Comments on: Friday question of the day

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:23:00 +0000

the bottom line being “most” ANC’s are responsive to their residents and do go above and beyond what they don’t get paid for….most of the time it’s part of the job.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Mar 2007 01:38:00 +0000

Vague Ponderings, you make an excellent point about the value of an ANC viewing a bullet hole at someone’s home. ANCs are not full-time paying jobs. Not even the Ward 4 City Council member job is full-time. People may be forgetting the "advisory" role an ANC has. Enough said.

Now for something fun and meaningful. I am calling for the citizenry to tell ANCs as gentrification is causing property values and taxes to rise, incomes of residents are not magically going up, proportionately. Higher property taxes due to a “stupid” real estate market are a windfall to the city. More money to be wasted. I say a huge NAY to higher property taxes. Down with property taxes!

By: princeofpetworth

princeofpetworth — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 21:56:00 +0000

Vague ponderings, I think people like when politicians, ANC and Council members alike, visit crime scenes as a show of support. By visiting they are saying, I support you, I see what is going on, I won't forget you, and I will do something about it.

What people don't like is when politicians show up after a crime for the tv cameras but then don't follow up.

By: Vague ponderings once again

Vague ponderings once again — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 21:55:00 +0000

Also, I’m not a good person to talk to about meetings. I detest them. I think we (as a society) “meet” excessively about every and any little thing with little to no resolution of the issues we are “meeting” about a great deal of the time. Less lip flapping and more action is my motto. So, telling me that Muriel doesn’t hold meetings carries no water with me. That said, she does not have my vote locked, as I have not had a chance to get to know anything about the other candidates in the field as of yet.

By: Vague Ponderings again

Vague Ponderings again — Mon, 19 Mar 2007 21:50:00 +0000

But my question is why would ANY ANC member need to go see a bullet hole in a window? Muriel or whomever? Why? And what did the ANC member who did go see the hole do? Did he/she fix the window? Solve the crime of the bullet hole in the window?? What?

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Thu, 15 Mar 2007 19:26:00 +0000

I just read in a DC North article that Judi Jones has held monthly single member district meetings in her ANC 4B, Muirel Bowser has not…so why all the hype for a part-time ANC who wants to be a part-time council member? I also just confirmed this with members of Muriel’s single member district…that she doe NOT hold SMD meetings….

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 19:39:00 +0000

To answer the question as to why another commissioner was asked to look at the bullet hole was because the other commissioner is the chair of the anc and received the call as a complaint about commissioner bowser not responding to one of her residents. I think you know no commissioner serves as the police but the chair did serve the resident and atleast responded to his concern, the chair of the anc did not bowser who should have.

By: Anonymous

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Mar 2007 17:56:00 +0000

I agree with the general sentiments expressed above: Ward 4 needs and deserves an independent voice on the Council.
We can’t let Fenty’s machine turn our city into a patronage-run city like Chicago.

By: justanothergirlinthehood

justanothergirlinthehood — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 21:00:00 +0000

You know, I'm glad you asked this question.

I am turned off by the extent of the Mayor's involvement in Ms. Bowser's campaign. The fact that his finance manager, John, and at least two right hand campaign managers, Sinclair and Lamont, have moved into Ms. Bowser's campaign office is one thing. The email list that was built of contributors to Fenty's campaign has now been moved to Bowser and I'm receiving emails for her fundraisers with all the same folks hosting parties and lending their names. Even the fact that her campaign color is green bothers me.

I come from one of those cities where patronage looms large and I've never appreciated it. The perceptions in this race alone are making me look past Muriel Bowser for a candidate who will independently represent the interests of Ward 4.

By: Vague Ponderings

Vague Ponderings — Mon, 12 Mar 2007 16:23:00 +0000

Hm. Well, admittedly I haven’t been very focused on the issues in Lamond-Riggs even tho I live there, probably because my block is fairly quiet so there haven’t been any real reasons for me to reach out to Muriel. That said, she has reached out to ME over the past 5 years and is the only candidate I have had any experience or contact with since I’ve lived in the neighborhood. I also think that Lamond-Riggs is two different neighborhoods — there’s a section that appears to have more crime and other troubles and the section where I live where it’s really quiet. I say this because I read the paper about all the “crime problems” and I’m like where??? I never see gangs and have experienced nor witnessed no thefts or other crimes. Maybe I’m just lucky. Last comment/thought: why would the ANC member need to come see a bullet hole in a window? Is she supposed to serve as the police, too?