Chris Krukewitt

Newspapers

Newspaper makes up 13% of all trash in landfills.

And, therefore, after much consternation, today's New York Times and Washington Post will be the last that I receive as a subscriber.  I am calling tomorrow am to cancel delivery.

It's hard for me to believe that it has come to this - I learned to read much earlier than most kids just so I could read the sports page. Yep, I would have to spent extra time scrubbing my elbows when getting ready for church just to get the newsprint off of them.

While environmental concerns and the practicality of online news (especially on the new iPhone)contributed to my decision to stop subscribing to these print editions, another main factor is I am sitting here next to two paper grocery sacks full of newspapers that "I had to catch up on."  Yes, I realize that it is a sickness, but I just cant throw away a section of a newspaper until I have read it - and I have spent all weekend doing so.

I might pick up a newsstand copy from time to time, but this is the last day of delivery.

Litter Offsets

Score One for Reduce!

All Whole Foods stores nationwide will be cutting out plastic bags as of April 22.

DC Govt = Still Mismanaged

A new report from the D.C. Inspector General shows that the much-maligned D.C. Office of Contracting and Procurement overpaid on a contract awarded to the company that processes the city's traffic tickets by nearly $17 million. Not only did the office give the contract to ACS State and Local Solutions without soliciting enough competitive bids, it also failed to get the required approval of the D.C. Council beforehand.

First Snow of the Year

So here it is .. our long indian summer, long mild fall is over.

San Fransisco Pizza Ban

I was ok with the shopping bag ban, but now San Francisco is considering this: A proposal seeks to make the late-night streets safer by forcing a pizzeria to close at 2 a.m.: "Closing the parlors at 2 a.m. or earlier could curb violence and public drunkenness and reduce litter from pizza boxes and plates, Central Station police Capt. James Dudley told commissioners at the meeting."

Happy Birthday Mom

The 31 Million Dollar Woman

This is the embezzling bitch that stole $31 million from the DC govenment.

FBI agents who descended on the Northwest Washington home of D.C. tax manager Harriette Walters found a nondescript brick rambler, but just inside was the wardrobe of a princess. The investigators hauled out more than 100 pieces of jewelry, a mink coat and 90 purses -- many of them such designer brands as Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Gucci, according to an FBI inventory that was released late yesterday.

DC Govt - Still Suckin

The D.C. auditor urged city government officials three years ago to "closely monitor" the flow of real property tax revenue after she noticed a spike in the amount of money refunded to property owners.

Deborah K. Nichols's reports, made in the summer of 2004, did not suggest wrongdoing in the Office of Tax and Revenue, the department now at the center of the largest financial scandal in the city's history. But she noted that the amount of property tax refunds was 105.7 percent higher than projected over three fiscal quarters, a jump not easily explained. She suggested that officials take a closer look.

And this new nugget: according to a Washington Post analysis of tax records, that amount could reach more than $31 million.  It is unbelievable.  Really.

One of the fraudulent payments was apparently made to "Bilkemor LLC."  Unbelievable.

DC Govt is Inadequate

D.C. Schools Lost Track of 1,300 Special Ed Students: The Examiner reports that DCPS officials let the federally mandated education plans of nearly 1,300 special education students expire, exposing the school system to more potential litigation. Their source also says that less than 55 percent of D.C. special education cases have been entered in the DCPS computer system in the last three years.