DC is, as I feared, a city run by liars and cheats. The City Council, after they had a deal with Major League Baseball, went back on their word yet again tonight and rejected the lease as it was presented to the Council. There was a fucking deal here, people. It was done and it was ready to go. Deal on lease means we get new ownership. New ownership means we get a team that might not finish just barely at .500 or less. New ownership means revenues at the stadiums rise, and the money comes back into the city coffers. More revenues means millions of dollars that the District can spend on crumbling infrastructure.

And the council, in familiar fashion, lead by a drug-addled former mayor, did what was in the interest of the politicians, and NOT in the interest of the District, or her residents, or the people who come into town every day and support the city through other taxation measures. Way to go, you crazy crackhead, you’ve run baseball straight out of DC.

Next step is binding arbitration and lawsuit after lawsuit.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

In the course of looking around for things to bring to you, dear readers, I came across the Capital Weather blog. If you’re like me, you need a moment to consider the fact that someone is blogging about weather.

Go ahead, take a second. We can wait.

My natural inclination is to be snarky about CapitalWeather, but let’s be honest – that’s my inclination about almost everything. Helping me along with this bit of introspection is that after looking at the first paragraph of the first posting…. I was hooked. The writing is engaging, the information useful and I’m inclined to have faith in their projections. Rather than the vague “possibility of snow this weekend” we get from most local weather projections, their “Snow Lover’s Crystal Ball” gives a percentage probability that’s backed up with some facts and some gut instinct.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

k street china dolls

If your in the need of a little asia in your day, and downtown, check out the four block hawker saturation by ntdtv. Out in force to advertise their chinese new year global gala, they sure add fun color to a cold day.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

It’s Membership Drive time again at WAMU and WETA, which means that instead of plain Morning Edition, you’re going to get 20 minutes of emotional blackmail, plaintive cries for help, cajoling and flat out begging for money. WAMU is hoping to raise $650,000 before this weekend, and WETA’s goal is unpublished. I may love me the Lehrer News Hour, or All Things Considered or Marketplace, I just know that I give enough in my taxes each year to cover the once a week that I actually listen.

But, if you’re so inclined, you can give to WETA or WAMU via the Web and your credit card right now. If it’s based on the website alone, I’d say WAMU ought to get your cash…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Dear Crazy SUV Driving Motherfracker,

I realize that this is DC, and that your hurry is likely more important than mine, so clearly I do not matter. I can tell you work in politics, because your black Expedition/Land Yacht/Urban Assault Vehicle has not one but two yellow ribbons admonishing me to support our troops, and while my car has none, you felt it was okay to cut me off. Well, that and the VA License Plate that reads LIF A GIF which is, I’m sure, your clever way of politicizing a license plate for the Pro-Life lobby here in town. And I understand you’re welcome to believe that the theory of evolution isn’t all that, but the whole Truth fish swallowing the Darwin fish won’t win you any influence with me. But the real issue was that you cut me off on 395, as you just HAD to swerve across two lanes to get into the HOV lane at the 14th Street Bridge. There was nearly an accident, but us small people in our normal sized cars clearly don’t matter, because you’re out there doing God’s Work in your SUV.

I really, really hope you spend some quality time in a persistent vegetative state and that your family won’t pull the plug for 20 years because that would be an affront to God and God’s plan for you.

No Love,
Tom

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

With the Hallmark Holiday of the year quickly approaching, the merchants of romance are cranking out all manner of Valentines Day gifts. Gifts that will mostly be given with cards. Choke on it cheesy cards that will make the recipient groan more than grin. And here is your challenge:

Find the most cheesiest, over-the-top card possible.

Forget the “Roses are red..” variety, I’m talking something profoundly deep and yet amazingly stupid, say:

Now ain’t that some crap dribble?!

Bonus points if the card uses the word “soulmate”, thanks a TV-famous religious figure for guidance, rhymes, or is an oversized card (we’re talking 2ftx3ft here).

How to play: send a photo or scan of the card to mzungu at gmail dot com – entries will be linked in the comments section & you can vote for your fav there too.
What you win: A joe-cool Metroblogging DC T-shirt and one special “Get out of V-Day” card.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Last night I had the pleasure of watching the Super Bowl with several hundred screaming Steelers fans in Shootz Cafe on Carson Street in Pittsburgh. Carson Street is something like Adams Morgan, full of entertainment establishments, tattoo parlors, and restaurants. As the fourth quarter drew to a close, and the Steelers fifth Super Bowl victory became official, crowds streamed out onto Carson Street in the South Side, along Forbes in Oakland and on Penn Ave in the Strip District. Only 34 people were arrested and a lonely Dodge Neon was upended. Riots were largely nonexistent, just a lot of raucus partying and waving of towels.

What would happen if the Wizards or the Caps won? Would pandemonium rain down on Chinatown? In Adams Morgan or on U St.? If it was the Redskins, would the whole city erupt?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

The Washington Post continues to be one of the few newspapers in the States that at a bare minimum has tried to understand blogging and embrace it as a tool of their journalists. There have been, of course, a few fracases involving comments, the ombudsman and what exactly a blog is, but at least they’re learning. Welcome new DC Politics Blog DC Wire which will seek to edify the masses on all the twists and turns of Washington’s local political scene.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

This weekend, I was sorting through my recent mail, taking out the credit card offers for the shredder, gathering tax documents so I can figure out if I owe Uncle Sam anything, and I came across a white envelope from the Arlington County Assessor’s Office. I tore through the corner and slit the end with my finger to extract the single page contained within. I unfolded the sheet to gaze at the table contained therein; it was my property assessment for my condo in Arlington. Since I bought the place in April of 2004, I’d always been worried, did I buy at the peak? Or did I get in early enough that a popping of the bubble might not kill the investment I made?

Last winter, I was not surprised to see the value of the assessed property rise from its low 1990s valuation toward my sale price, but this year’s jump in value shocked me to the core. 25%?! Really? That’s awesome! That’ll make for a great sale when the…

The gravy train in my head derailed at that moment.

This isn’t the market value. It’s the valuation for my property taxes. My mortgage payment is going up. Uh oh. Thankfully, Arlington County hasn’t set their rate of taxation yet, but in a county governed and populated by Democrats, I find it unlikely that there will be a rate decrease of any kind…

Technorati Tags: local politics, real estate

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

One of the blights of the 14th Street revitalization (or whatever you want to term it – pick your poison) has been the sad case of Source Theatre, whose long demise has taken it from a vibrant theater space to a rent-out to a black hole complete with constant graffiti. I’ve no desire to get into the reasons why – this is a hotly debated topic in the theater community – however I’ve long hoped that it would be able to rise out of its financial mire and become the force for a new dynamic on the block, much as Studio did for 14th and P. It seemed truly bizarre that as the block of 14th between S and T transformed into a happening urban destination, the theater was unable to take advantage of this upswing, and declined. And now, Theater Boy is reporting that Source is being sold to the owners of Bedrock Billiards (Aroma, Buffalo, et al), who plan to open a bar in the space.

I’m torn in two directions at this news – one, sadness at that what could have been, a great theater space two blocks from my house, and two, happiness that another low-key watering and gathering place will open up and provide a complement to a block that already houses Saint-Ex, Bar Pilar, Black Cat, and not to mention some of the best and quirkiest retail going. It seems such a wasted opportunity on the one hand, and yet more of a waste to have that space remain graffiti littered and black night after night…

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Now there’s been a whole flurry of talk(WashTimes, WashPost, even Hill Talk) about church parking in Logan Circle – or more accurately, the lack of legal church parking.

For years, church goers have had an informal grace with the city’s police and residents. Church goers were able to double park on streets, medians, and pretty much wherever they wanted to every Sunday. Police and residents tolerated it because for a long time, there weren’t so many cars, the parishioners kept in line, and last but not least, no one wanted to piss off the powerful churches of DC.

That honeymoon is coming to an end.

Some will say its gentrification – rich newcomers pushing out time-honored institutions. Others might say its racism – white folks trying to push out black folks. But it’s neither. What this parking problem highlights is the seismic shift in DC church demographics – follow the link for more…

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Those of you who get Daily Candy DC will notice that I’m shamelessly kifing this from them, but I’m so excited about it I had to share it with all of you.

The Poste Moderne Brasserie, the restaurant at the Hotel Monaco, has announced their 4×4 Happy Hour. What makes it a 4×4, you ask?

From 4 PM until 7 PM each weekday, there will be 4 items for $4: A $4 red wine, a $4 white wine, $4 Sam Adams, and $4 for their renowned truffled frites. Mmmm.

I’m not much of a beer drinker, but wine and fried potatoes… what could be better?

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

So this week is Chinese New Year, #4704, the Year of the Dog, and with that there will be a parade tomorrow in what’s left of DC’s Chinatown. Before you get your hopes up for a rocking good time, let me tell you that Chinese New Years are not like our own.

No Dick Clark, no shiny ball, no drunken revelry. While there is a cool-ass parade, full of fireworks and dragons, it’s not the pa-tay scene you might expect. As I learned in my Lame-O Malaysian New Years, most Chinese spend their New Years celebrating at home with family.

This is arguably a better way to spend your culture’s change of calendar, one I’ve take up myself in fact. But if you really need to check the scene tomorrow – its from 2 to 5pm at Sixth and I streets NW along nearby streets to Sixth and H streets NW.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Look people, let me try to make this simple for you. Most of the country thinks our fair city is populated exclusively by people in the business of government who have, shall we say, a less than intimate relationship with the truth. A certain moral flexibility. A lack of interest in veracity and accuracy.

Why would they think that? Well, partly it’s because of thirty-plus years of poor perception of politicians. We as a nation are less believers in Mr Smith Goes to Washington than we are All the President’s Men.

And partly it’s because even after several weeks of discussion about how the guy can’t be trusted if he tells you water is wet you still pick his fabricated memoir as your book club selection.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

From my former days as a crazy clubgirl, I’ve ended up on a plethora of distribution lists about clubs and events and hoopla most of which I didn’t sign up for and have no intention of attending. But it makes for amusing reading sometimes, as today when I received a notice from Tastings Journal regarding a Valentine’s Day Dinner at Panache, which they refer to as “a serious hangout for media people and the gucci gulch set.”

Now, I try desperately not to follow the K Street crowd in anything, in spite of (or perhaps because) I work for a public policy organization, so the term “gucci gulch” was mystifying. At first I wondered, “Are they referring to ladies carrying stylish yet overdone handbags, did they perhaps misspell ‘clutch’? Or is this an odd homage to Elmira Gulch?” But no, this is an actual term for high-powered lobbyists that I’ve missed out on using. An homage to the book Showdown at Gucci Gulch — Lawmakers, Lobbyists, and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform, it apparently refers to the Gucci-shod lobbyists crowding the halls of the Hill.

Now, this book was written in the late eighties, so the term is understandably dated (Honestly, do lobbyists wear Gucci shoes anymore? Did they ever? Does anyone in Washington? I mean, don’t you associate men wearing Gucci shoes with a different line of work altogether?). But what mystifies me even further is what some promoter must have been smoking in order to think that the use of this term would be an enticement for a romantic dinner… rubbing elbows with sharky lobbyists sure equals one rockin’ hot time!!

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Tom Toles, venerable Editorial Cartoonist for the Washington Post may have gone a bit far with Sunday’s cartoon featuring a soldier in Iraq. The cartoon features a soldier who has suffered numerous wounds and lost parts of all four limbs. The Post received a very sternly worded letter from the Joint Chiefs of Staff who are a bit ticked off with Toles’ portrayal of wounded soldiers. The Post has come out in support of Cartoonist Toles’ depiction based on the fact that the Army is stretched fairly thin at the moment with two large deployments overseas.

The parallels here to the situation in Denmark are quite interesting. Over the last few days, Islamic nations have shown a proclivity to burn the flag of Denmark as well as pictures and effigies of its prime minister over something that was printed in a right-leaning (think Washington Times) daily newspaper’s editorial cartoons section. The cartoon featured 12 depictions of Muhammed, one of which had a lit fuse coming from his turban. Islamic culture forbids the creation of images of Muhammed, and this inflamed the population of various muslim countries. The protests have become quite severe over the past few days, causing some panic for Westerners in the area when the EU office in Gaza was overrun by armed fanatics.

So, how does this play out in fair DC? A bunch of people writing letters. How does this play out in the Middle East? Flag burning, effigy burning and violence. Big difference.

Technorati Tags: DC, first amendment, press

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Well, after the fracas in the Capitol the other night, the Chief of the Capitol Police has apologized both to Cindy Sheehan and to Beverly Young, the two women who were arrested for their apparel choice at the State of the Union. Charges against both women have been dropped by the Capitol Police.

Now, while I don’t support either woman’s t-shirt (one was pro-troops, another was anti-war) I believe that the State of the Union address is the President’s forum, and the place for protestors is not in the House Gallery.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

In a story that sounds distressingly familiar, it seems that a local crematorium who was contracted by the Fairfax Animal Shelter to cremate dead animals had decided it was cheaper to simply dump them. Tags and all.

I suppose it’s somewhat reassuring that people who are such cheating, amoral scum are also monumentally stupid and unable to cover their own tracks.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Better yet an old WMATA bus? We’re talking classics here, a 1986 and a 1987 Flexible bus, and both are going to the highest bidder next Friday at WMATA’s surplus equipment sale.

Show up to Adb Auction Systems at 10:30 am with a $500 deposit, and into the bidding war you will go. The folks at Adb Auctions say the two buses will go for anything between $300 and $3,000. If you’re lucky, and get one cheap, you better treat it right – throw a Pimp My Ride spectacular on its ass.

Oh and feel lucky WMATA is selling busses. Their website has the odd disclaimer: Due to Section 23-106 of the Maryland Vehicle Law, Maryland residents cannot purchase cars and trucks under one (1) ton.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs

Please welcome Randi Miller to the Metro system. She’ll be joining riders each and every day as the dulcet tones of the overhead speaker when those pesky tourists get caught in the door. You can hear her voice here. Deeeeelicious.

Miller may have only received 9.1% of the Washington Post Poll‘s vote, but she was Metro’s favorite. Randi is 44, works in the auto industry, and loves long walks on the beach and puppies.

This post appeared in its original form at DC Metblogs