Great news for the gay population of the District. This Tuesday, the D.C. Council voted 11-2 to allow gay marriage. However, the bill must still face another vote from the same council, pass by Mayor Adrian Fenty and then Congress will have 30 days to veto the legislation. But while the path is still long, the obstacles seem to be shrinking. Fenty has said he will sign the legislation, and it is unlikely Congress would intercede, according to an article in the Washington Post.
Of the two dissenting voters, one was old-tyme D.C. legend Marion Barry, D-Ward 8, who said he was under immense pressure from African-American ministers to vote against the bill.
"I stand here today to express, in no uncertain terms, my strong commitment to the gay and lesbian, bisexual, transgender community," Barry said. "On almost every issue except this one," he added.
But while freedom for the District's LGBT community seems to be growing, one group is set to lose some freedom - deer.
It has been a tough few months for deer, with the whole jumping into a lion's den thing and being speared with "razor sharp rod heads" in Fairfax County. But apparently, it is the residents of D.C. who are running scared.
In an interview with The Northwest Current, a local D.C. paper, Linda Blount Berry told the reporter that the deer are "so unafraid of people that they present a danger to anyone caught in their way."
Residents are hoping to get a 12-foot-high, chain-link fence put up between some woods and the neighborhood.
"This is really a public safety issue," said Commissioner Lee Brian Reba. "There are children at risk."
The fence would only be a temporary solution, and some hope the commission would one day take more serious actions to reduce and contain the exploding deer population.
Down at Georgetown University, the Georgetown Voice, an edgier counter-part to the stodgier, school-funded, Hoya newspaper, introduced a version of "Date Lab" for Georgetown students.
"Date Lab," a popular feature of the Washington Post Magazine, pairs two strangers together based on some unknown formula and then forces them to awkwardly interact, all in front of photographers and reporters, of course.
In the Voice's first run of their version of "Date Lab," two freshmen met, talked about Harry Potter and then parted ways. Apparently there was no real spark.
The Eagle recently considered starting a date lab of our own but decided that this kind of thing is usually reserved for people out of college who may have difficulty meeting new people, as opposed to college students who are constantly introduced to new, diverse and interesting people all looking for companionship and friendship.
Down at George Washington University, those jerks got a visit from President Barack Obama. While AU has been surviving off the memory of his exhilarating visit in 2008, the president and the first lady have been frequent fixtures at GW.
Obama made his appearance Saturday, Nov. 28, during a GW vs. Oregon State basketball game. Michelle Obama's brother coaches OSU's team, and she was seen rooting for the Beavers throughout the game.
Regardless of the reason, AU could really use a visit from someone in the first family. The ball is in your court, Mr. President.
—CHARLIE SZOLD
