Results tagged “democracy”

According to alarmists from both sides of the aisle, all hell is going to break loose depending on which candidate emerges from the ashes of tomorrow's presidential election. Pestilence, Famine, War, Death -- think your typical Adams Morgan Saturday night minus the jumbo slice.

We'd like to take a brief moment to thank this week's advertisers on DCist. AMEX Urban Adventures, because there's shopping, dining, and entertainment destinations to be discovered. Look Me in the Eye, by Augusten Burroughs' older brother. DC Vote, which has its Champions of Democracy event on October 23rd. Busted Tees, where they have some shirts on sale for $9.99! The Heartbreak Kid, which has a special contest for DCist readers. You can win a...

As Sommer mentioned earlier this week, I was fortunate enough to have been invited to speak on a panel on D.C. voting rights at the YearlyKos Convention, a huge gathering of progressive activists and bloggers in Chicago. This morning I will be sitting alongside D.C. Shadow Rep. Mike Panetta, Danny Rose from DC Vote and Kesh Luddewhetty of DC for Democracy, all of whom will detail the current fight for voting rights, where it stands...

For all you liberal/progressive internet/Netroots types in town who are heading to Chicago later this week for the behemoth 2nd annual YearlyKos Convention — and we know there are more than just a few of you — allow us to recommend some programming. On Friday, August 3 from 9:15 a.m. to 10:15 a.m., the panel you'll want to make sure not to miss is Taxation Without Representation: Alive and Well in the Nation's Capital, which...

>> Tickets are still available for Fiery Furnaces, dios and Orphan tonight at Black Cat. $15, 8 p.m. >> Check out our full preview of RAMP, performing a free show tonight at Bossa Bistro and Lounge, 9 p.m. >> DCist favorites Robbers on High Street come to Iota tonight promising to play songs from their upcoming disc, "Grand Animals." Expect another solid, fun show, along with two Chicago bands, The Redwalls and Baby Teeth....

Welcome back to work, Washington. Actually, we're curious -- are any of you checking in on headlines from home today, having gone ahead and taken the rest of the week off? If so, we never liked you in the first place. Despite the tornado watch and humid, drizzly conditions, we hope you had a wonderful 4th of July celebration and of course, didn't have any fireworks-related accidents. ABC7 is reporting that at least nine people...

MONDAY: Min Jin Lee will be at Politics and Prose to read from her debut novel, Free Food for Millionaires. No, it doesn't promote welfare for the wealthy. It's actually about a first-generation immigrant trying to find balance between the ways of her parents and American culture. 7 p.m. TUESDAY: We don't know what to think about 2006 Tour de France winner Floyd Landis. His win last year was surrounded by controversy over whether he...

Whoops. We neglected to bring you our weekly calendar of notable author visits yesterday, so here's your slightly abbreviated version. Go forth and enjoy the wordy goodness. TUESDAY: Get ready for the farmer's market season with Russ Parsons tonight at Politics and Prose, where he'll be discussing how (and how not) to squeeze and shake for the perfect piece of fruit when he reads from How to Pick a Peach. 7 p.m. WEDNESDAY: Turn off...

Ah Easter. A day traditionally filled with brightly colored eggs and the bunnies that inexplicably lay them, a fat honeyed ham, and clusterbombs. Well, the last one may not be a tradition yet, but the Vineeta Foundation and a coalition of other peace advocacy groups including Code Pink, DAWN, Voters for Peace, Fellowship of Reconciliation, Coalition for Justice and Accountability, Democracy Rising, US Campaign to End the Occupation, Backbone Campaign, After Downing St., Iran Coalition...

While the District begs and pleads for anything approaching voting representation in the House of Representatives, Puerto Rico might be moving ahead in its own quest to finally define itself and its relationship to the U.S. According to an article published today in The Politico, legislation is being considered in the House that would allow Puerto Rico to hold a binding referendum on whether or not to become a full-fledged state. Sponsored by Rep. Jose...

Last year ended on a bit of a sour note for District voting rights, but activists aren't letting a little bad news stop them. After being stymied by Republican leaders in the closing weeks of the 109th Congress, Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.) and D.C. Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton re-introduced legislation on January 9 to grant the District one voting seat in the House of Representatives. The legislation, known as the Fair and Equal House Voting...

Update: Scratch everything -- no voting rights for D.C. this year. We're a step closer, yet still so far away. As the Post reported today, Utah has played its role in helping the District get a voting seat in the House of Representatives by agreeing to a re-districting plan that would give them one more seat in Congress. Their decision to do so has been the key to pushing the D.C. Fair and Equal House...

Jagshemash! Borat is a hit. It's grossing millions and definitely the most quotable thing we've seen in ages. But Borat himself seems to have missed most of the -ist cities, and we were all wondering how the film would have been different if he'd made his way around the world on the -ist tour. In Shanghai, Borat would be observing Inane Learnings of Penis Photos for Make Benefit Glorious Flat World of Handmade Toy...

Morning, Washington. Hypochondriacs of the city, grab some Valium, because the area seems to be teeming with illness lately. The good news, we think, is that the Maryland Department of Health has determined that three of the reported E. coli cases were not related to contaminated spinach, though it's not clear where they picked up the bacteria. The Department is still investigating four cases, including the death of one woman, but with any luck, we'll...

When it comes to issues of globalization, nobody rocks the field like Joseph Stiglitz, whose last book, Globalization and its Discontents, should be a must-read for everyone who thinks they can change the world with a papier-mâché puppet. Now he’s back to discuss the ways of Making Globalization Work. Politics and Prose, 5015 Connecticut Ave. NW, at 7 p.m.

Happy Day After the Fourth of the July, Washington. We hope you managed to get some sleep last night despite the all-night fireworks marathons taking place in many city neighborhoods. Not that we're complaining — since the view of the National Mall fireworks from the north was largely obstructed by a giant cloud of smoke, locals putting on their own displays pretty much saved Independence Day for many of us. There will be more...

MONDAYEver wondered what it’s like to spend every day in the company of toothless, semi-retarded, supine bunny rabbits? You know, the sort that are fuzzy, cuddly and sometimes cute, but dumb as a box of rocks? Go see Helen Thomas discuss her new book Watchdogs of Democracy?: The Waning Washington Press Corps and How It Has Failed the Public. Olsson's Books & Records, 418 7th St. NW., 7 p.m. TUESDAY The popularity of the CSI...

When it comes to fighting for District voting rights, activists face two main challengers -- the U.S. Congress and themselves. Members of Congress just either don't care much about whether or not the District's 600,000 residents have voting representation, or believe its a constitutional mandate written in stone that they shouldn't. They can be swayed. But many District-based voting right activists differ sharply on what the best approach to gaining voting rights is -- some...

If you want an idea of how bad the city's educational infrastructure is, consider this -- it's going to take the equivalent of the Marshall Plan to bring it up to snuff. The D.C. Council's Committee on Finance and Revenue recently passed legislation that would direct $200 million a year to much-needed school modernization, capping a months-long campaign in and out of the council to improve the state of the city's schools.

Last night over 250 District voting rights activists attended an event they probably all wished they wouldn't have to celebrate -- DC Vote's Champions of Democracy 2005 award ceremony. Held in the Madison Hotel along 15th Street, attendees came together to share in food, drink, and mutual indignation over an undeniable and odious injustice forced upon the city's 600,000 residents -- the inability to vote for members of Congress. Beneath the pleasant social atmosphere ran...

We've been to The Guards. We know how the people of D.C. feel about Bon Jovi. The hard-working, hair-grooming boys from New Jersey are currently on a world tour promoting their latest album, Have A Nice Day. On December 17, they'll make a stop at the MCI Center, and are sure to feed fans' thirst for classics like "Livin on a Prayer" and "Wanted Dead or Alive." Tickets went on sale this weekend.

Two weeks ago, we were telling you about the first opera in the Washington National Opera season. Last night, this DCist heard the second one, a gala production featuring the company's superstar music director, renowned tenor Plácido Domingo. The fact that he is singing in all three acts of this production, in alternation with working at the conductor's podium for the other production, I Vespri Siciliani, is remarkable for a musician of his age. As...

On Monday DCist reported on the release of a report by the Commission on Federal Election Reform, whose 87 proposed recommendations for reforming the country's electoral system did not include any mention of the District's long-standing lack of voting rights. We -- being fierce and unwavering advocates for D.C. voting rights -- were obviously a little perplexed. Report on improving elections? No recommendation on granting District residents the right to vote? Huh?

For the sake of not having to write separate posts for all these different yet interesting events, here is a list of some things you may not want to miss in the area this week.

Economically ruinous scheme or social justice imperative? Well, tonight you'll at least hear the latter argument over whether or not the District needs a living wage.

Voting Rights Signs Popping Up: The movement to grant District residents full voting rights became just a little more obvious in recent days. DC Vote announced on Tuesday that a 10 foot by 20 foot banner bearing the phrases "Go Nats!" and "Taxation Without Representation" was permanently affixed to the western side of RFK Stadium in recent weeks. Similarly, a 12 foot by 24 foot billboard, pictured above, was placed atop the American City...

The morning after the United States celebrated 229 years of independence, the General Assembly of the 55-member Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) voted to endorse a resolution calling on the U.S. Congress to pass the legislation necessary to granting District residents full voting rights.

What the District of Columbia lacks in democratic representation at the federal level, it makes up for in local pro-democracy groups: There's the Deaniac-led DC for Democracy, the adorable/annoying DC Young Suffragists (decide for yourself) and the the umbrella group DC Vote, under which other groups lend support to the movement. And there is another symbol of the District's yearning, one that doesn't move at all: the Democracy Tree at 21st Street and New Hampshire Avenue NW.

It may be a first, but it's a first that District voting rights activists have been waiting for and one which they are sure to celebrate -- an international endorsement of their cause.

Good news D.C. Unlike last weekend, we'll only have to suffer through this rain today; Saturday will be dry and Sunday will be beautiful. Awesome. FRIDAY: >> We hear some big movie opened this week, with "lazer swords" and some dude wearing a black hat. What was it called again? Eh, who cares -- especially when you can watch "Napoleon Dynamite" again on the big screen. The Landmark E St.'s Midnight Movies bring pretty much...