We then previewed Super Bowl XLVI with former Giants and Jets LB John Booty and former Redskins lineman Ravin Caldwell. They also looked at the Redskins prospects for a turnaround next season and whether the team should go after Peyton Manning.

WATCH today’s interviews here:

Monday at 10am: Del. Heather Mizeur (D-Montgomery) and a recap of the Super Bowl

Consider February a warning month. D.C. will post traffic officers near the meters and issue warnings ... but no formal tickets will be issued until March. In a September 2011 presentation, DDOT noted the initiative was happening in part due to people who faked disabilities to park for free. The new system will purportedly result in "improved accessibility," the city says.

Keep your eyes open for these meters, drivers. Learn more at DDOT's page on the new red top meters.

The title of this morning's post is innocent enough: "Thank you Wizards season ticket holders." It begins accordingly, thanking his team's nearly 8,000 season-ticket holders (a number that — is this possible? — places the Wizards "in the top 20 teams in the NBA") and his fans for their "nice comments" in a recent Post article, by J. Freedom du Lac, about season-ticket holders who "cling to optimism as [the] team loses and prices fall." It's worth noting that the comments in that article are overwhelmingly negative.

More thank-yous pour forth, and it becomes a bit of a love-fest — until Leonsis sets his crosshairs on the Post:

Rebuilding a team is hard enough without the local pixel maker piling on; but this is an annual rite of passage – all teams go through it here via the Washington Post. Its genesis is from a blog post – that then goes to the newspaper itself. I have to laugh in that the blog post column mentioned within is usually sponsored by a ticket reseller that allows you to go find out what the actual average ticket price of a ticket is on the resale market; but why let facts get in the way of a sensational story, right? And the negative comments within are mostly from scalpers? Scalping is illegal in our city; so they are now quoting about to be criminals to prove a point in a story [smiley-face emoticon]. That is ironic, no? The scalpers didn’t want their names to be used – that usually isn’t a good sign. I guess they didn’t want to be arrested! The Washington Post is harboring criminals now.

The "blog post column" to which Leonsis refers is a Sports Bog post about Luke Russert, the MSNBC correspondent and longtime season-ticket holder, ripping the Wizards on WJFK's “The Mike Wise Show with Holden Kushner." Turns out, according to Leonsis, Russert has been his guest in the owner's box dining room. "But Luke is a fan; he is passionate – his sells his point of view- he is an audio blogger now – it is quite fashionable to pile on," Leonsis writes. An "audio blogger"? Ouch. I've tweeted at Russert for a response, and will update when I hear back.

Meanwhile, Sports Bog's Dan Steinberg, who's clearly a faster writer than I am, has responded to Leonsis' allegations — not about the Post harboring criminals, unfortunately, but that the paper likes to pile on losing sports teams.

All I can tell him, and you, is that our Web traffic for Redskins content goes through the roof when the Redskins are winning. Same with the Caps. Same with Maryland basketball. Same with any local team. The Wizards’ multi-year swoon has been terrible for our Wizards Web traffic. Does anyone actually think the Wizards Insider blog does more traffic when the team is in last place than when it’s competing for playoff berths? Doomsday has not sold.

As long as the Wizards keep losing, Steinberg concludes, "we’ll all just spend our time writing mildly snarky blog posts about each other." So true, it hurts.

UPDATE: Luke Russert emailed me the following:

"I thank Mr. Leonsis for acknowledging my passionate support of the Wizards. I’ll continue to cheer no matter how bad we are on the court. I appreciated Mr. Leonsis’ kindness in giving me dinner in his private dining room on January 10th. It was a good deed, similar to when I promoted his book on my radio program in 2010. I have never publicly criticized ownership, from the late Mr. Pollin to Mr. Leonsis, the Wizards has been blessed with owners that care not only about the team but also about the DC community.

"The Wizards’ lack of effort under Flip Saunders was abysmal. Mr. Leonsis rectified the situation and allowed for the firing of Saunders. So far under Coach Wittman they’ve played better and more fundamental basketball. Hopefully they’ll continue on this path and contend for playoff spot next season."

Zipcar should watch out because these two new companies enter D.C. with distinct new features and attractive pricing that may begin to chip away at Zipcar dominance. First let's compare rates:

Zipcar's Occasional Driving Plan: Annual fee of $60, $25 application; Hourly rate: $7.75 to $15.25; Daily rate: $73 to $110.

Hertz On Demand (D.C. rates): No annual membership fee, no application fee; Hourly rate: $8; Daily rate: $76.

Daimler Car2Go (based on rates in other U.S. cities, not final for D.C.): No annual membership fee, $35 application; Minute rate: $0.35; Hourly rate: $12.99; Daily rate: $65.99.

Car2Go offers the more detailed Washington, D.C. website and has created a Twitter account, although Car2Go's communications manager Katie Stafford tells me these are "just being tested" until Daimler finalizes details with D.C. and formally launches later this year. Hertz On Demand now lists D.C. among its cities and features an interactive map that lists the location of several On Demand vehicles around the District.

Hertz On Demand. (Photo: Wikimedia Commons)

These companies are poised to make quite a splash in the next few months and may well launch special deals and incentives to steal away some of the Zipster crowd. The D.C. metro region has close to 200,000 households that own no personal automobiles, and according to D.C.'s Office of Planning, a car costs more than $8,000 a year in all its expenses, two statistics that suggest great car-sharing opportunity.

Car2Go and Hertz On Demand will feature a healthy share of parking spots in the District, many of them expensive public spaces acquired in a contentious bidding war against Zipcar last year. Hertz On Demand is offering members 80 parking spaces at launch, with 23 on-street parking spots. Car2Go has a map that outlines 28 "dedicated parking locations" throughout the city, concentrated particularly in Northwest, although Stafford notes they're not final. These spaces will hardly come close to matching Zipcar's 850 to 900-car fleet spread throughout D.C. but neither company needs to beat Zipcar outright. They simple need an edge with which to break into the market.

Luckily these competitors have multiple attractive advantages. The lack of membership fees will draw in some who may balk at Zipcar's initial charges. Both companies also emphasize electric vehicles more than Zipcar, and Hertz On Demand has integrated its Union Station electric-vehicle charging locations with its new car-share program. You can take Hertz's all-electric and plug-in hybrid cars for a spin starting from there. Car2Go has also promoted electric vehicles rather notably, creating America's first all-electric car-sharing network in San Diego late last year. The Hertz car-sharing fleet includes Nissan Altima, Mercedes C300, Mitsubishi Endeavor, Cadillac CTS, Fiat 500, Chevy Cruze, Chevy Malibu, Mazda 2, Mazda 3, Jeep Patriot, the Fortwo, and the Nissan Leaf. The blue and white vehicles of Car2Go will be the "coolest cars on the road," the Car2Go site announces, "the innovative Smart Fortwo. At 41 miles-per-gallon hwy, they are the most fuel-efficient non-hybrid vehicles" in America. Hertz On Demand has already alluded to plans for expansion to suburbs of Virginia and Maryland and Hertz CEO and chairman Mark Frissora doesn't hesitate to note in a statement about D.C. that the service's member benefits "far exceed those of our competitors."

"As of today, we have approximately 20 cars in the fleet and we're continuing to add vehicles," said Hertz spokeswoman Paula Rivera. The company hopes to build the fleet about to 100 vehicles in the course of its first phase. Rivera said they're also "looking to add EVs at other locations" besides Union Station as our city's charging infrastructure expands.

Hertz On Demand offers what I personally view as the biggest edge over either Car2Go and Zipcar by allowing one-way trips to 175 locations throughout the U.S. Northeast. Rivera told me that Hertz On Demand won't be offering one-way service in D.C. just yet but will be studying the market and may well do so as it builds its fleet. I imagine great demand for such one-way car-sharing travel to nearby locations, such as Baltimore (where the MARC train doesn't run on weekends). Traditional car-sharing services require drivers to take round trips and return vehicles to the spaces they picked them up. The round-trip is more convenient for the car-sharing company and also builds loyalty as users come to expect the same vehicles in the same locations. Zipcar requires round trips, and Smart2Go's D.C. terms specify that traveling "outside a 200 mile radius of the Business Area is prohibited" (although Car2Go does offer more flexibility about where to leave its vehicles within the city's operating area). In that round-trip model, a person can't take a car-sharing vehicle to other cities like Baltimore, Philadelphia, or even just the airport and leave that vehicle there — a major car-sharing downside that Hertz On Demand has managed to defy nationally thanks to the robustness and omnipresence of its traditional rental fleet.

But Zipcar's general manager in D.C. questioned the environmental wisdom of the practice. "With the one-way car-sharing model, it's not really proven," Ellice Perez told me. "Eventually that car is going to have to returned." Zipcar's model, she emphasized, is proven and is shown to reduce the vehicle miles traveled.

Car2Go wins the branding war and may be on par with Zipcar in terms of distinction. Car2Go vehicles are cute. They're blue and white. They're only 8.8 feet long. The site and presence of a Twitter account already suggests the bubbly personality and voice that create distinct and fun brands committed to reliable transportation and the environment (Sample line: "Blue plus white equals green"). Car2Go stresses easy urban mobility and quick trips, with no need for advance reservations and a "free-flowing" element to the system, as Car2Go's communications manager explained, with fleet teams monitoring where the different vehicles are in the city. Where else can you find a car-sharing model that charges by the minute?

"We are a little bit different than these traditional car-sharing companies," Stafford said. "The point-to-point aspect is really important to our model. You'd be able to pick a car up in Dupont Circle and drop it off in Georgetown."

We may be a Zipcar town but both of these new competitors carry global heft not to be casually dismissed. Hertz On Demand has acquired about 120,000 members since its start in December 2008, and Car2Go, also founded in 2008, hopes to establish itself in more than 50 cities in the coming years. Then again, Zipcar will soon mark a dozen years in D.C. and claims more than 60,000 Zipsters locally and more than 650,000 worldwide. Perez doesn't worry about the competition and told me Zipcar welcomes the presence of Car2Go and Hertz On Demand.

"These additional companies raise more awareness for car-sharing," Perez said. "We've built our brand on the back of our mission. We continue to grow. We always see our main competitor as car ownership."

FRIDAY

Cold winter nights are the perfect ingredient for film festivals. Here are some film screenings in town to wash away some of that winter depression.

• Screen Valentines: Great Movie Romances starts at AFI Silver Theatre. Just in time for us to remember how depressing this holiday is when you're alone or how cheesy it is when you're with someone. The month-long film screenings span the decades from leading men like Cary Grant in The Awful Truth to the 80's classic Dirty Dancing to Nicholas Sparks' modern-day tearjerker, The Notebook. Film screenings run to March 7.

• Of the great film directors, in the 50's there was Nicholas Ray. Most known for Rebel Without a Cause, Bigger Than Life: The Films of Nicholas Ray celebrates the recent restoration of some of his works, at AFI Silver Theatre. Ray's films spanned various genres, from the film noir, They Live by Night and In a Lonely Place, to the surrealism of Johnny Guitar. Film screenings run to April 12.

• The four-day DC Shorts Laughs Film Festival, which brings together the DC Shorts festival and Riot Act comedy club comedians, runs to Saturday at Riot Act Comedy Theater. Friday shows explore the themes of Sexual Adventures, The Dating Game, and Payback is Hell. Saturday's themes are A Guy Walks Into a Bar..., Bad Moves, Alternative Lifestyles, Bedroom Games, The Business of Comedy, A Very D.C. Moment, The Meaning of it All, Breaking Up is Easy to Do, and Coffee Shop Romance. Hurry, before it's sold out! $15.

• A First Friday Reception featuring Elizabeth Grusin-Howe's solo show, "La Bellissima," and duo shows by Sally Levie ("Glimpses of Solitude") and Trish Palasik ("Moments: Taking Shape") at Studio Gallery. Grusin-Howe's screenprints of life in Italy from the streets of Florence to the canals of Venice are haunting. The exhibitions run to Feb. 25.

• Part memoir and part cultural critique, THE BI(G) LIFE: Two Solo Performances features two thirty-minute solo performances examining life "in the middle," at Georgetown University/Davis Performing Arts Center. $5. The play runs to Sunday.

• All I Did Was Ask - An Evening with NPR's Terry Gross at Strathmore Music Center. The Fresh Air host goes behind the mic and discusses her most provocative interviews over the years with artists like James Brown, John Travolta, and Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. 8 p.m. $35-$55.

SATURDAY

• What's next in the world of art? Next Generation explores the future of art by asking artists from the 30 Americans Collection to choose a selection of works by emerging and established artists who they believe represent the "next generation." What's resulted is a curated exhibit of works spanning a wide range of mediums — photography, sculpture, installation, new media and others with no set medium. The exhibit at the Contemporary Wing runs to March 10.

• Get cultured in St. Petersburg at the National Chamber Ensemble's Night at the Palace, an evening of virtuoso performances and chamber music featuring members of the Ballet Nova performing a solo from Tchaikovsky's Swan Lake and works by Handel, Halvorsen, Wieniawski and Glinka at Artisphere. 7:30 p.m. $28 general, $15 student.

• Can't figure out why your relationships never work out? Perhaps it's your brain. Marsha Lucas, neuropsychologist, pscyhotherapist, and author of Rewire Your Brain for Love, talks at Politics and Prose. 1 p.m.

• California-based alternative-rock band Augustana performs with Graffiti 6 and Say Chance at 9:30 Club. 8 p.m. $20.

• If you missed them at SubMerge last year, indie-folk-pop singer Jim from the Moon performs at Leap Year with Facil and ACME at the Dunes. With catering from Tarsier. 8 p.m. $7.

SUNDAY

If you could care less about the Super Bowl, Tom Brady, Eli Manning, or annoying Giants and Pats fans, here are some options for Sunday.

• Party like Monday's not around the corner with dubstep producers Skream and Benga at U Street Music Hall. 9 p.m. 18+ $20.

• If winding down the weekend is more your style (and dubstep bothers you to bits), Bone Thugs-N-Harmony featuring Krayzie and Wish Bone are appearing at the 9:30 Club. 10 p.m. $25.

Then, Prince William Board of Supervisors Chairman Corey Stewart talked about immigration, this year’s session of the Virginia legislature, the Romney-Gingrich battle and his bid to become Lt. Governor in 2013. For the first time, Stewart said he’s endorsing former Governor Romney.

WATCH today’s interviews here:

Friday at 10am: A preview of Super Bowl XLVI.

We passes for "This Means War" starring Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine and Tom Hardy. For your complimentary tickets to the special advance screening on February 13 at 7:30pm at AMC Georgetown, log onto www.gofobo.com/rsvp and input the following code to download your tickets: NEWS8RS4D

In honor of this week's dvd release of "Treasure Buddies", you can enter to win a life size stuffed Buddy doll if you can correctly answer this week's trivia question which is: The stars of the show Elephant Room, now at the Arena Stage, stopped by the show and while waiting for the bus with Mike Conneen and Miss DC Ashley Boalch - Louie Magic did a few tricks. How many rope tricks did Louie Magic do?
You MUST SEND YOUR ANSWER, NAME AND ADDRESS to arch@tbd.com by Noon, February 3rd to enter. ONE entry per household. If you DO NOT follow the directions, you will not be entered! Good Luck!

Plus, Valentine's Day will be here before you know it and what better way to vow your love like the new film due out next week "The Vow" starring Channing Tatum and Rachel McAdams, than by giving custom valentines. You can find everything you need at Michael's Arts & Crafts and we've got two $50 gift cards to giveaway that you can enter to win if you can answer our second trivia question tonight which is: Where did Miss DC Ashley Boalch say she first met the Miss America winner -- Miss Wisconsin?
You MUST SEND YOUR ANSWER, NAME AND ADDRESS to arch@tbd.com by Noon, February 3rd to enter. ONE entry per household. If you DO NOT follow the directions, you will not be entered! Good Luck!

And we also have "Big Miracle" movie merchandise. To enter YOU MUST SEND YOUR NAME AND ADDRESS to arch@tbd.com. ONE entry per household.

I mean, the L and the M keys are close enough, after all.

See the 2013 fiscal budget breakdown here:

(Photo: WMATA)

What stands out to me is how the Metrorail is the only form of transportation that comes at all close to covering its operating expense — and even then, the rail operations require nearly $200 million in subsidies. The rail system costs $897 million to operate and earns back $713 million in revenue.

Metrobus is far less sustainable than many might imagine. Operating D.C.'s bus system costs about $565 million but its revenue only comes to $154 million. So of course the subsidy required is huge ... $411 million. MetroAccess is by far the least self-sustaining service, with an operating cost of $110 million and revenue of a mere $8 million. Its existence is virtually all subsidy. These subsidies, which come from state and local sources, cover 45% of the overall WMATA costs.

The size of these different transportation services also differs dramatically. Metrorail: 217 million trips a year. Metrobus: 124 million trips a year. MetroAccess: 2 million trips a year.

The subsidy is growing, by the way. I looked back at the 2011 budget to see that the total subsidy was $572 million, $132 million less than what's proposed for 2013. It's become more expensive to operate Metrorail, Metrobus, and MetroAccess since then, by tens of millions of dollars in the case of buses and trains. That presentation also breaks down how subsidies have grown in recent years: in 2008, the subsidy was just $487.6 million, up to 563.2 million in 2010, and now proposed at $704 for fiscal year 2013. WMATA's total cost was also significantly lower in 2008 — $1.17 billion compared to $1.6 billion or so now, although even then, the subsidies accounted for more than 40% of operating costs. To see transit subsidies increase by more than $200 million in half a decade is concerning, although perhaps we can chalk that up to some of the neglected maintenance of earlier years. If these subsidies make us genuinely safer and create truly better transit, then fantastic.

WMATA's current system improvements, funded by local jurisdictions as well as federal sources, amount to a $5 billion investment over the next six years that has already had serious impacts on service. Today WMATA reported that it hasn't been properly attending to its rail ties for years, and the agency now has a backlog of 75,000 to check. 75,000! To address the backlog as well as maintain annual maintenance, WMATA predicts it'll have to check 20,000 ties a year for the next half decade.

And that's just the ties. Then there's the fasteners. And the escalators. And the...

See the rest of today's presentation here.

"We were really able to sell H Street with the potential of the trolley," said Anwar Saleem, executive director of H Street Main Street, to the D.C. Council at yesterday's roundtable discussion. "Tourist dollars are huge ... I think the potential is unlimited."

In the past three years, Saleem has seen 82 businesses emerge in the Ward 6 neighborhood as streetscaping beautified the sidewalks and streetcar tracks paved the way for the much-discussed cars. The District held a huge meeting in December to assure residents that the first three-mile line was coming. Mid-2013, Mayor Vince Gray assured, would be the time. Yesterday's talk focused on the D.C. Office of Planning's recently released land use study, which predicted that the $1.5 billion streetcar network will add $5 to $7 billion to our city's property values. Not a shabby verdict, especially considering the economic revival such value is bringing to places like H Street.

But such value is a double-edged sword, isn't it? Because more value also means rising prices in an expensive city already full of the rich. How to preserve affordable housing and accommodate the investment that may surge with new streetcar reports and plans? Councilmember Tommy Wells mused that the report's release itself was delicate since developers may have looked at "the deepest shades of color" on the streetcar map and gone after the implicit dollar signs with their investments. The nature of how values spike is also unpredictable because of how inconsistent and ongoing the streetcar planning has been.

"For the H Street line," Julia Robey Christian, executive director of the Capitol Hill Association of Merchants & Professionals, said to the Council, "we've had a 2010 start date, a 2011 start date, a 2012 start date, and now a 2013 start date. Deadlines can't keep moving."

That uncertainly also speaks to future uncertainties and the likelihood of future delays. As Wells said, "It's the operating costs that we currently have no plans for." Not to mention the operational realities. Should there be a sales tax? Should there be an independent authority in charge of the streetcar network? People are considering these questions but don't have answers yet.

In the meantime, the shifting land values will impact the way businesses plan and the way people live and the ability of others to buy.

Councilmember Mary Cheh alluded to the "time lag" in which values can rise before the new form of transit even arrives. Harriet Tregoning, director of the Office of Planning, noted in her presentation that one-third of areas along the streetcar corridors will likely experience "strong upward pressure on housing prices" and one-half would face "moderate" pressures. Already you see housing prices climb upward in neighborhoods described as "emerging." Think about Columbia Heights in the last few years or Petworth. Current businesses will encounter rising rents and new competitors eager to break into developing spots, and the bubble of wealth and value continues to creep ever upward. Streetcars also have the potential to attract 4,000 to 12,000 new households, the office predicts, creating all the more of a crunch on the District's residents.

"If mom and pop stores do benefit," Wells observed, "they don't benefit until the streetcars are running."

Do the benefits of "cool space potential," as Tregoning called the neighborhood vibes that streetcars will encourage, and the hipster creative class adoration for quirky locales fix this deeper socioeconomic concern? Yes and no. The Office of Planning has plans, of course, as you would hope from their name. Tregoning mentioned 100 acres of public land that may be used for affordable housing. Perhaps, she argued, D.C. could target areas with specific tax credits and create accessory dwellings. The better transportation network resulting from the streetcars' introduction would also save residents some cash. The cost of a car for individual District residents was $8,437 in 2010, and transit tends to cost less than a third of that.

But to former ANC commissioner and Council candidate Kathy Henderson, the city has already failed to effectively communicate the implications of the streetcar network. She remarked on the vistas torn up as workers built the streetcar maintenance facility. She said that for the D.C. government to hold its big streetcar meetings during the holiday season was "inappropriate." ANC commissioners shouldn't have to hunt online for the report when it's released but receive hard copies.

"Let's not get ahead of ourselves talking about dollar signs," Henderson warned the Council. "We need to really engage the community." 

   

   

(Image: The Transport Politic)

The Deanna Bogart Band

Friday, Feb. 3, at the Hamilton, $22.50

Penn Quarter's restaurant/venue the Hamilton is still new, but its first few weeks have been jam-packed with a blues/jazz-heavy schedule. Local blues singer/saxophonist (no, that's not a phrase you hear too often!) Deanna Bogart is gracing its stage this weekend, so check out this musician who was named Horn Instrumentalist of the Year three years in a row by the Blues Music Awards-- not to mention her 22 Wammies (Washington Area Music Awards).

Kathleen Edwards

Friday, Feb. 3, at the 9:30 Club, $22

Canadian singer/songwriter Kathleen Edwards has earned a lot of buzz for her newest album, Voyageur, in large part because of her co-producer (and boyfriend) Justin Vernon of Bon Iver. Vernon's hushed aesthetic is certainly apparent here, but it's Edwards' songs (and her voice-- which has grown less twangy over time) that take center stage here.

Local Ladies of Rock

Saturday, Feb. 4, at L&B's Sports Bar (Woodbridge), $10

The lineup for this day-long festival is pretty eclectic-- from country covers (the Marla Vickers Project) to original metal (A Sound of Thunder) -- but the dozen bands performing at this Woodbridge sports bar have one thing in common: they all include local ladies of rock. We're not too sure what the "Local Ladies Jam Session" on the schedule will entail, but we're pretty intrigued.

The Kennedys

Saturday, Feb. 4, at Jammin' Java, $18

Folk-rock group the Kennedys is made up of husband Pete and wife Maura, who met back when Pete was playing in Nanci Griffith's band, and Maura soon joined as a backing singer. They soon started writing their own songs together and have been releasing albums-- of originals and covers of artists like Bob Dylan and the Flying Burrito Brothers -- since the mid-1990s.

These and other show listings can be found on ShowListDC.

Then, Prince George’s Council Chair Andrea Harrison and Vice-Chair Eric Olson talked about their opposition to one of Gov. Martin O’Malley’s signature budget proposals. Also, the proposal to allow gambling in the county, health care, and Whole Foods bid to open a store in College Park.

WATCH today’s interviews here:

Thursday at 10am: Reaction to Gov. O’Malley’s State of the State address.

The article also happens to contain one of the most annoying stylistic crutches at the Post, and I'm not talking about "young people with laptops, sipping lattes" being shorthand for gentrification — though the article does contain that, too. Rather, it's this:

The H Street route, 'Hub, Home, Heart: The Greater H Street NE Heritage Trail,' is scheduled to open this spring and will boast 3.2 miles of history.

Does it really boast, though? Not in the first sense of the word, for a trail has no larynx, and thus, is incapable of bragging about mileage or any of its other, supposedly impressive qualities. One could make an argument for the second definition — "a cause for pride" — though such pride could only be felt by those who created the trail, not the trail itself. Even still, I am not very impressed by the length of this walking route. If it were a crawling route, perhaps.

The Post isn't alone in its overuse of "boast," but I expect better from our local publication of record than I do from, say, the Washington Times. Maybe that's my failing. Nonetheless, let's take a look at other recent abuses of "boast" in the paper. All emphases are mine.

• "Gingrich’s advisers also say the campaign boasts the most comprehensive list of Republican voters — and where they caucus — of any operation in Nevada." — "Newt Gingrich’s Nevada campaign appears in disarray," by Amy Gardner, Feb. 1

• "But [Newt Gingrich] boasts another noteworthy asset: billionaire casino owner Sheldon Adelson, a top supporter who has given a pro-Gingrich group $10 million and is being closely watched to see whether more is on the way." — "Can Mitt Romney be stopped in Nevada?," by Amy Gardner, Jan. 31

• "[Montrose Christian] boast All-Met forward Michael Carrera and second-team All-Met forward Justin Anderson, a Virginia recruit." — "Boys’ basketball: Coolidge’s win over Montrose a game-changer?," by James Wagner, Jan. 30

• "[MissionLink] also boasts an advisory board of former high-ranking officials at defense and intelligence agencies." — "MissionLink adds smaller companies for second class," by Marjorie Censer, Jan. 29

• "But that shouldn’t be a problem when Skream & Benga return to Washington for a gig at U Street Music Hall, which boasts the finest sound system in the city." — "Spring preview — Pop music: Concerts are unusual but promising," by Chris Richards, Jan. 27

• "If Hirayama lacks the sly perspectives of his 19th-century predecessors, he boasts colors that are far bolder." — "Jonathan Monaghan twists video games in exhibit at Curator’s Office," by Mark Jenkins, Jan. 26

I could keep going, but as you can see from this list, which boasts six examples from the past seven days, the Post's second-definition use of the word is nearly a daily occurrence. I don't mean to single out these writers*, some of whom I admire; they just happen to be the most recent offenders. We all have bad habits about which we're unaware — I use em-dashes much too often, especially for parenthetical clauses — but this is one that must die. Let's leave the boasting to boxers and Marion Barry.

*Except Amy Gardner, who used the word on back-to-back days.

Watch the unsettling and tense few minutes in the video here:

Between this and those recent horrifying WTOP bus camera videos, the world of Metrobuses hasn't seemed so peaceful lately.

You can see the 78-page draft plan here.

So what's potentially in store for the 1.3 miles of central 14th Street from Spring Road to Longfellow Street? We're talking the blocks in upper Columbia Heights and the western part of Petworth (including Red Derby and Thaitanic II), the corridor that runs, broadly speaking, east of Rock Creek Park, with around 50 small businesses and more than 2,000 households.

Pedestrians will enjoy an extension of the Columbia Heights streetscaping for a few more blocks of 14th. Also expect a little thing called "bulb-outs." What, exactly, will bulb-outs offer? "The bulb-outs, similar to what is currently in Columbia Heights, creates a dedicated parking lane, better defines the bike lanes, and the existing two-lane traffic; one lane north and one lane south," the draft plan states. "The bulb-outs should also be planted with DDOT approved flowering trees, shrubs, and flowers. In order to improve vehicular movement, bus shelters should be relocated to the far-end of the intersection. Street lighting should be upgraded to Washington globes to help illuminate intersections for drivers and sidewalks for pedestrians." Sounds swell. Wikipedia explains that bulb-outs are traffic-calming curb extensions.

Transportation recommendations include a better bus strategy along the corridor (which DDOT will coordinate on with WMATA), more Capital Bikeshare stations (such as at 14th and Kennedy), more spaces for car-sharing companies, and the installation of multi-space parking meters.

Most of these improvements, the D.C. government notes in its planning draft, should be rolled out in one to two years, with a select few set to be rolled out over the next three to five, pending the final drafts of the 14th Street strategy. The Office of Planning initially planned a mayoral hearing on Feb. 2 at the West Education Campus,1338 Farragut Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20011 from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. to receive any oral testimony but is in the process of rescheduling that now. Submit your online comments here.

The site where one can subscribe to the Gourmet email list reads: "We’re still in a limited trial, but give us your email address and we'll send you an email when we’re ready to show you to the table."

Ugh, those puns. Next to the phrase "local commerce company," they are the worst thing about this company.

I get that for LivingSocial to stay relevant in this market, the company must offer above and beyond what its competitors are selling. The thing that was always likable about LivingSocial, though, was the message behind its deals that everyone should have access to this upscale brand of activities, like fine dining, plus a body free of unwanted hair. There was also the occasional deal that brought things back down to earth.

Isabella will preview the menu for his new Georgetown restaurant, Bandolero, at a sold-out days-long pop-up held at LivingSocial headquarters at 918 F Street NW. The meal costs $119 and will feature five courses and cocktails.

With the launch of Gourmet in all its name-dropping glory, will LivingSocial stop being about helping the little guy to finally afford to have his house cleaned professionally? While yesterday's deal for CVS suggests otherwise, language like "invitation-only" suggests catering to a more exclusive set of consumers. You can't be everything to everyone, LivingSocial!

Also: Washington Post; it's called Top Chef.

After the jump: A smattering of food news!

DIGEST THIS NEWS:

• "New American" restaurant Unum opens in Georgetown. Eater also has the details on Society Fair, a fancy "food emporium" in Old Town.

• Black & Orange opened its location at 14th and U streets yesterday with the debut of a Bloody Mary Burger.

• Mike Isabella isn't the only Top Chef alum moving to Georgetown. Looks like Spike Mendelsohn will open a second Good Stuff Eatery location in the area this year. Good Stuff Crystal City is set to open soon as well.

• Chef José Andrés loves Uber.

• Reliable Source spotted Rob Lowe at Founding Farmers and Michelle Obama at the Hamilton.

• There may be a ramen shop coming to Adams Morgan.

• Capital City Diner closed, and some people on Twitter are sad about it.

The entrance isn't expected to open up again for more than eight months, sadly, and you can read more on the bleak news and alternate transportation options at WMATA's site.

Yet most unexpectedly, WMATA's social media manager Brian Anderson began tweeting out photos of the expiring escalators shortly after 10 p.m. last night along with lyrics to "I Will Remember You," Sarah McLachlan's classic song about loss, from the official @WMATA Twitter account. Hilariously strange as well as fun, Anderson's tweets provoked more than a few Metro riders. You have to see these tweets and photos to believe them:

And if the thought of idle and broken escalators still gets you too depressed, just watch this video. Escalators, we should remember, never really break. They simply become stairs.

All well and good, but nothing at the press event could compare to the performance of a handful of real young people in the audience. A choir from Duke Ellington School of the Arts joined Legend on stage for a performance of “What’s Going On” that could have cracked a heart of stone. (One reporter confessed to getting misty-eyed while the kids swayed and sang, their braces sparkling under the stage lights.)

Duke Ellington junior Dani Ebbin won the crowd during a video of the choir being surprised by Legend at a rehearsal that morning. When Legend sat at the piano to play with the students, the camera turned to the redheaded Ebbin, whose mouth had fallen open with awe and stayed open while the star started to sing, earning her rousing laughs from the crowd. The theater major tells me that Legend’s appearance was a surprise.

“There was a rumor going around,” says Ebbin, but she was skeptical that Legend would show. Then during rehearsal, “we’re singing, we’re singing, and the left side of the room gets quiet,” she says. “We see John Legend and everyone’s like, is this real?”

Ebbin, a resident of Northwest D.C., is a big Legend fan (“John Legend’s awesome”) and describes singing with him onstage as “an honor.” She’s optimistic about the Kennedy Center’s initiative.

“I’m not exactly sure what the whole project really is,” she admits. But, “I hope to do it. As an artist, we have to get our hands on the world and shake it up!”

Then, former DC Councilman Sekou Biddle (D) discussed his bid to reclaim his old post. We talked about ethics reform, education, gambling and the influence of corporate contributions on our politics.

WATCH today's interviews here:

Wednesday at 10am: Politico's John Harris. Also, Andrea Harrison and Eric Olson, the chair and vice chair of the Prince George's Council.

No wonder, then, that the correction atop the story bugged Baer. It read: "An earlier version of this article incorrectly described a doctor’s specialty. Nathan Zasler is a specialist in brain-injury medicine, not a neurologist. This version has been corrected."

So Baer, a veteran of the Baltimore Sun and Washingtonian, emailed Sydney Trent, a senior editor for the Post's Style section who also works on the magazine, to see if there was any way to get that gnarly nub of journalistic hygiene off the top. "I'll understand if there's nothing to be done, but since the cx has run in the paper and the online version is correct, it seems like we've covered all the bases," she wrote.

Yesterday morning, Trent forwarded Baer's note to Amanda McGrath, the Post's innovations editor for lifestyle and entertainment who occasionally helps out with the online production of the magazine. " Hi Amanda," she wrote. "A favor: Can we take the blaring correction off the online version so the writer of this huge hit story (about the brain-injured Post journalist and his wife) can send the link without embarrassment? Or perhaps if not we can tuck it at the bottom?"

"I told her we don't functionally control where the correction strip appears," says McGrath, who says the request went no further than her.

The transaction might have ended there, but Trent also copied the request to an email list called "features" that goes out to quite a few people. It started to get forwarded around the Post newsroom not long after.

Post policy is not favorable to such requests. The paper's correction policy reads: "The change should be made within the article and the correction should also be noted at the top of the item."

That's the sort of transparency journalism geeks like me get all weak-kneed over, but I can also attest that it's not much fun to see a piece you spent a long time on kick off on a note of what can feel like a five-star piece of nitpickery.

But, and this is really important for journalists, very few of whom aren't clinically self-centered, to remember: The correction's not there to make you feel bad. Baer might not like having Nathan Zasler's correct medical specialty atop her story, but I'm willing to bet Zasler appreciates it fully.

The New York Times places its corrections at the bottom of pieces that have earned them. The Los Angeles Times plonks them two paragraphs into the story, where they almost look like text ads. Guardian? Bottom of page, plus a blog post. I don't think it matters too much where they land, although I feel like placing them up top actually adds to most stories' credibility, essentially stamping a corrected piece with a QC inspector's number. Acknowledging your errors after they've been fixed is the exact opposite of something to be embarrassed about.

Lynn Medford, who edited Baer's piece, empathizes with the writer and stresses that Baer didn't ask for the correction to be nuked altogether. "It wasn't like it was a major correction," she says. "But there's no leeway on that with us. It goes where it goes. For example, our corrections in print go on Page Two as soon as possible."

Nor does a print correction grant some sort of Internet amnesty. I'm not clear on where or when the correction ran, since the story went online on Jan. 5 and my hard copies of that week's Posts have been in the gloved hands of Alexandria, Va.'s recycling program since Jan. 12.

UPDATED 2/2/12: Trent emails: "I'm on leave and out of town. I was also confused since I know you as an arts editor, not a media writer. But I just want to make sure you know there's nothing at all nefarious here. I have never edited Susan, I just met her briefly with Lynn Medford a couple weeks ago and if I'm guilty of anything it's of overempathizing and being embarrassingly fuzzy on our Web correction policy as it relates to stories that were posted and corrected weeks prior. I also have no supervisory power in this regard. Now I regret inquiring, but I think the agenda of the person who forwarded that internal email to TBD is more concerning. My sincere apologies to Post readers and journalists for any confusion. For the sake of the clarity and transparency you refer to, please post this email in its entirety with your original post."

The correction's still up there, in all its small-bore glory. Long may it blare.

Why? No one can decide how to move forward with the specifics of the overhaul and in no instance was that clearer than in Linton's two-hour grilling from Councilmembers Cheh, Wells, Bowser, and Council Chairman Kwame Brown. Hundreds of taxi drivers, hospitality leaders, disability advocates, media, and others packed the Wilson Building for a hearing on two major taxicab bills.

Transportation committee head Mary Cheh was surprised, for instance, that the D.C. Taxicab Commission issued an 89-page request for vendor proposals on Jan. 25, seeking vendors to provide the Taxicab Smart Meter System that would allow credit-card payment, receipts that feature trip details, and screens in the back showing riders the GPS-outlined path the taxicab is taking. This proposal assumes all D.C. taxicabs will modernize using this one government-mandated piece of technology and that D.C. would pay for the installation, operation, and servicing of the smart meter, with no charge to taxi drivers or companies and funded by a 50-cent surcharge applied to the District's taxi riders. Linton imagines this surcharge as an ongoing source of funds that would exist for as long as the government allowed, expected to yield $8 to $12 million a year.

Tommy Wells distinguished two paths — the city government could either establish "standards" about how taxicabs should modernize (implemented on the drivers' and fleets' terms) or follow a more "prescriptive" path, in which the government picks the vendor and runs the equipment with little room for market options.

"I'm not sure which way to go," Wells explained to Linton. "I'm more inclined to setting standards." To set standards would allow taxi drivers and companies more freedom "to change and modernize" as technology evolved and different ways of fulfilling those government standards emerged.

Yet then there's that 89-page RFP, with a deadline of March 12, that clearly opts for the prescriptive option.

Linton said that changing course and applying standards would incur for drivers one to two thousand dollars in investment costs as well as the credit card fees, "a heavy increase in costs to the drivers and the companies." He also worried that allowing drivers to upgrade on their own may result in "erratic and bad service." Cheh questioned the wisdom of already releasing an RFP. "In one sense, you're getting a bit ahead of the Council," Cheh told him. It's "a way of doing it and after the fact endorsing it. This anticipates that the answer is already decided." Linton replied that he was doing what he was empowered to do. He acknowledged that if the politicians changed course now, the standard personnel costs associated with issuing an RFP would be wasted. Given the dissension present yesterday — not at all apparent when the city presented this modernization overhaul in December — I can't imagine the RFP will be final.

Every councilmember appeared to have a drum they were happy to beat when it came time to question Linton.

Councilmember Muriel Bowser emphasized the industry's failure to serve all of the city. "The people of Ward 4 can't get a cab," Bowser, a former head of the transportation committee herself, told Linton. Not by hailing, she said, and not by appointment. "Did you hear me? And I know everyone in this room knows about it."

Council Chairman Kwame Brown pressed Linton to expand the number of wheel-chair accessible cabs and talked about how "un-American" our unequal dispersion of cabs happens to be.

Councilmember Wells picked apart the technical details of the proposal, from how the panic button worked to whether the legislation would increase Commission coordination with the District Department of Transportation to what he said "may be legitimate privacy concerns" surrounding the cabs' GPS, which would allow passengers to see the course of their trip on a screen and on their receipts but wouldn't store (at least with any names attached) the data in a computer or in the cloud. Wells didn't appear to trust Commission oversight: "Not to be combative," he told Linton partway through the questioning, "but I originally proposed abolishing the Commission altogether."

But what will these legion pet agendas mean? Likely more delays and many more hurdles before taxi modernization legislation moves forward. These officials need to be on the same page before anything can truly happen. If Linton has his way, we'd have a vendor by around May or so and 300 wheelchair-accessible taxicabs by the end of the year, contracted out to WMATA and the D.C. Public Schools. Yesterday's back-and-forth suggested that easy passage of this legislation will not happen, however, and that the bills' details are hardly final. The messy politicking, muddled execution of the proposals thus far, and unclear next steps leaves several issues still very much at stake.

It was a great moment for O’Neil, who has watched her hat-making business unfold almost accidentally. Though she’s made objects her entire life, it was only a few years ago that she attempted to sell her creations to anyone other than friends of friends. “It was mostly me giving gifts,” she says. O’Neil set up an etsy shop and didn’t think much of it—she already had a dream day job at the National Gallery, working in exhibitions.

Then two years ago, a woman approached O’Neil in public while she was wearing one of her fascinators. “She came up to me and said who made that? I want to sell it in my store,” says O’Neil. The woman was Kassie Rempel, owner of SimplySoles, and soon the store was carrying O’Neil’s fascinators.

“It’s turned into a side thing,” says O’Neil, who sells to a few other vintage boutiques and “tons of bridal parties.”

Another serendipitous moment came last year, in the form of an “adorable email” from folks at Gossip Girl, who had found her website and wanted to borrow a few hats.

“I sent a box with everything I’ve ever made, essentially,” she says. “I didn’t really have my hopes up that it was really going to turn into anything.”

One day O’Neil opened her email to find notes from “pretty much everyone I know.” New York paparazzi had snapped photos of Leighton Meister, playing Blair Waldorf, on the Gossip Girl set in all white outfit with a dainty hat fixed to her head. The pictures were making the rounds online, with the fascinator credited to O'Neil.

It’s as much credit as O’Neil is likely to receive for her hat’s appearance on the show, as Gossip Girl does not compensate or credit the designers whose work appears on air. (O’Neil explains that if such a fashion-heavy series were to credit all the designers, the credits themselves would take 30 minutes.)

O’Neil doesn’t mind. She’s not trying to make a living off her line of eccentric hair accessories (she’s sold around 80 hats, at $48 apiece, total) and seems excited just to be seeing hats in public again. She advises inexperienced hat wearers to start simply.

“If you really want to wear things in your hair, it’s jarring for people to see stuff on you,” she says. She advises trying sparkly clips or headbands before moving into hats. “You have to work yourself into it,” she says. The fascinator is having a moment right now, she explains, due to the resurgence of burlesque and its non-matronly appeal.

O’Neil warns that though the fascinator can look “totally normal” (she herself is wearing one during this phone conversation) it is “conspicuous.” She doesn’t advise wearing it just anywhere—Smith Commons, she says, is a good place to debut a hairpiece.

“It’s a speakeasy and you should be dressed up appropriately,” she says. O’Neil also likes Rock N Roll Hotel or the Palace of Wonders for a hat. “It’s different from going out in Adams Morgan,” she says. “You have to try harder.”

We are working with the USA Network's production team to find locations that match the content of their script for Political Animals. Filming is tentatively scheduled to film here in April.

As for the other two shows, Scandal and Newshour, we are actively trying to get both shows to film here. However, as of today they have no plans to film here.

ORIGINAL: Americans loathe Washington, as we all know. But Americans don't mind watching myriad shows about all of these people they loathe. That's what several TV networks are hoping, anyway, as a wave of Washington-based political dramas will begin washing over us in April. That month, ABC will premiere Scandal, from Shonda Rhomes (Grey's Anatomy, Private Practice), in which Kerry Washington plays Olivia Pope, a D.C. fixer reportedly based on the life of Judy Smith, whose clients have included Monica Lewinsky, Marion Barry, and Michael Vick. Smith may be fond of strutting in a white trench coat, as Washington does in this trailer, but has she ever stood between two drawn guns? Doubtful.

Those establishing shots must be giving the D.C. film office pangs. Perhaps Veep, the HBO comedy in which Julia Louis-Dreyfus plays the vice president, can provide some relief. Though filmed primarily in Baltimore, the show spent some time in D.C. It also premieres in April.

Yesterday, the New York Times reported on a planned six-episode miniseries, Political Animals, from Greg Berlanti (Everwood, Brothers & Sisters). Given that it's being produced for the USA Network, whose show Covert Affairs has filmed several times in D.C., there's hope yet that Political Animals might do the same. (I've contacted the D.C. film office and will update when I hear back.)

And lastly, there's Aaron Sorkin's latest project, The Newsroom, starring Jeff Daniels, Emily Mortimer, Jane Fonda, Sam Waterston and Olivia Munn. The D.C.-based HBO series isn't about politicians, exactly, as it reportedly follows "a fictional nightly news broadcast reminiscent of Keith Olbermann‘s late MSNBC program Countdown." But hey, it's not like Americans exclude journalists from their wholesale hatred of this town.

Bonus clip: The HBO film Game Change, about the McCain/Palin ticket, premieres in March, in case you feel like reliving that particular footnote in American history:

“We believe there is a way to contract with taxicabs to save them millions of dollars," Commissioner Linton told Council Chairman Kwame Brown in the Wilson Building yesterday as part of a drawn-out and contentious exchange in which Brown sought to shame Linton for not doing more to promote wheelchair-accessible cabs.

Linton’s motive is as focused on business as on equality, as our transit system and public school system would serve as taxicab industry clients. In the case of WMATA's $100-million MetroAccess transport for riders with disabilities, contractor Battle Transportation will be ending its service on Feb. 10 for what WAMU called "economic reasons," and Linton raised this as a possible entry point into that transportation market. According to WMATA chief spokesperson Dan Stessel, Battle has provide for about 35 of MV Transportation's 300+ MetroAccess routes but says those will be "seamlessly absorbed into MV's operation" when Battle leaves. Meanwhile, our public schools spend $92 million to transport 3,500 special needs students, a cost the Council and Mayor Vince Gray have sought to cut. Could taxis be the answer to these dual transportation challenges?

Linton said that D.C.’s taxis could save WMATA about $10 million a year in their services, and he has already met with Metro General Manager Richard Sarles to discuss the possibility. First would come a 90-day study on how to integrate D.C. taxicabs into these transport systems for those with special needs, and then, potentially, big-deal contracts that would positions taxis to move whole new populations of District residents.

An accessible taxicab. (Photo: John Hendel)

WMATA's Stessel didn't offer much in the way of details on any potential collaboration, noting Battle's small role, but stressed WMATA's receptive nature. "Metro is open to discussing more collaboration with the District to serve people with special needs within the community," Stessel told me via e-mail. I've requested confirmation and details from D.C. Public Schools and will let you know if I hear anything.

Linton and Brown spoke as part of a D.C. Council hearing held to consider two different bills that would overhaul the District’s taxicab industry, one seeking to "modernize" the cabs with credit card readers, GPS capabilities, a uniform cab color, and better training. The second bill, sponsored by Chairman Brown, would mandate 10% of all taxicabs be made wheelchair-accessible. Brown held a press event with disability advocates before the morning’s hearings to trumpet the bill. The chairman questioned Linton in a rather pointed, pushy fashion focused exclusively on his championed issue.

Why not, Brown asked, make every new taxicab vehicle accessible for those with disabilities? The inability to hail a cab, according to our chairman, is "un-American." One obstacle may be the reality that each of the 20 accessible minivans now on the streets costs well over $30,000 and is heavily subsidized. Linton said multiple times that he supports increasing the number of accessible cabs — 300 is no small number, after all — but questions the wisdom of rushing forward with mandates and suggested they all study the “economic impact” of such a bold legislative move first.

“When we hear 'studies,' we know what that means," Brown remarked. "It’s going on the shelf."

Linton pointed to the possibility of 300 new accessible taxicabs, which would be on the streets this year. 300, up from 20, and arranged not through Taxicab Commission funds but through contracts coordinated with WMATA and the D.C. Public Schools. Brown seemed not to worry so much about that, however, and simply sought ways to grandstand and strike down Linton’s positions despite declaring his "respect" for the commissioner (“It’s mutual,” Linton replied). Brown painted a picture of all the vaunted improvements, the credit cards, the GPS, and so on, but said that it’s only for a select group of District residents and leaves out those residents with disabilities. "That’s not equality," Brown declared. During the exchanges, he called out WMATA’s MetroAccess service as "awful," a fair enough observation. Brown attempted to frame his aggressive questioning as part of his leadership: “I have a plan to get things done. Some people don’t like it.”

Would 300 wheelchair-accessible taxicabs even be possible by the year’s end? Some councilmembers expressed skepticism. Only 20 such cabs have emerged in the last two years, after all.

"It’s possible," Linton insisted. "It depends."

Near the end of their conversation, Brown did score a telling and very legitimate point against Linton and the Taxicab Commission’s efforts or lack thereof in expanding our taxicabs’ accessibility options.

"My number-one objective is to have a solid plan that works that puts more wheelchair-accessible cabs on the road," Brown told Linton after several minutes of exchange. He asked Linton what his specific objections were to the accessibility bill.

“I don’t think it’s correct to start out with a 10% mandate,” Linton replied.

Brown pushed Linton further. Had the taxicab commissioner had any chats with disability advocates or with representatives from the ADA?

"Personally?" Linton said. "None. Not in the last few months."