SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2010


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CLOSE TO HOME THE DISTRICT


What a good tour guide knows Regarding the Sept. 19 Local Opinions commentary “D.C.’s


strange crackdown on ‘describing without a license’ ”: Many people who live in or near Washington act informally as tour guides when friends and families come to visit. Residents give pointers about using Metro, where to eat and when attractions are open. But these individual activities don’t begin to handle the flood of people who come to the nation’s capital each year. Tourism is a major industry in this area, bringing in more than 20 million visitors who together spend more than $5 billion. The D.C. Council recognizes the importance of this industry and wants people to return home talking about their wonderful experiences here. Accordingly, the council has directed that some standards be set for professional tour guides. Yes, professional guides may specialize in certain groups or topics, but there are various sets of knowledge that they may be asked about in the course of a day. Tourists are by nature curious and ask wide-ranging questions. Because of that, the D.C. Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs recognizes that guides need to know about historical events, architecture and D.C. regulations, in addition to information about monuments, memorials and sculptures. The DCRA licensing exam checks for minimum understanding and is not difficult for anyone serious about guiding. The exam had a major overhaul recently, attesting to the interest that DCRA has in improving standards for professional guides. We can be glad that the D.C. Council recognizes the importance of tourism in Washington and supports the licensing of professional tour guides.


Jim Heegeman, Arlington


The writer is president of the Guild of Professional Tour Guides of Washington, D.C.


Strict day-care standards? You bet


Did Justin Moyer [“D.C. day-care licensing criticized,” Metro, Sept. 20] really mean to suggest that we should lower standards for day-care facilities in the District? As the mother of a 2-year-old in an excellent D.C. day-care program, I take comfort in the high standards and strict requirements governing child-care providers in Washington. It is completely reasonable for officials to consider how many small children a potential provider already has in the home, or to require a fence to keep toddlers from running into the street. While I’m sure the process could be streamlined, let’s not suggest that we lower the standards for those doing a very important job — taking care of our children. Tammy Alexander, Washington


Local Blog Network 6voices.washingtonpost.com/local-opinions/


Some of the region’s best bloggers share work on the All Opinions Are Local blog. Below, one of last week’s posts.


Perriello stands his ground Say what you want about Tom Perriello, Virginia’s 5th District congressman who is in a tough reelection fight. He does stick to his principles.


Despite the intense anti-Washington mood that stretches from


the 5th District’s dying textile towns to the University of Virginia mecca of Charlottesville, Perriello is not afraid of saying he’s glad he stuck by fellow Democrats Barack Obama and Nancy Pelosi. He did so last week when he used a Charlottesville doctor’s office to tout Obamacare, whose first changes, such as forbidding insurance companies from denying children coverage due to preexisting conditions, took effect Thursday. Bucking tough opposition from Republican challenger Robert


Hurt of Chatham, who has promised to defund Obamacare if elected, Perriello says that health-care reform will eventually lower insurance costs. Straight talk such as this flies in the face of the giant anti-Obama reaction that is building throughout the Old Dominion. It is fueling campaigns such as Hurt’s, fostering substantial growth of the Tea Party movement and forcing traditional GOP House members such as Henrico County’s Eric Cantor to recast themselves as anti-Washington populists even though they voted a strict pro-Washington ticket during the Bush years. This kind of duplicity doesn’t get past Tea Party folk. Yes, they


have Perriello in their sights, but they are also critical of Hurt for what they say were his pro-tax stances as a state legislator. Conventional wisdom says Perriello is toast. He’s constantly


fighting observations that the Democratic establishment has written him off.


And chances are he probably is a goner, despite reports that he will be endorsed by the National Rifle Association next week. But at least he isn’t a namby-pamby about his party, as Rep. Glenn Nye of Norfolk is. A Democrat, Nye goes so far as avoiding calling himself a Democrat. With Perriello, what you see is what you get — a breath of fresh air in the anti-Obama miasma. Peter Galuszka, Bacon’s Rebellion


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Local Opinions, a place for commentary about where we live, is looking for submissions of 300 to 500 words on timely local topics. Submissions must include name, e-mail address, street address and phone number, and they will be edited for brevity and clarity. To submit your article, please go to washingtonpost.com/localopinions.


NEXT WEEK’S TOPIC D.C. Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee: Is there a role for her in a Gray administration? JOHN JENNISON FAIRFAX Five minutes with the president


hat would you do if you got the chance to talk to the most powerful person


on the planet? In what can only be described as a once-in-a-lifetime opportuni- ty, my wife, Bridget, and I were given this chance when our friends, Nicole Armstrong and John Nicholas, invited us to a backyard town hall — with the president of the United States — in our Mantua neighborhood in Fairfax County this month. We were pondering what to say


even as we arrived at the get- together. We listened intently as our neighbors asked thoughtful questions on topics ranging from stem cell research and bank loans to jobs and energy. We were im- pressed with President Obama’s well-thought-out analysis and answers. Then, he turned to us. Bridget brought up our con- cerns with the rising costs of col- lege and underperforming 529 savings plans. Our son, Jack, is in his second year at Longwood University in Farmville, and our daughters, Mady and Kaelin, at- tend Woodson High School and are looking forward to attending college, too. Mr. Obama respond- ed that he was keenly aware that college tuition has risen 8 percent annually, outpacing everything else. He spoke of how something has to be done to make college education affordable for every- one, not just the upper class, for the sake of our economy and workforce. The president stated that he knew that many have dug into their savings and retirement nest eggs to pay for college for their children and that many stu- dents as well as parents have as-


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BILL O’LEARY/THE WASHINGTON POST


John and Bridget Jennison talk with President Obama in Fairfax on Sept. 13. “Mr. President,” I asked, “what


sumed hefty loans. When my turn came, I joked


with Mr. Obama that if he had come a few years ago, before the Wall Street meltdown, everyone would have asked him what he was going to do about traffic. Then I told him that in years past I would stay up late worrying about our children at school and Little League line-ups, and work- ing on volunteer matters. But now I’m up late at night worrying about my law firm and our clien- tele.


keeps you up at night?” Somberly, Mr. Obama said he


stayed up at night worrying about the safety of the American men and women serving our country overseas and about the economic troubles the American people are facing. He spoke pas- sionately of his commitment to bringing our soldiers home safely and fixing our economy. At that moment, it became clear to me just how fortunate we are as Americans to have a de-


mocracy in which we have oppor- tunities to speak to our highest elected leaders about our deepest concerns. I also felt gratified to have a leader who is not only so well informed but who can con- nect with others as a concerned parent and a neighbor. But what a neighborhood our president lives in. His neighbor- hood is our entire country and every citizen’s concern needs his attention. Get some rest, Mr. President,


then go get ’em.


ILIR ZHERKA WASHINGTON


The one issue that can make D.C. ‘one city’


After a difficult primary sea- son, uniting the District is a top priority. Rallying residents be- hind a D.C. government-led fight for full democracy would be the ideal mechanism for bringing us back together. D.C. residents want to be equal citizens with equal voting repre- sentation in Congress and full control over local issues. Right now, we have the votes in Con- gress to pass the D.C. Voting Rights Act, which would enable us to take a significant step toward full democracy this year by giving the District a voting representative in the House. The bill has been passed in the Sen- ate, but a gun amendment has stalled its progress in the House. Congress also is considering budget and legislation autonomy for the District, but our oppo- nents are threatening even these small procedural changes to the home rule charter. D.C. residents are angry and are eager to engage in a fight to


demand their rights. But given the political climate, we are run- ning out of time to enact this legislation.


Although the odds are long


that Congress will enact any non- budgetary legislation in the “lame duck” session after the election, we have to make an ef- fort because the District is likely to face even greater opposition in the next Congress. We


must,


therefore, demand more force- fully that congressional leaders find a way to expand the rights of D.C. residents. For this fight to be successful,


the D.C. government must take the lead. Both presumptive mayor-elect Vincent Gray and presumptive D.C. Council Chair- man-elect Kwame Brown have spoken about the need to protest the District’s second-class status more vigorously. They can do this, while uniting residents, by leading an aggressive campaign directly challenging Congress’s denial of democracy in the


District. Not only do we have the votes in Congress but polls also demon- strate that the American people support voting representation for the District — when they know about it. The principal barriers to D.C. democracy remain igno- rance nationally and lethargy on the Hill. An initial, dramatic step is needed to quickly bring our is- sue national attention. One possi- bility is adding a ceremonial name to Pennsylvania Avenue, such as “D.C. Democracy Denied Boulevard.” I am sure others have some creative ideas as well. Further, the D.C. government should engage in escalating acts of protest directly related to the federal laws and procedures that infringe on our local democracy, by refusing, for example, to sub- mit local laws for congressional approval. As long as Washing- tonians are taxed without repre- sentation, our elected officials should refuse to abide by and participate in these laws and


procedures. By leading such a campaign,


the D.C. Council, the incoming mayor and Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton can bring together “one city,” to use Gray’s rallying cry, be- hind an effort that has wide sup- port and that cannot wait until next year. They will also build a movement strong enough to re- sist possible encroachments on the District’s home rule authority next year and to realize someday the dream of making Washington the state of New Columbia. A D.C. protest campaign fits ideally into the “One Nation” campaign being waged right now by the civil rights movement. The United States will not live up to its pledge of “one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all” until D.C. residents have full and equal rights. A unit- ed country cannot leave out 600,000 people.


The writer is executive director of D.C. Vote.


KATIE MANNING WASHINGTON Stumbling on a hook-up space behind a D.C. school Last fall, I cheerfully laced up


my Nikes for my first jog through Rock Creek Park. The trail, behind Francis Stevens Junior High School in West End, is blocks from where I live. But as I jogged along a path, just a few hundred feet behind the school, my eyes widened at the sight before me. Dozens of con- dom wrappers littered the trail. Used condoms hung from shrubs and scattered branches. I quickened my pace to get out of the park.


Rock Creek Park, one of the


District’s top attractions, hosted about 14 million visitors last year. The park was founded in 1890 with the hope of offering city dwellers a glimpse of the


area’s habitat in its “natural con- dition, as nearly as possible.” Nowadays, the P Street Beach area falls something short of this goal.


Visitors on the trail by 25th and N streets will run across condoms, as I did, or potentially even people engaged in sexual activity. Clearly, the D.C. govern- ment and law enforcement au- thorities need to exercise greater oversight of the park. The head of the Parent Teach-


er Association at Francis Ste- vens, Desiree McCoy, 33, ex- plains that the situation is so dodgy that teachers make sure students avoid the area. “We have an invisible boundary, for lack of a better term,” she said,


“and our staff kind of monitors them, so they don’t go back there.”


Debbie Schreiber, 57, a board member of the Dupont Circle Citizens’ Association, describes


This isn’t a new phenomenon.


In 2004, the Washington Blade published an article about pub- lic sex behind the school. Mitch Woods, president of the Gay and Lesbian Activist Alliance


Teachers make sure students avoid the area. “We have an invisible boundary, for lack of a better term.”


herself as “pretty urban.” The tall, confident woman has lived in the Dupont Circle area for 10 years. She visits Rock Creek Park every day, but she doesn’t wan- der the trail behind Francis Ste- vens. Schreiber observes, “There’s a lot of hanging out in there, and that’s probably a bad thing for illicit behaviors.”


(GLAA), says, “For many years, easily going back to the late ’70s, P Street Beach has been very cruisey.” In 1999, the GLAA testi- fied against the park police’s “harassment and entrapment of men having sex with men in the vicinity of P Street Beach,” Woods adds.


When I called the Park Police


to ask them about the trail at P Street Beach — part of their ju- risdiction — officers were ini- tially unsure whether the area is their responsibility or that of the D.C. police. Park Police Sgt. Da- vid Schlosser says this jurisdic- tional issue causes problems for patrolling the area. The P Street Beach area is “where city property abuts na- tional park property,” says Schlosser. He says he is unaware of condom wrappers on the trail. Former Ward 7 D.C. Council member Kevin Chavous says bor- der areas generally “end up be- ing paralyzed into virtual in- action.” McCoy says that “some- thing will probably have to happen before it will come back


on the radar.” The trail behind the school has been “this way for a long time, and it doesn’t show signs of getting better,” accord- ing to McCoy. Cruisinggays.com, a Web site


that points people to “gay Wash- ington cruising areas,” describes the area of Rock Creek between P and M street awkwardly, writing: “It’s like a hiking trail, well it is a hiking trail during the day.” The P Street Beach area hosts


a school, full of preteens. Consid- ering its apparent status as a meet-up spot for sex, police should patrol the area sooner rather than later. Until then, my Nikes will stick to the cement trail of my neighborhood side- walks.


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