My Interview with Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell

Nearly 15 years ago, syndicated columnist Deroy Murdock wrote an article that appeared in the Washington Times (February 26, 1996; not available on the Web) with the headline, "Prohibition, alive in Virginia."

Murdock focused particularly on a then-pending lawsuit concerning the Commonwealth of Virginia that had been brought by a wine distributor, in a case known as Brown-Forman Corporation vs. Sims Wholesale Company.  He also took broader aim, however, at Virginia's post-Prohibition system of controls over the sale and distribution of beer, wine, and spirits, including a government-owned and -operated monopoly on the wholesale and retail sales of distilled spirits (that is, liquor).

Murdock quoted a libertarian political activist who at the time lived in Arlington County, across the Potomac River from Washington, D.C.:

Stiff limits on the importation of alcohol lift this 80-proof trade wall even higher. It is against state law to bring more than one gallon of wine, beer or spirits into Virginia. Despite the fact that "you could reasonably say that the prices in Washington, D.C. are lower than in Virginia," as Mr. [Curtis] Coleburn states, anyone who bought a case of beer in Georgetown and drove it to a barbeque in Fairfax would be a lawbreaker.

All of this limits consumer choice. "In Arlington County, with a population of 200,000, there are only four ABC stores I am aware of," says writer and policy analyst Richard Sincere. "In a four-block radius of my office in downtown Washington, D.C., there are six or eight liquor stores." Mr. Sincere also sees far more variety in District stores than in Virginia's. Washington retailers "sell more than liquor." "They have cheese, wine glasses, potato chips and newspapers. The Virginia ABC stores have all the personality of a DMV office. They're plain cinderblock structures with plain walls. There are no advertising posters, no color. They remind me of my trip to the Soviet Union in 1987. There were stores there that just were called `Milk' or `Bread.' In Virginia, they say `ABC Store' in big block letters. This is the last vestige of socialism in Virginia."

In a suggestion aimed at then-Governor George F. Allen and the still-Democratic-majority General Assembly, Murdock said that privatization was overdue:

The Elliott Ness-era moonshine still that is Virginia's alcohol policy should be streamlined for the 21st Century. Wine and spirits manufacturers should be free to hire and fire distributors as swiftly as law firms can pick and choose among FedEx, UPS and Airborne. State liquor stores should be privatized, perhaps with their public-sector employees given the first crack at buying the means of alcohol distribution at a fair market price. Virginia's alcohol consumers should be free to shop in Washington. and surrounding states to satisfy their wallets and taste buds. And if they drink what they buy on the drive home, they should be arrested and stripped of their drivers' licenses.

Fast forward a decade and a half, and we can see that this issue is still on Virginia's agenda.  Governors since George Allen have urged consideration of privatization proposals, but there has been no movement.  Now, however, a window of opportunity may exist for Virginia's political leaders to make a decision that modernizes and liberalizes the ABC system, acknowledging that the free market is better than socialism.  This time, ABC privatization is a top priority for Virginia's governor.

On Wednesday evening in Roanoke, Governor Bob McDonnell hosted a town hall meeting to discuss his government reform proposals with constituents, some of whom came from as far away as Craig County.

While McDonnell insists (see video below) that there are "hundreds" of suggestions for government reform -- making government more effective, more efficient, and less costly -- the centerpiece and most popular (and most controversial) of those suggestions is the one he made during last year's gubernatorial campaign.  That is, to privatize the state's monopoly on liquor sales, turn it over to the private sector, and use the hundreds of millions of dollars in proceeds to pay for improving Virginia's transportation network.

About an hour before the town hall meeting began in the chamber of the Roanoke County Board of Supervisors in front of a standing-room-only audience, Governor McDonnell sat down with me for a one-on-one interview on the specific issue of ABC privatization.

An edited transcript of our conversation can now be seen in two parts on Examiner.com.  You can read Part 1 here, and Part 2 here.

The complete conversation can be seen on this video, taken by Steven C. Latimer.

Other articles I have written on the topic of ABC privatization include an interview with Garrett Peck, author of The Prohibition Hangover: Alcohol in America from Demon Rum to Cult Cabernet; another with Reason.tv's Nick Gillespie, who calls Virginia's monopoly control of distilled spirits "mind numbing"; and a third with Antony Davies, an economist affiliated with the Mercatus Center at GMU who teaches at Duquesne University, who has studied the differences between control- and free-market states over a 36-year period.

I have some other interviews on this topic "in the can," so look for them on Examiner.com soon.

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American Century Theater to Present 'Stalag 17'

The death this past weekend of actor Peter Graves at the age of 83 brings a certain, unexpected poignancy to the upcoming production of Stalag 17 at the American Century Theater in Arlington.  Graves was one of the stars of the film version of Stalag 17, directed by Billy Wilder.  The play opens at TACT on Friday, March 26.

Here, in slightly redacted form, is the press release that TACT distributed earlier this month:

Suspicion . . . as Deadly as Betrayal—
The American Century Theater’s Stalag 17 Opens March 26, 2010

The American Century Theater continues its 2009–2010 season with the classic prisoner-of-war drama, Stalag 17. Written by Donald Bevan and Edmund Trzcinski, the play is based on their actual experiences in the World War II, Nazi-run, POW camp in Austria, where, in late 1944, more than 30,000 prisoners—4,000 of them Americans—were held. TACT’s production brings to life the grim reality, deprivation, and risks of wartime imprisonment, punctuated by often-comic efforts to stay sane. Plotting escape is the daily agenda, but plans are made with the knowledge that anyone among them could be a traitor.

Stalag 17 first opened on Broadway in 1951, with soon-to-become-Broadway-legend John Ericson as Sefton. The story was adapted by Billy Wilder and Edwin Blum to script the 1953 Academy Award–winning film, which also won William Holden the Best Actor award. The play’s tone and style influenced many iconic war films, including The Great Escape, starring Steve McQueen, James Garner, and Richard Attenborough.

Director William Aitken notes that “TACT’s Stalag 17 is not your father’s Stalag 17: though it will contain humor, the production aims to bring to the stage the grittiness and depth that are the reality of war and of life in a POW camp.” Aitken last directed for TACT in 2007, bringing to the stage Eugene O’Neill’s Desire under the Elms. He has also trod the boards in multiple roles in The Titans, TACT’s 2008 production based on the Cuban missile crisis (and authored by Robert McElwaine, TACT’s resident playwright, who passed away this past January).

TACT Producing Director Sherri L. Perper has assembled the design team that will transform Gunston Theatre II into an Austrian Prison Camp. Designers include Anndi Daleske (set), Rip Claassen (costumes), Cheryl Ann Gnerlich (lighting), Ian Armstrong (sound), and Ceci Albert (props). Jameson Shroyer (technical director/master carpenter), Casey Kaleba (fight choreographer), and Robert Pierce (stage manager) complete the production staff.

Stalag 17’s “all star” is headed up by Tony Bullock (Sefton), Hans Dettmar (Schultz), and Jon Townson (Price). Bullock (who earned his MFA from the Asolo Conservatory at Florida State University) and Dettmar (a WATCH award nominee for his portrayal of John Merrick in The Elephant Man) are making their TACT debuts. Townson worked with Aitken in The Titans, where he played John F. Kennedy.

James Finley (Dunbar), Donald Osborne (Shapiro), and Steve Lebens (Reed) return to perform with TACT after a brief hiatus following the recent production of the fifties comedy, Will Success Spoil Rock Hunter? Karl Bittner (SS Captain) and Bill Gordon (Hoffy) played, respectively, in TACT’s Life With Father and Happy Birthday, Wanda June. (Gordon, a radio professional, also produces TACT’s “Before the Curtain Is Raised” podcast series.) David Olmsted (Horney), who has worked backstage with TACT, now assumes his first onstage role with the company.

Rounding out the cast are TACT newcomers Tom Eisman (Herb), Jay Hardee (Marko), Matthew Meixler (McCarthy, Second SS Guard), John Stange (Stosh), James Svatko (Geneva Man), and Gabriel Swee (Duke).


Performance Information
Show dates are Friday March 26–Saturday April 17.

Preview performances (pay what you can), Wednesday, March 24 and Thursday, March 25

Opening night performance and reception, Friday, March 26

Pay-what-you-can performance, Wednesday, March 31

Post show talk-back discussion with members of the cast and artistic staff, Thursday, April 1

School matinee, Wednesday April 14 at 10:00 am

Show times are Thursday–Saturday evenings 8 pm and Saturday/Sunday matinees 2:30 pm.

No matinee performances March 27 or April 4.

Location
Theater II, Gunston Arts Center , 2700 South Lang Street , Arlington VA 22206

Tickets
Prices range from $26–32.

Discounts are available for seniors (65+), students, active duty military, and groups.

Children under 18 are admitted free with a (full-price) adult (space permitting, limit 5).

Tickets can be ordered online at www.americancentury.org or by calling 703.998.4555.

More information and reservations
Call 703.998.4555, email office@americancentury.org, or visit www.AmericanCentury.org.

Directions
Visit http://americancentury.org/directions

Gunston Arts Center , Theater II, is about 10 minutes from downtown DC and 5 minutes from Shirlington Village . Free, ample, well-lighted parking is available.

About TACT
The American Century Theater is a 501(c)(3) professional nonprofit theater company dedicated to producing significant 20th century American plays and musicals at risk of being forgotten. TACT is funded in part by Arlington County through the Cultural Affairs Division of the Department of Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Resources and the Arlington Commission for the Arts, the Virginia Commission for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and many generous donors.

###

Photo credit: The actors are: (L-R): Tony Bullock (Sefton), Hans Dettmar (Schultz), and Jon Townson (Price). Photo by Dennis Deloria, courtesy of The American Century Theater.

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'Et Homo Factus Est'

Merry Christmas, everyone!

Today I traveled from Charlottesville to the D.C. area to celebrate Christmas with friends and friends of friends.

At the annual Christmas Eve get-together at the home of Warren Coats and Ito Briones in Bethesda, I was surprised to see my old friend, Rob Teir, and his husband, Johnny Smith, who live in Texas but came all the way to Maryland just for Warren and Ito's party. (At least that's what Rob told me; there may be more to the story than that.) Rob has recently opened up a law practice in Houston, which he seems to be enjoying very much.

(I have to apologize for my strange greeting. I found it hard to believe that Rob and Johnny were there, since just last week I received a Christmas card from them, postmarked Houston. So it was a weird impulse that caused me to walk up to Rob and say, "What are you doing here?")

The food was delightful, as was the company. Warren and Ito are always perfect hosts.

After I left the party, I drove to the Cathedral of St. Thomas More in Arlington, where I arrived just in time for Midnight Mass (which started at 11:00 p.m., strangely enough, but since it ended at 12:30 a.m., I think that counts as "midnight"). An hour of lessons and carols was just ending, and the last organ piece played before Mass began was, again to my surprise, my favorite Polish carol, Dzisiaj w Betlejem. That's just something you don't hear outside of places like Milwaukee, Chicago, and Hamtramck.

I happened to have my video camera with me and captured the processional (preceded by a "Christmas Choral Introit" by Richard Proulx based on Luke 3:4 and Philippians 4:5), which was accompanied by the traditional carol, "O Come, All Ye Faithful." I also taped the recessional, which was accompanied by "Joy to the World."

Here's the video, which also includes a final blessing by Bishop Paul S. Loverde of the Diocese of Arlington:

Enjoy Christmas Day. Check back next week to see what I have up my sleeve for New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.

Interview with Eric Brescia

At a Log Cabin Republican picnic in Alexandria on Sunday, I had an opportunity to meet Eric Brescia, the GOP nominee for an open seat in the House of Delegates. Brescia is running in the 47th House District and the seat currently held by Al Eisenberg. The district is roughly the middle-western third of Arlington County.

Brescia, an economist, was kind enough to sit down with me for an interview, which I recorded on video with the intention to transcribe his answers to my questions later.

He spoke about his background and training, the issues that animate him (he's a big supporter of ending Virginia's socialist liquor trade and privatizing the ABC stores, both as a matter of principle and as a way to raise revenue without raising taxes, and he favors repealing the Marshall-Newman amendment, which prohibits the recognition of same-sex marriages in the Virginia Constitution), and his enthusiasm for being a candidate.

Here is the video:

When the transcript is available, I will post excerpts.

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Videoblogging the RPV Advance

There was electricity in the room set up at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City for the Republican Party of Virginia's presidential straw poll. Much of that electricity was generated by the youthful and exuberant Ron Paul supporters, who constituted more than a third of the political activists attending the event.

Still, a good deal of electricity was put forth by the speakers who preceded the vote. I was able to capture a few of the speakers on video but not, unfortunately, all of them, because I had limited tape and a limited charge (speaking of electricity) on my camera.

The first speaker was former Governor Jim Gilmore, who set out a strategy for party unity to undergird is campaign against former Governor Mark Warner for the U.S. Senate in 2008:

Next up was Delegate Chris Saxman of Staunton, who had been toying with the idea of challenging Gilmore for the Senate nomination next year. In his speech, Saxman announced that has chosen not to pursue higher office, either in 2008 or 2009:

(Saxman also later spoke on behalf of his favored presidential candidate, Senator John McCain.)

After the "Senate" speeches were out of the way, a series of surrogate speakers for the presidential candidates took to the platform. (One "candidate" was there representing himself, Hugh Cort, whose strange remarks were greeted with indifference, if not outright hostility, by a crowd waiting to hear from the real campaigns.)

Although he was in the middle of the agenda, the first surrogate speech I recorded was that of Northern Virginia attorney Chris Kachouroff, who spoke on behalf of Dr. Ron Paul in passages that echoed Barry Goldwater's classic book, The Conscience of a Conservative:

Kachouroff was followed a few minutes later by former Senator George Allen, who spoke on behalf of his erstwhile colleague, former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson, with an uncharacteristically wordless Virginia Attorney General Bob McDonnell at his side:

The last speaker of the hour was former Treasurer of the United States Bay Buchanan, who spoke on behalf of Colorado Congressman Tom Tancredo:

Unfortunately, Buchanan's well-delivered speech delivered only four votes for the anti-immigration legislator; Tancredo would have come in last were it not for the zero votes cast for Hugh Cort and for John Cox, who was not represented at the straw poll despite his name being on the ballot.

Finally, state Republican party chairman John Hager (former Virginia Lieutenant Governor and future in-law of George and Laura Bush) announced the results. (His brief announcement is preceded in this video by a few scenes of people queuing up to vote, and a middle-school choir singing patriotic songs.)

When all was said and done, Ron Paul emerged the clear victor in the straw poll:

Signature’s New Digs in Shirlington

Seventeen years after its founding, the renowned Signature Theatre in Arlington is moving into its own building, designed and constructed “from the ground up,” to house and showcase its artistic endeavors.

Located in the Village at Shirlington, the new building also provides a home for the Shirlington Branch Library (which will also archive Signature’s records, including scripts used in its shows over the years, programs, posters, and other material).

Four stories tall, with 48,000 square feet of space, the new facility is four times as large as “the Garage,” which served as Signature’s home for the past 13 years. It has two large lobbies – including an expanded concession area and a retail kiosk – two performance spaces (the ARK and the MAX), three rehearsal rooms, scenic and costume shops, and large dressing rooms.

In an impromptu press conference today, following a tour for local theatre writers and editors (who had to wear hard hats in the still-under-construction facility), artistic director Eric Schaeffer, who has supervised this project from its inception (including two major construction delays), said that members of Signature’s repertory company were awestruck by the new facilities. Signature co-founder Donna Migliaccio, he said, “was so overwhelmed that [she] didn’t know what to say.” Actor Steven Cupo, he said, wept when he first saw the large rehearsal space underwritten by the Shen Foundation.

Besides extra floor space, the new theatre complex has state-of-the-art acoustics ($1 million was spent on acoustics alone), with each performance space built like a movie sound stage. The MAX, with its 30-foot ceilings, has fly space and catwalks. As Signature publicist Olivia Haas put it, in the upcoming production of Into the Woods, “Jack can actually climb down a beanstalk.” The performance space in the Garage had only 11-foot ceilings. Because of obstacles, it took up to seven days to set up the lights for a show; the new facilities reduce that time to two days (the show business industry average).

Moreover, with the two-story MAX, Signature for the first time has what amounts to balcony seating, in the form of a single row of seats called the “Dress Circle.” These seats will no doubt quickly become known as the best seats in the house – especially when patrons learn that they are accompanied by separate rest rooms and a satellite concession stand during intermissions. The Dress Circle will also be available for use as performance space in the highly-flexible MAX (one reporter in the theatre tour suggested Romeo and Juliet’s balcony).

Both the MAX and the ARK are true black-box theatres, with optimum flexibility. They can be reconfigured for proscenium, theatre-in-the-round, or modified thrust stages. The MAX can hold 299 audience members, while the ARK can accommodate 99.

In Schaeffer’s words, the new building “has the same spirit as the Garage – it’s raw, but there’s energy and vibrancy.” It also opens up Signature more to the community. It overlooks the bustling Village at Shirlington. The lobby will be open for an hour before performances, when patrons can order drinks or snacks and enjoy live piano performances. Even non-ticket-holders can come in during those times to imbibe the ambience and enjoy the atmosphere. There are also plans for summer performances on the plaza outside, closing off the streets of Shirlington so that people can bring their lawn chairs and listen to a Signature concert.

Schaeffer acknowledged fears that the new edifice might transform Signature into “an institution.” He said “there is a big trap of coming into a building like this and becoming an institution” in the pejorative sense. He said that Signature does not want to be “predictable or stagnant.”

Following up on those comments, Sam Sweet, Signature’s managing director, said that over the years, Signature has benefited from taking risks. “We have the courage to continue to take risks” in the new building, he said, because “you don’t move forward by playing it safe.”

Judging from the new facilities, Signature will be able to take risks for many years to come – it has signed a 30-year lease with Arlington County, which paid $5.5 million to construct the shell of the building, and which Signature will pay back with a portion of ticket sales over the next three decades – in a shining new landmark of Washington’s performing arts scene.

Audiences, of course, will be the judge, beginning with the premiere production of Stephen Sondheim and James Lapine’s Into the Woods, which runs from January 12 through February 25 in the MAX.

Signature Theatre is now located at 2800 S. Stafford Street in Arlington. For ticket information, telephone 703-820-9771 or visit www.signature-theatre.org.

'Signature Sings Broadway in Ballston'

This has been sitting in my email in-box for a while, but it's still timely, since the events described take place this weekend. (I'm going to try to see the Saturday matinee performance.)

Signature Theatre is proud to present a free concert celebration in Ballston's Welburn Square - Signature Sings Broadway in Ballston. For 15 years, Signature Theatre has dazzled audiences with innovative new work and stellar musical theatre productions on the main stage. This summer, Signature brings the thrill of live theatre to the masses as a special gift for the community. The concert will be presented on June 23, 24, and 25 at 6:30pm with a special matinee performance on June 25 at 1:00pm. Welburn Square is located between Taylor and Stuart Streets, across from the Ballston Metro, and it has welcoming open lawn and park bench seating for residents, families, and commuters. Patrons are also welcome to bring picnic blankets and lawn chairs to enjoy the event. The concert is free for everyone - no tickets required! For more information, please call 703- 820- 9771, or visit our website at www.signature-theatre.org.

"We are thrilled to share this lively musical experience with the community," expressed Signature Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer. "Signature has received so much encouragement from the community over the years, and this is our way of giving back." The Broadway- inspired concert is directed by Rick DesRochers, Signature's new Associate Artistic Director, and showcases an array of musical theatre favorites - classics, hits from newer shows, and of course, Sondheim favorites. The cast includes celebrated Signature performers Bob McDonald (Putting it Together), Evan Casey (Allegro, Ten Unknowns), Lauren Williams (A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Allegro), Clifton Duncan (One Red Flower), Lynn Neal (Mack and Mabel), and Florrie Bagel (2004 Overtures Graduate, Signature's Musical Theatre Institute). The hour-long concert includes unforgettable songs from My Fair Lady, Rent, Chicago, South Pacific, Into the Woods, Wicked, Sweeney Todd, and many others. All members of the community are welcome and encouraged to enjoy the outdoor performance.

Signature Sings Broadway in Ballston is sponsored by Maxine Isaacs and James A. Johnson; The Annette and Theodore Lerner Family Foundation; BNA, Inc.; Freddie Mac; Heritage Tile and Escrow; Washington Theater Review; Arlington Community Foundation; International Humanities, Inc.; IDI Group Companies; The JBG Companies; Reed Smith; Northern Virginia Community Foundation; Walsh, Colucci, Lubeley, Emrich & Terpak, P.C.; and Fraser Consulting, Inc.

SIGNATURE SINGS BROADWAY IN BALLSTON
Directed by Rick DesRochers
Thursday, June 23 at 6:30pm
Friday, June 24 at 6:30pm
Saturday, June 25 at 1:00pm & 6:30pm

Welburn Square across from the Ballston Metro
4200 Block of North Fairfax Drive
(Between Stuart & Taylor Streets)

ABOUT SIGNATURE
Signature Theatre is a non-profit professional theatre dedicated to producing contemporary plays and musicals and to the development of new work. Now in its 15th season under Artistic Director Eric Schaeffer, Signature has been nominated for 191 Helen Hayes Awards for excellence in the professional theatre and has been honored with 42 Helen Hayes Awards, including Outstanding Musical in 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2000, 2005 and Outstanding Play in 1999. Signature Theatre is a member of the Theatre Communications Group, The League of Washington Theatres, the Cultural Alliance of Greater Washington, the Arlington Arts Alliance, the Arlington Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Washington Board of Trade.

"Affordable Housing" We Can Ill-Afford

A news story in the Washington Post today caught my attention. It reported that Arlington County (Virginia) -- my former home -- plans to appeal a court ruling that “said the county overstepped its legal authority in guidelines it established to encourage developers to create more affordable housing” (“Arlington Might Appeal Ruling on Affordable Housing,” Thursday, December 23, 2004, p. VA03).

The report explained that the “guidelines asked developers of residential buildings to voluntarily set aside 10 percent of floor space for the county's affordable housing program. Such programs generally aim to help lower-income residents keep their housing payments to 30 percent or less of their income. On Dec. 10, Arlington Circuit Court Judge Joanne F. Alper ruled that the request was mandatory and that, as a result, the county had exceeded its legal authority under Virginia law.”

The debate over “affordable housing” has raged in Arlington County for so long, it seems nobody remembers when it began. That fight has probably lasted longer than the one in Charlottesville and Albemarle County regarding the building of the Meadowcreek Parkway. (That road is still not started after more than 35 years of discussion, debate, delays, and indecision.)

I decided to dust off an old article of mine, written while I still lived in Arlington, which was published in both the Arlington Journal and The Metro Herald in May 1997. One notable update: then-County Board Member Al Eisenberg is now a member of the Virginia House of Delegates.

Other communities, in Virginia and other states, are facing similar questions. I hope this old article contributes to their debates, as it when I was active in Arlington County politics in the 1990s.

Here it is, from more than 7 years ago, relevant today as much as yesterday:

"Affordable Housing" We Can Ill-Afford

A recent report in the Arlington Journal (May 12, 1997) relates the revival of a longstanding debate in Arlington County about subsidized housing and other efforts to create a stock of "affordable housing" in the county. The report characterized the issue as "divisive," with County Board Member Albert C. Eisenberg facing off against civic leaders and fiscal watchdog groups.

The issue is as divisive as it is perpetual. Arlingtonians will recall that "affordable" housing was a key issue in the County Board race of 1991, and again in the 1993 special election in which Ben Winslow defeated Jay Fisette (who are both hoping for a rematch this fall). Underlying the debate is a simple question: Why does housing in Arlington seem expensive compared to other places?

The number one reason: Arlington is an attractive place to live. Many people want to live here because of its proximity to Washington, because of its fine schools, because of good parks and restaurants, because of various ethnic enclaves -- and this is just the beginning.

When a lot of people want to live in a place that's only 26 square miles, demand outstrips supply. By the most basic laws of economics, the laws of supply and demand, this means prices are driven upward.

The second reason housing costs are high in Arlington is that taxes are high -- despite the protestations of current officeholders, objective studies show that Arlington levies some of the highest property taxes in the country, with another tax increase approved by the County Board this year -- and high taxes raise the overhead for owners of rental units. The cost must be passed down to renters and other consumers.

Moreover, Arlington suffers many of the same problems that communities across the United States do. Housing policy expert William Tucker explained in Reason magazine that "researchers estimate that zoning delays and building- code requirements add some $15,000 to $30,000 to the price a new home in many parts of the country. ‘Starter homes' -- simple, no-frills structures that first-time home buyers can afford -- are almost impossible to build in exclusive suburbs. Apartments are fought everywhere. . . . Then people wonder why we have an 'affordable housing problem.'"

We need to reframe the debate by removing the term "affordable housing" from our lexicon. "Affordable housing" is a weasel word that confuses more than it assists us in discussing housing policy. All housing is affordable to somebody. We should rather talk about low-income or moderate-income housing. That's the real issue.

Most low-income housing in Arlington was once owned or rented by middle- and upper-middle income residents. Colonial Village and Buckingham, for instance, were built almost 60 years ago to house well-paid New Deal bureaucrats who came to Washington from around the country and needed a place to live.

Over the past six decades, that housing has deteriorated and lost its value for upper-income people. It has therefore become available to lower-income groups. This scenario has been played out across the country. In cities like Philadelphia, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Richmond, houses that were once mansions owned by rich people have been subdivided into apartments for low- income tenants.

County Board Member Eisenberg and others would like to see a greater emphasis placed on low-rent units today, so that 10 percent of the county's housing stock falls into that category. Can you imagine what low-rent units built for 1997 will look like in 50 years? They will decay so rapidly that by 2047, they will be -- as one homeowners' advocate so aptly put it -- "mere shells," inviting disintegration, grime, and crime. Such decay may happen even sooner.

The flexible and adaptable housing market provides better long-term prospects. Whenever a developer builds a rental unit for a middle- or upper- income tenant, he frees up a unit that tenant formerly occupied for a lower- income resident to move into. That resident's former apartment then becomes available for someone from an even lower income group.

When government intervention -- whether in the form of subsidies or rent control -- takes place, the housing cycle becomes disrupted. The supply of housing does not circulate fully or smoothly, driving prices up. This makes rents and mortgage payments higher for everyone. Even Washington, D.C.'s limited rent control illuminates this process. That law discourages landlords from improving their property or investing in more than just a few units. Forcing developers to build low-rent units when they really don't want to do so is similarly disruptive.

The best way to solve any shortage of low- or moderate-priced housing is to let the market work without hindrance. Get the government out of the housing business. Landlords, tenants, and homeowners can perform quite well without the interference of the Planning Commission, the Arlington Housing Corporation, or the County Board itself. A truly free market will provide an adequate supply of housing at reasonable prices.

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One Red Flower Blossoms in Arlington

(This review of a new musical produced by Signature Theatre in Arlington, Virginia, appeared in The Metro Herald in October. Its late appearance on this blog is due simply to my procrastination in creating "Rick Sincere News and Thoughts")

"Will they want to hear about it, or just forget the whole thing ever happened?" asks one of the soldiers in One Red Flower, a new musical about the Vietnam War, now playing at the Signature Theatre in Arlington.

The answer, of course, is yes. Yes, Americans want to hear about it and yes, Americans want to forget the whole thing ever happened. Psychic dissonance, perhaps, but necessary for the health of the nation.

For 25 years or more, it seemed that Americans wanted to forget about Vietnam -- the longest war, the only war America lost, the war that divided the nation as none had since the Civil War a century earlier.

Vietnam became irrelevant, a historical footnote, not even a historical curiosity -- except for those who were there and those who knew them intimately.

One Red Flower tells these people's stories.

Viewed through the prism of the present, the Vietnam War seems more contemporary than ever.

While it is possible the creators aimed to see it staged in time for next year's commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Communist conquest of South Vietnam and the fall of Saigon, it is even more striking that One Red Flower had its world premiere amid headlines that make us feel as if the war -- at least its domestic components -- is being fought all over again.

Two presidential candidates, differing tales of honor and heroism, recriminations as inescapable as they are irrelevant: Could playwright Paris Barclay or director Eric Schaeffer have known in advance how timely their new play would be?

A history lesson as well as an entertaining musical drama, as emotionally moving as it is intellectually stimulating, One Red Flower is, at base, an anti-war play. But it treats divergent points of view with respect and affection even as it maintains its own.

Barclay, best known as a television director (notably for NBC-TV's The West Wing), is a triple threat: he wrote the book, music, and lyrics for One Red Flower, adapting the words from the anthology Dear America: Letters Home from Vietnam, edited by Bernard Edelman for the New York Vietnam Veterans Memorial Commission.

Musically, the score can best be described as pastiche. What Stephen Sondheim did for George Gershwin, Jerome Kern, and Sigmund Romberg in Follies, Barclay does for Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, and Crosby Stills Nash & (especially) Young in One Red Flower. He evokes the Sixties without stealing from it (save a few stray musical quotations here and there).

Even a song about the holidays, "(There Will Still Be) Christmas" is written uncannily in the mode of so many "I'll-be-missing-you-but-the-tree's-still-lit" ballads -- some memorable, some forgettable -- that made their way onto the annual holiday TV specials hosted by Bing Crosby, Perry Como, Bob Hope, or Andy Williams.

The score is not musically challenging. For that, we will have to wait for Signature Theatre's next offering, The Highest Yellow, by Michael John LaChiusa. Barclay is no Sondheim, no Guettel. But he has produced a tuneful, emotionally balanced score in which there is not a wasted or inappropriate note.

Schaeffer has selected a cast that fulfills all of Barclay's promise, both musically and dramatically. Out of the six men and one woman (Florence Lacey), only Lacey is old enough to remember the Vietnam era. She shimmers in the part of a mother who is also meant to represent all the loved ones left behind on the "home front." Her burden is heavy but she carries it effortlessly.

Of her six male castmates, there is not a harsh word to say about any of them.

Kurt Boehm, a Catholic University student in one of his first professional roles, has star quality written all over him. In the early scenes, he is playful and energetic along with the other soldiers, but for most of the play his is separated and confined to a small platform as a POW. As such, he can observe the rest of the action but must remain oblivious to it. (Boehm's role might be compared to the title role in Floyd Collins, which requires the actor playing it to be physically constrained, nearly motionless, through almost the entire play.) His character first exhibits the nervous energy of a caged tiger but, over time, wearies with the boredom and deprivation of prison life. Boehm shows us this almost exclusively through body language and increasingly blank facial expressions. While the rest of the soldiers are singing in amusement about the wonders of Asian B-girls and barhopping (in "Saigon Tea"), Boehm's darting eyes convey a vacant disengagement precisely and ironically in silent counterpoint to a witty and raucous song.

The other cast members, all young, show talents far beyond their years:

Joshua Davis plays a Southern boy who feels strongly that the War is right and he is doing his proper duty to defend his nation. Despite the anti-war context of One Red Flower, Davis does this without condescension or caricature, both options available to him because of the way we so easily accept negative stereotypes.

Clifton Alphonzo Duncan displays pride in his men as the only officer among these recruits. A strong voice and confidence propel him into their, and our, hearts.

Charles Hagerty, as a helicopter pilot, has an unusual burden as an actor -- he is part of an ensemble but must remain off stage for more than half the play. Like a good soldier, however, he does his duty, making us wish we could see more of him.

Josh Lefkowitz, who plays a medic, is able to bounce his character's thoughts and emotions off of Davis's, because he is a soldier who becomes totally disenchanted with the war, questioning not only the war but his country's aims and values.

As the play's closest thing to a narrator or central character, Helen Hayes Award-winner Stephen Gregory Smith has the hardest job to do. He does it. Outstandingly. It helps that he is the putative son of Florence Lacey's mom, but that is not the only reason he deserves notice; those reasons are both multiple and unlistable.

While all of this acting and singing is going on, it might be possible to overlook the production's design elements. Possible, but unlikely. Actually, impossible: Schaeffer's design team has integrated sets, lights, props, sound, special technical effects, and visual projection into a stunningly effective whole. Set designer Eric Grims, lighting designer Chris Lee, sound designer Tony Angelini, properties mistress Elsie Jones, and particularly projection designer Michael Clark are owed any accolades they receive for One Red Flower.

If there is any flaw in this production -- and every show has at least one -- it is that sometimes the rock music from the hidden band overpowers the singers, who must wear body microphones despite Signature's intimate stage. I am not a big fan of amplification in any case -- even in the Kennedy Center Opera House, if it can be avoided -- so to see mics here was a disappointment.

Whether one agrees or disagrees with Paris Barclay's political views as expressed in One Red Flower, one cannot deny that he expresses them well and beautifully. I hope that One Red Flower advances to a stage at which a cast recording is made, because Barclay's music and lyrics should be preserved and heard by far more people than those who can squeeze into Signature Theatre to see this world premiere production.