I’d love this WashCycle post for the title alone, but there’s lots of interesting info on significant improvements coming to DC’s streets.
Category: DC Page 4 of 26
I can’t even count the number of times I’ve landed at DCA, yet I’ve (sadly) never seen it like this:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftQNT-9pnK0[/youtube]
From DC emergency alerts:
Temps today in D.C. will be bitter cold, with high not exceeding 25°. A Wind Advisory will remain in effect until at least 6PM. Winds today will be westerly at 25-30 MPH sustained, with gusts to 50 MPH. Wind chill values will not likely exceed 10°. Gale warning for Potomac River. Overnight-low 18°, wind chill 5°, winds 20 MPH, w/gusts to 35 MPH. Some issues with trees down, traffic accidents & power outages. [P]lease be careful and take all precautions.
And the forecasts offer no hope for the near future . . .
The video from Reason:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uAgQKJuriIo[/youtube]
A cop who pulls a gun for no reason, tries to provoke someone into assaulting him, and then shoves that person when he doesn’t take the cop’s bait? Shocking, I tell you. A particularly nice touch was parking in the middle of the street, and then using the fact that you can’t block the street to move the public out of ear range of what they’re doing.
Detective Baylor seems to be the guy’s name, and Washington Post says he’s on desk duty. It’s also shocking that the police denied that he’d pulled a gun until they realized that this thing was caught on video.
(I do have a bit of sympathy for the cops called in after. If the looks on their faces say anything, it’s “I cannot believe I’m having to defend this jackass . . .”)
Another interesting tidbit, about the promotion of the snowball fight:
With [the organizers] nonstop efforts, the event was making the cyber rounds. Even the D.C. Department of Transportation seemed to embrace it, Tweeting on Saturday soon after the fight began: “SNOW UPDATE as advertised, there is a large snowball battle at 14th and U. Keep it safe.”
I’ve often said that Washington-area radio is an abysmal affair, and that Atlanta – Atlanta! – has a far more vibrant and interesting broadcasting scene.  While that’s quite true, American University’s WAMU is the one bright spot. I credit WAMU with bringing me into the bluegrass fold, keeping me informed on local matters with Kojo Nnamdi, and sustaining the rarity of intelligent national talk radio via the Diane Rehm Show. And there’s one more thing, that I really really love – the Big Broadcast on Sunday nights. Specifically, the Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar part of the show.
Yep, the man with the action-packed expense account still makes me stop and listen, even though the shows are now 50+ years old. I don’t usually plan to listen to these episodes (say, the way I intentionally flip on the Kojo Nnamdi show at noon on Fridays), but I often end up hearing the beginning while I’m doing the things you do on Sunday night. And almost every time, I’ll stop whatever I’m doing, take a seat, maybe turn off the lights, and listen to the rest of the show.
Thanks for that, WAMU.
(And all of you who don’t live in DC? Can still listen to everything I’ve mentioned via WAMU.org)
Massive snowball fight at 14th and U, much fun being had. So what’s the reasonable way to react to your Hummer taking a hit from a snowball? Well, if you’re a veteran DC detective, you get out and start waving your gun around:
According to an eyewitness, a D.C. Police detective (pictured above w/ gun) went nuts after kids pelted his Hummer with snowballs at 14th and U Streets NW this afternoon. The veteran detective got out of his car and eventually grabbed for his gun, displaying it to the crowd. He did not immediately identify himself as a police officer. He calmed down once his fellow uniformed cop arrived. Apparently, someone called 911 to report a man with gun.
With police judgment like this, it’s no wonder that DC ends up paying out millions and millions in settlements related to police overreaction. For more detail (including pictures of the detective – you’ll want to be sure you never say boo to him, I’m sure, for fear of getting shot), check out the link above.
Update: And here are some fantastic photos of NYC pulling off what we couldn’t, it seems. Do click.