With his final column, Marc Fisher examines the highlight reel from his career total of 1,250 columns for the Washington Post and an additional 1,200 posts for Raw Fisher. Fisher pores over the perennial debates at the heart of his column -- failing schools, wishful transit schemes, cynical bureaucracy -- and finds that Washington hasn't changed much, even if the way we talk has. Underlining his discussion of the transition from newsprint to new media is a polite complaint about the direction of journalism. There's a wistfulness to his criticism that the proliferation of opinion journalism (I take it he means blogging) is "elbowing out the rigorous work of reporting." Fisher's no David Simon raging against the perceived collapse of beat reporting, but Fisher's new project bespeaks a dissatisfaction with the way things are. "Starting next month, I'll be putting together a group of writers whose job it will be to tell the truths of the Washington area in compelling and essential ways, combining traditional storytelling with new forms that involve and engage the people who live here." If anything, Fisher's "journalistic SWAT team" sounds like an alt-weekly within a newspaper. It also sounds like a potentially great outlet for Fisher's well-reasoned curmudgeonliness, his acute local radar, and his catalog of characters and contacts in the city -- all, I think, the distinctive takeaways from his column. more ›

Last month was something cold, the Washington Post reports—real cold. A full three degrees chillier than normal and probably the coldest January in a decade. It might be difficult to believe today, with the temperature expected to crest a balmy 54 degrees, but the District isn't past the worst of it yet. With ice still lingering from the last frost, the city can look forward to more snow tomorrow evening. Still, with one above-freezing day, February is already looking good in comparison: In January, the temperature only climbed above freezing twice. Sorry, Mr. President, but that's plenty reason to get upset. That's reason to start writing giant solar heat reflecting screens into the stimulus. That's reason to . Those of you looking for "flinty Chicago toughness" should check in with the all-but Siberian Marc Fisher. This is a thread for answering the question: Why did humans settle this far north? more ›

Buried at the end of today's Marc Fisher column is an exciting bit of news for baseball fans and half-smoke lovers alike: Fisher says that Ben's Chili Bowl is going to have an outpost in the new Nationals Stadium. Unfortunately though, co-owner Kamal Ali tells DCist that the Ben's stand at the stadium is far from a done deal. more ›

>> A non-rolling tennis ball catches a lot of parking tickets on Cliffbourne Place. [Marc Fisher] >> D.C. police are trying to identify a body found in the Tidal Basin. [NBC4] >> "A DC Team is in the Super Bowl again. The Beacon House Falcons are in Pop Warner Football’s Pee Wee Division Super Bowl on Saturday, December 8th at Disney’s Wide World of Sports Complex." [Notions Capital] >> The District government expects to... more ›

In most any public or private sector job, losing $31 million on your watch is a surefire way to get yourself fired. CFO Natwar Gandhi's reputation for saving the city's finances has thus far protected him from what is to date the District's biggest corruption scandal. But his fortunes might be changing. Buried towards the end of an article from the Examiner today on an investigation into the tax refund scheme that milked the city... more ›

The Post's Marc Fisher alerted us to some exciting news on Wednesday: the possibility of Chuck Brown and Duke Ellington meeting in D.C. No, smelling salts aren't involved. Rather, Ward 1 Council member Jim Graham is proposing naming sections of T Street NW and 7th Street NW after the two local music legends in Shaw. The renaming would coincide with the expected reopening of the historic Howard Theatre in 2008, a place where both... more ›

Marc Fisher lets us know that longtime D.C. radio fixture Red Shipley, the host of WAMU's Stained Glass Bluegrass program for 25 years, died over the weekend from cancer in Charlottesville. Shipley introduced two generations of Washington area music fans to legendary and contemporary bluegrass music, up until last month, when WAMU took all of its bluegrass programming off the air and put it on HD Radio. "Radio lost one of its own legends last... more ›

Harry Jaffe: As the fallout from the shooting of 14-year-old DeOnté Rawlings continues, it's now Mayor Adrian Fenty taking some of the heat. According to Jaffe, Fenty's decision to pay for Rawlings' funeral and invite his sisters to speak at a press conference has soured some police officers on the young mayor, who saw the moves as an indication of where Fenty's allegiances were. "How can Fenty rebuild trust with the police?" asks Jaffe. “'Let... more ›

Harry Jaffe: In writing something of a goodbye column to RFK Stadium, Jaffe recounts the many struggles the District overcame to attract a baseball team. And though plenty of people played important roles, he feels that one deserves extra attention -- former Mayor Anthony Williams. "The hero of the piece has to be Williams, an unpopular mayor who — despite his wandering attention span — kept swinging away at an unpopular crusade to use public... more ›

Jonetta Rose Barras: In a powerfully introspective column, Rose Barras details a recent trip to her destroyed family home in New Orleans. In recounting her visit to the site, Rose Barras writes of the struggles endured by her mother and sister in trying to return and rebuild, drawing comparisons to the District's own troubles. "Truth told, New Orleans looks and feels like Ward 8 circa 1985: few quality retail outlets, high crime, high unemployment, poor... more ›

Although 192 protesters were arrested Saturday during the March to End the War and competing counter-protest by the Gathering of Eagles, by most measures turnout was low. The Post's Marc Fisher notes in his column that the small numbers of people who marched over the weekend is more a measure of a lack of enthusiasm for protesting in this country, rather than a lack of strong feelings against the war -- just visit any popular... more ›

Marc Fisher: As the Senate gets ready to debate the District voting rights legislation, Fisher lists the dozen top reasons why senators from both parties should vote to enfranchise the city's residents. The more and more we look into it, the better the case looks. Let's hope the Senate agrees. Tom Knott: You know Knott's verbal insanity is in good form when the title of his weekly column is "It's Gathering of Eagles vs. nitwit... more ›

Jonetta Rose Barras: "The District government is spending millions to send children to a controversial special education residential facility in Massachusetts that uses electric shock to discipline students." Wow. Talk about an opening sentence. Rose Barras dedicated her column this week to the 10 District students who have been sent to the facility -- the Judge Rotenberg Educational Center in Canton, Ma. -- arguing that its unorthodox methods of treatment are reason enough to bring... more ›

There won't be any hand-wringing or head-scratching over why the Washington Post's foray into radio failed. Today's Post article on the issue pretty much sums it up as well as anyone could hope to: "[Post Radio] was not able to draw even 1 percent of listeners during its first year." Ouch. The Washingtonian's Harry Jaffe wrote earlier this month of the project's coming demise, and today provides more insight as to why the whole venture... more ›

In just a few months, fans will finally get a glimpse of the new $611 million baseball stadium rising in Southeast. No longer will they simply be looking at an artists rendering -- they'll get to see the new concourse, the stands, the suites and the field for themselves. And today the Post's Marc Fisher poses an interesting question -- beyond the bricks and mortar, what should the team's owners offer inside the stadium? After... more ›

We read all the local columnists, so you don't have to. This week we find meat-eaters being compared to Michael Vick, a lot of bum opinions on city schools and District residents being called "granola." Courtland Milloy: According to Milloy's Wednesday column in the Post, your choice to eat a hamburger isn't all that different than Michael Vick's decision to brutally fight, torture and kill dogs for money. "We'll kill a duck, deer, turkey --... more ›

Coming in on the closing days for the Nats at RFK, everyone seems to be bracing for what the new stadium in Southeast and the surrounding area will have to offer. As the Post detailed earlier this week, huge chunks of land in Southeast and Southwest are slated for development, creating the potential of a new and vibrant Anacostia River waterfront in the coming years -- much of it centered around the $611 million stadium.... more ›

Just this week, GQ published their annual "50 Most Powerful People in D.C." list. Populated by the likes of Condoleezza Rice, Nancy Pelosi, Karl Rove and Tim Russert, the list better describes the movers and shakers in "Washington", but not the District. And since we're snobs about local news and happenings, we threw together a little list of the people who really exercise influence in or over the lives of people who live and work... more ›

>> A federal administrative appeals court has struck down the District's drug-pricing control law, saying it violates federal patent law. The ruling is considered a major win for the pharmaceutical industry. [WaPo] >> The city has agreed on a settlement of $1 million to about 120 protesters who were improperly detained by police during demonstrations in D.C. against the invasion of Iraq, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in 2002. [AP via... more ›

The Post's Marc Fisher has the goods on the continuing saga of administrative law judge Roy Pearson's crusade against the Chung family, owners of Custom Cleaners. Despite the recent ruling that Pearson's $54 million lawsuit against the Chungs, for misplacing a pair of the plaintiff's pants, had no legal merit, Pearson will soldier on. And he's doing it for you and me. Pearson told defense lawyer Christopher Manning that he planned to file an appeal... more ›

In times when security fears, whether justified or not, begin to creep over our lives, it's important to remember that the tiny chipping away of legitimate rights can be a slippery slope to unwarranted governmental authority over our lives. We wrote in June about photographer Chip Py's experience in downtown Silver Spring, as well as Kate Mereand's similar confrontations all over D.C., and their subsequent formation of DC Photo Rights, a Flickr group dedicated to... more ›

The trial has finally ended, and Judge Judith Bartnoff said she would issue a decision next week in administrative law judge Roy Pearson's $54 million dollar suit against Custom Cleaners, but the Post's Marc Fisher reports that Bartnoff has already given a clue as to how she will likely rule. After listening to Pearson argue for hour upon hour that he was somehow protecting the interests of all Washingtonians by using the D.C. consumer protection... more ›

The Roy Pearson Pants trial continues, and Marc Fisher does indeed have an entertaining post up about what's gone on so far today, including the introduction of The Pants in question: The dramatic moment in Courtroom 415 at D.C. Superior Court revealed that yes, the pants look like they are part of a suit, and yes, the dry cleaners attached to these pants a tag with the same numbers that appeared on the receipt Pearson... more ›

Apparently traumatized by the memory of his long lost pants, administrative law Judge Roy Pearson began to cry while testifying in D.C. Superior Court yesterday afternoon. After calling several witnesses who testified that they stopped going to Custom Cleaners after having unsatisfactory business dealings with the shop, Pearson took the stand himself, and as he recounted the story of having the Chung family try to give him a pair of pants that were not his,... more ›

Though the Washington Nationals are well into their third season in the District and moving into their second year under the ownership of Ted Lerner, fans have had plenty to complain about -- the team's record, concessions at RFK and the $611 million stadium debacle. With yesterday's announcement of a new ticket pricing scheme for the team's new stadium, set to open next April, add one more gripe to the list. Prices for the stadium's... more ›

MONDAY: French journalist Sylvain Cypel will speak about his book Walled, a look at relations between Jews and Palestinians in Israel and the barriers — both cultural and physical — between the two groups. Politics and Prose, 7 p.m. D.C.-area Star Wars geeks will want to check out Olsson's Arlington/Courthouse, where science-fiction author Karen Traviss will be talking about her new novel Legacy of the Force: Sacrifice. We love Han, Chewie and the gang as... more ›

The WaPo's Marc Fisher has the latest update on the saga of D.C. administrative law judge Roy L. Pearson and his $65 million lawsuit against local dry cleaners Custom Cleaners for misplacing his favorite pair of pants. We first told you about this story back in early April, and it has since gained worldwide attention from people who like to read about stories detailing acts of unbelievable arrogance and stupidity. Like us. Fisher brings word... more ›

Former Editor-in-Chief Ryan Avent writes a weekly column about neighborhood and development issues. It isn't particularly surprising, I suppose, that in Zachary Schrag's Metro history The Great Society Subway the role of central city savior is played by, you know, Metro. What is somewhat surprising, even to an unapologetic transit supporter like me, is how convincing his case is; faced with riot scarred neighborhoods and a downtown abused by suburban office and retail growth, the... more ›

Four hundred thousand people drive into D.C. each day for work and for fun, and the fact that none of them pays for the traffic and pollution they create has peeved more than a few city denizens. Asking drivers to cough up a few bucks to access our fair city is not a new idea, with everyone from local residents to the Post's Marc Fisher airing the idea out. Even Mayor Fenty (following the lead... more ›

Nothing gets us going here at Transit on Thursday quite like fun, new toys for District residents to ride, use, and enjoy. Streetcars and Circulators, bike trails and lanes, new Metro cars with drop-down handles -- we love 'em all and we want more, more, more! After the jump we have news on the shiny new Bicycle Transit Center proposed for Union Station. Additionally, it's all about oversight this week -- for Metro, some... more ›