Deborah Simmons
Articles by Deborah Simmons
Nudity at the beach. Quelle horreur!
The trusty Old Farmers Almanac says June 20 is the day those of us in the Northern Hemisphere can officially celebrate the arrival of summer. Published June 15, 2017
James Hodgkinson and Beltway sniper Lee Malvo
What happened at an Alexandria ballpark on Wednesday does not bode well for a 32-year-old man being held at Red Onion State Prison in Wise County, Virginia. Published June 14, 2017
James Hodgkinson, congressional baseball
Few things are as truly American as the nation's favorite pastime, baseball. Published June 14, 2017
D.C. Whole Foods fights rodents and landlord
Since March, the Whole Foods store on Wisconsin Ave. NW has been closed while battling rodents and other vermin, trying to comply with multiple D.C. health code violations and inspections. Published June 13, 2017
Dads can teach in and out of water
Another Father's Day is upon us, as is the push to buy the biggest and bestest power tools and grills we can afford. Published June 12, 2017
D.C. police rule out terror attack in hit and run of officers
Metropolitan Police Chief Peter Newsham said Friday that terrorism has been ruled out in an accident that hit two bike-patrol officers and a city employee before slamming into a recycling truck. Published June 9, 2017
Capitol Hill neighbors: No Hispanic PAC house
Want a "party house" in your neighborhood? Some Capitol Hill residents already have answered with a resounding "No," and are considering a lawsuit if the D.C. Board of Zoning Adjustment (BZA) grants an exemption to a Hispanic political action committee that wants to set up shop in their beloved neighborhood. Published June 8, 2017
Paging D.C. Attorney General Karl Racine
People acting on behalf of Muriel Bowser during her successful run for mayor in 2014 broke the law. Within months, in 2015, people working on behalf of Brandon Todd, her successor to fill her Ward 4 seat on the D.C. Council, did the same. Published June 7, 2017
Beware the Age of Donald Trump
We are in the midst of the age of distraction, when Americans of all stripes have seemingly fallen into one of three camps: 1) Resist by any means necessary; 2) Spend more money; 3) Blame Donald Trump. Some politicians, even those not registered as a Republican or Democrat, fall into all three. Published June 5, 2017
Sticks, stones, nooses and bloodshed
If this is current America, what will the future look like? Published June 1, 2017
Protect D.C. tax cuts
Tuesday is the day — the first day for D.C. Council members to either support taxpayers or to pretend that reneging on proposed tax cuts is needed to "improve" housing, social services and public schooling. Published May 29, 2017
What’s the cattlemen’s beef? Washington
David Cook is a cattleman, a rancher and a member of the Arizona State House. He's no Beltway insider. Mr. Cook came to Washington this week to spell out his beef. In short, he wants Congress to stop trying to lasso other ranchers and rural Americans with regulations. Published May 25, 2017
This Memorial Day
Memorial Day. A time to remember to not forget. Published May 24, 2017
Manchester attack shows the dangers of ‘retraumatizing’ children
A 23-year-old soldier is fatally stabbed while standing near a bus stop on the campus of the University of Maryland at College Park. Published May 23, 2017
Don’t ‘retraumatize’ children after Manchester attacks
"Death and loss are the kind of issues that defy sound bites," psychologist Renee Garfinkel told me Tuesday afternoon, less than 24 hours after singer Ariana Grande, 23, learned of the Manchester suicide bombing and referred to herself as "broken." Published May 23, 2017
The strange case of Seth Rich
This is the unfortunate story of the killing of a young man named Seth Conrad Rich, a Nebraska-born and -reared young man whose death by two gunshots has resulted in conspiracy theories of the worst kind. Published May 22, 2017
D.C. pitches two new affordable housing curveballs
So, what is affordable housing? It depends -- affordable means one thing to you and another to government folks. Published May 18, 2017
New hospital in D.C.?; Metro surges forward
Plans to build a new comprehensive hospital in Ward 7 or 8 moved forward Monday, when the D.C. Department of Health Care Finance executed a contract with one of the nation's largest consulting firms to help guide the city's hands. Published May 15, 2017
Why Johnny can’t read, Mary can’t do math
D.C. Council member David Grosso, please pay attention. This column focuses on your lawmaking and appropriation wheelhouse: education. Published May 11, 2017
Baltimore gun amnesty and a free ride
In jail and can't afford to pay your bail? Well, there's an app for that? Published May 10, 2017