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Wilhelmina T. Loomis, 87, who had an accounting practice in Alexandria for many years, died Dec. 8 at her Alexandria home. She had complications from a fall, said her son, John Henry Loomis. Wilhelmina Lucia Tortike was born in Amsterdam. She fled the Netherlands in 1940 after German forces overran the country early in World War II. She lived with her family in the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia) until the Japanese army invaded the Dutch colony. She and her family were held in prison camps on the island of Batavia until 1945. She met her future husband, a U.S. Army Air Forces officer, as he searched for Western survivors of the prison camps. They were married at Washington National Cathedral in 1947. Mrs. Loomis worked at the Dutch embassy before graduating with honors from George Washington University in 1954. She opened an accounting business in Washington in 1957 and moved her office to Alexandria two years later. She was a member of several professional groups and made an unsuccessful run for the Alexandria City Council in 1973. Mrs. Loomis was a founding member of what is now St. Andrew and St. Margaret Anglican Catholic Church and later became a member of St. Rita Catholic Church, both in Alexandria. Her husband of 57 years, Jerome Lathrop Loomis, died in 2004. Survivors include a son, John Henry Loomis of Alexandria. **— Matt Schudel**

Catherine J. Belter, 67, a former member of the Fairfax County Board of Education and president of the Commonwealth of Virginia PTA, died Dec. 31 at Arden Courts of Annandale, an assisted living facility for people with Alzheimer’s disease. The death was confirmed by her husband, Leonard Belter. From 1978 until 2000, Mrs. Belter, a Springfield resident, was a part-time librarian with the Fairfax County public library system. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2000, she served two four-year terms on the Fairfax Board of Education from the Springfield magisterial district. In this capacity, she chaired studies, led workshops, and wrote articles and pamphlets on educational issues. From 1985 to 1987, she was president of the Commonwealth of Virginia PTA. Catherine Jacobson was born in New York City. She graduated in 1966 from Good Counsel College in White Plains, N.Y. In 1978, she received a master’s degree in library science from the University of Maryland. Survivors include her husband of 45 years, Leonard Belter of Springfield; two children, Laura Belter Shannon of Vienna and Douglas Belter of Springfield; and two grandchildren. **— Bart Barnes**

These were among incidents reported by D.C. police. For information, call your police district station. **Hunt Pl.,** 4200 block, 8 a.m. Dec. 31. Leroy Studevant, 56, of the District was found lying in a park area. Studevant, who had been strangled, was pronounced dead at the scene. **45th St.,** 1500 block, 5:55 p.m. Jan. 3. Howard Ricardo Sampler, 21, of the District was found lying on the ground with gunshot wounds. Sampler was taken to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead. **Benning Rd.** , 3900 block, 1:50 to 1:51 p.m. Dec. 30. A male robbed a male pedestrian of cash. **Benning Rd.** , 4300 block, 2:30 p.m. Dec. 31. A male tried to rob two pedestrians, who fled. Nothing was reported taken. **Benning Rd.** , 4400 block, 12:40 a.m. Dec. 31. A gunman robbed a female at a vehicle of cash, then fled in the vehicle with an accomplice. **Bryant St.** , 1300 block, 10:10 p.m. Dec. 28. A male robbed a female pedestrian of property. **Delafield St.** , 700 block, 10 p.m. Jan. 1. A gunman and a male accomplice assaulted and robbed a male pedestrian. **Division Ave.** , 500 block, 11:50 p.m. Jan. 2. A gunman robbed a female pedestrian of property, then fled in a vehicle with an accomplice. **Edgewood St.** , 700 block, 5:20 to 5:26 p.m. Jan. 3. Two males assaulted a male and robbed him of cash. **Hunt Pl.** , 4100 block, 5:05 to 5:20 a.m. Dec. 30. A gunman robbed a male at a service station of a vehicle. **Jay St.** , 4600 block, 7:46 to 8 a.m. Dec. 30. A male robbed a female at a vehicle of property, then fled in the vehicle. **Kendall St.** , 1900 block, 12:10 to 12:30 p.m. Jan. 1. A gunman robbed a female of cash, then fled with accomplices. **Lee St.** , 4400 block, 5 to 5:10 p.m. Dec. 31. Two males assaulted and robbed a female. **Minnesota Ave.** , 3900 block, 3:43 to 3:45 p.m. Dec. 30. A male tried to rob a bank, then fled without any property. A man, 34, was arrested. **Mount Olivet Rd. and West Virginia Ave.** , 9:10 to 9:15 p.m. Jan. 2. Two males tried to rob a male driver in a vehicle. The driver fled. Nothing was reported taken. **Nannie Helen Burroughs Ave.** , 4300 block, 8:25 p.m. Jan. 1. A gunman robbed a restaurant of cash. **New York Ave.** , 1-99 block, 4 to 4:10 a.m. Dec. 31. A male robbed a female at a restaurant. **New York Ave.** , 1600 block, 12:12 to 12:14 a.m. Dec. 30. A male and a female tried to rob a male at a hotel. The male fled to his room. Nothing was reported taken. **Olive St.** , 1400 block, 5:56 a.m. Dec. 29. A gunman and a male accomplice tried to rob a male driver of a vehicle. The driver fled. Nothing was reported taken. Arrests were made. **Olive St.** , 1500 block, 5 to 5:05 p.m. Dec. 30. A male robbed a female. A boy, 15, was arrested. **Quincy St.** , 700 block, 9:30 to 9:50 p.m. Jan. 1. A gunman assaulted a male pedestrian and robbed him of cash, then fled in a vehicle with an accomplice. **Rhode Island Ave.** , 1300 block, 8:15 to 8:16 p.m. Dec. 29. A male assaulted and robbed a female at a bus stop. **Upshur St.** , 2100 block, 10:28 to 10:30 p.m. Dec. 30. A gunman robbed two people at a vehicle of cash and other property, then fled in the vehicle. **Second St. and Rhode Island Ave.** , 9:50 to 10 p.m. Dec. 29. Several males assaulted and tried to rob a male pedestrian, then fled without any property. **12th St.** , 2600 block, 8:28 to 8:30 p.m. Jan. 2. Two males robbed a male of property. **24th St.** , 2600 block, 2:15 to 2:18 p.m. Dec. 31. Two males tried to rob a male pedestrian, who fled. Nothing was reported taken. **48th St.** , 1000 block, 2:33 to 2:36 p.m. Dec. 29. Two males assaulted and robbed a male pedestrian. **58th St.** , 1-99 block, 9:30 to 9:35 p.m. Dec. 29. A gunman robbed a male pedestrian of property. **Bryant St.** , 300 block, 11:30 a.m. Dec. 30 to 10:45 a.m. Dec. 31. Property was stolen from a residence entered by kicking a rear door. **D St.** , 1300 block, 1:30 p.m. Dec. 25 to 9 a.m. Jan. 1. An attempt was made to enter a residence. **Division Ave.** , 100 block, 5:30 p.m. Dec. 28 to 8:30 a.m. Dec. 29. Property was stolen from a residence entered by kicking a rear basement door. **Eads St.** , 4500 block, 8:20 a.m. to 3:16 p.m. Dec. 29. Property was stolen from a residence entered by prying open a basement window. **Eastern Ave.** , 600 block, 7:15 to 9:30 p.m. Dec. 30. Property was stolen from an apartment. **F St.** , 200 block, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Jan. 3. Property was stolen from an apartment entered by prying open a front door. **Florida Ave.** , 700 block, 4:30 p.m. Dec. 23 to 7 a.m. Jan. 2. Property was stolen from a residence entered by smashing a basement window. **Jackson St.** , 900 block, 4:30 to 10:30 p.m. Jan. 1. Property was stolen from a residence entered through a rear door. **Jay St.** , 5500 block, 8 p.m. Dec. 30 to 12:50 a.m. Dec. 31. Property was stolen from a residence. **Lincoln Rd.** , 1600 block, 8 p.m. Dec. 20 to 12:15 p.m. Dec. 31. Property was stolen from a residence entered by breaking a kitchen window. **Maryland Ave** **.** , 2000 block, 1:05 to 4:30 p.m. Jan. 3. Property was stolen from a residence. **Maryland Ave.** , 2000 block, 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Dec. 29. Property was stolen from an apartment. **Meigs Pl.** , 1200 block, 8:50 to 8:51 p.m. Jan. 2. A residence was entered through a bedroom window. A woman, 27, was arrested. **Orren St.** , 1200 block, 9 a.m. to 5:45 p.m. Jan. 3. Property was stolen from a residence entered through a rear basement door. **Ponds St.** , 4400 block, 3 to 4:25 a.m. Dec. 30. Property was stolen from a residence entered through an unlocked window. **Seaton Pl.** , 300 block, 9 a.m. Dec. 29 to 9:15 p.m. Jan. 2. Property was stolen from a residence entered through a rear window. **Seaton Pl.** , 300 block, 9:10 to 9:15 p.m. Jan. 2. A residence was entered by an intruder, who fled when a male resident called out. **Third St.** , 1800 block, 11 a.m. Dec. 30 to 10:30 a.m. Jan. 1. Property was stolen from a residence entered by kicking a basement door. **Fourth St.** , 400 block, 5:35 to 5:40 a.m. Dec. 29. A residence was entered by forcing open a window. **Fifth St.** , 1200 block, 1:20 to 4 a.m. Dec. 31. Property was stolen from a store entered by breaking a window. **21st St.** , 1100 block, 1 to 10:05 p.m. Jan. 2. Property was stolen from an apartment. **26th St.** , 3001 block, 6:30 p.m. Dec. 28 to 9:59 a.m. Dec. 29. Property was stolen from a residence entered by kicking a side door. **49th St.** , 700 block, 7 to 8:30 p.m. Jan. 2. Property was stolen from a residence. **51st St.** , 800 block, 11:45 p.m. Dec. 31 to 3:15 a.m. Jan. 1. Property was stolen from a residence entered by forcing an air conditioner through a window.

BEIRUT — A mortar attack in the restive Syrian city of Homs killed at least eight people Wednesday, including a French cameraman who became the first Western journalist to die in the violence engulfing the country’s 10-month-old uprising. Hours earlier, President Bashar al-Assad had made his second public appearance in as many days, turning up unexpectedly at a demonstration in central Damascus to promise his supporters that the revolt will soon be crushed. The death of Gilles Jacquier, 43, who worked for the France-2 television network, was quickly seized on by both sides in the conflict as evidence to support their dueling narratives. Jacquier, a veteran of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, was traveling with a group of journalists on an official government tour when three mortar rounds or rockets exploded near their vehicle in the staunchly pro-regime Ikrima neighborhood of Homs. The victims were among 28 people killed across Syria, 13 of them in Homs, according to the Syrian Revolution General Commission, an opposition group that both organizes and monitors anti-government protests. Homs has emerged in recent months as the violent epicenter of the uprising, a patchwork of pro- and anti-regime neighborhoods in which residents on both sides have taken up arms. Hundreds have died there since the revolt erupted last March, including protesters shot dead by security forces at anti-government demonstrations, civilians killed in government shelling of opposition strongholds and, in recent months, security forces and government supporters attacked by armed members of the opposition. But the circumstances and timing of Tuesday’s attack highlighted the murky complexities of the escalating violence, with both sides trading accusations of responsibility. The Syrian government said the attack offered proof that the opposition is armed and dangerous. According to the official SANA news agency, nine people died when an “armed terrorist group” fired the mortars as the journalists were interviewing residents and inspecting damage caused by previous attacks. Opposition groups said it would have been impossible for the rebels to stage such an attack in the pro-regime neighborhood, which is populated mostly by members of the same Alawite minority as the president. A statement by the Homs Revolutionary Council accused the government of firing the rockets to “serve its own interests” and tarnish the reputation of the protest movement. The grim aftermath was captured by the pro-government Al-Dunia television network, which showed cameramen rushing to the scene of one explosion when another mortar explodes, leaving at least three people crumpled on the ground. The footage then shows the body of the French journalist stuffed into the back of a taxi. Few Western journalists have been granted access to Syria since the uprising began, but in recent days, the government has begun issuing visas, in part to comply with the terms of an Arab League peace initiative that calls for the media to be admitted, along with other steps. But the peace plan is clearly faltering amid evidence that the death toll has only risen since the dispatch of Arab monitors to observe the violence. U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said that the monitoring mission “should not continue indefinitely.” “We cannot permit Assad and his regime to have impunity,” she told reporters during a visit to Washington by Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim bin Jabor al-Thani, the Qatari prime minister, who has led the Arab effort to isolate and sanction Assad. Assad’s belligerent speech Monday, in which he pledged to crush the uprising with an “iron fist,” further cast into doubt the sustainability of the mission. At his brief appearance in Ummayed Square in Damascus on Tuesday, he rallied thousands of supporters with promises that the government soon would triumph. “We are going to win,” said Assad, who was accompanied by his wife, Asmaa. “Now the conspiracy is dying . . . and it is the end of their plot.” **More world news coverage:** \- Iranian nuclear scientist killed in Tehran bomb attack \- China denounces ‘Hong Konger’ trend \- North Korea seeks food-for-nukes deal \- Read more headlines from around the world

**********High school photography exhibit** Calvert Marine Museum displays photos shot on the grounds by 40 Northern High School students, including Carly Huseman, who was also selected for a year-long exhibit at Baltimore Washington International Airport. Through Feb. 17. Calvert Marine Museum, 14200 Solomons Island Rd., Solomons. 410-326-2042. www.calvertmarinemuseum.com. Museum admission: $7, seniors and military $6, ages 5-12 $2, age 4 and younger free. **Black History Month art exhibit** A textile, mixed-media and painting exhibit by D.C. area artist Que Gaskins is presented by Artistic Visions Artist Showcase. Through Feb. 29. Huntington Community Center, 13022 Eighth St., Bowie. 301-464-3725. www.pgparks.com. Free. **“Imagine a . . .”** Paintings by Abbey Griffin, Mimi Little and Suzanne Shelden take inspiration from the John Lennon song “Imagine.” Images include meals (Little), the wild kingdom and a boat-building father (Griffin), and landscapes (Shelden). Through Jan. 31. Annmarie Garden, 13480 Dowell Rd., Solomons. 410-326-4640. www.annmariegarden.org. $3, seniors and ages 5-11 $2, age 4 and younger free. **“Warm Thoughts: Inspired Quilts to Beautify your Life”** Artworks@7th hosts a quilt show by Gaithersburg artist Lauren Kingsland as its last exhibition at the current space before moving three doors down to 9100 Bay Ave. in March. Kingsland, a professional quilter since 1988, has work in national and international collections. Through Jan. 28. ArtWorks@7th, 9128 Bay Ave., North Beach. 410-286-5278. www.artworksat7th.com. Free. **“The Color of Justice”** This stage drama suggested for third- to ninth- grade students follows the case of _Brown v. Board of Education,_ in which Thurgood Marshall challenged the “separate but equal” doctrine of school segregation. 10:15 a.m. and noon. Publick Playhouse, 5445 Landover Rd., Cheverly. 301- 277-1711. www.pgparks.com. $6. **The Chromatics** College Park Arts Exchange presents a six-voice chorale of NASA scientists singing popular cover songs and originals about modern life and scientific concepts. Formed in 1995, the group has released several CDs and performed at such venues as the Washington Folk Festival, the Maryland Science Center, the National Air and Space Museum and a few sci-fi conventions. 7:30 p.m. Old Parish House, 4711 Knox Rd., College Park. 301-927-3013. www.cpae.org. Free. **Bluegrass concert** Members of the Seldom Scene perform. The Bethesda bluegrass band was founded in 1971 and was nominated for a Grammy in 2007. 7:30 p.m. Westlawn Inn, 9200 Chesapeake Ave., North Beach. 410-257-0001. www.westlawninn.com. Free; reservations recommended. **Maryland Community Theatre Festival** Community theater troupes from across the state come together for the 27th annual weekend festival of one-act plays as part of the American Association of Community Theatre’s national competition. Eleven short plays will be shown in four sessions. Friday at 8 p.m., Saturday at 9:30 a.m., 2 and 8 p.m. Three Notch Theatre, 21744 S. Coral Dr., Lexington Park. 301-737-5447. www.newtowneplayers.org. $15 per session, all four for $45. **“Murder by Misadventure”** Bowie Community Theatre performs Edward Taylor’s murder mystery about a writing duo who have grown to hate each other. Opens Friday at 8 p.m., continues Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m. Through Jan. 28. Bowie Playhouse, 16500 White Marsh Park Dr., Bowie. 410-757-5700. 301-858-7245. www.bctheatre.com. $18, seniors and students $13. **Children’s science program** Mad Science of Washington, D.C., explains the science of flight in an interactive program. 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. College Park Aviation Museum, 1985 Cpl. Frank Scott Dr., College Park. 301-864-6029. www.collegeparkaviationmuseum.com. $5 includes museum admission. **** **Sotterley Plantation’s “Second Saturdays” tour** A special behind-the-scenes tour features the kitchen, the upstairs rooms and collections. Tours will require indoor and outdoor walking, and are limited to 16 people. 1 and 3 p.m. Historic Sotterley Plantation, 44300 Sotterley Lane, Hollywood. 301-373-2280. www.sotterley.org. $15, reservations required. **“It Was a Very Good Year: A Musical Tribute to Frank Sinatra”** Tony Sands stars as Old Blue Eyes. An optional dinner is served at Salute’s Restaurant next door. Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2 p.m. Laurel Mill Playhouse, 508 Main St., Laurel. 301-617-9906, Ext. 2. www.laurelmillplayhouse.org. $15, dinner and show package $32; reservations required. **The Hardway Connection** The D.C.-area soul group has been together roughly 30 years and achieved a national following with its first album, “It Must Be Love.” 8 p.m. Harmony Hall Regional Center, 10701 Livingston Rd., Fort Washington. 301-203-6070. www.pgparks.com. $30, seniors and students $15. **“Tadeusz Lapinski: Past and Present”** The University of Maryland art professor, whose career there has lasted nearly 40 years, is noted for his bright abstract prints. Closes Saturday. Brentwood Arts Exchange at Gateway Arts Center, 3901 Rhode Island Ave., Brentwood. 301-277-2863. arts.pgparks.com. Free. **Sea glass author talk** Richard LaMotte, author of “Pure Sea Glass,” returns to Sunday Conversations with Chesapeake Authors. While researching the book, he examined nearly 30,000 shards. Bring your own sea glass for identification. Owings artist Jay Norris will also share some of his work made from driftwood and sea glass. A variety of sea glass jewelry will be available for sale. 2 p.m. Calvert Marine Museum, 14200 Solomons Island Rd., Solomons. 410-326-2042. www.calvertmarinemuseum.com. Museum admission: $7, seniors and military $6, ages 5-12 $2, age 4 and younger free. **Eric Maring** The local musician caters to the 3 and older set. All children must be accompanied by an adult. 3 p.m. Old Parish House, 4711 Knox Rd., College Park. 301-927-3013. www.cpae.org. Free; registration suggested. **Darbuka Dawg Hafla** Middle Eastern music will be played on such instruments as the qanun, oud, darbuka and riq. Belly dancers will perform and an open dance session will be held. 5 p.m. New Deal Cafe, 113 Centerway, Greenbelt. 301-474-5642. www.newdealcafe.com. Free. **“The Poetics of Water”** Artists from around the world exhibit their water- themed pieces, inspired by poetry. The show is a collaboration of the international artist collective Take Me to the River and local organizations Arts for the Aging and Life Pieces to Masterpieces. Closes Sunday. University of Maryland University College, University Boulevard at Adelphi Road, College Park. 800-888-8682. www.umuc.edu. Free. **MLK Days** Drop in for a community art project and interactive concerts in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. during this three-day event. This year’s guest artist, Brynda Ambush Harrison, will create a peace wheel with assistance from Annmarie Garden visitors. She and her husband, Slim Harrison, will also play peace songs from around the world on a variety of instruments. Artist demonstrations and hands-on activities will take place each day, and refreshments will be served on Monday. Saturday-Monday 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Annmarie Garden, 13480 Dowell Rd., Solomons. 410-326-4640. www.annmariegarden.org. $3, seniors $2, students free. **Poetry open mike** Share your poetry during this two-hour session. 7 p.m. New Deal Cafe, 113 Centerway, Greenbelt. 301-474-5642. www.newdealcafe.com. Free. **“Recycled Rhythms”** Children ages 5-7 can make instruments from recycled materials. 1 p.m. National Wildlife Visitor Center, 10901 Scarlet Tanager Loop, Laurel. 301-497-5887. www.fws.gov/northeast/patuxent/ntedu.html. Free; registration required. **— Compiled by Carrie Donovan from staff reports** 3College Park Arts Exchange presents the Chromatics, a six-voice chorale of NASA scientists singing popular cover songs and originals about modern life and scientific concepts. Formed in 1995, the group has released several CDs and performed at such venues as the Washington Folk Festival, the Maryland Science Center, the National Air and Space Museum and a few sci-fi conventions. Friday at 7:30 p.m. Old Parish House, 4711 Knox Rd., College Park. 301-927-3013. www.cpae.org. Free.

**“Romeo and Juliet”** Local commedia dell’arte troupe Faction of Fools squeezes Shakespeare’s tragedy into a one-hour adaptation. Opens Thursday at 8 p.m., continues Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m. Through Feb. 4. Flashpoint, 916 G St. NW. 202-315-1305. www.factionoffools.org. $25, students $15, children $10. **“Hedda Gabler”** Scena Theatre presents Henrik Ibsen’s play about a woman who stops at nothing to get what she wants. The production started last week with previews, but Thursday is officially opening night at 8 p.m. Continues Friday-Saturday at 3 and 8 p.m., Sunday at 3 p.m. Through Jan. 29. H Street Playhouse, 1365 H St. NE. 703-683-2824. www.scenatheater.org. $20-$35, seniors and students $20-$30. **Jonny Grave & the Tombstones** The D.C. blues band performs. With Benny and Norman Rockwell. 8 p.m. Black Cat, 1811 14th St. NW. 202-667-7960. www.blackcatdc.com. $8. **“Into the Wild”** Abstract painter Paula Lantz recently traveled to Botswana, South Africa and Zambia, where she drew inspiration from the wild and natural. Her color-splashed canvases, however, leave much to the viewer’s interpretation. Opening reception Friday 6-8:30 p.m. Exhibit continues through Jan. 29. Touchstone Gallery, 901 New York Ave. NW. 202-347-2787. www.touchstonegallery.com. Free. **Capitals** The hockey team plays the Tampa Bay Lightning on Friday at 7 p.m., the Carolina Hurricanes on Sunday at 5 p.m. and the New York Islanders on Tuesday at 7 p.m. Verizon Center, 601 F St. NW. 202-397-7328. www.verizoncenter.com. $45-$310. **“Barber and Barberillo”** The In Series presents a double bill of short operas: “Little Barber of Lavapies” by Francisco A. Barbieri and Samuel Barber’s “A Hand of Bridge.” Friday-Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 2:30 p.m. Through Jan. 22. Source, 1835 14th St. NW. 202-204-7800. 866-811-4111. www.inseries.org . $40, seniors $36, students $20. **** **JB Smoove** The 9:30 Club is transformed into a comedy club (with seats!) when this actor comes to town. You may have seen him in “Pootie Tang,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm” or “’Til Death.” 7 p.m. 9:30 Club, 815 V St. NW. 202-265-0930. 877-435-9849. www.930.com. $35. **MLK dance tribute** The KanKouran West African Dance Company performs in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Saturday at 8 p.m., Sunday at 4 p.m. Dance Place, 3225 Eighth St. NE. 202-269-1600. www.danceplace.org. $22, seniors $17, college students $10, age 17 and younger $8. ******“Ann”** Holland Taylor (who plays Evelyn Harper on “Two and a Half Men”) stars in a one-woman biographical play about the late 45th governor of Texas, Ann Richards. Thursday at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m., Friday at 7:30 p.m., Saturday at 1:30 and 7:30 p.m., closes Sunday at 1:30 p.m. Kennedy Center, Eisenhower Theater, 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600. 800-444-1324. www.kennedy- center.org. $54-$95. **Chrystal Williams** The mezzo-soprano teams up with pianist Lucas Wong for a passion-themed program featuring Berlioz’s “Les nuits d’ete.” 4 p.m. Phillips Collection, 1600 21st St. NW. 202-387-2151. www.phillipscollection.org. $20 includes museum admission; reservations suggested. ******** ******“Andy Warhol: Shadows”** Warhol’s late-career project, which consists of 102 brightly colored, silk-screened shadows on canvas, both imitates and mocks the abstract impressionist movement. The canvases measure 450 linear feet. Closes Sunday. Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Seventh Street and Independence Avenue SW. 202-633-1000. www.hirshhorn.si.edu. Free. **D.C. Restaurant Week** The event, which spills over the District’s borders and includes 200 restaurants offering three-course lunches for $20.12 and dinners for $35.12, continues through Sunday. www.restaurantweekmetrodc.org. **“Wedding Belles: Bridal Fashions From the Marjorie Merriweather Post Family, 1874-1958”** A collection of wedding gowns worn by Marjorie Merriweather Post and her mother and daughters showcases styles of the past. Closes Sunday. Hillwood Estate, Museum and Gardens, 4155 Linnean Ave. NW. 202-686-5807. www.hillwoodmuseum.org. $15, seniors $12, college students $10, ages 6-18 $5, age 5 and younger free. **Bobby McFerrin and the Let Freedom Ring choir** The Grammy Award-winning singer headlines an annual free performance celebrating the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. The concert is co-hosted by Georgetown University and the Kennedy Center. Free tickets (up to two per person) will be distributed at 5 p.m. the day of the concert in the Kennedy Center’s Hall of Nations. 6 p.m. Kennedy Center, Concert Hall, 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600. 800-444-1324. www.kennedy- center.org. Free. **“Family Matters: Portraits From the Qing Court”** A collection of portraits, jewelry and other objects from the imperial family that shaped the Qing Dynasty from the early- to mid-18th century remains on view through Monday. Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, 1050 Independence Ave. SW. 202-633-1000. www.asia.si.edu. Free. **“Strange Fruit”** Hank Willis Thomas focuses on African American identity with photographs and videos. Closes Monday. Corcoran Gallery of Art, 500 17th St. NW. 202-639-1700. www.corcoran.org. $10, seniors and students $8, age 11 and younger free. ******“The Bison Beast of Dubois”** First Draft at Charter Theater presents a reading of Mario Baldessari’s comedy about small-town prejudices. 7:30 p.m. Arts Club of Washington, 2017 I St. NW. 202-331-7282. www.artsclubofwashington.org. www.firstdraft.org. Free. **“The Two Gentlemen of Verona”** Valentine and Proteus’s friendship is compromised when they fall in love with the same woman in Shakespeare’s comedy. Opens Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., continues Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Through March 4. Lansburgh Theatre, 450 Seventh St. NW. 202-547-1122. 877-487-8849. www.shakespearetheatre.org. $37-$95. **“Mariinsky Ballet: Les Saisons Russes** ” The St. Petersburg, Russia, ballet company returns with a three-part program choreographed by Michel Fokine set to music by Chopin (“Chopiniana”), Rimsky-Korsakov (“Scheherazade”) and Stravinsky (“The Firebird”). Opens Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., continues Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Through Jan. 22. Kennedy Center, Opera House, 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600. www.kennedy-center.org. $29-$150. **“The Seven Year Itch”** Marilyn Monroe stars in Billy Wilder’s 1955 comedy about a married man’s obsession with a neighbor. 6:30 p.m. Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium, Eighth and F streets NW. 202-633-1000. www.americanart.si.edu. Free. **“My Piece of the Pie”** In Cedric Klapisch’s comedy, a former factory worker finds new employment cleaning the apartment of a ruthless power broker who doesn’t understand women or children. In French with English subtitles. 8 p.m. Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave. NW. 202-966-6000. www.theavalon.org. $11, seniors $8.25, students $9, age 12 and younger $8. **— Compiled by Carrie Donovan from staff reports** **3** St. Petersburg, Russia’s Mariinsky Ballet returns with “Les Saisons Russes,” a three-part program choreographed by Michel Fokine set to music by Chopin (“Chopiniana”), Rimsky-Korsakov (“Scheherazade”) and Stravinsky (“The Firebird”). Opens Tuesday at 7:30 p.m., continues Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. Through Jan. 22. Kennedy Center, Opera House, 2700 F St. NW. 202-467-4600. www.kennedy-center.org. $29-$150.

These were among incidents reported by the Anne Arundel County Police Department. For information, call 410-222-8050. Metro Crime Stoppers will pay up to $2,000 for information leading to an arrest and indictment in connection with these and other felonies. Visit metrocrimestoppers.net, call the hotline at 866-756-2587 or text 274637. For text messages, type the letters “mcs” without the quote marks in the text field, then hit the space key before writing the crime tip. If the text is received, you will receive an acknowledgment. **Eastham Ct.,** 900 block, 8:53 p.m. Jan. 3. Three males wearing ski masks robbed a male pedestrian of a laptop at gunpoint. **Summerhill Trailer Park,** 3:16 a.m. Dec. 24. A 28-year-old Crownsville man was charged with attempted second-degree murder in connection with a Dec. 24 shooting of a man outside a residence during a party. The injured man was treated for non-life-threatening injuries at a hospital. **Americana Cir.,** 7800 block, 4:20 p.m. Jan. 1. A cabdriver picked up two males at Liberty Circle and drove them to this location, where one got out and returned with a man who robbed the driver of cash at gunpoint. The three assailants fled on foot. **Ritchie Hwy.,** 6600 block, 12:21 p.m. Jan. 1. A male snatched a purse from a woman in a grocery store parking lot. **Laurel Fort Meade Rd.,** 3500 block, 1:16 p.m. Dec. 30. A man wearing a mask robbed a clothing store of cash at gunpoint. **Russett Green E.,** 3500 block, 10:20 p.m. Dec. 31. A man forced his way into a fast-food restaurant at gunpoint and demanded cash from a safe. When told that the safe could not be opened, he fled empty-handed. **Winterson Rd.,** 1100 block, 7:32 p.m. Dec. 27. A man impersonating a police officer sexually assaulted a woman in her motel room. On Dec. 29, at 5:27 p.m., another guest at the motel told police that she had refused entry to a man carrying handcuffs. An investigation led to the 4:10 a.m. Dec. 31 arrest of a Baltimore man, 38, at a residence. Charges included rape, assault, false imprisonment and impersonating a police officer. **Cowman Ct.,** 300 block, 3:30 a.m. Jan. 1. A man at a residence was stabbed in the leg. A District man, 26, was charged with first- and second-degree assault and reckless endangerment. The victim was treated for non-life- threatening injuries at a hospital. **231st St.,** 1:31 a.m. Jan. 5. Three men got out of a silver, four-door vehicle, attacked a male pedestrian during a robbery attempt, then returned to the vehicle and drove away empty-handed. The victim refused medical treatment. **Richfield Dr.,** 1700 block, 3:40 p.m. Jan. 3. During an argument, a male was stabbed by an acquaintance. After the victim was taken to a hospital, police arrested a 22-year-old Severn woman at a residence where heroin and cocaine were confiscated. Charges included first- and second-degree assault, reckless endangerment and six drug offenses. **Holly Ave.,** 1200 block, 1:07 a.m. Jan. 1. During an argument among acquaintances, a man made threats with a handgun. A Bowie man, 35, was charged with assault, possession of a concealed dangerous weapon with the intent of causing injury, and reckless endangerment. These were among incidents reported by the Annapolis Police Department. For information, call 410-268-9000. To anonymously report non-emergency crime or suspicious activity, call 410-280-2583 . **Forest Dr.,** 1700 block, 9:30 a.m. Jan. 2. A man exposed himself to a woman inside a business. **Marcs Ct.,** unit block, 7 p.m. Dec. 31. A male was stabbed in the hand. He told police that the assailant is a female acquaintance. **Bay Ridge Ave.,** 1000 block, 12:45 to 1 p.m. Dec. 3. A camera, a digital media player, a tablet PC and a pair of sunglasses were stolen from an unlocked vehicle. **Bywater Rd.,** 600 block, 10:30 a.m. Jan. 2. A break-in occurred at an unlocked shed. **Madison St.,** 1100 block, 9:30 p.m. Dec. 30. An apartment was entered by removing an air conditioner from a window. An acquaintance of an occupant, a 41-year-old Hyattsville man, was arrested. **Melrob Ct.,** unit block, 5:30 p.m. Jan. 3 to 7:30 p.m. Jan. 4. A laptop, a TV and a camera were stolen from an apartment. **Taylor Ave.,** 500 block, 6 to 6:30 p.m. Dec. 31. A camera was among property stolen from an unlocked vehicle. **Taylor Ave.,** 600 block, Dec. 11 to Dec. 17. A parking placard was stolen from an unlocked vehicle. **Sixth St.,** 400 block, 11:30 p.m. Dec. 31 to 2 a.m. Jan. 1. A luggage carrier containing an empty golf bag and two suitcases was stolen from the roof of a vehicle. **Greenbriar Lane,** 2000 block, 11:30 p.m. Dec. 31 to 9:15 a.m. Jan. 1. A 1997 Chevrolet pickup was stolen by tampering with the ignition. It was recovered in the 600 block of Wrays Court. **Severn Island Ct.,** 600 block, 9 p.m. Jan. 1 to 10:30 a.m. Jan. 2. Using keys taken from a table in a residence, a 2007 Toyota Camry was stolen. An acquaintance who has access to the residence is suspected. These were among incidents reported by the Howard County Police Department. Call 410-313-2236 for information. To anonymously provide information, call the Stop Crime tip line at 410-313-7867. **Pindell Chase Dr.,** 11700 block, 7 p.m. Dec. 26 to 7:45 a.m. Dec. 30. A residence was entered by prying open a door. **Little Patuxent Pkwy.,** 10600 block, 8:10 p.m. Dec. 29. A male wearing a mask and who implied that he was armed robbed a gas station of cash, then fled on foot. **Brook Way,** 5300 block, 7:50 to 8:45 p.m. Dec. 31. Electronics were stolen from a residence entered through the unlocked front door. **Dobbin Rd.,** 6100 block, 4:06 to 4:09 a.m. Jan. 1. Jackets were stolen from a store entered by breaking glass near a front door. **Harpers Farm Rd.,** 5300 block, 3 a.m. Dec. 31. An attempt was made to enter a residence by kicking the front door. **Honey Laden Pl.,** 7100 block, 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. Dec. 30. Two laptops were stolen from a residence. **Little Patuxent Pkwy.,** 10400 block, 4:58 p.m. Jan. 2. A blue Dodge Durango was stolen. **Washington Blvd.,** 7300 block, 9:47 p.m. Jan. 1. A group of people threatened a male and robbed him of a wallet. **Deep Run Pkwy.,** 6600 block, 11:13 a.m. and 5:58 p.m. Jan. 3. In two separate incidents, two people were seen trying to break into sheds and garages. **San Tomas Rd.,** 6900 block, 9:20 a.m. Dec. 28. Copper pipe was stolen from a vacant building entered using a stolen key. **Dorsey Run Rd.,** 7100 block, Jan. 3. A tan 2006 Honda CRV was stolen. **University Blvd.,** 6000 block, 6:37 p.m. Jan. 1. An indecent exposure incident occurred. **Ashbrook Dr.,** 2500 block, 12:44 a.m. Jan. 2. Beverages were stolen from cabinets in an unlocked garage. **Court Ave.,** 8300 block, 4 p.m. Dec. 28 to 9 a.m. Dec. 29. An HVAC unit, tools and kitchen cabinets were stolen from a residence under renovation that was entered by forcing a basement door. **Fulton Ridge Dr.,** 12100 block, 4 p.m. Dec. 30 to 11 a.m. Jan. 1. Traffic cones were stolen from the driveway of a house under construction. The interior of the residence was vandalized. **Mink Hollow Rd.,** 7000 block, 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Jan. 1. A residence was entered through an unlocked back door. A piece of jewelry was moved, but nothing was reported missing. **Washington Blvd.,** 8100 block, 6 p.m. Dec. 28 to 7 a.m. Dec. 29. Several radiators were stolen from a salvage yard entered by climbing over a fence. **Washington Blvd.,** 9900 block, 4:47 p.m. Dec. 29. A blue 2003 Audi A4 was stolen. **Woodstock Rd.,** 1600 block, 3:30 a.m. Dec. 27 to 1 p.m. Dec. 29. An attempt was made to enter a residence by forcing garage windows and a living- room window. ** — Compiled by Carrie Donovan **

I won’t say who is getting my vote for president. But I confess a nonpartisan desire that former senator Rick Santorum (R) remain in the race long enough to focus attention on an intriguing, if deeply controversial, educational issue. He may not get the chance. The primaries are tough. So hang on, Senator. Show a little courage and you could spark new interest in one of the few causes we share: encouraging high school discussion of alternatives to evolutionary theory. Teaching all sides of the evolution issue is supported in opinion polls. But those against it feel more strongly. When I suggested in 2005 that high school biology teaching would be improved by allowing students to debate Darwinism vs. the intelligent design theory, I received more than 400 e-mails. Seventy percent of them said I was an idiot. Many added that I was a dangerous idiot. I respectfully disagree. It is important to note that Santorum and I have different reasons for wanting high schools to allow discussion of intelligent design — the notion that some supernatural force (not necessarily God) brought life to earth. Santorum believes that God had a hand in it. But he wants to avoid injecting religion into schools, so he says classes need only examine the scientific possibility that Darwin was wrong to conclude that life evolved only because of natural processes. I think Darwin was right, but boring. It was hard for me to become interested in classroom explanations of natural selection when I was a student. Introducing a contrary theory like intelligent design and having students discuss its differences from Darwinism would enliven the class. It would also teach the scientific method. Did Darwin follow the rules of objective scientific inquiry? Does intelligent design? Advocates of intelligent design at the Seattle-based Discovery Institute have influenced Santorum. They accept many Darwinist concepts, such as the notion that humans and apes evolved from a common ancestor. They see a weakness in Darwinian theory because of the lack of much evidence of natural precursors to the animal body types that emerged in the Cambrian period 500 million years ago. How did we get from random chemicals to creatures with eyes and spines? They say that gap in knowledge leaves open the possibility of intervention by an outside force. Many scientists and teachers think the intelligent design folks are only pretending to have an allegiance to science. They seemed sincere to me. Some have doctorates in science. Even if they are fakes, their reliance on the fossil record rather the first book of the Bible qualifies them for a science class debate. Santorum seems less eager than I am to push this issue, even though it represents one of his greatest legislative successes. He added a pro-intelligent design provision, called the Santorum Amendment, to a version of the No Child Left Behind bill that passed the Senate. It was cut out of the final bill, but language encouraging what Santorum called “competing scientific interpretations of evidence” remained in the accompanying report of the conference committee. I don’t see any mention of his victories over evolutionary dogma on his Web site. I have watched many of the GOP debates and don’t recall the issue coming up. In recent years Santorum and the Discovery Institute have shifted their emphasis, saying intelligent design is a worthy high school topic but shouldn’t be pushed right now for fear of hindering its scientific development. They don’t want to make more enemies. Some Darwinists, including me and some teachers, say that’s political cowardice. The topic can work in a biology class if well taught. If Santorum stays in the race he may talk about it, giving the issue more national prominence. That would be good. We might eventually discover that high school students are smarter than we think. Give them a chance to examine the messy places where politics and research intersect, and their understanding and interest in science will be the better for it.

It’s been nearly 19 years since the bodies of three 8-year-old boys were discovered naked and bound in the woods near their homes in West Memphis, Ark. A month after the killings, three teenage boys were charged with the murders (amid rumors of rape, mutilation, Satan worship and — horrors — an interest in heavy-metal music). Within a year, the young men had been convicted. One of them was sentenced to death. But I’ll bet you already know this. The circumstances and bizarre carriage of justice that swirled around the “West Memphis Three” prisoners became the stuff of outsider outrage when Joe Berlinger and Bruce Sinofsky’s first documentary about the murders, “Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills,” aired on HBO in 1996. A sequel, “Paradise Lost 2: Revelations” followed in 2000; together, both films made an increasingly compelling case that Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Misskelley had been wrongly tried on shoddy evidence. Moreover, the films told a deeply disturbing and apparently unforgettable story about human nature, grief and mob vengeance — effectively turning the West Memphis events into a modern-day analogue to the Salem witch trials. The “Paradise Lost” films became, for lack of a better description, a cult hit. In their riveting “Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory,” premiering Thursday night on HBO, Berlinger and Sinofsky return to West Memphis to finish what has undeniably become a life’s work. Another decade has passed. The teens have aged in prison, now approaching their 40s, while appeal after appeal was denied by the judge who oversaw their trial. “Paradise Lost 3” is perhaps the most interesting and well-made film of the trilogy, not only because of its mixed-blessing epilogue, in which Echols, Baldwin and Misskelleywere freed from prison with an Alford plea deal last August. Agreeing to the plea technically released them, but it left the case unsolved. The film ruminates in many morose ways on the passage of time and the perniciousness of set minds while acknowledging the first two films’ role in bringing attention to the case. Had it not been for “Paradise Lost,” the plight of the West Memphis Three might never have become a celebrity cause, attracting the moral and financial support of Johnny Depp and Pearl Jam’s Eddie Vedder, among others, as well as the determined work of high-priced defense attorneys and legal experts. Indeed, the case continues to pique interest; another documentary from a different director, produced by “Lord of the Rings” director Peter Jackson, is coming soon, claiming to have details unexplored by “Paradise Lost.” The case has become a symbol, resonating with anyone who grew up in a small town and liked to wear black clothing or who felt ostracized. Nearly everything has changed since 1993. Of the murdered boys’ parents and stepparents, one mother has died. A father whose hatred for the accused was so memorably aflame in the first film has completely changed his mind and now publicly proclaims the men’s innocence. The attention from the documentaries and celebrity influence has soured local perceptions of the facts in the case. Though it seeks to right a series of wrongs, “Paradise Lost” remains a fascinating study in the power of media and suggestion. And what of those poor little boys? (Caution: “Paradise Lost 3” unflinchingly provides police footage of the crime scene.) Who killed them? The film turns its attention to claims of DNA evidence that links one boy’s stepfather to the crime — a claim repeated at a rally by Dixie Chicks singer Natalie Maines. The stepfather, Terry Hobbs, sued Maines for defamation, which may have been a miscalculation on his part: His videotaped deposition by Maines’s attorney opens a door from which a forgotten chill blows in, renewing a viewer’s fascination once more. Hobbs, who is interviewed in the film, has denied having any part in the killings. Though “Paradise Lost 3” bills itself as a conclusive chapter and exults in freedom for the West Memphis Three, it feels as though we haven’t yet made our last trip to those haunted woods. (122 minutes) airs Thursday at 9 p.m. on HBO.

_As the Consumer Electronics Show continued in Las Vegas, at least one theme became clear: The next big technology war is for your living room. Hayley Tsukayamareports:_ Hawking their wares at the Consumer Electronics Show this week, the world’s top television manufacturers are bent on making a splash: They’re trying to sell a whole new approach to television. In a world where the latest gadgets are automatically expected to be hooked up to technology “ecosystems” — apps, Internet connectivity and access to social networks -- television makers are banking on the fact that couch potatoes will want to see their friendly living-room TV get in on the act. We’ve heard this all before. The idea of a “smart” television has been around for a few years, and Google introduced its Google TV platform in May 2010, promising to put all the convenience of the Web onto the largest screen in your home. But a little over a year later, the idea has yet to take off, hampered by low adoption and a lack of hardware partners. All that’s changing this year for Samsung, LG, Sony and Lenovo, to name a few. Microsoft has proven with the Kinect — which chief executive Steve Ballmer announced had sold 16 million units to date — that there’s a market for quality apps on your television. Even Google has the chance at a second wind, having partnered with several of the major television manufacturers, each offering its own take on putting the TV back to the center of home entertainment. Samsung is working on integrating voice and motion control into its new sets, enabling users to speak commands to their TVs or change channels and other settings with just a wave. Vizio is joining with the cloud-service company OnLive to put streaming games on its Google televisions. The company has added the OnLive Viewer, which lets users manage their accounts and watch others play games, to its app ecosystem with the promise that gameplay will be close behind. Sharp is augmenting its huge television lineup with access to apps from Netflix, Hulu and Facebook. To compete, the companies will have to offer carefully curated, high-quality applications and be open to supporting mobile devices such as tablets. Other media companies have already started: Comcast, for example, announced that it’s going to allow OnDemand streaming not only to Samsung Smart TV’s but also to the iPad. __ _These new Smart TVs are aimed at giving shoppers a reason to buy a new TV, as Bloomberg Newsreports:_ At the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas opening today, LG and Lenovo will show TVs that allow users to search for shows and Web applications with natural-sounding voice commands. Samsung introduced three high-end models with so- called Smart Interaction technology, which builds in motion- sensing and voice-command software similar to Microsoft Corp.’s Kinect peripheral for the Xbox 360 video-game console. __ “You now can turn on your TV simply by saying, ‘Hi TV,’ and you can change channels simply by talking or gesturing,” Ethan Rasiel, a spokesman for Suwon, South Korea-based Samsung, said in an interview. Getting consumers to pay up will be tough. Last year, most buyers shunned sets bringing “Avatar”-like 3-D theater experiences into the living room. Since 2009, the average price of an LED TV, the most common type sold in the U.S., dropped 35 percent to $817 from $1,254, according to researcher NPD, which projects a 16 percent decline this year. Three-dimensional sets made up 9 percent of sales in 2011 through November, from 2 percent a year earlier. _Your living room isn’t the only place tech firms are hoping to transform. Internet radio company Pandora is hoping to find its way into your car, as Cecilia Kangreports: _ Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren doesn't drive much. "I'm a public transport guy," he said. But he does know that half of all radio listening is in cars and that's made the auto market the Internet radio company's major focus over the past year. At the Consumer Electronics Show, Westergren announced deals with 16 car makers— from the first partner, Ford, to latest partner Kia— to incorporate Pandora into car dashboards or allow users to stream the service through their smartphones into car audio systems. It's part of the firm's strategy to get its 125 million users to bring the service with them wherever they go and get them to listen even longer. The free service is so far supported by advertising, but ad revenues need to grow to to keep that model going, analysts say. Only 10 percent of customers use its premium paid service. "It's one of those things where you have to build a big audience first and then advertising catches up," Westergren said in an interview at the company's suite at the Wynn Hotel here. But he said many partners see Pandora as an essential brand for their products. The app was among the top downloaded on tablets like the iPad last year. Roku, an Internet television service, features Pandora as one of three buttons on its remote control for highly demanded apps. **More fromThe Washington Post:** Q&A;: Samsung's mobile strategy Justin Bieber, Snooki to appear at CES Report: Apple may go iPhone 4S route with new iPad Google to Twitter: You asked us not to index Apple announces ‘Education Event’

Betty Gaul, 93, who had done volunteer work for the National Capital Trolley Museum, So Others Might Eat and Meals on Wheels, died Dec. 26 at a hospital on Staten Island, N.Y. Her son John Gaul said she was visiting his home Christmas Eve when she fell and broke her hip. She was taken to a hospital for hip surgery and did not regain consciousness after being placed under general anesthesia. Betty Mills was born in Thornton Heath, England, and grew up in Toronto. She came to the Washington area in 1940 to support the British war effort, working as an administrative assistant at the British Embassy, among other jobs. In 1952, she married David Q. Gaul. They lived in Bethesda during most of their marriage. After he died in 1998, Mrs. Gaul moved to Silver Spring. Mrs. Gaul was a volunteer with the fellowship committee of St. Mark Presbyterian Church in North Bethesda. She participated in health-related research projects sponsored by the National Institutes of Health and Johns Hopkins University. Survivors include three children, John Gaul of Staten Island, Maureen E.G. Wichtel of Kingston, Prince Edward Island, and Lawrence Gaul of Dallas; and five grandchildren. **— Bart Barnes**

Washington Post NFL reporter Mark Maske took a closer look at each of the four divisional round matchups in advance of the second week of the NFL playoffs. This week’s games include a marquee matchup between the defending Super Bowl champion Green Bay Packers and New York Giants at Lambeau Field, and a second chance for Tim Tebow and the Denver Broncos to take down Tom Brady and the high-scoring New England Patriots. The young Houston Texans visit the Baltimore Ravens in the other AFC semifinal while San Francisco hosts Drew Brees and New Orleans in the other NFC contest. Here’s what each team must do to advance to the conference championship round. **New Orleans Saints (14-3) at San Francisco 49ers (13-3)** Saturday, 4:30 p.m., Candlestick Park (FOX) **How the Saints can win…** Can this offense be stopped? QB Drew Brees, after setting NFL single-season records for completion percentage and passing yards during the regular season, threw for 466 yards and three TDs in a first-round playoff victory over the Lions. The Saints scored 35 second-half points and set a single-game postseason record with 626 total yards. The task becomes more difficult now. New Orleans must face the rugged 49ers defense and leave the comforts of the Superdome to play a road game outdoors. The Saints never have won a road playoff game. The defense surrendered 211 receiving yards to Lions WR Calvin Johnson. But the 49ers ranked 26th in the league in total offense during the regular season. **How the 49ers can win…** They get to play at home, where they went 7-1 during the regular season. The formula is clear: They must run the ball on offense to control the clock and the game, and rely on their defense to slow down Brees and the New Orleans offense. The 49ers are built to do that. They ranked eighth in the league in rushing offense. They were fourth in the league in total defense and second in scoring defense, and they had an NFL-best turnover margin of plus-28. The 49ers will try to prevent a passing duel between Alex Smith and Brees. Smith was efficient during the regular season, with 17 TD passes and only five interceptions, but had 2,332 fewer passing yards than the New Orleans quarterback. **More on this matchup:** Top pick Alex Smith has turned boos into cheers as 49ers QB, reshaping career under Harbaugh Sean Payton expects a heavy load for his top run stoppers in playoff game at San Francisco After relatively quiet regular season, Saints RB Pierre Thomas ready to shine in playoffs Thirty years after ‘The Catch,’ 49ers hope to strike gold again **Denver Broncos (9-8) at New England Patriots (13-3)** Saturday, 8 p.m., Gillette Stadium (CBS) **How the Broncos can win…** The Broncos’ dramatic first round playoff triumph came after they lost their final three games of the regular season and got into the playoffs at 8-8. QB Tim Tebow threw for 316 yards and two TDs on only 10 completions against the Steelers, who led the league in total defense during the regular season. The Broncos started well but couldn’t keep pace with the Patriots when they lost to them in Denver, 41-23, on Dec. 18. The key this time will be to avoid turnovers. They had three of them (to none by the Patriots) in the first meeting. The coach who drafted Tebow in Denver, Josh McDaniels, rejoins the Patriots this week to work alongside soon-to-depart offensive coordinator Bill O’Brien. **Why the Patriots can win…** The Patriots have lost their last three postseason games, beginning with the Super Bowl defeat to the Giants that denied them an unbeaten 2007 season. QB Tom Brady had a superb season in 2011, with 5,235 passing yards, 39 touchdowns and 12 interceptions. WR Wes Welker was second in the league with 1,569 receiving yards but, increasingly, the biggest matchup problem for opposing defenses has been TE Rob Gronkowski, who had 90 catches for 1,327 yards and 17 touchdowns in his second pro season. The issue, of course, is whether the New Englad defense will do its part. The Patriots ranked 31st in the league in pass defense and 31st in total defense during the regular season. They were better in scoring defense, ranking 15th, and had a plus-17 turnover margin. If the defense can get a few turnovers and surrender field goals instead of TDs, that probably would be enough for Brady to get the Patriots back into the postseason win column. **More on this matchup:** Patriots to fave Tim Tebow for second time, and once again Broncos are riding a hot streak Early Lead: Josh McDaniels brings the knowledge when it comes to Tim Tebow, Tom Brady One mountain scaled, Tebow and Broncos face another in New England Early Lead: Charles Barkley has had enough of Tim Tebow Under God: Why I believe in Tim Tebow **Houston Texans (11-6) at Baltimore Ravens (12-4)** Sunday, 1 p.m., M&T Bank Stadium (CBS) **Why the Texans can win…** They steadied themselves with their first-round playoff triumph over the Bengals after finishing the regular season with three straight losses. That gave the Texans a win in the first playoff game in franchise history. Now they seek their first road playoff victory. To get it, they’ll probably have to play the same way they played against the Bengals. Rookie QB T.J. Yates had a modest 159 passing yards but didn’t throw an interception. RB Arian Foster ran for 153 yards and the Houston defense did the rest. In a season filled with record-setting passing exploits, this could be an old-fashioned sort of NFL playoff game. The Texans ranked second in the league in total defense during the regular season and the Ravens were third. **Why the Ravens can win…** The Ravens went 8-0 at home during the regular season and beat the Texans, 29-14, at M&T; Bank Stadium in October. The Baltimore offense showed good balance in that game, with QB Joe Flacco throwing for 305 yards and RB Ray Rice running for 101 yards. The Texans still had Matt Schaub at QB that day but were without WR Andre Johnson, who’s now back in the lineup. The Ravens, if things go as they hope, can match the Texans’ rugged defense and reliable running game while mixing in a few big pass plays from Flacco. **More on this matchup:** Oft-criticized Flacco can silence his detractors by leading Ravens to three more wins Watt, Reed, Yates — all rookies — helped push Texans into playoffs for first time Rested, healthy and poised for a home game, Ravens gear up for playoff push Texans prepare for Ravens while defensive coordinator Wade Phillips prepares for interview **New York Giants (10-7) at Green Bay Packers (15-1)** Sunday, 4:30 p.m., Lambeau Field (FOX) **Why the Giants can win…** Forget that they had the worst regular season record of the NFC’s six playoff teams, at 9-7. They’re on a roll now, beating the Jets and Cowboys in their final two games of the regular season to capture the NFC East title and winning easily at home against the Falcons in the first round of the playoffs. QB Eli Manning did the heavy lifting all season. He threw for 400 yards when the Giants gave the then-unbeaten Packers a scare but lost, 38-35, as time expired Dec. 4 at the Meadowlands. But now he’s getting help from the Giants’ running game and defense. RBs Brandon Jacobs and Ahmad Bradshaw jump-started the running game against the Falcons and the defense pitched a shutout. The Giants know they can play with the Packers. Now the question is whether they can do it again and find a way to finish with a win this time. **Why the Packers can win…** The defending champs are the Super Bowl favorite after their 15-1 regular season, marred only by a “How did that happen?” loss to the Chiefs. QB Aaron Rodgers had the highest passer rating ever in a season, at 122.5, and remains the MVP front-runner even with Drew Brees’s partial rewriting of the NFL record book. But there are some concerns. Rodgers hasn’t played since Christmas. The Packers looked a bit vulnerable down the stretch with injuries along the offensive line and to WR Greg Jennings. And then there’s the defense, which allowed Detroit’s Matthew Stafford to throw for 520 yards and five TDs in the final regular season game and finished the season ranked last in the league. The defense might not need to do too much, thanks to Rodgers, but it does need to contribute something if the Packers are to make another postseason run. **More on this matchup:** Packers are still favored, but they have weaknesses too The League: Are the Giants last season’s Packers? Can they pull the upset? Early Lead: Packers cope with a death in their ‘family’ Autopsy indicates Packers offensive coordinator Joe Philbin’s son drowned Sally Jenkins: Eli Manning belongs among NFL’s elite quarterbacks

Playing to a shouting, hopping, arm-thrusting U Street Music Hall crowd, the live lineup of Buraka Som Sistema repeatedly vowed to keep its Afro-techno- hip-hop going till dawn. The Portugal-based, Angola-rooted sound system performed two versions of “(We Stay) Up All Night” — a track from its new album, “Komba” — but the song title wasn’t a literal contract. Most dance- floor bangers don’t stay up all night, especially on Tuesdays, and some of the fans had already vanished by the time the 75-minute set ended — 40 minutes shy of midnight. It might not have been just the hour that thinned the crowd, though. The music Buraka played live was less varied than that on “Komba,” which combines European beats and American swagger with elements of Angolan ritual. (A komba is a celebration of a recently deceased person’s life.) The group began as a producer/DJ project, and those often sound less distinctive in person than on recordings. The issue wasn’t a language barrier; the group’s two MCs, portly Andro “Conductor” Carvalho and lanky Kalaf Angelo, proved fluent in Anglo-hype. They regularly enjoined audience members to “jump, jump, jump” and “get your hands up”; they also often used a well-known, four-letter word that’s of neither Angolan nor Portuguese origin. The communication gap didn’t increase noticeably when the vocalists, who also included fuchsia-lipsticked singer Blaya, abandoned English for the occasional chant. The metallic beats summoned by Joao “Lil John” Barbosa and Rui “DJ Riot” Pite were easily understood, even if they did have a German accent that upstaged any African flavor. Among Buraka Som Sistema’s friends and collaborators are M.I.A. and Diplo, exponents of electronic dance music made in the globe’s less affluent areas. But such styles often misplace their indigenous qualities when they hit the international rave-club circuit. At U Street Music Hall, the sound system’s act was mostly generic: (a) urge the fans to “party,” (b) spray them with water and (c) get “the ladies” onstage for the encore. Amid such customary club-music gambits, the distinctive musical hybrid that brought the group to prominence was largely forgotten.

By the time Rob Schneider has his pants around his ankles and is caught in a compromising position with an elderly grandmother on his new CBS sitcom, “Rob,” you won’t be surprised. You may be horrified and nauseated, but definitely not surprised. Even only about halfway through the pilot, the scene seems the natural direction for “Rob,” the offensively unfunny series premiering Thursday night. Schneider (of “Saturday Night Live” and “Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo” fame) plays a bland, obsessive-compulsive landscape architect who just so happens to sweep beautiful, bubbly Maggie (Claudia Bassols) off her feet when he stumbles into her dress shop. Maggie is apparently so taken by his utter averageness that she marries him six weeks later. Turns out, she eloped mostly to take a stand against her controlling parents. But to differentiate “Rob” from so many other comedies where Mom and Dad instantly hate the new son-in-law, Maggie’s family happens to be Mexican American. And if you don’t know where the show is going from there, you must have never seen a Rob Schneider film. As soon as Maggie warns family-gathering-averse Rob that “Mexican families don’t work that way,” the ethnic punch lines fly fast and furious. Rob remarks, “I feel like I’m at a Julio Iglesias concert” upon meeting his new wife’s extensive family. Maggie’s father talks about his carwash company employing many immigrants, and laughs, “Between 100 of them, I think they have, like, three Social Security numbers..” Like an uncomfortable stand-up routine that keeps getting worse (“You’re Latino? Or Hispanic? Which one is offensive?”), “Rob” spirals downward as Rob tries to make a good impression on his new in-laws (Cheech Marinand Diana Maria Riva). Appropriately mortified by a son-in-law who says things like, “Big family — now I know what’s going on during all those siestas,” Maggie’s parents seem to think things can’t get worse, until — well, see above with the sequence involving Maggie’s abuelita (Lupe Ontiveros). Presumably, the rest of the show will entail the so-called hilarity of Rob, a man who maybe sees his parents every other Christmas, adjusting to life with close-knit relatives, with all sorts of “comedy” about Mexican American families. Plus, the curious storyline of Uncle Hector (Eugenio Derbez), the family member who is visiting from Mexico, if visiting is defined as being a permanent house­guest. Still, it’s a comedy on CBS, which has had huge success with tasteless jokes on shows such as “Two and a Half Men” and “2 Broke Girls” — so no one is really expecting a meaningful take on classism or blending families or relationships. It would help, though, if the punch lines were just a little bit funny. Even when the traditional sitcom group-hug ending comes around at the end of each episode, the show has already lost all its goodwill. In the end, some people will be very offended by what they see on “Rob,” although given the mind-blowing popularity of the aforementioned comedies, some may find it just what they’re looking for. A better solution, however, would be to just close your eyes and pretend it doesn’t exist. (30 minutes) debuts Thursday at 8:30 p.m. on CBS.

The Jan. 8 editorial “Extracting natural gas” pointed out the problems with disposing of wastewater left over from fracking, a method of obtaining natural gas from subterranean rocks. This water must be shipped to places such as Ohio, where the geology allows for injection wells. However, the fracking process leaves much of that wastewater at the Marcellus layer of earth, essentially putting a permanent toxic waste dump under large areas of Pennsylvania and other Marcellus states. Proponents of fracking like to note that the Marcellus layer is a mile below aquifers, separated from them by solid rock, but with natural gas drilling, the two layers will be connected by tens of thousands of vertical wells — wells that will deteriorate over time. Can we really be confident that Pennsylvania’s water will remain unpolluted by fracking wastewater over the decades and centuries ahead? ****Dale Adams,** Washington**

Regarding the Jan. 8 front-page article “Critics of Va. supermax prison doubt isolation is the solution”: Mental illness among the incarcerated has not received the attention due such a grave social problem. Mental illness is two to four times higher among prisoners than it is in the general population. Solitary confinement exacerbates the problem, as noted in The Post’s article: Many experts argue it leads to higher suicide rates, increased depression, decreased brain function and hallucination. In a study of more than 20,000 adults entering five local jails, researchers documented serious mental illness in 16.9 percent of those studied (14.5 percent of the men and 31 percent of the women). These rates are three to six times those found in the general population. Yet the so-called treatment for mental illness in prison, as described in the article, can entail no more than a nurse and counselor coming by a prisoner’s cell and asking him how he is doing — through the shutter in the door. Solitary confinement — a process described by one person quoted in the article as “taking away people’s socialization” — and minimal contact are clearly neither the environment nor the therapy required for addressing the mental illness of prisoners. I agree with Del. Patrick Hope (D-Arlington) that the General Assembly should work to limit solitary confinement and increase the treatment offered to inmates. If we don’t do more, we can be assured that recidivism will continue to occur at a high rate. ****John Horejsi,** Vienna** The writer is a member of the Virginia Prisoner and Juvenile Offender Reentry Council.

The Jan. 8 editorial “Malaysia’s test” suggested that only an acquittal of Anwar Ibrahim in Malaysia in the criminal sexual harassment sodomy case brought against him by his former aide would be compatible with our country’s commitment to democracy and the rule of law. As our prime minister has stated, however, this case was brought by a private individual, and it was important that his accusations be heard in court. Far from being a politically motivated prosecution, it has been an unwelcome distraction. Mr. Anwar’ssubsequent acquittal showed once again that the Malaysian judiciary is an independent institution. It also clears, once and for all, the many baseless accusations against the government of political interference and conspiracy against the leader of the opposition. The ruling demonstrated what our government has said from the start: This was not a political case but one based on law and evidence. ****Jamaludin Jarjis,** Washington ** The writer is Malaysia’s ambassador to the United States.

Sudarsan Raghavan’s Jan. 9 front-page artice, “In Yemen, children pay the price of revolt,” exposed how Yemen’s political upheaval and humanitarian crisis are harming children. It points out that rising poverty and displacement may result in more families marrying off young girls to ease financial pressures. More than half of girls in Yemen marry before age 18, and about 14 percent before age 15. In some rural areas, families marry off girls as young as 8. Last month Human Rights Watch published a report about child marriage based on interviews I conducted in Yemen. Many girls and women told me that their families forced them to marry, and almost all of them had dropped out of school. They had little control over whether and when to bear children, and some suffered health problems from early pregnancies. Many said their husbands beat and sometimes raped them. Yemen’s new government, and its international donors, should urgently address the humanitarian crisis. But not just with food and water handouts. Yemen should enact a law setting 18 as the minimum age of marriage. It should also promote girls’ and women’s access to education, health and domestic violence services. A humanitarian response that ignores these human rights would fail Yemen’s women and girls. ****Nadya Khalife,** Beirut** The writer is a researcher for the Middle East and North Africa division at Human Rights Watch.

In his Jan. 8 Outlook piece, “How to break a Middle East stalemate,” longtime Middle East mediator Dennis Ross presented yet another idea for easing tensions in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that might lead to a two-state solution. Mr. Ross and others have put forth creative and potentially effective ideas to bring about peace. But these ideas never work, so those trying to resolve the conflict keep coming up with new ones. I believe the psychological gaps to which Mr. Ross referred are the reason so many proposed solutions have failed, and I offer an approach that could close those gaps. It involves no commitments to action but rather three simple statements that both sides would endorse publicly at the same moment. They are, in this order: 1. The (Palestinian) (Israeli) people acknowledge the painful history of the (Israeli) (Palestinian) people. 2. The (Israeli) (Palestinian) people acknowledge that the (Palestinian) (Israeli) people have the right to economic and physical security. 3. The (Palestinian) (Israeli) people acknowledge that they will need to make painful compromises to achieve peace. These statements acknowledge the humanity of the Israelis and the Palestinians — an acknowledgment that is missing from and critical to both sides moving forward. ****Maida Schifter,** Silver Spring**

Over the Christmas break, I did some holiday reading. On my table were “A Christmas Carol,” “Miracle on 34th Street” and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012. Tough choices. Okay, I picked up the Defense Authorization Act. It isn’t Charles Dickens or a “34th Street” delight, but I did find some interesting stories. For example: Cybersecurity is going to be a dominating factor in years to come. In Subtitle D — Cybersecurity Matters SEC. 931, you will find a section titled “Strategy to Acquire Capabilities to Detect Previously Unknown Cyber Attacks.” I’ll save you all the government bureaucratic language and get to the nitty-gritty: There are likely to be more jobs in this field. The news gets better. In SEC. 1076 is a section on the “Study on the Recruitment, Retention, and Development of Cyberspace Experts.” It says the Defense secretary shall conduct an independent study examining the availability of military and civilian personnel for Department of Defense defensive and offensive cyberspace operations, identifying any gaps in meeting personnel needs, and recommending available mechanisms to fill such gaps, including permanent and temporary positions. Now, this report can take up to a year, but once completed it will include the following: ●A statement of capabilities and number of cyberspace operations personnel required to meet the defensive and offensive cyberspace operation requirements of the Department of Defense. ●A description of the obstacles to adequate recruitment and retention of such personnel. ●A description of incentives that enable and encourage individuals with cyberskills from outside the Department of Defense to affiliate with the Armed Forces and civilian employees of the Department of Defense. ●Identification of legal, policy or administrative impediments to attracting and retaining cyberspace operations personnel. ●Recommendations for legislative or policy changes necessary to increase the availability of cyberspace operations personnel. It sounds as if there’s a serious effort underway for the Department of Defense to ramp up the staffing required to deal with the cyberthreat. Since this report will be a year in the making, we can forecast that the recommendation will be to hire more personnel. The focus is not only in DoD, either. The authorization act discusses collaboration between DoD and the Department of Homeland Security. I’m predicting that cybersecurity hiring will be strong for the next three to five years — and across the government for some years to come. This is good news if you’re already in the cybersecurity field. And if you are considering a career to pursue, this one sounds like a good bet. It wasn’t Dickens, but it was still good reading.

The Washington Nationals have spent a lot of time this offseason trying to make a big decision: whether to sign slugger Prince Fielder. Fielder, who started at first base for the Milwaukee Brewers for six seasons, is a free agent. That means he can sign with a new team. Several teams, including the Nationals, have seemed interested. But it’s unclear if the Nationals will sign him. Whenever there’s an important decision to be made — whether it’s a baseball team deciding to spend millions on a player or a kid deciding to switch soccer teams — it’s helpful to make a list of the reasons why you should or should not do something. Here are two lists with reasons on both sides of the Fielder decision. First, **why the Nationals should try to sign Fielder.** 1 Fielder is a terrific hitter. He averaged 38 home runs and more than 100 runs batted in (RBI) for the past six seasons. 2 He gets a ton of walks: more than 100 in each of the past three seasons. Most of the Nats are free-swingers who don’t get many walks. The Nats could use a patient hitter. 3 Fielder is only 27 years old. Even if he signs a seven-year contract with the Nats, he probably will be a good player for all that time. 4 He doesn’t get hurt. Fielder played at least 157 games during each of the past six seasons. (There are 162 games in the regular season.) I also think he has a totally cool baseball name: Prince Fielder. But that’s not really a reason to sign him. Now, here’s a list of reasons why the Nationals **should not try to sign him.** 1 The Nats already have two good first basemen. Adam LaRoche is coming back from an injury, and Michael Morse (31 homers and 95 RBI) was almost as good as Fielder last season. 2 Fielder is not a good fielder, and he can play only first base. 3 He will cost the team a lot of money. It’s easy for fans to say the team should spend many millions on one player. But remember: If the Nats spend money on Fielder, they might not have money later to re-sign young players such as Danny Espinosa and Wilson Ramos. 4 I don’t want to be mean, but Fielder is big, and not necessarily in a good way. He is listed as 5 feet 11 inches and 275 pounds. If he gets any bigger, he might not be as good a player. So what should the Nationals do? It’s a tough decision, but I think they should not try to sign Fielder. Baseball is a team game, and I like how the Nationals are building their team with lots of exciting young players and power pitchers. Maybe they should keep doing that instead of signing one big star.

TEHRAN — The assassination Wednesday of an Iranian nuclear scientist in northern Tehran increases the peril for an Iranian American who was sentenced to death Monday, analysts said. Iranian officials quickly blamed the scientist’s killing on the United States, ratcheting up tensions between the two countries and making it less likely that Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, a 28-year-old former U.S. Marine arrested in August and accused of spying for the CIA, will be released anytime soon. “Unfortunately, the greater the escalation is, the greater the likelihood that the perceived costs of executing him decline,” said Trita Parsi, president of the National Iranian American Council and author of a new book about the Obama administration’s dealings with Iran. In recent years, there has been an increase in mysterious explosions at military and industrial sites in Iran. Three scientists involved in Iran’s nuclear program have been assassinated, and a computer virus called Stuxnet wreaked havoc on the program. As Tehran faces tighter international sanctions, a faltering economy and continued scrutiny of its nuclear program, the country’s justice system has turned its attention to Iranian Americans. There has been a string of arrests of dual nationals in recent years. Typically, Iran charges them with espionage and sometimes shows them on state-run television making “confessions,” under what the detainees later say was duress. Negotiations have usually led to the detainees’ release after several months, sometimes after the announcement of a lengthy prison sentence. But even analysts who believe Hekmati is being used as a bargaining chip say they were taken aback by the swiftness and harshness of his sentence. The U.S. government, which does not have diplomatic relations with Iran, has said that Hekmati is not a spy. The CIA has declined to comment on the case, but Art Keller, a former CIA case officer, said Hekmati does not fit the profile of an undercover agent. “I have a hard time believing that we would send someone over under his true name with his military affiliation well known,” he said. “That’s what you have alias documents for.” The Arizona-born Hekmati served in the Marines from 2001 to 2005 and served in Iraq for five months. In recent years, he had worked as a contractor in Iraq and Afghanistan. His family in Michigan says that Hekmati was in Iran to visit his grandmothers for the first time and that he planned to attend the University of Michigan to study economics. Iranian officials said Hekmati’s execution is a real possibility. “Certainly Hekmati deserves the death sentence,” said Hamid Reza Taraghi, spokesman for the Islamic Engineers coalition, a group of politically active merchants who are close to Iran’s judiciary. He added that the presence of Iranian American dual nationals in Iran posed a security risk. “We should be much more cautious with them. The U.S. is continuing to send people here for espionage missions,” said Taraghi, who has links to Iran’s intelligence community. “We have warned Iranians living abroad not to fall in their trap.” An estimated 250,000 Iranian Americans travel each year to Iran, usually to visit family or conduct private business. Iran typically requires them to travel on Iranian passports; most come and go without incident. In 2007, however, the Tehran government began arresting Iranian American academics. In 2009, it arrested three American hikers and held two of them for two years on accusations of spying. Last January, Iran executed Zahra Bahrami, a dual national from the Netherlands and the first European Union citizen to be executed in decades. Accused of dealing cocaine and participating in anti-government demonstrations, she was hanged only days after losing her appeal. The judge in her case, Abolghassem Salavati, also heads the Hekmati case. For some dual citizens, the arrests have cast a pall on travel to Iran. “I used to go three or four times a year to visit my mother,” said Haleh Esfandiari, an Iran expert at the Woodrow Wilson Center who was jailed for four months in 2007. “After what happened to me, a number of people started to think twice.” Staff researchers Julie Tate and Madonna Lebling in Washington contributed to this report. **More world news coverage:** \- Iranian nuclear scientist killed in Tehran bomb attack \- China denounces ‘Hong Konger’ trend \- North Korea seeks food-for-nukes deal \- Read more headlines from around the world

Wikipedia founder James Wales has floated the idea of a Wikipedia blackout to protest the Stop Online Piracy Act and the Protect IP Act in the past, but has had a renewed burst of interest following the announcement that Reddit — the Web news and aggregation site — will black out its services in protest of online piracy bills Jan. 18. The protest coincides with a House Oversight Committee hearing called by Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) to take a close look at the impact that domain name service and search engine blocking will have on national security and the American Internet community. Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian is among the witnesses listed to testify at the hearing, along with the Rackspace Chief Executive Lanham Napier and several security, technology policy and civil liberties experts. On his user talk page, Wales revisited the idea of taking Wikipedia offline in protest, a tactic that the online encyclopedia has used in the past against an Italian privacy law. Wales has put the decision to the Wikipedia community. “I’m all in favor of it,” he wrote on his personal talk page on the site. “[And] I think it would be great if we could act quickly to coordinate with Reddit. I’d like to talk to our government affairs advisor to see if they agree on this as useful timing, but assuming that’s a greenlight, I think that matching what Reddit does (but in our own way of course) per the emerging consensus on how to do it, is a good idea.” He asked that the community take a vote on whether to protest or not, and soon. “[We] don’t have the luxury of time that we usually have, in terms of negotiating with each other for weeks about what’s exactly the best possible thing to do,” he wrote. In its declaration of protest, Reddit said in a company blog post that it would take down its services for 12 hours Jan. 18 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. “Instead of the normal glorious, user-curated chaos of reddit, we will be displaying a simple message about how the PIPA/SOPA legislation would shut down sites like reddit, link to resources to learn more, and suggest ways to take action,” the company said. “Blacking out reddit is a hard choice, but we feel focusing on a day of action is the best way we can amplify the voice of the community.” Related stories: Venture Beat: Reddit goes black Jan. 18 to protest SOPA & PIPA — Who else will join? Meet the new political elite: Computer programmers Fight against SOPA calls in star power

The high-spending independent groups that have formed to support the presidential candidates may be barred by law from coordinating with the candidates’ campaigns, but that doesn’t mean that their ads can’t sound almost exactly the same. And the average voter probably will never know the difference between an ad from a super PAC and an ad from a campaign. Jon Huntsman’s campaign, for example, wants you to know that “we are getting screwed as Americans” and that the former Utah governor is “the person who’s going to lead the charge . . . and fix the trust deficit.” Words on the screen tout his accomplishments, including that he “created a flat tax.” The so-called “super PAC” backing Huntsman has run ads with a voter saying “the world’s literally collapsing” and asking “where’s the conservative we can trust?” The spot answers “Jon Huntsman” with a list of his accomplishments, including that he “slashed and flattened taxes.” A super PAC backing Rick Santorum known as the Red, White and Blue Fund ran an ad saying that the former senator is a “dedicated defender of the unborn,” “courageous reformer with results” and a “resolute leader in the fight against radical Islam.” A new ad from Santorum’s campaign says “he wrote the law that banned partial-birth abortions, overhauled America’s welfare system, and no one has done more to protect America from Iran’s growing threat.” Stuart Roy, a spokesman for the PAC backing Santorum, said his group looks to polling and the candidate himself for direction. “More or less everyone is looking at the same numbers,” he said. “A corollary to that is that you can obviously see what the candidate is doing, whether it’s on the stump or on the TV.” A 30-second ad that the group launched Saturday in South Carolina includes 17 seconds of Santorum delivering a victory speech after the Iowa caucuses. Super PACs have become a powerful new force in this campaign, funneling large contributions, sometimes of $1 million or more, into advertisements helping the top candidates. They were created as a result of legal changes in the wake of the Supreme Court’s landmark _Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission_ decision. The court found that First Amendment protections for free speech extend to corporations and labor unions that want to spend money on campaign advertisements, as long as the money is spent independent of the campaigns. A lower court found that the decision allowed for unlimited contributions to political groups that are spending money independently. Advocates of restricting money in politics say the parallel messages of campaigns and PACs provide a way for people to gain favor with potential presidents by writing a large check to their super PACs. “This is one more indicator of the fact that the presidential candidate super PACs are simply arms of the presidential campaigns,” said Fred Wertheimer, president of Democracy 21. “The idea that they are independent from the campaigns is nonsense.” Others say that free-speech protections should take precedence and that the contributions are no different than the favor-granting that’s endemic to any political system. “Gratitude is not enough of a justification to abridge First Amendment rights,” said Brad Smith, founder of the Center for Competitive Politics. “It really has to be bribery.” Unless new rules are created, the millions spent by super PACS will probably be indirectly influenced by the candidates, even if the two can’t directly coordinate. Rick Tyler, a consultant with the Winning Our Future group helping Newt Gingrich, said that he often uses public statements to figure out how to best help his candidate. “I dance with the campaign through the media,” Tyler said. “Those are the rules and we’ve followed them.” Winning Our Future is planning a $3.4 million ad campaign in South Carolina focused on Mitt Romney’s record as head of the private equity firm Bain Capital, Tyler said. Gingrich has led the criticism of Romney in the past week. The two sparred in a debate Sunday when Gingrich challenged Romney to denounce an ad by the Restore Our Future super PAC run by Romney’s former aides. “I can’t direct their ads,” Romney said. “If there’s anything in them that’s wrong, I hope they take it out.” While the PAC backing Romney has been running ads attacking Gingrich, Romney’s campaign has stayed largely positive on the air, allowing him to duck criticism for negativity while still benefiting from it. Sometimes groups can do more damage than help, forcing campaigns off message. A group backing Rep. Ron Paul (Tex.) recently put out a video attacking Huntsman as a “Manchurian candidate,” questioning his values, showing clips of him speaking Chinese and holding his adopted children. The Paul campaign was forced to denounce the ad, calling it “utterly distasteful.” **farnamt@washpost.com** For more The Influence Industry columns, visit washingtonpost.com/fedpage

_Adapted from a recentonline discussion. _ _Dear Carolyn:_ _How long does it take for a family to get its groove back after losing a member (to college, not death)? Our daughter left this fall, and my husband, son, and I are missing her tons. Not sure how to establish new routines that don’t include her, we are instead just kind of counting the days till her vacations._ **Missing Molly** Poor Molly. The pressure! It’s nice to be missed, but who wants to be responsible for her family’s groove? Please find something new the three of you can do together. It’s okay even to frame it as something you’d like to introduce Molly to when she’s home on vacation; it is, after all, nice that you miss her, and you also can’t just pretend that you don’t. But if you use that as motivation to get you out of the house and out of the Where’s Molly routine, then at least you’ll be out of the house and out of the old routine. Right? _Re: Molly:_ _Poor Molly indeed. I was my family’s “Molly.” As much as I enjoyed time with my family, the sort of phone calls I got from my mother only made me want to increase the distance. That’s a gigantic psychological burden you’re putting on your daughter. Molly’s trying to grow up, she needs space — not unnecessary pressure from her family. Please, please try to get a handle on it without drawing Molly into it._ **Anonymous** Thanks, Other Molly. _Re: Molly:_ _And PLEASE understand that when Molly comes home, she is likely going to want to sleep until noon, hang out with her friends and get some money (and a little conversation) from you. Don’t be offended; roll with it and don’t make her feel guilty that Mom and Dad are sitting with their faces pressed against the window, waiting for her to come home._ **Anonymous 2** Right. When you see her coming, rush to different places in the house and act busy. _Re: Molly:_ _I came home from college my freshman year and found a new family portrait on the wall with just my parents and younger brother. One of those “matching shirts” pictures. My mom insisted it was the free one they got with the new church directory. I was hurt at the time but think it is funny now._ **Anonymous 3** Was your bed gone from your room and exercise equipment in its place? _Re: Molly:_ _Sheesh. Can we give the new empty-nesters some validation? They’ve basically gone through a breakup — someone who has been in their house the majority of days for her whole life is now not there every day. That will take some adjustment. Little by little, new things will fill in the hole, and they should still give poor Molly some space, but it’s okay to miss their kid._ **Anonymous 4** A child who leaves for college isn’t rejecting anyone; Molly’s departure was an expected step in her natural progression toward adulthood. Plus, I offered validation for their feelings: “It is, after all, nice that you miss her, and you also can’t just pretend that you don’t.” It’s just that the degree to which they’re indulging their feelings is problematic. Write to Carolyn Hax , Style, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071, or tellme@washpost.com. Subscribe at www.facebook.com/carolynhax. **More fromLifestyle:** When your friend becomes Patron Saint of Stressed Mothers @Work Advice: Karla L. Miller looks at where to go when the well runs dry Ask Amy: Caregivers need to be cared for too

WASHINGTON — Despite differences that spurred civil war and cost tens of thousands of lives, the Tamils and the Sinhalese from Sri Lanka have at least one thing in common: a love of tea. But some Tamil Americans say they are cautious when they go to Dupont Circle’s Teaism because their archenemies — the ethnically Sinhalese Sri Lankan Embassy staff — might also be in there sipping Ceylon green from the old country. “We would prefer not to have any big, public arguments right now,” said Vimala Ranjithan, a Tamil American physician who lives in Cumberland, Md. The quarter-century-long civil war between the separatist Tamil Tiger rebel group and the largely Sinhalese Sri Lankan government officially ended in 2009. But halfway around the world, the two groups continue to come to verbal blows, enduring awkward run-ins at seemingly neutral locales. “They can target you,” said Ranjithan, who wears a disguise with sunglasses when she goes to a protest against what she considers the Sri Lankan government’s discrimination against Tamils. She echoes a fear that many Tamil Americans voiced in interviews: that their critical words in Washington could result in the arrest or harassment of relatives back home. Sri Lankan Americans aren’t the only Washingtonians who find themselves avoiding their foes on the streets of downtown Washington. The de facto capital of the world is a high-profile stage for expatriate rivals who, on their own turf, might be engaged in guerrilla warfare. Instead, they avoid one another at suburban strip malls, skirt confrontation at embassy cultural events or duck punches at political meet-ups when fights break out over conflicts that are unfolding thousands of miles away. In Washington’s international circles, the acrimonious relations between long- standing enemies such as India and Pakistan, Palestinians and Israel, and Tibet and China are well-known, not least because they have some of the most organized and well-funded advocacy groups in the country. But the alleged high-profile Iranian plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington while he dined at his favorite restaurant was just one example of the subterfuge and animosities still smoldering just under the city’s surface. From his offices on Capitol Hill, Fred Turner’s job is to focus on how these conflicts unfold on the ground in Washington. “The truth is that Washington still plays an outsize role on the world stage. And what happens in Washington gets reported back to Budapest, Bakou or Berlin. Of course, that amplifies what happens here,” said Turner, deputy chief of staff for the independent U.S. Helsinki Commission, a government agency whose mission is to monitor the frozen conflicts, human rights violations and security breaches in 56 nations in Europe and Central Asia. For example, the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus has a K Street office in Washington. Those who live there consider themselves an independent country, even though the U.S. government does not recognize them as one. It’s known to the rest of the region as occupied Northern Cyprus, separate since Turkish troops invaded in 1974. When the Helsinki Commission recently held a hearing on the destruction of religious property “in Cyprus,” representatives of the Turkish Embassy got upset and asked that the hearing’s name be changed, Turner said. The commission invited the Government of Turkey to participate, but it declined. “We’re looking at these issues here every single day,” Turner said. “Even a simple movie screening has instigated diplomatic fireworks.” One such fireworks display took place recently, when the Sri Lankan Embassy hosted a screening of the government-produced film “Lies Agreed Upon” ****during a briefing in Congress on rebuilding the country. The documentary is a rebuttal of reporting by Britain’s Channel 4 News on alleged war crimes perpetrated by the Sri Lankan government. Tamil American groups in the area quickly voiced objections. Among them was Grace Williams, a Tamil American who came to the United States in 1978. During an interview, she lugs out an encyclopedia-size photography book with the blunt title “Genocide in Sri Lanka.” It includes hundreds of pictures of anti-Tamil riots, chronicles the disappearances of Tamil men and lists names of allegedly assassinated Tamil political party leaders. This isn’t the first time that Williams, 54, a Bowie resident and retired health-care advocate for special-needs children, has been drawn back into the 26-year conflict. After she took part in a summer memorial ceremony outside the Capitol honoring the Tamil dead, someone speaking in the Sinhalese language left a threatening message on her voice mail, she said. “I called both my senators,” said Williams, who is also assistant secretary of the U.S. Tamil Political Action Council, a Tamil activist group. “They shouldn’t be doing this in America. But Washington is where these fights are often fought — Washington is another frontline of these conflicts.” Sri Lankan Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya said in an interview that Tamil American groups are usually fronts for the Tamil Tigers, a rebel movement long on the U.S. list of terrorist organizations. In 2006, the FBI investigated the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization, which has a branch in Cumberland, for allegedly financing the Tamil Tigers through a tsunami relief fund. The U.S. Department of the Treasury shut the charity down when the allegations were substantiated. (Tamil Americans say the accusations were unfair and that funds were indeed used to help victims of the tsunami.) “We work with the U.S. and FBI to try and figure out who is connected and who is not,” said the ambassador, who added that he thinks most Tamil Americans just want to help rebuild the country. “The diaspora is very active in Washington, and it keeps these issues alive, even when people back home have moved on.” Although some of the tensions between international antagonists are high-level and unfold in official channels, they also manifest quietly, as chilly silences or suspicious glances between individuals from warring nations. On a recent evening, Ali Abudul Latif, a cabdriver from northern Sudan, was surprised to find that the new nation of South Sudan, with which his country spent years at war, was holding a conference in Washington. Salva Kiir, the new country’s president, was even speaking at a downtown hotel. Latif fled Sudan because he was a teacher and didn’t want to fight. But when he found himself picking up fares at the very hotel where Kiir, once South Sudan’s top rebel commander, was being feted, it wasn’t the taste of home he was looking for in Washington. “I’m still wishing we could be one nation,” he said as he began to drive. “Washington is far away from home, yet home to so many enemies.” Time has proved as ineffectual as distance in quelling such disputes. In April, members of Washington’s Armenian community held a silent vigil at the Turkish Embassy to commemorate the Armenian genocide of 1915 to 1923. On the other side of the street, vigil participants say, those sympathetic to the Turkish government, which does not acknowledge that the events of the era constituted genocide, waved baseball bats and sang and danced in the streets. The police were called. Turkish people who attended the counter-rally but asked not to be named said they were simply mocking the idea of protesting such an old issue. “It’s totally rude,” said Aram Hamparian, who lives in Bethesda and is executive director of the Washington-based Armenian National Committee of America. “Armenian Americans were deeply hurt to see that allies of Ankara were not simply denying the Armenian genocide but actually celebrating the destruction of an entire nation.” Sometimes verbal confrontations can turn violent. Last year, a brawl erupted at Howard University, which was hosting an outreach forum for the Ethiopian government. A team of delegates sent by Prime Minister Meles Zenawi was on hand to persuade representatives of the economically successful Washington diaspora here to support his five-year development plan. (Washington is home to the world’s largest Ethiopian expatriate community, with more than 100,000 people, and sends millions of dollars back home.) Part of the government’s agenda at the Howard event was to raise money from Ethiopian American business owners for an expensive dam project. That proved a tough sell. Many Ethiopian Americans accuse their home country’s autocratic government of widespread corruption and are active in opposition parties. Some of the business leaders present were holding up signs that read, “No diaspora money for despots with Swiss bank accounts.” Suddenly, a punch was thrown from the government side, witnesses say. “It was so shocking, because it was happening on a Washington campus,” said radio host Abebe Belew, who covered the event and is known as “Ethiopia’s al-Jazeera” for his hard-charging political broadcasts for an Ethiopian diaspora show called “Addis Dimts” (the Ahmaric word for voice) on Centreville-based WTNT. “The police came out. The university had to cancel the whole meeting,” said Belew, who lives in Silver Spring. “It just shows you how important these meetings in Washington can be.” Perversely, many of these combatants are drawn to Washington for the same reason: Its proximity to the U.S. government makes it an ideal base for lobbying efforts. “Our arsenal is not weapons,” said Nick Larigakis, president of the American Hellenic Institute, which promotes U.S. relations with Greece and Cyprus and is often at odds with Turkey’s goals. “It’s having a voice in Washington where we can use the rule of law to provide credibility to our arguments.” Sometimes there are victories. Turkey was allegedly denying religious freedom to Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who is head of the Greek Orthodox minority in Istanbul but also the spiritual leader of all Orthodox Christians. But steady lobbying by the Greek community here to recent administrations helped pressure Turkey to improve religious freedoms there, said Andy Manatos, who, along with his father, Mike Manatos, runs one of Washington’s most powerful lobbyist firms. “Washington is far and away the most effective place if you want your issues addressed,” said Manatos, who focuses on international issues and also does pro-bono work for the Greek Orthodox Church. “If you can convince the most powerful people in the world of the truth of your cause, I know of no place in the world better for advocating your issue.” Sometimes there are further divisions. On Branch Avenue in Prince George’s Country, an Ethiopian church recently opened soon after an Eritrean one — religious outposts of longtime rivals and two of the poorest nations on Earth. “How can you make politics when you are praying to God?” asked Imru Zelleke, a retired Ethiopian ambassador to Germany who lives in Arlington County and heads a civic group that’s trying to bring immigrants from the countries together. In his Pentagon City apartment, amid books about Africa’s tribal divisions, Zelleke shook his head. “It’s the same religion. It’s just absurd and a waste of money,” he said. “We could be sending that money to help our countries. I thought we got over this when we came to Washington.” But on a cold December day, on the cobblestone streets of Old Town Alexandria, the Tamil American community said their fight was far from over. They were holding up signs that read, “Victoria’s Dirty Little Secret” and “Big GAP in ethics” in front of Banana Republic and the Gap, warning shoppers to check labels, lest they buy clothing made in Sri Lanka, where they say human rights violations are continuing and Tamils are being forced off their land by the government. “We need jobs in America, not in a country accused of war crimes,” they chanted. The wind was piercing, but under a banner that read “Stop Tamil Genocide” they had their cause to keep them warm. And Williams and the other protesters were there, dressed in oversize hats and sunglasses — just in case the enemy was watching.

_Benjamin Wittes is a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution and a member of the Hoover Institution’s Task Force on National Security and Law. He is the author of “Detention and Denial: The Case for Candor After Guantanamo” and a co-founder of the blog Lawfare._ This week marks the 10th anniversary of the opening of the U.S. detention facility at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the hand-wringing is in high gear. There have been op-eds by former detainees, a statement by retired military personnel, denunciations of President Obama for his failure to close the site and tear-stained statements by human rights groups. In a decade of policy experimentation at Guantanamo, some efforts have succeeded, some have failed tragically and some are still in process. But far more interesting than the past 10 years is what the next 10 will look like. And that subject seems oddly absent from the current conversation. Make no mistake: There will be another 10 years of Guantanamo. (Even if Guantanamo itself miraculously closes, we’ll have to build it again somewhere else.) Our forces already hold more detainees than they can safely release or put on trial before any tribunal to which this country would attach its name. And in any future conflict against non-state actors, our forces are likely to capture more of such people, and they will have to put them somewhere. If the United States is lucky, we may be able to reduce the number of detainees further than the combined efforts of the George W. Bush and Obama administrations have so far managed. But we will not eliminate it, and even if we could, we cannot guarantee that we will not replenish it all of a sudden in some future, spasmodic set of military operations abroad. America needs principles for Guantanamo’s next decade — principles that might form the basis for a national policy that commands support from a wide swath of our political system. Here are three suggestions toward that end. First, the president must face the fact that the effort to close Guantanamo has failed. It is clear that no conceivably electable presidential administration — including the Obama administration — is going to abandon the military detention of terror suspects. It is also clear that Congress has an irrationally strong preference for handling this detention at Guantanamo, that legislators will frustrate any efforts by the administration to create or use alternative sites, and that the executive branch will not exert the political effort necessary to stare Congress down on this point. This is actually a rational calculation on Obama’s part. The marginal political gain he would net from closing Guantanamo and building some other site for the same purpose — a site that would quickly acquire similar infamy — just isn’t great enough to justify the intense political energy it would require to achieve Guantanamo’s closure. What’s more, much of the president’s political base — not being stupid — has figured out that closure doesn’t mean all that much if detainees are moved rather than freed. So why not stop pretending that Guantanamo’s closure is still meaningfully part of the plan? Second, detention at Guantanamo has become rich with due process, and we should embrace this model for a wider array of long-term counterterrorism detentions. Detainees at Guantanamo have access to habeas corpus. They have access to lawyers. And those who lose their cases have a robust review process that will reexamine their cases regularly. Ironically, while Guantanamo remains controversial, U.S. detainees elsewhere in the world have much less process available to them. Instead of clamoring for a useless closure that isn’t going to happen anyway, we should think about which detainees, including those held in theater in Afghanistan and those we have sometimes held on ships, we might prefer to bring to Guantanamo and hold under its rules. These guidelines have actually served the executive branch well by creating legitimacy and judicial sign-off for detentions that had once been executive-only affairs. Third, non-criminal detention is a fluid business that requires flexibility. Public myths aside, detention at Guantanamo has not usually meant detention forever. Opportunities to press charges against detainees will sometimes arise. Opportunities to transfer them abroad come up more often. We learn about errors, and new information has often triggered releases. Yet just as the administration has avoided acknowledging Guantanamo’s ongoing role, many in Congress from both parties have been in denial about the importance of transfers from the facility. Congress has made transfers terribly difficult and thereby all but guaranteed that the administration will not use the base for future cases. This is wrongheaded. Guantanamo is a detention facility, not a lobster trap, and a detention facility where detentions can’t end helps nobody. The ability to free detainees must be unencumbered for any detention policy to work well. Put these three principles together and you get something — process-rich, flexible detention at Guantanamo Bay — that looks like a detention policy for the coming decade. Working toward such a policy, not endlessly picking at the scab of the past 10 years, should be the focus of today’s discussion. **More on this subject** On 10th anniversary, Guantanamo Bay’s future is unclear Guantanamo Bay timeline Editorial: Getting tough on Gitmo restrictions

One thing we’ve learned since the Republican primary season began: There’s an awful lot of pious baloney out there. The vast majority of it is on the plate of the man who coined the phrase — Newt Gingrich. Not that he’s dining alone. Gingrich first tossed the holy lunch meat on the counter during one of the New Hampshire debates after Mitt Romney tried to aver that he never set out to be a career politician. He was a businessman first, he said, who found his way to politics. Gingrich, who has declared war on Romney, all but called the former Massachusetts governor a liar, and not for the first time. Fast-forward a few days, and Romney’s rivals have seized the baloney and slathered it with holy hoo-ha. Some of them are frankly making fools of themselves by taking his comment about firing people waaaaay out of context and using it to characterize him as a job killer. The intended deception is obvious to anyone who has been following recent events and is so transparently dishonest as to be embarrassing. To recap: Romney was speaking to an audience about health care and the necessity of being able to select one’s own insurance company. His complete quote went as follows: “I want individuals to have their own insurance. That means the insurance company will have an incentive to keep you healthy. It also means that if you don’t like what they do, you can fire them. I like being able to fire people who provide services to me. You know, if someone doesn’t give me the good service I need, I want to say, ‘You know, I’m going to go get somebody else to provide that service to me.’ ” That’s plain enough, right? Not if you’re Jon Huntsman or Rick Perry, both of whom are trying to capitalize on the idea that Romney likes to fire people. They’ve selected a few words — “I like being able to fire people” — and turned them into a mantra. Not that that’s a ringing indictment. Some people deserve to be fired, but these GOP mudslingers are insisting a man who even considers firing people can’t possibly be trusted to create jobs. At least Gingrich, Ron Paul and Rick Santorum have declined to join the club of Mr. Sillys. When asked what he thought about Romney’s comment, Gingrich replied, “As soon as I saw the whole quote, I said that’s not fair to take it out of context. He clearly was talking about the right to choose between service providers, you know, he wasn’t talking about actually firing people, per se.” For lack of a better word: Duh. But the job-killing idea has picked up additional sauce, sticking as we are with the baloney theme, with criticism that Romney’s leadership of Bain Capital also resulted in some people losing their jobs. Indeed they did. That’s what happens sometimes when companies are purchased, salvaged from poor management, revamped and, assuming competence at the top, made profitable. Since when in a free, capitalist nation is it a sin to buy a company and turn a profit? Now comes ThinkProgress, a progressive political blog, which is rolling out a series of Old West-style wanted posters highlighting elements of Romney’s record. The first one, “Wanted: Willard Mitt Romney, Job Killer,” has already been released, Politico reports. A pro-Gingrich super PAC, meanwhile, is pushing a film leading up to the Jan. 21 South Carolina primary that criticizes Romney’s Bain experience, thanks to a $5 million donation from Las Vegas casino owner Sheldon Adelson. Nothing baloney — or pious — about that. (By midweek, after critics pointed out that he was beginning to sound more like President Obama than a conservative, Gingrich began backing off, though perhaps too late.) Romney can be criticized for lots of things, including his tin-eared attempts to get down with the people. Recently, he said that he, too, had worried about getting a pink slip. Gingrich might justifiably have called that baloney. The millionaire’s son may be driven to make his own way, but his employment insecurity can’t compare to what most jobless Americans experience. But to nitpick his success, or to suggest that firing people for lousy service disqualifies him from being president is an insult to all those everyday Americans who really aren’t as dumb as these GOP candidates apparently think, as New Hampshire voters demonstrated. Sometimes people need to be fired, and sometimes they shouldn’t be hired at all. That’s reality. The further, obvious reality is that several of those who do not deserve to have the job they seek are running for president of the United States. **_kathleenparker@washpost.com _ ** **More from PostOpinions** Robinson: Romney’s clear road ahead Milbank: Kamikaze Gingrich on the loose Dionne: Romney’s style of capitalism Rubin: The Gingrich backlash hits S.C.

CHARLESTON, S.C. They are nearing 70 now, the 11 men who were 12-year-old boys in 1955 and who are remembered for the baseball games they could not play. They were — actually, with their matching blue blazers and striped ties, they still are — members of the Cannon Street All Stars. The Cannon Street YMCA is near the Ashley River, which flows toward the harbor and Fort Sumter. The unpleasantness that started there in 1861 had left pertinent questions unsettled 94 years later, when the All Stars, all African Americans, decided to enter this city’s Little League tournament. Charleston canceled the tournament because blacks and whites simply did not play together. Actually, they did, all the time, in informal settings, on vacant lots. “Kids do not mess up the world, adults do,” says Leroy Major, 69, the All Stars’ pitcher and a retired schoolteacher. Never mind, said the All Stars’ coach, who entered them in the state tournament in Greenville. That was too much for the 61 white teams, who withdrew. Well then, said the coach, we will head for Rome, Ga., and the regional tournament, where the winners of eight Southern state tournaments would compete to see which would go to the Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pa. Those running things at Rome said the Cannon Street team could not compete because it had advanced by forfeit. But the national Little League organization decided it wasn’t the Cannon Street All Stars’ fault that no one would play them, so it invited them to Williamsport as honored guests. For many of them, it was their first venture away from Charleston, exciting and a bit worrisome, because the route north passed through areas where the Ku Klux Klan was restive. When the All Stars settled into the stands at Williamsport, the crowd began to chant, “Let them play!” Vermont Brown, 68, an Army veteran and former Lockheed Martin employee, who still is about the size of a Little Leaguer, remembers that when he and his teammates saw the teams warming up on the field, “We knew we would have kicked their butts.” They probably would have, given the pitching of Major. He is a former Marine who is about twice Brown’s size. A mountain of Christian serenity, he works with his church, practicing what the summer of 1955 taught him: “Move on.” The spring chicken among the Cannon Street All Stars organization is Augustus Holt, 65. He was too young to play with them but is now the team historian. He became interested in the events of 1955 when his son played Dixie Youth Baseball, whose uniforms had the Confederate battle flag on their sleeves. Dixie Youth Baseball, which has removed the flag, came into existence when Little League organizations in eight Southern states seceded from the national Little League after 1955. Its Official Rule Guide stated: “The Organizers hereof are of the opinion it is for the best interest of all concerned that this program be on a racially segregated basis; they believe that mixed teams and competition between the races would create regrettable conditions and destroy the harmony and tranquility which now exists.” Dixie Youth Baseball, which in 1967 removed that from its charter, has produced major leaguers Bo Jackson, Tom Gordon, Reggie Sanders and Otis Nixon, all African Americans. The year the Cannon Street All Stars won without playing was the year after _Brown v. Board of Education_ , and the summer before the December when, 370 miles from here, Rosa Parks refused to move to the back of a Montgomery, Ala., bus. As the boys were on the night bus trip back from Pennsylvania, a 14-year- old Chicago boy, Emmett Till, visiting his relatives in Mississippi, was seized from his bed and murdered. “We haven’t seen the best of it yet,” says John Rivers, 69, the All Stars’ shortstop who later studied architecture at Hampton Institute and Columbia University and today has offices in Atlanta and Columbus, Ga. “The country’s always getting better.” It speaks well of these spry gentlemen of nearly three score and ten that, without a trace of bitterness, they are determined to keep telling their story for the benefit of old people who only dimly remember it, and for the edification of young people who cannot imagine it. It speaks well of the nation that, without gentle reminders by people like the men in the blue blazers, it has difficulty remembering the way things were. **_georgewill@washpost.com _ ** ****

A YEAR AGO, Virginia Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) proposedslashing millions of dollars from the state’s already badly fragmented and underfunded programs for at-risk children and teenagers. The cuts targeted funding for specially trained foster families and other services for children, including some who posed a danger of violence to themselves and others. The cuts were rejected, and funding restored, thanks to a bipartisan group of lawmakers responding to an outcry from advocacy groups and local governments, which would have borne the brunt of the governor’s proposal. In the end, the debate turned a useful spotlight on a critical hole in the state’s social services safety net. In the biennial budget he has just proposed, Mr. McDonnell made no similar run at mental health services for children. But if last year’s tangle showed anything, it was that maintaining even the status quo is itself a risk, given the severe shortcomings in services offered by the state, which have been compounded by deep cuts in funding by localities. Fairfax County, for example, has cut about 10 percent from its main mental health agency’s $150 million budget since 2008. Funding for troubled children and teenagers has long been meager compared to similar (and still modest) programs for adults, whose mental health problems are better recognized by lawmakers. After the 2007 massacre at Virginia Tech, the state’s mental health system for adults was revamped and received new funding. But public programs for children and teenagers were more or less ignored, despite drastic state underfunding. An estimated 1 in 5 U.S. children suffers a mental health disorder; of that population, only a fifth get the services and treatment they need, experts say. In practice, that means many Virginia parents, even in wealthy jurisdictions like Fairfax, find it difficult and often impossible to get prompt and adequate attention for teenagers and children who exhibit danger signs until a full-blown crisis erupts. Even then, the options can be maddeningly limited for out-of-control kids. That’s especially true for families hoping to find treatment and support in the community and thus avoid the trauma and dislocation of a psychiatric hospital far from home. Advocates for troubled youths and their families are seeking a modest fix that would mark an enormous improvement in the state’s spotty services. A coalition of groups called the Campaign for Children’s Mental Health has proposed that the state establish small, rapid-response teams, including psychiatrists and clinicians who would provide prevention techniques along with treatment. The teams could quickly intervene in crises at homes, schools or juvenile jails — in some cases offering short-term stays in small stabilization units — that could defuse volatile situations before youngsters require expensive hospitalizations. The cost and scope of such a program, estimated by advocates at less than $20 million, is obviously subject to negotiation in what is sure to be a tough budget year in Richmond. But it’s clearly a proposal that merits a serious hearing. ****

We made a remarkable push in the last few days of this year’s fundraising campaign for Children’s National Medical Center, and if in the end we didn’t quite reach our $400,000 goal, we still raised a very respectable amount: **$327,861.32**. If you donated, thank you. I also want to thank the groups of area employees, neighbors, hobbyists, students and others who pooled their money for Children’s. For the 44th year in a row, **Lois Kelso Hunt** and her neighbors in Alexandria’s Shooter’s Hill did “ecumenical caroling,” raising $1,171 in memory of Lois’s late son, **Nathaniel**. Each year a group of kids in Chevy Chase D.C. puts on an hour-long version of “A Christmas Carol” in the cafeteria of Blessed Sacrament School. They call themselves the **Northampton Street Players** and pass Scrooge’s hat around to take a collection. This year they raised $531.25. God bless us, everyone! Here are other group donors (if I’ve omitted your group, please let me know): **Disabled American Veterans,** Washington office ($6,202.57) **United Airlines mechanics,** Dulles ($795) **Air Line Pilots Association, International,** Herndon and Washington offices ($886) **Montgomery Gentlemen** ($200) **Women’s Life Insurance Society,** Unit 3 ($100) **Army Navy Country Club Duplicate Bridge Club** ($150) **The MALL** women’s bridge group ($69) **Somerset Women’s Bridge Club,** Fairfax ($115) **Matthew 25 Fund, George Mason University’s Catholic Campus Ministry,** in memory of **Jimmy O’Neill** ($745) **McLean Monday Bridge Group** ($125) **Wiley Rein LLP,** Washington ($500) **Locke Lord LLP,** Washington ($250) **Joyful Heart Yoga,** Vienna ($760) **Garden Grooming,** in memory of **Sophie Bea Shimm** ($435) **Management Analysis** ($1,487.55) **Green Thumb Garden Club of Ravensworth Farm** ($145) **Long and Foster Real Estate,** Burtonsville ($183) **The Monday Group,** trade association chief executive networking group ($1,475) **Mrs. Forbrich’s class, Lake Seneca Elementary School,** Germantown ($150) **Colmar Manor Seniors Club** ($100) **Laureate Kappa chapter of Beta Sigma Phi** ($25) Thanks also to my colleague **Gerri Marmer** , who handles the accounting on this end, and to the many Children’s patients, parents, doctors and nurses who shared their stories. All of the money we raised goes to the hospital’s uncompensated care fund, which pays the bills of underinsured children. Will all doctors’ assistants and waiters please heed me? To wit: Doctors’ assistants, why when I go to my primary care physician and am shuttled into the examination room to await the MD, do you take my blood pressure, write it down _and then refuse to tell me what it is_? Is it a secret? Is it so high or so low that the mere mention of it will send me into shock? And waiters, why when you have rattled off that evening’s dinner specials — seared, black pepper-encrusted ahi tuna with a watercress confit served atop a bed of field greens and drizzled with a reduction of Ovaltine — do you _refuse to tell me what it costs?_ Is it a secret? Is it so high or so low that the mere mention of it will send me into shock? I think we’re entitled to this information. Laurel’s **Tony Glaros** spent the holidays in Ocean City, where, as he took his morning walks along a nearly deserted Coastal Highway, he spied reminders that it was another slow winter at the beach: A sign outside 7-Eleven read, “Restrooms are available for customers,” instead of what it reads at the height of summer: “Customers are strictly forbidden from using the restrooms.” In front of a miniature golf course: “Unlimited golf all day! Free ice cream!” And on the marquee of a real estate office: “Give thanks to a market where prices are so low. Interest rates have never been this good.” Wonders Tony: “Can Memorial Day be that far away?” I worked my way through college 30 years ago delivering pictures to Colorfax photo stores around the D.C. area. We delivery drivers had a fleet of Ford Pintos at our disposal, eventually upgraded to . . . Chevettes. The options extended no further than an AM radio in each car. The only thing that kept me sane as I stewed in D.C. traffic each afternoon was listening to **Bill Trumbull** and **Chris Core** on WMAL. Theirs was a gently funny program: Top 40 music and the sort of light, friendly banter that wouldn’t last five minutes on today’s WMAL, which is full of right-wing nutjobs unspooling their wacky conspiracy theories. Trumbull died Tuesday at 77. It was nice having him in the car with me all those years ago.

ECUADOREAN PRESIDENT Rafael Correa, an autocratic acolyte of Hugo Chavez who is usually and deservedly ignored outside of his own country, will get a little attention Thursday when he hosts Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. As he basks in the aura of a more notorious international pariah, allow us to recount what Mr. Correa really ought to be known for: the most comprehensive and ruthless assault on free media underway in the Western Hemisphere. On Friday, after the Iranian’s departure, the National Court of Justice in Quito is due to hear a final appeal by three directors of one of Latin America’s most venerable newspapers, El Universo, which Mr. Correa is on the verge of destroying. In July, the paper’s three directors — brothers Carlos, Cesar and Nicolas Perez — and editorial editor Emilio Palacio were sentenced to three years in prison as a result of a defamation lawsuit brought by Mr. Correa. The editors and their newspaper were also fined a total of $40 million — enough to force its shutdown. The “crime” that prompted the president’s lawsuit was a column by Mr. Palacio, titled “No to the Lies,” that harshly criticized Mr. Correa’s provocative behavior during a police uprising. The handling of the case by the judiciary was, alas, worthy of a banana republic. After four changes of judge, a “temporary” magistrate took over the case, held one hearing, and — 33 hours after his appointment — issued the 156-page ruling. A subsequent independent investigation determined that he did not write it, and that the author was probably Mr. Correa’s attorney. Though Mr. Chavez, Venezuela’s president, has taken over most of the television and radio media in his country, even he has not dared to attack historic newspapers like El Universo, which was founded in 1921 in Ecuador’s coastal business capital, Guayaquil, and is widely respected across the region. Mr. Correa’s attempt to control the media has been comprehensive: The government has gone from owning one radio station when he took office in 2007 to managing five television channels, four radio stations, two newspapers and four magazines. Journalists who dare to be critical are targeted with defamation suits filed by the president, who attends hearings and sometimes tweets rulings before they are announced. Last month, the editor of another newspaper, Hoy, was sentenced to three months in jail after he refused to name the author of unsigned articles reporting on influence-peddling by a central bank director who is Mr. Correa’s second cousin. Two other journalists face a presidential demand for $10 million in damages for a book documenting hundreds of millions of dollars in government contracts given to Mr. Correa’s brother. Not surprisingly, Mr. Correa has been criticized by the Organization of American States’s Special Rapporteur on Freedom of Expression. His response has been an attempt to strip funding and powers from the office. OAS ambassadors should reject this insidious measure when it comes up for consideration this month. A more appropriate OAS action would be a review of Ecuador under the Inter American Democratic Charter. ****

On a car-clogged avenue that runs toward thelair of legislative frustration, in a building wallpapered with headlines such as “Fire displaces families” and “Divorce turns deadly” and “Guantanamo forever,” in front of a giant backdrop that reads “Stress in America: Our Health at Risk,” the American Psychological Association reminded America that America is stressed. Or, rather, that 22 percent of 1,226 U.S. residents reported extreme stress in an online survey conducted by a market research firm in the summer. Moderate stress has eroded microscopically since last year’s survey (from 5.4 to 5.2 on a 10-point scale), although Americans are reporting that their stress has increased over time, and D.C. residents feel more overwhelmed by stress than the rest of the United States even as they report more satisfaction with their lives than adults nationwide, and who’s got a cigarette? Okay. Take a deep breath. This being Washington, a panel of experts was on hand at the Newseum on Wednesday morning to regurgitate and extrapolate the findings of the APA’s annual “Stress in America” report and to divine some cogent takeaways from the data. Takeaway 1: Life involves money, work and relationships. Takeaway 2: Money, work and relationships cause stress. Takeaway 3: Stress causes chronic illness. Takeaway 4: Chronic illness causes death. Therefore, one might conclude, life causes death. Evidence supporting this theory is perhaps more efficiently obtained by glancing over this newspaper’s obituaries than by hiring a market research firm to interrupt tense family dinners to inquire about levels of anxiety. But back to our serene panel. “You have to have an understanding that stress is killing you before you can” do anything about it, said Katherine C. Nordal, executive director for professional practice at the APA. Stress has been shown to actually cause brain shrinkage, said Norman B. Anderson, chief executive of the APA. Stress can be a good thing — a motivator, a survival mechanism — until it reaches levels at which the body can’t cope with haywire hormones, whipsawing enzymes and misfiring neurotransmitters. Then stress becomes a health problem. Then it becomes high blood pressure, heart disease, obesity, diabetes, depression, cardiac arrest, insomnia, death, death, death. Out of the cradle endlessly rocking in the fetal position. Stress is one of those things that Americans will always read and talk about — the others being commute times and Angelina Jolie — but not necessarily mitigate. The APA survey found that only 29 percent of adults believe they are doing a good job managing or reducing stress. Take another deep breath. The first known textual use of the word “stress” was in Line 2,798 of “Handlyng Synne,” a penitential book of Middle English verse published around 1303 by the monk Robert Mannyng. _[Y]yf [th]ou dedyst hyt. . . without-oute stresse or ou[th]er ylle . . . _ Here the word means “coercion, pressure,” according to the folks at Merriam-Webster, who used brackets to denote phonetic transcriptions of letters not available on modern keyboards. In the 1930s, Viennese endocrinologist Hans Selye defined stress as we know it today, according to the American Institute of Stress, and began his pioneering studies by injecting ovarian extracts into lab rats, whose over-stimulated adrenal glands caused the deterioration of the thymus glands, resulting in ulcers and — wait for it — death. He used these experiments to determine that an overstressed hormonal system could result in conditions such as heart disease or high blood pressure. A June 1983 issue of Time magazine called stress “the epidemic of the ’80s.” (The cure was not “Chicken Soup for the Soul.”) In 2012, at least one book exploring the study or management of stress will be published every week, according to Amazon listings. Back to the Newseum. Proclaiming that stress is a national health crisis that’s killing us — isn’t that a stress-inducing tactic? Well, yeah, said Suzanne Bennett Johnson, president of APA. “The problem is so profound that we need to wake people up to this,” Johnson said. “Some stress is good if it motivates people to say, ‘I need to do something.’ ” In other words, she stressed that it’s time to stress about stress before stress stresses us out.

CAIRO — Leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt’s most powerful political force, say they want to offer the country’s ruling generals immunity from prosecution for alleged crimes committed since they took power in February, an attempt to ensure that the military returns to its barracks and allows a peaceful transition to democratic rule. The tactic is part of a bid by the Brotherhood, the country’s largest Islamist group, to use its success in ongoing parliamentary elections to offer some compromises to help ease the military out of power. In interviews this week, Brotherhood officials said they intend to pass legislation that will curb the military’s powers to arrest and try civilians, authority that critics say the generals have used to excess in the past 11 months. But the Brotherhood will also try to reassure them that they will not end up on trial like their former boss, Hosni Mubarak, the officials said. It’s a high-risk strategy that could backfire, jeopardizing the Brotherhood’s electoral gains and allowing critics to cast its leaders as pawns of the military. And Brotherhood officials said they would offer immunity only if they receive the consent of the families of about 100 protesters killed since February, a step they acknowledge will be difficult. Secular political activists, who didn’t fare as well in the elections, pointed to the suggestion of immunity as evidence of a deal between the Muslim Brotherhood and the ruling military council and proof that the Brotherhood had turned on Egypt’s revolutionaries. “The military will have a secure exit and a guarantee of autonomy in exchange for handing over the country to the Muslim Brotherhood,” said Hala Mustapha, a spokeswoman for the Egyptian Social Democratic Party. For decades, the military has been a central pillar of Egypt’s society and economy. But the brutal security crackdowns that have scarred the post- revolution transition have chipped away at the generals’ popularity. And the Brotherhood, which was hesitant to join the 18-day revolution last winter, has drawn scorn from some Egyptians for being slow to condemn abuses by the military. But Mahmoud Ghozlan, the Brotherhood’s top spokesman and a member of its executive office, made clear that the group is determined to put an end to the generals’ leadership of the country. “When the military interferes in matters of politics, dictatorship takes deeper root,” he said in a wide-ranging interview Tuesday. “For Egypt, we want military rule that started in 1952 to end and for power to be transferred to an elected civilian authority so we can enjoy freedom, democracy and human rights.” The U.S. government shunned the Brotherhood for decades. But on Wednesday, Deputy Secretary of State William Burns met with the head of the Brotherhood’s Freedom and Justice Party, Mohammed Morsi, in the highest-level meeting of a U.S. official with the Islamist powerhouse. During the meeting, Morsi told Burns that the party was committed to human rights, and that, in the wake of the Arab Spring revolts, the United States must change its position on “Arab and Islamic issues,” a statement from the party said. The military rulers’ tough response to protesters who have accused them of clinging to power suggests that any direct conflict with the generals would lead to chaos and make it more difficult to force them from power, Ghozlan said. Instead, giving immunity to the top generals, once part of Mubarak’s ruling elite, could reassure them and encourage them to step down rather than fight to preserve their political and economic interests, Ghozlan said in the Brotherhood’s new headquarters in southern Cairo. In a separate interview, Mohammed Beltagy, a leading member of the Freedom and Justice Party who is set to serve in the next parliament, said the matter of immunity must be discussed with the families of slain protesters and would be pursued only if they agree. “This is up to the families of the martyrs to decide,” he said. The Brotherhood was the most formidable opposition force in Mubarak’s Egypt, though the autocratic ruler kept tight control over the movement and thousands of its members, including Ghozlan, were arrested and tortured. Despite that uneasy status, the Brotherhood has often tried to work from within the system to forge change rather than confront the establishment, and its dealings with the military, including the immunity proposal, reflect that, said Khalil al-Anani, an expert on Islamist movements at Durham University in England. Election results this week are expected to confirm that the group’s political wing won nearly half of the seats in the lower house of parliament, known as the People’s Assembly, and analysts say the Brotherhood’s members won’t let anything jeopardize their long fight to attain power. “They will not sacrifice their historical interests to appease or satisfy the public,” Anani said. “The Brotherhood believes they paid the price over the last few decades to gain this moment.” But its dominant role in the first post-revolution parliament will also make the Brotherhood accountable during a difficult period of uncertainty, instability and a faltering economy. “We are entering an important test,” Beltagy said, acknowledging that Egyptians are expecting rapid change. “This leaves us with burdens that are greater than our resources,” Beltagy said in his Cairo office. “Maybe people’s faith in us will buy us time. The party recently backed off demands that the new parliament, scheduled to be seated Jan. 23, be allowed to appoint a prime minister. Instead, party officials said they would work within the military’s timeline, with political power to be handed off to an elected president by June 30. But the Brotherhood is holding firm on its demand that Egypt’s new constitution be written once the president is elected and the army cedes power. “We believe in having presidential elections before the constitution is drafted, so that the constitution is drafted under the authority of an elected civilian power rather than under the authority of the military council,” Beltagy said. The military rulers have made clear that they want a role in drafting the constitution. “The military has one job, and it is protecting national security,” Ghozlan said. “It should not interfere in politics, not up close and not from afar.” He also denied allegations that the Brotherhood and the military had struck a deal. “There are no deals between us and them,” Ghozlan said. Special correspondent Ingy Hassieb contributed to this report. **More world news coverage:** \- Iranian nuclear scientist killed in Tehran bomb attack \- China denounces ‘Hong Konger’ trend \- North Korea seeks food-for-nukes deal \- Read more headlines from around the world

Uber, the well-publicized San Francisco start-up that offers luxury transportation though a smartphone app, could be in regulatory peril less than a month after its D.C. debut. In an interview Wednesday, D.C. Taxicab Commission Chairman Ron Linton said that Uber appears to be flouting volumes of city taxi and limousine regulations. The company is not registered with the commission, he said, and it is not clear whether its drivers are properly licensed. His comments came shortly after a commission meeting Wednesday, during which taxi drivers raised concerns about the new service. Travis Kalanick, Uber’s chief executive officer, said Wednesday that he is confident his company is following all requisite laws and regulations. He noted that Uber does not directly own cars or employ drivers. Uber is trying to occupy a market space somewhere between the taxi and the limousine. Uber rides are metered, like a taxi, using a proprietary smartphone-based system. But it is offering limo-level services in luxury sedans at a premium price: a $7 base charge, plus a $3.25 per mile and 75 cents a minute. City regulations don’t have much to say about such a creature. If Uber were running taxis, it would have to use commission-approved time-and-distance meters and commission-set rates, and its drivers would have to hold hack licenses. If Uber were running limos, each trip would need a price set in advance and drivers would have to hold chauffeur licenses. Uber operates a system that connects riders via smartphone with limousine companies that have contracts with Uber but are otherwise independent businesses. Those companies and their drivers, Kalanick said, are required by contract to have all the requisite licenses, registrations and insurance limo drivers are required to have. Kalanick and Uber’s D.C. manager, Rachel Holt, said that they “had conversations” with representatives of the Taxicab Commission seeking clarification about D.C. regulations before Uber’s public launch Dec. 15. “We would not have launched in D.C. if we were not confident and comfortable that we were doing right by the regulations and by our customers,” Kalanick said. But Linton said he has “no record they ever approached our commission” about any aspect of doing business in the city. “No one has ever reached out to me from Uber,” he added. “Who are these guys kidding?” Kalanick said the conversations took place “at a lower level” with commission staff. The District’s mayor has broad authority under law to “issue any reasonable rule relating to the supervision of passenger vehicles for hire he or she considers necessary for the protection of the public.” As those regulations stand, Uber cars would seem to fall under the definition of limousine — “motor vehicle carrying passengers for hire in the District, designed to carry fewer than nine (9) passengers, excluding the driver, with three (3) or more doors, other than a taxicab, coach, or wheelchair accessible van, and not permitted to accept street hails from prospective passengers in the street.” This is not the first time Uber has run into regulatory questions. In October 2010, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency and the California Public Utilities Commission issued a cease-and-desist order against the company’s San Francisco operations, but Uber has addressed the concerns and pressed on. “We’re still operating in San Francisco and doing quite well out here,” said Kalanick, who added that he’ll be contacting Linton to address any concerns about Uber’s operations. “We have an office in D.C. We’re working with local businesses. We want to show them we’re operating within the regulations.”

Regarding the the Jan. 1 front-page article “Homicides fall in D.C., tick up in Pr. George’s”: A statistician would have another take on these numbers. The changes from 2010 to 2011 in the number of homicides in Prince George’s County (93 to 97), Montgomery (17 to 16), Howard (4 to 5), Charles (2 to 2), Calvert (0 to 1), Alexandria (3 to 1), Loudoun (1 to 1), and Arlington (1 to 0) are statistically insignificant. The changes in St. Mary’s County (5 to 1), Fairfax (16 to 8), and Prince William (9 to 6) may be significant, but it’s hard to tell with so few homicides. Only the change in the District (132 to 109) is statistically significant. Furthermore, the change in the number of homicides in the Washington area (283 to 247) is also statistically significant. If you were to take into account the additional fact that the population in the area grew somewhat over the past year, the change in the homicide rate is even more impressive. Why not headline this article with the news that the homicide rate has stayed the same or dropped over the entire Washington area except for some random variation? With political polls, you are willing to admit that a difference of a couple of percentage points between candidates is statistically insignificant. Why not do the same for crime statistics? ****Wendell Wagner Jr.,** Greenbelt**

The documentary world has been abuzz this week with the news that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is changing its Oscar rule yet again for the long-vexed documentary feature category. To be eligible for a Best Documentary Oscar, movies now must be reviewed by either the New York Times or the Los Angeles Times during a qualifying theatrical run of at least one week in both cities. In addition, the academy will send DVD screeners or stream films online for documentary branch members four times a year, rather than require that they see the films in theaters, as has been the case in the past. A short­ list of eligible films and the final five nominees will be voted on by the entire branch of 166 documentary filmmakers, rather than by selection committees. Finally, the entire academy will vote on the final Oscar winner — putting nonfiction films in the same realm as the movies that compete for Best Picture. (Qualifying films still must play for at least one week in Manhattan and Los Angeles, accompanied by ad campaigns in the New York Times, the L.A. Times, the Village Voice or L.A. Weekly.) Nearly every year, the academy has tweaked and refined the rule governing documentary submissions, often following outcries about an opaque and labyrinthine selection process that results in newsworthy omissions. But this year’s modifications are different, having been suggested by academy governor and filmmaker Michael Moore, whose 1989 film “Roger & Me” was notoriously snubbed by the academy, along with Errol Morris’s “The Thin Blue Line,” Steve James’s “Hoop Dreams” and Terry Zwigoff’s “Crumb,” among several others. (This year’s most talked-about oversights were the highly regarded films “Senna” and “The Interrupters.”) In many quarters, Moore’s changes have been met with enthusiasm by filmmakers and fans who have long lamented the Oscar branch’s unwieldy structure and arcane guidelines, which made it difficult to screen the large number of entries (124 films qualified for consideration in 2011). The process was so time-consuming and inconvenient that, historically, only retirees had the time to commit to it, resulting in nominees and winners that were often deemed too safe, too conventional and, as documentaries began achieving purchase in the marketplace, woefully out of step with audiences. “Tightening the definition of what a theatrical film is will also help this other part of the process, where the whole branch is obligated to look at all the entries,” said Ric Robertson, chief operating officer of the Academy. “Hopefully . . . that 124 number goes down, making it more workable for our branch members, too.” But if streamlining the viewing and voting processes bodes well, plenty of nonfiction filmmakers expressed concern — if not outrage — at the rule requiring a New York Times or L.A. Times review, noting that films such as “Semper Fi: Always Faithful,” which is on this year’s short list, would not have qualified (the film played at the Silverdocs documentary festival in 2011). “No distributor stepped forward to give it a theatrical release, but you cannot tell me that ‘Semper Fi’ is not a film,” said Josh Levin, a documentary producer who also co-owns the West End Cinema. “It is a film by every definition: by film festival definition, film viewer definition, artistic definition.” On Sunday, Moore told the Web trade publication Indie­Wire that part of his rationale for insisting on reviews from only two newspapers is to winnow out made-for-TV movies that qualified for Oscars only because they rented a theater for a week (known in industry parlance as “four-walling”). “TV movies have an awards system. It’s called the Emmys,” he told Indie­Wire. “I have one. I’m proud of it.” (Lest Moore’s intentions be misunderstood, the new requirements include the line: “A television critic review will not be accepted.”) “The reason for this change was because we were getting a lot of films that were never really intended for theatrical release,” Roberson explained. “Our rules were broad enough that a lot of films were qualifying that really did not belong in our competition.” Robertson added that if an otherwise qualified film fails to get a necessary review, “a filmmaker can make the case why that happened, whether it was changing circumstances or whatever. We tend to err on the side of inclusion rather than exclusion.” Levin, for one, disagrees with the anti-TV logic. “It just so happens that in this current marketplace, documentaries are likely to find a home on television,” he said. “But to penalize or look down your nose at documentarians who make their films for television as opposed to a very expensive, very rigged theatrical release system is ridiculous.” Levin continued: “If you’re worried that essentially people are submitting films that are TV movies for Oscar consideration, you declare that [a filmmaker is] either eligible for the Oscar or the Emmy, but not both. You let the artist determine what the true nature of his or her documentary is.” Sky Sitney, the director of Silverdocs, called the new rules “a mixed bag.” “I think some of the new rules are going to allow more voices to be a part of the greater consensus, especially documentary experts being part of the short-listing process,” Sitney said. But she was dismayed at the review requirement. “If it wasn’t already difficult enough for independent filmmakers to have a theatrical run, now they have the added burden of having that accompanied by a review.” Although the New York Times has a policy of reviewing every movie that plays in a New York theater for at least one week, many observers questioned the academy ceding so much power to outside institutions that are supposed to be objective observers of the process, rather than participants in it. What’s more, the move seemed almost quaintly old-media at a time when movies are increasingly being seen through video on demand or streaming on Netflix, further blurring the lines between theatrical and television movies. In the case of documentaries, they’re as likely to be seen at a local festival as on television or in a multiplex. “As much as documentaries have progressed in a commercial sense, with ‘March of the Penguins’ and the Michael Moore films and ‘Super Size Me,’ they’re still closer to something like the foreign language or short categories,” says Maryland Film Festival founder Jed Dietz, “where almost by definition the excitement for the art form is in things that have likely _not_ had theatrical distribution. That’s where the Academy has an opportunity to lift things into the public sphere. . . . Why not try to make it _more_ inclusive?” It’s a question that may very well be answered in the future. One rule that will never change in the world of the documentary Oscars: There’s always next year. Nominations for the 84th Academy Awards will be announced Jan. 24. Winners will be announced Feb. 26.

Military attorneys representing detainees at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, will stop communicating in writing with their clients because the commander of the military detention center has authorized officials to review mail coming from detainees’ lawyers. The chief military defense counsel for Guantanamo Bay has instructed the military attorneys in his office not to comply with the commander’s order that they sign an agreement allowing material marked attorney-client privilege to be inspected for possible “contraband” information. Military defense attorneys said the prospect of government personnel, who answer to the commander, reading privileged communication before and during trials is impermissible under rules of professional conduct. “We all have security clearances, but I guess they don’t trust us to abide by the rules,” said Marine Corps Col. Jeffrey Colwell, the chief military defense counsel. “You can’t defend your client without being able to communicate with him confidentially. Without that, the system fails.” The dispute pits the lawyers’ understanding of their ethical obligations against the commander’s concern for security. Late last month, Rear Adm. David Woods, who oversees the detention facility but is not involved in military commissions, said in an order that a “privilege team” of Defense Department lawyers, as well as intelligence and law enforcement personnel, would inspect the mail and report to him but not to military prosecutors. “This inspection shall not include a review of the substantive content of the incoming mail,” according to the order, but would still include an effort to determine whether inappropriate information is being passed to a detainee. The order said contraband can include information about “current and political events in any country” if it is not related to a military commission proceeding; information about current or former detainees at Guantanamo Bay; and information about U.S. government personnel. The last provision stems in part from the discovery of photos of CIA personnel in the cells of high-value detainees in 2009 after defense attorneys, trying to identify interrogators, gave images of them to their clients. On Sunday, Colwell issued what he called strong guidance to the 40 attorneys under his command, including more than 30 military officers, instructing them not to follow Woods’s order and to stop sending privileged material to their clients. Colwell also said he had objections to an order on arranging face-to-face meetings between defense attorneys and detainees, and told the attorneys not to execute or sign that either. “It is my opinion that these orders, and the following procedures established by them, do not allow you to adequately safeguard attorney-client privileged communications,” Colwell wrote in an e-mail to defense attorneys, including a pool of nearly 100 civilian lawyers who are on call in case the government begins more military commissions. In his order, Woods said the procedures are comparable to those governing interaction between detainees and the lawyers challenging their detention under the writ of habeas corpus in federal court in Washington, D.C. But Zachary Katznelson, a senior lawyer at the American Civil Liberties Union who has represented Guantanamo Bay detainees in federal court, said the communications of civilian lawyers in those cases are searched only for physical contraband and the materials are not read by the privilege team. “In contrast, Woods defines contraband to include information,” Katznelson said. “He wants his monitors to read the contents of the communications and to possibly hold back — and potentially bring to his attention — information deemed outside the scope of representation. Critically, this would include any mention of U.S. personnel involved in torture and abuse of prisoners, even if directly related to the case. There is no such restriction on the habeas side.” Navy Cmdr. Tamsen Reese, a spokesperson for the Joint Task Force at Guantanamo Bay, said Woods would not be commenting in advance of a hearing next week at the base. Last year, the military judge overseeing the prosecution of Abd al-Rahim al- Nashiri, a Saudi facing capital charges in the bombing of the USS Cole in Yemen in 2000, ordered authorities at Guantanamo Bay not to read anything that is clearly marked attorney-client correspondence. Because of that, Colwell exempted Nashiri’s defense team from his instruction. But the government may attempt to have the judge, Army Col. James Pohl, adopt Woods’s order in the Nashiri case at a pretrial hearing next week. Even if Pohl rejects any government motion, his ruling would still apply only to the Nashiri case. Judges have not yet been appointed to the cases of other detainees facing charges, and their attorneys have no judge to hear an appeal. **More national security coverage:** \- Video appears to show Marines urinating on corpses \- 10 years of Guantanamo \- U.S. peace talks with Taliban to resume \- Read more national security headlines

Despite reports to the contrary, the New Republic’s principal owner insists that the 98-year-old journal of liberal political opinion, reporting and arts criticism isn’t shopping for a new owner. “There’s nothing there to the story,” e-mailed Martin Peretz in response to questions about published reports that the magazine he has owned or edited since 1974 is seeking new investors or an outright sale. Citing unidentified sources, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal reported this week that the investor group that owns the magazine and its Web site was considering selling them. Both publications said the group had enlisted the Blackstone Group to help in a sale or “strategic” partnership. Peretz denied it but did not respond to follow-up questions. TNR, as it is known, is owned by a group headed by Peretz, a former Harvard professor who first bought control of the magazine 38 years ago. He sold a majority stake to CanWest Global Communications of Canada in 2007 but bought back his interest with other investors, including investment banker Laurence Grafstein, two years later. He is editor emeritus, having given up his editor in chief title in 2010. Like many high-end “opinion” journals, TNR has struggled to remain profitable. Circulation of the biweekly publication, which has been falling steadily for years, stood at 53,485 in 2009, down from about 90,000 at the start of the decade, according to BPA Worldwide. Nevertheless, the magazine has long been a respected force in liberal politics and among liberal thinkers. It has been the home of such writers as George Orwell and Walter Lippmann, one of its co-founders. In the 2003 movie “Shattered Glass” — based on a scandal involving former New Republic writer Stephen Glass’s fabricated stories for the magazine — one character describes TNR as “the in-flight magazine of Air Force One” during President Bill Clinton’s term. Several companies whose names have surfaced in published reports appear to be unlikely buyers. Managers of the company shot down speculation that News Corp., the media and entertainment conglomerate controlled by Rupert Murdoch, was interested, a staff member said. News Corp. formerly owned the Washington-based Weekly Standard, a conservative journal. Atlantic Media Co., the Washington-based publisher of the Atlantic magazine and National Journal, also will not bid, an Atlantic source said. Bloomberg LP said it isn’t in the running, either: “We’re not interested,” said spokesman Ty Trippet. One TNR employee who was briefed on internal discussions about the news reports said he was unaware of any financial crisis among the magazine’s owners. “My sense is that situation isn’t extremely urgent,” said the employee, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak for the magazine. “The owners don’t derive any real financial return now. There’s an emotional attachment, but they’re not distressed.”

Thanks to Mitt Romney and such well-known socialist intellectuals as Rick Perry and Newt Gingrich, the United States is about to have the big debate on the nature of modern capitalism that should have started back in 2008. The focus will be on whether some kinds of capitalism are bad for the system as a whole. As a political matter, the discussion will be a classic test of an old Karl Rove theory that the best way to undercut an opponent is to attack him in his area of perceived strength. Romney’s central claim is that his business experience prepares him to be the nation’s great job creator. That message runs into some difficulty if he is seen instead as a job ­destroyer. What if a certain class of capitalist makes scads of money not by building up companies but by tearing them down? What if there is a distinction between the capitalist we typically honor who comes up with a good product and hires people to make and market it; and another kind who takes over a company, pulls out all the cash he can, and then abandons it to die? This is not the narrative of some Marxist intellectual writing in an obscure journal. It’s how Perry, who last I checked was a rather ardent conservative, described Romney’s line of work. “They’re just vultures,” Perry declared. “They’re vultures that are sitting out there on the tree limb waiting for the company to get sick, and then they swoop in, they eat the carcass, they leave with that and they leave the skeleton.” My word! Who knew how much of that old Texas populism had rubbed off on Perry? Somewhere, the late Molly Ivins, the Lone Star State’s legendary populist scribe, is smiling in a People’s Heaven. The debate over capitalism is likely to be with us all year because after Romney’s New Hampshire triumph, it’s truly difficult to construct a scenario that will deny him the Republican nomination. Give his strategists some credit: They saw an opportunity in Iowa and took it, all the while preparing an impregnable citadel in New Hampshire, beginning with their decision to have Romney announce his candidacy there in June. Let no one begrudge him his margin of victory on Tuesday: It was huge and decisive. Romney’s aides also repositioned him — repositioning being one of his strong suits — just far enough to the right to find the center of an increasingly conservative Republican Party. Yet they also understood that an old, conservative, upper-middle-class can still anchor winning coalitions in GOP primaries as long as several more out-there conservatives split up the rest of the vote. Thus did exit polling find that Romney did best among voters earning more than $200,000 a year, next best with the $100,000-to-$200,000 category. He was weakest among those taking home less than $50,000 annually. Romney may bewail the Obama economy, but he did far better among those who said they were getting ahead financially than with voters who see themselves falling behind. A privileged candidate sits atop a relatively privileged base. This is why Romney’s defense of his work as a venture capitalist is one of the truly authentic parts of an otherwise heavily scripted campaign. He speaks with genuine passion when he accuses his conservative opponents of putting “free enterprise on trial.” But that goes to the heart of the matter: “Free” for whom and under what circumstances? Capitalists of Romney’s sort never want to acknowledge how much their ability to make money depends on what government does. How does it structure the laws related to property, taxation and debt? What rules does it write on how companies can be acquired and how power within firms is apportioned among shareholders, employees, managers and other stakeholders? These are not natural laws. They are the work of politicians and the lobbyists who influence them. Which leads to this observation from Gingrich: “I think there’s a real difference,” he said, “between people who believed in the free market and people who go around, take financial advantage, loot companies, leave behind broken families, broken towns, people on unemployment.” Yes, there are different kinds of capitalism. Romney’s victory speech suggested that he hopes that the campaign will be about whether President Obama wants to turn the United States into Europe. A more relevant discussion would be over what American capitalism is — and should be. Thanks to Gingrich and Perry, this debate is now unavoidable. **_ejdionne@washpost.com _ ** **More from PostOpinions** Robinson: Romney’s clear road ahead Parker: Rivals silly to attack Romney’s Bain record Milbank: Kamikaze Gingrich on the loose Rubin: The Gingrich backlash hits S.C.

The Obama administration will resume peace talks with the Taliban as soon as Afghan President Hamid Karzai formally blesses the negotiations, according to senior administration officials who indicated that the process could be underway within weeks. Marc Grossman, the senior U.S. diplomat who shepherded a series of secret U.S. meetings with the insurgents last year, will meet with Karzai late next week to ensure that he is on board, officials said. “If Karzai were to tell [the Obama administration] to go ahead, then we’d start talking again,” said one of two officials who discussed the secret negotiations on the condition of anonymity. A tentative U.S.-Taliban deal, including the transfer of five Afghan detainees from the Guantanamo Bay prison to Qatar and an insurgent renunciation of international terrorism, collapsed in December when Karzai refused to go along with it. There have been no meetings with the insurgents since then. Although all parties have publicly said that they agree to one element of the deal — the opening of a Taliban office in Qatar — “we need now to make it real,” one official said. Prime Minister Hamad bin Jasim al-Thani, for the first time acknowledging Qatar’s support for the arrangement, said Wednesday that his government welcomed “any opportunity” to defuse tension in the region. Thani spoke after a meeting with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton. The administration, which has said that negotiations must be “Afghan-led,” insists that its talks with the Taliban are only a preliminary effort to build confidence before actual negotiations over Afghanistan’s future can begin between the insurgents and the Karzai government. One hurdle is that the Taliban prefers to talk to the United States and is “not willing to sit down with the Afghan government’,” one official said. “Our job is to see if we can break through that door.” Karzai has been under pressure from domestic opponents of negotiations to stand firm against the talks. The officials provided an overview of how the talks have proceeded and where they go now. Officials remain far from certain that the Taliban leadership is seriously interested in a political settlement. “There is an increasing number of Taliban who are tired of having the hell beat out of them,” one said. “I think they want to stop.” But, at the same time, “I imagine there are going to be splits,” the official said. “Some are going to want to talk, some are going to want to fight.” Late last year, the U.S. intelligence community assessed that both military and diplomatic success were unlikely before December 2014, the date that President Obama and NATO allies have set for withdrawal of all combat troops from Afghanistan. Marine Gen. John Allen, the top coalition commander in Afghanistan, was said to be so angered by the recent National Intelligence Estimate that he wrote a blistering formal dissent. The officials said combat against the insurgents would continue and described what they called a “holistic” approach in which diplomatic progress was not possible without gains on the civilian and military fronts. Although ground commanders have been skeptical of negotiations, a senior military official said that all wars “end in a political process” and that “this one is no exception.” He described progress thus far as “getting the car out of the garage” in preparation for “a difficult journey ahead.” An official said meetings with Mohammed Tayeb al-Agha, an aide to Taliban leader Mohammad Omar, began in November 2010. To convince themselves that Agha had authority from the top Taliban leadership, “we tried to develop questions,” the official said, “tests, if you will, to see if he could receive a question, seek an answer from people senior to him and then stick with it.” Agha, the official said, has been “shown on a number of occasions to accurately reflect the leaders” of the organization. “He is very consistent in what he seeks and how he seeks it.” The last meeting, in Qatar, was in October. Throughout the process, the administration briefed Karzai and congressional leaders, officials said, particularly as they neared tentative agreement on confidence-building measures. Among those measures, the United States asked for a public Taliban renunciation of international terrorism — in essence, a repudiation of al-Qaeda — and a separate statement of support for democracy in Afghanistan. The Taliban wanted an office outside Afghanistan where they could operate beyond the supervision of their hosts in Pakistan, the officials said. The Americans said they considered the neutral location a place where the insurgents could begin talking to the Afghan government. The insurgents also presented a list of five Guantanamo detainees, all of whom held positions in the Taliban government in Afghanistan between 1996 and 2001. Human rights organizations have said that several of them were responsible for severe abuses, although U.S. officials said they have ascertained that the militants were not involved in killing Americans. The five were to be transferred to house arrest in Qatar, a move that would require Secretary of Defense Leon E. Panetta to certify to Congress that they would not be released and would not pose a threat to the United States. Qatar also would agree not to transfer them onward to another location, including Afghanistan. The final conversations, before Karzai squelched the deal, were over “sequencing,” one of the officials said. “Who goes first? What do they say?” **More national security coverage:** \- Video appears to show troops urinating on corpses \- Killing of Iranian scientist imperils former Marine \- 10 years of Guantanamo \- Public ire one goal of Iran sanctions, U.S. official says \- Read more national security headlines

As Republican leaders watch with horror Newt Gingrich’s one-man campaign to bring down the party’s likely presidential nominee, they should remind themselves of this: Gingrich is a monster of their own making. The former House speaker has almost no public support. In New Hampshire, 90.6 percent of Republican primary voters cast their ballots for somebody else. In Iowa, 86.7 percent of caucus-goers chose somebody else. In the two states combined, Gingrich received fewer than 40,000 votes – a tally that wouldn’t even land him on some city councils. But there are 5 million reasons Republicans have to fear Gingrich. That’s the number of dollars billionaire casino magnate Sheldon Adelson gave to a pro- Gingrich super PAC — the largest contribution to a candidate’s cause in U.S. history. This allowed the Winning our Future PAC to buy $3.4 million worth of ads in South Carolina — enough to saturate the state with poisonous messages about Mitt Romney. The 29-minute video taking apart Romney’s performance at Bain Capital, released Wednesday, provides a taste of what’s to come in the next week. Liberals have complained for two years about the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision, which made such unlimited contributions possible. But Republicans on Capitol Hill resisted attempts to limit the damage of the decision — and now Gingrich is teaching them the consequences of their own actions. Having fully recovered from his pledge last month to run a “relentlessly positive” campaign, he arrived in South Carolina on Wednesday with renewed defiance of those Republicans who have called on him to soften his attacks on Romney. “I think that the American people deserve to know things,” he told reporters in Rock Hill, S.C. “I’m prepared to have people be irritated on the right and the left.” But people on the left are delighted with Gingrich just now. He and his allies are making the case against the likely Republican nominee better than President Obama and the Democrats ever could. “Consider Mitt Romney,” says a new Gingrich web video, set to clown music and featuring a highlight reel of Romney’s verbal gaffes: his claim that “I like being able to fire people,” his argument that “corporations are people,” his explanations for the lawn company he hired that used illegal immigrants, his $10,000 wager with Rick Perry, his fears about getting a “pink slip,” his claims of hunting for “small varmints,” his belief that his dog enjoyed riding in a kennel strapped to the top of the Romneys’ car, even his awkward attempt to sing “Who let the dogs out?” Rick Perry has joined in with attacks on Romney’s “vulture capitalism.” But Perry’s words don’t matter much because he doesn’t have a fresh $5 million contribution to devote to disemboweling Romney. Gingrich was more likely the one Romney had in mind when he complained Tuesday about the “bitter politics of envy.” Romney, on his way to South Carolina, complained explicitly that Gingrich was against “free enterprise.” Romney has it wrong. Gingrich’s attacks on him are the very essence of free enterprise: They’re helped by campaign finance laws that sell elections to the highest bidder. For those Republicans who thought that unlimited political contributions would be a good thing for their party, it’s a delicious irony that a casino billionaire is using his money to underwrite a populist assault on the GOP front-runner. “Crony capitalism, where people pay each other off at the expense of the people of this country, is not free enterprise, and raising questions about that is not wrong,” Gingrich said in South Carolina. Americans, he said, should know whether businesses are “fair to the American people, or are the deals being cut on behalf of Wall Street institutions and very rich people.’’ If Republican elites don’t like millions of dollars being spent to amplify that anti-Romney message, they have only themselves to blame. danamilbank@washpost.com **More from PostOpinions** Robinson: Romney’s clear road ahead Parker: Rivals silly to attack Romney’s Bain record Dionne: Romney’s style of capitalism Rubin: The Gingrich backlash hits S.C.

It’s tough being a promising, up-and-coming governor with national aspirations in a slow economy. There’s not enough money to pay for signature achievements to make your name. But Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley and Virginia Gov. Bob McDonnell are making a go of it anyway as both states’ legislatures opened their annual sessions Wednesday. The contrast in the two governors’ strategies offers a textbook example of differences between Democrats and Republicans in a national election year. Given the economic climate, both politicians are stressing the need to create jobs. Democrat O’Malley proposes that government do so directly by rebuilding decaying public infrastructure such as roads, mass transit and sewage plants. To finance it, he’s willing to pay a political price by pushing to raise the gasoline or sales tax and add other fees. Republicans are saying Maryland family budgets can’t afford the hit. Republican McDonnell has promised not to raise taxes so as to keep government small, saying that’s the best way to promote job growth in the future. With no extra funds to play with, he’s trying to make a political splash by shuffling money within the state budget to do more for priorities such as economic development, pension reform and transportation. Democrats are dismissing the changes as token gestures and saying they shortchange school budgets. Does all this sound familiar? It closely parallels the budget debate at the national level. With the additional twist that O’Malley and McDonnell each chair his party’s governors association, the Potomac is a dividing line between the United States’ two competing visions of government. “Basically, McDonnell’s approach is one that says: ‘Tell me how much the tax system is generating this year, and that’s what we have to allocate.’ O’Malley’s approach is: ‘What are the needs, what are the priorities, and how do we fund them?’ ” said Michael Cassidy, president of the Commonwealth Institute for Fiscal Analysis in Richmond. The stakes for the two politicians are unusually high. Both have attracted national attention: McDonnell, 57, as a possible vice presidential candidate this year, and O’Malley, 48, as a prospective presidential hopeful in 2016. Moreover, for both governors, the political calendar makes these General Assembly sessions important not to miss. Because Virginia has one-term governors and two-year budget cycles, this is the only full budget that McDonnell will write from scratch and then fully implement. Expectations are up also because he benefits from GOP gains in November’s legislative elections. O’Malley, in the second year of his second and final term, is running out of time to establish a legacy. As the sessions begin, O’Malley seems to be offering a more ambitious agenda, with more potentially far-reaching initiatives, than McDonnell. But it’s also a riskier one, because O’Malley might be asking the legislature to swallow more in one session that it can comfortably digest. Although the governor’s fellow Democrats dominate the General Assembly, they’ve been plenty willing in the past to rebuff his initiatives. It’s always hard to increase taxes, plus O’Malley is putting his personal credibility on the line by publicly backing a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in Maryland. The measure failed last year, and liberals criticized O’Malley for not doing enough to help it. Cynics say he’s only stepped in now because a potential future presidential rival, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, shepherded a similar bill to success. Over in Virginia, McDonnell is playing what in baseball jargon would be called “small ball” regarding the budget. The $38 million in extra money that he’s seeking to spur job creation is less than the $50 million recently allocated for that purpose by just one Maryland county, Prince George’s. His proposed rerouting of some sales tax revenue to transportation would fall well short of the $1 billion a year needed to do right by Virginia’s roads. To his credit, McDonnell has made a serious proposal to start restoring the fiscal health of the state employee pension system. He’s also proposed significant changes in K-12 education, such as abolishing teacher tenure. Cynics say he’s just jumping on that GOP bandwagon to polish his vice presidential credentials. A couple of sound bites from the governors illustrate the gap that divides them and the nation. When I asked O’Malley in a brief telephone interview about the wisdom of seeking a tax increase, he said: “In order to create jobs, a modern economy requires modern investments. . . . What was true for our grandparents and our parents is also true for us. We get what we pay for.” In Virginia, in a prepared statement for his State of the Commonwealth Address on Wednesday evening, McDonnell said that the proposed “budget does not raise taxes. Rather it forces state government to set priorities, live within its means and plan for the future, something I wish our federal government would do.” Two states. Two governors. Two philosophies. Take your pick and see which succeeds.

Maryland lawmakers returned to Annapolis on Wednesday, girding for battle over Gov. Martin O’Malley’s plans to raise taxes on gasoline and sewer bills — only to get wrapped up in a new flap over whether the governor wants to raise the sales tax as well. Just hours before the General Assembly convened at noon, O’Malley (D) floated the idea of raising the sales tax from 6 to 7 percent, suggesting that the additional revenue would help address shortfalls in Maryland’s operating and transportation budgets. “That’s what _I’d_ like to do,” O’Malley said in a taped radio interview, also stressing that he is not the only player in Annapolis with a say on the issue. O’Malley and his aides scrambled to clarify his intentions, later suggesting that the governor’s budget proposal, due to the legislature next week, is unlikely to include a sales tax increase, largely out of fear that the higher levy would be rejected by lawmakers. Still, O’Malley’s comments — which caught senior aides and top lawmakers off guard — proved a major distraction on a day traditionally dominated by legislative ceremonies and welcome-back receptions hosted by lobbyists. This year’s opening day also included a milestone: With his reelection as speaker of the House of Delegates for a 10th straight year, Michael E. Busch (D-Anne Arundel) became the longest-serving speaker in Maryland history. Busch’s counterpart, Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr. (D-Calvert), was among those who criticized O’Malley for talking about a sales tax increase — an idea that Miller branded “a non-starter” and that he said O’Malley had not discussed with him recently. “I don’t know why he said it,” said Miller, who was reelected Wednesday to lead his chamber for a 26th consecutive year. “I think it’s a sign to his far left that he hasn’t forgotten them, to say he doesn’t like cutting the budget and would like to do more.” Senate Minority Leader E.J. Pipkin (R-Cecil) was more forceful. “It’s repulsive, and I mean that sincerely,” Pipkin said. “The pain for working-class families is palpable, so the fact the governor would even float the idea of a sales-tax increase as a possibility is unbelievable. What universe is he living in?” If O’Malley’s political allies and opponents agree on one thing, it is that his performance over the coming 90 days will be under a microscope, perhaps more so than at any point since his first year in office. He is pushing an ambitious and complicated agenda. O’Malley would like lawmakers to invest more in transportation projects and is expected to detail a funding plan in coming days that will probably include a gas-tax increase. He is also expected to call for more funding to upgrade wastewater treatment plants through an increase on the state’s “flush tax.” Several other controversial measures are on the governor’s agenda, including legislation to legalize same-sex marriage and to provide incentives to jump- start the state’s wind-power industry. O’Malley has scheduled an announcement Thursday on an affordable housing measure. To succeed on so many fronts at once — while he is also taking on a greater role nationally for Democrats — will require near flawless execution this session, lawmakers suggest. The legislature last raised the states sales tax in 2007, bumping it up from 5 to 6 percent at O’Malley’s request during a special session called to address chronic budget problems. Legislative analysts say increasing the rate by another percentage point would yield more than $600 million a year in additional revenue. That kind of money could go a long way toward closing a looming shortfall in the state’s $14 billion operating budget, O’Malley told radio personality Marc Steiner during a taping Wednesday before a live audience in Annapolis. O’Malley also suggested that some of the sales tax proceeds could be directed to transportation projects and reduce the need for additional gas tax revenue. Speaking to reporters a few hours later, O’Malley said he had mentioned a sales tax increase, “by way of illustration,” as an example of a measure that could help close the state’s budget gap. He acknowledged that there is not much “political will” to raise the tax but did not take it off the table as a possibility. “If all else fails, I think we should remember one penny on the sales tax is a pretty good yield,” O’Malley said. “I think we should remember that no one in our state lost their house, lost their job or lost a business because of an additional penny on the sales tax.” O’Malley’s prospects for pushing a gas-tax increase through the legislature appear better, although success is hardly guaranteed. Miller said he is confident such an increase can pass his chamber to pay for a backlog of transportation projects. Busch said its chances in the House would rest in large part on the ability of county executives in large jurisdictions, including Montgomery and Prince George’s counties, to convince state lawmakers that an increase is needed. Read more on PostLocal.com: Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions Ex-D.C. officer gets jail in stolen property case Baby found alone at Occupy D.C. camp GOP takes over Va. General Assembly

President Obama said Wednesday that he plans to put forward a series of tax proposals to “reward companies that choose to bring jobs home” and eliminate tax breaks “for companies that are moving jobs overseas.” The announcement offers a clue about the president’s agenda for the State of the Union address on Jan. 24 and his reelection campaign. Obama did not give any more details about the proposals he will make. But some close to the White House expect him to repackage old ideas, such as making it harder for U.S. companies to postpone paying taxes on foreign profits, along with new ideas. One idea that the administration has explored is a recurring tax credit for profits derived from selling products developed in the United States, but it is unclear whether this will be part of the package the president will announce. Last year, the Obama administration was ready to release a white paper on corporate taxation that officials hoped would offer a place for rare bipartisan agreement. The administration sought to cut the 35 percent corporate tax rate, among the world’s highest, while eliminating many deductions. But the proposal was shelved during the bitter clashes between congressional Republicans and Obama. Earlier in his term, Obama called for scaling back laws that allow U.S. companies to deduct expenses from overseas operations from their U.S. tax bill, while at the same time postponing payment of taxes on foreign profits. The president has also suggested limiting tax credits that U.S. companies receive for tax payments to foreign governments. Meanwhile, to encourage investment in the United States, he has suggested making permanent a research and development credit that has been extended each year by Congress. The White House has also looked at the idea of “patent boxes,” which have become popular in Europe and allow companies to receive credit each year when paying taxes on profits earned by selling products developed domestically. Another idea that has been examined is giving companies a tax credit when they move an overseas job — particularly in hard-hit areas like manufacturing or call centers — back to the United States. But administration officials have struggled to design such a credit. The challenge for the White House has been to come up with ideas for tax credits that don’t increase the federal budget deficit. Another more controversial idea is to allow U.S. companies, which hold about $2 trillion in assets overseas, to bring money back to the United States tax-free. In exchange, they would have to agree to use the tax savings on investment or job training. This idea, known as “repatriation,” has many opponents in the Obama administration. The last time it was tried, during the Bush administration, companies did not increase their workforces. “The general critique was that repatriation really was a holiday that wasn’t linked to the things you care about,” said James Manyika, a director of the McKinsey Global Institute who was invited Wednesday to take part in the discussions. “If policymakers are smart about it and link it to the things the economy needs, such as training and jobs and R&D;, it can be a good thing.” The president spoke Wednesday at an event at the White House focused on “insourcing,” which refers to encouraging companies to create jobs in the United States rather than abroad. Obama’s remarks struck the same tone of aiding the middle class that has been featured heavily in his speeches recently and that his aides say will be a central facet of his reelection platform. “Ask yourselves what you can do to bring jobs back to the country that made our success possible,” Obama told a group of executives gathered at the White House. “It can make all the difference for the strength of our middle class and folks working their way into the middle class.” Most corporate leaders see slashing the U.S. corporate tax-rate as the highest priority. “If tax policy was going to be the instrument upon which the administration relied upon to attract more global investment, lowering the rate to be competitive with other countries would be effective. But that wasn’t discussed today,” said Nancy McLernon, chief executive officer of the Organization for International Investment, which represents foreign companies with U.S. subsidiaries.

Don’t be surprised if you see President Obama visiting more federal agencies this year. On Tuesday, Obama visited the Environmental Protection Agency after making a similar stop Friday at the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) — events that mirror a tour of federal agencies made by first lady Michelle Obama in recent years. Aides confirmed Wednesday that the White House is planning similar stops in the near future. The first visit was meant to bolster the consumer watchdog agency and its new director, Richard Cordray, while the EPA visit provided a brief opportunity to promote the administration’s work on environmental protections. But in speeches, Obama also delivered a personal thank-you to EPA workers. “I could not be prouder of the work that you all do every single day as federal employees,” he told EPA employees Tuesday. “I know the hours can be long. I know that sometimes spending time getting these policies right means less time at home than you’d like, and you’re missing birthday parties, or you’re missing a soccer game, and the spouse is not happy with you. I know a little bit about that sometimes. I know these jobs are demanding.” Obama delivered a similar message Friday at the CFPB: “I know that all of you have devoted enormous amounts of time and energy, and many of you are here making significant sacrifices with your families to make sure that this agency gets up and running really well.” The president “is keenly aware of the high level of — the high quality of people working out in the agencies, doing exemplary work for the American people,” White House press secretary Jay Carney told reporters Tuesday, adding later that “he is noting important work that people are doing.” With this year’s presidential race underway and Republican candidates blasting his record, Obama acknowledged Tuesday that there would be “tensions” and strong debate over environmental policy and the role of government. As those debates continue, he urged federal employees to “make sure that we are achieving our goals in the smartest way possible, in the most efficient ways possible, in the least bureaucratic ways possible, in the clearest ways possible.” “There’s not a federal agency that can’t get better and be smarter in accomplishing our mission, and we have an obligation every single day to think about how can we do our business a little bit better,” Obama added. “How can we make sure the taxpayers are getting every dime’s worth that they’re paying in order to achieve these important common goals that we have?” The visits come as the White House is planning to request a 0.5 percent pay increase for federal workers as part of the 2013 federal budget. Although the proposed raise is small, aides said the White House will no longer support freezing federal salaries to help curtail the federal deficit. The decision earned tepid support from federal worker union leaders, who strongly opposed the freeze and have warned that proposed changes to federal compensation floated by the White House and congressional leaders might make it more difficult to motivate federal workers to support Obama’s reelection campaign. Union leaders did not return requests for comment Wednesday. Federal employees and their unions overwhelmingly supported Obama’s 2008 presidential campaign. The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), with more than 275,000 active members, spent more than $2 million on behalf of Obama and Democratic congressional candidates in 2008. Union leaders are working on similar plans to assist the president’s reelection effort, probably in unison with the AFL-CIO. During the 2008 campaign, Obama responded to a series of specific questions from AFGE regarding federal personnel issues. Shortly after Obama’s inauguration, federal union leaders met with the president in the White House Blue Room — their first visit to the Executive Mansion in more than eight years.

LAS VEGAS — A contentious battle over Internet anti-piracy legislation shifted from Washington to the Consumer Electronics Show, where lawmakers and companies on both sides of the issue sought to gain allies. Two bills circulating in Congress would help Hollywood titans, record labels and pharmaceutical firms enforce copyright infringement laws online. But proposals have drawn the ire of some of Silicon Valley’s biggest names who worry that the bills give law enforcement too much power to shut down their sites. The Senate version of the bill is expected to head to the floor for a vote later this month. Social news site Reddit said it would blackout its service next week in protest of the legislation. The Consumer Electronics Association, the trade group the organizes CES, has been a staunch critic of the bills, too, with Chief Executive Gary Shapiro making it his policy rallying cry to conference-goers. “The overwhelming tone of Washington remains hostile to innovation, entrepreneurship and business,” Shapiro said in a statement. His group has been handing out black buttons that lead people to protectinnovation.com, a Web site set up to oppose the bills. As debate over the anti-piracy measures filled the hallways and panel discussions of the CES, some at the conference tried to focus on other policy matters. Pandora co-founder Tim Westergren said he is focusing on royalty fees for artists’ performing rights. “We have our hands full with that,” he said. Samsung Electronics executives said they are far more concerned about getting more government airwaves into the hands of the private sector. As such, both sides in the anti-piracy debate raced to get neutral companies on their side. At the trade show, NBC Universal and the Recording Industry Association of America worked the floors and meeting rooms to lobby partners to support the bills. They have also warned against a separate proposal by Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) that would call on the International Trade Commission to enforce anti-piracy rules and that would soften the ability of law enforcement to punish offending sites. Mitch Glazier, executive vice president of RIAA, said his industry has long had a difficult relationship with tech companies, dating back to when they came up with the VCR, DVD burner and other “copying devices.” He stood outside a press conference behind held by Wyden and Issa, to recruit people to his side. Wyden and Issa also met with company executives, such as Intel, seeking support. “The biggest difference between our bill and the others is that we don’t want to break the Internet,” Wyden said.

Michelle Obama is rejecting stories of White House conflicts between her office and the president’s and says people have wrongly tried to portray her as “some angry black woman.” In a wide-ranging interview with CBS anchor Gayle King, Obama challenged characterizations of her in “The Obamas,” a new book by New York Times reporter Jodi Kantor that describes the first lady as a forceful shadow operator in her husband’s administration. “I guess it’s more interesting to imagine this conflicted situation here and a strong woman,” Obama said. “But that’s been an image that people have tried to paint of me since the day Barack announced.” Kantor objected to that inference about her book, which the first lady conceded she had not read. “There’s no suggestion of her as an angry black woman in the book,” Kantor said Wednesday. In fact, the portrayals of the first lady as angry, which were dominant early in the 2008 campaign — culminating in a satirical New Yorker cartoon depicting her as a militant black radical — have mostly subsided in the years since. She has assiduously crafted a benign image of herself as the “mom in chief,” adopting noncontroversial causes, such as fighting childhood obesity. Her popularity is through the roof. In a new large-scale poll by The Washington Post and the Kaiser Family Foundation, 73 percent of Americans expressed favorable views of the first lady, with strongly positive impressions outnumbering strongly negative ones by more than 5 to 1. A slim majority of Republicans rates the first lady favorably, a stark contrast to the overwhelmingly negative view her husband gets from Republicans. There is a racial gap, however, in how intensely people admire the first lady: 75 percent of blacks said they have “strongly favorable” impressions of the first lady, compared with 35 percent of whites. Supporters of the first lady believe that her popularity is a direct result of how well she has managed her image. Obama has connected with the public by “holding herself to the highest of standards,” said Camille Johnston, a former aide to the first lady. “On the first day in the White House she set the tone for the type of first lady she was going to be, and people have responded to that and embraced it,” Johnston said. Nearly every first lady has been criticized for meddling in political affairs — and subsequently denied it. But Obama’s remarks Wednesday were unusual because she does not typically respond directly to stories about her. Her interview with King was scheduled last year to correspond with the debut of a CBS morning show, and happened to come at a moment when she was primed to talk. White House spokesman Eric Schultz said the first lady’s remarks, while provocative, were simply pointing to “an old tactic tried in the 2008 campaign.” Asked how she deals with being mischaracterized, Obama said: “I just try to be me. And my hope is that over time people get to know me. And they get to judge me for me.” Obama also challenged details from the book — including the notion that she did not get along with the president’s former chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and was at odds with former press secretary Robert Gibbs, who in the book is described as cursing the first lady in a meeting. She called Gibbs a “trusted adviser” and Emanuel a dear friend and a “funny guy.” “I don’t have conversations with my husband’s staff. I don’t go to the meetings. I don’t have — I mean, our staffs work together really well,” Obama said. “I can count the number of times I go over to the West Wing, period.” In the book, Kantor describes the first lady’s involvement as taking place mainly through intermediaries. _Polling director Jon Cohen contributed to this report._ **More fromPost Politics ** • Ron Paul: the most dangerous man in Republican party? • Romney playing to win GOP, but general election is another game • Congressional wildfire ‘office pool’ angers firefighters • Supreme Court: Discrimination laws don’t all protect church employees

More than a dozen of the most popular retailers have stopped selling jewelry that contains more than trace levels of a toxic metal called cadmium, accepting a new standard that consumer advocates say is tougher than the one endorsed by Washington. Under the terms of a legal settlement reached in California, the retail chains — including trendy Target, high-end Saks and teen favorites such as Gap, Aeropostale, Wet Seal and Forever 21 — instructed their suppliers to limit the cadmium levels in jewelry. The settlements kicked in Dec. 31, just weeks after the federal Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) said it was satisfied with an alternative voluntary approach that the industry helped craft for jewelry marketed to children using the government’s scientific research. There is no federally endorsed standard for adult jewelry. While high-profile recalls of lead-laden toys and jewelry have captured the national spotlight in recent years, cadmium is emerging as the next big threat along the periodic table. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that cadmium can damage the bones and multiple organs. The government has identified it as a known carcinogen that stays in the body for years and accumulates. In jewelry, it’s often used because it’s a cheap, soft metal that melts easily at low temperatures. While Congress passed legislation in 2008 that forced manufacturers to nearly purge lead from children’s products, no such mandate exists for cadmium, leaving federal regulators, consumer advocates and the industry to navigate the issue on their own. The California group that negotiated the settlement with retailers and suppliers said the approach backed by the CPSC does not cast a wide enough net or embrace the toughest standards. “Our goal is to change the whole industry and set a standard that’s legally binding,” said Caroline Cox, research director of the Center for Environmental Health in California. “The settlements that we have reached are just the beginning because we have another 30 or 40 companies that we’re hoping will sign onto similar agreements.” In 2010, the Center for Environmental Health sued more than two dozen retailers and suppliers alleging that they exposed consumers to excessive levels of cadmium in jewelry without providing the warning labels required by a landmark California state disclosure law that governs certain toxic chemicals. One of the retailers, Tween Brands, settled its case early last year by agreeing not to sell any jewelry that contains more than 0.03 percent cadmium. Another 26 retailers and jewelry suppliers soon followed and agreed to stop selling such jewelry starting Dec. 31, 2011. The agreements defined jewelry as everything from bracelets to shoe ornaments. While the settlements apply only to the jewelry sold in California stores, the retailers agreed to adopt the approach nationwide, the Center for Environmental Health said. It would be financially and logistically disruptive to segregate their products for a California-only market. Cox said she’s most proud of the fact that the settlements cover jewelry marketed to children and adults. “Kids wear anything,” she said. “And adults face risks too. Cadmium is particularly problematic for women of child-bearing age because it has the ability to act like a hormone disruptor.” By contrast, the standard that the CPSC helped craft is limited to jewelry marketed to children12 and younger in part because that’s the age group that is most likely to suck on jewelry or swallow it. A government study found that kids ages 6 to 11 have especially high levels of cadmium in their urine, especially girls — possibly because girls often suffer from iron deficiency and iron hinders the absorption of cadmium. The CPSC-endorsed standard also would adopt a different testing method. It too would test to determine that total cadmium content in a piece of jewelry does not exceed 0.03 percent. But jewelry that fails that test could still make its way onto store shelves if it passes a separate “solubility” test. This far more expensive test aims to determine if cadmium would leach into the body when swallowed. For a small metal part, the test entails dropping the piece into acid heated to about body temperature and shaking it for 24 hours — conditions meant to replicate the digestive process. The industry said this second test is necessary because it is more reliable and more telling. Instead of testing for how much cadmium is in the jewelry, it tests for how much cadmium would actually be absorbed into the body, which is what matters most from a safety perspective, said Brent Cleaveland, executive director of the Fashion Jewelry and Accessories Trade Association and head of the panel that crafted the voluntary standard. If the cadmium doesn’t leach out, then it poses no health risks and therefore could not be regulated by the CPSC because it can’t be defined as a hazardous substance.

A corner of the Civil War comes vividly to life in “Amelia: A Story of Abiding Love.” Washington Stage Guild’s production is about as far from cutting-edge theater as you can get. It is, instead, a trip back in time powered by good words, deft acting and clear direction. The world premiere production of actor-playwright Alex Webb’s 95-minute piece runs through Jan. 29. The Stage Guild performs in the Undercroft Theatre at Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church. Although it’s a new play, “Amelia” fits the Stage Guild mission — George Bernard Shaw is their mascot — to do works rich in language, history and ideas. With his crystalline staging of the play, Artistic Director Bill Largess does extremely well by Webb, who’s a Stage Guild alum, having performed with the 25-year-old company in its early years. In 2010, the Stage Guild collaborated with him on a reading at the Kennedy Center’s Page-to-Stage festival. Only two actors populate the small stage — Shirleyann Kaladjian as the title character and playwright Webb as everyone else, from Amelia’s parents to her new love, Ethan, to all the people she meets as she heads south disguised as a Union soldier to find him after he’s taken prisoner and sent to the Confederate prison camp in Georgia known as Andersonville. In one sense, the play is a showcase for Webb’s chameleon-like acting skills, which are manifest as he morphs from a comically monosyllabic farmer into Amelia’s kindly father and mother (not at the same time), various soldiers and an escaped slave who helps Amelia by moving her along a leg of the Underground Railroad. There’s a bit of Henry Fonda about Webb’s physiognomy and his gift for playing laconic men with humor and feeling. A speech by a Union corporal describing how he saw one cannonball kill four men is particularly affecting, both in the writing and in Webb’s delivery: “First man, it took his head off his shoulders liked it was greased; second man, put a hole in his chest you could stick your head through; third man, cut him clean in half — that’s my friend, Joshua; and the fourth man, more like a boy, tore out his loins. All dead. One cannonball. I ain’t never gonna forget that. Hope I do, though.” But tour de force showcase or not, Webb has written a lovely script and found a feisty acting partner in Kaladjian, his real-life wife. Her Amelia is a slip of a woman with a waifish demeanor. As soon as she opens her mouth, however, she’s all sharp edges and strong opinions — a steely 1861 Pennsylvania farm girl whose refusal to flirt or flatter could doom her to spinsterhood. It is her luck and her tragedy that she finds love. Ethan can match her wit for wit, and he says he _likes_ smart women. It’s wedlock made in heaven. Then war breaks out, and Ethan joins up. Webb’s play mines an intriguing sidebar of the Civil War. While researching a role for the play “The Andersonville Trial,” he learned that several hundred women fought in the Civil War disguised as men or wore soldiers’ garb so they could search for husbands and lovers. Clad in the uniform of a dead Union soldier, Amelia slogs southward to find Ethan, even letting herself be taken prisoner, so she can get to Andersonville. The scenic design by Carl F. Gudenius and Kirk Kristilibas celebrates simplicity (and a tight budget): a floor of wide, grayish planks; a burlap backdrop the color of a burnt-orange sunrise; scraps of split-rail fence framing the back of the stage like apostrophes; silhouette cutouts of tree branches marking the wings; and a bench. Lighting designer Marianne Meadows marks changes of time, place and mood with gracefully shifting, occasionally breath-catching illuminations. Sound designer Stowe Nelson’s fragments of distant musket and cannon fire and plaintive violin melodies are effective. The recurring fiddle tune quotes a sacred song from the period, “There Is a Fountain.” “Amelia” is a rather staid piece of theater, and its final scene loses an emotional coup de grace by ending too quickly. Yet the Stage Guild’s handsome production is highly affecting overall. The folks at Ford’s Theatre could easily incorporate a piece like “Amelia, A Story of Abiding Love” into their Civil War repertoire. by Alex Webb. Directed by Bill Largess. Costume design, Sigriour Johannesdottir. About 95 minutes; no intermission. By the Washington Stage Guild, in the Undercroft Theatre at Mount Vernon Place United Methodist Church, 900 Massachusetts Ave. NW, through Jan. 29. Go to www.stageguild.org or call 240-582-0050.

The statistics compiled by Drew Brees this season — NFL single-season records in passing yards (5,476) and completion percentage (71.2) chief among them — are impressive enough to distinguish the New Orleans Saints signal-caller even in the age of the quarterback. But Brees spent nearly one-fourth of his postgame news conference after Saturday’s win commending an undrafted, injury-prone running back. He also reportedly helped recruit a 5-foot-6 quicksilver back — currently the NFL’s shortest player — as a free agent last offseason. And he makes no secret of his appreciation for an undrafted power back whose college career ended at a Division II school. The worst-kept secret in the Saints’ locker room is that the team’s running game, ranked sixth in the NFL, is not merely capable of providing balance for Brees’s aerial pyrotechnics. The unassuming threesome of versatile Pierre Thomas, explosive Darren Sproles and powerful Chris Ivory provides the Saints with another dangerous offensive threat. “That,” tight end Jimmy Graham said, “is what makes this offense so special. We are well-rounded.” The last time the Saints lost a playoff game — a 41-36 defeat last January at the Seattle Seahawks — Thomas and Ivory were sidelined with injuries and Sproles had yet to arrive. But the trio, who helped the Saints amass 167 rushing yards in the wild-card-round victory over the Detroit Lions, will play important roles in Saturday’s NFC divisional playoff on the road against the San Francisco 49ers. Moving the ball on the ground will be a challenge against San Francisco, which allows just 77.2 rushing yards per game, 15 yards fewer than the league’s second-best rushing defense, Baltimore. But even with the loss of Mark Ingram, the 2011 first-round pick who recently was placed on injured reserve, the Saints have a deep stable of backs who play complementary roles. None of the three collected more than 603 yards and five touchdowns on the ground this season. “We all have different types of skills,” said Thomas, who was second to Ingram with 110 carries during the regular season. “. . . We have to show the coaches that this ground game of ours is powerful.” Thomas, signed as an undrafted rookie free agent out of Illinois in 2007, played a key role in the Saints’ Super Bowl-winning season two years ago. After leading the team in rushing yards in 2009, Thomas scored two touchdowns and converted a crucial fourth-and-one play in overtime of the Saints’ NFC title game victory. In the Super Bowl, Thomas had a 16-yard touchdown on a screen pass against the Indianapolis Colts. Thomas was on injured reserve when the Saints lost to the Seahawks in the playoffs. But in his first playoff game since the Super Bowl, Thomas rushed for 66 yards on just eight carries Saturday and added 55 receiving yards. He spent most of the night spinning by defenders and breaking tackles. “I couldn’t believe he stayed up,” left guard Carl Nicks said of one run. “. . . We are a different team when that guy is healthy.” Brees said he has never played with someone “who is tougher, smarter or more versatile” than Thomas, adding that he “could not help but notice the way he ran, shedding tacklers one after another, getting the tough yards. It was phenomenal.” Thomas, who has long distinguished himself with yards gained after the catch, said one of his rules is not to let the first tackler take him down. “I try to break as many tackles as I can and get in that end zone,” he said. “Everyone tells me that I have freaky balance, but it’s the gift that God gave me.” The Saints’ big-play back is Sproles, who set a single-season NFL record for all-purpose yardage (2,696) in his first season in New Orleans. Sproles also led the team in rushing yards (603), was second in receptions (86) and ranked among the league’s leaders in yards after catches. He scored two touchdowns Saturday. Brees knew what the Saints were getting when they signed the 190-pound Sproles. Brees and Sproles were teammates when Sproles was a rookie with the San Diego Chargers in 2005. “He walks in the room and you are stunned at the size and the stature,” Brees said. “This is a game for big, strong, fast guys. And you just say, ‘This guy does not belong.’ But he does. He more than belongs.” Ivory went undrafted in 2010 after he was kicked off Washington State’s team for an alleged off-field incident and finished his career at Tiffin University in Ohio. Despite an unlikely path to the pros, he wound up leading the Saints in rushing yards last season while former back Reggie Bush and Thomas nursed injuries. But the 6-foot, 222-pounder suffered a foot injury late in the season and missed the playoff loss. This season, Ivory missed the first seven games with an injury, but finished the regular season with 374 rushing yards and added 47 more on 13 carries against the Lions. “The teams that can run the ball and have balance on offense are the teams that advance year in and year out,” wide receiver Marques Colston said. “San Francisco has been playing well all year. But we are hitting our stride.”

**Beginner computer classes,** for all ages. 9-10 a.m. Thursdays, Deanwood Library, 1350 49th St. NE. Free. 202-698-1175. **Chautauqua – An American Narrative,** following a screening of a documentary about the lake resort in western New York, Linda Steckley, a senior officer at Chautauqua, and vacationer Art LeVan discuss the history and tradition of the summer destination that offers experiences in the arts, education, religion and recreation. 10-11:50 a.m., American University, Katzen Arts Center, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Free. 202-895-4860 or www.olli- dc.org. **Behind-the-scenes cathedral tours,** for age 11 or older. See gargoyles and stained-glass windows up close and bird’s-eye views of the city. 10:30 a.m. (most weekdays and Saturdays), Washington National Cathedral, Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues NW. $10. 202-537-6200 or www.nationalcathedral.org. **“Stitches for Soldiers,”** bring your winter-warmth projects (sweaters, gloves, hats, socks and small blankets) and stitch with others in the Stitching Bee. Noon-2 p.m. Thursdays and Tuesdays through February, National Museum of American Jewish Military History, 1811 R St. NW. Free. 202-265-6280 or mwestley@jwv.org. **Electronic musician,** a performance by Yoko K., the Strathmore artist-in- residence. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **Architecture lecture,** Jim Eyre discusses the boundaries of scale in the art and science of building design. Eyre’s London-based firm crafted the Gardens by the Bay in Singapore and the Guangzhou International Finance Centre. 6:30-8 p.m., National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. $20; students, $10. 202-272-2448. **M Street transportation study meeting,** the District Department of Transportation hosts the first in a series of community meetings on the Anacostia Waterfront Initiative. 6:30-8 p.m., Westminster Presbyterian Church, 400 I St. SW. 202-671-2228 or colleen.hawkinson@dc.gov. **Friday Morning Music Club recital,** a performance of works by Franck, Ibert and Kabalevsky. Noon, Calvary Baptist Church, 755 Eighth St. NW. Free. 202-333-2075 or www.fmmc.org. **“I Have a Dream” recitation,** students from Watkins Elementary School will read the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.’s historic speech. 1 p.m., Lincoln Memorial, 23rd Street NW and West Potomac Park. Jen Epstein, 202-438-9584. **Native Dancing: The Git-Hoan Dancers,** an ensemble from Washington State, led by Tsimshian carver and culture bearer David Boxley. 2 p.m. Friday, Saturday and Sunday, National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“George Washington and His Monument,”** a discussion led by a National Park Service ranger. 6 p.m., the monument lodge, 15th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Free. Don Stanko, 240-375-4857. **Jazz, hip-hop and funk concert,** trombonist Jeff Bradshaw performs. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **“Circumstance,” **Maryam Keshavarz’s 2011 coming-of-age movie set in contemporary Iran. In Persian with English subtitles. 7 p.m. Friday; 2 p.m. Sunday, Freer Gallery of Art, Jefferson Drive and 12th Street SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **D.C. Arts Center Decathlon reception,** for the opening of an exhibit of works, “Art @ Work,” in various disciplines by semi-finalists Shanthi Chandrasekar, Lee Gainer, Lisa Rosenstein and Mary Woodall. 7-9 p.m.; exhibit continues through Feb. 5. D.C. Arts Center, 2438 18th St. NW. Free, reservations required. 202-462-7833, www.dcartscenter.org or info@dcartscenter.org. **“Tango Practica,”** Jake and Danarae Stevens teach the tango to dancers of all ages and experience levels. 7-9:30 p.m., Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 Seventh St. SE. Free. 202-547-6839 or www.chaw.org .. **Embassy of Austria classical concert,** violinist Earl Carlyss, violist Kenji Bunch, cellist Darrett Adkins, double-bass player John Patitucci and pianist Ann Schein perform Franz Schubert’s “Trout” quintet and a rarely heard Ralph Vaughan-Williams piece. 7:30 p.m., a reception follows. Embassy of Austria, 3524 International Ct. NW. $50. 202-625-2361 or www.embassyseries.org. **“Arcadia,”** the St. Mark’s Players perform Tom Stoppard’s play about order and disorder and the certainty of knowledge. 8 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sundays, through Jan. 28. St. Mark’s Episcopal Church, 118 Third St. SE. $20; students and seniors, $18; age 12 and younger, $15. 202-546-9670 or www.stmarksplayers.org. **“Preparing Everyday Vegan Meals,”** a workshop led by Juliette G. Tahar on basic techniques for plant-based protein and seasonal dishes. 10 a.m.-noon, Smith Center for Healing and the Arts, 1632 U St. NW. $25. 202-483-8600 or www.smithcenter.org. **Teen studio painting,** for high school students, Brian Baade and Sarah Diallo lead a five-hour workshop that includes gallery visits and studio time to experiment with materials and techniques; lunch provided. 10 a.m.-3:30 p.m., National Gallery of Art, East Building, Fourth Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Free, registration required. 202-842-6252 or teens@nga.gov. **“To the Mountaintop,”** a weekend of tributes to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., with Xavier Carnegie portraying the civil rights leader; a combination of live performance, historic photographs and audio recordings. 11 a.m., 1 p.m., 2:30 and 4 p.m. Saturday, Sunday and Monday, National Museum of American History, 14th Street and Constitution Avenue NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **National Symphony Orchestra “Teddy Bear Concert,”** for age 5 or younger, Aaron Goldman, William Wielgus and Janet Frank perform music from a variety of composers as a background for a story about a bear; arrive 30 minutes early for a “musical playtime” with movement activities. 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., Kennedy Center, Family Theater, 2700 F St. NW. $18. 202-467-4600. **“Stories of Service,”** a National Park Service ranger reads stories about the civil rights era. 11 a.m. and 1 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial bookstore, West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Jen Epstein, 202-438-9584. **“Where in the Park Are the Band of Patriots?”** National Park Service rangers in 1776 attire talk about the history of the Mall. 11 a.m.-4 p.m., Thomas Jefferson Memorial (meet in the chamber), 900 Ohio Dr. SW. Free. Mike Rose, 202-438-9667. **All Points West concert,** the chamber music ensemble performs. 11 a.m., Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 Seventh St. SE. Free, registration required. 202-547-6839. **“Healthy Parks: Healthy Living” hike,** for age 7 or older, a National Park Service ranger leads a vigorous walk. Noon, Rock Creek Park Nature Center, 5200 Glover Rd. NW. Free. 202-895-6070. **Totem pole dedication,** David Boxley, a Tsimshian carver from Metlakatla, Alaska, and members of the dance group Git-Hoan (“People of the Salmon”) unveil a specially commissioned totem pole. Noon, National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **Winter storytelling festival,** traditional Native American stories told through dance and hands-on activities. Noon-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“Echoes of Elvis: The Cultural Legacy of Elvis Presley,”** former Graceland tour guide Warren Perry discusses his book and how celebrity status affects the framework of American culture. 2 p.m., National Portrait Gallery, 3rd floor mezzanine, Eighth and F streets NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“Toll Booth,”** Tolga Karacelik’s 2010 film about a tollbooth attendant’s dreary life that is changed by the daily drive-through visits of a beautiful woman. In Turkish with English subtitles. 2 p.m., Freer Gallery of Art, Jefferson Drive and 12th Street SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“Poetry Extravaganza,”** Joy “Sistah Joy” Matthews Alford leads Collective Voices, an African American female poet ensemble. 3 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Library, 901 G St. NW. Free. 202-727-0321. **“What Ballet Does Best,”** dance critic Alexandra Tomalonis plays videos of well-known ballets. 3 p.m., Kennedy Center, Terrace Gallery, 2700 F St. NW. $15. 202-467-4600. **Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial quotes,** a National Park Service ranger reads the messages on the memorial and recalls the sermons and speeches from which they were taken. 3 p.m., MLK Memorial, West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Jan Buerger, 202-497-1397. **“Crashing Galaxies: New Insights into Our Future,”** visit the museum’s discovery stations from 4:30 to 5:45 p.m., then view a presentation by Lauranne Lanz, from the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. National Air and Space Museum, Sixth Street and Independence Avenue SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“Civil Rights in Washington D.C.,”** a National Park Service ranger-led discussion. 6 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Susan Philpott, 202-426-6841. **Mid-Atlantic Jazz Orchestra,** a showcase for students from several premier collegiate jazz programs. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **Bokamoso youth perform,** the ensemble from Winterveldt Township near Pretoria, South Africa talk and sing about their life challenges and dreams. 6 p.m., Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 Seventh St. SE. Free-will offering, registration required. 202-547-6839. **A cappella concert,** performance by Colgate University’s Swinging Gates. 7:30 p.m., St. Columba’s Episcopal Church, 4201 Albemarle St. NW. Donations welcome. 202-363-4119 or www.columba.org. **Dance concert,** the KanKouran West African Dance Company performs in honor of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. 8 p.m. Saturday; 4 p.m. Sunday, Dance Place, 3225 Eighth St. NE. $22; seniors and students, $17; age 17 or younger, $8. 202-269-1600. **“A Jew’s Perspective on Christianity,”** a talk by Harold White, former Senior Jewish Chaplain at Georgetown University and a rabbi at the Interfaith Families Project. 10 a.m., St. John’s Episcopal Church, Lafayette Square, 1525 H St. NW. Free. 202-347-8766. **“Healthy Parks: Healthy Living” hike,** for age 7 or older, a National Park Service ranger leads a vigorous walk. 10 a.m., Peirce Mill, Tilden Street and Beach Drive NW. Free. 202-895-6070. **St. Labre Indian School singers and dancers,** a performance by students from the school in Montana. Noon, National Museum of the American Indian, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SW. Free. 202-633-1000. **National Symphony Orchestra Ensemble,** for age 9 or older, cellist Yvonne Caruthers, violinist Natasha Bogachek perform a “zany multimedia program.” 1:30 and 4 p.m., Kennedy Center, Family Theater, 2700 F St. NW. $18. 202-467-4600. **“Children’s March for Dr. King,”** a National Park Service ranger leads a walk from the Lincoln Memorial to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial. 2 p.m., Sunday and Monday, Lincoln Memorial, 23rd Street NW and West Potomac Park. Free. Jeff Jones, 202-329-2238. **“Who Was Gertrude Stein?”** staff members lead a hands-on project and read a story about the writer, poet and art collector. 2-5 p.m., National Portrait Gallery, Room E151, Eighth and F streets NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“Walking for Justice: King and the Montgomery Bus Boycott,”** a National Park Service ranger discusses the 1955 social protest. 3 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial (meet in the bookstore), West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Chris Gwinn, 202-329-8064. **Cathedral pipe-organ recital,** John Cannon performs works by Johann Bach, Franz Liszt, Jehan Alain, T. Tertius Noble, Eugene Gigout and Max Reger. 5:15 p.m., Washington National Cathedral, Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues NW. Suggested donation, $10. 202-537-6200 or www.nationalcathedral.org. **“Dreams, Hope, Service: Remembering Martin Luther King Jr.,”** a National Park Service ranger-led discussion. 6 p.m., Sunday and Wednesday, Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, West Potomac Park, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Mike Balis, 202-438-9710. **“Remembering Korean War Veterans,”** a National Park Service ranger-led discussion. 6 p.m., Korean War Veterans Memorial, south of the Reflecting Pool. Free. Victor Pillow, 202-841-1774. **Gospel concert,** a choir from Riverdale’s Refreshing Spring Church of God in Christ performs a musical tribute to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **Classical Brazilian and Portuguese music,** Americantiga and the National Gallery of Art Chamber Players perform works by 18th-century composers. 6:30 p.m., National Gallery of Art, West Building Garden Court, 600 Constitution Ave. NW. Free. 202-842-6941. **Martin Luther King Jr. National Day of Volunteer Service,** join Weed Warriors and Stream Team Leaders from Rock Creek Conservancy and remove invasive and exotic plants throughout the park. 9 a.m., various locations; registration required. 202-557-9914. **“King in Our Midst,”** a tribute to Martin Luther King Jr. featuring performances by the Malcolm X Dancers and Drummers, St. Augustine Gospel Choir, poet Tony Keith, Urban Nation H.I.P.-H.O.P. Choir, Washington Performing Arts Society’s Children of the Gospel Choir and CityDance with singers from School Without Walls. 2-4 p.m., Washington National Cathedral, Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues NW. Bring a non-perishable canned food item or a new children’s book. 202-537-6200 or www.nationalcathedral.org. **Children’s March for Dr. King,** a National Park Service ranger leads a walk from the Lincoln Memorial to the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial and discusses Dr. King’s famous marches along the way, dress warm enough for outdoor activity. 2 p.m., Lincoln Memorial, 23rd Street NW and West Potomac Park. Free. Call Jeff Jones, 202-329-2238. **“Let Freedom Ring” concert,** a musical tribute to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. by Grammy Award winner Bobby McFerrin and the Let Freedom Ring Choir. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Concert Hall, 2700 F St. NW. Free tickets distributed starting at 5 p.m. 202-467-4600. **Computer classes,** “intermediate” instruction for all ages. 9-10 a.m. Tuesdays, Deanwood Library, 1350 49th St. NE. Free. 202-698-1175. **How the Obama White House Manages the News Media,** American University politics and journalism professor and retired USA Today White House correspondent Richard Benedetto discusses the Obama media strategies are and whether they are working. 10-11:50 a.m., American University, Katzen Arts Center, Abramson Recital Hall, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Free. 202-895-4860 or www.olli-dc.org **“First of Hearts: Selected Letters of Mrs. Henry Adams,”** Cokie Roberts moderates a discussion of letters written by Clover Adams, with descriptions of life in the house that would become the Hay-Adams Hotel. Noon, National Archives, Constitution Avenue and Seventh Street NW. Free. 202-357-5000. **Chris Gekker, classical trumpet,** 12:10 p.m., Church of the Epiphany, 1317 G St. NW. Suggested donation, $5. 202-347-2635, Ext. 18. **Ballet rehearsal,** a behind-the-scenes view of the Mariinsky Ballet. 12:30 p.m., Kennedy Center, Opera House, 2700 F St. NW. $12. 202-467-4600. **Cathedral garden tour and tea,** docents lead an hourlong tour of the Bishop’s Garden, followed by a traditional English tea in the cathedral tower. 1:30 p.m., meet at the West Front, Washington National Cathedral, Wisconsin and Massachusetts avenues NW. $25, reservations required. 202-537-8993 or www.allhallowsguild.org. **Pop singer-songwriter David Mead,** Nashville-based musician, performs. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **Remembrance of Martin Luther King Jr.,** the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered Arts Consortium presents artists and choirs from the metropolitan area in a tribute in music, dance and the spoken word. 7 p.m., Capitol Hill Presbyterian Church, Fourth Street and Independence Avenue SE. Free. 202-547-6839 or www.chaw.org. **“The Two Gentlemen of Verona,”** a new twist on the romantic comedy directed by P.J. Paparelli, a story of adolescent love and friendship with a new twist, starring Nick Dillenburg, Natalie Mitchell, Miriam Silverman and Andrew Veenstra. 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays; 8 p.m. Thursdays and Fridays; 2 and 8 p.m. Saturdays; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sundays. Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW. $37-$90. 202-547-1122 or www.shakespearetheatre.org. **Smithsonian Encore Chorale concert,** an ensemble of age 55-plus singers performs. 10:30 a.m., S. Dillon Ripley Center, 1100 Jefferson Dr. SW. Free. 202-633-3030 or www.encorecreativity.org. **“Genealogy and the 1940 Census,”** a presentation by Constance Potter and Diane Petro on the pending release of data. 11 a.m., National Archives, McGowan Theater, 700 Pennsylvania Ave. NW. Free. 202-357-5000. **“1861: The Civil War Awakening,” **historian and journalist Adam Goodheart discusses his book on the start of the war. Noon, National Archives, Jefferson Room, Constitution Avenue and Ninth Street NW. Free. 202-357-5000. **Dale Chihuly’s “Blanket Cylinder Series,”** curatorial assistant Debrah Dunner discusses the American artist’s work in glass. Noon, Renwick Gallery, 17th Street and Pennsylvania Avenue NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **Music for Shakespeare’s sonnets,** pianist Burnett Thompson performs. Noon, Sidney Harman Hall, 610 F St. NW. Free. 202-547-1122 or www.ShakespeareTheatre.org. **“Young J. Edgar: Hoover, the Red Scare and the Assault on Civil Liberties,”** writer and attorney Kenneth D. Ackerman discusses his book about the FBI chief whose career started with a four-year stint at the Library of Congress. Noon, Library of Congress, Madison Building, West Dining Room, 101 Independence Ave. SE. Free. 202-707-5221. **Rafrechi, soul-singing group,** a performance of the new and old Kompa sound with a dash of hip-hop culture. 6 p.m., Kennedy Center, Millennium Stage, 2700 F St. NW. Free. 202-467-4600. **“Dreams, Hope, Service: Remembering Martin Luther King Jr.,”** a National Park Service ranger discusses the life and times of the civil rights leader. 6 p.m., Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial, meet at the memorial bookstore, between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials, Independence Avenue SW. Free. Call Mike Balis, 202-438-9710. **“The Seven Year Itch,” **Billy Wilder’s 1955 comedy stars Marilyn Monroe and Tom Ewell. 6:30 p.m., Smithsonian American Art Museum, McEvoy Auditorium, Eighth and F streets NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **“The Exceptional Everyday: An Evening of Norwegian Design,”** presentation by Benedicte Sunde of the Norwegian Centre for Design and Architecture; reception and fashion presentation follow. 7 p.m., Corcoran Gallery of Art, 500 17th St. NW. Free, preregistration encouraged. 202-639-1700. **Deanwood Library chess night,** led by Jonee Washington, all ages and experience levels welcome. 7-8:45 p.m, Deanwood Community Center, 1350 49th St. NE. Free. 202-698-1175. **“Timetables of Wagner’s Ring Cycle in Relationship to Mayan Predictions for 2012,”** a presentation by George Hastings, author of “Richard Wagner, Rudolf Steiner & Allegories of the Ring,” on his discovery 22 years ago of the Wagner operas that were filled with secret allegories concerning the evolution of consciousness, his research into Homer’s epic poems, Mozart’s “The Magic Flute,” and Michelangelo’s story on the Sistine Chapel ceiling, all containing similar esoteric insights and all leading to a Mayan prediction of 2012. 7-9 p.m., Tenley-Friendship Library, 4450 Wisconsin Ave. NW. Free. 202-282-3090 or www.allegoriesofthering.com. **Classical concert,** pianist Yael Weiss, violinist Mark Kaplan and cellist Clancy Newman perform trios by Beethoven, Schubert, Jennifer Higdon and Clancy Newman. 7:30 p.m., Kennedy Center, Terrace Theater, 2700 F St. NW. $32. 202-467-4600. **“My Piece of the Pie,” **a screening of the 2011 English-style social comedy; in French with English subtitles. 8 p.m., Avalon Theatre, 5612 Connecticut Ave. NW. $11; students, $9; seniors, $8.25; age 12 or younger, $8. 202-966-6000. **Washington’s art scene,** Liz Georges, membership director of Washington Project for the Arts, discusses the city’s contemporary arts scene, how her organization has provided an alternative for artists and audiences who want something beyond marble-clad museums and statues of generals on horseback, and what it planned for the future, sponsored by Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. 10-aa:50 a.m., American University, Katzen Arts Center, Abramson Recital Hall, 4400 Massachusetts Ave. NW. Free. 202-895-4860 or www.olli- dc.org **Introducing “The Building Zone,”** for age 6 or younger with adult supervision, an interactive look at the building-arts trades. 10 a.m.-4 p.m. daily (11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sundays), through Jan. 31. National Building Museum, 401 F St. NW. $3. 202-272-2448. **Concert and printmaking exhibition,** Take 5! quintet performs wintery blues while artists from George Mason University demonstrate printmaking techniques. 5-7 p.m., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Eighth and F streets NW. Free. 202-633-1000. **Artist presentation,** large-scale portraitist Barkley Hendricks discusses his work with Trevor Schoonmaker. 7 p.m., Corcoran Gallery of Art, 500 17th St. NW. $20. 202-639-1770. **“A Night of One-Act Plays,”** Nomadic Theatre performances of plays by Neil LaBute, John Behlmann and Wendy Wasserstein. 8 p.m., Jan. 19-21; 4 p.m. Jan. 22; 8 p.m. Jan. 25-28, Georgetown University, Davis Performing Arts Center, Devine Studio Theatre, 37th and O streets NW. $12; students, $10. 202-687-2787. ** — Compiled by Gerri Marmer ** **E-mail:** districtlocalliving@washpost.com (to the attention of Gerri Marmer) **Mail:** Community Events, District Local Living, The Washington Post, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C., 20071. **Details:** Announcements are accepted on a space-available basis from public and nonprofit organizations only and must be received at least 14 days before the Thursday publication date. Include event name, dates, times, exact address, prices and a publishable contact phone number.

CHICAGO — President Obama flexed his campaign muscle a day after Republicans came closer to selecting a challenger, jetting back to his home town for a surprise visit to his 2012 election headquarters and rallying supporters at three fundraisers. Less than 24 hours after former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney emerged as the clear front-runner for the GOP nomination by winning the New Hampshire primary, Obama paid his first visit to his reelection headquarters, in a 50,000-square-foot office in the Prudential Building here. The stop was not announced ahead of time to reporters traveling on Air Force One, and they were not allowed inside. Later, White House aides said that Obama spoke in an open, bullpen-style area on the sixth floor, reminiscing about his arrival in Chicago as a young man and his Senate campaign in 2003. The president thanked staffers and encouraged them to run “a campaign that embodies the values we’re fighting for,” deputy press secretary Josh Earnest quoted him as saying. A short time later, Obama rallied 500 supporters at the University of Illinois-Chicago, playing off his 2008 slogan, “Change you can believe in.” “Change is hard, but it is possible,” Obama said after listing such accomplishments as ending the Iraq war, rescuing the auto industry and passing health-reform legislation. “I’ve seen it, you’ve seen it, we have lived it,” he added. “And if you want to end the cynicism and end the game-playing that passes for politics these days and you want to send a message about what is possible, you can’t back down. Not now. You can’t give up. Not now. You have to keep pushing and fighting for the change we can believe in.” Aides have said that Obama is focused on governing, not campaigning, but he has held five fundraisers this week alone. Before heading to Chicago, the president had gathered business leaders to talk about how to create jobs at home. Although officials said the event was not political, it implicitly contrasted the president’s jobs push with Romney’s record at Bain Capital. Romney has been attacked by rivals for Bain's tactics of restructuring companies and sending jobs abroad. In Chicago, Obama cited his meeting with the CEOs and told the crowd that Republicans favor policies promoting “on-your-own economics.” Of his own record, Obama said: “I’m not a perfect man. I’m not a perfect president, but I’ve kept this promise: I’ll always tell you what I believe in. I’ll always tell you where I stand. So if you’ve still got that energy, if you’re still fired up . . . if you want to keep reaching for that vision you hold in your hearts, I promise you, change will come.”

The video, three minutes long and posted just a week ago, is tearing up the Internet, causing appreciative reactions among heterosexual men and some yoga fans and disapproval among yoga purists. Shot in the penthouse of the Mondrian SoHo hotel in New York, it shows a gorgeous young woman performing expert yoga moves wearing only a black lace bra and panties. As she contorts herself, a man dozes in a mussed-up bed. Yoga, the movie seems to say, gives you all this: a great body, hot sex, serenity and a fantastic apartment with a 360-degree view of lower Manhattan. The implicit message neatly dovetails with the slogan of Equinox Holdings, the fitness chain that funded the video: “It’s not fitness, it’s life.” More accurately, it’s a fantasy of the life (body, apartment, boyfriend) many of us wish we had. The yogini in the video is Briohny Smyth, who was raised in Sydney, lived in Thailand as a teen pop star and now teaches yoga at the Equinox gym in West Hollywood. Purists insist that while what she’s doing might require strength and skill, “it’s not yoga,” says Suhag Shukla, managing director of the Hindu America Foundation. For one thing, real yoga is an exercise of the mind as well as of the body, and as a mental discipline, it emphasizes restraint, including and especially in matters of sex. (“At corporate, they said they wanted arm balances and inversions. I said I’d put together a routine. They said, “Minimal clothing.” I said, ‘Let’s do it!’ ” Smyth remembers. ) What really bothers the purists, though, is that the video contradicts yoga’s true aim, which is spiritual oneness and a unity of mind and body. Instead, it’s another brick in the $6 billion yoga industry — a crass way to sell gym memberships, just as Lululemon sells expensive stretch pants in the name of the transcendence that is the ostensible aim of yoga practice. The video is “just emblematic of the Western commercialization of yoga,” Shukla says. “You know, the whole purpose of the physical asanas [poses] is to prepare your body to sit still and focus. It’s not about having a cute ass.” I would suggest, however, that this tension in the West between “corrupt” and “pure” religion is perennial, going back at least to the era before Jesus, when Jewish sects were at war over who, exactly, was sufficiently holy to perform the sacred duties at God’s Temple in Jerusalem. Spiritual satisfaction and authenticity have always been matters of taste (as well as of time, place and tribe), and those who claim too loudly to have found the “right” path to a higher truth are at a disadvantage for having said so. In America today, there are the Amish and there are televangelists. Some might say the Amish have a “purer” religion, but millions get a thrill and perhaps even existential guidance from the happy platitudes of Joel Osteen. And of all the religious patterns occurring among Americans now, none is more prevalent than the widespread dissatisfaction with established religion, a falling away of the faithful from the structures and rules of conventional Judeo-Christian worship. In its place is a more do-it-yourself spirituality, a cobbling together of private-prayer, transcendent experience and family tradition; for millions of these DIYers, yoga and meditation meet a need that regular churchgoing can’t fill. Smyth is one of these new seekers. She believes that yoga changed her life — from a rebellious, anorexic young woman to thriving single mom. She went to Catholic schools as a child, and although she continues to pray to God, “I’ve never felt comfortable with rules,” she says. “The yogic way allows religion to be there as a friend, something you can rely on, not fear.” Her intent in making the video, she says, was only to inspire. I asked Shukla to suggest an American teacher who practices yoga in a way she believes is consistent with its Hindu roots, and she pointed me to Eddie Stern, a teacher with a studio in an unglamorous building in downtown Manhattan. Inside, he has built a temple — complete with incense and statues of the gods Ganesh, Shiva and Hanuman, to which he gives daily offerings of food and flowers. In the temple, Stern teaches difficult Ashtanga yoga poses, yes, but also chanting, meditation and Hindu philosophy, a fully integrated practice for busy New Yorkers. Stern has the visage of someone who has discovered the secret to something. He’s monkish but youthful, unwrinkled and lithe. When I asked him whether gym yoga qualified as real yoga, Stern, in his wisdom, declined to condemn. “It’s hard to whitewash an entire genre of yoga,” he said. “The people who are going to a gym yoga class are going because they hear the word ‘yoga.’ They’re not going to spinning, or aerobics.” In other words, they’re looking for something. “And what we have is really, really good, and powerful and deep. Really, really deep.” Ironically, Stern’s values jibe more closely with those of religious conservatives than with the shallow purveyors of (Eastern or Western) spirituality prevalent today. He believes that religious practice should be difficult and that nothing worth having, doing or learning is easily attained. By those lights, Briohny Smyth’s performance in the Equinox video is awe-inspiring, regardless of her underwear.

For centuries, this has been the paradox of warfare in Afghanistan: “The more enemies you kill, the faster you lose. Because of badal (revenge), the Pashtun have a saying: ‘Kill one enemy, make ten.’ ” That’s a quote from the Marine Corps’ May 2009 update of a guidebook, “Afghanistan, Operational Culture for Deploying Personnel.” The book is for those serving or preparing to serve in that country. Released publicly last week by the Web site Public Intelligence, a collaborative Internet research project, the 112-page, “for official use only” manual gives a clear description of the complicated Taliban enemy against whom U.S. troops have been fighting and the Afghans who are fighting alongside U.S. forces. In neither case is the picture reassuring. Nor do the manual’s recollections of the U.S. experience in Vietnam ease current concerns of those who lived through that war, that history may be repeating itself. The manual also explains why the Pakistani army’s intelligence branch, the Inter-Services Intelligence Directorate (ISI), has such an interest in Afghanistan. But first it provides some background. “Afghanistan is still a medieval country in many ways,” it says, explaining that much of the land in the south, the Pashtun area around Kandahar, is dominated by Islam. The manual describes the Taliban as “several loosely-linked insurgent groups” that have in common “the supremacy of their religion in their lives, and the belief that they are waging a holy war, or jihad.” The manual warns, “The Taliban insurgent is certain that it is God’s will that he fight to eliminate the Afghan infidels in Kabul and drive the foreign infidels (you) from Afghanistan.” Mullahs are described as providing “most of the operational leadership of the insurgents” by having “a complex underground network of support in the rural areas through their mosques and madrassas.” Many of these all-male schools in Pakistan and Afghanistan are run by Taliban adherents for orphans and refugees who emerge as “hard-corps foot soldiers of the insurgent groups,” the manual says. “Some insurgents are farmers or shepherds by day and IED [improvised explosive device] bombers by night,” according to the manual. The Pashtun area has always been home to radical Islamic movements, but in the 1980s, the United States and Saudia Arabia, in an effort to combat the Soviets in Afghanistan, put these groups “on steroids” by arming the fighters — called mujaheddin — with some $7.2 billion worth of foreign military equipment. This was supposedly done covertly, through Pakistan. The Marine manual notes mischievously, “The CIA was happy to steer money towards whichever groups fooled them into believing they were killing the most Russian troops.” It also says the State Department and some Afghans, including Hamid Karzai, warned the CIA that arming “radical anti-western extremists and terrorists who hated the United States would backfire. This advice was ignored.” Among the tribes that received CIA assistance were those associated with Jalaludin Haqqani, whose followers are believed to have carried out recent bombings in Kabul and who today is considered one of the major anti-U.S. warlords. It was also during this period that the ISI gained power among the Taliban groups by being the channel for much of the weaponry the United States and Saudi Arabia provided. “To control the Mujahideen, the ISI formed seven resistance groups, each with a national political party associated with it,” according to the manual. The ISI selected tribes that were rivals of those associated with Afghanistan’s former leaders, who had no love for Pakistan. The ISI’s purpose was to create “puppets they could control when the war was over” and thus protect their northwestern border. That was needed to ease their fear of a two-front war should India invade from the southeast. After the war concluded, former mujaheddin began to fight each other for control of the country. By 1994, a group of radical Islamic Taliban forces that had been armed by the ISI took over to end the anarchy. Unable to govern, they “became dependent on al Qaeda and their Pakistani masters for funds and military power,” according to the manual. After Sept. 11, 2001, the United States and its coalition partners defeated the Taliban, and in 2002 a government headed by President Hamid Karzai was installed. Meanwhile, a new Taliban has emerged. “They still revere Mullah Omar as a spiritual leader, but no longer as the primary political leader of the movement,” according to the manual. This diffused Taliban leadership makes peace talks that much more difficult. Another portion of the manual introduces the Marines to their Afghan allies, warts and all. In combat, Afghans from all ethnic groups in the army “generally make excellent soldiers,” according to the manual. “Keep in mind that many ANA [Afghan National Army] soldiers have seen more firefights than you’ve had hot dinners.” But the manual warns that corruption among officers was in the culture of the old army. “This included skimming pay, rations, and equipment for their own profits,” according to the manual. “Instilling a sense of duty to country and professionalism among the officers has been one of the most frequently-reported challenges,” it goes on to say. A second problem: “Corruption in the police is endemic” with army units needing to challenge “local police graft, bribery and corruption schemes.” On Wednesday, the Wall Street Journal reported from Jani Khel, Afghanistan that local police had “erected illegal checkpoints to extort money from the population.” In offering advice to U.S. Marines in Afghanistan the manual quotes, with one adaptation, T.E. Lawrence, the famous Lawrence of Arabia: “Do not try to do too much with your own hands. Better the [Afghans] do it tolerably than that you do it perfectly. It is their war, and you are to help them, not win it for them.”

“You get a big delight in every bite of Hostess Twinkies,” said Twinkie the Kid in a 1970s television ad after lassoing two cartoon thieves making off with golden sponge cakes packed with “creamy filling.” But all the fruit pies, cupcakes and Wonder bread in “Hostess Twinkie town” weren’t enough to save privately owned Hostess Brands from filing for bankruptcy on Wednesday, for the second time in the past decade. The company, which has 19,000 employees, will continue operating as it seeks to restructure. The failure of the brand, for decades a staple of American kids’ diets, is a parable, rife with the problems that have plagued some of the country’s oldest and most famous brands — a combination of pension burdens, labor rules, crippling debt from financial engineers and management’s failure to freshen up a stale product line and keep up with consumers’ changing tastes. There was plenty of finger-pointing on Wednesday. In the bankruptcy filing, Brian J. Driscoll, chief executive of Hostess Brands, blamed its failure on “restrictive” labor rules and legacy pension burdens. He lamented that the company had 372 collective bargaining agreements with a dozen unions, and that Hostess paid $103 million a year to employees’ pension funds. He said the Teamsters’ contract rules required different workers for making bread and cake deliveries and limited flexibility to serve small outlets. However, Frank Hurt, president of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers & Grain Millers International Union, the biggest of the Hostess unions, blamed management. He said executives launched a deli-style bread that “was just a loser from day one.” He said they starved the advertising budget. And he said that the union had been compliant, freezing wages for four or five years as the number of workers fell. As for the pension plan, which is owed $944 million, Hurt said Hostess had not made a payment to the fund since July. “I have to tell you Wall Streeters don’t give a [darn]about people. Zero. They could care less,” Hurt said. “That’s what’s wrong with this country.” Meanwhile, Hostess has been nibbled to death by competitors as consumers sought healthier snacks. Its biggest rivals are Grupo Bimbo, which has bought up classic brands such as Arnold, Thomas’s, Entenmann’s and Sara Lee, and Flowers Foods, owner of Nature’s Own. Bankruptcy, the company said, offers another chance to “reengineer,” overhaul its union accords and shed pension liabilities. “The Company’s current cost structure is not competitive,” the company said in a statement. And that, “combined with the economic downturn and a more difficult competitive landscape,” prompted the need for a reorganization. Driscoll said that the big pension fund originally served workers from several companies but that as those companies went out of business the burden on remaining firms grew. Pension funds have struggled since 2008 with the woes of the economy and stock markets. ****But the bankruptcy filing also says that Hostess lost $250 million in the less than three years since it emerged from its previous bankruptcy. That means it would have lost money without any pension costs at all. A person familiar with the company’s bankruptcy filing said it has lost money in 30 of the past 37 quarters. Steve Jakubowski, a Chicago bankruptcy attorney and blogger, noted that when the company emerged from bankruptcy last time it forecast 2011 revenue of $3.1 billion. But last year it had revenue of only $2.5 billion. In need of cash, its private-equity owner, Ripplewood Holdings, invested an additional $40 million last year and got hedge funds such as Silver Point Capital to lend more. The company’s debt load now totals $860 million. “It shows how important it is to get the capital structure right the first time you come out of bankruptcy,” Jakubowski said. “With so much debt on your books, you have to have everything go right.” Hurt, the union leader, says that Hostess doesn’t pay more than other competitors. He said the roughly 5,500 members of his union working for Hostess earn $18 to $19 an hour in pay and pension costs. Hurt said that when he talked to Hostess executives on Tuesday they didn’t complain about the union. In the end, the company’s problems may be baked into its products. The person familiar with the company, who asked for anonymity to preserve his relationship with it, said that even the most popular food brands need reinvention every eight years or so. Yet Hostess has not done that. “Fresh wholesome Hostess meets my tough standards,” said a nagging mom in a television ad that ran in the 1980s. But standards and tastes have changed since the 1980s and now the company’s creditors will fight over the crumbs.

One marquee congressional contest took shape and another fizzled out Wednesday as the deadline passed for Maryland candidates to get on this year’s ballots. The state’s newly drawn congressional district map largely protects incumbents, yielding just one assuredly competitive race: Rep. Roscoe G. Bartlett’s (R) bid for an 11th term in a district shaped by Democrats in Annapolis to be ripe for the picking. “This is one seat that’s flipped dramatically from the safe Republican column to the Democrats being favored,” said Nathan L. Gonzales, deputy editor of the nonpartisan Rothenberg Political Report. With the primary looming April 3, Bartlett faces a challenge for the Republican nomination from two sitting legislators — Sen. David Brinkley (Frederick) and Del. Kathy Afzali (Frederick) — while the Democratic ballot will include Sen. Rob Garagiola (Montgomery) and financier John Delaney. But an anticipated Democratic primary battle fell by the wayside Wednesday as former Prince George’s County prosecutor Glenn F. Ivey decided against challenging Rep. Donna F. Edwards. Ivey struggled for weeks to attract donors and hire key staff for his race against a popular, labor-backed incumbent. “I just could not raise enough money to win,” Ivey said in an interview. “We could not figure out how to make the numbers work.” Ivey’s move should mean clear sailing for Edwards, who ruffled some feathers in her party this year by protesting against the redistricting map authored by a commission backed by Gov. Martin O’Malley (D). She now faces two little- known primary opponents in a seat that heavily favors Democrats. U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D) is also viewed as a favorite for reelection, although he did draw a notable primary opponent in state Sen. C. Anthony Muse. President Obama and most Maryland Democratic leaders have endorsed Cardin, prompting Muse to complain that the state party needed to do a better job staying neutral in the contest. On the Republican side, former Secret Service agent Daniel Bongino has been the most active and vocal Senate candidate, drawing news media attention for his unusual background. Former Pentagon and Justice Department lawyer Richard Douglas has won the endorsements of a handful of Bush administration national security officials. A total of 19 candidates filed for the Senate contest. Maryland law makes it relatively easy to get on the ballot compared with some other states. In the Washington region, congressmen Chris Van Hollen (D) and Steny H. Hoyer (D) each drew one Democrat and three Republican opponents, but both incumbents are expected to win reelection with ease, as are Democratic Reps. Elijah Cummings, C.A. “Dutch” Ruppersberger and John Sarbanes. Freshman Rep. Andy Harris (R) saw his previously competitive Eastern Shore-based district redrawn to favor the GOP, giving him the clear edge over three Democratic hopefuls. The real focus will be on Bart­lett’s 6th District, which was altered to include a slice of Democratic-leaning Montgomery County along with the more conservative and rural territory of Western Maryland. The new map has sparked drama. Bartlett’s chief of staff, Bud Otis, resigned his post after word leaked to the news media that he was soliciting support for his own campaign should Bartlett choose to retire. Otis eventually decided not to run. Maryland Republican Party head Alex X. Mooney, a former Bartlett aide, also decided against a bid after raising money and recruiting supporters for the race. That leaves Brinkley, who has the backing of several local Republican officials, as well as Afzali and five other Republicans challenging the incumbent. Garagiola, meanwhile, has significant establishment support on the Democratic side because the district was drawn by party leaders with him in mind. **ben.pershing@wpost.com**

LAS VEGAS — If you were expecting a whiz-bang, must-have product to be unveiled at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas this year, I’m not sure I’ve seen it. This year’s exhibition has been more about trends than about big halo devices or services. One big trend this year centers on “smart TVs.” More specifically, that means TVs that connect to the Internet, have apps, run Android, can tell you the weather, plug into services like Netflix or Hulu, and generally don’t act much like a television. These sets also tout motion controls (a la Microsoft’s Kinect Xbox peripheral), accept voice commands, and interface with complex remotes that feature trackpads and QWERTY keyboards. And not only are there tons of these TVs floating around the show, but manufacturers who’ve never made a television — like Lenovo, a PC-maker — have jumped into the game. You might be wondering why this is. But I’m not. Almost every company here seems to be frantically scrambling to preempt something that hasn’t even been announced yet: Apple’s rumored TV. But what makes a smart TV really matter to a consumer — and what will certainly be the focal point of any Apple television that ever exists — has nothing to do with remote controls. It has to do with content, and that’s something few companies here are talking about at all. Sure, a smart TV will be really nice to have in your living room if someone can create a user experience that doesn’t feel like a pain, but it won’t matter much if you don’t have the content you want on the set or you don’t have any way to get it. What’s interesting to watch is companies somehow missing the mark on what consumers really need. It’s not that we’re unhappy because we can’t get the weather report on our television (isn’t that what the Weather Channel is for?),or that we can’t use motion controls to swipe-swipe-swipe to find something to watch. The problem is that we can’t get the content we want because cable companies and their partners are still bottlenecking the distribution of movies and TV shows. They haven’t been able to find the right ways to work together (or don’t want to). This is why the previous generation of Internet TV products — the streaming services and set-top boxes sold by companies like Google, Hulu, Netflix and Roku — hasn’t completely replaced old-fashioned TVs. These services and devices only allow you to watch a subset of content from their partners. Until this problem is solved, these manufacturers are still going to look over their shoulders at Apple because it’s been one of the few companies that seems to be able to wrangle disparate content partner deals. The other major trend happening at CES 2012 is the rise of the ultrabook. If you don’t know what an ultrabook is, take a look at the latest MacBook Airs. PC makers have started cranking out similar designs which focus on thin, light, beautifully designed laptops — and they are all over this show. Not only are the familiar faces in this game (Samsung, Lenovo, Sony, etc.) but young companies like Vizio — previously known only for their cheap HDTVs — want to be part of this story. If there’s one thing I can promise about 2012, it’s that the big, bulky laptops of yesteryear are not long for this world. Chip-maker Intel touted the fact that there are more than 75 versions of the ultrabook coming in the next 12 months. Talk about market saturation. But ultimately, what’s most interesting about the consumer electronics industry (and what you clearly see here in Las Vegas) is that it really isn’t about those explosive moments when everything changes. Those moments hardly ever happen — and they typically don’t happen at huge trade shows where everyone wants to show off their latest and greatest. No, technology moves iteratively, deliberately. Ploddingly? Yeah, sometimes — especially when you see 50 versions of the same thing and none of them seem to work quite the way you want. But still, I do think we will get there — both with the explosions and the ones that trickle out slowly. I just hope you didn’t buy a TV or a laptop recently. Related stories: Full coverage of CES Photos: Its all about ultrabooks at CES Next tech war is in your living room At CES, Pandora turns its gaze to cars What’s Samsung’s mobile strategy?

Police in the District and Montgomery County say they suspect that the same pair of armed men may be responsible for a spate of as many as 12 street robberies since late November in Upper Northwest and within blocks of the Bethesda-District line near Western Avenue. Many of the robberies have occurred in the early evening, when people are taking walks or arriving home. The robberies, in an area that includes upscale shops and restaurants, have residents on edge. A robbery about 7 p.m. Wednesday on Western and Chevy Chase Circle follows that pattern, authorities said. Samantha Nolan of the Chevy Chase neighborhood in the District said the brazenness of the robberies is “very disconcerting.” Doing three stickups within minutes and then returning to the same neighborhood is “very bold” and suggests that the robbers don’t have much fear, she said. The robberies come as a housekeeper was sexually assaulted and a mother and teenage son were tied up during a home invasion in Bethesda Wednesday morning. Montgomery County police say the incident involves the same man who committed a Tuesday home invasion in Wheaton. Police linked those incidents Wednesday afternoon, but say they are unrelated to the robberies. Before Wednesday night, the most recent related robbery occurred on Tuesday about 9:20 p.m., when a woman walking in the 4100 block of Livingston Street NW was robbed at gunpoint of her purse and cellphone, D.C. police said. The woman told police she noticed a man hiding in the tree line on the south side of the street. When she tried to cross to avoid him, she told police, the suspect ran to her and robbed her. The robberies are not like the crimes that targeted iPhones and cellphones last year, police said. The suspects in the recent events usually show guns and have taken purses, briefcases and wallets, police said, “We can’t say definitely these are all the same suspects because no one has been caught, but there are enough similarities that we are looking on them as linked,” said Cmdr. George Kucik, head of the D.C. police criminal investigations division. Capt. David Falcinelli, commander of the Bethesda district for Montgomery County, said two robberies on Nov. 22 and Dec. 26 near the Bethesda border with the District also are believed to be part of the pattern. Police are looking at links with at least three other robberies. The Livingston Street robbery comes after three similar stickups within 30 minutes of one another early Sunday evening in Cleveland Park and Friendship Heights. D.C. police say theythink another four since Dec. 10 also share similar characteristics. The robbers generally have hit between 6 and 11 p.m, police said. They have usually approached people who are walking alone or getting out of their cars. But there have been incidents in which two people were robbed together. Victims often have been taken by surprise and sometimes were approached from behind, making descriptions of suspects difficult. “This probably doesn’t take more than 30 seconds,” Kucik said. From the vague descriptions, police are looking for two black men, both about 6 feet tall and in their 20s to 30s, who mask their faces with a scarf or jacket hood. The suspects have displayed guns in the District incidents, D.C. police say. A gun was shown in at least one of the Bethesda robberies, Falcinelli said. The robbers usually tell their victims to walk in one direction while they flee in the other. Kucik said they suspect an escape vehicle has been nearby, and have one report of a dark blue car being involved. “But we know people often use stolen cars and switch them out once they get too hot,” Kucik said. The two departments say they have ramped up police visibility and patrols, but also have taken more covert steps that they declined to detail. Kucik said police urge anyone who is approached to cooperate. “No one has been injured thus far and we do not want to see that happen,” he said. Police also are asking residents to be aware of their surroundings and to call police if they see a car or activity that seems suspicious, he added. “Maybe it’s innocent but we would rather make contact with a person and find out there is a legitimate reason for them to be in an area.” The latest of the unrelated home invasions began about 6:45 a.m. Wednesday when a housekeeper who had just arrived for work in the 9200 block of Bardon Road went outside to move her car and found a man at the front door, police say. The suspect pulled a gun and forced the woman into the house, police said. He then tied up the housekeeper, the homeowner and the homeowner’s son, and assaulted the housekeeper. The suspect stole a debit card and the keys to the housekeeper’s Ford Expedition, which he used to flee, according to police. The stolen card later was used at a CVS in L’Enfant Plaza in the District, police said. Detectives linked the Bethesda robbery to a home invasion that occurred about 10 a.m. Tuesday in the 2900 block of McMahon Road in Wheaton. There, a woman had entered her home’s garage when the suspect approached with a gun and demanded money, which the woman pulled from her wallet, police said. The man then demanded the victim’s debit card, PIN number and car keys, police said. The robber fled in the victim’s car and later used her stolen card at a bank ATM in Oxon Hill, according to police. The suspect in both robberies is described by police as a black man in his late 20s to early 30s, 5-feet 7-inches tall, with a slim build. He was wearing a black jacket, a sweatshirt with pockets in the front, dark-colored pants and brown-framed eyeglasses, police said. He wore a black ski mask and gloves, police said. After the Bethesda home invasion, the suspect fled in the gray Ford Expedition with Maryland tags 4AE7450.  The vehicle has a McDaniel College sticker on the rear windshield. Staff writer Erica W. Morrison contributed to this report. Read more on PostLocal.com: Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions Ex-D.C. officer gets jail in stolen property case Baby found alone at Occupy D.C. camp GOP takes over Va. General Assembly Sales tax talk upsets Md. legislature

A somber line of protesters wearing orange jumpsuits and black hoods led a group of hundreds of human rights activists on a march from the White House to the Supreme Court to mark the 10th anniversary of the opening of the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The march was one of several demonstrations around the world demanding the closure of the controversial detention center, and organizers of Wednesday’s protest say they had about 700 participants, making it the largest such rally since Guantanamo Bay admitted its first detainees in early 2002. Many human rights activists have been disappointed that President Obama has not closed the prison as promised. The Obama administration contends that Congress has blocked the transfer of some detainees. The protesters said everyone on Capitol Hill is to blame. The march, which included a walk past the Capitol, symbolized that all three branches of government are responsible, the organizers said. In a rallying speech at Lafayette Square before the event, Tom Parker, policy director for terrorism, counterterrorism and human rights at Amnesty International, compared the political landscape in Washington to “a little shop of horrors.” Activists worry that detention provisions in the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act could increase the number of detainees at Guantanamo Bay. “What we wanted to do is just remind people these prisoners are still detained and there could be more on the way,” Parker said in an interview. “President Obama has failed to keep his promise. More people should be upset by this, more should be here.” Still, organizers said they were pleased with the turnout on a cold, rainy day. After assembling at Lafayette Square and walking across the street to the White House fence, protesters began a nearly hour-long march to the Supreme Court. A line of 171 people — wearing the jumpsuits and hoods — symbolized the number of detainees who are still at Guantanamo Bay. They remained quiet, but a throng of demonstrators that followed was decidedly vocal. Call-and-response chants demanded what they said would be justice. Omar Farah, 35, took the train from his home in New York to participate in the event. He carried a sign that read “Free Djamel,” a reference to detainee Djamel Ameziane. The Algerian was one of the first detainees to be moved to the facility. Farah, a lawyer, said the protest was an important way to give the detainees an identity. “Most people don’t know who these people are,” he said. “Part of this protest is getting their names out there, helping people to realize that it’s been 10 years for specific people.” The detention center was opened in 2002 by the George W. Bush administration as a place to house terrorism suspects after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. The facility once held 779 detainees. Like Farah, many of the protesters were affiliated with legal or human rights advocacy organizations. Four groups served as the primary sponsors for the event: Amnesty International USA, Center for Constitutional Rights, National Religious Campaign Against Torture and Witness Against Torture. Most of the organizations involved encouraged lead-up activities to hype the march. One protester in an orange jumpsuit and hood sat in a cage in front of the White House grounds as part of a planned 92-hour vigil. Before dropping a black hood over her face, activist Ellen Barfield of Baltimore said she was on the ninth day of a 10-day fast in honor of Guantanamo Bay detainees. She is a member of Witness Against Torture, which encouraged its members to “hunger for justice” leading up to the protest. “Right now you can only leave Guantanamo in a coffin,” Barfield said. “So we’ve got to put an end to that, we’ve got to speak out. This is my way, this is our way.”

In a tale of two radically different halves, Maryland delivered a feel-good finish Wednesday at Comcast Center, overcoming a dreadful shooting performance over the final 16 minutes to defeat Wake Forest, 70-64. The Terrapins (11-4, 1-1 ACC) opened their first conference game at home with their best defensive performance of the season, holding the Demon Deacons to 24 first-half points. But after surging to an 18-point lead that had the crowd of 13,357 on its feet, Maryland lost all semblance of its shooting touch and the ability to contain Wake Forest’s guards, who started driving to the basket with abandon. Meantime, the Demon Deacons’ pair of 7-foot centers blocked 10 shots between them. Wake Forest (10-6, 1-1) made it a one-possession game, trailing 50-47, with 8 minutes 54 seconds to play on back-to-back baskets by Ty Walker. And suddenly, it looked as it Maryland was about to reprise Sunday’s loss at N.C. State, in which a second-half defensive lapse put the game out of reach. The difference on Wednesday was that Maryland summoned the poise and toughness to fend off Wake’s rally, with senior Sean Mosley grabbing a key offensive rebound at a crucial stretch, junior forward James Padgett making seven of nine free throws and sophomore Terrell Stoglin supplying a team-high 20 points. “We’ve seen that recipe before,” Maryland Coach Mark Turgeon said of the topsy-turvy nature of the Terps’ play, with Maryland shooting 45 percent in the first half and 24 percent in the second half. It was hardly elegant or overpowering basketball. It was a matter of grinding, and Maryland wasn’t about to let any lack of talent stand in the way of a victory — particularly after getting outmuscled by N.C. State three days earlier. When their jump shots betrayed them, the Terps started driving to the basket and drawing fouls, ultimately earning more than one-third of their points (24 of 70) on the free throw line. “You figure out ways to win games,” said Turgeon, who confessed he was more nervous before tipoff than he had been all season. “Tonight we did it with second-chance points and getting to the foul line.” Turgeon chose not to start Stoglin, the ACC’s leading scorer, as a disciplinary measure for a matter that he said would stay between the two of them. “I’m trying to make Terrell a man,” Turgeon said. “There are responsibilities out of basketball you have to do. We’ll see if it helps him. It’s nothing major, but the kid needs to grow up.” Stoglin came off the bench roughly two minutes into the game, and the teams swapped the lead early until Maryland clamped down on defense and went on a 13-2 run. Stoglin scored eight of those points, staking Maryland to a 22-13 lead. The arena erupted when Nick Faust raced the length of court for an easy layup and converted the three-point play to go up, 34-16. And Maryland took a 40-24 lead to the break, having held Wake Forest to just 34.5 percent shooting in the half. Maryland got off to a torrid start in the second half, with a dunk by Padgett and a jumper by Stoglin that put the Terps up, 44-26. Soon after Mosley drew his third foul and sat. And Wake Forest reclaimed the momentum, cutting the margin to eight on a 12-2 run. Meanwhile, Maryland was 3 of 18 from the field, unable to hit jumpers or get putbacks. Mosley finished with 15 points. Padgett added 11 points and eight rebounds. And Ashton Pankey had a team-high nine boards, along with nine points.

Mitt Romney’s rivals this week intensified their attacks over business failures that happened on his watch at the investment firm Bain Capital. But even the successes touted by Romney’s campaign involved some painful decisions and layoffs. Both the successes and the failures reveal the candidate’s faith in “creative destruction,” the notion that the new must relentlessly replace the old so that companies and the economy can become more efficient. The concept is gospel to many businesspeople. But its intersection with politics has created what may be a recurring line of attack against Romney’s record. Romney’s approach is visible in the three big Bain investments he trumpets in his official biography as evidence that he knows how to create jobs. The companies — Staples, Sports Authority and Domino’s Pizza — are well-known consumer brands, and the campaign has gone so far as to say that Romney helped create 100,000 jobs through his work related to those businesses. But like Romney’s work on all the businesses Bain invested in, the primary goal with these companies wasn’t job creation but making them more profitable and valuable. This meant embracing aspects of capitalism that have unsettled some Americans: laying off workers when necessary, expanding overseas to chase profits and paying top executives significantly more than employees on lower rungs. Supporters of Romney rival Newt Gingrich released a video on Wednesday accusing the former private-equity financier of laying off workers and profiting from the results. Yet Romney has never shied away from proclaiming his belief that job cuts are sometimes necessary. The rise of Staples is in fact a textbook example of “creative destruction.” Staples became a runaway business success in the 1980s and 1990s because it offered companies a smarter way of purchasing supplies, saving them money. As Staples grew, smaller stationery stores were shuttered. These losses are not counted in Romney’s jobs figure. The rise of the company, which entered the Fortune 500 in 1996, has mirrored broader trends in corporate America, in which many multinational firms now see more potential growth abroad than in this country. Staples, too, is steadily expanding overseas. In 2006, revenue outside North America accounted for 13 percent of revenue. In 2010, the share was 21 percent. And as Staples has grown, so has the pay earned by its chief executive, from $4.7 million in 2006 to $10.8 million in 2010. The company explains in its annual report how it sets pay, saying that it uses comparable firms, such as Amazon, Best Buy and Starbucks, as benchmarks. Staples does not disclose the wages of its 89,000 employees, nor does it break out how many work as retail associates. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the mean annual wage of a retail salesperson in the United States is $25,000 a year. Staples has not been immune from tough choices about cutting workers. During the depths of the recent recession, it laid off about 140 employees, half of whom worked at the company’s headquarters in Framingham, Mass. When it has acquired companies, the firm has also had to lay off some workers — typical for any business acquisition. In 2004, when Staples bought a small company called Hartford Office Supply, owned by two brothers, employees at the acquired firm worried about their jobs. “We’re all devastated,” one worker told the Hartford Courant at the time. “This is one of the nicest, most family-oriented places that you could work . . . and I don’t know why they had to do this.” Yet few would dispute that Staples has become a sterling American success story. From an idea hatched by entrepreneur Tom Stemberg, it has grown into a $24.5 billion company with 89,000 employees worldwide, all of whom Romney counts in his 100,000 job-creation total. Romney sat on the company’s board for more than a decade. Stemberg said in an interview that Romney was “the best single corporate director I’ve seen in action.” Sports Authority and Domino’s have also grown tremendously since benefiting from Bain’s investments. But like Staples, they have had to lay off workers on occasion. In March 2008, Domino’s announced that it was cutting roughly 50 employees after net quarterly earnings dropped 48 percent. It was the first time the company had done layoffs since 1999. Sports Authority in 2003 merged with Gart Sports to become the country’s largest sporting-goods retailer. At the time, jobs were lost at Sports Authority’s headquarters in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., though some moved to the company’s new offices in Denver. The Romney campaign says its candidate’s experiences at Staples, Sports Authority and Domino’s give him “the unique skills and capabilities to do what President Obama has failed to do: focus on job creation and turn around our nation’s faltering economy.” But some private-equity experts think the link between Bain’s deals and jobs is more tenuous. “I’ve got a lot of admiration for Bain Capital, but jobs were the byproduct of the mission, not the product,” said Howard Anderson, a senior lecturer at MIT’s Sloan School of Management. “The product was to increase wealth, and in some cases it meant expanding the company. In some cases it meant contracting the company.” A Domino’s spokesperson said that the company “can’t put a number to the amount of jobs created since 1998,” the year Bain invested in the firm and began turning it around. Anthony Carnevale, director of the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, said that despite job losses and other discomfiting changes when companies single-mindedly pursue profit, Americans are ultimately “believers in creative destruction.” “Romney is mainstream in one sense, and that is that Americans are very committed to this process because we believe in the future and we believe in technology,” Carnevale said.

PASADENA, Calif. — TV critics brawled with Michael Patrick King over his new CBS sitcom “2 Broke Girls” at Winter TV Press Tour 2012. In one corner, there is King, who believes that because he’s a gay comedy writer who was the show-runner on “Sex and the City,” he gets to write lines in his new CBS sitcom about the funny speech of the Korean immigrant who runs the diner where the two broke girls wait on tables. He thinks he gets to, that is, so long as he also includes raunchy sex jokes and gags about the lecherous Russian who works in the kitchen and the old black guy who works the cash register and throws in a couple of Jewish jokes. In the other corner, there are the TV critics who disagree with him. Strongly. They immediately came out swinging. “Michael, your show is known for broad racial and ethnic humor — ” “Thank you!” King interrupted. “‘Two Broke Girls,’ ” he continued, “is broad and brash and very current, and it takes place in Williamsburg, New York, which . . . is a complete mash-up of young, irreverent hipsters, old-school people, different nationalities, different ethnic backgrounds.” King proudly said his show is daring but has a big heart. He thought he’d get the Season’s No. 1-rated New Series pass after successfully batting away that one question — though he threw in a “we’re an equal-opportunity offender” for good measure. Earlier, TV critics asked CBS programming chief Nina Tassler about what they’ve called the show’s cringe-inducing diner scenes. After saying that the show was an “equal opportunity offender” — apparently there had been a memo — Tassler said that CBS had urged King to continue to “dimensionalize, continue to get more specific, continue to build out” the other characters in the diner. Those characters include the Korean owner, the Russian cook and the black cashier. “We do know how to build comedy hits. We’ve done that with all of the comedies that are on the air, and we’ll continue to do that to ‘2 Broke Girls,’ as well,” Tassler concluded. An hour or so later, some critic asked King whether he would continue to “dimensionalize” the characters so they weren’t such stereotypes. “Every character when born is a stereotype,” said King, seeming surprised that critics were continuing to question his judgment. He reminded them that Danny DeVito’s character on “Taxi” took a lot of short jokes. A critic asked King: So the network has asked you to expand these characters so they aren’t so one-note? “I don’t think the characters are one-note — I think the characters are the first note,” King said, reminding them that he has lots of experience being on shows for years. This was the first of many “Sex and the City” reminders to come. One critic posed that question another way, wondering what the network asked him to do with the show. “Keep making the show the way you want to see it,” King shot back, growing more annoyed. And so the long day wore on —King swinging and punching, TV critics working up a good lather. “Are you happy” with the show?, one critic asked, seeming to pick up on the whole “the guy who did ‘Sex and the City’ ” thing. “I’m thrilled,” King snapped. Another critic asked King whether, as he develops the two lead characters, he sees the need to get away from making references to female genitalia and a certain sex act. “We have _never_ said that!” gasped Kat Dennings, who plays brunette hipster broke girl Max on the show. She got all Ladies of River City, which was strange, given some of the lines that have come out of her mouth on this series. The critic insisted he’d heard a joke that implied those references on an episode of the show, which, the critic noted, airs at 8:30 p.m. — pretty early in prime time. “Can I just correct you,” King sneered as he removed his kid gloves. “It’s 8:30 on Monday on CBS in 2012. It’s a very different world than 8:30 on Mondays on CBS in 1994.” Kapow! TV critics are old, and out of date! “I consider our jokes really classy-dirty,” King said. “I think they’re highbrow lowbrow — funny and sophisticated and naughty, and I think everybody likes a good naughty joke,” he said. “I feel no need to pull away from the brand of ‘2 Broke Girls,’ which is in- your-face. . . . I did ‘Sex and the City’ for many years,” he said. That makes two “Sex and the City” reminders — speaking of old and out of date. Ding! Ding! Ding! Time for a break, during which one critic asked an Occupy Wall Street question and another asked whether the show would open up in terms of the physical locations. “He doesn’t want you to make [sexual] jokes, ma’am,” King hissed, referring to the session’s earlier mentions of a sex act. The critics congealed in their chairs. “See how it’s just like that. That’s how they really slip in!” King bragged — signaling the start of Round 2! A couple of questions later, King noted that in the past three episodes, he had not written a single Asian joke — only made height jokes about Han, the diner owner. Then he wondered aloud if the critics would consider a “blonde rich [derogatory reference to a woman]” a stereotype or a “sarcastic-mouthed waitress” a stereotype. Critics did not even feel that slap — they were way back at where King said he hadn’t done a single Asian racist gag in three whole episodes, confining himself to short jokes about Han. “Does that mean you’re not going to go back to Asian stereotypes?” one critic asked, hopefully. “I’m gay!” an exasperated King shouted, flinging himself around in his chair onstage. “I’m putting in gay stereotypes very week! . . . I don’t find it offensive, any of this. I find it comic to take everybody down!” Another critic jumped on the pile, asking King whether being a member of one traditionally disenfranchised minority makes it okay for him to make fun of members of other disenfranchised minorities. “Being a comedy writer gives you permission to be an outsider and poke fun at what you think about other people,” King riposted. The critic asked about content restrictions the show has been given, specifically using an expression that’s been said on the show to describe a sex act. The entire panel seemed taken aback. Dennings accused the critic of “talking about stuff that doesn’t exist.” “Every conversation we’ve had about the edge of ‘2 Broke Girls’ is based on extreme wit,” King said modestly. “It’s a sharp wit. It’s about words. We seem to be offending people with the use of words rather than nudity,” he said, as if it were news to him that words could be offensive. Ding! Ding! Ding! Time for another break! A critic asked about Chestnut the horse, whose real name is Rocky. And whom the stars and executive producers onstage love, love, love, because he’s almost like a puppy and sometimes makes them cry, he’s so sweet — and very protective of the girls, getting in the face of anyone who gets in their faces. “I wish he was here right now,” King said, signaling the start of Round 3! “I also love the horse,” said one critic before launching into another stab at clarifying the whole “dimensionalizing” thing. That was the tipping point for King: He got personal. When King learned the critic has an Irish-sounding surname, King hurled an ethnic slur at him. Honest, he really did. We can’t make this stuff up. “Well, _that_ was pleasant,” one critic mumbled to another when a CBS publicist officially ended the brawl. After which, another TV critic proudly blogged that he had walked up to King afterward, offered his hand and apologized to King on behalf of all the critics for their having asked actual tough questions and held their ground when King responded dismissively and petulantly. “Mr. King, I’m sorry things got so ugly there,” the critic blogged that he told King, adding, “but I want to say that it came from a place where a lot of us in the room like the parts of your show involving Kat and Beth, and want the rest of the show to live up to that.” The critic was, we’re sorry to report, surprised when King did not give him a big ol’ hug. The critic blogged: “King, stone-faced, silently turns and walks off the stage.”

Building a 16-mile Purple Line through Montgomery and Prince George’s counties would require condemning 31 homes, 43 businesses, and parts of hundreds of yards and other parcels of land, said a new state report that includes vastly higher community impacts than previously made public. In total, building a light-rail line, Metro stations and two train storage and maintenance facilities would require the state to buy and condemn all or part of 342 properties along the east-west route between New Carrollton and Bethesda, the Maryland Transit Administration said. In an analysis released in 2008, state officials estimated that the line would require condemning a dozen houses and apartment buildings and 16 to 19 businesses. Although that analysis noted the need for “strip acquisition” of other adjacent parcels, it did not give a total number of properties affected. MTA officials said they discovered more affected properties, particularly in the Riverdale area, after they did more detailed engineering. “To the extent we can minimize [the affected properties] as we go along further in the project, we will,” said Henry Kay, who oversees transit projects for the MTA. But which homes, businesses and yards are being eyed for condemnation remains mostly unknown. MTA officials declined to release the information, saying it includes property value estimates that could become part of future negotiations. According to the state, construction won’t begin until 2015 at the earliest. Kay said the list will remain in flux during the next year of preliminary engineering, while the route — and the properties it would affect — continues to be refined. Publicizing a list before then “gets people concerned needlessly because it can change the next day,” Kay said. “There’s nothing to hide here, but until it’s really a fixed list, we’re not going to go out and notify every one of those people.” Kay said the MTA has notified property owners whose land or buildings can’t be avoided. But homeowner groups and local officials along the route said they need more information. “It creates a lot of hysteria for people, who naturally are very concerned,” said Montgomery County Council member Valerie Ervin (D-Silver Spring), whose district is in part of the proposed route. “We don’t have any information to say these homes on this street are going to be taken. They should tell people as soon as possible so people can make decisions.” Phil MacWilliams, president of the Coquelin Run Citizens Association in Chevy Chase, said the MTA should release the addresses while there’s still time to make significant changes to the line. “In our community, there are at least 40 homes along the [Purple Line] right of way,” MacWilliams said. “Everyone is very concerned whether they’re in the cross hairs of the Purple Line.” State transit planners included higher community impact numbers to the Federal Transit Administration in August as part of their ongoing application for federal funding. Kay said the report, which listed 322 affected properties (the number has since risen), was posted on the state’s Web site in October, after the FTA granted permission to proceed with more engineering. The state is seeking federal money for half of the line’s construction costs, estimated at $1.93 billion. State transit planners have long said that trying to thread the two-track light-rail line through Washington’s inner suburbs would be challenging. The line was intentionally routed through densely populated areas to serve the most riders, but that also brings trains close to homes, yards and shopping centers. Running light-rail trains on local roads often requires widening the streets. State transit planners have said building extensive tunnels is too expensive. Adding to the difficulty is that most of the Purple Line hasn’t been part of local development plans for long, leaving little preserved right of way beyond the Georgetown Branch trail between Bethesda and Silver Spring — a segment that has sparked its own controversy. Harry W. Lerch, a Bethesda land-use lawyer who specializes in condemnation litigation, said Maryland law doesn’t require the state to give a certain amount of notice when buying and condemning property under its powers of eminent domain. The law only specifies when and how the state is allowed to take possession of the property, he said. Lerch said he had a client who didn’t realize that his home was in the path of the newly built Intercounty Connector until a state official knocked on his door with an appraisal and a contract to sign. Transportation planners typically wait until most of the engineering is done before notifying property owners, he said. Lerch said his firm worked over several weeks to compile its own list of 230 property owners affected by the planned Purple Line route. He said his firm plans to notify those owners in hopes of generating business but declined to release the list because it is not official. Lerch said he found the most impacts in Riverdale, where the state proposes to widen East-West Highway (Route 410) east of Kenilworth Avenue (Route 201) and along Kenilworth. “That’s a tricky area,” Lerch said, “because it’s totally built out.” Joe Brice, president of the Prince George’s County Civic Federation, said many residents would welcome better transit but are concerned about a light-rail line destroying homes and forever changing neighborhoods. Once state officials release a list of properties being considered for condemnation, Brice said, “the protest against [the project] will increase. . . . I’m quite sure they understand that.” Read more on PostLocal.com: Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions Ex-D.C. officer gets jail in stolen property case Baby found alone at Occupy D.C. camp GOP takes over Va. General Assembly Sales tax talk upsets Md. legislature

CHICAGO — The plane ride from Washington late Tuesday night was much more lively after the Wizards earned their first win of the season. And upon their arrival at United Center, they had more reason to feel enthused when league most valuable player Derrick Rose was seen walking through the arena with a walking boot on his left foot. Moments before tipoff the Chicago Bulls’ point guard was ruled out with a sprained left big toe, giving the Wizards hope that their best night of the season wasn’t going to be just a one-game fluke. But any excitement about possibly winning two games in a row — and the first road game of the season — were effectively lost in the final five minutes of a 78-64 loss at United Center. The Wizards not only didn’t make their shots, but the Bulls ensured they wouldn’t have the opportunity to take shots, either. Chicago turned the missed baskets into rebound opportunities to melt the clock, and the Wizards set a new franchise record for scoring futility with 64 points. The previous low was 65, set on Dec. 13, 2002, against New Jersey. “It was just tough out there,” Nick Young said after scoring just five points on 2-for-11 shooting. The Wizards (1-8) thought they had hit a low point offensively on Sunday, they scored a previous season low of 72 points against Minnesota. But on the road against the league’s stingiest defense, they were putrid, shooting a season- low 31 percent from the field. “I thought our defense was active and we got some good looks offensively, but just couldn’t put anything in,” Wizards Coach Flip Saunders said. “Part of it is that [the Bulls] are a very good defensive team. We struggle offensively anyway to shoot 40 percent.” The Wizards could have used the excuse that they were playing on the second of back-to-back games, but the Bulls were playing their third game in three nights. But they certainly had some concerns on the offensive end. Andray Blatche played the night before in a reserve role despite soreness in his right shoulder, but he was on the training table having it wrapped up in ice as his teammates were warming up. He was a late-game scratch and could be out a few more games. With Blatche sidelined, the Wizards didn’t have much offense in reserve. Aside from Jordan Crawford with a team-high 14 points, the rest of the Wizards’ bench players produced just eight points. Saunders went back with the same starting lineup as the night before against Toronto but the ball movement was not as crisp — and neither was the ability to make shots. The Bulls got back in transition, limiting the Wizards’ opportunities to capitalize with fast-break points. And when the Wizards were in halfcourt sets, they struggled to find the open man — or the open man just missed. What helped them stay competitive was that the Bulls were just as awful offensively. After three quarters, neither team had shot better than 35 percent from the floor. Young received interest from the Bulls during free agency, but the team elected to go with Richard Hamilton instead. But if Young was hoping to make the Bulls regret passing on him, he certainly didn’t leave the best impression, often forcing up contested jumpers and shooting early in the shot clock. “I try not to put that much pressure on myself, going into a game. I knew they was going to throw everything at me,” Young said. “After I missed a couple, I was trying to get some things going. I wouldn’t say force it, but I was trying to get some things going. That’s what I’m here to do. I just have to play better.” John Lucas III filled in admirably for Rose. He was aggressive, set up his teammates and nearly had a triple double in his first career start, with a game-high 25 points to go with eight rebounds and eight assists. “We didn’t let our guard down,” said John Wall, who finished with 11 points, eight assists and five rebounds. “When you are playing point guard and get that many minutes, you’re going to get a lot of shots. He did a good job running the team.” Trevor Booker (eight points, 10 rebounds) made a jumper with 5 minutes 2 seconds remaining to bring the Wizards within five points, but they didn’t have an opportunity to get much closer. “They had the ball most of the time after that, off of offensive rebounds,” Booker said. After Young missed a jumper with 3:39 remaining, the Bulls had a possession where they had five offensive rebounds, concluding with a dunk by reserve Omer Asik to give the Bulls a 75-64 lead with about two minutes remaining. “We got worn down at the end of the game,” Saunders said. “They especially pummeled us on the last possession.” Only three Wizards scored in double figures. JaVale McGee surpassed 400 career blocks, rejecting five shot attempts against the Bulls. He also had 10 points and 14 rebounds.

RICHMOND — Republicans seized control of an equally divided Senate on the first day of the General Assembly session Wednesday, relying on arcane maneuvers to take over the last part of the state government they didn’t already control. All Democrats could do was deliver speeches about fairness and threaten to go to court — again. It was a sharp contrast from 1996, the last time the chamber was split 20-20 and both parties agreed to share power — albeit only because a Democrat threatened to defect if his party didn’t. The Republicans’ carefully calibrated legislative maneuvers on Wednesday were more emblematic of the partisanship that has surfaced on both sides in Congress as well as other state legislatures, such as Ohio and Wisconsin. “This is not a power grab. This is a re-articulation on this side of the aisle of the Senate rules as we see appropriate,” Sen. Thomas K. Norment (R-James City), the new majority leader, told Democrats. “If you chose not to accept the legislative hand of friendship, I would be disappointed.” Democrats disagreed. “What is happening is the systematic dismantling of rules that could be used to help us rule in a fair way,” Sen. Mark R. Herring (D-Loudoun) said. Republicans now also hold a 68-seat majority in the 100-member House of Delegates — the highest in Virginia history, giving the party sway over the General Assembly and the governor’s mansion for only the second time since the Civil War. By day’s end, the GOP acquired greater power through a raft of rule changes that not only mean they chair all committees but also allows them to have greater say over school funding, transportation and social issues, among others. Republicans now have the votes to approve legislation that would limit abortions and ease gun laws, which have been previously blocked by Senate Democrats. Republicans and Democrats have been fighting over control of the Senate since the GOP picked up two seats in November’s elections, leaving the chamber with 20 Republicans and 20 Democrats. Lt. Gov. Bill Bolling, a Republican, can cast tie-breaking votes, tilting power to the GOP. Sen. A. Donald McEachin (D-Richmond) filed a lawsuit in December seeking to block Bolling from voting on certain matters, including questions of Senate organization. A Richmond Circuit Court judge turned down his request for an injunction. McEachin, a lawyer who has led the Democrats’ effort to thwart a GOP takeover, told reporters Wednesday that his lawyers were “on standby” but at the end of the day Democrats had not gone to court. “Stay tuned,’’ he said. In his annual State of the Commonwealth Address on Wednesday night, Gov. Robert F. McDonnell (R) urged legislators to be civil and thanked Senate Democrats for their passionate and statesman-like argument. “This session we must remember that while seating charts and committee assignments may have changed, the Virginia Way cannot. To the members in the majority I say: Don’t be arrogant. Don’t overreach. To the members in the minority: Don’t be angry. Don’t obstruct. To all of us: Let’s be civil and productive,’’ he told them. Legislators will spend much of the session considering thousands of bills and passing an $85 billion, two-year budget. But Wednesday was marked by pomp and circumstance in the historic, white-columned structure reverently referred to as “Mr. Jefferson’s Capitol’’ as members spent most of the day awaiting the fight over control in the Senate. The House welcomed 15 new delegates, and the Senate six new members. Family and friends of the newly elected crowded into the ornate chambers, along with retiring members, including Sen. Mary Margaret Whipple (D-Arlington). The newly sworn legislators proceeded with the niceties of a new session, with veterans rising to formally introduce freshmen — and their spouses, children and other relatives. House delegates unanimously reelected William J. Howell (R-Stafford) as speaker. He promptly announced the shuffling of committee assignments — one of the most anticipated announcements as a new session begins — which unlike in the Senate, are based on proportion to the entire body. The day kicked off with a prayer breakfast at the Richmond convention center attended by about 1,000 and headlined by McDonnell, Bolling and Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II. Prayers were offered for lawmakers and others, including Virginia’s judiciary, which is likely to be drawn into the Senate battle. A few dozen protesters rallied in the rain off Capitol Square, saying they hoped to remind legislators to represent their constituents, not lobbyists and campaign donors. They chanted and held homemade signs that said: “Listen to Voters . . . We are Virginia.’’ Among the rules changes Republicans were pushing: doing away with a requirement that committee membership reflect, as nearly as possible, the proportional party makeup of the Senate as a whole. An even more arcane but potentially consequential change would remove a requirement that motions be phrased in the affirmative. That way, a motion that might die on a 20-20 tie vote could be cast in the negative and fail on a tie vote. “Even a non-math major like myself can figure out that 20-20 means equally divided,’’ Sen. J. Chapman “Chap” Petersen (D-Fairfax) said. The last time the chamber was equally divided, Democrats, who had 20 senators and the lieutenant governor, intended to rely on it to control the chamber. But Sen. Virgil H. Goode Jr., a Democrat who later switched parties while serving in Congress, would not agree to the reorganization unless Republicans shared power in the chamber. The two parties shared control for four years. Senators spent hours Wednesday arguing over the legality of Bolling’s vote, but Norment said he would not engage in a constitutional debate on the floor. During the last few weeks, the squabbling had already prompted the clerk to postpone decisions on office space and seating arrangements in the chamber. It even delayed the selection of which schoolchildren would serve as pages. “We are going to try to work cooperatively and fairly but we are not going to abdicate the responsibility given to us by the voters of Virginia,’’ Norment said. Read more on PostLocal.com: Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions Ex-D.C. officer gets jail in stolen property case Baby found alone at Occupy D.C. camp Sales tax talk upsets Md. legislature

There was no question George Washington was tired of losing. The Colonials had won only once since Thanksgiving, losing nine of their past 10 games coming into Wednesday’s Atlantic 10 Conference home opener against Rhode Island. And though it appeared at times that GW might have forgotten how to win, the Colonials did just enough to pull out a 69-61 win over the Rams before 1,951 at Smith Center. “We’ll take it,” GW Coach Mike Lonergan said. “It’s nice to get a win now.” David Pellom, whose improved conduct off the court had earned him a starting spot on it, made the most of his second start of the season. The junior forward recorded his first double-double of the season and the third of his career by scoring 17 points and grabbing a season-high 11 rebounds. Tony Taylor led the Colonials (6-10, 1-2 Atlantic 10) with 18 points and six assists. “Any time you lose a game it hurts a lot,” Taylor said. “We went on that stretch where we just weren’t winning. We’re practicing so hard and we’re not rewarded by a win. It’s always tough.” GW couldn’t have asked for a better team to help it get its offense back on track than Rhode Island (3-14, 0-2). The Rams have the worst scoring defense in the Atlantic 10, allowing 75.9 points per game and rank 326th nationally in field goal percentage defense (48.8 percent). However, GW, which has the worst scoring offense in the league (61.1 ppg), did little to capitalize on the Rams’ vulnerability. It almost seemed as if the Colonials needed a Herculean effort to score every point. And because GW’s defense is so poor at times, this game became much more interesting than it needed to be. From the moment Rhode Island made its first basket — a three-pointer — the Rams appeared to have GW on its heels. They made 50 percent of their field goals in the first 20 minutes, including 5 of 7 from behind the arc. Even though Rhode Island led most of the first half, Pellom kept GW in the game by scoring 10 points in a row. “I usually stick my head around the rim and somehow come up with the ball and finish it,” he said. A flurry of scoring by GW gave the Colonials a lift going into halftime. Jabari Edwards tipped in a shot. Lasan Kromah (12 points, 10 rebounds) put back another. And had the three-point shot by Taylor that rolled around the rim and popped out fallen, GW would have taken a two-point lead into the break instead of trailing, 31-30. The Colonials were sluggish coming out of halftime, and Rhode Island scored three quick baskets to go up 37-32. But just as the game seemed ready to slip away, GW became more energetic on defense and more productive on offense. By holding Rhode Island without a field goal for more than 12 minutes, the Colonials used a 20-5 run to take a 52-42 lead. Although GW failed to close out the game as cleanly as it would have liked, the Rams did their part to help the Colonials by missing free throws. Rhode Island made only 12 of 28 foul shots. “We just don’t have the depth and the talent to have some of our better players not play well,” Lonergan said. “And tonight was one of the first times we had three of our better players play well on the same night. Obviously, there were a lot of mistakes but I’m fine with the mistakes if we’re playing hard, and we weren’t playing hard all of the games here, especially at home. That’s what’s been disappointing. But the guys played hard tonight.”

The Prince William Board of County Supervisors has approved a development just outside the town of Occoquan that residents fear will worsen perennial flooding problems and add traffic to already-congested roads. The proposed development, called Oaks III, isn’t especially big, but the plans for the 32,500-square-foot office building, to be built at Tanyard Hill and Old Bridge roads, have nevertheless become a source of controversy. Dozens of residents who packed the board chambers — in addition to many others who sat on folding chairs outside and watched on video screens — said the town could not handle the storm water that they fear would roll down the steep terrain from the building toward the town’s center. Many also described the seemingly endless line of cars that creep down Tanyard Hill Road during rush hours and the potential dangers of office workers turning onto the two-lane thoroughfare, described as a paved “cow path.” But in the end, in a 5-3 vote just after 11 p.m. Tuesday, the majority of county supervisors said that residents would benefit from more office space and a plan that called for preserving land with a permanent conservation easement — with development rights handed over to the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust — on 75 percent of the property. Board Chairman Corey A. Stewart (R-At Large) and Supervisors Maureen S. Caddigan (R-Potomac), John D. Jenkins (D-Neabsco), Peter K. Candland (R-Gainesville) and W.S. “Wally” Covington III (R-Brentsville) voted for the project. Supervisors Michael C. May (R-Occoquan), Martin E. “Marty” Nohe (R-Coles) and Frank J. Principi (D-Woodbridge) voted against the rezoning proposal. Flooding, which is not a new problem in the area, is fresh in many residents’ minds: The town center was inundated in September during Tropical Storm Lee. But Stewart said that rejecting the rezoning proposal would not help fix the town’s storm-water problems, which have been exacerbated by uphill development over the years. “The real problem is that two-thirds of the county’s workforce commute outside the county every single day,” he said. “The only way in the long term is to have more employment in Prince William County.” Some residents — wearing stickers saying “I ♥ Occoquan” and “Oaks III” crossed out — said that if the developer Ken Thompson of Ken Thompson & Associates had been willing to work with the town to address concerns, many might have supported the project. The town’s opposition “could have been avoided by spending some time with the town of Occoquan,” said Occoquan Mayor Earnest W. Porta Jr. “But he refused to do so.” Thompson held one meeting in June with town officials and residents, which came after the county Planning Commission had recommended the project for approval. County staff also recommended the project’s approval and said that the project’s storm-water management system on the site would adequately capture runoff. Stewart had fought larger proposals at the site, and he told residents that Oaks III was a good option, especially because the majority of the land on the site would be preserved. But those arguments didn’t sway residents, who said after the vote that they were surprised supervisors were unconcerned about how the developer handled the project. “We didn’t say ‘no’ to the building — we said ‘compromise on it,’ ” Denise White of Occoquan said after the vote. “I’m totally shocked. I can’t believe they would not make them go back to the table.” Read more on PostLocal.com: Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions Ex-D.C. officer gets jail in stolen property case Baby found alone at Occupy D.C. camp GOP takes over Va. General Assembly

While Republican presidential hopefuls are talking about pink slips and the joys of firing people, many agencies in the Obama administration are quietly paying employees to leave their jobs. Buyouts and early retirement programs are the scalpel Uncle Sam uses before he has to turn to the hatchet of layoffs. “I don’t think it is any secret that going forward the federal government will be on a strict diet and will require some belt tightening,” said John Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management. Federal-employee belts are the ones likely to get a lot of that tightening because the salary lines of agency budgets consume a lot of money. OPM uses two tools to help agencies reduce their staffing levels without resorting to pink slips and firings. One is the Voluntary Separation Incentive Payments (VSIP) program, which is government-speak for buyouts. Employees can get up to $25,000 to quit. The other is the Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA), which allows workers to get annuities years earlier than usual. These programs give agency officials “the flexibility to respond to the budget situation,” Berry said, allowing them to create a “glide path” to workforce reduction rather than the crash that layoffs would be. But if the two V’s don’t get the job done, he added, “agencies do have the tool box, which we all know goes in the direction of reduction in force” or RIFs, which means pink slips. “Our hope is through creative use of VERA and VSIP authority and workforce strategic planning that agencies will be able to respond to the . . . ’12 and 2013 budget years without having to move into more drastic approaches like reductions in force,” he said, adding: “There may be cases where people, they’ve done all they can do with VERA and VSIP and will have to look at other options.” OPM has a strike team to provide quick responses to agency requests for buyouts and early retirements. “We’ve approved quite a few of them, and we’ve managed a pretty good turnaround time on almost all of those,” he said. “We know, done well, this is the best way to respond to this and allow you to design your workforce to address your budget.” Despite the increased budget pressures, he doesn’t expect the number of buyout and early retirement requests from agencies to be dramatically higher this year than last. “It’s not a cliff,” he said. Jack Lew, the Office of Management and Budget director, whom President Obama has named to be his chief of staff, understands how important career employees are and knows “that jarring impacts can really upset the system,” Berry added. “He recognizes we’ve got to have a tighter, leaner government, but we can do that responsibly without creating chaos.” In fiscal 2010, OPM gave 14 departments permission to offer buyouts: Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Justice, Labor, Treasury, Transportation and Veterans Affairs. The same agencies were allowed to offer early retirement, except for Defense and Health and Human Services. The next year, a dozen departments, including several of the same ones, got the okay for buyouts from OPM: Agriculture, Commerce, Defense, Energy, Education, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development, Interior, Justice, Labor, Treasury and Veterans Affairs. For fiscal 2011, all of those departments, except the Pentagon, were granted early retirement authority, and Homeland Security was added to that list. OPM does not have the number of employees who potentially could get a buyout or an early retirement offer from their agencies. Despite the early outs, the overall number of federal workers may not decline, at least not by much. The White House budget plan for this fiscal year projected an increase in federal employment to 2,116,000, from an estimated 2,101,000 in fiscal 2011, not including the Postal Service. But those projections were made before the budget battles between Democrats and Republicans and the threat of automatic spending cuts to reduce the deficit. “That being the case, I think the 2012 estimate is probably a bit high,” said John Palguta, a senior vice president of the Partnership for Public Service, a think tank that focuses on federal workplace issues. (The Partnership has a content sharing relationship with The Washington Post.) “My prediction is that the size of the federal workforce . . . at the end of FY 2011 will be the high water mark. I think we’ll see a small dip in FY 2012 and a bigger dip in FY 2013.” Closing note: According to White House data, the number of federal employees in 2011 was less than in 1985, under former president Ronald Reagan, whom Republicans consider to be the godfather of small government, despite a national population that is about 30 percent larger now. 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The first major independent poll of U.S. Mormons describes a conservative, devout community highly concerned about being accepted even as it embraces beliefs about gender roles, premarital sex and religious commitment that are well outside the mainstream. The Pew Forum poll, to be released Thursday, offers an unusually detailed look at an American-born religion at a time when voters are craving information about GOP presidential front-runner Mitt Romney, a Mormon who was once a bishop in his church. Experts on American Mormonism said the poll is the most detailed outside survey of the community, which makes up slightly less than 2 percent of the U.S. population. It paints a picture of a group that is far more socially and politically conservative than the general population. Despite concerns about prejudice, Mormons also register unusually high rates of satisfaction with their own lives and communities. Some of the findings: ● Seventy-four percent of Mormons say they lean Republican, compared with 45 percent of Americans overall. ●Seventy-nine percent said sex between unmarried adults is wrong, compared with 35 percent of the general population. ● Fifty-eight percent of Mormons say the best kind of marriage is one with a husband as provider and a wife to care for the house and children; in the general population, 62 percent say it’s preferable for both partners to have jobs and take care of the home. Some experts said the poll heralds a period in which Mormonism is being forced, by an interested public and by the explosion in recent years of independent Mormon bloggers, to open up, accept criticism from inside and outside the church, and shift from being a close-knit family to a creed that connects people by belief. “This is a step toward a greater intellectual maturity in the church. Frankly, it’s about moving into the mainstream,” said David Campbell, a prominent political scientist from the University of Notre Dame, who focuses on religion and is a Mormon. Some experts said the poll portrays Mormons as more uniform, observant and conservative than they are. The poll found that Mormons are more than twice as religiously committed as the general population and significantly more committed than such observant groups as black Protestants and white evangelicals. “This sample looks like very busy, hyperactive Mormons,” said Marie Cornwall, a Mormon sociologist at Brigham Young University. “Who are these people? Many of us are really surprised at how religious this group is.” Such comments reflect a rising debate in recent years about what Mormons really believe and do and the lack of data made public thus far. Some sociologists blame church officials for not releasing more of the meticulous data they keep. Cornwall said that Mormon culture in recent decades has become more doctrinaire and that church members who don’t attend every required service or agree with every teaching might feel that they cannot fairly call themselves a “Mormon” to a pollster. Campbell said a long history of prejudice has made Mormons defensive, wary of saying anything that might appear critical. The poll reaffirms some familiar trends from previous research, such as that Mormons are likely to spend time primarily with their own. But the survey also fills in pieces of the puzzle. Romney has overwhelming support among Mormons: 86 percent view him favorably. Even Mormon Democrats view him as favorably as do Republicans overall. Just half of Mormons have favorable views of Jon Huntsman, also a Mormon, who is a former Utah governor and former Obama administration ambassador to China. Only 25 percent view President Obama favorably, half the rate of the U.S. general population. More-educated Mormons are far more religiously committed than less-educated ones, a gap not often seen in other faith groups. Terryl Givens, a religion professor at the University of Richmond who focuses on Mormonism, said the commitment of educated Mormons appears at odds with the fact that “cult” is the word most Americans most closely associate with the faith. “It shows Mormons haven’t done a good job of conveying the appeal of their faith. They haven’t been able to move the discussion beyond gold plates and magic underwear,” he said. The poll also presents this dichotomy: Mormons over­whelm­ingly say discrimination and misperceptions about them are their biggest problem, but they have high rates of optimism about future acceptance and are more satisfied with their lives and their communities than are Americans in general. “That is Mormonism to a T,” said Cornwall, laughing. “Mormons tend to be very optimistic, but they also have a theology that says things are going to get worse. They plan for it, but in the meantime, they’re happy.” The increase in Mormons living outside the West and the mini-boom in independent Mormon bloggers have changed a tightknit culture that appeared hemmed in by official voices. Church officials have responded to challenges by opening a bit of their vast and detailed records — including the publication, beginning in 2008, of the archives of the founding Mormon prophet, Joseph Smith. Such changes reflect a shift for a community long in a defensive crouch. Mormons want to be accepted, but they also maintain beliefs and lifestyles that they affectionately call “peculiar,” Givens said. “Their very sense of identity is bound up with their sense of distinctiveness,” he said. The poll reveals a bit of the complexity Mormons feel about their faith being mainstream. Ninety-seven percent say their faith is part of Christianity, according to the poll, and the fact that many Americans — one-third, polls show — don’t see them as Christians is one of their primary concerns. White evangelicals, with whom Mormons share many attributes, are the group least likely to see Mormons as Christians. Yet many Mormons say they are very or somewhat different from Catholics and evangelicals, according to the poll. “This is a people who are increasingly willing to learn about themselves,” Campbell said. Church spokesman Michael Purdy praised the poll and said Mormons are “eager to participate in conversations that help the public get to know us better.”

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A classroom of Charlottesville third-graders wrote songs in a music workshop about the holidays, laughter, daffodils, best friends — and the divisive Occupy protests that have spread across the country. That song, “Part of the 99,” has outraged many because the lyrics include lines that echo the protesters’ slogans. The song describes people who were part of “the 1 percent,” who had it all yet always wanted more, then lost everything when the bubble burst. Despite losing their yachts and planes, the third-graders at Woodbrook Elementary sang, they are better off now: “I’m happy to be part of the 99.” Conservative bloggers wrote about the song, first on the site WeaselZippers.us and then on other Web sites, skeptical of claims that the children wrote the lyrics and warning that young children were being indoctrinated in the rhetoric of class warfare. The Albe­marle County Public Schools offices were flooded with phone calls and e-mails from across the country. This week, Paul Reisler, the founder and artistic director of Kid Pan Alley, the Virginia-based nonprofit group that runs the songwriting workshops, acknowledged in a statement that he inserted phrases such as “1 percent” into the lyrics. Kid Pan Alley said in a statement that the group “does not promote or condone any personal or political agenda” and that it has clarified its guidelines for lyrics. “People are so volcanically mad about this,” said Christian Adams, a lawyer in Alexandria who wrote about the song on the Web site BigGovernment.com, because it involves a number of issues important to parents, including, who gets to instill values and political points of view in children: the government or parents? And why would taxpayer money be used for this? It wasn’t the only time Kid Pan Alley imposed its left-wing ideology on public schools, Adams said, pointing to examples such as a YouTube video of children in Fairfax County singing President Obama’s praises soon after his inauguration. In Charlottesville, Adams said, it was “with the Marxist rhetoric of the Occupy movement.” School officials and others have defended Kid Pan Alley for promoting creativity, music and writing skills in the classroom. The group, which receives private and public funding, including from parent-teacher organizations, has been leading workshops in various school systems in Virginia and elsewhere in the country for about 11 years. Schools can choose to pay for workshops, each usually about a week long and costing several thousand dollars, in which students write songs and then perform them for parents and others. “The reason most principals participate is they think it benefits kids in two or three different ways,” said Phil Giaramita, a spokesman for the Albemarle schools. “It’s a form of creative writing, as if writing poetry or book reports or something else. It helps students think through ideas and how to present ideas. And it teaches collaboration.” Foster Billingsley, the deputy director of the Virginia Commission for the Arts, said it’s the first time he has heard any concerns about Kid Pan Alley, which received a $3,500 grant from the commonwealth this year for operating expenses. The agency also gave just over $16,000 to schools for grants to bring Reisler and the group in for workshops. “They take these young children and take them through the whole songwriting process,” Billingsley said. “The children usually choose the topics. . . . Students write the lyrics, help write the tune, then put it all out there. The students love it, and the parents love it. We get a lot of applications from throughout the state. . . . The Albemarle schools every year are clamoring to get [Reis­ler] to come into the schools.” But school officials said they were surprised when Reisler ­acknowledged that he introduced some phrases into the song performed at Woodbrook Elementary. In a statement, Reisler said the children chose the topic for the song, “about setting priorities in life, but that message has become overshadowed by the use of phrases that are currently politically charged. . . . It was my personal mistake to introduce these phrases, and I take complete responsibility for it. I will not make a mistake like this again.” It was disappointing to learn about Reisler’s contribution after the fact, Giaramita said. “If you bring in a facilitator and he or she is the one writing the song, offering the thoughts, you’re really not teaching creative writing in the best possible way.” Adams said it’s not the only song with political overtones. “They’ve gone into Fairfax County schools with songs praising Obama using extremely strange language like ‘the cold white winter is over’ and ‘now we have new skin.’ ” Mary Shaw, a spokeswoman for Fairfax County Public Schools, said the school system has not received complaints from parents about the song or about Kid Pan Alley’s work. A February 2009 video from Bailey’s Elementary School for the Arts and Sciences in Falls Church shows the children singing about the new president. “Welcome Barack Obama, he’ll save the day — hip-hip hooray. Barack Obama, hip- hip hooray, Barack Obama, hip-hip hooray, Barack Obama, hip-hip hooray. Barack Obama!” **More fromPostLocal:** Videos: 13 Metro bus crashes, near-misses and mishaps Police suspect same pair of armed men in spate of thefts in D.C., Maryland Md. schools ranked number one — again Police link Bethesda, Wheaton home invasions GOP takes over Va. General Assembly

Tomas Vokoun told his teammates before Wednesday night’s meeting with the rival Pittsburgh Penguins that he planned to be involved in the contest, not just by making saves but by playing the puck and taking a more active role in helping out the defense. It’s impossible to know whether the Washington Capitals anticipated just how good a performance the veteran netminder would have, though. Displaying confidence from the start, Vokoun finished with 30 saves and his first shutout since Oct. 18 to lead the Capitals to a much-needed 1-0 win over Pittsburgh at Verizon Center. It marked the 46th shutout of the 35-year-old Czech’s career, tying him with Hall of Famer Ken Dryden for 26th on the NHL’s all time list. The flawless outing, which included several key stops on Evgeni Malkin in the third period, was critical to pushing Washington into eighth place in the Eastern Conference with 46 points and a game in hand against the Penguins, who also have 46 points. “It wasn’t scrambly,” Vokoun said of his ability to withstand a heavy workload against a Penguins squad that has lost six straight. “There was no three-on-ones and breakaways and breakdowns. It’s more about playing the right way and pressure. They get a shot off a cycle or something but you don’t get those grade-A scoring chances, odd-man rushes. Usually when you do that you have a pretty good chance to win.” There was no denying that this meeting between Washington and Pittsburgh lacked the usual pizzazz, largely because of the absence of star players on both sides because of injury. The Penguins were without Sidney Crosby (concussion), Kris Letang (concussion), Jordan Staal (knee) while Nicklas Backstrom (head) and Mike Green (groin) were absent for Washington. But even with those key players out it doesn’t mean these franchises like each other any more. The hits came early and often as did a fight between Matt Hendricks and Craig Adams, who dropped the gloves less than three minutes into the contest. In addition to the hearty amount of heavy checks, turnovers were the dominant trait in what was an up-and-down contest at times. Pittsburgh created most of the early chances, testing Vokoun, whose solid saves reflected his composure from the start. Vokoun was doing precisely what he said he would do too and ventured out of the crease to play the puck and helping to thwart the Penguins’ forecheck. “He was on. I liked his puck handling too,” Coach Dale Hunter said. “He made a lot of good plays for the ‘D’ to get them out of trouble. [The Penguins are] a hard forechecking team and they come hard with two and sometimes three guys, I thought he played well that way and I thought he made some big stops for us.” With Vokoun calmly finding his rhythm in one end, it would be the Capitals who got on the board first. Joel Wardpoke-checked Malkin as he attempted to enter the Washington zone to send his linemates, Jeff Halpern and Chimera, on a rush the other way. Halpern carried the puck down the left wing boards before sending a flat pass to a wide-open Chimera in the slot. The speedy winger buried the chance and put the Capitals up 1-0, 15 minutes 25 seconds into the period. It marked Chimera’s 14th goal of the season and his first in eight games. Few may have anticipated a one-goal game between these teams, but Chimera’s tally stood as the difference in the contest thanks to Vokoun and also the Capitals’ ability to adhere to their system. “I think we executed our game plan tonight,” Hendricks said. “I know we’ve talked about that as being kind of a thorn in our side lately, especially those last two road games. To execute our game plan for 60 minutes and come out on top with a win was great.” Through the second period, the Penguins continued to rack up scoring chances and on nearly every shift that brought them into the offensive zone they tried to make sure Vokoun knew they were there. Pittsburgh bumped and ran into Vokoun numerous times as the game went on, but the netminder simply shook off each altercation. After a scoreless middle period, Washington came out throwing as much offensive pressure as possible on Marc-Andre Fleury (20 saves) and the Penguins to try to increase their lead. The Capitals came close, a shot by Hendricks clanked off the post and Alex Ovechkin put forth his best chances of the contest but couldn’t beat Fleury. Pittsburgh followed with a furious attempt to score as time ticked away in the third. With 6:21 remaining in regulation, Vokoun made a lunging stop on a bad-angle rebound attempt by Malkin. He made a pair of saves to smother shots by James Neal on the next shift. Then, with 2:07 remaining in regulation Malkin snared the puck once more and barreled down the right wing as bodies from both sides were strewn on top of the crease. Somehow, by the time Malkin shot from the hash marks in the right faceoff circle Vokoun emerged from the pile and stood up to catch the puck. The Penguins wouldn’t get another opportunity of that caliber. “We play a little bit the dice there, we could’ve put the game away but it’s nice to bounce back,” Vokoun said. “We didn’t play good — not very good game in L.A. — and this is a good bounce-back victory for us obviously, a tight checking game, a 1-0 game. The score says it all, a pretty even game and I think our effort was much better today.” **Capitals note:** Backstrom was placed on injured reserve retroactive to Jan. 3 and is eligible to be taken off that list at any time. Washington’s top center has not played since that day when he suffered a head injury after being elbowed by Calgary’s Rene Bourque. Related: Capitals’ fourth line helps shut door on Penguins Summary and stats: Capitals 1, Penguins 0 More coverage: Capitals Insider

On Friday, India is set to reach a major milestone in the global battle against polio, recording a full year without a single new case of the disease in the country that was long its epicenter and its biggest exporter. It is a massive global public health achievement that has defied the odds and confounded the skeptics, a victory — attained with U.S. financial support and expertise — that will see India removed from a list of four countries where the crippling disease remains endemic. The three other countries are Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria. The feat raises the very real possibility that polio, like smallpox, could one day be consigned to history, along with the heartbreaking image of the Indian beggar, crawling on twisted, thin legs, pleading for alms. Until 1995, India recorded 50,000 to 150,000 cases of polio each year. In 2009, 14 years into India’s campaign to eradicate polio, 741 Indian children still contracted the incurable disease, more than anywhere else in the world, and morale was sagging. In 2010, the number fell to 42. In 2011, only a single new case was recorded, that of a 2-year-old girl who fell ill Jan. 13. Anuradha Gupta, a joint secretary in India’s Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, said the prevailing mood was one of hope, optimism and enthusiasm, but not smugness, given the risk that the disease could still find a way back from abroad. “We needed this kind of success to keep morale up and to enhance public confidence in the program,” she said. “We do now feel it is possible, it is doable.” In 1988, when the World Health Organization launched a global campaign to eradicate the disease, the poliovirus was paralyzing 1,000 children around the world every day, nearly half of them in India. Inspired by the success of the smallpox eradication campaign a decade before, the organization aimed to eliminate polio by 2000. It took seven years before India’s government mustered the political will, resources and manpower to act. And even when India finally began its mass vaccination campaign in 1995, the hurdles seemed almost insurmountable, especially in the desperately poor, astonishingly overcrowded plains of the north, where illiteracy was rife, malnutrition and disease rampant, and hygiene and public sanitation terribly inadequate. To make matters worse, rumors spread among the region’s numerous Muslims that the polio vaccination campaign was an American conspiracy to wipe them out, by making their sons impotent and their daughters infertile. “There are 500,000 Muslims in this area, but there is no proper drainage, no post office, no bank, no government school, no hospital where a mother can take her child,” said Qari Anwar Ahmad, the head of a madrassa in a Muslim neighborhood in the city of Meerut, 45 miles northeast of the nation’s capital, New Delhi. “So people were skeptical. ‘Why does the government only care about polio and not about these things?’ they asked.” Vaccinators were stoned as they approached Muslim neighborhoods. “The general mind-set was that the immunization campaign was aimed at ending our lineage,” Ahmad said. That was the start of a massive public education and advocacy campaign, led by UNICEF and Rotary International, that began by convincing religious and community leaders that the vaccine was safe and the goal of a polio-free world achievable. After word came down from some of India’s leading Muslim scholars, Ahmad was finally won over to the cause, first taking the oral vaccine himself and then administering it, in front of onlookers, to his 1-year-old son a decade ago. Today, the mosques of Meerut broadcast to the faithful from their loudspeakers when a vaccination campaign is underway, and imams open vaccination booths. Thousands of Muslim women, such as Shabnam Parveen, 38, were recruited to spread the message door-to-door, gaining access to homes and to mothers — whom men, especially Hindu men, could never approach. At first it was difficult, Parveen recalled. “Many people in society turned their backs on me because of the work I was doing,” she said. “They told me, ‘You are Muslim, and you are still propagating this — you must be earning a lot of money.’ ” Families locked their doors from the outside, she said, to make her think no one was home. Others who were approached simply walked away. Today, none of the 500 families she looks after refuses the vaccine, and coverage rates in the high-risk areas of northern India are as high among Muslims as among Hindus. Winning over Muslims, though, was only part of the battle. In the vast northern states of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, the final strongholds of polio in India, half a million children are born every month. Many of their parents fan out throughout India and the world looking for casual labor on farms and construction sites, potentially spreading the virus far and wide. “We needed a vaccine program that keeps up with this,” said Hamid Jafari, who runs the polio surveillance project for the WHO. “We needed to get the vaccine to the child before the virus got to the child.” The scale of the effort is mind-boggling. Last year, 2.3 million vaccinators administered 900 million oral polio vaccine doses in India to 172 million children younger than 5. Taking into account the constant migration of millions of Indians, vaccination booths were set up at train and bus stations, railway crossings and border posts, and 150,000 migrant settlements and slums where workers from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar could have ended up were covered. The monitoring is constant. Health centers, doctors and even faith healers are conditioned to report the first sign of symptoms that might indicate polio. Doctors and volunteers fan out every day to examine babies and collect stool samples for testing. The government provided more than $2 billion to help finance the campaign and demonstrated the sort of political leadership and commitment all too rarely seen on a public health issue here. ­Globally, the U.S. government has provided $2 billion for the polio eradication campaign, Rotary International has raised about $1 billion from its members, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has donated more than $1 billion. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention weighed in with crucial expertise. But the campaign has also been enormously controversial. Throughout its history, experts have said that the goal of eradication was simply not feasible or that far too much money and effort was being spent on the single-minded pursuit of polio eradication to the detriment of other, more pressing public health goals. There were setbacks, too. Just as the disease seemed to be coming under control, a fresh epidemic would send program leaders back to the drawing board and scientists back to the lab to design new, more effective forms of the vaccine. Despite India’s success, the battle is far from won. The virus is still endemic in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria. In Africa, Angola, Chad and Congo seemed to have won the battle against polio, but the virus was re-imported from abroad and person-to-person transmission restarted. India’s success is serving as a template for others. Uttar Pradesh and Bihar are states that have become bywords in India for misrule, corruption and a dysfunctional public health system. Yet, in the midst of this chaos, the polio campaign set up an all-seeing network of health workers and volunteers who provided reams of data, constant surveillance, instant feedback and accountability. For Jafari, the successful campaign belies the notion that the health system and bureaucracy in India are rotten. With the right management system in place, he said, officials and volunteers proved to be motivated and innovative. The polio campaign has helped boost routine immunization coverage, and Jafari said the next step could be to tackle other killer viruses such as those causing measles or rubella. In about a month, barring any last- minute shocks from tests that are underway, the Independent Monitoring Board, a panel of global polio experts, is expected to remove India from the list of polio- endemic countries. It will take two more years to declare India completely free of the virus, but even a setback would not derail the program. **More world news coverage:** \- Video appears to show U.S. Marines urinating on Taliban corpses \- Pakistani president travels abroad amid civil-military rift \- Putin site launch ignores Russian protests \- Read more headlines from around the world

The Consumer Electronics Show is winding down now, after two (well, three, if you include the media day) days of frenzied discussion over what’s next in the technology world. On Thursday, the keynote speaker of the day comes not from a hardware company, but from YouTube: Robert Kyncl, who heads up its Global Content Partnerships program. The theme of the keynote is in keeping with a theme we’ve been seeing throughout the show: the move toward a central platform for entertainment. YouTube has been ramping up its efforts to cultivate original content on its site, placing a greater emphasis on YouTube channels that are run by contributors who consistently produce high-quality comedy, news and other videos. Kyncl has been pushing this trend toward original content on the video-hosting site and will talk about how the Web can be used for distribution. Since this is the last big day of CES for exhibitors, we’ll also being seeing different news organizations naming their favorite gadgets of the show so far. One of the most prominent of these are the “Best of CES” awards from CNET, a staple since 2006. This list honors the best gadgets in each of several categories — smartphones, laptops, emerging tech, etc. — and also includes a “People’s Voice award” for the most popular finalist among the news site’s readers. Related stories: At CES 2012, proposed anti-piracy legislation is a hot topic Ultrabooks are everywhere at CES, but should you buy one? Joshua Topolsky: At CES 2012, companies roll out smart TVs with motion control, voice commands

TOKYO — Japan agreed Thursday to cut its dependence on Iranian oil, bolstering the U.S.-led effort to choke off funding for Iran’s nuclear development program. The Japanese pledge, made during a visit here by Treasury Secretary Timothy F. Geithner, stood in contrast to resistance this week from China, where officials say that Iran’s uranium program and its energy sales should not be linked. Japan imports roughly 10 percent of its oil from Iran, making it the Islamic republic’s second-biggest oil customer, behind China. Japanese Finance Minister Jun Azumi said Thursday that Japan would cut its use of Iranian oil “as soon as possible in a planned manner.” Japan has already reduced its reliance on Iranian oil by 40 percent in the past five years, Azumi said. Geithner undertook his quick trip to Asia’s two largest economies as part of the Obama administration’s effort to tighten sanctions on Iran, taking primary aim at its oil industry. Japanese Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda told Geithner that he shared Washington’s concern about Iran’s nuclear program. But he also expressed worry about the targeting of Iran’s oil sector, saying that the sanctions “could cause serious effects on the Japanese and world economies,” according to a government statement. Oil prices are unlikely to rise sharply as long as China stands aloof from the U.S. campaign, analysts say. But if the sanctions take effect as envisaged, Iran could lose its major customers, all but eliminating it as an oil exporter. Oil prices would jump, and countries such as Japan — which is only 16 percent energy self-sufficient, with very few natural resources of its own — would face an increased burden. Japan imports more than three-quarters of its oil from the Middle East, mostly Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Since last year’s earthquake and tsunami triggered meltdowns at three nuclear reactors, the country has turned away from nuclear power. Only six of its 54 reactors are online. Separately Thursday, the Obama administration announced sanctions against three foreign companies — one of them from China — for trading with Iranian energy firms. The firms will be barred from obtaining U.S. export licenses or financing because of their history of allegedly selling gasoline or other refined petroleum products to Iran, the State Department said in a statement. The three firms were identified as Zhuhai Zhenrong of China, Kuo Oil of Singapore and FAL Oil of the United Arab Emirates. U.S. officials said the companies had supplied Iran with more than $600 million worth of petroleum products in the past two years. **More world news coverage:** \- U.S. acts quickly to tamp down Afghan video scandal \- Pakistani president travels abroad amid civil-military rift \- India scores major victory in polio battle \- Read more headlines from around the world

Amtrak this year will pay $466 million for 70 new locomotives to enhance the speed and reliability of rail service in the Northeast corridor and invest another $298 million in 130 new rail cars to serve the East Coast and Midwest. The new equipment will be a major upgrade for a system that now operates with locomotives that are 20 to 30 years old and some sleeper cars that are 60 years old, Amtrak President Joe Boardman said in announcing the federally subsidized passenger rail line’s plans for 2012. Though the new locomotives will be somewhat faster and the new cars will be able to travel at higher speeds, Boardman said the more significant improvement would come in reliability. New equipment breaks down less frequently After carrying a record 30.2 million passengers in 2011, Boardman said, Amtrak would continue upgrades to its 30-year-old reservation system and make improvements in New Jersey that will allow trains to reach speeds of 160 mph there. That $450 million project and a $72 million investment to replace track in four tunnels under the East River into New York were described as initial steps toward building a high-speed rail system in the United States. “We’ve got to go faster, we’ve got to be more reliable, we’ve got to be more on time,” Boardman said, “and we’ve got to coordinate all of that together in an investment in infrastructure for the Northeast corridor for the benefit of regional commuter and high-speed services.” The Obama administration’s ambitious proposal to build a national network of high-speed rail service has been caught in the maw of Congress amid budget-cutting and the aversion of some Republicans to the $1.5 billion annual Amtrak subsidy. House Transportation Committee Chairman John L. Mica takes delight in referring to Amtrak as the “Soviet-style” rail service. He has advocated splitting a proposed $117 billion high-speed rail system for the Northeast away from Amtrak in favor of an un-subsidized corporation. Unions and other Amtrak advocates have said that would rob the rail company of its only profitable route and leave it saddled with money-losing lines that span the rest of the country. The House has proposed reductions in Amtrak’s subsidy. “While some of our detractors expect us to fold our tent, we’re not going to do that,” Boardman said. “Uncertainty in federal funding and budget cuts are not new to Amtrak. Things are different now because of the financial difficulties and the pressures that are on absolutely everybody, from Amtrak all the way through every program.” Purchase of the locomotives will be funded through a loan from the Federal Railroad Administration. The rail cars — 25 sleepers, 25 diners, 55 baggage cars, and 25 cars that double as baggage and dormitory cars for train crew — will be paid for through Amtrak's capital budget. All will be built in the United States, and the first units will arrive next year, Boardman said.

Here are the lyrics to a third-grade song that’s been causing controversy because of its political overtones and support for the Occupy movement. **“Part of the 99”** Some people have it all, but they don’t think that they have enough They want more money A faster ride They’re not content Never satisfied Yes — they are the 1 percent I used to be one of the 1 percent I worked all the time Never saw my family Couldn’t make life rhyme Then the bubble burst It really, really hurt I lost my money Lost my pride Lost my home Now I’m part of the 99 I used to be sad now I’m satisfied ‘Cause I really have enough Though I lost my yacht and plane Didn’t need that extra stuff Could have been much worse You don’t need to be first ‘Cause I’ve got my friends Here by my side Don’t need it all I’m happy to be part of the 99.

The receptionist at my office can see my computer screen anytime she wants just by walking over to one side of the reception desk. I have always been nice to her and have bought her holiday gifts each year. Earlier this year, a co-worker whom I find a reliable source overheard the receptionist tell another person that all I do is surf the Internet all day. Well, some of that might be true, and in my defense, keeping up with current events is part of my job. However, knowing that the receptionist is saying negative things about me to others in my office changes my feelings toward her. I feel like I’m not being friendly toward her anymore, and she can probably sense it. Should I keep giving her the gifts just to ensure that she feels guilty when she’s gossiping about me? **Karla:** I’m a little confused. Are you upset because she’s falsely maligning your work ethic, or because she busted you despite your best efforts to win her over with swag? If plying her with goodies didn’t keep her from gossiping about you before, it won’t work now. Holiday presents should be a token of appreciation, not a gift-wrapped gag order. In any case, the best way to deal with gossips is to deprive them — not of the goodies but of the dish. The easiest solution is to put a privacy filter on your computer monitor “to reduce eye strain”— namely, in the eyes of passersby straining to see what’s on your screen. But that might suggest you have something to hide. Is there a chance your newfound coolness toward her is actually your misdirected guilt over spending too much time on non-work-related sites? If so, cutting down on your daily intake of icanhascheezburger could improve your productivity and reputation in one fell swoop. Otherwise, unless her comments are getting back to your boss and your boss is taking them seriously, keep your head high and let your work speak for itself. Not that the receptionist is off the hook. Monitoring the work habits of people she’s not responsible for, or whose performance doesn’t affect hers, is a slippery slope. The people she gossips to — or about — may rightly start to wonder just how much of her workday she spends, well, working. _Karla L. Miller won the Magazine’s@Work Advice Contest. Miller, 39, lives with her family in South Riding, Va. For 16 years, she has written for and edited tax publications, most recently for the Washington National Tax office of accounting firm KPMG LLP. E-mail us at wpmagazine@washpost.com with any questions for Karla about work angst. And keep letting us know what you think of her advice._

When I was in grade school, the first book I took out of the Philadelphia public library, when I got my library card as a first-grader, was a biography of Alexander the Great. I was so interested in heroes and national leaders. All my life, as a kid, I would get a Landmark book — a biography of Lincoln or Jefferson or Washington or Davy Crockett. And I was always [reading] nonfiction when my brother was getting Hardy Boys. I wanted to do something adventurous and somewhat risky in youth. I think rite of passage is a very important part of growing up. Certainly, all of the heroes did it. I was a volunteer. I certainly was driven to the Peace Corps in Africa with a sense of adventure — going out there alone, out there in the bush, by myself, on a motorcycle. I was in Swaziland. And you’re out there on your own. It was pretty brazen, I’d say. After I came back from Africa, from the Peace Corps, I came to Washington, and I never really went home to Philadelphia. That was really a critical decision. I love Washington — I really do love the city. I came to Capitol Hill to look for a job as a legislative assistant, and I couldn’t get a legislative assistant job right away. But I did get a job with a senator from Utah — Frank Moss, a Democrat. He gave me a job working in the office during the day but getting paid by being a police officer at night. It was patronage. And I did that for three months and was a full-time legislative person after that. I was really moonlighting at that job. I had the uniform — the gun and everything — but I was basically working in the office during the day, writing short speeches and answering complicated legislative mail. It worked. It was one way to get in the door. And then Frank Moss helped me get a job with [Ed] Muskie and the Senate Budget Committee. From there, I got a job at the White House, became a speechwriter for President Carter. One thing led to the other. I’m interested in political leadership and courage and standing up for something. It’s very hard to explain. I was paying attention to the ’52 election, believe it or not, when I was, like, 6. I paid very much attention to the ’60 election. My grandfather was a local Democratic political figure in Philadelphia — Charlie Shields, a very classic sort of Irishman. And I would talk politics with him all the time. I loved him, and I loved going for walks with him in downtown Philadelphia, the Irish neighborhoods. He may [have been] grumpy to other people, but, to me, he always lit up. And I always lit up when I was with him.

**When I was** a sophomore in high school, I had a crush on this brooding, dark-haired junior. One Tuesday night, friends of a friend announced they were going to the movies. Dark and Handsome would be there. I wasn’t allowed out on weeknights, but I wanted to see Mr. Hot Stuff. A friend and I told our parents we were going to the library. The movie was uneventful. Broody was too pre- occupied with his buddies to notice me. I skulked home and stomped upstairs. My mom asked how the library was, and I started to lie when she announced she had called the library and had me paged. I couldn’t spin a story fast enough, so I apolo­- gized for lying and told her I’d been at the movies. Only after I walked out the door did I hear my mother laughing, saying quietly to my father, “Can you imagine if libraries actually let you page someone on a loudspeaker?” **Kristen Dorn Kennedy,** **Harrisonburg, Va.** There were five children in my family. Our parents were strict, so we went to school rain, shine or snow. When I was 13, I took the public bus to school. One day my friends wanted to skip class. I thought, _What would my parents do if they found out?_ So I chickened out and went to catch the bus. I was already late for school. I stepped onto the bus, and as I was walking to my seat, who do I run into? Yes, my mom. **Paulette Ogar,** **Ellicott City** **** **New query: Tell us about a time when you couldn’t see what was right in front of you.** _The Washington Post is partnering with the Public Insight Network (PIN) to hear more of your 100 percent true stories taken from your own experience. Submit your answer to the query above online atwapo.st/ed-query. By sharing your story, you become part of PIN — a network of more than 130,000 people who contribute to high-quality journalism. Editors will choose an entry to run in the Magazine, but we will also share more of your stories online. You can also submit to The Washington Post Magazine, 1150 15th St. NW, Washington, D.C. 20071. Include your daytime phone number. Recount your story in 250 words or fewer._

Are you familiar with “Yahoo! Answers”? Me, too. It’s unavoidable. Seems like every time you ask the Web a question, the first set of responses comes from “Yahoo! Answers,” the user-generated arm of the Yahoo! search engine. In theory, “Yahoo! Answers” is the bright, bold future of mass communication: As the traditional media are frantically re-trenching like a World War I soldier (and writing bad analogies), they are supposedly being replaced by “crowdsourcing,” which taps the potent voice of the people the way “Yahoo! Answers” does. In theory, what crowdsourcing lacks in professional rigor, it more than makes up in sheer numbers — the collective, inexhaustible intelligence of the masses, honed to perfection by the process of self-editing, so only the best will rise to the top. That’s how “Yahoo! Answers” is supposed to work, in theory. So, if you ask it, “How do computers work?” as I just did, Yahoo’s crowdsourcing apparatus leaps on the job, putting out the question, sifting the responses and then declaring a “Best Answer.” So, here’s the Best Answer, the best explanation for how computers work: “Its got something to do with electricity and chips. Source(s): my computer class at school.” Yep, further research confirmed that as a tool, “Yahoo! Answers” is as flimsy as a twist-tie, as dignified as a spork. There are vastly more competent crowdsourcing enterprises out there — Wikipedia, for example — but I have been fascinated by “Yahoo! Answers” for its sheer ubiquity. There is no question too weighty or too frivolous for it, no ethnic stereotype so appalling that Yahoo! users won’t weigh in with their thoughts. Then, for some reason probably related to the evil genies of Search Engine Optimization, the “Yahoo! Answers” rise to the top, like bubbles in a septic tank. For example, from the “Yahoo! Answer” that was declared best — it’s right at the top of the Google search results — I learned that the reason mankind so often resorts to war is ... “I don’t know.” How to solve starvation around the world? Best answer: “Send some work for them to do we also have to work to make money to buy food.” Why is math important? Best answer: “Math is basically the basis for all other knowledge. It comes in handy in life, but I really don’t see the point to geometry.” In theory, crowdsourcing is supposed to act by intelligently tasking an enormous population, the way China once supposedly solved a fly infestation by issuing fly swatters to a billion people, with a daily kill quota. Thinking about this, I asked “Yahoo! Answers” why there are so many people in China. Best answer: “Because before they had the one child law, people would have many children to take care of them when they got older.” (The original asker of this question responds to the answerer: “I can see this as the reason definately. Thank you.” Altogether, I spent three hours asking the Internet questions of all types, from the huge and unanswerable (Is there a God?) to the dumb and trivial (Is there a name for fear of fat people?), and every single time some Yahooer somewhere offered a definitive answer, often uninfluenced by actual knowledge. (“Why do our stomachs growl?” Best answer: “The ‘growling’ is your intestines scraping each other. ...”) I didn’t stop until I finally found a question to which “Yahoo! Answers” offers no answer. This was it: Why are “Yahoo! Answers” so stupid?

_Poems from Federal Poets_ About storing things you have said Things you have said can be salted and stored in large casks, to be thrown overboard in case of pursuit. Make them palatable for further digestion by soaking them for hours ahead of use. Be careful which hold you pack them in: always put the heavier things in the lower hold, in the stern, so that you do not founder in a making sea. Pam Blehert * * * Blown Up Ultimate Destruction wedded my best girl. I thought they’d never make it as a couple: a nuclear shade of winter and the color of spring, one diminishing stars and black holes, the other helping build floats for a parade heading straight into TV cameras. Too many of their interests wouldn’t mesh, though the sex would slay them both with euphoria, the Reaper reluctant to give either up. Maybe this is about how I failed to offer her anything but a thumbs up when she decided to paint life black with her fortunes. How I stepped into a garden and simply fell asleep for a thousand years. How she wasn’t able to find me, though the signs glowed like Vegas, my breath blew up. Donald Illich * * * The Help “You have something on your butt,” she said she had been sitting and reading, “The Help,” and didn’t appear to notice her boyfriend until she looked up and found some imperfection a slice of light brown not really like [expletive] but more like something that might fall from an ice cream cone. He was standing with his side to her, holding onto the pole, earlier he had let her sit down She rose from her seat, letting go of the book, walked over to him, crouching down, level with his [expletive], and with her pointing-finger she began to flick off the mysterious dropping that had obviously upset her sense of him. She rolled the grime between her thumb and her finger until it disappeared perhaps into her own skin or maybe it dropped to the floor and she put her finger to her nose, sniffed, then smiled, sat back down and continued reading her book. He instantly tried to help, reaching with his hand and pulling at his pants then pressing the flesh of himself, trying to get the stuff off, but, she had already done the work. She was the help. He could have been her lover, her husband, her date, but reading about the maids of rich people absorbed her more than her boyfriend whose tall body must not have any imperfections. I imagined that their sex life was incredible but probably very clean and then the train stopped, he found a seat next to her. she read, her played a game on his _iphone_ , and it was Friday night. I got off at the next stop and wondered what it would be like to be so young, so clean, and filled with so little to say. Nancy Allinson * * * Babies I told my mother I did not want any babies I lied I wanted babies I wanted a creche full of babies I wanted babies sweet round babies Like bowls of m & ms Like marshmallows Whose roly poly bodies you could pour on your face piles of babies Babies you could wrap yourself in like bubble paper The world could not crack or injure you because you were wrapped in babies My husband did not agree We had a big fight Not about babies He thought it would be a good idea to pave the back yard so we wouldn’t have to more any more Of course we divorced A few years later I met someone who preferred living matter to construction material I fell in love when he told me he was driving his Red 1972 Road Runner to work when he found his neighbor’s cat had been hit by someone’s car and instead of going to work he took Buttercup to the vet swaddling her in his jacket He noted how her blood fell like cinnamon balls to roll beneath her fur until they flattened She cried and bit his arm when he laid her in the car determined to rescue her even though I knew what her heart’s stain would do to his white leather seat Ellen Cole * * * _Poems from Hart Middle School students_ Forgive Forgive me unnamed. I lost my daddy before I was born. Forgive me he never said what he said. He never took back his word. I don’t know what I became. Forgive me. An anger unfolding, books on the floor, desks, ripped paper under my feet. Tamera Pearson * * * Poem to the Unborn Child You weren’t born into this world because I was not ready to have you because I would be lonely I wasn’t ready to have a family yet, I would gaze out the window and wonder and think about not telling my child about what I said and how I said it. Seleen Ford * * * Get Your Elbow Off The Table I was raised by get your elbow off the table, don’t never say you’re not able, get dat money real faithful type of family. Always on my back, never let me slack, they always stay packed Do anything for me, loved me to the max type family. Get your butt in this house fore I tear you up. Always drinking out the juice cup type family. Tore up off the goose put a lil cranberry in it to give it a boost, come over here and give Grandma a smooch type family. Hand me the remote right here beside me, move out of the way of the TV I can’t see type family. Come here boy, then smack me in my head, I know you ain’t wet your bed, even though I did, I’d tell her it’s water instead type family. You better do your homework beat with the belt had me crying like water type family. Davon Ford * * * I Be I be of DC I be a block from Eastover I be having glitter in my hair I be goofy all the time I be happy all the time I be cute a lot I be having nothing to do playing with my puppy I be eating popcorn on the couch I be Wingate all the time. I be school I be all the fun times I be loving my family I be I be happy because the world makes me and I be Bernice Caldwell * * * Football Your rules are what we make up, like grab touch. The endzone is wherever we like, by the trashcan in the corner by the trash of dirty beds. Ant’s shoulder hit the back of a truck and still he caught the ball. Devin Jenkins

A Pentagon pilot program that uses classified National Security Agency data to protect the computer networks of defense contractors has had some success but also has failed to meet some expectations, according to a study commissioned by the Defense Department. The program showed that Internet carriers could be trusted to handle the NSA data, that direct government monitoring of private networks could be avoided and that the measures could be of particular benefit to companies with less mature cyber defense capabilities, according to the Carnegie Mellon University study. Although researchers said the pilot had demonstrated the concept of information sharing, they also cited deficiencies in the way it was implemented. The test program, which began last May, relied on NSA “signatures” or fingerprints of malicious computer code that in initial stages were “stale when deployed” and in many cases did not prevent intrusions that the companies could not have blocked themselves, according to the report, which was not publicly released by the Pentagon but was shared with Congress this week. The unclassified study, which was obtained by The Washington Post, underscores the operational, legal and policy challenges in building a robust defense of critical U.S. computer networks as foreign rivals and other adversaries seek to penetrate systems, steal data and perhaps lay the groundwork for a destructive attack. “Unfortunately, the report highlights one of my continuing points: that there is no silver bullet in cybersecurity,” said Rep. James R. Langevin (D-R.I.), co-founder of the Congressional Cybersecurity Caucus. “Signature-based defenses alone will never be enough to secure our critical infrastructure. We need a comprehensive approach that incorporates innovative information sharing with industry, while holding them accountable for stronger security.” The Defense Industrial Base cyber pilot includes 17 defense companies, among them Bethesda-based Lockheed Martin, which several years ago had terabytes of data related to the Pentagon’s Joint Strike Fighter project stolen from its networks. In the pilot, the Internet carriers AT&T, Verizon and CenturyLink filter firms’ incoming e-mail for malicious software using classified NSA signatures. The pilot tested two concepts: Incoming malicious e-mails were quarantined and outbound traffic headed for suspicious Web sites was redirected. The e-mail measure was considered effective, yielding few false positives. But companies reported large numbers of false positives in the redirecting of outbound traffic headed for bad Web sites, the report said. Still, these two measures should “play a critical role” in a broader effort to secure critical networks, the report said. The pilot allows companies to share data with the government, and some companies have opted to send information to the Department of Defense Cyber Crime Center, the report stated. Some of the program’s flaws resulted from unrealized expectations. For instance, the report said, many Defense Industrial Base companies thought that the pilot aimed to prove that NSA signatures would provide an optimum level of protection not available through any other source. But, the report said,“when this result did not fully materialize,” the goal was scaled back to showing “a baseline level of protection.” In fact, the study said, of 52 incidents of malicious activity detected during the test program, only two were “unique” or resulted from NSA threat data that the companies did not already have themselves. Said one unnamed company official quoted in the report: “Public pronouncements of success were unencumbered by facts.” Another factor was that many of the firms, which include other defense giants such as Northrop Grumman and Raytheon, already have sophisticated monitoring capabilities. Indeed, “the added value of the classified signatures relative to already available signatures was not conclusively demonstrated during the pilot,” the report stated. To evaluate efficacy more fully, the pilot would need to include a broader sample of companies and more comprehensive set of signatures, the report said. Nonetheless, the researchers said the approach could be valuable as part of a broader effort to secure critical networks. They recommended that the pilot be expanded to a more diverse set of defense companies. It also recommended that Department of Homeland Security participation be increased, as initially planned. Based on the study’s results, the Obama administration in November decided to continue the program and put DHS in charge of the relationship with the Internet carriers, officials said. “This program is a step in the right direction,” said Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), Homeland Security Committee chairman. “I’m pleased that the administration has directed the Department of Homeland Security to continue the development and potential expansion of this effort.” One irony is that the classified data used in the pilot remain secure because they are transmitted in low-tech “sneaker net” fashion. A courier hand-delivers to carriers 80 to 90 threat signatures every two days or so, on paper. Those signatures then need to be hand-typed into the system, an industry official said. “We had successes in proving this concept, but there were areas in which we encountered unanticipated challenges,” Pentagon spokeswoman April Cunningham said. “[Carnegie Mellon’s] analysis will further help us build upon the lessons learned.” The pilot “has prompted interest in other sectors,” said an administration official who was not authorized to speak for the record, “and there is certainly underlying contemplation of future expansion.” **More national security coverage:** \- U.S. acts quickly to tamp down Afghan video scandal \- Court-martial recommended in WikiLeaks case \- U.S. peace talks with Taliban to resume \- Read more national security headlines

Alix Davidson says she was “totally excited” when her car rental company recently offered her the keys to a Toyota Prius in Seattle. It was her first time behind the wheel of a hybrid electric vehicle. But her enthusiasm quickly turned to frustration when she couldn’t figure out how to start the car. “We pushed the button, which looked awfully like our computer’s ‘on’ button, waved the little stick in front of it,” says Davidson, a researcher for an environmental organization in Washington. “Nothing.” For those of you wondering how to start a Prius, you insert the key, push down the brake pedal and press the “power” button. Davidson is one of a growing number of motorists who are confused by the car rental industry’s latest additions to their fleets, which include everything from electric vehicles to microcars. This past summer, Enterprise, the largest rental company, announced a major electric vehicle rollout. You can now rent everything from a Nissan Leaf to a Peugeot iOn. And Hertz expanded its electric car fleet in 2011 to include the Chevrolet Volt, the Smart ED and the Tesla Roadster. The American Car Rental Association, a trade group, expects more puzzled looks from customers as they rent these new vehicles. But its members have had some experience fielding the questions. “Let’s face it,” says Sharon Faulkner, the group’s executive director. “It doesn’t even have to be an electric car, or a specialty unit, for customers to be confused.” How true. I remember renting a car in Germany a few years ago. It wasn’t immediately clear how to shift the standard transmission into reverse. It took 20 minutes of fumbling with the gears in the parking lot of a restaurant before I was able to coax the car into backing up. That rental ran on old-fashioned unleaded gasoline. Stephanie Wolkin recalls the Renault Megane she rented in Montpellier, France. She loaded her luggage into the open trunk and drove off. When she arrived at her rental home, she couldn’t open the trunk. “The key didn’t work, and there was no lever,” says Wolkin, a retiree who lives in White Bear Lake, Minn. “We panicked.” Two young boys watching the Americans struggle with their voiture finally let them in on the secret to prying open a Megane trunk: Point the key at the rearview mirror in the middle of the windshield, and press the button on the key. “Presto!” she says. “It opened.” Jody Beck also recalls a rental in France, a car that sometimes refused to start. She phoned the agency, which dispatched a tow truck. “The tow truck driver got the car to start immediately as I tried, in my basic French, to describe the problem,” says Beck, who works for a nonprofit organization in Washington. “The hotel owner finally figured out that we didn’t know that the diesel car had a manual choke.” You don’t have to travel overseas to be confused. Danielle Laatsch rented a car in Pensacola, Fla., a few years ago and couldn’t make the windshield wipers work. “I promptly drove into a storm,” says Laatsch, who now lives in South Korea. “I had to wash the windows every few minutes for an hour to clear off the windshield. And yes, I learned my lesson and now always check out everything in the parking lot.” That’s good advice, but not necessarily obvious, especially for those of us with a Y chromosome. We’ll figure it out as we go along, we assure ourselves. And we don’t need to read the manual either, even though it’s often conveniently located in the glove compartment. Faulkner says you shouldn’t leave the car rental facility until you can do the following: start the car, unlock the steering column, turn off the car and remove the key. To that, I would also add: turn on the lights and operate the windshield wipers. Sure, it sounds basic, but in a world where our cars talk to us and some prefer a charge over a tank of gasoline, you just can’t assume anything anymore. The future can be a confusing place. “If you don’t feel 100 percent comfortable,” adds Faulkner, “then don’t take the car.” Elliott is National Geographic Traveler magazine’s reader advocate and the author of “Scammed: How to Save Your Money and Find Better Service in a World of Schemes, Swindles, and Shady Deals.” E-mail him at chris@elliott.org.

The local elections aren’t for months yet, but for Alexandria and Arlington residents, the candidates are already lining up, seeking endorsements and staking out their positions. **In Arlington** , the special election to elect a replacement for now-state Sen. Barbara Favola (D) will be March 27. The voter registration deadline is March 12. The five candidates (Melissa Bondi, Peter Fallon, Libby Garvey, Kim Klingler and Terron Sims II) who are seeking the Democratic nomination had their first candidates’ night last week, in preparation for the party caucuses next Thursday and Saturday. The most notable item out of the candidates’ night, which filled about 200 seats at George Mason University, was the skepticism expressed by most attendees about the Columbia Pike streetcar project, which might prompt more analysis or a review of the benefits vs. the rising cost of the project. The only candidate to clearly endorse the streetcar was Bondi, who has been endorsed by current board member Christopher Zimmerman, a major force behind the project. The candidates also answered questions about affordable housing at the Alliance for Housing Solutions Web site. The Arlington Republicans will nominate someone based on their Jan. 25 party canvas; the deadline to seek the nomination is Tuesday. The Green Party nominated Audrey Clement at its regular meeting Jan. 4. For information about Arlington’s elections, see the county’s Web site, www.arlingtonva.us, or the Virginia State Board of Elections at www.sbe.virginia. gov. **In Alexandria** , Democrats will hold a June 12 primary for the Nov. 6 general election for mayor, City Council and School Board. Those who wish to run must file a number of forms between March 12 and 29. Details are at the city’s Web site, alexandriava.gov/Elections, or the Virginia State Board of Elections site, www.sbe.virginia.gov. The non-incumbents who have so far filed organizational statements with the city’s voter registration office are Michael Hepburn, Sean Holihan, Timothy Lovain, Charles Sumpter and Justin Wilson. The Alexandria Republicans will nominate their candidates by caucus but haven’t set a date. Scott Gordon is the only non-incumbent Republican candidate to file an organizational statement. Independent candidates for mayor or City Council must file their petitions to the Alexandria Office of Voter Registration and Elections no later than 7 p.m. June 12. School Board candidates run in a non-partisan election by districts. No non-incumbents have filed yet, but they have until June 12.

Occuparenting isn’t easy. Your precious children? The ones who had violin lessons, SAT tutors, and years of orthodontia and organic lunches? They are now sleeping under tarps, in the mud, rain and frigid weather, in an encampment that is home to a growing urban rat infestation. And their new neighbors are a sizable portion of the nation’s hard-core homeless population. Things have gotten so grody down there that D.C. Mayor Vincent C. Gray, who was arrested last spring during a demonstration, has called on the National Park Service to remove the protesters from McPherson Square. Next week, hordes of them plan to Occupy Congress, which could spark confrontations with the U.S. Capitol Police and lead to arrests. They eat donated or trash-can-scavenged food — peanut butter, bread and doughnuts (sorry, Hostess, no Twinkies) were lunch the other day — or they may even go on a hunger strike. Take that, helicopter parents. These are the mothers and fathers who demanded laws for bike helmets and car seats and warning labels on every plastic bag and bucket in the universe. They had the home number of every teacher from preschool to college. And they’ve even been known to call up their grown kids’ new bosses after Junior didn’t get a promotion. But what happens when these highly groomed offspring go off and join the hundreds living in the Occupy movements camps? To whom do you file a complaint? Who gets the irate phone call? “She still keeps asking me to come home. I get the calls. And the texts. Every day,” answered one 18-year-old Occupier in McPherson Square. The camps are full of a wide range of ages and socioeconomic backgrounds, sure. But the movement’s biggest population and primary strategists are the 20something millennials forever burdened with their parents’ insistence on participation trophies for every team member. So now the Occuparents find themselves struggling with whether to support their child’s participation in a sweeping, political protest movement and the fact that their cul-de-sac kids are living in total squalor. Sam Jewler, one of the four protesters who staged a dramatic hunger strike in the name of D.C. voting rights , fasted for 11 days — until his parents nagged him into eating. His dad, Chevy Chase resident Leonard Jewler, was featured in a Marc Fisher blog post years ago when he tried to answer parental school angst with a data analysis on whether kids from D.C. public schools ascend to the same caliber of colleges as kids who went to private schools. After enough carping from the ’rents, young Jewler broke his fast last month with a glass of coconut juice and a bowl of miso broth. “My parents were becoming increasingly distressed,” Jewler told The Washington Post’s Tim Craig. “I didn’t feel like it was fair anymore to put that burden on them.” Eat. _EAT_ _!_ On Wednesday, the protesters had a chance to do some of that nurturing themselves when they found a baby wearing just a onesie and mittens in one of the tents and called authorities. The father was arrested, and the baby was handed over to the city’s Child Protective Services. Not exactly a helicopter dad, right? Sure, there are some protesters whose parents are closing the door on them over their participation in the movement: One said his folks made it clear that he doesn’t have a home to come back to. Or there are guys like Chris, 18, who left his home in Maine “pretty much because of my dad.” But for the most part, Occuparents aren’t philosophically opposed to protesting. It’s not the pearl-clutching that the hippies’ parents did in the 1960s. But it’s just so . . . _ick_ out there. “My mom thinks I’m insane. She keeps hoping I’ll wake up someday. She’s the one who needs to wake up!” said Rooj Alwazir, 23, who grew up in the Tysons Corner area and has to explain the Occupy movement almost daily to her 63-year-old mother. The other day, she posted online that she was about to go “Dumpster Diving for Occupy D.C.!” Her sister shot back, asking her why she had to go Dumpster diving when she has a home and food and family so close by. “They just don’t get it,” said Alwazir, who was laid off from a marketing job and hasn’t been able to find work. Alwazir’s 71-year-old father, a historian and poet, is down with the cause, she said. But he largely stays away from the tent city his daughter now calls home. Annie Storr, however, has taken a full-immersion approach. I met her the night police encircled the McPherson Square camp last month and tore down a barn protesters had built. She was running along the line of the police barricade, trying to keep tabs on her son, Eli, and the other protesters being cuffed. “Eli has been arrested!” announced Storr, who stood out in the crowd like an L.L. Bean model at an Amsterdam body-piercing convention. At that point, her 20-year-old son had been at McPherson Square for just over two months. And she had visited him at least 45 days during that time. She’d volunteered in the camp kitchen. And she’d spent one night in the camps. “Just one,” she explained, grabbing her back. Logistically, the visits were easy, since she works just a few blocks away at the Corcoran College of Art + Design. Extreme helicopter parenting? Maybe. But Storr is also a Quaker, so peaceful protest jibes with her beliefs. And she immersed herself in the protests after getting to know the folks there and deciding that most of them are righteous. Yes, she is proud of her son, she told me. But, no, it’s not easy to see your kid live in a tent and even harder to see him hauled off to jail. She walked over to the police officers to tell them that her son had been arrested and “Hi, I’m Annie” and just thank them — ahead of time — for treating the arrestees well. All she got was a stone face from the cops. Deadpan. That’s okay. Any parent is used to that face, right? **More fromPostLocal: ** Mayor Gray wants to move Occupy demonstrators to clean up McPherson Square A disaster to remember: 30 years after the Air Florida Flight 90 crash Man accused of leaving baby in tent is released Two men arrested in Greenbelt rape Fairfax schools look for 9% budget hike What to do: Best events this weekend

As required reading in high school, “Romeo and Juliet” may be one of theater’s most recognizable stories. Who can’t recite at least snippets of the balcony scene or recall the bitterness of Mercutio shouting, “A plague o’ both your houses”? Who doesn’t remember the tableau when Juliet, under the spell of a coma-inducing potion, is erroneously pronounced dead? Matthew R. Wilson remembers it a little differently than most. “That scene is ridiculously funny,” says Wilson, director of Faction of Fools’ commedia dell’arte take on Shakespeare’s tragedy. “It’s just like aria of grief after aria of grief. It’s so much too much.” Wilson’s screwball 70-minute adaptation, which opened this week at Flashpoint, employs the hallmarks of traditional Italian comedies. There will be masks and slapstick-heavy brawls, quick-witted jibes and archetypal characters overflowing with stylized emotions. However nontraditional that may sound, Wilson makes a case that his version may actually align with what Shakespeare had in mind. “A traditional Italian comedy — and Shakespeare knew the genre very well — starts with chaos and ends with a wedding,” says Wilson, who studied and taught commedia dell’arte in Reggio nell’Emilia, Italy. “I think if you know that, then you can see what’s really genius about what Shakespeare did. . . . He put the wedding in Act III and kept the story going after that. So the comedy stops halfway through. And then people start dying.” That being said, Wilson hasn’t dramatically altered the dialogue so much as whittled it down. “The text is all Shakespeare,” he says. “I think people will be surprised by some scenes that are a lot funnier than they ever thought they were. That’s just how he wrote it.” That means the comedy relies on delivery, and to punch up the humor, Wilson has his actors doing quadruple duty, and then some: “We said, ‘Let’s do it with five people. That will be even stupider.’ ” Drew Kopas, who juggles four characters, including Romeo, seems to marvel at how well it all works, especially playing the title character as the “goofy archetype of the lover” from traditional commedia dell’arte productions. “Everyone has preconceived notions of what Romeo and Juliet are,” he says. “I didn’t expect them to work out as well as they do. They kind of illuminate the text.” Although the staging by Wilson plays for laughs, his version doesn’t dispense with the story’s ultimate tragedy. The director-adapter has paid particular attention to the play’s big turning point — the duels that culminate with Tybalt’s and Mercutio’s deaths — both because it’s an important tonal shift and because Wilson works as a theatrical fight director. “That scene is exciting,” Wilson says. “A lot of people think, with the fights, ‘We’ll add that on later,’ and to me, it’s always the most important part of the play. That’s the thing that you’re leading up to, right? And it really is in this play.” As for the fracas, it’s a flurry of movement, with one actor sitting on another’s shoulders before being swung around upside down and forming a human pretzel with yet another. It’s physical comedy right up until the moment when sword meets flesh. The use of humor feels like a risk even if it comes, in part, from Shakespeare’s source material. But Wilson isn’t too concerned with that or his loony depiction of Juliet’s feigned death. “I think if by the middle of Act IV, [the audience members] haven’t accepted what we’re doing, then we’ve lost them,” Wilson says. “If people get onboard for the ride, they will see that, really, the first half of this play is just silly, wonderful fun. And then, the sadness is: It was supposed to stay silly, wonderful fun, and it doesn’t. Through Feb. 4. Mead Theatre Lab at Flashpoint, 916 G St. NW. www.factionoffools.org. $10-$25.

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan — Beleaguered President Asif Ali Zardari landed in Pakistan early Friday after a short trip abroad, returning to face a simmering conflict between Pakistan’s civilian government and its armed forces. Zardari, the main target of what his ruling party depicts as a pressure campaign by the military and the Supreme Court, flew Thursday afternoon to Dubai to attend a wedding and see a doctor, his office said. Zardari underwent medical treatment in Dubai last month, triggering rumors that he was being forced out by the military over a scandal, dubbed “Memogate,” that has roiled the nation. On Thursday, Zardari instead drew criticism for leaving the country at a time when his government again seemed to be on the verge of collapse. But some analysts theorized that the trip was calculated to spur rumors, positioning Zardari to appear defiant upon his return early Friday. The trip came a day after the latest developments in a civilian-military confrontation prompted predictions that a coup was looming. Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani fired the civilian defense secretary, a retired lieutenant general who was close to the army. And the army warned that Gilani’s recent criticism of military actions could end in “grievous consequences” for the country. The civilian-military battle revolves around an unsigned memo transmitted by a Pakistani American businessman, Mansoor Ijaz, to the Pentagon last spring. The memo asked for U.S. help in forestalling a possible military coup and establishing civilian control over the army, which has led Pakistan for half its existence and remains the country’s major power. The army believes the memo came from the highest levels of government. The government has denied all knowledge of the document. A military official with knowledge of the generals’ meeting Thursday said the memo was discussed, as was Gilani’s firing of the defense secretary, who was replaced by a close aide to the prime minister, Nargis Sethi. The official, who was not authorized to speak publicly, said the top brass was “highly displeased” by the firing and would find it “difficult” to work with Sethi. Despite the theatrics, it is widely accepted that the army, led by Gen. Ashfaq Kayani, has no appetite for a coup. Nor does the public or Pakistan’s vibrant media, although the government is unpopular with both. The military, in fact, has strived to emphasize its preference for a solution sanctioned by the Supreme Court, an institution that some analysts say is on a warpath against the government. “General Kayani and other generals believe that . . . the memo issue shall be decided by the Supreme Court,” the military official said. But, the official said, “in case the Supreme Court seeks the army’s assistance to fulfill any constitutional requirement, the call for that can be considered.” In Washington, senior administration officials said a coup was unlikely and did not serve the interests of any of the players, but they acknowledged they had little insight into fast-moving internal events in Pakistan. Even if they did, any attempt to interfere could backfire, given the tension in U.S-Pakistani relations, said the officials, who spoke on the condition of anonymity. A showdown could come Monday, when the Pakistani government is expected to explain its stance in an ongoing corruption case at the center of its acrimonious relations with the Supreme Court. Two days ago, the court berated the government and deemed Gilani “dishonest” for defying its orders to reopen old corruption cases against Zardari and other officials. The court listed six wide-ranging options, including dismissing Gilani, pursuing contempt-of-court charges or letting voters decide. The government insists that Zardari, as president, is immune from prosecution. The ruling party introduced a resolution in parliament Friday expressing support for the government, hoping for a symbolic boost for Zardari. The confidence measure will come up for vote Monday. A judicial panel probing the memo’s origins also will resume its hearings Monday and might hear testimony from Ijaz, the Pakistani American businessman. Whether he will travel to Pakistan for the hearing remains unclear. The rift between the government and the military comes against a backdrop of soured ties with the United States in the aftermath of a Nov. 26 border clash in which 24 Pakistani soldiers were killed in U.S. airstrikes. The covert drone campaign resumed only this week, with an alleged CIA strike killing six militants in the North Waziristan border region Thursday, the second such strike in three days. In a small sign of progress, Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton met Wednesday with Sherry Rehman, who arrived in Washington last week as Pakistan’s new ambassador and is expected to present her credentials to President Obama next week. Clinton noted Thursday that Rehman is “someone that I’ve known for some time.” “My message to her was very straightforward,” Clinton told reporters. “We recognize there have been significant challenges in recent months, but we are steadfastly committed to this relationship and working together to make it productive.” **More world news coverage:** \- U.S. acts quickly to tamp down Afghan video scandal \- Putin site launch ignores Russian protests \- India scores major victory in polio battle \- Read more headlines from around the world

_View a printable PDF of delegation with photos _ **Sen. Karen S. Montgomery** (D-District 14) 410-841-3625 301-858-3625 karen.montgomery@senate. state.md.us **Sen. Robert J. Garagiola** (D-District 15) 301-858-3169 410-841-3169 rob.garagiola@ senate.state. md.us **Sen. Brian E. Frosh** (D-District 16) 301-858-3124 410-841-3124 brian.frosh@ senate.state. md.us **Sen. Jennie M. Forehand** (D-District 17) 301-858-3134 410-841-3134 jennie.forehand@senate.state.md.us **Sen. Richard S. Madaleno Jr.** (D-District 18) 301-858-3137 410-841-3137 richard.mada leno@senate. state.md.us **Sen. Roger P. Manno** (D-District 19) 410-841-3151 301-858-3151 roger.manno@ senate.state. md.us **Sen. Jamie B. Raskin** (D-District 20) 301-858-3634 410-841-3634 jamie.raskin@ senate.state. md.us **Sen. Nancy J. King** (D-District 39) 301-858-3686 410-841-3686 nancy.king@ senate.state. md.us **Del. Anne R. Kaiser** (D-District 14) 301-858-3036 410-841-3036 anne.kaiser@ house.state.md.us **Del. Eric Luedtke** (D-District 14) 410-841-3110 301-858-3110 eric.luedtke@ house.state.md.us **Del. Craig J. Zucker** (D-District 14) 410-841-3380 301-858-3380 craig.zucker@ house.state.md.us **Del. Kathleen M. Dumais** (D-District 15) 301-858-3052 410-841-3052 kathleen. dumais@house.state.md.us **Del. Brian J. Feldman** (D-District 15) 301-858-3186 410-841-3186 brian.feldman@house.state.md.us **Del. Aruna Miller** (D-District 15) 410-841-3090 301-858-3090 aruna.miller@ house.state.md.us **Del. C. William Frick** (D-District 16) 301-858-3454 410-841-3454 bill.frick@house.state.md.us **Del. Ariana B. Kelly** (D-District 16) 410-841-3642 301-858-3642 ariana.kelly@ house.state.md.us **Del. Susan C. Lee** (D-District 16) 301-858-3649 410-841-3649 susan.lee@ house.state.md.us ** Del. Kumar P. Barve** (D-District 17) 301-858-3464 410-841-3464 kumar.barve@ house.state.md.us **Del. James W. Gilchrist** (D-District 17) 301-858-3744 410-841-3744 jim.gilchrist@ house.state.md.us **Del. Luiz R. S. Simmons** (D-District 17) 301-858-3037 410-841-3037 luiz.simmons@ house.state.md.us **Del. Alfred C. Carr Jr.** (D-District 18) 410-858-3638 301-858-3638 alfred.carr@ house.state.md.us **Del. Ana Sol Gutierrez** (D-District 18) 301-858-3181 410-841-3181 ana.gutierrez@ house.state.md.us **Del. Jeff Waldstreicher** (D-District 18) 301-858-3130 410-841-3130 jeff.waldstreich er@house.state.md.us **Del. Sam Arora** (D-District 19) 410-841-3528 301-858-3528 sam.arora@ house.state.md.us ** Del. Bonnie L. Cullison **(D-District 19) 410-841-3883 301-858-3883 bonnie.cullison@house.state. md.us ** ** **Del. Benjamin F. Kramer** (D-District 19) 301-858-3485 410-841-3485 benjamin. kramer@house.state.md.us **Del. Sheila Ellis Hixson** (D-District 20) 301-858-3469 410-841-3469 sheila.hixson@ house.state.md.us **Del. Tom Hucker** (D-District 20) 301-858-3474 410-841-3474 tom.hucker@ house.state.md.us ** ** **Del. Heather R. Mizeur** (D-District 20) 301-858-3493 410-841-3493 heather.mizeur@house.state. md.us **Del. Charles Barkley** (D-District 39) 301-858-3001 410-841-3001 charles.barkley@house.state. md.us **Del. Kirill Reznik** (D-District 39) 301-858-3039 410-841-3039 kirill.reznik@ house.state.md.us ** Del. Shane Robinson ** (D-District 39) 410-841-3021 301-858-3021 shane.robinson@house.state. md.us

Ten years after its opening, mention Guantanamo, and a thousand images emerge. Men in orange jumpsuits wearing goggles, hoods and handcuffs, hunched over in the relentless Caribbean sun; zoo-like cages, exposed to the elements, with nothing but buckets as toilets; secret areas of the prison compound where “enhanced interrogation techniques” were tested; a detainee deprived of sleep, and injected forcibly with fluids to cause swelling, until he broke; men found hanging from ropes in their cells. What would a world without Guantanamo be like? That’s two questions, really. First, one must imagine a world in which the detention facility had never opened its doors. And, less fanciful, a world in which it closed down now. To begin, it’s a good idea to remind ourselves of what Guantanamo has been and what it means today. From the start, the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, was painted for the public as containing unimaginably bad inmates. White House and military officials insisted that the prisoners there were “the worst of the worst”; former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman Richard Myers described the detainees as almost superhuman — able to “gnaw hydraulic lines” on the airplane bringing them to the facility. President George W. Bush insisted that there was no rendition-to-torture program, until the day he moved 14 prisoners from the program to the camp, announcing the national security value of interrogating them. Judges, national security officials, prosecutors and other officers of the law insisted that the U.S. court system was too weak to handle such terrible men. President Obama’s administration has concurred, pushing the closure of Guantanamo further away and buttressing its prognosis for a long life with the banal assertion that there are roughly 48 detainees who will be kept there in “indefinite detention.” Symbolically, Guantanamo has always had a power far beyond its harboring of captives in the war on terror. For civil libertarians, it represents the rights that the U.S. government violated in the name of that war, most glaringly the tolerance of open-ended detention. For its defenders, Guantanamo marks the United States’ willingness to take the gloves off. Internationally, it is a symbol of the humbling of America. Guantanamo is an invitation for others to say: “See? The United States is just like the rest of us, unable to resist going to the dark side when attacked.” Guantanamo represents what lies below the surface of America the civilized; it is a window into the lure of the brutal in times of confusion, and a reminder of the forgotten discipline that constitutional democracy requires. But mostly, Guantanamo is this: It is the place where the United States has decided to collect the universe of post-9/11 moral issues that confound its politicians, laws and people. When in doubt or ignorance, or when just plain challenged by the complexities of national security dilemmas, send the problems to Guantanamo. Don’t know what to do with prisoners captured on the terrorism battlefield? Send them to Guantanamo. Doubtful of the ability of the U.S. courts to try terrorists? Put them in Guantanamo. Anxious about the haunting realities of torture coming to light? Keep those who were tortured at Guantanamo. So what if we erased all that? Without Guantanamo, there would be no focal point that so readily called to mind the U.S. role in the war on terror. There would be no one place that encapsulated the errant journey that the nation began in the wake of 9/11, the startling deviation from law and process, from the self-identity of America as law-abiding, confident and fair. The absence of Guantanamo — this one term that evokes so much — would have meant that the United States had not chosen the easy out. Had there been no Guantanamo, the nation would have had to confront the issues that continue to haunt us: the ability of the Constitution to deal with 21st-century enemies; the strengths and weaknesses of our intelligence services; the uncertainty of who is an enemy and who is not. Without Guantanamo, the country’s leaders would have had to create aboveboard policies that would not have led us into a state of perpetual limbo, now codified by Congress and supported by the president in the form of indefinite detention and military detention for foreign terrorism suspects. With no Guantanamo, there would still be much to trouble us: the war in Iraq and the lies that got us there, the losses in Afghanistan, the overstepping of the security state into conversations, virtual and otherwise. But there wouldn’t be a glaring badge of shame on the United States. Nor would there be a ready symbol of the country’s willingness to allow national security to trump the rule of law. Without Guantanamo, our moral compass wouldn’t have been so visibly hijacked. Obama has continued to use Guantanamo as a collection box for the most challenging national security dilemmas. If anything, he has intensified the prison’s role as a catch-all for the confusion of post-9/11 security — as if for each cell emptied of a human being, another is filled with a problem: the use of waterboarding and hearsay, the desire to arrest individuals for association with a terrorist group, the need to have a secondary system of justice, the political attraction of promising Congress that the enemies of the United States will not be allowed onto U.S. soil. But if we now close Guantanamo, the Pandora’s box of so much that went wrong after 9/11, it would bring to an end the entire era — and with it the anger, frustration, and loss of faith in government and the courts that has lasted a decade. The ignorance that persists, day after day, about who is there and what actual danger they pose to the United States would disappear. Gone would be some of the disappointment with lawmakers who use Guantanamo as a reminder that the nation is beset by threats and thus keep fear alive. Gone would be the emasculation of the U.S. courts as a viable venue for trying terrorism cases. Could shutting down Guantanamo resolve the legal and moral confusion unleashed by the global war on terror, or would its closure merely be another failed remedy? The answer lies in how it is done. Guantanamo can’t be closed quietly. Rather than just withering away, blanketed in excuses of political constraint and legal complexities, it needs to be shuttered with a clear declaration of rights and wrongs. Indefinite detention is wrong. Bypassing the courts is wrong. Succumbing to fear until it dominates the law is wrong. Ultimately, because Guantanamo is a repository not just of prisoners but of America’s confusion, its closure should mark a moment of clarity, and of renewed confidence in our country and the rule of law. Close Guantanamo, and you close the box of sin that the war on terror unleashed, making us, rather than an exceptional nation, one like all the others. Close the box, bury the ills of the past decade, close the doors on a state of limbo and confusion, and America’s true exceptionalism can once again thrive. **Karen J. Greenberg** , director of the Center on National Security at Fordham University, is the author of “The Least Worst Place: Guantanamo’s First 100 Days.”

When a former employee in 2010 accused a California company called Sempra Energy of paying bribes to advance its interests in Mexico, the U.S. government responded as it often does in white-collar cases: It asked the company to investigate itself. If proven, the allegations could have meant serious trouble for Sempra. The FBI wanted to know, among other things, whether a $7 million charitable trust that the company financed in Mexico was actually a “slush fund,” documents show. By March, the FBI had made a preliminary assessment: “There are ample facts and indicators which reflect that Sempra and its business executives may have engaged in criminal activity,” an agency memo said. But a few months later, citing explanations provided by Sempra and its outside lawyers, the government closed the case. Under the heading “Summary of Investigation,” an FBI memo recounts a “presentation” by “Sempra outside counsel” but mentions no effort by the government to independently probe the facts about the trust fund. “Based on the foregoing information, DOJ concluded that no additional investigation was warranted as all allegations had been adequately addressed by Sempra,” a June FBI memo said. The federal government often delegates investigations of suspected corporate wrongdoing in large part to the very companies under investigation. As The Washington Post has reported, the companies hire teams of lawyers to look into the allegations and share their findings with the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission. Recent FBI memos from the Sempra case, which the FBI posted on its Web site after The Post submitted a Freedom of Information Act request, offer a rare inside look at how the process can work. “This clearly is an example of the DOJ . . . outsourcing an investigation,” said Mike Koehler, an assistant professor of business law at Butler University who represented companies accused of violating federal anti-bribery law and who now specializes in the subject as an academic. Based on the documents, which Koehler reviewed at The Post’s request, the Justice Department’s handling of the case “really seems like cutting corners and not a thorough investigation,” he said. Koehler said he was surprised that the government closed the case without enforcement action because information in the documents “would seem to support” charges under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. In accepting the word of Sempra’s lawyers, the government neglected to pursue important questions, an attorney for Rodolfo Michelon, the former Sempra employee, said in a legal brief. Federal officials “suffered a simultaneous failure of their critical faculties” and “went brain dead” listening to outside lawyers for Sempra, attorney Gary J. Aguirre, a former SEC enforcement official and whistleblower, said in the legal brief. Anthony Michael Sabino, a law professor at St. John’s University who also reviewed the documents for The Post, reached a different conclusion, saying the government’s reliance on Sempra’s lawyers seemed to work. The government “asked a series of logical and appropriate questions, and the answers, the responses, appeared to be fairly detailed, and that was enough for them,” Sabino said. Justice Department officials, including a spokesman for the San Diego FBI office, which opened the file on Sempra, declined to discuss the investigation in any detail. “As with all substantive allegations, the department carefully reviewed the accusations to determine if they were supported by facts that showed violations of the law,” Justice Department spokeswoman Laura Sweeney said in a Dec. 29 written response to questions. “After many months of investigation, interviewing witnesses, including current and former employees, and counsel for the company, and examining numerous U.S. and foreign records, experienced prosecutors and agents determined that the facts did not warrant further action,” Sweeney said. “In making that determination, the department conducted its own independent and thorough review while also taking into account the information provided by the company as a result of its internal investigation.” Sweeney declined to say whether the Justice Department took those investigative steps with respect to the charitable trust. Sempra spokesman Douglas Kline said that the allegations are false and that the company cooperated fully with the government, providing documents and making employees available for interviews. He declined to say how many employees were interviewed. Records show that the SEC was working along with the Justice Department. A May document said the SEC staff had finished its investigation of Sempra Energy and did not intend to recommend any enforcement action by the agency. “While we can’t confirm or comment on any specific investigations, our Enforcement Division does not rely on any company’s internal review but conducts its own investigations, including extensive document review and interviews with witnesses,” SEC spokesman Kevin Callahan said in a statement. Government officials have said they often rely on internal corporate investigations to stretch their limited federal budgets. Since Congress sought to encourage whistleblowing by ordering the SEC to reward tipsters for exposing fraud, the SEC has said that, “in appropriate cases,” it will “give the company an opportunity to investigate the matter and report back.” Sempra, a Fortune 500 company whose headquarters is in San Diego, has extensive operations in Mexico, including a liquified natural gas (LNG) project on the Pacific coast near the city of Ensenada in Baja California. Michelon was a controller for the company in Mexico until spring 2010, when he was laid off. The company has said he was one of about 90 employees whose jobs were eliminated. He filed a lawsuit that November asserting that he was wrongfully discharged and accusing Sempra of making payoffs to Mexican officials. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act makes it illegal for U.S. companies to bribe foreign officials. Last January, after the news media had reported on Michelon’s claims, Sempra contacted the Justice Department. FBI agents, federal prosecutors and SEC lawyers met with outside lawyers for Sempra, who presented the results of an internal investigation by a law firm. The internal investigation concluded that the allegations “were without merit” and that the whistleblower was “a disgruntled ex-employee who wants to extract money from the Company by whatever means necessary,” according to an FBI summary. Nonetheless, on Feb. 10, the government asked Sempra to do additional legwork: for example, “obtain evidence” from a government office in Mexico; “conduct an investigation of any cash transactions in Mexico over the last four years”; and “conduct an investigation of any charitable or political donations exceeding $25,000 made by Sempra to Mexican officials or entities over the last four years,” according to an FBI memo. The FBI memos, which have been redacted to obscure some of their content, show that the government focused on several issues. As early as March, an FBI document shows, the Justice Department had decided to stop probing one of those issues — whether Sempra paid a bribe to get someone evicted from land near its LNG project. Another major focus: Was the Ensenada Trust — to which Sempra donated $7 million — a slush fund for corrupt payments? Sempra’s outside counsel had said the primary purpose of the trust was to engender goodwill with members of the Ensenada community, a March 15 FBI memo said. But the FBI memo said that an internal Sempra memo from 2005 “appears to refute” the explanation about the trust’s origins from Sempra’s outside counsel. The Sempra document said that the trust was established at the request of an Ensenada city official and that as a result, the official signed a permit that Sempra needed, according to the FBI memo. The city official became an official of the trust, the FBI memo said. “During Q4 2005, subject to _no unplanned permitting impediments_ [emphasis added by FBI], Sempra will contribute [an additional] $5,000,000 USD to the Trust,” the Sempra document said, as quoted in the FBI memo. The memo said the facts indicated that Sempra and company employees “participated in violations” of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. It said the FBI’s investigative strategy would include “interviewing witnesses to the criminal conduct.” Prosecutors had already participated in meetings “with Sempra representatives and witnesses,” the memo said. Koehler said the SEC took enforcement action against pharmaceutical maker Schering-Plough — and the company agreed to pay a $500,000 penalty — based on a scenario that resembled the FBI documents’ description of the Ensenada Trust. In the Schering-Plough case, the company allegedly made payments to a charitable foundation headed by a Polish official who was in a position to influence Polish government purchases of Schering-Plough products. Schering-Plough settled the case in 2004, neither admitting nor denying wrongdoing. Koehler also said that, based on the FBI documents, it appears that Sempra improperly accounted for payments to the Ensenada Trust. But in June, the FBI dropped the matter. An FBI memo explaining its decision cited assurances by the company and its legal counsel. “Sempra confirmed” that any permits it needed after the trust was created were “issued with little discretion by the city of Ensenada,” or were issued by other government authorities, the memo said. “Sempra counsel addressed the various means of oversight of the Trust,” including audits, “such that it appeared the trust was created, funded and operated in a legitimate manner,” the memo said. “Sempra counsel stated that in its review of the trust, no evidence was uncovered to indicate there was a quid pro quo relationship between the funding of the Trust and any approvals needed from the City of Ensenada for the construction of the LNG plant, nor was any evidence discovered of payments to government officials or their relatives,” the FBI memo said. The law firm that represented Sempra in the April briefing for government officials was Jones Day, where Sempra’s executive vice president and general counsel was formerly a partner.

MOSCOW — Ignoring the political upheaval that has shaken Russia over the past month, Vladimir Putin’s presidential campaign unveiled a hefty new Web site Thursday that promises a fistful of important reforms but sidesteps the complaints that have drawn tens of thousands of protesters to the streets. The launch of putin2012.ru leaves Russians with no better idea than before how Putin, the prime minister, intends to address the issues raised by the demonstrations that began shortly after disputed parliamentary elections held Dec. 4. Five hours after analysts began to point this out, and after commenters posted messages on the site urging Putin to leave the race, the candidate’s press adviser, Dmitry Peskov, told the Echo Moskvy radio station that the site did not represent Putin’s “official” program. He said Putin is still working on that one. This, he said, was a project of the ruling United Russia party. The state-owned RIA Novosti news agency, however, reported that it had created the site under a contract with the Putin campaign, at a cost of about $35,000. Many influential people close to Putin have been saying that he has to engage with the issues raised by the protesters, which broadly come down to honest elections and a law-abiding government. Last week, the head of the Russian Orthodox Church and a former finance minister, Alexei Kudrin, made this point publicly. On Thursday, the Vedomosti newspaper reported that Dmitry Orlov, a Putin political adviser, had written a report for the prime minister arguing that if he doesn’t act to address the protests, he will face a “rapid deconsolidation” of power. Orlov warned Putin that previous Russian rulers — including the last czar, Nicholas II, and the last Soviet leader, Mikhail Gorbachev — had been “dethroned” because of an absence of initiative in the face of mass protests. Yet so far, Putin has been dismissive of the demonstrations. Nikolai Petrov, a scholar at the Carnegie Moscow Center, said Putin and some of those around him would rather do nothing right now in hopes that the protests will slowly die down. “The less active he is, the better for him,” Petrov said in explaining that attitude, “but because of the presidential election, he is expected to be active. “He needs to survive these seven weeks. And he thinks then life will become much easier.” Peskov said Thursday that Putin will not take part in campaign debates between now and the March 4 election because he is too busy, but that he might send a stand-in. The new Putin Web site promises steps to rein in the police — who, it notes, should be protecting businesses, not fighting them. It also advocates more attention to the tottering health-care system, more support for education, and a system of administrative courts for those who feel unfairly treated by the government. It warns foreign powers not to push Russia around. But there’s nothing about clean elections or a clean government. “Elaborating on these issues in his platform would, in a way, mean he recognizes that the political system is in crisis. I think he perceives that as a bad bargaining position,” said Boris Makarenko, deputy director of the Center for Political Technologies. “In his view, that would have presented him as a weaker candidate.” Putin doesn’t want to appear as if he is acting under pressure from below, Makarenko said, adding, “If and when he offers reforms, they will be a royal gift to the nation.” On Thursday, Putin’s wealthiest opponent, the oligarch Mikhail Prokhorov, published an essay in Britain’s Guardian newspaper saying that the era of the system Putin calls “managed democracy” is at an end. **More world news coverage:** \- U.S. acts quickly to tamp down Afghan video scandal \- Pakistani president travels abroad amid civil-military rift \- India scores major victory in polio battle \- Read more headlines from around the world

Ask Kevin Green about his research into Wellington Villa, south of Alexandria, and his eyes light up mischievously. A resident of the mile-long enclave tucked between the George Washington Memorial Parkway and the Potomac River a few miles south of Old Town, he rattled some of the area’s long-timers by challenging a beloved piece of neighborhood lore. Locals have long maintained that a ferry frequently mentioned in George Washington’s diaries operated from the neighborhood’s shoreline. Called Clifton’s Ferry, it connected the colonial settlement of Hatton Point in Prince George’s County with farmland in Virginia that William Clifton sold to George Washington in 1760. The land now occupied by Wellington Villa, and by several adjacent communities on both sides of the George Washington Memorial Parkway, was part of that purchase. “I can’t tell you how many people I’ve spoken to say Clifton’s Ferry ran out their back door,” he said. “I guess people like to be able to say, ‘George Washington slept here.’ ” Green, an Alexandria native who moved with his family to Wellington Villa from Chevy Chase in 1989, was drawn by the neighborhood’s layered history and laid-back ambiance. But he was skeptical about the story that the Clifton’s Ferry landing was within the neighborhood’s boundaries. After studying old maps at the Library of Congress and comparing them with contemporary maps of Fairfax County, he concluded that the landing had been about a half-mile south, where the river is much narrower. If anyone has bragging rights, it’s the residents of the Arcturus neighborhood, just south of Wellington Villa, according to a historical researcher with the Fairfax County library system who, at the request of a reporter, examined contemporary and historical maps of the area and reached the same conclusion as Green. Wellington Villa doesn’t appeal only to history buffs. For nature lovers such as Don and Elizabeth Robinson, the major attraction was the waterfront access. Avid canoeists who had long yearned to live on the water, they bought a dilapidated 1,700-square-foot bungalow on a half-acre for about $440,000 in 1992. “We’ve basically been in remodeling mode ever since,” says Don Robinson, ticking off various enhancements he added over the years, mostly to maximize their view of the Potomac. Among them: floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room and master bedroom, and a spacious deck on the back of the house, which faces the water. The couple set aside a portion of the basement for Don to build a workshop and pursue his hobby of restoring vintage boats. An added plus: The house is close enough to Old Town, where Elizabeth works as a social worker, that she can sneak home during lunch breaks to walk the couple’s two dogs. Don, a physical therapist, also enjoys a short, hassle-free commute to work at a nearby hospital. Living on the water’s edge has heightened the Robinsons’ awareness of complex environmental problems, they say. They volunteer as river stewards with the U.S. Park Service and help to restore habitat at Dyke Marsh, a nearby wildlife refuge where they say invasive plants are choking native species and wreaking havoc on the local ecosystem. The Robinsons say their knowledge of colonial Virginia was sketchy before they moved to the neighborhood, but that has changed. Like many who live in the area, they have become George Washington groupies. Given his interest in the environment, Don Robinson found it particularly fascinating that Washington had run an expansive, highly profitable shad and herring fishing operation along the Potomac River. “With the shad restoration efforts going on in the Potomac now, I feel like I have a real link to history,” he said. Of course, Wellington Villa now bears little resemblance to the fishing and farming community that 250 years ago was part of George Washington’s estate. Some of the most dramatic changes have come in the past 15 years, according to Mimi Laughlin, who moved to the neighborhood in the early 1960s when her husband, Robert, began his career as an anthropologist with the Smithsonian Institution, where he is now a curator emeritus. The couple had been house-hunting for a year when they fell in love with a house on a hill overlooking the river that previous owners had converted from an old dairy barn. When the Laughlins arrived, the neighborhood had a distinct Bohemian vibe, Mimi Laughlin said. One of her neighbors owned a donkey. Another was rumored to be a bootlegger. The Laughlins, who had spent years living in Mexico and had their own eclectic way of doing things, fit in perfectly. For a while, Mimi Laughlin raised chickens that, like the donkey, were not exactly in line with local zoning rules. Robert commuted to work via motorboat, mooring at the marina on Maine Avenue and jogging the rest of the way to his office on the Mall. Things began to change in Wellington Villa during the 1990s, when most of the onetime summer homes and crab shacks that had dotted the community were razed to make way for much larger luxury homes. Today, all but about 100 feet of the community’s private, mile-long perimeter road is paved, mostly at the homeowners’ expense. Unlike earlier residents, well-heeled newcomers were bothered by the potholes and were willing to pay for road improvements out of their own pockets. Today, demand for housing in Wellington Villa is fierce, particularly along the waterfront, according to realtor Phyllis Patterson of Coldwell Banker. “People are very specific. Many would love to have a river home,” she said. Not surprisingly, housing prices are high, even for this affluent area of Fairfax County. A three-bedroom 1950s rambler on three-quarters of an acre without riverfront access is on the market now for nearly $1.4 million. Some of the newer houses that replaced older, more modest dwellings on smaller plots on the water sold for millions more. The fact that some longtime residents living on the shoreline are unwilling to sell to developers and clearly are uninterested in keeping up with the Joneses creates local color and adds to the community’s mystique, Patterson said. “You see people on the street walking their dogs, and they have the beat-up T-shirt and the flip-flops, and one person lives in a 1,000-square-foot home and the other lives in a 12,000-square-foot home, and they all get along just fine,” she said. **Rita Zeidner** is a freelance writer.

You don’t have to be an economist to know that family income for the last three decades has accelerated at a much slower pace than the cost of housing, compounding the difficulty low- and moderate-income people face in seeking affordable housing. The situation means that people with low and moderate incomes must spend an ever greater portion of household income on rent. Don’t expect the problem to reverse anytime soon because many of the economic and political factors that made land and housing affordable no longer exist. Since the 1970s, housing affordability has taken a double whammy, best understood by visualizing two curves. The first curve shows the total, inflation-adjusted cost of developing an affordable housing unit over time. The second curve shows low and moderate household income over time. As you probably can guess, the construction cost curve has risen much more steeply than the relatively flat income curve. To illustrate, during the early 1970s, the direct construction cost — excluding land and indirect development costs such as construction loan interest, insurance, general overhead — for a non-custom dwelling was $20 to $30 per square foot, depending on housing type, materials and quality of finishes. By decade’s end, the cost of labor and materials was $30 to $40 per square foot. Today, dwellings of similar quality and type in this region cost $120 to $200 per square foot to construct. In other words, over the course of three decades, housing construction costs have multiplied up to six-fold. There is a third factor affecting the supply of affordable housing: the greatly reduced availability and size of public subsidies to directly bridge the steadily widening gap between what housing costs and what many people can afford to pay. Prior to the 1980s, America as a matter of policy was able to muster substantial economic resources to subsidize and sustain affordable housing. Projects often were built using land with its value written down or written off. Federal programs provided insured, low-interest, long-term loans that covered most project costs and required little equity investment by project sponsors and investors, who also benefited from favorable tax treatment. And there were direct grants as well. Although demand exceeded supply even then, affordable housing production was nevertheless much greater than in recent decades. As an example, in the late 1970s, my firm designed rental housing for the elderly built in compact clusters at six sites on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The six projects encompassed 130 one-bedroom apartments, each 575 square feet in area. They were financed by a single $3.75 million “Section 202” loan from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development that covered most costs. Prospective tenants also would receive Section 8 rental assistance. The Eastern Shore jurisdictions where the clusters were built donated the housing sites. Thus, each unit’s total development cost — direct construction plus design fees, building permits, administrative and indirect expenses — was about $30,000. This was achieved thanks to significant subsidies: free land, 40-year low-interest financing and a sponsor foregoing profit. Today, even with free land, the project probably would cost $120,000 to $150,000 per unit to develop, four or five times what it cost a little more than 30 years ago. Nowadays, publicly owned, developable land that can be contributed at little or no cost is scarce, and most jurisdictions are unwilling or unable to donate valuable land for free. This is especially true for urban and suburban real estate with access to transit, employment, shopping and public schools, all indispensable for families with low and moderate incomes. One-stop, below-market-rate project financing, such as that provided by HUD’s Section 202 loan program, is a thing of the past. That program, along with many other federal subsidy programs, came to an abrupt end with the 1981 arrival of the Reagan administration, which sought to shut down HUD and housing assistance. To fund affordable units today, housing sponsors must seek multiple sources of equity and debt financing. This entails cobbling together an array of below-market-rate loans using limited numbers of federal, state, county and municipal programs. It also means attracting wealthy individuals seeking to take advantage of low-income housing investment tax credits. Unfortunately, these cobbling efforts require extensive time, energy and expertise, adding measurably to a project’s overhead costs. Because the financing process for affordable housing has become so onerous, it in fact is a disincentive for many housing developers who might otherwise undertake affordable housing construction. Clearly, given America’s current economic conditions and political attitudes, affordable housing remains near the bottom of the problem-solving priority agenda. Hoping for a return to pre-1980 affordable housing policies and practices is wishful thinking, even though building housing for needier citizens could create tens of thousands of jobs. Regrettably, in the foreseeable future, the affordable housing situation in the United States will at best stay the same, and at worst become considerably more dire. Roger K. Lewis is a practicing architect and a professor emeritus of architecture at the University of Maryland.

A bipartisan group of senators is urging the European Union to impose an oil embargo on Iran, while back in Washington both parties are preparing for another push on further Iran sanctions legislation. “We write to you now to express our belief that 2012 will bring a turning point in the confrontation between Iran and the international community,” wrote Sens. **Joseph I. Lieberman** (I-Conn.), **Robert Menendez** (D-N.J.), **Mark Kirk** (R-Ill.), **Charles E. Schumer** (D-N.Y.), **Jon Kyl** (R-Ariz.), **Robert P. Casey Jr.** (D-Pa.), **Marco Rubio** (R-Fla.) and **Kirsten Gillibrand** (D-N.Y.) in a Jan. 10 letter to **Catherine Ashton** , E.U. high representative for foreign affairs and security policy. **** “Despite economic sanctions that have been put in place in recent years, the strategic calculus of the Iranian regime with regard to its nuclear program has not changed.. . . For this reason, we believe that it is necessary now to put additional pressure on the Iranian regime by imposing an embargo on its most important export — oil — and sanctions on its primary financial intermediary — the Central Bank of Iran,” the letter said. The E.U. has signaled recently that there is consensus in principle to go forward with an oil embargo and impose more sanctions on Iran, mirroring those passed by Congress and signed by **President Obama**. The E.U. Council meets at the end of the month, which likely would be the time for an announcement of new sanctions. Congress is also planning to renew consideration of additional sanctions on Iran when it returns from winter recess. The Senate plans to take action on the Iran, North Korea, Syria Sanctions Consolidation Act, which is sponsored by Menendez, Kyl, Lieberman, Kirk and Gillibrand. That bill, a version of which was passed by the House in December, would tighten sanctions by doing three main things: remove some of the flexibility the Obama administration has to delay enforcement of certain measures; target Iran’s shipping and trade; and push the administration to step up promotion of human rights, democracy and increased access to information inside Iran. The State Department is further scaling down the staff at the U.S. Embassy in Damascus, citing increased violence and the inability of U.S. diplomats to do their jobs there effectively. Airlines also are curtailing flights to Syria, and U.S. citizens should leave now if they can, according to a Jan. 11 travel warning. The consular section of the embassy is no longer going to be open to the public, so U.S. citizens will have to make an appointment. Moreover, the embassy is warning Americans that if they get in trouble in Syria, they might be on their own. “Our ability to assist U.S. citizens in an emergency is extremely limited and may be further constrained by the fluid security situation,” the travel warning said. One embassy official who won’t be leaving is Ambassador **Robert Ford** , who continues to engage Syrians in person and on the embassy’s Facebook page. In his Jan. 5 post, Ford said that terrorists may be attacking the Syrian regime but that the regime was broadly responsible for the violence. “Indeed there are terrorists attacking people in Syria. I’m the American ambassador and I just acknowledged it; in fact we’ve acknowledged and condemned violence all along,” Ford wrote. “We strongly condemned the December 23 suicide car bomb attacks. But the question is what started all this violence and how to stop it? Can the Syrian government oppress a large part of the population that demands dignity and respect of basic human rights or is its violence making things even worse?” Former Army officer, author and counterinsurgency guru **John Nagl** will leave his post as president of the Center for a New American Security to become a professor at the U.S. Naval Academy. He plans to remain as a nonresident senior fellow at CNAS and continue to run its Next Generation Leaders Program. He will teach classes and seminars at the Naval Academy and start work on a book looking back at the past decade of American warfare. His first class, which begins this week, is called “History of Modern Counterinsurgency,” and it will be informed by his doctoral thesis and book “Learning to Eat Soup with a Knife.” ** — Josh Rogin **

BAGHDAD — Four U.S. Embassy workers driving through Baghdad were stopped and detained by Iraqi security forces for two hours Thursday, a day after the embassy warned that some American citizens working here had been held for days over “discrepancies in permits and paperwork.” The tensions come more than three weeks after the U.S. military left a country that has since been rocked by a political crisis and spectacular bombings. Baghdad’s governor was quoted on an Iraqi news Web site Thursday as calling the embassy workers’ behavior “suspicious.” But an embassy spokesman played down the detention, saying the staff members were served tea as security officers checked their paperwork. “The identities were verified, and they were released,” said the spokesman, Michael McClellan. Other U.S. citizens have apparently been held much longer. “Detentions often last 24-96 hours or more,” the U.S. Embassy said in a statement posted on its Web site. “The Embassy’s ability to respond to situations in which U.S. citizens are arrested or otherwise detained throughout Iraq is limited, including in and around Baghdad.” This was supposed to be the diplomatic phase of the U.S.-Iraq strategic partnership, with the American presence anchored by State Department workers inside the sprawling U.S. Embassy in the fortified Green Zone. McClellan would not say what the four staff members were doing, calling it “routine movement.” Diplomats have to leave the Green Zone to visit certain government agencies and businesses, in addition to other Iraqi cities. McClellan said that embassy staffers always travel with security personnel. Two Iraqi news Web sites, alsumarianews.com and iraq-news.info, quoted Baghdad Gov. Salah Abdul Razzaq as saying that the Americans told Iraqi officers they were in the area to check on security. According to Agence France-Presse, the governor said that the group comprised two men and two women driving a BMW with local license plates, rather than diplomatic registration, and that all were armed and wearing flak jackets. Security forces stopped the group, checked their ID badges and “found them suspicious,” Razzaq told AFP, adding that the group had been stopped at 9 a.m. in a central Baghdad neighborhood. The Post could not reach the governor for comment. In the warning notice posted on its Web site, the U.S. Embassy said that “the Government of Iraq is strictly enforcing immigration and customs procedures, to include visas and stamps for entry and exit, vehicle registration, and authorizations for weapons, convoys, logistics, and other matters,” adding, “Rules and procedures may be subject to frequent revisions, and previous permissions may be deemed invalid.” The moves come as Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki has used speeches and interviews to celebrate Iraq’s full independence as a nation in the wake of the U.S. departure. They also follow a recent report by the World Bank ranking Iraq as the 164th most difficult nation in the world in which to do business, out of 183 countries. **More world news coverage:** \- U.S. acts quickly to tamp down Afghan video scandal \- Pakistani president travels abroad amid civil-military rift \- Putin site launch ignores Russian protests \- Read more headlines from around the world

The leaders of the Federal Reserve went around the room saluting Alan Greenspan during his last day as chairman of the central bank. Then Timothy F. Geithner, the future Treasury secretary, made a prediction. “I’d like the record to show that I think you’re pretty terrific, too,” Geithner, who was president of the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, told Greenspan amid laughter on Jan. 31, 2006. “And thinking in terms of probabilities, I think the risk that we decide in the future that you’re even better than we think is higher than the alternative.” On Thursday, the Fed released transcripts of its meetings in 2006, offering a new window into what was on the minds of some of the nation’s top economic and financial thinkers just ahead of the financial crisis and subsequent great recession. The transcripts, which are customarily released after five years, show that Fed leaders, armed with the best economic data available, had little idea of what was looming less than two years off. Trusted to look toward the future and make decisions to keep the economy strong, they spent some of their time patting their leader on the back and even found time to joke about what turned out to be early-warning signs in the markets. While Fed officials — including several who are in key positions today — were aware that the nation’s rapid increase in housing prices was coming to an end, they significantly underestimated how much damage the popping of the real estate bubble would cause in the rest of the economy. In his first meeting as Fed chairman, in March 2006, Ben S. Bernanke noted the slowdown in the housing market. But he said he shared the view that “strong fundamentals support a relatively soft landing in housing,” adding: “I think we are unlikely to see growth being derailed by the housing market.” The year began with adulation all around for Greenspan. In that January meeting, Roger Ferguson, then Fed vice chairman and now head of the TIAA-CREF financial services group, called Greenspan a “monetary policy Yoda.” Janet L. Yellen, then president of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and now the Fed’s vice chair, told Greenspan “that the situation you’re handing off to your successor is a lot like a tennis racket with a gigantic sweet spot.” In the six years since, Greenspan’s record — seemingly so sterling when he left the central bank after 18 years — has come under substantial criticism from outside economists and analysts. Many say a range of Fed policies under his watch contributed to the financial crisis, including keeping interest rates low for too long, failing to take action to stem the housing bubble and allowing inadequate oversight of financial firms. A spokesman for Greenspan did not respond to a request for comment. A spokeswoman for the Fed declined to comment. Treasury Department spokesman Anthony Coley said: “Secretary Geithner was an early source of initiative at the Fed to reduce risk and make the financial system more resilient even before 2006.” Greenspan has acknowledged in recent years that he was “partially” wrong for allowing banks to operate without enough regulation. Bernanke has defended the Fed’s decisions about interest-rate policy and the overall economy but said that “stronger regulation” would have been “more effective” at constraining the housing bubble. The 2006 transcripts show that Fed officials — like most economists on the outside — considered tremors in the financial markets as not much to worry about. Some were even a source of humor. In a March meeting, for instance, a Fed economist gave a presentation that expressed modest concerns about Iceland, a small country whose enormous banks were highly indebted. “We’d like a full report on the Icelandic,” Bernanke said, before he was interrupted by laughter. Two years later, Iceland’s banks defaulted on their debts, feeding the financial crisis. Throughout the year, the Fed was slow to realize what was happening in the housing market and the threats it posed, as borrowers who took on risky subprime loans defaulted, causing foreclosures. There was at least one Cassandra. Former Fed governor Susan Bies warned that banks had built their models for “falling interest rates and rising housing prices.” “It is not clear what may happen when either of those trends turns around,” she said. Bernanke responded later: “So far we are seeing, at worst, an orderly decline in the housing market; but there is still, I think, a lot to be seen as to whether the housing market will decline slowly or more quickly.” In June 2006, the Fed still wasn’t totally aware of what was happening in the market. A Fed economist reported that “we have not seen — and don’t expect — a broad deterioration in mortgage credit quality.” That turned out to be an incorrect description of what was actually occurring. By August 2006, there was an increasing awareness that problems in housing could lead to problems in the rest of the economy. Said Yellen: “The housing slowdown could become an unwelcome housing slump.” Bernanke acknowledged that there might be some “spillover effect” from housing into the rest of the economy. But others had their attention elsewhere. Geithner was identifying the threat of inflation as the main challenge for the Fed. At the end of the year, officials were still optimistic. “The current weakness in the economy still seems principally to stem from the direct effects of the slowdown in housing on construction activity” and other factors, Geithner said in December 2006. “The softer-than-expected recent numbers don’t argue, in our view, for a substantial reassessment of the risks in the outlook.”