DCentric

Good morning, DCentric readers! While you were waiting for Election results last night, we were out collecting links!

On Forcing Myself to Vote “Hey, I’m a 27 year old Independent voter, and I’m not bummed – I’m pissed. I’m pissed that Democrats and the party faithful seem to have forgotten that the folks who elected Barack Obama weren’t always part of the base. That many of us were Independents, right-wingers for change, first time voters, and newly enfranchised. We aren’t post-racial, and may not ever want to see those days. (I’m personally still waiting for post-racism. Keep the heritage, drop the hate.)…We weren’t dropped – more like taken for granted.” (Racialicious)

D.C. Election Day drama: Scuffle at Shaw voting precinct “Witnesses described what began as a verbal confrontation between the elderly Brooks and Convention Center Community Association president Martin Moulton. The two apparently started getting into it over Moulton’s recent disparaging postings to the Shaw neighborhood e-mail list about oft-controversial neighborhood activist Leroy Thorpe. What happened next is less clear.” (tbd.com)

Straight Dope: Do Those Breast Cancer Pink Ribbons Actually Do Anything? Off-topic, but on so many of our minds: “We’re constantly bombarded with fundraisers and retail products sporting pink ribbons to raise money to “fight breast cancer.” Do pink ribbon campaigns do any good, or are they mainly a way for corporations to fleece consumers by leveraging their fear and sympathy over breast cancer? Where is all the money raised by pink ribbon campaigns going?” (Washington City Paper)

Spanish speaker faced obstacles to voting “When I went to vote at Bell Multicultural High School, the polling place for Mt. Pleasant, there was a woman in front of me who did not speak English. Instead of offering her Spanish translation as required by law in a neighborhood with such a large number of Spanish speakers, the poll workers just pointed to the next table after checking her in.” (Greater Greater Washington)

D.C. Wire – Board of Elections struggles with reporting again “The slow-pace count at the board of elections on Tuesday night is reminiscent of the Sept. 14 primary vote, when the employees at the board of elections did not come up with a final tally for city contests until well after midnight. Meanwhile, voting officials in Virginia had managed to tabulate almost 2 million votes.” (voices.washingtonpost.com)

D.C. Rolls Out New Anacostia River-Themed License Plate “The new plate features the silhouettes of two kayakers and what looks like a heron or an egret holding a fish in its beak. It bears the letters “ENV” above the standard “Taxation Without Representation” tag line. An early version of the plate, pictured here, featured Canada Geese instead of the herons; those were likely removed due to the city’s longstanding feud with the messy birds. Oddly, the word “Anacostia” doesn’t appear anywhere on the plate.” (DCist)