If you're down on the National Mall this weekend and see, oh, 12,000 flags stuck in the ground, don't be alarmed. The Federal Government hasn't started an experimental flag farm, nor is the display an effort of the area's squirrels to show their patriotism. The flags have been planted to represent the 12,000 members of the United States military who have been discharged under the practice of "Don't Ask, Don't Tell." The policy, which governs......

Allez Cuisine! From Jack Abramoff's Signatures to his own restaurant, Farrah Olivia, Morou Ouattara plans to step into a new venue. His eye is on Kitchen Stadium as he competes for the title of the Next Iron Chef. The first episode airs Sunday, 9 p.m. on the Food Network. Eight chefs with the help of Lufthansa Airlines (yay product placement!) will be traveling through Europe and competing against each other to join Mario Batali, Cat......

"Books," wrote the poet Philip Larkin, "are a load of crap." No doubt Larkin, one of the most gifted lyric poets of the 20th century and a career librarian at the University of Hull, was being ironic. But irony or no, the participants and sponsors of this Saturday's National Book Festival vehemently disagree. Held every year for the last six years on the National Mall -- rain or shine -- the festival brings together marquee-name......

Good morning, Washington. Does your commute include the Wilson Bridge? If so, enjoy this morning's trip — it's the last speedy one you're likely to have this week. As Fox 5 details, some of the traffic around the bridge will be redirected beginning at 10 a.m. this morning. But the worst will be saved for overnight on Friday, when traffic will be reduced to a single lane. Hateful Vandalism Galore: What the hell is going......

Recently we caught up with Washington Capitals owner and former Vice Chairman of America Online, Ted Leonsis, over email. Here's what Ted had to say about his role in the organization, his goals for the team, and his feelings toward the media. Please note that he uses emoticons without shame. DCist: Now that you're completely retired from AOL, how much fun is it to get up every morning and not have to go to work?......

The Examiner reports on a $36,000 bill received by the organizers of the 2007 Capital Pride Festival from the D.C. police and the Emergency Management Agency, who say they need the money to pay for overtime and other costs for security incurred during the June festival. But the festival's organizers and some members of the D.C. Council are questioning the charges, since the agencies waived these same fees last year and other annual parades, like......

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) told reporters yesterday that he would definitely not bring the D.C. Voting Rights Act to the floor before September. This is pretty much what we've been expecting for the last week or so, but it's now officially confirmed. It's a little bit disappointing to have to continue to wait, but considering Reid also described the bill's status as being "close" to having 60 votes, which would be enough votes......

RAMMY's All Around! Sunday was the Restaurant Area of Metropolitan Washington's 25th annual RAMMY awards, the local dining scene's big gala event. 1,500 people packed the Marriott in Woodley Park, listened to speeches, clapped for the winners, danced like teenage hooligans, and probably drank more booze than they wanted to/were happy about the next day. But, why else would so many people get together in one place? Oh, the awards? Yeah, I'll get to them.......

Feel Like Vegging Out? Or, do you have strong feelings about vegetarian dining in Washington? Don't lie, all you Eating In complainers are out there, I know it! Here's your chance to shine. VegDC is having a contest to determine the best vegetarian restaurant in Washington. I know, I know, a contradiction of terms, but stick with me here… With nearly 30 vegetarian-only eateries in the region, VegDC is right to start whittling down the......

It's often easy to huff and puff about the city's lack of voting rights, budget autonomy and the kingly powers used by members of Congress to derail local initiatives or force the city into doing things that its voters never envisioned. But rarely does an example come along that brings the District's second-class status into such sharp relief as did a story published today in the New York Times. The story chronicles the tireless work......

Add one more local film festival to your list of events to watch out for in the coming year. Yachad, a Jewish non-profit devoted to affordable housing development and maintenance in Washington, D.C., is starting up the new Our City Film Festival, a one-day event to be held at Busboys and Poets on Feb. 3, 2008. The festival's focus will be to showcase films set in or about Washington, D.C., with particular attention paid to......

If you work on the Hill you might still have time to run over to the Dirksen Senate Office Building, Rm. 342 for the hearing Equal Representation in Congress: Providing Voting Rights to the District of Columbia before the U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. The hearing, scheduled to begin at 10 a.m., will include testimony split into two panels, the first with Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), Mayor......

This Saturday is the sixth annual Free Comic Book Day, which is exactly as awesome as it sounds. Independent shops all over the country will be handing out a hearty selection of comics to anyone who wants one. The idea emerged as a way to introduce people to the art form who might only associate comics with this guy or a childhood fascination with Superman. These days comics are as diverse as any other medium,......

Today activists around the country are planning demonstrations supporting immigrantions. You'll recall that last year organizers staged a national boycott to highlight immigrants' contribution to the American economy. In D.C. several demonstrations are slated. The National Immigrant Solidarity Network sponsors a few of the events. WTOP has a fairly exhaustive list: A May Day Asian American rally is planned for noon at Taft Memorial Park, north of the Capitol. A hunger strike and rally at......

We're just a weekend away from the March for Voting Rights, which kicks off at 2:30 p.m. on Monday, April 16 at Freedom Plaza, ending at the U.S. Capitol Reflecting Pool at 4 p.m. for a rally. As we've mentioned before, you only have to take an hour off of work to join in the cause, and we'd encourage everyone to do so. We'll be there, and this is why: We're Too Close To......

Last week's Classical Music Agenda omitted an excellent concert opportunity that just came to my attention, annual concerts of Schubert's music called Schubert, Schubert, and Schubert. The final installment is this evening (March 18, 8 p.m.), at Georgetown University's Gaston Hall (37th and O St. NW), when the Auryn String Quartet will play Schubert's Quartetsatz, D. 703, and the "Death and the Maiden" quartet, D. 810. Pianist Kyoko Hashimoto will also play the four Schubert......

FRIDAY: >> Print out this PDF and take it to Local 16 between 6 to 9 p.m. tonight to receive a free drink, courtesy the Not For Tourists Guide to Washington, DC 2007. They'll also be giving away free copies of the Guide. >> Local rockers The Pharmacy Prophets are brewing up a high-concept hootenanny at Iota tonight. When the band takes the stage, they'll simultaneously be filming live concert footage for a multimedia project......

While the District begs and pleads for anything approaching voting representation in the House of Representatives, Puerto Rico might be moving ahead in its own quest to finally define itself and its relationship to the U.S. According to an article published today in The Politico, legislation is being considered in the House that would allow Puerto Rico to hold a binding referendum on whether or not to become a full-fledged state. Sponsored by Rep. Jose......

We District residents, long used to getting our hopes up a little only to end up with the shaft, need to weather a little more rain on our voting rights parade. The non-partisan Congressional Research Service released a report yesterday last week that says that legislation to give the District a vote in the House of Representatives is probably unconstitutional. But the actual wording in the report's conclusion is peculiarly vague and couched in the......

Good morning, Washington. Well, it was great while it lasted. But while it's true that last night's rains may have added to the treacherous icepack, and although WTTG has made a yeoman's effort at convincing us that icy death could plummet onto us from above at any moment, we still can't help but feel like the golden age of this winter's weather paranoia may be drawing to a close. That's Barely $2M Per Seat!:......

For those of us who considered the idea of an electronic music massive dead, Omnipresent Syndicate has a prepared a compelling case as to why we should reconsider. Enter Gathering DC, a party tomorrow night at Love featuring some of the best house DJs in the world. The first class lineup includes David Morales, one of the first "Superstar DJs," Miami's Robbie Rivera, and New York's Todd Terry (known for his remix "I'll House You"......

FRIDAY: >> The EU Film Showcase kicked off at the AFI Silver Theater and Cultural Center last weekend, and we'll have a little more about it for you this weekend. In the meantime film buffs should consider checking out Bergman Island, a documentary by another Swedish filmmaker, Marie Nyeröd, that visits legendary director Ingmar Bergman at his home on the island of Fårö. Now 88 years old, this is no doubt the final document of......

Good morning, Washington. We hope you got through yesterday's tornado warning alright — it seems likely that you did. Today should bring better weather, with a high of 75 and relatively twister-free skies. Optimism Over Voting Rights Bill: Yesterday brought news of Reps. Davis and Norton's bill to bring congressional representation to the District. Now the Post brings us more details on the challenges that the measure will face. Congressman Davis says that the House......

Be watchful, Washington -- according to news published today by the Washington Times, girl gangs are on the rise throughout the District. A city official noted in the article that over the last three years gang activity among girls has risen, and that there are now some 270 girl gangs operating throughout the District. While male gangs are commonly involved in drugs and crime, girls gangs apparently clash over "anything from fashion styles to......

Last night 18 District residents, myself included, hopped in the wayback machine and arrived smack dab in the halcyon days of 3rd grade as the D.C. Bee, a spelling bee for total nerds adults, kicked off the first of its five planned preliminary rounds at the Warehouse Theater. Pulses raced, vocabularies expanded, and dreams of victory were dashed in a single round. Luckily, no one peed their pants. You too can relive your elementary......

The blossoming shrub that was the Washington Redskins' successful 2005 season bore fruit yesterday, as it was announced that the team will play in the inaugural Monday Night Football game of the 2006 season. The synergy is practically PTI-tastic, as it will also be the first MNF game for area sports curmudgeon Tony Kornheiser. And because Monday Night Football moves from ABC to ESPN this year, nobody will be watching the game without buying something.......

MONDAY Counterprogramming this week’s State of the Union Address will be activist Cindy Sheehan, who will ostensibly be discussing her book Not One More Mother’s Child tonight at All Souls’ Church tonight at 7pm. For anyone who’s either been hiding under a rock this past year or who hasn’t yet experienced the pleasure of being clouted in the forehead with a ball peen hammer by a member of the Free Republic, this reading is a......

After a long week of much ado about the exploits of the avaricious, last Friday afternoon provided a fitting end. At 2:00 p.m., amidst a crowd of philanthropists, school-children, business leaders, and former president George Bush, our city's newest (and perhaps subtlest) monument was officially dedicated. The monument is called "The Extra Mile," and is composed of a path of fourteen bronze medallions embedded into the sidewalk, a tribute to some of our nation's most......

At first, the Ward 6 Democrats had simply organized a forum to discuss the state of the city's schools. Now they may be hosting the first, if most informal debate between mayoral candidates Adrian Fenty and Linda Cropp. Both Fenty and Cropp have announced that they plan on making an appearance at the forum -- set for 7 p.m. tonight at the Eastern Branch Boys & Girls Club, 261 17th St., SE -- which will......

We here at DCist have long been fans of Cultural Tourism DC, a non-profit coalition of community organizations that encourage cultural tourism and promote "economic development and hometown appreciation of the capital's rich variety of heritage and arts attractions." We have found their online event directory and weekly newsletters a useful source of information on an eclectic mix of cultural events and sites around the city. Thus, we couldn't help but agree to be an......