I am sure that debate organizers will include every Council candidate who has his or her name on the ballot. That is going to make for a herd of candidates on stage. As with the the June Democratic primary, the debate attendees will have to make some effort just to sort everyone out. To include a segment for the Mayoral candidates during the same evening will mean that each of them will be limited to one or two questions. We need more than that from them since one will become the public face of this city and its recognized leader. There should be four separate Mayoral debates. I am sure they would each draw many voters. I also note that Barack Obama, President of the United States, has found the time for three debates with his opponent.

Why does Glenda Davis have yard signs everywhere when the election is a quarter of a year away? If this is a sign of who she is and does not care about aesthetics in the city, she won't have my vote - or many others.

Take down the signs!

These debates are pretty much of a joke. Really, they are. The candidates all sit on stage, or at a long series of tables, and they throw jabs at each other. It really doesn't serve any purpose other than to have the local press try to catch something funny that is said by a candidate, either intentional or unintentional. Plus, it can also sometimes get personally confrontational, with one candidate trying to tear down another candidate, which I suppose is 'fair game' in that type of forum, but each and every candidate has their own personal pluses and minuses which quite often aren't really shown at events like these. That being said, I do hope that Allison Silberberg shines, as well as John Chapman, and also Frank Fannon, who, as myself as a Democrat, I'd like to see some balance to the city council with Frank on it for the next three years. But he's the only Republican I support. Alicia "Always Late" Hughes and Bob "No One Knows Me" Wood don't have a chance to really get any substantial votes and will probably get smeared pretty bad during the debates, at least I'm sure Alicia with, especially with all the negative baggage she now brings with her. I will say, that two people who I think will do great on the next city council will be both John Chapman and Frank Fannon, as they were both born and raised in the City of Alexandria, and have been a part of volunteering for the community for many years. John and Frank really care for their hometown, a lot, and it shows.

I went to two of the debates before the Democratic primary. Despite the number of people on stage, I found them very useful. I liked the format of the Taylor Run debate where everyone got the same questions. You can also tell a lot about the personality of candidates from these debates. I think Allison Silberberg got off to a good start at Taylor Run, the first debate, by being very gracious when the moderator told her her time was up before it really was. When he reversed himself and told her she could talk some more, she gave him a smile and finished the point she had meant to make before she was cut off. That probably got her as many votes as any answer she gave. Americans prefer candidates who don't act self important. Some of the others who are running for Council don't meet that test. By the way, Mr. Miller, I saw a lot of Bob Wood when he was on the waterfront work group. He is articulate and he did earn admiration from those who attended the workgroup meetings. He's not willing to take any answer the planning staff wants to give as the final word. As a kind of "planning meeting" junkie going back 25 years now, I had to like that. Also Mr. Wood's previous employment until he came back to Alexandria for good on his retirement, was General in the U.S. Army. I don't think he could have risen that far in the military without passing a lot of background checks. So there is probably nothing in his background that could be spun into a smear.

Mr. Miller, I do not know you or who you are. I have seen a number of negative comments that you have made and I see that I now have a new middle name that my parents did not give me - that comes with an absolutism that may create another problem and be impossible for you to prove. And moreover, you do not speak to the merits of my work. I would be grateful for the privilege to be acquainted with you face to face or at the very least, to receive an e-mail from you so that we may have a chance to communicate offline. For the number of slanderous attacks that you've launched, in the absence of proof, I am owed a retraction/correction of your comments and apology.

It's a troll Alicia, but illegally abusive nonetheless.

And I'd bet it belongs to Gail Gordon.

I strongly encourage you to file a request for release of ISP logs via Patch's corporate address. In this day and age, those things are taken very, very seriously. I'd also add Drew Hanson to your complaint as he, as moderator, repeatedly tolerates (and arguably encourages) such libelous behavior. Simply filing a suit will force Patch to reveal "Jim Miller's" identity for purposes of responding. I'm sure you know all this but I thought I'd point it out for the benefit of all the other abusive trolls to realize they can ultimately be held accountable.

Given the nature of the complaints of the comments above, I am suspending comments on this story. If you have any questions, you can contact me at drewh@patch.com.