We Survived

After a couple of harrowing days it looks like NOVA is finally getting back to normal.  Fortunately, it looks like the region was spared the worst of hurricane Sandy.  The County government, local courts, and the Federal government were all shut down on Monday and Tuesday but re-opened Wednesday.  Metro also took the unprecedented measure of completely shutting down Monday before reopening around 2:00 PM Tuesday. 

The damage was light overall, with reports of about 53 downed trees and around 100,000 power outages.  Indeed, this past summer’s Derecho had a far more severe impact on the region when there were close to 500,000 reported outages.  There were also reports of flooding in the Huntington part of Fairfax County and in Alexandria.

Other parts of the country however have not fared so well.  Parts of New Jersey and New York City were completed devastated by the wind and rain that Sandy brought.  Now that the storm has passed through the East Coast, the most persistent problem will undoubtedly be flooding.

We should all give thanks for having been spared the full wrath of this monstrous weather event.

Will Sandy Lead To Repeat Of Verizon Fiasco?

When the Derecho Storm hit Northern Virginia last summer, around 2.3 million people lost access to telephone and other communication services, including access to the 911 emergency system.  Now that hurricane Sandy, aka “Frankenstorm” is on track to wreak havoc on the region, some are wondering whether they will lose phone service again.

 The Fairfax City Patch (10/27) reports that Verizon is claiming to be much better prepared for the coming mega-storm than it was when the Derecho hit.  In an interview with Patch, Verizon spokesman Harry Mitchell said that the company was prepared to “respond to anything that comes up.”




We’ll see about that Verizon…

Preparations Underway For Frankenstorm

Latest Updates:

-A state of emergency has been declared in DC, Virginia, and Maryland.

-Hurricane Sandy slowed down to around 10mph Saturday and weakened somewhat, though experts expect the storm to pick up speed and intensify over the next few days.

-Current models predict that the hurricane will make landfall somewhere in the Mid-Atlantic to Northeast Region of the United States early Tuesday.

-Officials are urging everyone to prepare for several days with no electricity.

-Citizens are advised to consult the County's emergency information website for details on how to best prepare for this imminent catastrophe. Citizens can also sign up for email and text message alerts through this website.

Hurricane Heading For Virginia!

Update: 10/26: Radio reports from this morning indicate that the storm will most likely hit around Monday evening. Expect heavy rain to hit the area this weekend.

In the past I’ve talked about NOVAGEDDON in terms of the impending economic collapse that could take place if the “fiscal cliff” known as sequestration comes to pass.

But sequestration isn’t the only thing NOVANS should be worried about.

News outlets from across the country are reporting that a massive tropical storm is on track to head up the east coast of the United States next week with some models predicting a hit on Virginia on Tuesday evening.

With winds of up to 80 mph we could easily be looking at another round of widespread power outages similar to the “Derecho” storm that happened a few months ago. Knowing how well Verizon performed the last time around, we could also see telephone and internet outages across the region.

So if anything bad happens next week. You’ve been warned!

Was There Too Much Hype On Bryan Glenn?

Tom Jackman recently wrote an article in the Northern Virginia Blog of the Washington Post’s website that was somewhat critical of recent media attention over the disappearance of Bryan Glenn, a teenager from Fairfax City that reported missing a few weeks ago. Approximately one week after her was reported missing, Glenn's body was found in the woods near a local park.  While the Police are still waiting on an autopsy report, Jackman suggests that the available evidence points to a suicide.

Jackman then goes on to explain why the Washington Post chose not to cover the story, especially after the body was found. Jackman says that the mainstream media has always refused to cover suicides unless they involve a public figure, or happen in a very public manner, and that the coverage of local television outlets had violated this rule.

Jackman justifies this position by arguing that undue attention to suicides would only glorify and encourage the act of killing oneself.


Whitney Rhodes of the Fairfax City Patch had a different take on this issue.  On 10/17, Rhodes countered that “what was likely just another statistic or news brief for national or regional media organizations was big news for us. Our readers don't come to us for the GDP or the day to day of Congress. They come to us because we have (so they tell us) a pulse on our communities, what they're thinking and what they're talking about.”

My Take:

Fairfax City is part of my community.  For this reason I was glad that the press devoted coverage on the disappearance of Glenn. Contrary to Jackman’s opinion, I don’t believe that reporting on suicides glorifies the conduct, so long as the coverage is done tastefully.

Furthermore, reporting on a missing teenager is something that is a matter of public interest to the community.  In this particular case, the level of public attention actually did some good, as it was ultimately a citizen volunteer that found Glenn’s body.

That said, the Washington Post, as a major national media outlet may feel that they have a different role to play then to simply report local stories.  I don't see anything wrong with that. But the Post shouldn't be trying to dictate how other media sources select which stories to cover.  At the end of the day the pond is big enough for the Washington Post and Patch.com.
 
Side Note: There’s still another story here that isn’t being told.  If it was a suicide, as Jackman seems convinced of, then what drove him to do such a thing? Should the press even attempt to answer that question?
 

News Roundup

WARNING: AVOID CHINESE FOOD IN FAIRFAX!

In an upsetting development,The Fairfax City Patch (10/22) reported that several local area restaurants were cited for critical health violations by the Virginia Department of health.  Topping the list of area restaurants were Pho Deluxe with seven critical violations, Bonchon Chicken, with five critical violations, and Willow Wood Café, with three critical violations.  The Virginia Health Department defines critical violations as conditions that may lead to food contamination, illness, or environmental degradation.

So the lesson learned is, think twice before you eat Chinese food!

Side Note: For those of you who drink, Fast Eddy’s was also spotted on the list, though all violations were non-critical.

Voter Fraud In Virginia?

In political news, WTOP (10/23) reports that three Virginia Congressmen are calling for a Justice Department Investigation into a company accused of throwing out voter registration forms.  The three Congressmen, Gerry Connolly (D), Jim Moran (D), and Bobby Scott (D) say that the arrest of a man who worked for the company in Pennsylvania would justify an investigation. 

The company in question is Pinpoint, a subsidiary of Strategic Allied Consulting, which was hired by the Republican National Committee to assist in voter registration efforts. 

Meanwhile. Virginia’s attorney general, who is a Republican, has stated that he would only be able to launch an investigation if requested by the State’s election board.

 

Fairfax News Break

County Seeks Special Tax Zone for Tysons:

The Fairfax Times reports (10/19), The Fairfax County Board of Supervisors approved a measure that sets up a special tax district for the Tysons Corner area.  This new special district will have residents of Tysons footing at least some of the costs for new transportation projects needed to fuel development. 

Residents of at least one residential area in the Tyson’s district however are not too excited about a potential tax increase. 

The proposed tax district is expected to generate around 3% of the total revenue needed to completely fund critical transportation projects for the area.

GMU Report Says More Road Funding Needed

The Fairfax Times (10/19) also reported on a newly released study which concluded that high levels of growth in non-metro accessible areas will necessitate more funding for roads in the Northern Virginia region.  The report, conducted by the George Mason University Center for Regional Analysis, expects the region to add around 1.3 million jobs over the next 30 years, leading to greater strain on the existing transportation infrastructure. 

The report also warned that without greater investment in road systems, the region may not realize this high level of economic growth. 

While the number of people dependent on auto transportation has declined by about 3%, a representative for the group that prepared the report stated that he does not expect further declines in the years ahead.

Other stories of interest:

Fairfax County had a domestic violence related murder this week in which a man shot and killed his sister.  According to the Fairfax Times, the two siblings were arguing over who would be caring for a sick relative, when the argument escalated, leading to the murder.

As reported on this blog, Fairfax has seen rising levels of domsetic violence related homicides from the 2010-2011 period. Let's hope this is not a sign that this trend continues.

Molotov Cocktail Rocks Arlington

WTOP reports (10/19) that around noon a man dropped a molotov cocktail from the top floor of Ballston Common Mall in Arlington. 

The mall was immediately evacuated, and a suspect, described as a black male with curly hair was arrested a few hours later near the Courthouse Metro station.

 The FBI is reportedly involved with the case and their spokeswoman Jacqueline Maguire, said charges will likely be filed as soon as possible.

My take: Why is the FBI involved with this case? My guess would be that it is being investigated as an act of terrorism where Federal laws would apply. But is that really necessary?  This doesn't seem like a terrorist act, at least not the big scary Al-Qaeda variety anyway.

Is Fairfax Becoming A More Violent Place?

 Update: 10/17/2012

The Richmond Times Dispatch is reporting that violent crimes across the United States actually increased by 18% in 2012, from the year before. I'll be looking into how the statistics break down in Virginia. But this is definitely a bad trend.


Even with a population of over 1 million people, Fairfax has long been perceived as a fairly safe place to live. But is that always going to be the case?  The findings of a report on domestic violence certainly do not paint an optimistic picture.

According to the 2010 Family and Intimate partner Homicide Report, domestic and family related homicides increased by 22.3% between 2009 and 2010 across the state. Sadly Northern Virginia did not emerge unscathed.  As a whole the Northern Virginia region, which includes Fairfax County went from 20 family related domestic homicides in 2009 to 25 in 2010.  This figure includes incidents between spouses and former spouses, as well as violence against children. 

Despite the surge in domestic related homicide, the overall homicide rate in Virginia declined over that same period by about 4.6%. 

Budget News

In September, the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a 2012 budget carryover measure that partially closes a funding shortfall for an important social service agency while setting aside some funds in the case of federal budget cuts. 

The budget measure partially closes a $9.5 million budget shortfall for the Falls Church/Fairfax Community Services Board, an agency that provides critical mental health services, as well as a host of programs for the developmentally disabled.  However, the agency will still have to endure some $2 million in budget cuts. 

Fortunately, CSB programs that assist young children with disabilities will be unaffected by the funding cuts. 

The budget measure also includes a provision to set aside some $8 million to be used in the event of Federal spending cuts, which could potentially devastate the region’s economy. 

Meanwhile County Executive Ed Long has issued a memo asking all County agencies to prepare for budget cuts of up to 10% next year in the event that massive federal budget cuts, known as “sequestration” go into effect. 

My Note: Fairfax is gearing up for a potential financial NOVAGEDDON. Let us hope and pray that sequestration does not happen!

Search Is On For Missing Woodson Teen

 Correction: 10/09/2012:

Original reports that Police found the body of Bryan Glenn were incorrect. It was later revealed that a citizen volunteer that was actively searching for the missing teen discovered the body.

This body was later identified by Bryan's parents.

According to radio broadcasts on 10/09, Fairfax Police are waiting to release a statement on the death of Bryan until after the medical autopsy on the body is complete.

As of now it is still unknown whether this was a suicide or a murder.

UPDATE: 10/08/2012:

Channel 9 news is reporting that Police have found the body of Bryan Glenn in the woods near Thaiss Park, where his car was found abandoned Monday.
 

The search is on for a Woodson High School Senior who has been missing since Monday.  Seventeen year old   Bryan Glenn was last seen Monday morning in the Woodson high school parking lot.

On Tuesday morning, the teen’s car was found at Thaiss Park in nearby Fairfax City.  Since that time Police and rescue teams have been combing this park in search of evidence of the teen’s whereabouts.  A helicopter was also spotted circling above the neighborhoods where the teen once lived.

Fairfax County Police have also noted that there are some unusual circumstances surrounding Glenn’s disappearance.

Anyone with information about the case is strongly urged to contact the Police immediately.

Winter Storms Getting Names

WTOP reports (10/2) that starting this winter, severe snowstorms and blizzards will be given names in the same way that hurricanes and tropical storms are given names currently.  The names, which will be used by the Weather Channel are based on Greek and Roman names.

Side Note: I’m ok with this idea, but if you look at the article, the list of names is completely failing to wow me.

Besides, who is going to take some storm named Freyer seriously compared to the likes of SNOWMAGEDDON!