Good morning, wet Washington. It does appear that we can expect a few more showers this morning, but after that it should dry out for the rest of the week, leaving us all in what ought to be more cheerful dispositions were it not for this disturbing news: It seems that more and more bass in and around the Potomac have been discovered to possess both male and female sex organs, leading scientists to express worry that the river is so badly polluted it’s causing male fish to get their nails done, wear high heels, and confuse the heck out of their teenaged sons. In all seriousness, much of the D.C. area gets its drinking water from the Potomac, so the discovery that the river may have the ability to mess with hormone levels is deeply troubling — to think this whole time we thought mercury was scary.

Barry Endorses Fenty: NBC4 brings us the news that “Mayor For Life” Marion Barry has come out in Adrian Fenty’s corner in the Democratic mayoral primary set for next week — which is perhaps surprising considering many of Barry’s closest associates are working on the Linda Cropp campaign. Could this be the final endorsement Fenty needs to wrap this thing up in a neat little bow, or could the news that Barry likes Fenty actually bump him down a few a points with some District voters for fear the two men might have similar governing styles?

Crime is Down Since Emergency Declaration: According to Chief Ramsey, D.C. has seen a significant drop in crime since he declared a “Crime Emergency” on July 12 after a series of murders plagued the city. Both violent crime and property crime have declined from the same period a year ago, and arrest rates are up across the board, expecially among juveniles, whose arrest rates jumped 27 percent thanks to a new curfew instituted as part of the crime emergency package of laws passed by the City Council. Have you noticed a difference?

Briefly Noted: PG County investigates police shooting … Maryland comptroller candidate calls opponent “Mother Hubbard”… Biotech boom predicted for region … FedEx donates $1 million for MLK Jr. memorial.

This Day in DCist: In 2005 we noted the unofficial start of the Cropp campaign and introduced our popular Three Stars music feature; In 2004 we welcomed the WaPo to the blogosphere and looked at improved street lighting as a deterrent to crime.

Photo by Flickr contributor JamesCalder.

Filed Under: adrian fenty, Briefly Noted, Chief Ramsey, city, City Council, crime, Crime Emergency, dcist, district, drinking, flickr, Jr., laws, linda cropp, marion barry, Maryland, mayor, MLK Jr, music, news, pg county, pgcounty, photos, police, police shooting, politics, sex, shooting, stars, the city, This Day, three stars, washington,