separation-of-powers and other Home Rule Act violations, that prevent lawful implementation.”
The practice mirrors Bush’s embrace of “signing statements”—messages sent to lawmakers accompanying the presidential signature. The practice, certainly, did not begin with Bush—presidents as far back as James Monroe have made them, but it saw a halcyon era under Bush 43. According to one professor’s analysis, Bush by the end of his tenure ended up challenging some 1,200 provisions in federal law—doubling the figures for all those before him combined.
Where Bush’s memos addressed matters such as affirmative action programs and the treatment of military detainees, Fenty’s budget memo deals with matters like taxi rates (the council has no power to set them), budget directives for the deputy mayor’s office (an “unlawful management of Executive Branch affairs”), and grant reporting requirements for the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corp. (the home rule charter says the council only gets to review contracts, not grants).
But just as Bush’s use of the maneuver sent Congress over the edge, Nickles’ memos are driving council types crazy.
At-Large Councilmember David A. Catania of all people, increasingly peeved by Fenty overreaching, calls them “an exercise in creative writing without the force of law.”
As on the federal level, mayors have issued legislative memos before, but usually to accompany vetoed legislation, says Brian Flowers, the council’s chief lawyer. And since Fenty has taken office, he says, the memos have been flying faster than ever before, with increasingly broad legal claims.
As for the claims in Nickles’ budget memos, “Some of them are quite laughable,” Flowers says. He is drafting a response.
Nickles has a fine retort to the Bush comparisons: “Why don’t they criticize President Obama, who’s engaged in the same practice?”
Indeed, Barack Obama said during the 2008 campaign that he and his lawyers “aren’t going to use signing statements as a way to do an end run around Congress.” Since taking office, however, Obama has issued dozens of his own, and Nickles says he’s read them: “He ensured that Congress knows the president’s view…that he’s not going to interpret legislation to interfere with the Constitution.”
Nickles explains his legislative memos this way: “I think the executive has the duty to stand for the executive’s prerogatives. Otherwise, in our tripartite system of government, one part will run over the other part.”
Political Potpourri
• Is someone taking a whack at scandal-softened Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham?
Bryan Weaver, the longtime Adams Morgan activist and advisory neighborhood commissioner, filed exploratory papers with the Office of Campaign Finance on Tuesday.
To explore a run against the sure-to-be-well-financed three-term incumbent, Weaver has thus far raised $2,500.
Exploratory bids have been rare since campaign finance laws changed some years back, but Weaver, 39, says his campaign is indeed merely speculative at the moment. “I have my opinions on what’s important to me and to the ward,” he says. “Maybe it’s a minority opinion, I don’t know.” Hence the de rigueur “listening tour.”
Why ponder a run? Weaver cites “a difference in ideas and what’s important to the ward,” pointing in particular to “an utter lack of transparency in government and a feeling that there’s a certain group of people who have a seat at the table because of contributions that they give.”
And even if Graham’s longtime chief of staff, Ted Loza, hadn’t been arrested on Sept. 24 as part of a federal bribery sting, Weaver says he’d still be looking at the race. “If you take a foreign trip for 30 days organized by someone with business before the council”—a not-so-veiled reference to alleged briber Abdulaziz Kamus and a 2006 trip to Ethiopia—“no congressman could get away with that,” he says. “I want to hold my city councilmember to the same standards.”
Graham’s campaign apparatus, meanwhile, is grinding to life. He filed his re-election papers in September, and political consultant Chuck Thies has signed on to deliver zinger quotes on his behalf.
“I wish him well. Running as a first-time candidate always presents a number of unforeseen challenges,” he says, playing up Graham’s strong backing in “every part” of Ward 1. “That base of support will surely need to be considered by Bryan as he explores a possible candidacy.”
• Is the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board about to get more health-conscious?
Last month, board chair Peter Feather announced he’d be stepping down in order to take a job out of town. To replace him, Fenty has nominated board member Chuck Brodsky, founder of the Nation’s Triathlon and one of Fenty’s famous “running buddies.”
Also nominated to the board recently is Aisha Wade, a Ward 8 resident who describes herself as a “[v]ersatile, experienced fitness professional.” She’s currently employed by the tony West End gym Sports Club/LA as an assistant fitness manager.
LL ran the potential new additions past Adams Morgan bar owner Bill Duggan, as staunch a defender of good old-fashioned legal vice as you’ll find in this town.
His take: “Watch—they’ll change the ABC Board to the SmartWater Board!”
The Madam’s Organ owner also has more substantive concerns. “It’s the only board that never has anyone from the industry at all,” he says. “You’d never have the medical board without a doctor…and here they bring in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that’s a friend of someone.”
Let me know your thoughts too here and feel free to post at @blsuccess or @livebigg
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=38061
Get Loose Lips Daily every weekday morning in your inbox—sign up at washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/citydesk. Got a tip for LL? Send suggestions to lips@washingtoncitypaper.com. Or call (202) 332-2100, x 244, 24 hours a day.
Fenty's parks contracting scheme is his first true scandal.
By Mike DeBonis
Posted: November 4, 2009
Bid Adieu: Parks contracting scheme eschewed standard procurement rules.
(Darrow Montgomery)
Recent Loose Lips
The New Cronies
The story of Adrian Fenty, some frat brothers, and tens of millions of dollars in parks construction.
Posted: October 28, 2009
Out With the Old
The Fenty administration's war with power broker David Wilmot and his nonprofit group home outfit.
Posted: October 21, 2009
Parks and Wreck
How Ximena Hartsock became the first cabinet-level appointee in memory to be turned down.
Posted: October 14, 2009
Send a Letter to the Editor
When Mayor Adrian M. Fenty invokes the term “as fast as humanly possible,” he’s usually not talking about his swim-bike-run times. That’s what he says when asked about the delivery of city services and facilities. Channeling the longstanding frustrations of D.C. residents, Fenty has put his agencies, his minions, on a municipal triathlon timeline: Finish pronto or get left behind.
It’s all good, right? Get those bureaucrats off their asses and serve the people.
Thanks to the Fenty scandal du jour, however, LL and the rest of the city are learning about the dark side of the “humanly possible.”
When Fenty handed at least $120 million in city money to the D.C. Housing Authority, which, in turn, handed it to politically connected contractors with only the faintest whiff of oversight, he was no doubt trying to deliver on his mantra. By doing an end-around on city procurement processes, he’s aiming to cut ribbons on at least 11 neighborhood projects by the summer of 2011, with ground broken on each by this upcoming spring (in the midst, incidentally, of his re-election campaign).
Yet the mayor as endurance athlete—focused, disciplined, driven by hard data rather than parochial politicking—turns out to be the mayor willing to sacrifice any principle of good government in order to get his projects done.
At a contentious D.C. Council hearing on the contracts last Friday, City Administrator Neil O. Albert provided a simple explanation for the contracting scheme: It’s faster, better, and cheaper. The hearing illuminated the ramifications:
• Tens of millions in city dollars were moved around the city budget without independent review.
• Money was handed to DCHA, a ‘quasi-independent’ public concern, which in turn gave the money to a nonprofit subsidiary that engaged in a contracting process that saw little, if any, legal review. For its trouble, DCHA was paid $700,000.
• Management functions were then outsourced to a private company, Banneker Ventures, that was paid more than $4.2 million to do a job—capital project management—that the Department of Parks and Recreation already employs a staff of 11 to do. Banneker is owned by a close Fenty ally, Omar Karim.
• Banneker Ventures, in turn, was allowed to run a subcontracting process with only the faintest adherence to accepted procurement practices, with near complete power to distribute millions of dollars in public money to the contractors of their choice (including, fellow frat pal Sinclair Skinner’s Liberty Engineering & Design). This was done with the input of mayoral officials.
• A contract described the scope of the work to be done for several projects—in some cases costing taxpayers more than $10 million—in a single paragraph of about 100 words. (A top official in the Office of the Inspector General noted that the language was “problematic” and “needs to be redone.”)
• And the whole scheme was created and calibrated in such a way as to elude oversight by elected officials. It took the D.C. Council more than three months to figure out that this was going on under their noses.
The most surprising testimony of the day came from a family-owned local contractor, HRGM Corp. That outfit wanted to compete to build what turned out to be a playing field at the Park View Recreation Center. To get a piece of the pie, it had to comply with the subcontracting process that ensued after Banneker was handed the project management contract. HRGM owner Ramesh Butani and his daughter Rachna testified that the process was essentially a farce—that they were given limited information on what they were supposed to build, that the judging process was opaque, and that there was no attempt afterward to explain why they had lost the bid.
Said Rachna Butani, “It has been unclear to me what value Banneker Ventures adds.…They’re not responsive.…They can’t answer questions.”
She added: “I don’t believe they are professional or capable to handle these contracts.”
Who knows whether HRGM had what it takes to get that field completed on the Fenty clock? What we do know, however, is that the Fenty people hijacked the process, hid everything from public view—and frat brothers ended up with a load of cash.
For the Vincent Grays and Mary Chehs and other Fenty detractors, here’s a felony misstep by the Fenty regime to pile on top of the getting-hard-to-count misdemeanors of the past couple of years. Yet there are a few strands that tie this huge contract scandal with the “mini-messes” that preceded it.
The rec contracting scandal shares an insistence on secrecy with the Dubai trip and the enrollment of the Fenty sons in Lafayette Elementary School. It shares a loathing of the council with the hoarding of baseball tickets and his petulance on oversight issues. And it shares its provincial, proprietary views of what’s legal and illegal with the episode in which Fenty’s buddy played chauffeur in a city-owned vehicle, among other issues.
Each of these easily avoidable screw-ups contradicts the image that Fenty shaped during his 2006 campaign—that Adrian Fenty was the transparent, accountable, pragmatic, get-it-done populist. Rather, he’s acted like an arrogant, power-hungry, win-at-all-costs guy who doesn’t know how to pick his battles, make allies, and otherwise be the “big city mayor” he wants everyone to know he is.
And each time he operates in the shadows, arrogates power to himself, dismisses oversight, and plays fast and loose with the law, he adds beef to the narrative that someone is going to lay down before packed community rooms starting next spring.
Primary Day is Sept. 14, 2010.
Fenty Adopts Bush Tactic
LL and other local observers have gotten plenty of mileage out of comparing Fenty’s executive-power-aggregating habits to those of President George W. Bush.
Both, for instance, have foiled legislative attempts to conduct oversight of their administrations, have been stingy when responding to Freedom of Information Act requests, and have generally tried to consolidate control over their governments.
Let the comparisons continue!
Early in October, the D.C. Council passed the fiscal 2010 city budget, after months of wrangling over how best to deal with a late-breaking drop in city revenue. The process had not exactly been a model of cooperation, with the council jawing about Fenty’s methods of closing the $660 million budget gap and Hizzoner threatening a veto over school-governance matters.
But even with the final vote, the bickering hasn’t ceased. On Oct. 15, Attorney General Peter J. Nickles dispatched a 13-page memo to Fenty, who in turn sent it to Gray. The document lays out no fewer than 16 provisions included in the budget legislation that Nickles and his lawyers found to be objectionable—including six measures, he announced, that the executive branch should ignore completely due to “problems, including separation-of-powers and other Home Rule Act violations, that prevent lawful implementation.”
The practice mirrors Bush’s embrace of “signing statements”—messages sent to lawmakers accompanying the presidential signature. The practice, certainly, did not begin with Bush—presidents as far back as James Monroe have made them, but it saw a halcyon era under Bush 43. According to one professor’s analysis, Bush by the end of his tenure ended up challenging some 1,200 provisions in federal law—doubling the figures for all those before him combined.
Where Bush’s memos addressed matters such as affirmative action programs and the treatment of military detainees, Fenty’s budget memo deals with matters like taxi rates (the council has no power to set them), budget directives for the deputy mayor’s office (an “unlawful management of Executive Branch affairs”), and grant reporting requirements for the Children and Youth Investment Trust Corp. (the home rule charter says the council only gets to review contracts, not grants).
But just as Bush’s use of the maneuver sent Congress over the edge, Nickles’ memos are driving council types crazy.
At-Large Councilmember David A. Catania of all people, increasingly peeved by Fenty overreaching, calls them “an exercise in creative writing without the force of law.”
As on the federal level, mayors have issued legislative memos before, but usually to accompany vetoed legislation, says Brian Flowers, the council’s chief lawyer. And since Fenty has taken office, he says, the memos have been flying faster than ever before, with increasingly broad legal claims.
As for the claims in Nickles’ budget memos, “Some of them are quite laughable,” Flowers says. He is drafting a response.
Nickles has a fine retort to the Bush comparisons: “Why don’t they criticize President Obama, who’s engaged in the same practice?”
Indeed, Barack Obama said during the 2008 campaign that he and his lawyers “aren’t going to use signing statements as a way to do an end run around Congress.” Since taking office, however, Obama has issued dozens of his own, and Nickles says he’s read them: “He ensured that Congress knows the president’s view…that he’s not going to interpret legislation to interfere with the Constitution.”
Nickles explains his legislative memos this way: “I think the executive has the duty to stand for the executive’s prerogatives. Otherwise, in our tripartite system of government, one part will run over the other part.”
Political Potpourri
• Is someone taking a whack at scandal-softened Ward 1 Councilmember Jim Graham?
Bryan Weaver, the longtime Adams Morgan activist and advisory neighborhood commissioner, filed exploratory papers with the Office of Campaign Finance on Tuesday.
To explore a run against the sure-to-be-well-financed three-term incumbent, Weaver has thus far raised $2,500.
Exploratory bids have been rare since campaign finance laws changed some years back, but Weaver, 39, says his campaign is indeed merely speculative at the moment. “I have my opinions on what’s important to me and to the ward,” he says. “Maybe it’s a minority opinion, I don’t know.” Hence the de rigueur “listening tour.”
Why ponder a run? Weaver cites “a difference in ideas and what’s important to the ward,” pointing in particular to “an utter lack of transparency in government and a feeling that there’s a certain group of people who have a seat at the table because of contributions that they give.”
And even if Graham’s longtime chief of staff, Ted Loza, hadn’t been arrested on Sept. 24 as part of a federal bribery sting, Weaver says he’d still be looking at the race. “If you take a foreign trip for 30 days organized by someone with business before the council”—a not-so-veiled reference to alleged briber Abdulaziz Kamus and a 2006 trip to Ethiopia—“no congressman could get away with that,” he says. “I want to hold my city councilmember to the same standards.”
Graham’s campaign apparatus, meanwhile, is grinding to life. He filed his re-election papers in September, and political consultant Chuck Thies has signed on to deliver zinger quotes on his behalf.
“I wish him well. Running as a first-time candidate always presents a number of unforeseen challenges,” he says, playing up Graham’s strong backing in “every part” of Ward 1. “That base of support will surely need to be considered by Bryan as he explores a possible candidacy.”
• Is the Alcoholic Beverage Control Board about to get more health-conscious?
Last month, board chair Peter Feather announced he’d be stepping down in order to take a job out of town. To replace him, Fenty has nominated board member Chuck Brodsky, founder of the Nation’s Triathlon and one of Fenty’s famous “running buddies.”
Also nominated to the board recently is Aisha Wade, a Ward 8 resident who describes herself as a “[v]ersatile, experienced fitness professional.” She’s currently employed by the tony West End gym Sports Club/LA as an assistant fitness manager.
LL ran the potential new additions past Adams Morgan bar owner Bill Duggan, as staunch a defender of good old-fashioned legal vice as you’ll find in this town.
His take: “Watch—they’ll change the ABC Board to the SmartWater Board!”
The Madam’s Organ owner also has more substantive concerns. “It’s the only board that never has anyone from the industry at all,” he says. “You’d never have the medical board without a doctor…and here they bring in any Tom, Dick, or Harry that’s a friend of someone.”
Let me know your thoughts too here and feel free to post at @blsuccess or @livebigg
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/display.php?id=38061
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Vote! It Is Your Right
As we reflect on the historic election of Barack Obama, it is also time to think about the events of yesterday's elections. Although it wasn't the BIG Presidential Election, it is still a moment that shapes the next year ahead for all Americans. What I noticed living in Washington, DC is that we have a lot of loud mouthed registered voters that did not make it to the polls. These same loud mouths will be the constant complainers for the next 365 days when they had an opportunity to make a change. What good is it to work so hard last year to get things done in Washington, if you sit complacent to all other elections. All votes are needed to shape this nation to the vision that the majority of us declared we wanted in November 2008. I read that less than 30% of the registered voters in Virginia actually voted. That is a shame. I also read that many of the newly registered voters that voted for Obama did not vote. Sad. What are we going to do about this? What can we do going forward to get folk out to vote. I am not concerned so much about who you vote for, I just want every voting capable citizen and especially registered voter to VOTE!
Do you think that ACORN being removed from the Government is the reason for the low turn out?
What solutions do you have that we can encourage all registered voters to vote? It is their right that they are not using. How can we get them to understand how important their vote is?
Love to have your feedback.
Feel free to follow these users on line too: @blsuccess and @livebigg
Check out the news on Washington, DC at CNN http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/
Do you think that ACORN being removed from the Government is the reason for the low turn out?
What solutions do you have that we can encourage all registered voters to vote? It is their right that they are not using. How can we get them to understand how important their vote is?
Love to have your feedback.
Feel free to follow these users on line too: @blsuccess and @livebigg
Check out the news on Washington, DC at CNN http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
Line up Your Heart
Line up Your Heart - Joel and Victoria Osteen
Today’s Verse:“…The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Samuel 16:7, NIV).
Today’s Word:
When the Lord looks at your heart, what does He see? Every one has an outer life and an inner life. The outer life is our public life that people around us see. The inner life is made up of our thoughts, attitudes, and motives. Only you and God know what’s going on inside of you.
Too many people go around today pretending—acting one way, yet on the inside they’re thinking something totally different. Their heart and their actions don’t line up. We have to understand that God looks at the inside. We can fool a lot of people, but we can’t fool God. God would rather us be open and honest than go through life pretending.
Take inventory of what’s going on inside of you today. Are you at peace? Are you overlooking offenses? Do you believe the best in people? Are your heart and actions lining up? If not, submit your ways to the Lord today and ask Him to give you an undivided heart. Line up your whole being so that you can live pleasing Him all the days of your life!
Prayer For Today: Dear Father, I humbly come before You today and ask that You search the deep places of my heart. Show me if there is any area where I need to line up my heart and actions. Help me to be authentic in You today. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Today’s Verse:“…The Lord does not look at the things man looks at. Man looks at the outward appearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (I Samuel 16:7, NIV).
Today’s Word:
When the Lord looks at your heart, what does He see? Every one has an outer life and an inner life. The outer life is our public life that people around us see. The inner life is made up of our thoughts, attitudes, and motives. Only you and God know what’s going on inside of you.
Too many people go around today pretending—acting one way, yet on the inside they’re thinking something totally different. Their heart and their actions don’t line up. We have to understand that God looks at the inside. We can fool a lot of people, but we can’t fool God. God would rather us be open and honest than go through life pretending.
Take inventory of what’s going on inside of you today. Are you at peace? Are you overlooking offenses? Do you believe the best in people? Are your heart and actions lining up? If not, submit your ways to the Lord today and ask Him to give you an undivided heart. Line up your whole being so that you can live pleasing Him all the days of your life!
Prayer For Today: Dear Father, I humbly come before You today and ask that You search the deep places of my heart. Show me if there is any area where I need to line up my heart and actions. Help me to be authentic in You today. In Jesus Name. Amen.
Glass replacement, Chiropractors and more!!
If you are in the DC area, be sure to check out some of the local ads at the bottom of this blog. Looking for a chiropractor or need a new windshield? I have what you need, just scroll to the bottom of the blog. There are more ads too - just for you! Look forward to the next post.
Windshield need replacing? Go to http://www.friendlyautoglass.com/
Windshield need replacing? Go to http://www.friendlyautoglass.com/
You Can Do It! Don't Get Distracted!
Put your mind to your goals and stay focused on what you want to achieve and soon enough you will at the finish line. So many times when we are close to achieving our goals, we will get distracted and just stop. I implore you remain vigilant when it comes to your dreams and goals and this time around don't stop until you achieve your desired results. Don't get distracted by how things happpen, just know that everyone has their own way of doing things. You take road A and they may take Road B, but in the end we can still make it to the same destination. Don't get distracted and stay focused. You can do it! Here are a few quick tips/hints that I use to accomplish my goals:
1. Make a list of what you want to achieve/accomplish/have happen
2. Don't get so involved in how it will happen, but just focus on the end results
3. As you complete a task, cross it off your To-Do List
4. Have measured results. What do you want to accomplish today?
5. Know when you've completed a task. What does completion look like? How do you know?
6. Get feedback from family and friends and be open to receive ALL feedback you request
Look forward to hearing feedback on your projects/goals/dreams and look for more tips/hints so that we can achieve our goals and keep our mind on what we envision for our lives. Live healthy and happy. Healing Truths
@livebigg
1. Make a list of what you want to achieve/accomplish/have happen
2. Don't get so involved in how it will happen, but just focus on the end results
3. As you complete a task, cross it off your To-Do List
4. Have measured results. What do you want to accomplish today?
5. Know when you've completed a task. What does completion look like? How do you know?
6. Get feedback from family and friends and be open to receive ALL feedback you request
Look forward to hearing feedback on your projects/goals/dreams and look for more tips/hints so that we can achieve our goals and keep our mind on what we envision for our lives. Live healthy and happy. Healing Truths
@livebigg
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Three Days in D.C.: Day 3
Three Days in D.C.: Day 3
By Fritz Hahn
washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 3
It's time to get out of Washington and head for Old Town Alexandria, the charming colonial city a few miles down the Potomac. Red-bricked Old Town is older than the nation's capital, tracing its history to 1749, and it's full of colonial buildings, antique shops, galleries and fun restaurants. Wander down cobblestone alleys and browse the artisan stores, stopping in at the recreated Gadsby's Tavern or historic Christ Church, which was attended by George Washington and Robert E. Lee. Kids and adults alike enjoy watching local artists working in their studios at the waterside Torpedo Factory. For a special lunch, we really like Restaurant Eve; no reservations are required if you eat at a table in the bar.
If you don't have a car -- or don't want to bother with parking -- the Potomac Riverboat Company runs a water taxi service from the Georgetown waterfront to Old Town. (Check the company's Web site for discount coupons.) It's not as exciting, but Metro goes there too -- take the Blue or Yellow lines to King Street, and look for the free shuttle buses that run to the historic district. (It's a 15- to 20-minute walk otherwise, and an enjoyable stroll past small boutiques if you don't have children in tow.)
Some history buffs will want to continue their exploration of the founding fathers by making a trip to Mount Vernon, George Washington's nearby estate. It's reachable by boat (the Potomac Riverboat Company again), car or public transportation; Catch the Metro from King Street to Huntington, where you can get Fairfax Connector bus 101 to the estate's front gate.
Others, though, will want to head back to Washington, and we suggest a tour of the recently renovated National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum in the revived Penn Quarter neighborhood. Both museums are open until 7 p.m. daily, so there's no need to rush back. (Note that this area includes the Verizon Center, home to the Washington Wizards basketball team and the Washington Capitals hockey team, and is likely to be crowded on game nights.) There's plenty of shopping and entertainment nearby, including the ever-popular tapas restaurant Zaytinya, modern Indian at Rasika, Spanish tapas at Jaleo and gourmet brick-oven pizzas at Matchbox. Proof is one of the city's top restaurants and wine bars, and offers a by-the-glass selection that will delight oenophiles. For cocktails, we like the attractive courtyard bar at Poste, inside the Hotel Monaco, and the huge drink list and stylish lounge seating at IndeBleu. Those preferring pubs to pomegranate martinis can check out the quiz nights at live music at Fado Irish Pub, Washington's largest selection of draft beers at R.F.D. Washington, or Rocket Bar, a fun bar that offers pool, darts, shuffleboard, Skee-ball and other amusements.
By Fritz Hahn
washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 3
It's time to get out of Washington and head for Old Town Alexandria, the charming colonial city a few miles down the Potomac. Red-bricked Old Town is older than the nation's capital, tracing its history to 1749, and it's full of colonial buildings, antique shops, galleries and fun restaurants. Wander down cobblestone alleys and browse the artisan stores, stopping in at the recreated Gadsby's Tavern or historic Christ Church, which was attended by George Washington and Robert E. Lee. Kids and adults alike enjoy watching local artists working in their studios at the waterside Torpedo Factory. For a special lunch, we really like Restaurant Eve; no reservations are required if you eat at a table in the bar.
If you don't have a car -- or don't want to bother with parking -- the Potomac Riverboat Company runs a water taxi service from the Georgetown waterfront to Old Town. (Check the company's Web site for discount coupons.) It's not as exciting, but Metro goes there too -- take the Blue or Yellow lines to King Street, and look for the free shuttle buses that run to the historic district. (It's a 15- to 20-minute walk otherwise, and an enjoyable stroll past small boutiques if you don't have children in tow.)
Some history buffs will want to continue their exploration of the founding fathers by making a trip to Mount Vernon, George Washington's nearby estate. It's reachable by boat (the Potomac Riverboat Company again), car or public transportation; Catch the Metro from King Street to Huntington, where you can get Fairfax Connector bus 101 to the estate's front gate.
Others, though, will want to head back to Washington, and we suggest a tour of the recently renovated National Portrait Gallery and American Art Museum in the revived Penn Quarter neighborhood. Both museums are open until 7 p.m. daily, so there's no need to rush back. (Note that this area includes the Verizon Center, home to the Washington Wizards basketball team and the Washington Capitals hockey team, and is likely to be crowded on game nights.) There's plenty of shopping and entertainment nearby, including the ever-popular tapas restaurant Zaytinya, modern Indian at Rasika, Spanish tapas at Jaleo and gourmet brick-oven pizzas at Matchbox. Proof is one of the city's top restaurants and wine bars, and offers a by-the-glass selection that will delight oenophiles. For cocktails, we like the attractive courtyard bar at Poste, inside the Hotel Monaco, and the huge drink list and stylish lounge seating at IndeBleu. Those preferring pubs to pomegranate martinis can check out the quiz nights at live music at Fado Irish Pub, Washington's largest selection of draft beers at R.F.D. Washington, or Rocket Bar, a fun bar that offers pool, darts, shuffleboard, Skee-ball and other amusements.
Three Days in D.C.: Day 2
Three Days in D.C.: Day 2
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 2
The second day is when Washington really begins to show its variety. We're going to break our suggestions down for three broad kinds of groups: families, those interested in history and politics, and those who'd rather engage in people-watching and culture. Feel free to pick and choose from our suggestions, though -- there's no reason thirtysomethings can't hit the Zoo.
Families: The National Zoo is the must-do. It's open early, when animals are at their most active, and the kids will have a more memorable visit if they can watch Tai Shan the panda cub romping with his mother instead of sleeping high in tree, as he's prone to do for much of the day. Other kid-pleasers include tiger and cheetah cubs; Amazonia, a walk-through rainforest ; and the children's farm, with its cows, donkeys and goats.
After lunch -- we like Open City, a modern diner in Woodley Park, more than what's on offer at the Zoo -- consider heading back to the Smithsonian, where children can check out exhibits they may have skipped the day before. Another idea is the National Cathedral, located a short bus ride away from Woodley Park. (You can catch the 96 Metrobus outside Open City, along with the private sightseeing buses.) It's the sixth-largest cathedral in the world, and half-hour tours are offered daily. Kids will love looking that the gargoyles and running around in the Bishop's Garden.
For dinner, Cleveland Park's popular 2 Amys delights adult visitors with its pizza -- voted the best in washingtonpost.com's annual reader survey -- but also welcomes neighborhood children.
History Buffs: Washington's history is intertwined with America's. As the home of government, there is no shortage of sites to visit.
The resting place of John F. Kennedy, Thurgood Marshall, two Challenger astronauts and several unknown service members, Arlington National Cemetery is one of the most hallowed sites in America. The grounds were formally part of Arlington House, the home of Confederate general Robert E. Lee. That mansion is open to the public.
Besides the Smithsonian, there are a number of history-related museums in town. The International Spy Museum traces the story of spycraft from Moses through the Cold War. Near the Mall, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum tells the story of the persecution of Jews, homosexuals and other groups by the Nazis.
(If you have a car, consider a drive out to Manassas Battlefield Park, west of Washington, which was the site of the first major battle of the Civil War in 1861, and an encore the following year.)
Time for dinner. In Georgetown, Martin's Tavern is a 1930s saloon that was frequented by John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, House Speaker Sam Rayburn and convicted Soviet spy Elizabeth Bentley, and still visited by Madeline Albright and other political figures today. Every president since Harry S Truman has visited Martin's, making it a required stop on the campaign trail. Paintings in the dining room came from the estate of President James Monroe. The kitchen's Delmonico steak remains a crowd-pleaser.
After eating, head down to U Street, known as "Black Broadway" in the 1920s and '30s. (See the Culture Vulture section below for more information.)
Culture Vultures: Start the day off right at Eastern Market, the historic farmer's market full of butchers, florists and vendors selling fruit and vegetables. The venerable Market Lunch makes the best blueberry pancakes around -- order the "buck blue," or buckwheat blueberry pancakes. On weekends, a bustling flea market and produce vendors fill the neighborhood.
Then it's off to Georgetown, Washington's best-known shopping district, where little boutiques line Wisconsin Avenue, alongside big names like Puma, Zara, Lacoste and Intermix. (Walk over to Union Station and grab the cross-town Circulator bus, which will drop you at the corner of Wisconsin and M, which is the heart of the neighborhood.) Spend some time wandering the side streets before making a pit stop. In warm weather, the waterfront bars lining Georgetown's Washington Harbour provide some of the best people-watching in the city, thanks to legions of well-dressed singles on the prowl -- some of whom tie up their boats at the dock before heading to Sequoia or Tony and Joe's for a beer on the patio. If you're looking for bold-faced names, the place to go is Cafe Milano, an expensive restaurant where you may find Bill and Hillary Clinton, Jessica Simpson, Jamie Foxx or Derek Jeter in the dining room. (Regular Placido Domingo is honored with a 15-foot mural of the opera singer.) Martini lovers can head for the Degrees bar in the tony Ritz-Carlton hotel, where celebrity guests -- including Jon Bon Jovi and Michael Jordan -- have been known to pop down for a cocktail.
Just across Rock Creek Park is Dupont Circle, a vibrant neighborhood that is the center of Washington's large gay community; a popular nightlife destination with lounges and bars and clubs catering to all stripes; home to many embassies and the city's diplomatic community; and filled with small galleries and the newly expanded Phillips Collection, America's first modern art museum.
The Phillips is known for its huge French Impressionist collection, which includes Renoir's "Luncheon of the Boating Party." Admission to the permanent collection is free on weekdays. A short walk away, 14th Street has become an exciting corridor of independent galleries, mostly located within a block or two of the intersection with P Street. The Transformer Gallery, Irvine Contemporary, Hemphill Fine Arts and the Adamson Gallery are all worth a visit, and the latter two share a building at 1515 14th St.
To get to Dupont from Georgetown, you can catch the Georgetown Shuttle, a blue bus that runs between Georgetown's M Street and the Dupont Circle Metro Station every 10 minutes.
Dinner is easy to come by, thanks to a long list of restaurants. Pizzeria Paradiso attracts long lines for its well-made pies, topped with an array of fresh ingredients. While the Palm is pricey, the steakhouse is always filled with famous-for-Washington politicians, reporters and talking heads, and the aged New York strip wins plaudits, too. And possibly no restaurant in the neighborhood feels quite as lively as Bistrot du Coin, a buzzing French restaurant with good steak frites, a long wine list and service that some readers describe as "typically French" -- i.e. hit-or-miss -- but it's worth it just for checking out the variety of French and Francophile patrons who stroll into the bar.
The food at the Brickskeller isn't much to shout about, but that's not why folks head to the Dupont Circle institution -- they're there to explore a list of more than 1,000 different bottled beers from Argentina to Vietnam. After a drink, grab a cab for a short trip to U Street, which was known as Black Broadway in the 1920s and '30s when hometown boy Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie played clubs and concert halls on the strip. It's still a jazz hotspot today; touring musicians and local unknowns play at Twins Jazz, U-topia, Duke's City and Cafe Nema on a regular basis, while well-known rock bands perform at the nearby 9:30 Club and Black Cat. Don't forget to stop in for a late-night chili-cheese half-smoke at Ben's Chili Bowl, which has welcomed Martin Luther King Jr., Bill Cosby, Redd Foxx, Miles Davis and Nat "King" Cole since opening in 1958.
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 2
The second day is when Washington really begins to show its variety. We're going to break our suggestions down for three broad kinds of groups: families, those interested in history and politics, and those who'd rather engage in people-watching and culture. Feel free to pick and choose from our suggestions, though -- there's no reason thirtysomethings can't hit the Zoo.
Families: The National Zoo is the must-do. It's open early, when animals are at their most active, and the kids will have a more memorable visit if they can watch Tai Shan the panda cub romping with his mother instead of sleeping high in tree, as he's prone to do for much of the day. Other kid-pleasers include tiger and cheetah cubs; Amazonia, a walk-through rainforest ; and the children's farm, with its cows, donkeys and goats.
After lunch -- we like Open City, a modern diner in Woodley Park, more than what's on offer at the Zoo -- consider heading back to the Smithsonian, where children can check out exhibits they may have skipped the day before. Another idea is the National Cathedral, located a short bus ride away from Woodley Park. (You can catch the 96 Metrobus outside Open City, along with the private sightseeing buses.) It's the sixth-largest cathedral in the world, and half-hour tours are offered daily. Kids will love looking that the gargoyles and running around in the Bishop's Garden.
For dinner, Cleveland Park's popular 2 Amys delights adult visitors with its pizza -- voted the best in washingtonpost.com's annual reader survey -- but also welcomes neighborhood children.
History Buffs: Washington's history is intertwined with America's. As the home of government, there is no shortage of sites to visit.
The resting place of John F. Kennedy, Thurgood Marshall, two Challenger astronauts and several unknown service members, Arlington National Cemetery is one of the most hallowed sites in America. The grounds were formally part of Arlington House, the home of Confederate general Robert E. Lee. That mansion is open to the public.
Besides the Smithsonian, there are a number of history-related museums in town. The International Spy Museum traces the story of spycraft from Moses through the Cold War. Near the Mall, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum tells the story of the persecution of Jews, homosexuals and other groups by the Nazis.
(If you have a car, consider a drive out to Manassas Battlefield Park, west of Washington, which was the site of the first major battle of the Civil War in 1861, and an encore the following year.)
Time for dinner. In Georgetown, Martin's Tavern is a 1930s saloon that was frequented by John F. Kennedy, Lyndon Johnson, House Speaker Sam Rayburn and convicted Soviet spy Elizabeth Bentley, and still visited by Madeline Albright and other political figures today. Every president since Harry S Truman has visited Martin's, making it a required stop on the campaign trail. Paintings in the dining room came from the estate of President James Monroe. The kitchen's Delmonico steak remains a crowd-pleaser.
After eating, head down to U Street, known as "Black Broadway" in the 1920s and '30s. (See the Culture Vulture section below for more information.)
Culture Vultures: Start the day off right at Eastern Market, the historic farmer's market full of butchers, florists and vendors selling fruit and vegetables. The venerable Market Lunch makes the best blueberry pancakes around -- order the "buck blue," or buckwheat blueberry pancakes. On weekends, a bustling flea market and produce vendors fill the neighborhood.
Then it's off to Georgetown, Washington's best-known shopping district, where little boutiques line Wisconsin Avenue, alongside big names like Puma, Zara, Lacoste and Intermix. (Walk over to Union Station and grab the cross-town Circulator bus, which will drop you at the corner of Wisconsin and M, which is the heart of the neighborhood.) Spend some time wandering the side streets before making a pit stop. In warm weather, the waterfront bars lining Georgetown's Washington Harbour provide some of the best people-watching in the city, thanks to legions of well-dressed singles on the prowl -- some of whom tie up their boats at the dock before heading to Sequoia or Tony and Joe's for a beer on the patio. If you're looking for bold-faced names, the place to go is Cafe Milano, an expensive restaurant where you may find Bill and Hillary Clinton, Jessica Simpson, Jamie Foxx or Derek Jeter in the dining room. (Regular Placido Domingo is honored with a 15-foot mural of the opera singer.) Martini lovers can head for the Degrees bar in the tony Ritz-Carlton hotel, where celebrity guests -- including Jon Bon Jovi and Michael Jordan -- have been known to pop down for a cocktail.
Just across Rock Creek Park is Dupont Circle, a vibrant neighborhood that is the center of Washington's large gay community; a popular nightlife destination with lounges and bars and clubs catering to all stripes; home to many embassies and the city's diplomatic community; and filled with small galleries and the newly expanded Phillips Collection, America's first modern art museum.
The Phillips is known for its huge French Impressionist collection, which includes Renoir's "Luncheon of the Boating Party." Admission to the permanent collection is free on weekdays. A short walk away, 14th Street has become an exciting corridor of independent galleries, mostly located within a block or two of the intersection with P Street. The Transformer Gallery, Irvine Contemporary, Hemphill Fine Arts and the Adamson Gallery are all worth a visit, and the latter two share a building at 1515 14th St.
To get to Dupont from Georgetown, you can catch the Georgetown Shuttle, a blue bus that runs between Georgetown's M Street and the Dupont Circle Metro Station every 10 minutes.
Dinner is easy to come by, thanks to a long list of restaurants. Pizzeria Paradiso attracts long lines for its well-made pies, topped with an array of fresh ingredients. While the Palm is pricey, the steakhouse is always filled with famous-for-Washington politicians, reporters and talking heads, and the aged New York strip wins plaudits, too. And possibly no restaurant in the neighborhood feels quite as lively as Bistrot du Coin, a buzzing French restaurant with good steak frites, a long wine list and service that some readers describe as "typically French" -- i.e. hit-or-miss -- but it's worth it just for checking out the variety of French and Francophile patrons who stroll into the bar.
The food at the Brickskeller isn't much to shout about, but that's not why folks head to the Dupont Circle institution -- they're there to explore a list of more than 1,000 different bottled beers from Argentina to Vietnam. After a drink, grab a cab for a short trip to U Street, which was known as Black Broadway in the 1920s and '30s when hometown boy Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and Count Basie played clubs and concert halls on the strip. It's still a jazz hotspot today; touring musicians and local unknowns play at Twins Jazz, U-topia, Duke's City and Cafe Nema on a regular basis, while well-known rock bands perform at the nearby 9:30 Club and Black Cat. Don't forget to stop in for a late-night chili-cheese half-smoke at Ben's Chili Bowl, which has welcomed Martin Luther King Jr., Bill Cosby, Redd Foxx, Miles Davis and Nat "King" Cole since opening in 1958.
Three Days in D.C.: Day 1
Three Days in D.C.: Day 1
By Fritz Hahn
washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 1
No visit to Washington would be complete with a trip to the National Mall, the broad, (somewhat) grassy expanse of lawn that runs from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial.
Start at the Capitol, where 45-minute tours are available from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The earlier you go, the shorter the wait will be. After your tour, it's time for the truly difficult decision: Choosing which one of the Smithsonian Institution museums you want to visit. There are 15 altogether, with objects ranging from the Hope Diamond (inside theNatural History Museum) to the Wright Brothers' Flyer (Air and Space Museum) to paintings by Andy Warhol (Hirshhorn Museum). Trying to take in all the highlights is too much for one vacation, so it's better to choose one or two areas of interest and focus on those museums. Also near the Mall -- but not part of the Smithsonian -- are the National Gallery of Art, the largest art museum in Washington and home to many major exhibits, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
No matter what you choose to do, we're going to suggest having lunch at the Mitsitam Cafe inside the National Museum of the American Indian. The selection of Native American foods ranges from buffalo burgers to chicken tamales and is easily the best thing on the Mall.
After lunch, take in fantastic views of the city from the top of the Washington Monument. You don't actually have to climb the 897 steps -- an elevator gets you there in just over a minute -- but you'll save plenty of time if you reserve same-day tickets ahead of time through the National Park Service. (See our story on planning ahead for more tips on getting tickets in advance.) You'll be rewarded with breathtaking views of Washington, though you'll have to wait your turn to look out of the tiny windows.
Now that you've seen the city, it's time to check out another of the museums, or perhaps wander through one of the two outdoor sculpture gardens at the Hirshhorn or National Gallery. (The latter is a destination for all seasons, with live jazz in warmer months and ice skating in the winter.)
Time for dinner. If you have a favorite cuisine, check out Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema's annual dining guide and recent reviews. For something more traditional, we'll steer you towards the Old Ebbitt Grill, a sprawling, clubby restaurant near the White House and Treasury building that boasts friendly service and an excellent raw bar -- and is a favorite with Secret Service agents and other government employees.
Daytime isn't necessarily the best time to see the monuments at the western end of the Mall. The World War II Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Jefferson Memorial and Lincoln Memorial are all open 24 hours a day, and are all much more dramatic in the dark. The FDR Memorial's rushing water and outdoor "rooms" especially lend itself to after-hours exploration. One note about safety: The Mall and the Tidal Basin aren't well lit at night, but all the memorials have nearby parking and park rangers on duty until 11:30 p.m.
Those who want to explore Washington's nightlife should head for the bar-heavy Adams Morgan neighborhood, where dozens of late-night spots surround the corner of 18th Street and Columbia Road. West African bars with live music, international lounges, dive bars, high-energy dance clubs, cool rooftop decks -- there's something for everyone.
For a more laidback scene, try one of the traditional grand hotel bars. The Round Robin Bar at the Willard, the Mayflower's Town and Country Lounge and the Hay-Adams's Off the Record are old-school hideaways with fantastic bartenders and strong martinis.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.
© 2008 Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
By Fritz Hahn
washingtonpost.com Staff Writer
Monday, October 27, 2008 12:00 AM
Washington D.C. is known as the Capital of the Free World, and tourists come from across the country and around the globe to see the White House, Capitol and other symbols of freedom. But there's far more to Washington than marble edifices. We have a huge network of free museums, expansive outdoor spaces, some of the best restaurants in America and lively late-night clubs. There's a lot to see and do in our area -- it could take a lifetime to experience everything there is to offer. But if you give us three days, we can help you make the most of them.
Day 1
No visit to Washington would be complete with a trip to the National Mall, the broad, (somewhat) grassy expanse of lawn that runs from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial.
Start at the Capitol, where 45-minute tours are available from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Saturday. The earlier you go, the shorter the wait will be. After your tour, it's time for the truly difficult decision: Choosing which one of the Smithsonian Institution museums you want to visit. There are 15 altogether, with objects ranging from the Hope Diamond (inside theNatural History Museum) to the Wright Brothers' Flyer (Air and Space Museum) to paintings by Andy Warhol (Hirshhorn Museum). Trying to take in all the highlights is too much for one vacation, so it's better to choose one or two areas of interest and focus on those museums. Also near the Mall -- but not part of the Smithsonian -- are the National Gallery of Art, the largest art museum in Washington and home to many major exhibits, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum.
No matter what you choose to do, we're going to suggest having lunch at the Mitsitam Cafe inside the National Museum of the American Indian. The selection of Native American foods ranges from buffalo burgers to chicken tamales and is easily the best thing on the Mall.
After lunch, take in fantastic views of the city from the top of the Washington Monument. You don't actually have to climb the 897 steps -- an elevator gets you there in just over a minute -- but you'll save plenty of time if you reserve same-day tickets ahead of time through the National Park Service. (See our story on planning ahead for more tips on getting tickets in advance.) You'll be rewarded with breathtaking views of Washington, though you'll have to wait your turn to look out of the tiny windows.
Now that you've seen the city, it's time to check out another of the museums, or perhaps wander through one of the two outdoor sculpture gardens at the Hirshhorn or National Gallery. (The latter is a destination for all seasons, with live jazz in warmer months and ice skating in the winter.)
Time for dinner. If you have a favorite cuisine, check out Washington Post critic Tom Sietsema's annual dining guide and recent reviews. For something more traditional, we'll steer you towards the Old Ebbitt Grill, a sprawling, clubby restaurant near the White House and Treasury building that boasts friendly service and an excellent raw bar -- and is a favorite with Secret Service agents and other government employees.
Daytime isn't necessarily the best time to see the monuments at the western end of the Mall. The World War II Memorial, Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Korean War Memorial, Jefferson Memorial and Lincoln Memorial are all open 24 hours a day, and are all much more dramatic in the dark. The FDR Memorial's rushing water and outdoor "rooms" especially lend itself to after-hours exploration. One note about safety: The Mall and the Tidal Basin aren't well lit at night, but all the memorials have nearby parking and park rangers on duty until 11:30 p.m.
Those who want to explore Washington's nightlife should head for the bar-heavy Adams Morgan neighborhood, where dozens of late-night spots surround the corner of 18th Street and Columbia Road. West African bars with live music, international lounges, dive bars, high-energy dance clubs, cool rooftop decks -- there's something for everyone.
For a more laidback scene, try one of the traditional grand hotel bars. The Round Robin Bar at the Willard, the Mayflower's Town and Country Lounge and the Hay-Adams's Off the Record are old-school hideaways with fantastic bartenders and strong martinis.
View all comments that have been posted about this article.
© 2008 Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive
Saturday, October 17, 2009
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Teenager Shot in Northeast
By Clarence Williams
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 17, 2009; 12:20 AM
A teenager was shot and wounded late Friday in Northeast Washington, a little more than a mile from the scene of Tuesday's fatal shootings.
According to a preliminary report, the youth wounded Friday night, who was believed to be about 16, was conscious and breathing after the shooting, which occurred shortly before midnight near Kenilworth Avenue NE in the Deanwood area.
Authorities have attributed Tuesday's deadly outbreak of gunfire on Clay Terrace NE to rivalries between neighborhood groups. A 15-year-old and an 18-year-old were killed and three others, about the same ages, were wounded in that incident.
There was no indication early Saturday of any connection between Tuesday's shootings and Friday night's shooting.
No motive for the Friday shooting could be immediately learned.
@livebigg follow us on Twitter for Daily Ponder. Soft launch Oct 2009. Official Launch November 3, 2009, Join us today www.twitter.com/livebigg
Washington Post Staff Writer
Saturday, October 17, 2009; 12:20 AM
A teenager was shot and wounded late Friday in Northeast Washington, a little more than a mile from the scene of Tuesday's fatal shootings.
According to a preliminary report, the youth wounded Friday night, who was believed to be about 16, was conscious and breathing after the shooting, which occurred shortly before midnight near Kenilworth Avenue NE in the Deanwood area.
Authorities have attributed Tuesday's deadly outbreak of gunfire on Clay Terrace NE to rivalries between neighborhood groups. A 15-year-old and an 18-year-old were killed and three others, about the same ages, were wounded in that incident.
There was no indication early Saturday of any connection between Tuesday's shootings and Friday night's shooting.
No motive for the Friday shooting could be immediately learned.
@livebigg follow us on Twitter for Daily Ponder. Soft launch Oct 2009. Official Launch November 3, 2009, Join us today www.twitter.com/livebigg
Washington Post Article about Discipline in Schools....
Discipline That Schools Need
John McMahon
Fredericksburg
As a veteran teacher, I read with interest about the Prince George's County school system's attempts to reduce suspensions. The article made suspension sound like merely a punitive measure that does nothing but harm to the suspended student. I would argue that it has three benefits:
-- It teaches an important lesson that many students may not learn anywhere else: If you can't follow the rules of an institution, you may have to leave. While the suspended student is at home, the parents might take the time to reinforce this lesson, which they should have imparted before school started.
-- It removes, at least temporarily, one disruptive child from the classroom so that the other 20 or so students might be able to learn something besides the fact that the teacher can't tell a 12-year-old to quietly do school work without being cursed out.
-- It gives school administrators such as Principal Jeffrey Parker of G. James Gholson Middle School the leverage to enforce the rules. I found it intriguing that the principal was pulling cafeteria duty. Is he the only person on the staff who has the authority to provide a meaningful consequence for misbehavior? And what is that consequence? Suspension.
Do you think that suspensions are the answer to discipline students? Take the poll at the bottom of the page. Results of the poll will post Nov 3rd.
John McMahon
Fredericksburg
As a veteran teacher, I read with interest about the Prince George's County school system's attempts to reduce suspensions. The article made suspension sound like merely a punitive measure that does nothing but harm to the suspended student. I would argue that it has three benefits:
-- It teaches an important lesson that many students may not learn anywhere else: If you can't follow the rules of an institution, you may have to leave. While the suspended student is at home, the parents might take the time to reinforce this lesson, which they should have imparted before school started.
-- It removes, at least temporarily, one disruptive child from the classroom so that the other 20 or so students might be able to learn something besides the fact that the teacher can't tell a 12-year-old to quietly do school work without being cursed out.
-- It gives school administrators such as Principal Jeffrey Parker of G. James Gholson Middle School the leverage to enforce the rules. I found it intriguing that the principal was pulling cafeteria duty. Is he the only person on the staff who has the authority to provide a meaningful consequence for misbehavior? And what is that consequence? Suspension.
Do you think that suspensions are the answer to discipline students? Take the poll at the bottom of the page. Results of the poll will post Nov 3rd.
Washington Post Article about DC Public Schools....
In Layoffs and Test Scores, Pain and Gain for D.C. Schools
By Katherine Bradley and John Hill
Washington
Amid the controversy over the D.C. public school system's Oct. 2 layoffs of more than 220 teachers, a novel and important fact keeps getting buried.
The District's layoffs did not follow the tradition of "last hired, first fired" common to other school district employment practices. Instead, principals made separation decisions based on which teachers and staff were contributing the most value to student learning -- not by seniority or favoritism. Some good teachers may have been let go, just as businesses all over the country have lost talent due to hard budgetary realities. And the layoffs exact a human toll. But shouldn't relative contribution be the rule -- not the exception -- if we are to build high-functioning teams in our schools? Isn't that the way we would expect to make decisions elsewhere in our economy?
The noise over the layoffs may be distracting Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and anyone with a stake in District children's education from our "true north:" staying the course to support continued academic progress for D.C. public school students. The past two years have produced a steady stream of good news. On Wednesday, the results of the biannual National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in math were released. The District was one of only five "states" in the nation -- along with Nevada, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont -- to post gains at both the fourth- and eighth-grade levels. The percentage of D.C. students scoring at basic competency levels or above increased by 10 percent in both grades.
While the absolute scores remain unacceptably low, these numbers show real and significant progress. Michael Casserly of the Council on Great City Schools says, "The truth is you just can't get gains of this size without reforms behind it."
And the NAEP scores are only part of the picture of improvement. Our students are also posting solid, continuing gains on the District of Columbia Comprehensive Assessment System, or DC-CAS. Between 2006 and 2009, our D.C. public school test scores for elementary schools improved by 12 percentage points in reading and 22 percentage points in math. Secondary school gains are similar. Double-digit gains are rare in education, and the District is producing them.
Perhaps more important, the black-white student achievement gap in our city is closing rapidly. Washington has long suffered from one of the worst academic racial disparities in the country -- a 67-percentage-point gap between black and white achievement on the 2007 Grade 4 reading NAEP, for example. In access to opportunity and civic participation, a gap of that size means D.C. is in fact two cities, separate and unequal. In the past two years, however, the achievement gap has begun to close. Between 2007 and 2009, the black-white achievement gap in secondary math dropped 20 percentage points; the gap in secondary reading narrowed by 14 percentage points.
And we can see measurable progress beyond test scores. Rhee's team is providing options that will have universal appeal and bring families back into our public system by creating innovative projects, such as the "Catalyst School" programs in science, arts-integration, and world cultures. Will offering Chinese language courses, as Eaton Elementary is doing, lure parents back from private schools and from the suburbs? Maybe it stems from the recession, but parents may already be noticing progress in the public schools: D.C. public schools enrollment increased by about 1 percent this year.
This growth is modest, but it is an important inflection point, reversing a decade-long decline. Rhee has brought fierce urgency and uncompromising standards to her work. Some credit for progress is rightly shared, however, with previous superintendents and with the D.C. Council. Without the council's bold decision to give Mayor Adrian M. Fenty control over the schools, and without their support of Fenty's appointment of Rhee, none of this progress would have occurred. As the council manages the controversy over recent school layoffs, it is vital that the education reform agenda, and council members' support for it, continues.
Rhee needs to stay focused on the job she was hired to do: making D.C. the first high-performing urban school district in the nation. Just imagine what might happen if Rhee continues to erode the black-white achievement gap in Washington. If she maintains the rate of progress of the past two years, the achievement gap in secondary math will close entirely by 2012. Think what that would mean for our city: the District as a proof-point of opportunity for the nation.
Katherine Bradley is president of the CityBridge Foundation; John Hill is chief executive of the Federal City Council.
By Stephen Stromberg | October 16, 2009; 1:18 PM ET | Category: HotTopic
Previous: My Endorsement: The Best Choice for Virginia | Next: Marriage Equality's False Divides
By Katherine Bradley and John Hill
Washington
Amid the controversy over the D.C. public school system's Oct. 2 layoffs of more than 220 teachers, a novel and important fact keeps getting buried.
The District's layoffs did not follow the tradition of "last hired, first fired" common to other school district employment practices. Instead, principals made separation decisions based on which teachers and staff were contributing the most value to student learning -- not by seniority or favoritism. Some good teachers may have been let go, just as businesses all over the country have lost talent due to hard budgetary realities. And the layoffs exact a human toll. But shouldn't relative contribution be the rule -- not the exception -- if we are to build high-functioning teams in our schools? Isn't that the way we would expect to make decisions elsewhere in our economy?
The noise over the layoffs may be distracting Schools Chancellor Michelle A. Rhee and anyone with a stake in District children's education from our "true north:" staying the course to support continued academic progress for D.C. public school students. The past two years have produced a steady stream of good news. On Wednesday, the results of the biannual National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP) in math were released. The District was one of only five "states" in the nation -- along with Nevada, New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Vermont -- to post gains at both the fourth- and eighth-grade levels. The percentage of D.C. students scoring at basic competency levels or above increased by 10 percent in both grades.
While the absolute scores remain unacceptably low, these numbers show real and significant progress. Michael Casserly of the Council on Great City Schools says, "The truth is you just can't get gains of this size without reforms behind it."
And the NAEP scores are only part of the picture of improvement. Our students are also posting solid, continuing gains on the District of Columbia Comprehensive Assessment System, or DC-CAS. Between 2006 and 2009, our D.C. public school test scores for elementary schools improved by 12 percentage points in reading and 22 percentage points in math. Secondary school gains are similar. Double-digit gains are rare in education, and the District is producing them.
Perhaps more important, the black-white student achievement gap in our city is closing rapidly. Washington has long suffered from one of the worst academic racial disparities in the country -- a 67-percentage-point gap between black and white achievement on the 2007 Grade 4 reading NAEP, for example. In access to opportunity and civic participation, a gap of that size means D.C. is in fact two cities, separate and unequal. In the past two years, however, the achievement gap has begun to close. Between 2007 and 2009, the black-white achievement gap in secondary math dropped 20 percentage points; the gap in secondary reading narrowed by 14 percentage points.
And we can see measurable progress beyond test scores. Rhee's team is providing options that will have universal appeal and bring families back into our public system by creating innovative projects, such as the "Catalyst School" programs in science, arts-integration, and world cultures. Will offering Chinese language courses, as Eaton Elementary is doing, lure parents back from private schools and from the suburbs? Maybe it stems from the recession, but parents may already be noticing progress in the public schools: D.C. public schools enrollment increased by about 1 percent this year.
This growth is modest, but it is an important inflection point, reversing a decade-long decline. Rhee has brought fierce urgency and uncompromising standards to her work. Some credit for progress is rightly shared, however, with previous superintendents and with the D.C. Council. Without the council's bold decision to give Mayor Adrian M. Fenty control over the schools, and without their support of Fenty's appointment of Rhee, none of this progress would have occurred. As the council manages the controversy over recent school layoffs, it is vital that the education reform agenda, and council members' support for it, continues.
Rhee needs to stay focused on the job she was hired to do: making D.C. the first high-performing urban school district in the nation. Just imagine what might happen if Rhee continues to erode the black-white achievement gap in Washington. If she maintains the rate of progress of the past two years, the achievement gap in secondary math will close entirely by 2012. Think what that would mean for our city: the District as a proof-point of opportunity for the nation.
Katherine Bradley is president of the CityBridge Foundation; John Hill is chief executive of the Federal City Council.
By Stephen Stromberg | October 16, 2009; 1:18 PM ET | Category: HotTopic
Previous: My Endorsement: The Best Choice for Virginia | Next: Marriage Equality's False Divides
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