MetaFilter posts tagged with dc

High above the nation's capital...

EvaDestruction — Wed, 15 May 2013 12:03:03 -0800

Ever wondered what the view at the very top of the Washington Monument is like? Construction workers erecting scaffolding (for repairs needed after the 2011 earthquake) donned helmet cams on the day they reached the tip of the monument, so you need wonder no longer.

We can’t download a banh mi.

capnsue — Sat, 11 May 2013 10:24:43 -0800

Chris Richards, formerly of DC post-punk outfit Q and Not U asks: Are foodies quietly killing rock and roll?

I hope your patience with my bama shit was worth it

Potomac Avenue — Thu, 09 May 2013 11:38:24 -0800

Political reporter John R Stanton (aka Big John) has been thinking about the gentrification of DC. Late last night, he tweeted up a story about DC in the old days, personified by a junkie named Raymond.

Blelvis

josher71 — Fri, 03 May 2013 09:36:33 -0800

Let Blelvis, the Black Elvis, tell you what he is not doing. He is not begging, and he is not homeless. But Blelvis would never dream of denying you the opportunity to donate to his favorite charity, which, incidentally, is named Blelvis. So he'll just turn around, nice and discreet, while you see what you can spare. The best nation in the world is a do nation, and that's the truth.

The Libra husband is not an easy man to please.

The Whelk — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 12:44:17 -0800

The romance comic blog Sequential Crush takes a look at an astrology-themed love story from 1970: "Horoscope, Don't Fool With My Heart!"

City Flags Ranked

escabeche — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 14:55:52 -0800

150 U.S. city flags, ranked from best to worst. Top-rated flags are typically tasteful and abstract, like that of Washington D.C. (#1) or subtly representational, like Madison, Wisconsin's flag(#11), which is more or less a glyph of Madison seen from above. The bottom of the list has some that seem stuck in a briefly popular graphic style, like Provo (#143), but most are timelessly ongepotch like the flag of Milwaukee (#147), which features a boat, a skyline, some smokestacks, some grain, County Stadium, a Native American,and a church. And then there is Pocatello (#150), whose flag was memorably profiled on badflags. (Vexillology previously on MetaFilter.)

Michelle Rhee's "Reign of Error"

Westringia F. — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 13:49:24 -0800

DCPS Chancellor Michelle Rhee oversaw radical reforms to Washington, DC's failing public schools. Amongst the results were widespread irregularities on standardized tests that suggest they were tampered with by adults. During her unpopular 2007-2010 tenure as chancellor of D.C. Public Schools, Michelle Rhee (previously) enacted a series of controversial and radical reforms that tied teacher pay and job security to students' standardized test scores. Her policies both awarded high-achieving schools and punished poor ones; a single day in 2010 saw the dismissal of 165 DCPS teachers on the basis of test scores. Rhee resigned later that year after Adrian Fenty -- the mayor who had appointed her in 2007 despite her lack of experience -- lost reelection in what was widely construed as a referendum on DC education reform. Test-score based policies have been linked to cheating by teachers and administrators in other communities (just two weeks ago, a grand jury indicted 35 school administrators and teachers in Atlanta for alleged standardized test cheating), and DC is no exception. Not long after Rhee's reforms were implemented, DC standardized test scores improved... and with the improvement came a rash of suspicious "wrong to right" (WTR) erasures on the standardized tests. In 2011, scandal broke when USA Today investigated a pattern of abnormally high DCPS WTR erasures between 2008--2010. The cheating continues: on Friday, the Washington Post reported 11 DCPS schools showing evidence of test-tampering in 2012. Although Rhee denied awareness of the cheating at the time, a memo acquired and reported last week by veteran PBS/NPR education reporter John Merrow reveals that Rhee was aware of the issue as early as 2009. Merrow's documentary The Education of Michelle Rhee was broadcast on Frontline in January and is watchable on-line.

"As the hymn says, you can lay your burden down."

zarq — Fri, 15 Mar 2013 07:36:49 -0800

The Things They Leave Behind. "When the Vietnam Veterans Memorial opened 30 years ago, something unexpected happened: People started leaving things at the wall. One veteran has spent decades cataloging the letters, mementos, and other artifacts of loss — all 400,000 of them." (Via.) Website: The National Park Service Museum Resource Center. CSPAN Video: "Bob Sonderman, director of the Museum Resource Center, gave a tour of the football field-sized warehouse which houses roughly 2.5 million archaeological objects from National Park locations in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia." (2/11)

"Hoot! Hoot!"

peeedro — Sat, 09 Mar 2013 15:09:27 -0800

Givens occasionally wonders why his unique fitness regimen creates such inexplicable antipathy. But he doesn’t let it bother him too much. “I just keep on going,” Givens says. “Look here. A man my age ain’t supposed to be doing this. Once they see the shape I’m in, they think, ‘Well, he can’t be too crazy.’ ”

Cedric Givens, DC's backwards jogger. Direct link to Video

TINY LINCOLNS FOR ALL

crayz — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 16:33:18 -0800

The original point of the sequester was that it would be terrible and “inflexible,” which would force Congress to choose a less terrible path, but obviously trusting Congress to not pick the most terrible of all available options was something of a gamble. So yes, sure, “flexibility,” but also maybe just “let’s not do this.” Unfortunately, “let’s just not do this” never comes up as an option on any of the shows, which all presented the argument as, on one side, “flexibility,” and on the other side, “a balanced approach,” which means a shitload of unnecessary cuts plus a bit more tax revenue, which sound nice but is still pointless contractionary policy.

Alex Pareene watched the sunday morning shows so you don't have to.

FIGHT! FIGHT! FIGHT!

josher71 — Fri, 22 Feb 2013 15:19:09 -0800

An article in the Washington Post (featuring MeFi's own Sonascope!) about a visit to Baltimore has the Charm City locals seething. Some in the capitol don't think much of it either.

There are no Black comics writers at Marvel or DC

MartinWisse — Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:31:09 -0800

"As near as I can tell, throughout DC Comics' more than 75-year history, the publisher has only ever hired two black women writers on monthly titles: Felicia Henderson on Teen Titans and Angela Robinson on The Web, both in 2009. That should be put in some perspective: If those numbers are accurate, it would mean that DC has more white women writing monthly books for them right now than they've had black women in the same role in more than three quarters of a century. That said, they are potentially doing better than their principal competition: Try as I might, I cannot find a single black woman who has ever written a monthly ongoing comic for Marvel in the publisher's history." -- Joseph Hughes talks about the lack of Black comics writers at Marvel and DC both right now and historically. Related: Christopher "Jim Owsley" Priest on why his being stereotyped as a "Black writer" made him leave comics, racism in the comics industry, the uphill struggle to get comics fans to try "Black" books, the viability of Black superheroes and how to get Black people to read them. Unrelated, but relevant: the just released index to multicultural resources at the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum.

"But what is the sane response to an insane situation?"

the man of twists and turns — Sat, 26 Jan 2013 04:23:30 -0800

My So-Called Stalker The So-Called Stalker Turns Himself In Following The Stalker His Day In Court Plea Disagreement

Spin out of control

Artw — Tue, 04 Dec 2012 10:39:13 -0800

Executive editor Karen Berger will be leaving DC Comics' Vertigo imprint in 2013 Reactions from the comics industry.

Fiscal-Cliff-Diving

the man of twists and turns — Sat, 01 Dec 2012 07:19:08 -0800

There's been a lot of talk in the US media about the "Fiscal Cliff" and the "Grand Bargain" What are they?

The "fiscal cliff" is a confluence of three legal changes taking effect Jan. 1: the expiration of a payroll-tax cut, the expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts, and the advent of mandatory spending cuts known as "sequestration."

Fiscal Cliff 101: 5 Basic Questions Answered. What's Happening: Fiscal Cliff Explained Not all are convinced of the necessity of Congress' self-created problem: 6 Reasons why this Fiscal Cliff Is A Scam. Large numbers get thrown around, making it hard to see what exactly is at stake. How did we get here? Fiscal Cliff Reality Check: Are US Taxes Low Or High? "It’s simply a fact that the fiscal cliff was created in response to GOP threats to force the U.S. government to default on its obligations." Or did we already go over the cliff years ago? Who is involved? President Obama; Speaker of the House John Boehner and House Republicans; Minority Leader Nancy Peolsi and House Democrats include the Gang of Six and the Progressive Caucus. Even the CEO of Goldman Sachs has weighed in. The "Fix the Debt" group of is concerned about the growth of deficit spending, while 'the Left is divided' on the Grand Bargain - or the Great Betrayal. What are the sides? The White House's Fiscal Cliff Proposal, delivered by Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner which Speaker Boehner calls "not a serious proposal." Obama's opening bid and the Republican response is all part of the negotiations. The White House plan "is a start, not an end." Obama's proposal appears to be a break from the negotiating in the middle path that he has taken before, though Robert Reich ( who recommended aiming high) thinks not much has changed. And Republicans have yet to make any proposals of their own, preferring to follow the President's lead. The Economist has a brief summary. Paul Krugman characterizes most of those calling for deficit reduction "hawks and hypocrites". And its always good to remember that elections have consequences.

The Long Treacherous Climb Up The Fiscal Cliff. The so-called fiscal cliff is one of those rare issues where everyone has an incentive to predict the worst. Barack Obama thinks it will force Republicans to accept higher taxes on the rich, Republicans think they can back him into a corner and force him to cave to their demands as they did two years ago, and businesses and consumers are wary that the still-fragile economy may take a nosedive. Figuring out how this will play out is Washington’s favorite parlor game right now, so let’s play.

What will happen now? Obama pushes for stimulus in fiscal cliff deal. 10 easy way to avoid the fiscal cliff. Three Votes Could Make Or Break Fiscal Cliff Deal. Lobbys, like the AARP, the IFA, and various unions, are gearing up. One paper predicts 'lower GDP and higher unemployment' if no deal is struck. The Weekly Standard says Obama's Plan Will Raise Taxes On Small Businesses, Lower Them For Corporations. The White House is apparently worried there won't be a deal by 2013, since prominent politicians like Senator Alan Simpson and Senator Erskine Bowles say falling off fiscal cliff is 'likely.' But perhaps the President should reassure Americans they will survive the fall. But what does the public really want? To "cut military waste, not charitable deductions"? How Obamacare Came To The Fiscal Cliff and The Grand Cynicism Of The Grand Bargain. A failure to reach a bargain may spur 'bond vigilantes' to move, but that may not be a bad thing. Will the Romney-Ryan plan live on? Perhaps a Obamney plan? Of course, the military-industrial complex will be largely spared. What does this mean for you? The Congressional Budget Office outlines options and consequences. Could the 'Fiscal Cliff' Push The US Into A Recession?. But if entitlement programs are your top priority, the fiscal cliff is your friend. 12 Ways the "Grand Bargain" could screw the poor. The mortgage-interest deduction could be on the table. City Journal writes: Localities should worry less about Washington’s spending cuts than about how their own state governments handle them. Costco is paying a special dividend, part of 10 tax moves to make now. And maybe we'll get some tax simplification too. Disney's Bob Iger's position has spawned a hashtag: 15 Best Star Wars Fiscal Cliff Tweets

Selena Kyle? The girl who talks to her cats?

The Whelk — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 14:11:41 -0800

The fact that many of the actors in Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight Trilogy have previously portrayed high school characters has resulted in an extended trailer mashup resetting the Batman series as a teen comedy.

Alan Moore and Superfolks

Artw — Sun, 18 Nov 2012 13:22:49 -0800

In 1977 Dial Press of New York published Robert Mayer’s first novel, Superfolks. It was, amongst other things, a story of a middle-aged man coming to terms with his life, an enormous collection of 1970s pop-culture references, some now lost to the mists of time, and a satire on certain aspects of the comic superhero, but would probably be largely unheard of these days if it wasn’t for the fact that it is regularly mentioned for its supposed influence on a young Alan Moore and his work, particularly on Watchmen, Marvelman, and his Superman story, Whatever Happened to the Man of Tomorrow? Alan Moore and Superfolks: Part 1: The Case for the Prosecution, Part 2: The Case for the Defence, Part 3: The Strange Case of Grant Morrison and Alan Moore.

Hamish Steele!

overeducated_alligator — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 07:03:07 -0800

Hamish Steele! Be moved by his brief-yet-poignant award-winning animated film The Right Time. Be charmed by his commissioned portraits of couples and their pets. Be inspired by his loose and fresh superheroes (Batman, Phoenix, Hawkeye)! And it wouldn't be Tumblr without an appearance by Sherlock Holmes (not that one).

How do you baffle a vegetable?

Artw — Fri, 09 Nov 2012 08:11:10 -0800

Hellblazer, the DC/Vertigo comic starring Alan Moore created occult investigator John Constantine, is being cancelled at issue #300 to make way for a new comic set in DC's New 52 universe. Hellblazer was DC's longest running continuously numbered comic and it's cancelation marks the last of the DC Comics characters with Vertigo titles being taken back into the mainstream DC universe (previously). Vertigo was originally an imprint for mature readers occult themed titles and creator owned work, though it has changed over the years with an adaptation of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo becoming the first Vertigo to receive TV advertising.

¿Sí Se Puede?

Rhaomi — Wed, 07 Nov 2012 07:34:35 -0800

The November 6th elections saw a lot of historic decisions made in the United States -- the first black president re-elected, marijuana legalized for the first time in two states, gay marriage affirmed by the voters in four, and even the first openly gay senator. But perhaps the most underreported result yesterday came from outside the country altogether: in the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, a solid majority voted to reject the island's current status and join America as the long-fabled 51st state. How the bid might fare in Congress is an open question, but both President Obama and Republican leaders have vowed support for the statehood movement if it proves successful at the ballot box (while D.C. officials ponder a two-fer gambit to grease the wheels). Though it would be the poorest state, joining the Union might bring economic benefits to both sides [PDF]. And politically, some argue the island might prove to be a reliably red state, despite the Hispanic population, although arch-conservative governor and Romney ally Luis Fortuño appears headed toward a narrow loss. But the most important question here, as always, is: how to redesign the flag? (Puerto Rican statehood discussed previously.)

A Stroll Down Comic Book Memory Lane

lord_wolf — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 14:33:46 -0800

Mike's Amazing World of Comics has a section called The Newsstand that lets you select a year/date/publisher and then view a collection of cover images from that time period. It only includes the major American publishers, so you won't find any alternative, underground, or non-American stuff right now. Still, for many of us, this will bring back fond memories of heading down to the convenience store, newsstand, or comic book shop on Saturday mornings with money saved from doing chores. Enjoy! (via Boing Boing)

Rule 63 Ascendant

The Whelk — Tue, 16 Oct 2012 08:49:18 -0800

Photographer Senen Llanos likes profiles and costumes, so why not combine them both with The Faces Of New York Comic Con 2012 Part 2. (via)

Jailhouse interview with DC sniper Lee Malvo

silby — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 10:20:55 -0800

“I was a monster,” Malvo said. “If you look up the definition, that’s what a monster is. I was a ghoul. I was a thief. I stole people’s lives. I did someone else’s bidding just because they said so. . . . There is no rhyme or reason or sense.”

Transit Triathlon

schmod — Tue, 11 Sep 2012 15:19:43 -0800

If you've spent any time in Washington, DC during the past few years, you're probably familiar with Capital Bikeshare; the region's immensely popular bikesharing program. The system's big red bikes are designed for casual use, and are built like tanks to avoid damage, vandalism, and theft. This past weekend, one Falls Church, VA resident undocked one of the 40lb bikes, and rode it to the finish line of the Nations' Triathlon. The rapidly expanding ~~elitist socialist~~ system has proven to be popular, safe, and cost-effective for its users. In fact, the system has gained such a reputation for safety that most of its users now chose to forego the use of a helmet. While Capital Bikeshare's 33% helmet-usage rate seems low compared to the overall 70% average for DC, it's only slightly below the 38% national average, and is far below the worldwide average. In the Netherlands, over 25% of all trips take place on a bicycle, helmet usage is virtually nonexistent, and there are 80% fewer cyclist fatalities per-mile than the US. In many cases, Bikesharing allows commuters to reach their destinations more quickly than by transit. There's also now a trip planner that provides turn-by-turn bicycle directions for bikeshare users.

SUPERFRIENDS

The Whelk — Thu, 30 Aug 2012 06:46:18 -0800

Nolan's Dark Knight Batman has an unexpected run in with the Marvel Avengers (SLCollegehumorP)