20071115 Bartel watch

Bartel Watch

November 15^th, 2007

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The unexpected peril of using Wikipedia

Ever try Googling yourself? Try Wikipeding yourself. It may not sound as catchy as Googling, but it can sure lead to some surprising results. I admit it: I'm a Googling myself fan. I do it almost every day. Hello, I'm Jordan and I'm a Googlingmyselfa... Nov. 2, 2007

Holiday flicks: Old English, sci-fi, indies, hooray!

The year in film has been kind of a let down for me. Granted, I haven't seen much. But not much has interested me enough to warrant a trip to theaters. "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix" was one of the highlights this summer. As was "The Bou... Nov. 15, 2007

Time to lighten up: With the holidays right around the corner, Maryland wastes no time kicking off festivals

During the holidays, nights just aren't the same without lights. Thankfully, venues across the state offer light festivals this year. So don those winter sweaters, bring some hot cocoa and prepare for a Santa cameo or two. Here are some highlights (g... Nov. 15, 2007

TV characters taking their personalities online

Nowadays, everyone seems to have a blog, from 11-year-olds spilling video game secrets to 81-year-old Grandma Jenny, who must tell the world about her bridge club. So it's easy to dismiss most blogs. Mostly, they are either: a) boring, b) interesting... Nov. 2, 2007

Out & About

ON STAGE: FIVE HOT REGIONAL THEATER PRODUCTIONS "Cinderella," now through Dec. 2, Cumberland Get thee to the ball and don't forget that glass slipper. Cumberland Theatre, 101 N. Johnson St. 2 p.m. Wednesdays and Sundays, 7 p.m. Wednesdays through Sat... Nov. 15, 2007

Best Bets for Nov. 15-21

Music for a cause There's a full slate of performers on tap for the annual concert "With One Voice," benefiting the Carroll County Domestic Violence Safe House and held at 7:30 p.m. Nov. 18 at St. John Catholic Church in Westminster. Among the musici... Nov. 15, 2007

Q&A with Howard Hemler: World's fastest omelet maker

Forgot about breakfast on the run: Howard Helmer's breakfast is made with lightning speed. Just how fast? Helmer can turn out 427 omelets in 30 minutes. That's roughly 14 omelets a minute. No wonder he's a two-time Guinness world record holder. Yup, ... Nov. 15, 2007

Novel gift ideas

McDaniel College librarian offers list of books suitable to be holiday presents When it comes to gift-giving, a good book never goes out of style. That’s why Jane Sharpe, McDaniel College’s associate librarian, wants to keep people in fas... Nov. 13, 2007

Best Bets for Nov. 8-14

Daughtry set to rock Annapolis Everyone's favorite chrome-domed "American Idol" finalist Chris Daughtry and his band will perform at the United States Naval Academy at 8 p.m. Nov. 10. Daughtry's debut album has been one of the top sellers of the year... Nov. 14, 2007

Timely exhibit sheds light on the Black Panther Party

BALTIMORE - It's an image of the Black Panther Party ingrained in historical memory: dark clothing, darker stares, raised fists. But, as a new exhibit at the Maryland Institute College of Art demonstrates, underneath the black attire and the percepti... Nov. 14, 2007

Too-soon celebrity memoirs lining shelves

The recent slew of celebrity memoirs reminds me of that odd middle school English assignment: writing your autobiography. I understood the purpose of honing your language skills at a young age, but when you're 12, what are you supposed to write about... Nov. 14, 2007

Bounty of books: Featuring author Katy Kelly, the Random House fair kicks off at Carroll college

If you want to know about author Katy Kelly, peer into the life of her endearing protagonist, fourth-grader Lucy Rose. Lucy is growing up on Capitol Hill with a dog named Gumbo. So did Kelly, whose parents are similar to Lucy's grandparents, Madam an... Nov. 14, 2007

Fearless Discoveries

Despite its rather bookish name, the Discovery Channel isn't your father's - or grandfather's - science programming. In fact, the popular cable outlet has created a new identity for the television it produces: natural history for the 21st century. An... Nov. 14, 2007

Tackling difficult topics

In “Playing Gender,” McDaniel College’s advanced theater lab production that opens tonight, society is the star and gender is a prop. Man, woman, gay, straight, somewhere in between there is something you recognize on the stage. A... Nov. 14, 2007

Political figures linked by Mormonism

It was his 1844 campaign for United States president that probably got Mormon leader Joseph Smith killed. And now, more than 160 years later, while another Mormon, Mitt Romney, heads a strong campaign for the Republican presdiential nomination, filmm... Nov. 5, 2007

The Illusionist

Designer Lee Snijders has built his career on transforming both large and small spaces. Now he wants to show you how it's done this weekend at the Maryland Home & Garden Show. When he was a Walt Disney Imagineer, it was Lee Snijders' job to create il... Nov. 2, 2007

Best Bets for November 1-7

Carroll author makes the rounds If you haven't read Laura Bowers' young adult novel "Beauty Shop for Rent," take note. Bowers, who lives in New Windsor, will make multiple appearances at Carroll County library branches this week. Bowers will talk abo... Nov. 2, 2007

Out & About
On stage: Five hot regional theater productions "The Pillowman," Nov. 1-3, Towson The award-winning play centers on Katurian, a writer living in a police state who is interrogated about the content of his gruesome short stories. So bring the entire f... Nov. 2, 2007

Recalling when Halloween was a holiday just for kids
Remember that Halloween? You know the one, when your costume was perfect, you got the best candy, you trick-or-treated with your best friends. Yeah, that one. Everyone seems to have one particularly fond Halloween memory. Mine was when I was 2 or 3 a... Nov. 2, 2007

Media focusing too much on sensationalism
Lately, the media has been partying like it's 1994. And why not? The latest O.J. Simpson drama is making it easy to slap together live reports and call the whole thing "news." Yes, Simpson's arrest is news. But it's not nearly as important as the med... Nov. 2, 2007

20071115 “Half Japanese” from Uniontown named Number 94 on “Blender’s” best 100 indie albums

Half Japanese from Uniontown named Number 94 on Blender’s best 100 indie albums

Half Japanese, Jad and David Fair, are from Uniontown Carroll County Maryland is Number 94 – “Half Japanese - Greatest Hits” on “Blender picks the best 100 indie rock albums ever” posted November 14th, 2007 1:56 am by Jeff Skruck

Hat Tip: “Nov. 15: Top TV icons” By Jordan Bartel, Times Staff Writer Thursday, November 15, 2007 [And please report dead links…]

Although, for the uninitiated, “Half Japanese – Greatest Hits” is a great album, for really enjoying “Half Japanese,” the “Greatest Hits” 1995 album is like kissing your sister.

My two favorite “Half Japanese” albums are “Charmed Life” from 1988 and “the Band That Would Be King,” (with tracks like, “Daytona Beach,” “Africans Built the Pyramids,” and “Horseshoes,” from 1989.

More “About Half Japanese” – (Content by Craig Randall | Designed and Hosted by WebGrafix) from Article taken from MP3.com:

Few of punk rock's founding fathers could have anticipated the extreme to which Half Japanese took the music's do-it-yourself ethos.

Founded by brothers Jad and David Fair, Half Japanese was quite probably the most amateurish rock band to make a record since the Shaggs, all but ignoring musical basics like chords, rhythms, and melody.

However, the brothers made that approach into a guiding aesthetic, steadfastly refusing to progress in their primitive musicianship over a career that lasted decades.

David Fair's article "How to Play Guitar" outlined the Half Japanese philosophy: if you rejected conventional ideas about fingering, tuning, and even stringing a guitar, there were no limits on how you could express yourself on what was, after all, your instrument.

The band's proponents (who included Kurt Cobain) saw them as the epitome of a pure, unbridled enthusiasm for rock & roll, the ultimate expression of punk's dictum that rock should be accessible to anyone who wanted to pick up an instrument and play.

Detractors found them gratingly noisy, borderline unlistenable, and too self-conscious and willful about their naïveté. That naïveté extended to their lyrical outlook too, not just their technical abilities; when they weren't singing about horror movies or tabloid headlines, most of their songs were about girls…

Early on, with less outside influence, their work was more chaotic and cathartic; as time passed, David Fair became a sporadic contributor, and the prolific Jad built a core of semi-regular backing musicians who brought a rudimentary sense of songcraft to the proceedings.

Jad and David Fair formed Half Japanese in their bedroom in the mid-'70s. Accounts differ as to exactly when (somewhere around 1975-77) and where (either Michigan or their eventual base of Maryland; the family apparently moved around a lot). It is known that the brothers made their first home recordings in 1977, issuing their debut EP that year, Calling All Girls, on their own 50 Skidillion Watts label.

[…]

Read the entire piece here: About Half Japanese

For a great interview please go to: http://youtube.com/watch?v=kcu2ONECf_8

About This Video: Some say Half Japanese were the world's greates... (more) Added: July 20, 2006 Some say Half Japanese were the world's greatest underground band. Jad and David Fair started the band HALF JAPANESE in their bedroom in Uniontown, Maryland in 1975. Though neither could play a single note on any instrument, they went on to record one of the greatest albums of all time.

HALF JAPANESE - The Band That Would Be King

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20071114 This week in The Tentacle

This week in The Tentacle

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Frederick and The Geography of Nowhere

Kevin E. Dayhoff

The alarm has been sounded, “Starbucks is coming. Starbucks is coming.” No word yet as to whether or not a “coffee party” has been organized to dump coffee grounds into Carroll Creek.

The Nobel Economics Prize

Tom McLaughlin

Setting my brain from its usual position of reverse to forward, I elected to try to unravel the Nobel Prize in Economics. This was awarded to three Americans “for having laid the foundation of mechanism design theory.”

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Tuesday, November 13, 2007

Don't Rest in Peace, Norman Mailer Part 1

Roy Meachum

Serious literary authors and small-town journalists, we take care of our own. The death last week of Pulitzer Prize winning Norman Mailer earned lots of space, in national media as well as the local press.

10 Dumb Questions I Get

Nick Diaz

I am a motorcyclist. For 37 of my 60 years I’ve been riding motorcycles. It all goes back to my youth in my native Cuba, where I spent summers riding horses at my godfather’s cattle ranch.

Falling into One’s Lap

Katie Nash

The past two weeks have involved a series of tax-raising schemes put forth by the O’Malley Administration and his minions. Unfortunately for taxpayers, there seems to be little resistance from moderate Democrats.

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Monday, November 12, 2007

General Assembly Journal Special Session 2007 Part – 2

Richard B. Weldon Jr.

First, it was hailed as the most progressive re-write of a tax code in the nation. Liberal and progressive advocacy groups celebrated Gov. Martin O’Malley’s planned income tax revision as a just and responsible shift of the tax burden away from the working poor and onto the backs of the wealthy.

Worcester County and Slots

Tom McLaughlin

When it was announced that Ocean Downs raceway had been selected as a location for a slots parlor, local rich hotel-condo and real estate owners had an angina attack.

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Sunday, November 11, 2007

Veterans Day: “The Wall” at 25

Kevin E. Dayhoff

This year Veterans Day is also the 25th anniversary of the dedication of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, in Constitution Gardens adjacent to the National Mall in Washington. The Memorial, well known as “The Wall,” was dedicated November 13, 1982.

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Friday, November 9, 2007

"Fair Lady" and "The Scourge of God"

Roy Meachum

Lisa O’Hare stars as Eliza Doolittle with Christopher Cazenove as Professor Henry Higgins in the Baltimore’s Hippodrome Theater presentation of “My Fair Lady.” (Photo by Joan Marcus)

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Thursday, November 8, 2007

An Open Letter…

Chris Cavey

Dear Governor O’Malley, The Guinness Book of World Records lists Teflon as the slipperiest substance on Earth. In a few short months Maryland’s citizens will witness that you are the slipperiest governor in the United States; because nothing will stick.

Russian Glimpses – Part 3 – St. Petersburg

Patricia A. Kelly

(Editor's Note: Columnist Kelly recently toured Russia. This is her third of three parts recounting her adventure.) Our senior guide in St. Petersburg, Masha, was the daughter of intellectuals. During Soviet times, her parents traded their historic, central apartment for a Khrushchev apartment farther out, so that they could send Masha to kindergarten without a 6-year wait. Apartment developments are named after the leader of the time they were built. Stalin’s were the best.

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Wednesday, November 7, 2007

The Ever Green Fund

Kevin E. Dayhoff

Last Friday, the House Environmental Matters Committee in the Maryland General Assembly held a hearing on House Bill 23, the “Maryland Green Fund.”

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Tuesday, November 6, 2007

“I’m mad as Hell….”

Farrell Keough

Of late, I have gotten responses to my columns that fall into two camps; some have told me they were a nice, condensed view of facts surrounding issues and others have said I need to lighten up and write to a lower level of education. While I appreciate receiving input, (good or bad) it is this latter perspective I would like to tackle.

War without heroes and villains

Roy Meachum

Most Americans prefer personalized war. They need heroes to admire; but most of all they want villains to hate. Hitler was a perfect example. He was a demon long before the United States entered World War II.

20071114 News Clips

News Clips

Nov 14, 2007

STATE NEWS

Slots referendum would go to voters next November
Factions measure progress 1 vote at a time
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-md.slots14nov14001518,0,1512004.story?coll=bal_tab01_layout
When Gov. Martin O'Malley proposed a voter referendum on legalizing slot machine gambling, freshman Del. Craig L. Rice opposed it because he thought the General Assembly should decide major policy decisions and not send them to the ballot box.
But Rice changed his mind when fellow legislators who represent the proposed sites for slots parlors asked him to vote for the referendum. "Slots are not proposed for my district, so I deferred to them, " said Rice, a Democrat who represents Montgomery County.
Not only are legislators lobbying one another, but the Democratic governor is talking to legislators to garner support for the historic referendum. House leaders have taken preliminary whip counts, and Del. Kumar P. Barve, the majority leader, said yesterday that they are probably close to lining up the needed 85 votes.
After years of debate, most legislators' positions on slots are firmly established. But the referendum and O'Malley's proposed structure for a slots program have thrown the dynamics into flux.
Republicans said yesterday that as many as 10 of them could defect from their party's stance against the slots referendum, and others might follow. One GOP legislator on the fence is Del. James King of Anne Arundel County, who said he anticipates making a "game-time decision" right before the legislation hits the floor. "The heat will get turned up and we'll see how hard the push gets," he said. "The Democrats are whipping their guys and as soon as they get the votes, they'll bring it to the floor. I think they'd like to do it without Republicans, but I'm not so sure they can."
Many legislators said the slots debate has distracted them for years and that they favor a referendum to allow them to move beyond the heavily lobbied issue.

House offers specific budget cuts for O'Malley
Negotiations to begin in Senate over $500 million in reductions
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/politics/bal-md.cuts14nov14,0,5062643.story
The House of Delegates recommended yesterday $500 million in specific spending cuts for Gov. Martin O'Malley's next budget, paving the way for negotiations later this week with the state Senate, which recommend e d the same amount of cuts but left the details to the governor. O'Malley will release his budget in January, and lawmakers can then make spending cuts.
But Del. Anthony J. O'Donnell, the minority leader from Southern Maryland, noted that O'Malley could completely ignore the House's current suggestions for cutting spending growth. "We can't do anything to his budget," O'Donnell said. "He hasn't presented it to us yet." The vote went largely along party lines, with Democrats voting for the package of spending cuts and Republicans against, although five delegates crossed party lines. Republicans Ron George and Steve Schuh of Anne Arundel County and Susan L.M. Aumann of Baltimore County supported it, while Democrats Frank M. Conaway Jr. of Baltimore City and Kevin Kelly of Allegany County opposed the measure.
"There's a lot that's in here that's just moving expenses from one year to the next," said Del. Gail H. Ba t es, a Howard County Republican who sits on the House Appropriations Committee, adding that she believed they were just "kicking the can down the road. We're not solving the long-term structural deficit; we are closing a current gap."

Slots referendum may be in trouble
http://www.examiner.com/a-1047239~Slots_referendum_may_be_in_trouble.html
Slots opponents in the House of Delegates said they might have enough votes to block Gov. Martin O'Malley's plan for a referendum to allow the machines at five locations in Maryland. But they cautioned not to underestimate the governor's ability to sway votes and pull off a key element of his revenue measures during the special session. Republicans in the House said they support their own version of a slots plan and they want lawmakers, not the citizens, to decide the issue. "We really believe that the slots referendum does nothing more than enable the largest tax increase in Maryland history and enrich five slots operators," said House Minority Whip Christopher Shank, R-Washington County.
The Senate passed its slots legislation last week before the tax increases and spending cuts, and has delayed coming back to Annapolis until Thursday.
House GOP leader Anthony O'Donnell said the delay was a message Senate President Thomas Mike Miller was sending to O'Malley that the governor needed to round up slots votes in the House. For Miller, who has been pushing slots for five years, slots are an essential part of fixing the state's deficit next year, along with taxes and budget cuts.

Top Lawmakers Breakfast With Governor; Busch: "Still Trying To Get Slots Votes"
http://wbal.com/news/story.asp?articleid=65648
Both <>House Speaker Michael Busch, and Senate President Mike Miller emerged from the 45 minute meeting optimistic that lawmakers will come to an agreement over a constitutional amendment to legalize slots, which has yet to pass the House of Delegates. "All I ask is that the governor and the speaker work together to get a final bill passed," Miller told reporters after the meeting.Busch thinks a slots bill will be ready for a vote in the House by tomorrow.
Both Busch and Miller think the final bills will be ready for votes by Friday night, and the special session could wrap up on Saturday.
Aides to Governor O'Malley said they have not come up with an alternative if slots is not approved by the House of Delegates.

Md. House likely to add Frederick site for slots
http://www.hometownannapolis.com / cgi-bin/read/2007/11_14-02/OUD
As the Maryland House prepares for a long-awaited showdown on slot machine gambling, the chamber is likely to add a Frederick gaming site in an attempt to sap business from West Virginia, leaders say. The House started work Tuesday on a slots proposal passed by the Senate last week. House leaders said they are likely to add a sixth slots site to the five already proposed.
"Frederick is a prime location," said Delegate Frank Turner, a Howard County Democrat who leads a subcommittee that is weighing slots. "One of the biggest areas where revenue is leaving Maryland is to Charlestown (W.Va.)" Turner and another lawmaker on the committee said a Frederick location is more likely to be added than a location in the White Marsh area of Baltimore County.

Legislature overrides veto of gun bill
Law enforcement agencies will soon be able to sell or trade in their firear m s to gun manufacturers after an override of a governor's veto by the state legislature.
http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2007/11/14/news/maryland/newsstory85.txt
The House of Delegates voted 135-4 Tuesday to override Gov. Martin O'Malley's veto. The Senate had unanimously voted in support of the override on Friday. Under Maryland law, law enforcement agencies are to destroy the firearm, sell or exchange it to another law enforcement agency, or sell the handgun to a retired officer or the current officer assigned to the firearm, according to a press release. The measure gives law enforcement another option, said Mike Canning, executive director of the Maryland Sheriffs' Association. "It's an economic benefit for the localities because they can save money when they decide to trade in weapons," he said.
Sen. Larry H aines, R-District 5, who introduced the legislation, said he was grateful for his colleagues' support of the bill. "It's about public safety and saving tax dollars," Haines said. With the action by the legislature, Haines said the bill goes into effect immediately.

State Green Fund failure puts county on spot
With no state match, stormwater fund in jeopardy
http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/11_13-16/TOP
As state lawmakers march into the third week of mending Maryland's budget shortfall with new taxes, they've abandoned the idea of taxing property owners to help the Chesapeake Bay. And though plans are evolving to secure more money for the bay, the decision's effects have trickled down to the county debate over how to restore damaged streams and rivers. County Executive J o hn R. Leopold's Stormwater Management and Restoration of Tributaries Fund - or SMART Fund - would tax newly built impervious surfaces, such as rooftops and driveways. Impervious surfaces don't allow rainwater to naturally soak into the ground, instead they send the water and pollution to streams.
The state legislation that's being worked out likely will send some money to local governments, though there's no guarantee of how much they'll get.
The House of Delegates is working on a bill that lays out how to spend more money on the bay, but doesn't say where the money would come from.

Special session requires creative ways to twiddle
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/METRO/111140070/1004
As the Maryland legislature wades through a third week of slow-going budget nego t iations, with lawmakers attempting sweeping reforms to the state's tax structure and billions in new taxes, progress is slow. Some committees are delayed by hours.
Taking a break after three hours of floor debate on budget cuts - with hours more to go - House Republican Leader Anthony J. O'Donnell said yesterday that lawmakers are at wits' end after marathon sessions. "We're doing four years of fiscal work in a couple weeks," said Mr. O'Donnell, Southern Maryland Republican, who joined other Republicans in opposing the special session. "We're trying to do this work without a budget in front of us, and we're flying blind." But many predicted the pace would pick up by week's end. Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., Southern Maryland Democrat, told senators the session would conclude soon, even as he told them to take a few days off.

Stricter Policy On Growth Approved in Montgomeryhttp://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/11/13/AR2007111301079.html
The Montgomery County Council approved a growth policy yesterday that increases taxes on builders to help pay for roads and schools and encourages denser development near public transit to try to absorb an expected influx of newcomers. The policy also requires developers to do more to limit the impact their projects will have on county services and promotes the use of more environmentally friendly design. Officials predict a rush for building permits in the next two weeks from builders trying to beat the deadline and avoid paying the higher taxes. A similar rush occurred four years ago when the council last increased the impact taxes, but that time, lawmakers gave builders six months before the increases took effect.
The growth policy does not need the appro v al of the county executive. The tax increases also can become law with or without his signature. He could veto the tax increases, but the seven-member council majority indicates that the proposals might be veto-proof.

City, Coast Guard break ground on energy plant
http://www.examiner.com/a-1047223~City__Coast_Guard_break_ground_on_energy_plant.html
City and state officials joined with top Coast Guard brass to break ground Tuesday on a new landfill gas co-generation plant at the Coast Guard's Baltimore yard, which they said would meet all of the facility's power needs with a renewable energy source. The project will capture methane gas, a natural byproduct of waste decomposition, at the nearby Quarantine Road landfill and convert it into bioenergy. The plant is the largest renewable energy project in Coast Gu a rd history and the first of its kind in Maryland.
Also present at the groundbreaking were Reps. Wayne Gilchrest, John Sarbanes and Elijah Cummings.
"You will not find this kind of deal anywhere in the country, if not the world," Cummings, chair of the House Subcommittee on the Coast Guard and Maritime Transportation, said of the unique deal between private and public partners to make the plant a reality. "What it says is we don't just do it right in Maryland, we create a model for others to follow."

Searching for the right environment
Future of agriculture is theme of 5th Annual Farm Forum
http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/business/display.htm?StoryID=67615
The Future of Agriculture in Frederick County is the theme for Friday's 5th Annual Farm Forum at the Libertytown Fire Hall Activities Building. The daylong event, co-hosted by Delegate Paul Stull and the Frederick County Farm Bureau, will explore topics such as the Green Fund -- legislation to help clean the Chesapeake Bay; the dairy industry; value-added agriculture; organic farming; feed to fuel; and bio terrorism and foreign animals.
Participants will include Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Roger Richardson, who will speak on the standing of agriculture in the state, and U.S. Congressman Roscoe Bartlett who will give an update on the federal farm bill being discussed by the Senate.

EDITORIALS/OP-EDS

Dollars and sense
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/bal-ed.annapolis14nov14,0,1644393.story
Thirty-five y e ars ago, Maryland voters were given an opportunity to decide whether the state should run a lottery. At the time, choosing to conduct a lottery was considered momentous. States were just beginning to organize them, and skeptics fretted that it wasn't an appropriate activity for government. The measure passed the General Assembly by the necessary margin and voters went along. Now lawmakers are moving to pass another amendment to the constitution, one that would permit slot machine gambling at various locations around the state, and it, too, would require voter approval.
The parallels are striking. Even those who have opposed the various slot machine proposals presented in recent years must acknowledge that requiring a slots bill to be endorsed by voters is a step in the right direction.
It's foolish to suggest that a referendum is somehow less democratic than a vote by elected officials, particularly when voters will have ample time to be informed. Such a co n troversial and divisive issue as slots is in a category (nearly) all by itself. The public deserves to have the final say.

Green fund reborn
http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/editorial/bal-ed.greenfund14nov14,0,2847147.story
Anew fund dedicated to Chesapeake Bay cleanup that was written off just days ago as the General Assembly focused on slots and other issues has been renamed, redesigned, refinanced and resurrected for approval by the legislature before its special session ends.
Given the context of a state government working frantically to raise taxes and cut spending in order to fill a huge budget deficit, the Chesapeake Bay Trust Fund 2010 - a name Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller prefers to Green Fund - puts the environment near the top of state priorities, where it belongs. The House sh o uld handily approve the bill today, and the Senate should swiftly follow. No matter what they call it or how they pay for it, though, the policy is good and long overdue.

Just don't rob us in the dark
http://www.examiner.com/a-1047208~Just_don_t_rob_us_in_the_dark.html
One thing our ruthless leaders can do to ease the pain of their imminent robbery is to at least show the courtesy of doing it to us in the open. The letter and spirit of state law requires members of the Maryland General Assembly to do their deeds out where citizens can watch unless there is a compelling public interest not to.
That's PUBLIC interest. Not their personal and political interests. Not their comfort level. Not their craven desire to flip taxpayers in secret, then pretend next election they didn't shake more money out of our pockets. <>O'Malley denied Marylanders the chance to debate his proposals by calling the special session before he even had a budget instead of waiting until January for the regular session. The least the legislative leadership can do is tell the names of those to whom we may direct our comments about the tax process. Let them know now. Tell them to let We The People into the people's chamber.

Mike Miller's poodles
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071114/EDITORIAL/111140008
The fix appears to be in, and Maryland taxpayers should get ready for another fleecing, courtesy of the "emergency" session of the General Assembly called by Gov. Martin O'Malley. Assuming the tax increases go through, everyone should remember the sorry performances of these five Maryland Democratic senators who tried to pre t end that they are anti-tax while helping Senate President Mike Miller ram through tax increases: Rona Kramer (Montgomery); Edward DeGrange (Anne Arundel); John Astle (Anne Arundel); Bobby Zirkin (Baltimore County); and Roy Dyson (St. Mary's).
These five lawmakers last week voted to help get Mr. Miller the the bare-minimum 29 votes he needed to end a filibuster against his tax increase. Then, once they carried Uncle Mike's water on what was arguably the most important vote of this special session, they had permission to vote against the tax-increase bill, which - miracle of miracles - passed with the bare-minimum 24 votes necessary.
In covering Thursday's Senate vote for the tax increases, virtually all media reported the fact that the Senate tax-increase package was approved 24-23 vote. Less well reported was the fact the outcome was never really in doubt. Mr. Miller said all along that he had the votes - a point he vividly demonstrate d earlier in the day on the most important vote of all: the 29-18 Senate mentioned above vote to end a filibuster against the legislation.
The Democrats who run this one-party state are betting that the senators' constituents are too dumb or too docile to understand what really happened.


NATIONAL NEWS

Cummings: National database needed to track staph cases
http://www.examiner.com/a-1047229~Cummings__National_database_needed_to_track_staph_cases.html
With thousands of cases of antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus each year, one U.S congressman wants to create a national database to follow the spread of the disease. "I think we need a national surveillance program to see where the drug-resistant strains are being found," said U . S. Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-District 7, adding that the public should have access to the information.
With a national database, Cummings said people could see which hospitals are performing best and worst.
"It will send a strong message to the medical profession for them to do better," he said.
Maryland is one of the states that does not require MRSA cases to be reported by doctors on a case-by-case basis.
U.S. Rep. John Sarbanes, D-District 3, wrote in an e-mail to The Examiner that federal authorities should take more aggressive steps in educating the public about MRSA and other drug-resistant infections, and assist state and local agencies.

20071112 Frederick County seeks Carroll participation in trash incinerator

Frederick County seeks Carroll participation in trash incinerator

Hat Tip: Mrs. Owl

See also the Carroll County Times editorial from November 14, 2007:

“Talk some trash with the county” [And please report dead links…]

Related: Environmentalism Solid Waste Management or Environmentalism Solid Waste Management Recycling or Environmentalism Solid Waste Management Waste to Energy

And:

20070721 Frederick News-Post Letter to the Editor: “Trash talk no longer funny” by Gregor Becker

19880900 To Burn or Not to Burn an interview with Neil Seldman

19960900 The Five Most Dangerous Myths About Recycling

20070912 Carroll County EAC votes to promote recycling by Carrie Ann Knauer

Nov 12, 2007 AP

WESTMINSTER, Md. (Map, News) - The Frederick County commissioners are awaiting a response from Carroll County about the latter's possible participation in a waste-to-energy incinerator to serve both counties.

The incinerator could be discussed at a Nov. 19 workshop on Carroll County solid waste alternatives, said Cindy Parr, Carroll County's director of administrative services.

Carroll County public works director Mike Evans said the workshop will explore options for handling trash, including recycling, composting, burning and landfills.

The Frederick County Commissioners are considering a 1,500-ton-per-day incinerator.

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http://www.examiner.com/a-1043996~Frederick_County_seeks_Carroll_participation_in_trash_incinerator.html

Information from: Carroll County (Md.) Times, http://www.carrollcounty.com/

20071113 Forest Conservation variance request for Carroll County Regional Airport denied

News Release: Forest Conservation variance request for Carroll County Regional Airport denied

For more information, contact: Vivian D. Laxton, Public Information Administrator, 410-386-2973

For Immediate Release

Forest Conservation variance request denied

Related:

20070921 Request for variance from the Forest Conservation Code for the Carroll County Regional Airport and Carroll County Regional Airport

Other options would eliminate need for variance

November 13, 2007 – Hearing Officer Steven D. Powell today denied a request from Carroll County Government for a variance to the Carroll County Forest Conservation Ordinance that would have allowed for the harvest of timber at Carroll County Regional Airport. In his decision, Mr. Powell writes that staff should have considered other options:

“The Board of County Commissioners as a matter of policy prefers that all County projects comply with the strict terms of federal, State and County law and that variances be sought in only the most extraordinary of situations. In this case, I believe staff may comply with County law through release of easement and afforestation elsewhere which would obviate the need for a variance.”

The County’s Chief of Administrative Services, Cynthia Parr, requested the variance on September 12, 2007, for the timbering of 3.75 acres of trees in a Forest Conservation Plan easement. Those trees were part of approximately 6 acres that need to be harvested before the Federal Aviation Administration will allow operation of a light system designed to increase safety during landing of aircraft.

Mr. Powell, the County’s Chief of Staff, suggested that the Forest Conservation Easement be released, an alternate site for reforestation be designated so that the harvest can take place. “I believe that the County will actually achieve an overall enhanced environmental benefit in greater harmony with the purposes and intent” of the County’s Code.

Staff has 30 days to appeal the decision, if it should choose to do so, to the Commissioners or to an appeals board appointed by the Board of County Commissioners.

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20071113 Decision on Request for Variance from Forest Conservation

November 13, 2007

Ms. Cynthia Parr, Chief

Office of Administrative Services

225 N. Center Street

Westminster, Maryland 21157

Re: Decision ~ Request for Variance from Forest Conservation

Variance No. V-FC-07-001

Dear Ms. Parr:

On September 12, 2007, you submitted an application for a variance to the Carroll County Forest Conservation Ordinance (Variance No. V-FC-07-001). A copy is attached for reference. Specifically, the application requested a reduction in the final forest basal area from 70 square feet to 25 square feet per the submitted Forest Stewardship Plan in order to accommodate the safe operation of the airport PAPI light system. The Bureau of Resource Management staff summary dated September 21, 2007 additionally summarized that approximately 6 acres of forest were slated for a timber harvest and of that 6 acres approximately 3.75 acres are protected via a Forest Conservation Plan. The State Forestry Board approved the timber harvest with the condition that a variance be obtained to the Carroll County Forest Conservation Technical Manual to allow the post basal harvest area to be 25 square feet instead of the required 70 square feet.

On October 16, 2007, a hearing was held whereby you and pertinent County staff presented evidence and testimony regarding the requested variance. Additionally, members of the public in attendance were permitted to present questions or testimony and evidence regarding the variance as well. Following the public hearing, the public record was left open for a period of 5 business days for the receipt of additional written testimony or evidence from the public.

On October 19, 2007, I submitted a list of additional written questions to staff for consideration based on issues that were raised at the hearing. Staff provided answers to the supplemental questions within 10 days as requested. A copy of my questions and the staff answers are attached for reference.

The variance request in this matter is made under Chapter 115 of the County Code of Public Local Laws and Ordinances. Specifically, Section 115-14 states that a variance may be granted if exceptional circumstances exist such that:

(1) Strict adherence to the provisions of this chapter could result in unnecessary hardship or environmental degradation;

2) The project is wholly in response to the regulatory requirements of another federal, state or local law or consent order and is intended to result in impact mitigation or environmental enhancement;

(3) It can be proven that some action associated with the project will result in measurable environmental enhancement that can be equated to the estimated benefit which would have been achieved if the technical requirement that the applicant is requesting relief from would have been accomplished; or

(4) It can be proven that adherence to the technical requirement would not be necessary to fulfill the purpose of this chapter.

Additionally, an applicant for a variance must:

(1) Describe the special conditions or exceptional circumstances peculiar to the property which would cause the undue hardship or that prevent the applicant from complying with this chapter with on-site or off-site mitigation and any evidence that compliance would result in an environmentally degraded condition on or off site;

(2) Demonstrate in sufficient detail that the granting of the variance will not confer on the applicant a special privilege that would be denied to other applicants;

(3) Demonstrate in sufficient detail that the variance request is not based on conditions or circumstances which are the result of actions by the applicant;

(4) Demonstrate in sufficient detail that the request does not arise from a conditions relating to land or building use, permitted or nonconforming, on a neighboring property; and

(5) Demonstrate in sufficient detail that the granting of a variance will not adversely affect water quality or result in an environmentally degraded condition on or off site.

Having reviewed all of the testimony and evidence presented in light of the required variance factors, I hereby make the following findings and decision. Staff presented adequate justification for the need for a timber harvest in the area in question; however, the evidence presented failed to take into consideration the possibility of mitigating the tree harvest to minimize the environmental degradation to occur or to even enhance the environmental status in the area in question. Further, staff failed to consider other administrative processes such as releasing the easement and mitigation elsewhere.

The Board of County Commissioners as a matter of policy prefer that all County projects comply with the strict terms of federal, State and County law and that variances be sought in only the most extraordinary of situations. In this case, I believe staff may comply with County law through release of easement and afforestation elsewhere which would obviate the need for a variance.

Therefore, for the foregoing reasons, the request for variance is hereby denied. It is my understanding that in the instant matter the timber harvest may be accomplished without a variance by amending the existing Forest Conservation Plan to release the harvested area from protection and designating an alternate area for reforestation or afforestation. By conducting the timber harvest in this manner without a variance, I believe that the County will actually achieve an overall enhanced environmental benefit in greater harmony with the purposes and intent of Chapter 115.

Pursuant to Section 115-17, you may appeal the denial of this variance to the Board of County Commissioners or a Board of Appeals appointed by the Board of County Commissioners. Any such appeal must be filed within 30 days of the date of this decision and must clearly state the grounds upon which the appeal is based.

Sincerely,

Steven D. Powell

Hearing Officer

Encl.

20071112 “Schools, Union and Taxpayers” by Michael Barone in National Review On Line

"Schools, Unions & Taxpayers" - - - Michael Barone in National Review On Line

From Maryland Taxpayers Association:

MTA suggests that fellow taxpayer-advocates ask their state legislators to discuss - frequently and publicly - the perils to the taxpayer arising from the leadership of Maryland's teachers and public employee unions.

{See http://www.examiner.com/a-1024548~Time_for_Grasmick_to_go.html}

{See http://redmaryland.blogspot.com/2007/11/its-so-complicated-and-just-too-hard.html}

Related: Taxes Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) or Taxes Maryland or Taxes or Maryland General Assembly Oct. 29 2007 Special Session

Scroll down for chapter and verse from Michael Barone.

MICHAEL BARONE: "The AMT has no deduction for state and local taxes, and tends to hit high earners in high-tax states like Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and California heavily Democratic states, you’ll notice.

These states tend to have highly paid unionized public employees, and their union leaders surely understand that the AMT threatens to create political pressure to lower state and local taxes and therefore spending.

If voters can’t deduct their state and local taxes, their tax burden will go way up, and they may start a tax revolt. Better not let that happen! So eliminating the AMT is an imperative for Democrats.

Their [the union leaders] goals are to increase pay, which runs counter to taxpayers’ interests, and to minimize accountability, which runs counter to citizens. Republicans are not their reliable adversaries union leaders get cozy with Republican legislators when they can, by letting them know they wont oppose them." [Underscoring MTA's throughout.]

November 12, 2007

Leaving the Children Behind

In favor of the unions.

By Michael Barone

Education is not ordinarily thought to be in the purview of a Federal Reserve chairman. So it’s striking when Alan Greenspan in his memoir, The Age of Turbulence, raises the subject.

“Our primary and secondary education system,” he writes, “is deeply deficient in providing homegrown talent to operate our increasingly complex infrastructure.” The result: “Too many of our students languish at too low a level of skill upon graduation, adding to the supply of lesser-skilled labor in the face of an apparently declining demand.”

So if you’re concerned about widening disparities in income, Greenspan tells readers attracted to his book by its publicists’ promise of criticism of George W. Bush, then what you need to do is to “harness better the forces of competition” in educating kids.

As Greenspan concedes, we have done that to some extent. Governors Republican and Democratic have worked to make public schools more accountable, charter schools provide some needed competition, and the bipartisan No Child Left Behind Act has further prodded states and localities in those directions. But except for a few cities, notably Milwaukee and Cleveland, we have not had school-choice programs with vouchers allowing parents to choose private as well as public schools.

Vouchers are adamantly opposed by the teacher unions, which spent millions persuading Utah voters last week to repeal a voucher law passed by the legislature. No one can say for sure how much vouchers would improve education. But they are “forces of competition,” as Greenspan puts it, which we’re almost entirely prevented from harnessing because of the power of teacher unions — the power, more specifically, that they wield in the Democratic party.

[…]

The teacher unions are an incredibly important source of money and volunteers for the Democratic party — about one in ten delegates at recent Democratic national conventions have been teacher union members or their spouses. When they snap their fingers, the Democrats jump. Vouchers threaten to dry up dues money, and that is that.

Teacher unions are not the only public employee unions important to the Democrats — nearly half the union members in the country are public employees. And you can see their power exerted as well in House Ways and Means Chairman Charles Rangel’s tax reform proposal.

Rangel, who deserves credit for raising the issue of broad tax changes, proposes vast tax increases in order to eliminate the Alternative Minimum Tax. The AMT, originally designed to make sure that a few millionaires could not avoid paying income tax, has never been indexed for inflation, and threatens to engulf 20 million taxpayers next year unless Congress passes another one-year “patch” or, as Rangel wants, abolishes it.

The AMT has no deduction for state and local taxes, and tends to hit high earners in high-tax states like Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Maryland, and California — heavily Democratic states, you’ll notice. These states tend to have highly paid unionized public employees, and their union leaders surely understand that the AMT threatens to create political pressure to lower state and local taxes and therefore spending. If voters can’t deduct their state and local taxes, their tax burden will go way up, and they may start a tax revolt. Better not let that happen! So eliminating the AMT is an imperative for Democrats.

Looking ahead to future fiscal burdens, many people understand that Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid threaten to consume an ever-larger share of the economy over the years. But so do state and local governments if public employee unions get their way. And to get it, they rely on taxpayer’s funds — all their dues income comes from the public fisc.

Read the entire column here: "Schools, Unions & Taxpayers" - - - Michael Barone in National Review On Line

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National Review Online - http://article.nationalreview.com/?q=ZTU0NWM2M2Y5ZTgzNWFhODFjZWYxZTQyOWMzMDMwYTA=

Richard Falknor
Executive Vice-President
Maryland Taxpayers Association, Inc.

http://www.mdtaxes.org

20071114 Trooper likely won't face charges by Ryan Marshall Carroll County Times

Trooper likely won't face charges by Ryan Marshall Carroll County Times

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2007/11/14/news/local_news/newsstory2.txt

By Ryan Marshall, Times Staff Writer

Wednesday, November 14, 2007

A Maryland State Police trooper who hit and killed a Finksburg man likely won’t face any charges, according to the Frederick County prosecutor who handled the case.

A decision was made in May not to charge trooper Dale Derr in the November 2006 death of Randy Rakes, 38, of Finksburg, said Kirsten Brown, chief of Frederick County’s district court division. Frederick County reviewed the case because the Carroll County State’s Attorney’s Office doesn’t handle cases involving Carroll law enforcement officers, Chief Deputy State’s Attorney David Daggett said last week.

Prosecutors decided there wasn’t enough information to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that Derr’s speed was the cause of the Nov. 29 accident, Brown said.

Read the rest of the article here: Trooper likely won't face charges by Ryan Marshall Carroll County Times

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