"The Bitch Set Me Up" aka Only in DC

Politics is not something I really ever post about, either here or anywhere else. There are several reasons for this, the biggest one being that many of my fundamental political philosophies run contra to what most of my friends and the predominantly liberal internet community believe. But sometimes there are little things that I just can't let go by without commenting on.

One of those things is a local politician, Marion Barry, aka "Mayor for Life". It is such a joke that this guy, supposedly so intelligent, could let himself be caught on videotape smoking crack with a hooker (yeah, I know, the bitch set you up), get convicted, go to prison, then come out and get elected not only back to the city council, but as Mayor! Again! I'm telling you, the drugdealers and pimps in this town own this man and love him. He panders to them constantly. Oh, yeah, and then he got caught again after he got out. And now he's pled guilty to tax evasion. But he's back on city council, of course, from Ward 8, the poorest, most crime-ridden neighborhoods in the city.

So one can understand when we heard reports on the news that he had been armed at gunpoint, many of us were more than a little skeptical. Hmmm, let's see, he got blasted in the press a month ago when it leaked that he was trying to ruin the stadium deal that the city is negotiating with Major League Baseball so that we can have a team here again (after 30+ years, this town is beyond ecstatic to have a team again!). He needs sympathetic press. He reports that he's been armed at gunpoint. (Mind you, he's a stupid ass to let kids he doesn't know into his apartment, never mind flashing around money in front of them, in that area of town. If it did happen, he deserves it just for sheer stupidity.)

I'm sorry, I just don't buy it.

And I also think that the whole of the DC governing body (city council and mayor) is a joke. It just is. This city is one of the most poorly run cities anywhere. All I ask is that the streetlamps work so I don't have to walk home down a dark street, and that potholes won't ruin my damn tires.

On the other hand, I love that the license plates are so cheeky: Taxation Without Representation.

Don't get me wrong, I still love this city. Parts of it are so beautiful, almost European. Highrises don't exist. Lots of parks and squares and trees and green space. It makes me sad when I ride the bus to work every day and I see the poverty of some areas, the beautiful old buildings that are boarded up and empty, storefronts waiting for tenants with huge bars over the doors and windows, old signs never to be lit again. Parts of the city are coming back to life that have been dead since the race riots back in the 60s with fires that destroyed them. I do love the mixture of ethnicities, and the international feel.

But c'mon, DC, get your shit together. And residents, don't elect anymore crackheads! Just my $.02 for today.