Editorial: The Next Two Months

Whatever folks are planning to do this Labor Day Weekend, it should be in the spirit of taking a deep breath while summoning energy for an incredible two-month sprint that will begin on Tuesday.

Not only is it the start of a new school years for the Falls Church Public Schools and other Fairfax schools in the area, but it is the start of all the schools’ fall sports, music and drama programs, a plethora of special events, such as the Taste of Falls Church and Fall Festival on Sept. 13, Redskin mania (at first, at least), lots of good seats at Nationals games, and countless fundraisers for good non-profit causes, such as the Falls Church Education Foundation’s run on Sept. 28.

But, of course, it’s also the launch of a two-month slugfest in one of the more important presidential elections in U.S. history, magnified by highly-competitive U.S. Senate and Congressional races in our area. Virginia is “in play” in the presidential race for the first time since 1964, with Democratic candidate Sen. Barack Obama campaigning with the staunch support of the state’s governor, Tim Kaine, and junior U.S. Senator Jim Webb. Former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner will also buoy his chances while working on his own good chances at picking up a Senate seat for his Democratic Party, vacated by retiring Republican Senator John Warner. Democratic Chair of the Fairfax Board of Supervisors Gerry Connolly is also firmly on the Obama bandwagon while he, himself, should likely to take away the 11th Congressional District seat from the GOP, with Rep. Tom Davis retiring.

These lusty campaigns are all swirling around the Falls Church area, with an Obama headquarters opening in the City of Falls Church Saturday, drawing 866 people who signed on the campaign. Falls Church’s State Theatre will be given over to a TV watch party tuned into Obama’s acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention Thursday night. Mark Warner was in Falls Church for a fundraiser hosted by the Virginia Partisans Gay and Lesbian Club last Friday, and Connolly made a lengthy appearance at Del. Jim Scott’s annual fete held at his nearby home Sunday. All this before Labor Day.

Some leading Democrats will undoubtedly show up on Labor Day at the Falls Church City Democratic Committee’s annual ice cream social in Cherry Hill Park, and that will include three members of the city’s Democratic committee who attended the convention this week.

So, ignore the fact that Halloween candy displays are already up in local supermarkets this week. By the time Halloween rolls around on a Friday night in late October, the momentum visible this week will only be that much more intense. The Redskins may be winning, too.

This is a once-in-a-lifetime conjuncture of events, and, dear readers, we’re right in the middle of where the action is. Our advice: don’t stand on the sidelines. Jump in, and become a part of history.