Liberal Talk Radio

In a city starved for indigenous culture (well, indigenous culture that doesn’t involve crazy mayors and crack jokes, that is), today’s fire at the historic Eastern Market is a real tragedy:

Fire ravaged the Eastern Market early Monday, gutting part of the 134- year-old Capitol Hill landmark. Fire Chief Dennis L. Rubin said the blaze destroyed the southern half of the city-owned building, which was empty at the time. There were no injuries.

“This is the worst thing to happen on Capitol Hill since I moved here in 1981,” said Patti Cinelli, who lives five blocks away and frequented the market’s fresh produce and meat stands and weekend flea market.

I have to admit that I lived in D.C. for 7.5 years before I ever visited Eastern Market. And I was pretty nonplussed … the average midwestern farm stand offers more and better products. It’s precisely the lack of more amenities like this that caused me to flee D.C. (that, and the general soul-lessness of the place). Still, it’s sad to see the Market go. Small as it is by our Seattle-spoiled standards, it’s one of the few redeeming things about life in the District. Here’s hoping they rebuild quickly.