Potomac Confidential

Marc Fisher (The Washington Post)

Potomac Confidential fills the midday lull with discussion of the latest news and a rigorous slicing and dicing of the issues that define who we are and where we live.

This Week's Columns:

Adult Films Show Another Side of D.C. (Post, June 17)

Solving City's Problems Starts At the Top (Post, June 15)

On the Mall, A Full Measure Of Devotion (Post, June 12)

In his weekly show, Washington Post Metro columnist Marc Fisher veers wildly from serious probing to silly prattle, and is open to topics local, national, personal and more.

A transcript follows.

Editor's Note: Washingtonpost.com moderators retain editorial control over Live Online discussions and choose the most relevant questions for guests and hosts; guests and hosts can decline to answer questions.

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Marc Fisher: Welcome aboard, friends and countrymen.
We start with the Yay and Nay of the Day:
Yay to the 9/11 Commission, a rare government body that seems wedded to a rigorous and reasonably nonpartisan exploration of truth. Isn't it refreshing to hear the findings of a government investigation without the usual party nonsense?
Nay to Giant supermarkets and the union that represents local supermarket workers, for attempting to beat back the competition that Wal-Mart presents not by improving their own service, but by lobbying the Montgomery County Council to make big Wal-Mart stores illegal in the county. Message: We haven't a prayer of competing because we're not willing to spend the money and we're clueless, therefore let's just keep the other guy out of the area.
This week's columns included Tuesday's look toward lessons from Boston, a city that got a handle on its youth violence by putting police, prosecutors, parole officers and clergy together to push their way into the lives of kids who haven't yet become fully developed violent criminals. And today's offering, a visit with Porno Dan, the Washington area's premier pornographer, who contends that this area is deeper into sex than our reputation would have us believe.
Plus: The District is about to give it up and hire a schools superintendent who doesn't want the job.
Your turn starts now....

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California St NW, Washington, D.C. : Hey Marc,

I look forward to your chat each week.

It seems like a bad dream, but Marion Barry is upon us again! Are any media-types doing any serious investigation into his fitness for office? I have heard comments regarding his health, but what about the facts? Please, someone wake me up!

Marc Fisher: You can ask the former Mayor for Life yourself--he'll be here Live Online tomorrow morning at 11.
He looks gaunt and unwell, but says he's raring to go. Friends tell me he needs something to do and needs the money. He says he just wants to get back into the game to improve life in neglected Ward 8, but the ward has changed dramatically since Barry left office, and there are many middle class families who have moved into all the new housing. Will they share Barry's politics of jealousy and victimization?

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Bethesda, Md.: Thanks for capturing the sophomoric sleaze of Andrew Leal in your column today. What if he wanted to make a contribution to his local synagogue or church and they turned it down on the basis of what he does for a living? Would you take that synagogue or church to task like you did the charity that refused money from strippers? Seems like both professions appeal to our basest, most dehumanizing instincts, but you paint him in a much harsher light.

Marc Fisher: Goodness, I'd hope that no charity would turn him down. What he does is legal, though, as you say, base and demeaning. In fact, Leal regularly hosts charity porn events for movie actors suffering from AIDS or otherwise in need.

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Arlington, Va.: Did you worry at all about all of the free advertising you gave the subject of this morning's column? He could never buy that kind of publicity.

Marc Fisher: Porno Dan has no shortage of publicity--he's a regular on a bunch of local radio shows, he's all over the web, he's in the big porn magazines. So I don't think I've given him a big boost in that department. And as the previous poster said, my take on him is not quite boosterish.

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Mt. Pleasant, Washington, D.C.: As one who at times sees no hope for D.C., I was encouraged by your account of what has been taking place in Boston. However, let's face it, Mayor Williams is what he is, and that's not a "dirt under the fingernails" type guy. Taking that as a given, can you think of anyone who might replace him or, better yet, take on this role as part of a combined effort to make D.C. a better place to live?

I'm not a Williams basher, because he has done so much to revitalize downtown. Having said that, I am appalled that the city has lost $650,000 that would have been used to screen poor women for cancer for what seem very dubious reasons. This is the sort of thing a cerebral mayor like Mayor Williams should not let happen on his watch. I am very disappointed.

Marc Fisher: Anyone who watches and likes Tony Williams has to live with regular and deep disappointment. This is our most mysterious mayor, a fascinating and creative mind who hires some terrific people and some truly awful people, who has great ideas for the city and seems incapable of communicating them to the city at large. His policies have improved some neighborhoods dramatically while others languish. He gets far too little credit for his accomplishments and seems to be at sea about how to parlay those accomplishments into improvements in the basic services that lag behind.
So, who comes next? There are no stellar candidates out there at the moment. You'll see Michael Brown, son of the late Democratic operative Ron Brown and head of the D.C. Boxing Commission, run against Williams in '06. Council member Jack Evans is presumably running too, though his recent polls have been testing the waters for council chair as well. There are those who pine for Eric Holder, the former US Attorney, but there's no indication that he's running, nor has he shown much interest in city politics. Sorry--no magic bullet out there that I can see.

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Washington, D.C.: Good afternoon. What is this madness about the mayor and the school board wanting to hire this Carl Cohn to run the schools -- someone who has emphatically stated he has no intention of staying beyond one year. Has the District become so desperate?

Marc Fisher: Desperate doesn't begin to describe the District, which has been without a real schools chief for eight months and shows no sign of getting serious about the situation.
Here's a guy who is, by all accounts, smart and effective. But that means that he sees only too well that this is an impossible job as it's now crafted. There's no clear line of authority. You don't know who your bosses would be. And so on.
So Cohn tells the city it has to meet a whole slew of conditions and then he'd consider blessing us with his presence for one year.
And the city, amazingly, says, Yes sir!
No one could get a handle on this system in less than six months. So he'd be on his way out the door as soon as he had the slightest idea what was going on. Insanity, yet that's where we're headed.

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Alexandria, Va.: I once spoke with a Moran supporter who was convinced that all of the Post's negative stories about Moran were the result of Moran having criticized Israel. This Moran supporter mentioned you, Richard Cohen and Colbert I. King as participants in the plot.

A June 8 election day flyer "Paid for and Authorized by Jim Moran for Congress" stated the following:

"This election is not about Moran's ability to lead, or about news headlines accusing him of questionable public statements or personal finances. It's about a cabal of powerful Washington, D.C.- based interests backing the Bush administration's support for right wing Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon"

Since you have criticized Moran repeatedly, do you agree with the Moran campaign that the election is about a conspiracy ("cabal") against Jim?

Marc Fisher: Oh, man, I missed the cabal meetings again!
I hear they serve some very fine bagels and lox.
I've never spoken to Moran or his erstwhile challenger about their thoughts on Middle East policy. From what I've read, their ideas were quite similar. I'm probably a good deal more critical of Israel than either of them.
My criticism of Moran stems entirely from his personal behavior and his repeated ethical problems, and have nothing whatsoever to do with his actual policy positions in the House, which seem largely reasonable and reflective of his constituents.

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Columbia, Md.: Are you nuts? Of course Giant is going to fight Wal-Mart. Nobody can compete with the price margins Wal-Mart operates on, and Giant's parent company is too busy cleaning up their financial irregularities at the top to even begin to worry about pouring money into better store management, training, etc. Giant is one of the last holdovers of decent wages for local employees who can also get health and other benefits. I'd rather have that company win than some soulless corporate icon like Wal-Mart march into, offer $8 an hour and suck the life out of yet another community. It's hard enough to live anywhere near Montgomery County on Giant wages. Think of all the workers employed by Giant, if Giant goes, what are they going to do? $8 a hour can suffice in rural Arkansas but in here it doesn't cover a round-trip Metro ticket.

Marc Fisher: I agree entirely about preferring Giant to win that battle. But I want them to fight it as a real battle for customers, not in the sneaky, backdoor method they've chosen by trying to ban the competition.
You're absolutely right about the big hurdles Giant or Safeway face against Wal-Mart. Any company that pays and treats its workers decently starts off at a huge disadvantage against Wal-Mart. But the answer is to sell people on what those extra costs can give to consumers in better service, more knowledgeable staffers, higher quality goods, or whatever other edges they can find. Just as fine bookstores such as the District's Politics and Prose have successfully fought back against Borders and Barnes and Noble by providing better service and adopting some of the giants' methods, Giant can craft a more creative response to Wal-Mart, instead of hiding behind a phony law trumped up to build a wall against WM.

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Laurel, Md.: Do you think today's column is the kind of local news your readership either wants or needs to read about?

BTW, I did like yesterday's Escape. Washington is full of people who have a hard time getting away for a two-week vacation (and government employees who don't) and mini-trips to places a half-day drive away make a great alternative.

Marc Fisher: Thanks on the Escapes piece.
Since sex is one of the most important parts of life, and what I write is a column that tries to touch on all aspects of life, I'd be remiss in leaving sex out of the mix. And much as many of us try to pretend that porn is a dark side of sex that deserves to be shunted into a back alley, the fact is that it's an enormous industry and the leading use of this medium that we're tapping away on right now. So yes, it's important that I cover it in the column--but if you disagree, I'd love to hear your reasoning.

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Los Angeles, Calif.: Greetings from California,

I enjoyed your article on "D.C. Dan," especially his thesis that Washingtonian porno is more educated than the West Coast variety. Interesting!

Marc Fisher: Well, obviously, he's got a self-interest going there, but given that this is not exactly a market that springs to mind in any discussion of porn, I thought it was worth putting out there for your consideration.

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Silver Spring, Md.: Marc, thanks for the travel column on the Shenandoah baseball league. Perfect Pitch (Post, June 16) I seem to recall there was a similar summer league based in Bethesda and Silver Spring a few years ago, is it still going on, do you know?

Marc Fisher: Yes, that's the Clark Griffith League and the Bethesda franchise plays at the very pretty Shirley Povich Field at Cabin John park near Montgomery Mall. Well worth your time--these are also college players, though not quite of the same level as you'll see out at the Valley League.

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Washington, D.C. (Underage drinking): Whats Up Marc?

Ok, let me get this straight ... a guy standing on a corner is drinking his forty (beer for you un-experienced)... and he is of drinking age ... gets locked up.

But, a group of kids ... from GT, GW, AU ... etc., can be out drinking ... and be underage and not be touched.

Come on Marc, what is this really about ... I understand there is this spoiled brat at GT that filed a lawsuit against the D.C. Govt., and listed his name as John Doe, (what a coward) ... the word is he went crying to his dad ... and his dad is coming to his defense, instead of kicking his you know what ... and asking his son ... Why are you drinking?

Bottom line, it's against the law right? Your opinion?

Marc Fisher: Isn't this one of the most appalling outrages in our recent history? Essentially, some self-important D.C. judge decided that it's perfectly fine for kids to drink in the city. Maybe the judge just wants more business, because that's certainly going to be the result of this boneheaded decision, as more kids (and others) die in car crashes.
The D.C. council needs to move pronto to write a new, tougher law to make it clear that underage drinking is a criminal, not a civil, violation.

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City of Reagan, D.C.: How much longer are the flags going to be at half-mast? I figured that would end after last Friday, or the weekend. Or maybe they are permanently at half-mast as a shrine? (I'd prefer that to a new coin ...)

Marc Fisher: I believe the law provides for a period of 60 days of flags at half-mast, but it might be 30 days. Anyone?

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Silver Spring, Md.: The ICC is going to save me a half hour on my commute? Not bloody likely. I'm not one of the very few people who happen to commute from Rockville to the BWI area. I don't think the number of people who do justifies the cost. The main problem in our area (Aspen Hill/Glenmont) is north-south traffic along Georgia Avenue, exacerbated by high density development (including new ant-hill style townhouses in Wheaton), which the ICC won't help. More importantly, the money going to the ICC (Ehrlich's focus) lessens the chances for funding of other projects. We went to a meeting on a proposed $50 million intersection at Georgia and Randolph, and the state transportation folks had no idea whether funding would be available. The ICC is not worth the cost.

Marc Fisher: You're right about north-south traffic being by far the greater problem, and it would only be exacerbated by the ICC. I plan to attend one of the ICC planning sessions that are being held this month and will report back to you on what I hear.

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Washington, D.C.: Recently the Post ran a front-page story D.C. School Vouchers Outnumber Applicants Post, June 11) about the Federal school vouchers program in DC, claiming that there weren't enough applicants to the program to use up all the funds. And on page 3 of today's Metro section there's a blurb saying that the program received over 2600 applications for some 1200 slots. Is this the paper's way of dumping on a program it doesn't like, by trumpeting its incorrectly reported failure on the front page and burying its true popularity in the middle of the Metro section?

Marc Fisher: Different ways of counting applicants, as I understand it. The public response to the offer of vouchers was quite underwhelming, and so has been the response from private schools, most of which want nothing to do with the program. From the start, this has been all about public tax dollars supporting the Catholic schools, and that's all it will amount to. It is indeed interesting that so few parents want that money--should we conclude that the charter schools have already tapped out the supply of families that want out of the D.C. public schools? That doesn't seem likely, but clearly there are great misgivings about the vouchers idea.

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MontCo: Wal-mart is cheap to shop at precisely because they are AWFUL to their workers, don't allow them to organize, and keep them a poverty wages.

Marc Fisher: Well, that's part of it. The other part is that the goods are primarily made by extremely low paid workers overseas, doing what American workers once did. In either event, Wal-Mart and its ilk are a powerful drain on the ability of this country's economy to care for its own people. That's the message that American companies and unions should be pushing.

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Laurel, Md.: You're right about the popularity of porn.

I've pointed out in other WP.com chats that the most important new consumer technology of the 80s was the VCR, and of the 90s was the PC and Internet, and the principal use of both is distributing pornography.

Marc Fisher: Quite right. Porn and gambling are the primary money makers on the web. Ignoring that fact is just denying who we are and what we do.

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Northwest: In your column today you mentioned a phenomenon that I've never understood. Why are there so few strip clubs in a town where we lap up the sordid details of a president's affair with an intern, and a congressional staffer turned prostitute is given fifteen minutes of fame? It seems like there would be more of a market for that kind of place, especially with the number of travellers that come into the city.

Marc Fisher: Lap up, huh?
There's no doubt that there would be a market here, but the city fathers--read: Congress--have been loathe to allow much in the way of the Vegas-style strip joints that have blossomed all over suburban America. The idea, I guess, has been to maintain Washington as a family destination for tourists. But the new effort to win approval for a huge slots palace in Northeast will test that traditional barrier to the sleazier side of tourism. My bet is that Congress will stomp on any such gambling palace if it's approved by D.C. voters.

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Washington, D.C., (Bathhouse): Hey Marc,

Do you know if bathhouses are legal?

I am growing concerned about this makeshift gym on 14th street. The doors are made of steel and you have to buzzed in ... and I understand from a local guy that there is an area of the "gym" ... that is closed off and those rooms are closed off for privacy.

My concern is the spreading of AIDS.

Thanks

Marc Fisher: If I recall correctly, the city cracked down on bathhouses in the 80s at the height of the AIDS epidemic. There was a resurgence of bathhouse activity over the past decade, and several have been quite active in recent years. The stories I hear are that all too many folks are back to the old ways that led to the rapid and easy spread of disease.

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30 Days: W said the flags should fly at half staff for 30 days, which means July 5... which is fine, but frankly I think they should go full staff for the 4th ...

Marc Fisher: Thanks for the info.

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New May, Ore,: How can any discussion about the next mayor be complete without mentioning Adrian Fenty?
Charismatic, well-spoken, D.C. native. Who cares about his ideas ... (although I find them to be mostly good).

Marc Fisher: Fenty is a real comer, an energetic and effective representative of Ward 4 and a real student of the city government. From what I hear, he is not yet ready to run for mayor, and while he would publicly deny any interest, he's obviously looking in that direction, but not quite yet.

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Washington, D.C.: The city would be better served by taking the half million dollars it would be giving a new superintendent and giving it to the teachers (not the school bureaucrats). A bloated perpetually failed bureaucracy got the schools into the mess it's in now. Why do otherwise intelligent people think yet another in a series of bureaucrats will fix it?

I can't for the life of me figure out why we continue to fret about a position that is filled for about 18 months, accomplishes nothing, and costs us dearly.

Marc Fisher: Well said. If the city were serious about fixing up the schools, it would give a new superintendent the authority that Cohn seeks, and in exchange, demand that the new guy stay on board for at least five years.

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Washington, D.C.: Cohn or another short-timer could actually do some good by setting up structures that another superintendent can use.

He can ignore the pettiness because he won't have to deal with it.

The next guy/gal can build on what he left, without having to do much of the dirtiest of the dirty work.

And the next one doesn't have to be as outstanding.

At least they're not offering him 650K dollars.

Marc Fisher: That's the mayor's line, and it makes zero sense. This system will simply ignore a short timer. The permanent establishment of the D.C. schools is used to the revolving door of the superintendent's office and has long since realized that they don't have to do a damn thing but to cash their checks. No one could hope to dynamite the forces that oppose change from their perches in less than a year. Think back on the first months of Tony Williams' mayoralty, when he unloaded what he thought would be his big bombs of change--moving UDC to Southeast, for example. He simply lacked the political foundation on which to sell any big move like that. So would a short-timer superintendent.

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Alexandria, Va.: The shortening of the drunk-driving superintendent's contract is no punishment at all, is it? Won't the board just renew her contract a year earlier than it otherwise might have? After all, if they won't fire her for a DUI, there's not much that could happen to cause the board not to vote for renewal, is there?

Marc Fisher: Punishment?!?!?! They GAVE HER A RAISE!
The Alexandria school board is guilty of sending kids a very clear message that drunk driving is only bad if it's done by stupid teenagers, but just fine if it's done by adults.

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D.C. Baseball Name Suggestion: How about "D.C. Statehood"? It fits nicely with D.C. United and serves the dual purpose of educating the rest of the country about D.C.'s lack of representation in Congress!

After all, the irony of the "D.C. Senators" is that we have no Senators. The D.C. Statehood is similarly ironic.

Marc Fisher: Statehood is singular. Baseball team names are plural. You want singular team names, go watch soccer. I guess soccer fans are happy with singular team names because they're so lonely in those empty stadiums.

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Washington, D.C.: Why is everyone crying about the new hands-free cell phone rule that will go in affect soon in D.C? They will still get to use their cell phone while driving. It's supposed to be more convenient and safer.

Marc Fisher: I haven't heard much opposition to the new law except from the hired help of the industry. I've never used one of those hands-free devices, but the best studies done to date say they don't add terribly much safety, if any. It's the act of talking on the phone that steals so much of the driver's attention, not the juggling of the phone itself.

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Derwood, Md.: Contrary to Arlington's earlier question, once the text of today's column gets indexed by all the Internet search engines, it will be Porno Dan giving Marc Fisher free publicity ...

Marc Fisher: Ouch. But you're probably right.

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Re: Northwest: Maybe Washington just likes its sex sleazy and sordid, because people in this town take out their sexual frustration in partisan battles.

Marc Fisher: So the polarization of politics is a good thing?

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Long Beach, Calif.: I'm curious why its cool to import porn stars from Baltimore, but uncool to see an Orioles game. Granted, the very name Baltimore exudes seedy sexuality, but why stop with porn? Can't baseball become an erotic experience in Baltimore the way Baltimore related porn is one in D.C.?

Marc Fisher: Hmmm, so you're suggesting that we import the Orioles to Washington? I could get on that bandwagon. After all, if Baltimore is so uncertain of its ability to support a team without Washington's help, maybe they should just give us their franchise.

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Fouled Back: Speaking of baseball, I just read that the bonehead who knocked over the kid to get the foul ball is now going to give the ball to the kid, along with an apology and tickets to another game.

Marc Fisher: Yes, I heard that--this is the 28-year-old who ripped a ball out of the hands of a four-year-old--but his newfound guilt and remorse are hardly naturally come by. A couple of days of national ridicule did the trick, which is all well and good. Anytime we can put public shaming to good use, we're on the road back to a healthy society.

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Adams Morgan, Washington, D.C.: There were 21,000+ people at the United game last Saturday night; how many were at the last Mystics/Wizards/Craps game?

While I'm typically not one of those reactionary soccer fans, your response to the person suggesting a name for the baseball team was ridiculous ... the initial post wasn't a pro/anti soccer/baseball thing. It was just a name suggestion. Why the venom?

Marc Fisher: Just joshing. I have a reputation for smacking soccer around at any opportunity, so I do need to try to maintain my rep.

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Arlington, Va.: Marion Barry on City Council = Baseball in Northern Virginia

Marc Fisher: Well, more likely Barry in office equals no baseball anywhere near here, but luckily, baseball's decision is supposed to come several weeks before the council elections.

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Hands-free cells ...: So this is actually true? Someone sent me an e-mail about it and then I was told that it was a hoax that had been going on for months.

Marc Fisher: Tis true. July 1.

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Re: cell phones: Marc,

As a person who works intimately with the distraction data, I can tell you without doubt that hands-free is NOT safer. But, as a D.C. resident, if it generates more revenue I am a fan.

Marc Fisher: I don't see why it would generate much more revenue--most city residents would have to buy their hands-free devices in the burbs because there are so few stores in the District.

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Washington, D.C. : Marc,

Last week I wrote in stating I was in a bad mood and wondering if I should attend to your chat or foreign affairs. You said your chat would show love for fellow man (or something to that extent). I have to tell you this: I didn't feel the love. Actually, I am still not feeling the love. Is it possible that the metro area is turning into a bunch of cynics that exhibit only disdain for their fellow man? At any rate, I'll be here every week you are ...

Marc Fisher: Behind every expression of skepticism is an energy and yes, love, of place and people. That's what drives critics to be who they are. It's those who are complacent and satisfied with anything less than the best who truly have the disdain for their fellow man.

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Silver Spring, Md.: For Adams Morgan -- the Mystics have had the best attendance in the WNBA every season but one. Washington supports the Mystics far beyond what they have thus far deserved.

Marc Fisher: Quite true--indeed in a couple of early (pre-Jordan) seasons, the Mystics were drawing better than the Wiz.

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D.C. United: At least they have won something in the last ten years.

Marc Fisher: I'll give you that.

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Washington, D.C.: Marc, your outrage concerning underage drinking is duly noted. However, it leads me to ask this: Have you actually read the statute? The law itself states only that misrepresentation of age (fake ID, etc.) is a misdemeanor. While possession of alcohol by a minor is prohibited under this section, the prohibition says nothing about criminal penalties, only civil ones. Therefore, perhaps you should direct your venom at the Council, not a judge who can read plain English.

Marc Fisher: Judges have lots of leeway in their decisions. Even if a law is flawed, a judge can take any number of steps short of making a big public show of tossing out the law.

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Alexandria, Va.: When I was a kid in the '60s, 14th Street was full of "adult" movie houses and bookstores ... roughly between F and K streets as I recall, so it wasn't like they were hard to find either. I'm not entirely sure why they all went away, but obviously that area had been redeveloped since then.

The "Block" in Baltimore is similar, concentrating those businesses in a small area (near a police station, in fact).

Marc Fisher: There was a big effort in the 70s and 80s to shut down the 14th Street adult houses, which had a long history tracing back to burlesque and vaudeville. Of course, gentrification and the advance of the K Street office buildings did their part to end that era in Washington.

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Washington, D.C.: I've gleaned from your columns that you're a fairly recent transplant to the Washington area and noticed that you moved into upper northwest D.C. and have opted to send your children to private, non-religious schools. My question is why did you not choose one of the close-in neighborhoods of Maryland? Obviously the D.C. schools aren't good enough for your kids and you regularly beat up the city and the mayor about the services and the crime, etc. So again, why do you choose to reside in the SUBURBS of Washington, D.C. when all these problems (lousy schools, poor services, high taxes, crime and gangs, corrupt and embarrassing gov't officials, etc.) would simply vanish by moving a less than a mile into Bethesda?

Marc Fisher: You need to get some repairs on your gleaning device. I wouldn't call myself a recent transplant--I've lived in the city for 18 years. And I don't believe that moving to the suburbs makes problems such as "high taxes, crime and gangs, lousy schools" and so on "vanish." I believe it's my obligation to live in the city and pay taxes to the city expressly because it has those problems and needs more middle income families to be able to improve life for others. Running away is never the answer, as suburbanites are discovering in an era when traditionally urban problems no longer respect city borders. We're all in the same boat, and moving doesn't relieve us of our common responsibilities.

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College Park, Md.: On Tuesday, June 8, I was driving south along Route 1 in College Park near the university and was passed by 30 or more police cars. I read in the Diamondback that there were three suspects, who had fired shots at another car, but that the police were unable to apprehend them. I was surprised that this story was not all over the local news, considering how many police cars were out there. Is this unusual, or was it perhaps missed with the Reagan coverage? Are there any new leads in the case?

Marc Fisher: First I've heard of it--sorry.

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Laurel, Md.: With Metro's inevitable fare increase for the second year in a row, is it possible that we will see fare increases in another year as well? If Metro is in a profit mindset, why would they increase fares so much that it would push people to drive into work instead of using Metro? Wasn't there some figure where Metro riders would still be saving some money by riding the Metro as opposed to driving to work? Currently I pay $180 a month to take Metro from Greenbelt to Metro Center, with the fare increases I am looking at paying $220 a month, parking in my building is $180 a month, I have a hybrid, so, high gas prices really don't affect me. Didn't Metro realize that some of us were already at that point where taking the Metro and driving were even? Did they not realize that the cost of parking in the city will be cheaper than taking Metro when they proposed the fare increases?

Marc Fisher: There seems to be no end to the fare hikes, and there won't be until Metro gets a dedicated funding source. But the other side of the equation deserves attention too: Parking prices in this area are way too low, and as long as they stay that low, there are indeed incentives for people to quit Metro and drive.

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MoCo, Md.: What bugs me is it now seems that the County Council is saying, well, it is okay to have Wegmans, just not a big WalMart. Oh, and Target is okay too ...

It doesn't seem legal (or right) to pass a law that targets (no pun intended with Target) one store in particular. I come from upstate N.Y., where Wegmans are common. I was shocked how lousy the supermarkets were here. I say bring on the competition!

Marc Fisher: Good point.

We're well over our allotted hour. Back next week to continue these discussions, and in the paper Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday.

Stay cool.

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