Man Stops Traffic at 17th and K to Demand $200 Million
Morning Roundup: Goodbye, Abe Edition
Judge Throws Out WTU Suit Over Teacher Layoffs
Vegetate to Close at the End of the Month
Morning Roundup: Rain Won't Go Away Edition
Good morning, Washington. WTOP is carrying an interesting story on Metro today, writing about a report that analyzes Metro's less-than-stellar reputation with area commuters. According to the report, Metro suffers from a "reputation deficit" that makes it harder for the transit agency to promote and advance transit solution for the region. The report also finds that Metro's real traffic-saver is the bus, not the train; that Metro should be commended for its role in promoting economic development and that infrastructure problems will dog the system no matter how much it works on improving quality and personnel training. If Metro overcomes these challenges, writes the report, it will be able to serve as a model for mass transit across the country. That's quite an "if," but nice to think about nonetheless.
Holocaust Museum to Re-Open Today: After the tragic shooting on Wednesday of security guard Stephen Johns by white supremacist/nut-job James von Brunn, the Holocaust Museum is set to re-open its doors to the general public today, writes WTOP.
Details Emerge in Columbia Heights Shooting: Extra police presence or not, a man was still shot and killed in the heart of Columbia Heights on Wednesday night, writes the Post. Rahiem Moore was killed steps away from a police post that had been set up in response to a number of violent incidents in the neighborhood and around the corner from a security camera. The incident has some residents asking what good the additional police have done.
Ruling on Same-Sex Marriage Referendum May Come Today: After a lengthy and heated hearing on Wednesday, the Board of Elections and Ethics may rule as early as today on whether or not a referendum on legislation that would allow the District to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states can go forward or not. The Washington Times reports that the board's two members may make a decision by today because if allowed to, organizers of the proposed referendum would only have until July to gather over 20,000 signatures to put the question on the 2010 ballot. Yesterday Attorney General Peter Nickles added his voice to the debate, siding with those that argue that the referendum would violate the D.C. Human Rights Act.
Briefly Noted: Security guard that shot Holocaust Museum shooter is retired D.C. police officer ... Great Chesapeake Bay Swim on Sunday ... Most obvious headline of the day: "Wrong-way Driving Leads to Crashes."
This Day in DCist: On this day in 2008, Mayor Adrian Fenty ordered Attorney General Peter Nickles to review the city's options regarding same-sex marriage and Council member Jim Graham (D-Ward 1) called Maryland drivers "the devil incarnate." In 2007, we found out that the Beltway/I-270 bottleneck is the seventh worst in the country.
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Haha, the real traffic saver is the bus? The only plausible explanation = that report was written by retarded monkeys.
Well, if you lock enough of them up in a basement with a typewriter, eventually, they'll end up writing a positive analysis of WMATA.
At least they got the lede correct.
"A DRIVER caused several crashes on U.S. 15 and I-270 when she drove her Volvo S40 south in the northbound lanes..."
The incident has some residents asking what good the additional police have done.
Considering that dead body lying a few feet away from a police officer, it's pretty self-evident what good they're doing.
For years, neighborhoods demanded more police presence and foot patrols. Well, here they are. See how effective they are when you have a population of criminals that just don't give a fat rat's fart about anything? You've got a multilayed problem (career criminals, poverty, a failed education/law enforcement/juvenile criminal justice system) that isn't going to be fixed by a couple of cops standing under lightpoles. Yet certain pizza-hatin politicians are more than happy to sell you this panacea.
The bunker mentality doesn't work when you're trying to protect your neighborhood. Just ask the French.
Here is your answer:
"I know the officer was in the block, but I don't know exactly where the officer was at the time of the shooting,"
Cop was no where near the place. I don't buy the "in the block" either
Another strong argument for hiring a bodyguard ...
http://www.hboasia.com/images/posters/378x195/the_bodyguard.jpg
the shooting occurred behind a row of buildings where that cop is usually stationed... so unless the cop could see through buildings, he wasn't going to stop it.
In fact, unless you have cops every five feet, you're not going to stop it. I know conservatives, as well as liberals temporarily frightened silly by the first-hand experience of "diversity," hate this type of talk, but nothing will change without reaching the people that are doing this stuff (as well as the people all around them that are affected). It's true for Iraq, and it's true for DC as well -- without the community involved, no amount of enforcement will bring stability. Giuliani may scoff, but we need some community organizers!
Good ole Columbia Heights. A grand mixture of the best and worst of D.C. all served up with steamy generous portions
of blood and grist. The rich and the poor mingling together
at the Target/Pizza Hut/Starbucks. The idiots at the Columbia Heights Metro screaming at the white people because of a white Jesus.
I saw that guy buying his dinner at the Panda Express while still on his Segway. It was comedy gold.
I do feel safe with the Segway cop of Mount Pleasant street who spends his time chasing the men standing around the 7-11 onto the fence that reads DO Not Lean or Sit on Fence.
WTOP: *Solutions to the D.C. region's overloaded highways are likely to be found in WMATA's less-regarded Metrobus service, not the higher profile Metrorail system.*
Understandinggov.org exec summary: *Solutions to Washington, D.C.’s overloaded highways are more likely to be found in WMATA’s less-regarded Metrobus service, not the higher-profile Metrorail system...*
The report itself: *Improving bus service may not get WMATA a lot of laurels or headlines, but in the long run it may be the only solution to Metrorail’s two-track dilemma. However, it will require a major public education effort and political push to significantly expand bus service. WMATA is going to have to make people think of buses when they think of rapid transit, and that will be a tall order.*
Austermuhle: *The report also finds that Metro's real traffic-saver is the bus, not the train.*
"Reputation Deficit?"
What 23-year old newly minted consultant 'genius' thought that one up?
comedy gold
comedy gold
"If Metro overcomes these challenges, writes the report, it will be able to serve as a model for mass transit across the country. "
And if my aunt grows testicles she will be able to serve as my uncle.
Again with the "serve as a model for the rest of the county" BS!! Enough already.
And if I wanted smoke blown up my ass, I'd have stayed at home with a carton of cigarettes and rubber hose.
And if a frog had wings, he wouldn't bump his nuts every time he hopped.
And if I was both funny and insightful I'd be monkeyrotica.
For some reason it leaves me feeling slightly dirty that I actually find myself on the same side of an argument (re: same sex marriages) as Peter Nickles. Scary.
As long as you don't find yourself in the same fire extinguisher alcove. Especially when he's throwing one of his "foam parties."
PS: the foam comes courtesy his rabid labradoodle, "Goebbels."
Oh Columbia Heights. It's interesting to me that all the crime up here is between crews and projects - that people are moving to Columbia Heights because it's rapidly gentrifying - and yet, the crime that occurs here doesn't happen when those cultures intermix. It happens within one group, the group that really doesn't have the means to leave CH, or if they did, would be going to some place that isn't any better. But the reason why the crime gets so much publicity is exactly because all of a sudden, it's a neighborhood that is perceived as a safe, white place to live by many. It's a serious and sad deal when it happens anywhere, but the cynical side of me says it would be business as usual as far as the newspapers and media go if this stuff was happening in another quadrant.