Kevin Dayhoff - Soundtrack Division of Old Silent Movies - www.kevindayhoff.net - Runner, writer, artist, fire and police chaplain. The mindless ramblings of a runner, journalist, and artist: National and International politics. For community see www.kevindayhoff.org. For art, writing and travel see www.kevindayhoff.com
Journalist @baltimoresun writer artist runner #amwriting Chaplain PIO #partylikeajournalist
Journalist @baltimoresun writer artist runner #amwriting Md Troopers Assoc #20 & Westminster Md Fire Dept Chaplain PIO #partylikeajournalist
What is the deal with Campo? As far as I can tell they’re pretty nice people. Just the other week I got locked out of my room, with roommate nowhere to be found and no sign of his returning soon. So I played my get-out-of-jail-free card and called Campo. Now just to be clear I was terrified of the officers that walk around campus. In fact I had my friend call for me because I was afraid of what they would say. Or worse, charge me for the trouble.
Here’s the amazing thing though. The guy was actually really nice.
Born in Birmingham, England, musician Ozzy Osbourne is known as lead singer of Black Sabbath, which recorded metal anthems like “War Pigs” (1971). He went solo in 1978, cultivating a social misfit image, then struggled with substance abuse. Osbourne regained popularity with reality TV show 'The Osbournes', which...
Wednesday, December 2, 2009 The Rise of Parentalism Kevin E. Dayhoff In early November, Towson University announced that it will become a smoke free campus in late summer 2010.
Accepting One’s Inadequacies Tom McLaughlin London – I had the pleasure of visiting many scientists in the Museum of Natural History in this fabled town. My good friends, Jan and George, scientists in their own right who work there, introduced me to these scholars and they patiently explained their research.
Tuesday, December 1, 2009 Obama’s Breach of Faith Roy Meachum When the president of the United States talks to the nation tonight, I will not be listening. One chief reason I backed so enthusiastically Barack Obama was his campaign pledge to remove American forces from the Middle East. In addition to everything else, including his endorsing George W. Bush’s wars, Sen. John McCain was simply not my political tea.
For Better or Worse? Farrell Keough We’ve all seen and heard the current brouhaha’s within the Board of Education, but have we been able to follow the alternatives presented to this group for better educational choice and potential savings?
Monday, November 30, 2009 Considering the Source Steven R. Berryman More than a headline, title or subject line, considering the source author itself is most vital to comprehension when establishing the weight of your various media viewings and readings.
From Hither, Thither and Yon… Michael Kurtianyk I like it that Maryland’s State Highway Administration (SHA) is testing a new mixture for pre-treating roads this winter. It seems that the $25,000 pilot program will treat this winter’s roads with a mixture of salt water and a sugar beet molasses byproduct.
Friday, November 27, 2009 REVIEW: Good and Bad Theatrical Nights Roy Meachum It has been nearly 44 years since I first sat on the aisle as a critic; although reviewer might be more appropriate. Because of working on television (Washington’s Channel 9), the number of words was limited to maybe 250. Switching to print, the amount doubled but still not enough to nit and pick aspects of the production and the people in it.
Thursday, November 26, 2009 It Isn’t Just a Game Tony Soltero In November of 1979, Iranian militants invaded the U.S. Embassy in Tehran and took more than 60 Americans hostage. A few were sent home shortly afterwards, but 52 of them remained captives of these terrorists for 444 excruciating days, finally being released after a long, arduous series of negotiations and a failed rescue attempt.
“Like the Pendulum Do” Patricia A. Kelly We’re trying too hard, and it isn’t working. Maybe it started when trash men became sanitation engineers, and when people started considering whether to call congressmen congress persons.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009 Goodbye, and Good Riddance Kevin E. Dayhoff Merry Christmas, weeks early. It’s a great day in American. Bill Moyers is leaving weekly television.
Gramps’ Special Black Friday Gifts Tom McLaughlin It has been a few years since Mom and Dad passed away but I remember the torture I went through to try and figure out what to get them for Christmas. Even now, the thought makes me shudder.
A Plus, A Minus, and Thanks Derek Shackelford Former Vice-Presidential Candidate Sarah Palin is currently on a cross county tour promoting her book, “Going Rogue.” She has recently made the rounds on many of the most popular television shows, The Oprah Winfrey Show, an interview with Barbara Walter, The Sean Hannity Show, and many of the morning news programs.
Tuesday, November 24, 2009 Childhood Holidays Roy Meachum With its rich tradition of Mardi Gras, I must report it was the only holiday publicly celebrated. In my New Orleans childhood, while there were balls in the weeks before Fat Tuesday, attendance was limited to Krewe (club) members. Things really came apart the weekend before Ash Wednesday when out-of-towners poured through the railroad stations; air travel was still in the future. But Thanksgiving couldn’t be celebrated in a more subdued manner.
The Pain of Taking a Break Farrell Keough I have been on hiatus. I would say sabbatical, but that involves payment during the absence and considering the vast sums we are paid here at TheTentacle.com, how could one possibly expect our esteemed editor to pay us when we are away?
Two weeks ago I listed the causes of math-test anxiety and the ways a student should deal with such a condition. In this column I’ll list some strategies that may lead a student to improve his math-test-taking skills.
Monday, November 23, 2009 Of Double-Dips and Bubbles Steven R. Berryman The corollary of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s famous “We have nothing to fear but fear itself” is that economically, it’s the “not knowing” that can damage us even worse than a specific negative indicator of our progress in recovery.
To Grow or Not to Grow Michael Kurtianyk So, the current aldermen overrode a veto by Mayor Jeff Holtzinger on the city’s Comprehensive Plan. Specifically, the Board of Aldermen voted to approve it. Mayor Holtzinger vetoed the plan, citing the approximately 1,100 acres intended for development in the future may not have future water and sewer capacities. Thus, the mayor doesn’t want to mislead those property owners by having them think their parcels could be developed.
WESTMINSTER POLICE DEPARTMENT 36 LOCUST STREET WESTMINSTER, MD 21157 410-848-4646
JEFFREY SPAULDING CHIEF OF POLICE
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 2, 2009
On December 12, 2009 at 7:30 a.m., the Westminster Police Department in conjunction with the Westminster Wal-Mart will be hosting our 6th Annual “Shop With A Cop” Program.
The “Shop With A Cop” program originated in 1978 as a way to give deserving children an opportunity to purchase Christmas gifts for their family members.
The program also gives children the opportunity to meet and spend time with police officers in a positive and non-confrontational environment.
Our “Shop With A Cop” celebration will take place at the Westminster Wal-Mart which is located at 280 Woodward Road, Westminster, Maryland.
The children selected will be teamed with a Police Department employee to pick out gifts for the holiday season. Wal-Mart will be providing gift cards in order for the children to purchase their holiday gifts.
After our shopping is completed, everyone will return to the Westminster Senior Center where we will wrap those gifts that were purchased.
Following the gift-wrapping, the Police Department will be hosting a holiday party from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at the Westminster Senior Center for all participating families to attend.
Additionally, a visit from Santa will take place during the holiday party.
Over 90 local businesses have made a donation to support the “Shop With A Cop” program. Approximately 300 “Angels” were purchased by the citizens of Carroll County.
These gifts will be distributed to the children and their families
Please contact Sgt. Keith Benfer at (410) 857-9282 with any questions.
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MEDIA CONTACT
Sgt. Keith Benfer Community Education Section Westminster Police Department 36 Locust Street Westminster, Maryland 21157 (410) 857-9282
20091202 sdosm Shop with a Cop events planned for Dec 12
The problem is certainly not with over-staffing on the part of Carroll County government.
The problem is the systematic irresponsible spending in Annapolis and now the state is balancing its books on the backs of local government.
Neither the current administration or the Maryland General Assembly has the stomach for raising taxes – especially after the fiasco from the Maryland Special Taxing Session from November 2007, which only made matters worse…
So instead of doing the correct thing and cutting-out systemic wasteful spending, they want to force local government to raise taxes.
Add this to the incredible amount of money that Maryland has lost to surrounding states in retail sales as a result of raising the retail sales tax. Remember there is barely any location in Maryland that is not within 40 miles of the state line…
And add to this the large number of high income Marylanders who have simply left the state as a result of the prohibitive tax increase that was levied against them…
The result is a net loss of a great deal of state revenue that is above and beyond the turndown in the economy – especially since, until the recent taxing initiatives had such a disastrous result, most economist and political pundits considered Maryland recession proof.
This is a mess. And it is not a mess that will be solved anytime soon because nothing will hold the Maryland General Assembly accountable and the ruling party in Maryland is so arrogant they are completely inaccessible to any contrarian argument or debate, discussion or dialogue…
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20091201 sdosmked Budget probs continue for MD local govt [19940914 0758b Woman w Ones above CC]
Wbal.com is reporting VERDICT IN DIXON CASE: A Baltimore Circuit Court jury has found Mayor Sheila Dixon GUILTY of one count of misappropriation
But it ain't over 'til the fat lady sings. She'll appeal...
That said, this is alleged to be about more than a few gift cards that may or may not have been mishandled. On face value the charge seems so Mickey Mouse.
However... there's the rest of the story...
Some will suggest that the conviction is a result of her karma.
The conviction certainly raises more questions than answers at the moment and for those who think that this has been a soap opera of kindergarten proportions, you ain’t seen nothing yet.
Although I have met Mayor Dixon a couple of times, I do not know her. Many folks who do know her have praised her for her work ethic and love of the city. Many of her employees have spoken well of her.
However, there has been a cloud hanging over her for many years.
Whether that cloud is real or not, the perception persists.
What has yet to be determined to everyone’s satisfaction is whether or not there really is a fire somewhere associated with that cloud of smoke.
In spite of the accolades bestowed upon her by mutual friends, her reputation for having a cold and aloof – if not condescending manner towards those who do not share her position of power and prestige has not served her well.
Folks have quietly suggested that her manner is a manifestation of the arrogance of power and the lack of accountability that plagues one party ruling factions.
By many measures, the once proud city of Baltimore appears to continue in decline and that makes many sad.
Whether it is the perception of crime and corruption or the simple practical issue that you go to Baltimore in absolute fear of having some Kafkaesque experience with a parking ticket; the avoidance of traveling to Baltimore for business or art and cultural events continues.
While many had hopes for a phoenix-like turnaround with former Mayor O’Malley, our hopes have not been realized under the tenure of Mayor Dixon.
As for the mayor herself, she appears to be a person who has accomplished so much in spite of being such a fictional Dickensian character with Shakespearian character flaws.
Some of it would be humorous if it was not the stuff of fiction, but it is not…
Who cannot quietly chuckle at the time she gave members of the media the finger… Click here for a larger image: http://twitpic.com/rtdv4
And then there is the matter of Mayor Dixon and the persistence of shoes being a major prop in her own Kabuki morality play…
Apparently her affection for shoes – to actually wear – is relatively well documented in her current challenges.
The there is that other shoe incident from 1999…
“Although Dixon is often remembered—primarily by white voters—as the incendiary force behind "the shoe incident" in 1991 (when she taunted white council members about the effects of redistricting by waving her high heel and yelling, "Now the shoe is on the other foot.")…” The City Paper http://www.citypaper.com/news/story.asp?id=2587
“Though Dixon was already a well-known and well-established political figure at the time, the prospect of her becoming mayor had left many uneasy. Indeed, during the 2006 gubernatorial election there were whispers among city voters that a vote for the popular O'Malley as governor would amount to a vote for a Dixon administration at City Hall.”
[…]
“Dixon's nearly 20 years in public office have not been without controversy. When she was City Council president, The Baltimore Sun reported extensively on apparent conflicts of interest involving a firm that employed her sister, Janice. The paper also disclosed that Janice Dixon was on the public payroll as an employee in Sheila Dixon's office, a fact which the then-council president was required by law to report but did not.
“‘I stand by me being very straightforward and cooperative and that I didn't do anything wrong,’ Dixon said.
“The public's first real impression of Dixon probably came 16 years ago, when she was a young member of the City Council, and - at least for some Whites – she came across as a divisive firebrand. That came at a redistricting meeting when she famously waved a shoe at her White colleagues and said, ‘You've been running things for the last 20 years. Now, the shoe is on the other foot.’
“Dixon said the shoe-waving incident was ‘misinterpreted,’ but acknowledges she gets excited about things that are important to her. ‘Do I still get passionate about issues? I do,’ she said.” Dixon Impresses Early On, But Questions Remain By Jonathan N. Crawford Capital News Service Thursday, May 3, 2007 http://www.washingtoninformer.com/NATBaltimoreMayer2007May3.html
It ain’t over yet. There are more acts to follow in this morality play – and there is sure to be a sequel after the sequel...
Seems a shame for someone so bright and talented, who presents as spoiled brat who is now earning back years of bad karma.
Memo to Mayor Dixon: Always take care of people when you are going up, because ya never know when you are coming down.
It must be lonely to be Mayor Sheila Dixon these days….
WESTMINSTER MARYLAND — Moments before Carroll County Government readied to light its holiday tree tonight, officials announced that 18 county workers will lose their jobs as part of eliminating 62 positions.
County Commissioner Julia Gouge and Steven Powell, chief-of-staff for Carroll County Government made the announcement at a 5 p.m. news conference at the County Office Building, wrapping up in time to celebrate the holidays at a 6 p.m. ceremony.
"It has been the single most difficult day of my career in Carroll County, and I'm glad it's over," Powell said as his voice cracked and quivered. "I know that it has only just begun for 18 people."
Board of County Commissioners Julia W. Gouge, President Dean L. Minnich, Vice President Michael D. Zimmer, Secretary Carroll County Government 225 North Center Street Westminster, Maryland 21157 410-386-2043; 1-888-302-8978 fax 410-386-2485; TT 410-848-9747
News Release For more information, contact: Vivian D. Laxton, Public Information Administrator, 410-386-2973 For Immediate Release
Commissioners eliminate positions
December 1, 2009 – In recognition of the economic situation and its impact on state and local revenues, the Board of County Commissioners today voted to eliminate more than 60 positions in Carroll County Government.
Eighteen of those positions are filled. “We regret losing these hard-working employees, who we consider to be our friends,” Commissioner Julia W. Gouge said during a news conference this afternoon.
Carroll County already has one of the leanest staffs in Maryland. A survey by the Maryland Association of Counties ranks Carroll as the second-lowest number of employees per capita.
Since July 1, the regular workforce has been reduced by 12 percent through retirements, attrition and lay-offs. The downsizing will result in an estimated $3 million savings a year.
As a result of the reduced workforce, programming at county parks will be reduced, response time for permits inspections will be lengthened, roads will take longer to clear of snow and ice, and services and hours at senior centers will be reduced.
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20091201 sdosm PR Carroll Co Commissioners eliminate positions
Paul Kenneth "Kenny" Burns has been a part of the
media scene in the Washington / Baltimore Area for 15 years. He is currently a staff producer with Radio America. Some of the programs he
produces are: The Ben Ferguson Show, Veterans Chronicles, Battle Line with Alan
Nathan and Talkin' Baseball.
He also assists with Doug Stephan's Good Day and
The G. Gordon Liddy Show. Kenny remains in his on-air capacity as a substitute
news anchor for Dateline Washington (also on
Radio America).
Kenny began his broadcast career in 1999 as a news assistant
for WTOP-AM / FM in Washington,
DC. He later left to pursue an
on-air opportunity at WNAV-AM in Annapolis,
Maryland before returning to the
Nation's Capital full-time. Kenny also has served as a Producer / Editor and
Airborne Reporter for traffic.com in Washington, DC,
logging many hours in the air and miles on the ground.
In addition to his broadcasting duties, he also covers
politics in Maryland.
Kenny blogs regularly at Maryland Politics Today and is one of the state's most
recognized bloggers. In addition, he is a contributor to PolitickerMD.com and has appeared on
WBAL-AM, WICO-AM and WAMD-AM as a political analyst and commentator.
Kenny currently makes his home in Laurel, Maryland.
Mike Huckabee: ‘I Take Full Responsibility’ for Granting Alleged Cop Killer Clemency In a Newsmax exclusive, former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee explains why he granted clemency nine years ago to Maurice Clemmons, the suspect in the brutal shooting of four police officers in Lakewood, Wash. Given the same set of facts, Huckabee writes, he would make the same decision that he did nearly a decade ago:
The nation was stunned by the senseless and savage cold-blooded murders of 4 young police officers in Lakewood, Washington. Whenever a police officer or soldier is killed, I feel the loss is even more profound for they are the ones who stand between our freedom and anarchy.
At the time I write these words, police are still searching for Maurice Clemmons who is believed to be the one committing these unspeakable acts. Nine years ago, that name crossed my desk. I commuted his sentence from 108 years to 47 years. Many news reports, talk show hosts, and bloggers have erroneously said that he was granted a “pardon.” Others speak of me “setting him free.” As one who now hosts a talk show and who does daily radio commentaries, I can attest to how easy commentary is compared to actually governing. I am not seeking to justify or defend my actions of nine years ago, but it’s important that I answer for my actions and give some explanation as to how and why his sentence was commuted.
I take full responsibility for my actions of nine years ago. I acted on the facts presented to me in 2000. If I could have possibly known what Clemmons would do nine years later, I obviously would have made a different decision. But if the same file was presented to me today, I would have likely made the same decision.
Vivian Laxton, Carroll County government public information administrator: The Board of County Commissioners will be holding a news conference at 5 p.m. today in the Public Hearing Room (003) of the County Office Building to discuss Carroll County’s budget. The County Office Building is located at 225 North Center Street in Westminster. Tuesday, December 01, 2009
A Baltimore Circuit Court jury has found Mayor Sheila Dixon GUILTY of one count of misappropriation. Stay with AM 1090 WBAL for continuing coverage of the Dixon trial and go to wbal.com for updates.
Hey, I think that if I got that for my wife for Christmas, even my kind, friendly and always understanding wife would promptly place the clothesline where the sun does not shine.
Although, once, I did ask her if I could get her a chainsaw for Christmas. I did not ask twice.
Mary Katherine Ham to Alicia Silverstone: Go Hunting
October 3rd, 2007
Although I have spent a large portion of my life as a vegetarian; as I grew older and life got particularly hectic, I gave it up – for now anyway.Who knows, tomorrow, I may go back.Whatever.
A number of years ago, as I was attempting to reason with an unreasonable person and losing miserably, a colleague said to me:
“You know what your problem is?”
“Ugh.”I really did not need advice at that particular moment; however, I prized his friendship and sheepishly asked: “What?”
“It's a dog eat dog world out there, and you're a vegetarian!"
We solved that by going out to a sub shop where I gave up the anorexic bliss of salads and voraciously scarfed down a cheese-steak sandwich.
It was a road to Damascus experience
I still lose miserably with folks who accept narcissistic fiction as fact, however, I am bigger now and I figure that if I am to be eaten alive, I might as well give folks a flavorful super-sized meal.
Then again, to be candid, I was never good at being a vegetarian.I never stopped eating animal crackers and every once and awhile at Moms, I’d dive into a steak – and I can rarely remember missing turkey at Thanksgiving.
I have a number of colleagues and some family members who are, at the moment, practicing vegetarians - and I respect that choice. Besides, I really like vegetables.Then there are folks who don’t like vegetables or are otherwise broccoli intolerant.To them I say, ya really ought to “give peas a chance.”
A member of my family, who is an avid vegetarian, recently gave some seafood a try.
Bold.
Writing for the Washington Post, Joel Achenbach says:
“Certain kinds of seafood, such as lobster, clams and crabs, are honorary forms of meat, but a small filet of a low-fat white fish should be viewed as essentially a vegetable. Raw oysters are manfood, as is any fish served with the head on and the mouth gaping in horror.
Me, I could live off of Dr. Pepper, coffee and grits.Hey, don’t knock the cooking with Dr. Pepper book.There are some great recipes in there.
I never tried the “vegan” approach.I often wondered how the term came about.When I was quite young I had a great deal of confusion over the term “vegetarian.”If vegetarians eat vegetables, what do humanitarians eat?
Mr. Achenbach calls to our attention a savior for vegans, who every once in awhile, go Jonesing for a milkshake – “soy cows.”
In the column he was initially singing the praises of his new “Fabulator 5000.”
What is a “Fabulator 5000?”I am so glad you asked.I was fascinated about this development since I am still using the Fabulator model No. 1953.
I’ll let Mr. Achenbach ‘splain:
“I love my new food printer, the Fabulator 5000, which makes the previous food printers look not just clunky but positively medieval. There's no more click-and-point nonsense on the screen, no more waiting five or six interminable minutes for the food to print. You just tell the Fab 5 what you want. The food comes out in about three or four seconds, complete with garnish and a complementary wine.”
Oh, the “soy cows?”Apparently Mr. Achenbach recently “took the kids … to Homewood Farm to see a good old-fashioned agricultural enterprise…”
“I got a look at the new soy cows, grazing in the large field just north of the orchard. The USDA apparently felt that soy milk could be produced much more efficiently if it came from cows made of soy. These cows are so green they nearly blend into the landscape. They say the soy milk is a lot better tasting (not as beany, somehow) than the stuff derived from plants, and the soy burgers are more tender. But you've probably read about how the soy cows dry up badly in drought conditions -- they literally wilt -- and even catch fire. Bored teenagers have been blamed for setting some of the cow fires.”
There is much to be appreciated by the vegetarian lifestyle; nevertheless my goal was to not be evangelical about it all.
But – and ya know there was going to be a “but” in here soon – I’ve never been fond of PETA’s Strindbergian gloom and bleakness approach to advocacy.
When I was a practicing vegetarian, invariably, some folks would suggest some linkage to me, a vegetarian, with PETA’s in-your-face humorless lactose intolerant militancy. An approach which often seems more oriented to being obnoxious and annoying instead of being compelling and persuasive to what is otherwise, a perfectly fine lifestyle, vegetarianism, for which PETA routinely does an injustice....
At a local government - social event, a local elected official’s wife was horrified that I was a vegetarian.“How can a big strapping former Marine be a vegetarian,” she gasped.
I solved that in quick order.She was a dog lover and the owner of a huge dog.I mean huge – about the size of a water buffalo.
I asked her if she had ever eaten dog.When I was in the Marines, a South Vietnamese ranger once cooked-up a mess of dog.
It tasted like chicken.
I suggested to my scowling friend that her St. Bernard could feed an entire village…And one wonders why I lost my last election?
Recently Alicia Silverstone did an ad for PETA that has garnered a great deal of attention.I can’t believe that it is winning over any converts to vegetarianism, but it has attracted attention to PETA.
Whether it is really the sort of attention that an advocacy organization wants is a bigger issue for which there is not right or wrong, it just isn’t my cup of tea.
Nevertheless, in age of so much strife and discord, I yearn for a time when peas will rule the planets, and love won’t be such a fuss. I long for the dawn of the age of asparagus.
Enter stage right, Mary Katherine Ham.Ms. Ham has done a spoof on the Ms. Silverstone ad that is a real crack-up.