‘Tchotchke, desaturated’
courtesy of ‘staceyviera’

NBC Washington is reporting that the dogs suspected of mauling a man to death have been put down at their owner’s request. Obviously the worst hand in this situation was dealt to Carter Delaney, who it seems was killed by the dogs he was pet-sitting. His brother, owner of the two dogs, has to live with the loss of his younger sibling and apparent fact that his pets were responsible. Put on top of that the need to make this hard decision and the loss of his dogs… my heart goes out to everyone involved in this tragedy.

‘This edition of the washingtonian is sold out’
courtesy of ‘ShashiBellamkonda’

Well, look at that. Garrett Graff, formerly of Fishbowl DC, is being promoted to Editor-in-Chief of Washingtonian. Being a lad of merely 28 years, and thus not having extensive print experience on his résumé, the weeping and gnashing of teeth about the further decline of journalism has already started, but seriously, this is the magazine that put an old, low-resolution, poorly cut-out, shirtless photo of President Obama on the cover just a scant few months ago. Personally, I think Graff can add some gravitas the mag has been sorely missing.

Of course, he’s only lived in DC for a few years, so cue the xenodweeb whining in 5…4…3… But as you all know, I do not hold to such nonsense. Congratulations on a well-deserved promotion, Garrett.

‘Do You Slow for Speed Cameras?’
courtesy of ‘Wayan Vota’

Speed cameras are a great deal for municipalities. In addition to the revenue benefits, they don’t let the cute blue-eyed girl off with a warning, they don’t get accused of racial profiling, and they free up officers to go chase actual criminals. So I can see why a local government would think they were a great deal… until the citizens of that jurisdiction decide they hate the cameras SO much they’ll actually vandalize them to keep from getting caught, as some Montgomery County drivers are doing.

The Washington Times article calls it “an act of civil disobedience,” but last I checked, property damage wasn’t part of the civil disobedience playbook. How many times do you suppose one of those cameras has to be damaged and replaced before it’s no longer worth the revenue it brings in? Does the vandal think he/she/they can keep it up that long?

‘hands wikipedia aussiegall’
courtesy of ‘nojhan’

Remember in college when your professors would yell at you not to use Wikipedia as a source? Well, WHAT NOW PROFESSORS? I’m all grown and have a paying job and I’m USING WIKIPEDIA AS A SOURCE. At least, um, for Real World DC gossip. The tireless RealWorldDCNewz seems to be upkeeping the Real World DC page, and it’s full of all kinds of creepy information, including cast member’s identities and last names. You know you want to look, just give in, dignity be damned.

Flat Tire Drama on the 403 by The Bees

So aside from banging on a desk with a gavel and yelling “Order!”, what else does a judge do?  The way I understand it is that they wake up in the morning, put their pants on (unlike Carl) one leg at a time, commute to work, change into their judge’s costume in the locker room, then decide how to punish people who have broken the law.  Oh you murdered someone?  Let’s see…firing squad for you.  You haven’t paid your taxes…ever?  I sentence you to become a CPA.  At the end of the day you go back to the locker room, change back into your velour track suit, and stop punishing people.

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The Safe Shores backpacks

The deadline has passed, but I’m gonna give you one last shot to get on the charity train – I’m taking the backpacks for Safe Shores over to their offices this afternoon and I’ll let you squeak in for the next few hours. I don’t know what you all donated directly to Safe Shores, but readers F.S. and Scott each used PayPal to send me money to buy two backpacks each on their behalf. If you’d like to get in on this action you can use the button in the original post and claim one. If you’d rather donate directly to Safe Shores they certainly can use the funds.

‘Catedral de Petrópolis’
courtesy of ‘Rodrigo_Soldon’

Some call it patronage, others call it working with people you know, either way, the practice is alive and well in DC. Once, patronage was so alive and well in the federal city, it dominated the political debate the way Healthcare, er sorry, just got the memo, Health Insurance Reform does right now. The corruption endemic to a system in which every player was installed by an elected official is a difficult thing to combat. Despite the reforms of the Williams administration, and early attempts by the Fenty administration, we’re still left with situations like that of Councilman Barry and his girlfriend Donna Watts-Brighthaupt.

So, is Patronage the right of the Politician? The reward for election? Or is it the Scourge of a healthy bureaucracy?

” courtesy of ‘erin m’

I know it’s not October yet, but Six Flags America needs your help. They’re prepping for their annual Fright Fest and will be holding auditions on Wednesday, August 26 and Thursday, August 27 from 4 to 9 p.m.

The theme park is looking for people to perform in their Halloween-themed song and dance revues, to perform in the park’s haunted walk-through attractions, and to fill spooky roles as in-park monsters, zombies, and other assorted creatures of the night. All candidates must pre-register by calling the Six Flags America Entertainment Hotline at (301) 249-1500 ext. 5092. Candidates should bring a recent headshot and resume, be prepared to move, sing and act, and show a sense of humor. Halloween costumes are not permitted at auditions.

Actual werewolves must show proof of recent rabies vaccination.