D.C. being the place that it is, big protests such as those that took place this last weekend are a dime a dozen. Complaints of excessive use of force by police officers are just as recurrent, with protestors often charging that overzealous police officers step in to make arrests too quickly and offer few apologies or admissions of wrongdoing thereafter. This weekend seems to have been different in that regard — WJLA is reporting that…

An unknown DCist reader posted this photo, taken inside the Hirshhorn Museum, to DCist photos. Today there’ll be a few clouds early and sun and highs in the mid 80s later. Looking for something to do tonight? Check out the free screening of Summer Stock at the National Building Museum. Bike Trail Specifics Disputed: The Metropolitan Branch Trail, a planned bike path connecting a new trail in the District with the already existent Capital…

– The American U. Eagle has a longer piece on the closing of Visions Cinema Bistro, which characterizes the cinema’s demise as “100% financial” and blames corporate competition:Then, the opening of large chain theaters showing indie films resounded like death knells. Georgetown Loews in November 2002. AFI Silver Theatre in April 2003. Then E Street Cinema last January, bringing Landmark’s clout into the downtown pond. Suddenly it was big fish versus small fish. – why.i.hate.dc…

The opening of this year’s school year at area colleges and universities hasn’t been without its wrinkles. After minor fires at and Georgetown and Howard, a pesky blogger annoying the president of American U., it seemed things were calmly under way. Not so – now that move-in is complete, students seem to be moving on to other activities. Last weekend, a 23-year-old Virginia Tech student died from an alcohol overdose after his friends carried him…

The D.C. Political Comedy Festival, jointly sponsored by the American Film Institute and American University’s School of Communications kicks off tonight with a sneak preview of John Sayles’s new film Silver City (IMDB) to be followed with a discussion with the director. Both the AFI and American U. have posted schedules of events for the festival, which also includes screenings of Primary Colors (Fri.), Election (Sat.), Wag the Dog (Sun.). All the screenings will be…