alpert - Network

“Black people ride bikes, too, and they deserve to feel safe,” says Salim Adofo, one person who’s running against DC’s (notorious)...

“Black people ride bikes, too, and they deserve to feel safe,” says Salim Adofo, one person who’s running against DC’s (notorious) Ward 8 councilmember Trayon White. https://washingtoncitypaper.com/article/595024/contenders-are-lining-up-for-the-ward-8-council-race-as-rumors-about-trayon-whites-future-heat-up/

DC public school parents: I've been getting a lot of questions about what's going on with DCPS budgets, so I put together an FAQ...

DC public school parents: I've been getting a lot of questions about what's going on with DCPS budgets, so I put together an FAQ here: https://dcschools.substack.com/p/why-is-my-schools-budget-being-cut

Also, will this be an ongoing substack? Maybe, not sure! You can subscribe in case, though, if you want!

BTW I'm trying to thread the needle of a) Twitter's run by an egomaniac disaster who's wrecking society and b) most people are...

BTW I'm trying to thread the needle of a) Twitter's run by an egomaniac disaster who's wrecking society and b) most people are still there, by anytime I want to post something there, I post it here first, then post it there with a 🐘 link - just like people used to(?) post here with a 🐦link. Is that a good idea?

I'll be speaking soon at the DDOT oversight hearing. I'll be talking about how new projects leave out crosswalks in many spots -...

I'll be speaking soon at the DDOT oversight hearing. I'll be talking about how new projects leave out crosswalks in many spots - Mass & Q NW, 3rd & H NW, 1st & NY NE (Dave Thomas Circle), Riggs & SD NE, and many others. They prioritize traffic flow, signal timing, or turn lanes over letting peds cross (at spots where it's legal to cross, in fact!)
🗎: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1PPiIRqrSVE1Av-sBNJwjZYyiGN-cAqIT8Ha8w26Dp74/edit?usp=sharing

I'm on for the DDOT oversight hearing on the same panel as the anti-17th-St-bike-lane people. I won't have time since I need to talk...

I'm on for the DDOT oversight hearing on the same panel as the anti-17th-St-bike-lane people. I won't have time since I need to talk about crosswalks, but I'd like to say:

"I'm a driver myself and I am not against car lanes. I drive on 17th sometimes. However, there are plenty of north-south roads that through drivers can take, and don't need to always use 17th St, so we can make 17th St safe for people walking and biking, including going to the businesses there, and using the streateries."

WMATA platform hex tiles spotted outside DC! (At WISP ski resort in western MD)

WMATA platform hex tiles spotted outside DC! (At WISP ski resort in western MD)

I know there’s a lot to be worried about with AI and it often just lies about non-programming topics, but I’m just amazed how much time...

I know there’s a lot to be worried about with AI and it often just lies about non-programming topics, but I’m just amazed how much time it saved on this kind of task. Can we reconcile all of these facets?

I had to update some Python code today to screen scrape a bunch of PDFs. Some lines that worked last year now didn’t and I was stumped...

I had to update some Python code today to screen scrape a bunch of PDFs. Some lines that worked last year now didn’t and I was stumped searching around online. ChatGPT figured it out instantly and knew exactly what Python version change, and when, made it break. Wow.

Mendelson says this is why the community finds it hard to believe their statements about transparency.

Mendelson says this is why the community finds it hard to believe their statements about transparency.

Charles Allen quizzes Chancellor Ferebee on whether DCPS will give schools any time after Feb break to respond to budgets, or whether they...

Charles Allen quizzes Chancellor Ferebee on whether DCPS will give schools any time after Feb break to respond to budgets, or whether they will, say, release them Friday and demand responses during the break. Ferebee refuses to answer.

Ferebee has further confirmed that they plan to comply with the old rule that schools could be cut 5% plus inflation, which was overridden...

Ferebee has further confirmed that they plan to comply with the old rule that schools could be cut 5% plus inflation, which was overridden by the new law, and said “it is not the time” to change to follow the new law.

DCPS budget officials have also rebuffed repeated efforts by me and others to have a dialogue with them about this model. They even canceled...

DCPS budget officials have also rebuffed repeated efforts by me and others to have a dialogue with them about this model. They even canceled a promised Ward 2 Ed Council meeeting in December at the last minute.

DCPS rolled out a new budget model and there were lots of problems with it, and lots of questions DCPS refused to answer. It was so bad the...

DCPS rolled out a new budget model and there were lots of problems with it, and lots of questions DCPS refused to answer. It was so bad the Council passed a law overriding significant parts of the new model. The executive must now accept that some of what it did was overridden and it can't do those things.

The DC Council is not an advisory body, it's the lawmaking body, and it by design has power over the executive branch. Yet Deputy Mayor...

The DC Council is not an advisory body, it's the lawmaking body, and it by design has power over the executive branch. Yet Deputy Mayor for Education Paul Kihn and DCPS Chancellor Lewis Ferebee are saying things like, they plan to try to follow the "goals" or "intent" of the new law rather than just complying with the law.

DC education officials are in front of the DC Council saying, essentially outright, that they don't intend to follow a new law about...

DC education officials are in front of the DC Council saying, essentially outright, that they don't intend to follow a new law about school budgets. It's shocking and brazen, and frightening to those of us at public schools who worry they will face cuts when the DC Council passed a law saying they can't make cuts.

Link: https://open.substack.com/pub/mollywhite/p/sam-bankman-fried-is-not-a-child

Link: https://open.substack.com/pub/mollywhite/p/sam-bankman-fried-is-not-a-child

Great point by @molly0xfff

Great point by @molly0xfff

Has anyone in DC here gotten pea gravel or similar delivered from a gravel yard and if so where?

Has anyone in DC here gotten pea gravel or similar delivered from a gravel yard and if so where?

I just ran across stock ticker symbol RNMBY. First thought: this is what in my backyard? (It’s actually a German auto parts and defense...

I just ran across stock ticker symbol RNMBY. First thought: this is what in my backyard? (It’s actually a German auto parts and defense manufacturer, Rheinmetall AG)

Example: one resident (Dan Winston) said let’s study the traffic issues, and the project manager basically said “we have other divisions...

Example: one resident (Dan Winston) said let’s study the traffic issues, and the project manager basically said “we have other divisions that do that.” Once DDOT merged some divisions and this was a good reason, but they got split again