With the books finally closed on 2007, we can take an official look at the crime statistics for the year. The Washington Post did so yesterday and found that, as expected, violent crime in the District was up last year as compared to the previous year. You can view some of the District's 2007 crime data at the MPD's site over here. It shows that 2007 saw 181 murders, up 7.7 percent from 2006, which......

Which stories did DCist readers think merited the most attention this year? Top 10 Most Commented Posts of 2007 10) D.C. Judge Seeks $67 Million for Lost Pants (105 comments) 9) Columbia Heights Listserve vs. Ross (107 comments) 8) Saving the Single Beer (108 comments) 7) This City Doth Protest Too Much (109 comments) 6) Solo Marines Often Refused Entry to Some D.C. Bars (113 comments) 5) Bars Claim Loss of Business Over Smoking......

So now you know who we loved locally this year. Here's our list of the live shows that came through town and left a lasting impression in '07. Dismemberment Plan Reunion Shows @ Black Cat DCist Ian says: The Plan's much anticipated reunion to benefit Cal Robbins, the son of Jawbox/Burning Airlines frontman and recording engineer J. Robbins, sold out in under five minutes. So Travis Morrison & co. added a second show. In all......

As the clock rolls down on 2007, we've done as bloggers tend to do and taken a look back. The DCist music staff scratched our chins, tapped our temples, and compiled a list of our favorite local acts of the year. Whether it was because they released a new album, had some great shows, or just finally wore us down with press releases, these are the D.C. musicians that really made us proud to call......

When in the closing days of 2006 we looked back on the year in D.C. voting rights, we optimistically hoped that 2007 would finally be the year that saw some movement on enfranchising the District's residents. Movement, yes; resolution, not so much. So as we wind down 2007, we're again left hoping that maybe the coming year will be the one. The primary mover in the D.C. voting rights movement in 2007 was legislation......

Last week, DCist recapped the year that was 2005. We also took some days off, and the tumbleweeds blowing through the site suggested that many of you did, as well. So, just in case you missed it, here is DCist's year-end coverage, in one convenient package. The most read posts of 2005. The year in District politics. DCist's baseball stadium coverage recapped. DCist's 2005 Mixtape. And the year in art, music, style, and food. Picture......

Most of the District's political news in 2005 revolved around D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams and his plans for the future. Credited with righting the city's financial state, Williams spent the better part of the year dodging the question as to whether or not he would run again -- a move that kept mayoral competitors in maddening suspense and incessantly fueled local rumor mills. In late September -- actually, on the very day a year after......

September 29, 2004 will be remembered as the day that the District got baseball back. December 21, 2004 will be known as the day the D.C. Council narrowly approved the agreement formalizing the return of the Washington Nationals and the city's promise to build them a state-of-the-art, publicly-funded stadium. December 20, 2005 may soon come to be known as the day when Washington lost another baseball team. Of course, that's just a guess. The again,......

Editor's note: This top ten list was compiled by local art blogger and man-about-town Kriston Capps. Let’s be forward about it—top ten lists don’t really make a lot of sense. Especially for a field as diverse as contemporary art. Really, how much better is the sculpture of the giant Cheetoh than the digitally manipulated photograph? A true accounting for the decision-making process behind a hierarchical ranking of art shows would make the BCS computerized college......

We wanted to recap some of our favorite things from the year in local music, but we didn't want to put together a best-of list, because it wouldn't hold all the great stuff we've found throughout the year, and it would, of necessity, exclude things that hadn't yet crossed our path, making it not-quite-a-best-of list. So, we've tried something else, getting a few of our writers to name the local songs they couldn't stop listening......

Step aside, Mr. Blackwell. This year we learned that DCist readers have strong opinions about fashion and you’re not afraid to share them. From the White House to the workplace, one of the year’s most surprisingly controversial fashion topics was…flip flops. In fact, some readers seem to dislike the ubiquitous rubber and PVC summer staples as much as we abhor white shoes. We thank you, our fashion conscious readers, for helping us debate the relative......

According to the Chinese calendar, 2005 might have been the Year of the Rooster. But in the D.C. dining world, 2005 was most certainly the Year of the Phoenix. No other year in recent memory has seen so many elements of the District's dining-and-drinks scene burn down to the ground -- some more literally than others -- only to be rebuilt again. And often as something else altogether. The DCist Food team has reported......

There aren't many steadfast rules when it comes to blogging, but there are a few responsibilities: hone your snarkiness, learn to answer to a pseudonym, and take account of each year as it draws to a close. We're fulfilling that final task now, with a look back to the high points of DCist music coverage in 2005. Though the end of the year has been quiet, 2005's kept the tireless music staff here at DCist......

Today and tomorrow, we'll be taking the opportunity to look back at the year in D.C. and the year in DCist. We'll retrieve for you what we've determined are the best and most interesting DCist pieces in dining, arts, music, and news. This year we've written over two thousand posts (generating over ten thousand comments), and we figured the best way to start the reminiscence was to bring back for you the most read DCist......