Photo by Natalia Esina.

Good morning, Washington. Now comes the aftermath, as we all sift through the heap of information coming to light In the wake of yesterday’s hostage situation at the Discovery Communications building. Police remain on the scene this morning; authorities had to disrupt four devices overnight which they found on the premises.

James J. Lee was obviously an individual who had some very skewed ideas about humanity, the media and society-at-large. We know that he was enamored with the works of Daniel Quinn, so much to the point that he paid people to sit down with him at a local bookstore and talk with him about Quinn’s work. He was also a real person: someone who had a family, though even his brother-in-law described him as having “a very unstable and disagreeable personality.” The national media appears to be focusing in on the immigration aspects of Lee’s manifesto, but it’s important to note that Lee’s earlier ramblings were much more focused on the programming than such topics.

There hasn’t been a lot of information from the three individuals who were held hostage — understandable, considering the circumstances. The first hostage to come forward, Jim McNulty, who works at Discovery-owned channel TLC, released a statement late last night which thanked law enforcement officers, Discovery and his friends and family for their support. But McNulty refused to go into further detail because the investigation was still ongoing. The two other hostages were another Discovery staffer and a security guard at the office building.

What is clear: there is no question that the law enforcement officers who were working the scene yesterday responded with the utmost professionalism. (Especially considering how fragile Lee claimed his explosive devices were.) In an era when information is incredibly difficult, if not impossible, to control, the authorities in Silver Spring did nothing less than a fantastic job. There were a lot of combustible elements swirling yesterday — explosives, children in a day care center, a nearby school which just started back up, the building’s proximity to the Silver Spring Metro station and one of the area’s busiest traffic spots, lots of people who were out and about for lunch breaks — and the fact that the authorities were able to maintain control and keep everything running and all the hostages safe is an amazing thing.

Washington Post Council Endorsements Are…Interesting: The Post released its endorsements for the four competitive D.C. Council primaries last night. The paper made the interesting move of endorsing no one in the At-Large race, citing disappointment with all three candidates — the editorial claims that Phil Mendelson has coasted as simply “the better of a bad choice” for years; that Clark Ray has failed to make “a good case for his candidacy”; and that the Michael D. Brown’s name confusion doesn’t lend him much credibility. The paper also shockingly endorsed Delano Hunter, who is among three challengers vying for the Ward 5 seat currently held by Harry Thomas, Jr. The Post dubbed Thomas a “major disappointment,” and called both Hunter and Kenyan McDuffie better options. But the editorial board chose Hunter, noting that “he is not the homophobe his critics make him out to be,” despite his connections to the National Organization for Marriage. The Post’s claim that Hunter would not change the District’s equal marriage law, but believes in “a way to provide equality for gays while respecting the beliefs of religious groups,” is flummoxing, to say the least. In less surprising news, the paper also endorsed Jim Graham (Ward 1) and Tommy Wells (Ward 6) for reelection.

Dozens of Candidates For Metro’s Top Job: Ann Scott Tyson reports this morning that WMATA’s search for a permanent general manager has identified dozens of serious candidates. The news comes as a bit of a surprise, considering that most observers and members of the board assumed that interest in the job would be tempered by the position’s sizable demands and the number of safety and fiscal issues the transit system is currently facing. Current interim General Manager Richard Sarles’ one-year contract expires next April.

Briefly Noted: Several buses rerouted around Silver Spring scene…D.C. Fire and EMS investigating potential jumper on the 395 overpass of the 3rd Street Tunnel this morning…Lydia DePillis’ City Paper cover story on David Alpert and the crew over at Greater Greater Washington is a pretty good read; GGW’s David Alpert respondes to the article here…Rest in peace, Paste Magazine…Totally serious: panda-hat dude from Real World D.C. now selling panda clothing.

This Day in DCist: Last year, Bishop Harry Jackson claimed to have moved again, and we raked the Redskins over the coals for their ticketing procedures.