20070611 Mayor and Common Council Meeting

CITY OF WESTMINSTER, MARYLAND

Mayor and Common Council Meeting of June 11, 2007

City Hall-1838 Emerald Hill Lane, Westminster, MD

City Council

City Council Members | Minutes of City Council Meetings

AGENDA

1. CALL TO ORDER – 7:00 P.M.

Reappointment of Mr. Stephen Allgeier to the Parks Board
Award of Preservation Month Scavenger Hunt Prizes

2. MINUTES OF THE MEETINGS OF MAY 7, 14, AND 21, 2007

3. CONSENT CALENDAR:

April and May 2007 Departmental Operating Reports

Renewal of Audit Contract

Purchase Orders for Vehicles

Wireless Connection from 56 West Main to 105 Railroad Avenue

4. REPORTS FROM STANDING COMMITTEES

5. ORDINANCES AND RESOLUTIONS:

Suspend the Rules of Order and Procedure to Introduce and Adopt
Ordinance No. 765 – Recreation and Parks Advisory Board

Suspend the Rules of Order and Procedure to Introduce and Adopt
Ordinance No. 766 - Powers and Duties of the Director of Recreation
and Parks; Authorization of Mayor and Common Council to Adopt Park
Rules and Regulations by Resolution

Resolution No. R07-7 – Rules and Regulations Regarding Playgrounds

Resolution No. R07-8 – Designation of Locust Lane Park

6. UNFINISHED BUSINESS:

a. None as of June 7, 2007

7. NEW BUSINESS:

a. Approval of Carroll County Regulatory Commission Budget for Fiscal Year 2008

8. DEPARTMENTAL REPORTS

9. CITIZEN COMMENTS

10. ADJOURN

20070606 Scientists say Iceman died from arrow

Neolithic Age, or 3,300 to 3,100 B.C.

Scientists say 'Iceman' died from arrow

By FRANK JORDANS, Associated Press Writer

Wed Jun 6, 2007

A prehistoric hunter known as Oetzi whose well-preserved body was found on a snow-covered mountain in the Alps died more than 5,000 years ago after being struck in the back by an arrow, scientists said in an article published Wednesday.

Researchers from Switzerland and Italy used newly developed medical scanners to examine the hunter's frozen corpse to determine that the arrow had torn a hole in an artery beneath his left collarbone, leading to a massive loss of blood.

That, in turn, caused Oetzi to go into shock and suffer a heart attack, according to the article published online in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

[…]

Oetzi, also known as the Iceman, caused a sensation after his body was discovered by hikers in 1991 on a glacier 10,500 feet above sea level on the border between Austria and Italy.

The body has provided researchers with a wealth of information about the late Neolithic Age, or 3,300 to 3,100 B.C. Archaeologists believe Oetzi, who was carrying a bow, a quiver of arrows and a copper ax, may have been a hunter or warrior killed in a skirmish with a rival tribe.

[…]

On the Web:

South Tyrol Museum of Archaeology: http://www.archaeologiemuseum.it

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20070608 Corbit’s Charge Commemorative Weekend June 23rd and 24th, 2007

Battle of Westminster, Maryland

“Corbit’s Charge”

Commemorative Weekend June 23rd-24th, 2007

(posted June 8^th, 2007)

Come Join Us and Learn

BEFORE THERE WAS GETTYSBURG, there was CORBIT’S CHARGE AND THE BATTLE OF WESTMINSTER!!!

Join us to commemorate the 144th Anniversary of the cavalry battle in the streets of Westminster that helped to alter the outcome of the decisive battle of the Civil War at Gettysburg.

The encampment will be open to the public on Saturday, June 23rd, from 10 a.m. until Dark; and Sunday, June 24th, from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. EDUCATIONAL AND FUN-FILLED ACTIVITIES WILL TAKE PLACE BOTH DAYS. A Civil War Tent-Style Church Service is scheduled for Sunday at 10 a.m. The public is invited.

The City of Westminster is proud to sponsor this premier annual event to commemorate this important engagement in the Gettysburg Campaign. The Pipe Creek Civil War Round Table is the host for the weekend’s activities.

Civil War Living History Encampment

Period Music Concerts -

2nd SC String Band - 6/23 @ 6:30 p.m.

Gilmore’s Light Ensemble - 6/24 @ Noon

Cannon Firing Exhibitions

Speakers & Book Signings

Artisans & Sutlers

Children’s Activities

Camp Life Demonstrations

Civil War Tent-Style Church Service

(Sunday - 10 a.m.)

Guided Battle Site Walking Tours (Sun.)

AND MUCH MORE!!!

In Historic Westminster, MD at 224 N. Center Street, just off MD 140, across from the County Office Building

To learn more about the daily schedule of activities, or for directions to the site, please call Mr. Stan Ruchlewicz with the City of Westminster at (410) 848-5294; email Mr. Ron Kuehne at ronaldk AT carr.org; or visit the Pipe Creek Civil War Round Table Website at www.pccwrt.addr.com.

This event is funded in part by a grant from the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority and the Heart of the Civil War Heritage Area

Schedule For Corbit’s Charge Event – 2007

Updated April 5, 2007

This will be a 2 day event located on the grounds of the encampment site on Center Street.

Friday, June 22, 2007

3:00 p.m.

Encampment opens for re-enactor camp setup.

Saturday, June 23, 2007

9:00 a.m.

Unit Commanders meeting.

10:00 a.m.

Encampment opens to the public with unit drill and camp life demonstrations and displays. Sutlers and food will be available

12:30 p.m.

Re-enactors assemble for parade to Court House for wreath laying at battle monument and Lt. Murray’s grave.

2:00 p.m.

Re-enactors return to encampment to continue unit drill and camp life demonstrations and displays.

5:00 p.m.

Re-enactors dinner is served.

6:30 p.m.

Concert of civil war period music. Music provided by the 2nd South Carolina String Band. Snack Food service is available to the public.

9:00 p.m.

Encampment closes to the public.

Sunday, June 24, 2007

10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.

Encampment is open to the public with camp life demonstrations, unit drill and displays. Sutlers and food will be available.

10:00 a.m.

A Civil War Tent Style Church Service. Chaplin Allan Farley officiating.

Public is welcome.

12 noon

Tours of the battle site begin. Period music is provided by Gilmore’s Light Ensemble from noon to 4:00 p.m.

4:00 p.m.

Encampment closes.

Re-enactor Units

3rd Maryland Infantry, USA

150th New York Volunteer Infantry, USA

1st Maryland Artillery, CSA

4th Virginia Cavalry, CSA

21st Pennsylvania Cavalry, USA

Historical Impressions, USA (Engineers)

Field Hospital, Robert Urban

Officer Interpreters:

General Robert E. Lee General U.S. Grant

General James Longstreet General J.E.B. Stuart

Sutlers – Displays

(Free except for sutler and food purchases)

Pipe Creek Civil War Round Table

Historical Society of Carroll County

Western Maryland RR Historical Society

President Street Station Museum

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20070608 Troopers add more K9 Teams

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

June 8, 2007

TROOPERS ADD MORE K-9 TEAMS TO THE PATROL FORCE

(Glen Burnie, Maryland) - The Maryland State Police graduated its most recent class of K-9 handlers Friday morning, and deployed them across the state for patrol duties.

Seven K-9 teams were awarded certificates of completion. “This is the proud culmination of eleven weeks of very demanding training,” said Major Pete Landon, Assistant Bureau Chief, Special Operations Command. “We are proud of their willingness to serve the citizens of this state, knowing that they will often be required to work under great pressure and in difficult circumstances, especially when a missing person is involved.”

The ceremony was held at the completion the Maryland State Police Special Operations Division=s canine school. Two bloodhound tracking teams, including a team from the Prince George’s County Police Department, and five K-9 controlled dangerous substance detection teams graduated.

The bloodhound tracking teams completed ten weeks of field and classroom work. Instructors used various terrains and settings to teach the handlers tracking, land navigation, management of search operations and high-risk tactical tracking skills.

The controlled dangerous substance detection teams went through eleven weeks of training. The dogs were taught to detect a variety of illicit drugs and substances and the handlers were trained to recognize the actions of their dogs which would alert them to the presence of the drugs.

With the approach of the summer months, the bloodhounds will join other search teams from the seashore to the mountains, assisting with the location and safe return of lost hikers and children, as well as the tracking of fleeing criminals. The drug detection teams will continue to assist road patrol units across the state with the interception of hidden quantities of illegal substances and contraband. The Maryland State Police patrol with a variety of K-9s, including patrol, drug detection, explosives detection, and bloodhound search dogs.

###

CONTACT: First Sergeant Russell Newell

Office of Media Communications & Marketing

410-653-4236 (Office) 410-653-4200 (through Headquarters Duty Officer)

20070608 Quote of the day

Quote of the Day - Overlook not

Friday, June 8^th, 2007

“Those who cannot feel the littleness of great things in themselves are apt to overlook the greatness of little things in others.”

Okakura Kakuzo (1863-1913) Scholar

Thanks TC

20070607 Quote of the Day

Quote of the Day – Got wealth?

June 7^th, 2007

“Measure wealth not by the things you have, but by the things you have for which you would not take money.” Author unknown

Thanks TC

20070606 News Clips

News Clips

June 6^th, 2007

State News

Md. taking on polluters

Nearly $500,000 in fines for lead paint violations latest example of strong enforcement

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bay_environment/bal-md.mde06jun06,0,4632666.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

Maryland's environmental agency slapped $497,500 in penalties on 17 landlords yesterday for lead paint violations -- the latest example of how the O'Malley administration is stepping up enforcement of pollution laws.

In recent weeks, the Maryland Department of the Environment also hit Constellation Energy with $100,000 in fines for air pollution violations at three coal-fired power plants. The agency sued an Eastern Shore farmer for ripping up wetlands and penalized a builder $60,000 for allowing erosion to foul a protected marsh.

Cabinet leaders confirm more layoffs

http://www.examiner.com/a-765865~Cabinet_leaders_confirm_more_layoffs.html

Layoffs have begun in some Maryland departments to meet Gov. Martin O’Malleys goal to cut $200 million from the state budget, two Cabinet secretaries told The Examiner on Tuesday.

And those waiting on replacements will be waiting a long time. The positions might never be filled, officials said.

On Friday, 12 state employees were let go in the Department of Business and Economic Development, Secretary David Edgerley confirmed Tuesday. They were “part of the savings plan,” he said.

Defining moment for Maryland GOP

http://washingtontimes.com/metro/20070605-103732-2076r.htm

The success tonight of the Maryland Republican Party's largest annual fundraiser will play a key role in the future of the organization, including its leadership.

Party leaders hope to raise $300,000 at the Red, White and Blue Dinner to cover annual operating costs. But ticket sales and corporate sponsorships are expected to fall below the goal, sources told The Washington Times.

Md. chief of energy highlights conserving

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bay_environment/bal-md.woolf06jun06,0,5464001.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

The new head of the Maryland Energy Administration said he will develop the state's first comprehensive energy plan in at least a decade and push for new conservation measures to ensure a sustainable, affordable and environmentally friendly power supply for consumers.

Malcolm D. Woolf, whose appointment was announced by Gov. Martin O'Malley outside the State House yesterday, said a strong state energy policy will be necessary to avoid a repeat of the electrical rate spikes Maryland consumers have experienced in the past few years. Rates for BGE customers shot up 50 percent this month despite the efforts of state leaders last year to curb or delay the increase.

If Fox Home Entertainment hands you a lemon ... by Laura Vozzella

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.vozzella06jun06,0,7388467.column?coll=bal-local-columnists

Your call is important to us

A group ticked off with soaring electricity rates is urging every Marylander to call Martin O'Malley's office 72 times to protest the 72 percent rate increase.

(The actual increase since last summer works out to just under 70 percent, but so what if the guy who promised to "stop the rate hikes" gets some extra calls?)

"O'Malley staffers starting to get curt with caller siege," the group's news release says. "But not enough people are calling - the lines are still not being jammed."

FMH cheers 'grand opening'

State officials celebrate completion of hospital's $103M expansion project

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?StoryID=61002

It was called a grand reopening, though Frederick Memorial Hospital never closed.

In fact, according to FMH president Tom Kleinhanzl, the hospital hasn't shut its doors since opening in 1902, when an eight-bed center became Frederick's first hospital.

Project 2000 brought to FMH the George L. Shields Emergency Department, three times larger than before, and a new pediatric unit, endovascular lab, the Billy Miller Special Care Nursery and a parking deck, for which Republican U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett is thankful.

Lt. governor tours downtown

http://www.herald-mail.com/?module=displaystory&story_id=167319&format=html

Downtown Hagerstown was on display Tuesday for Lt. Gov. Anthony G. Brown, who saw firsthand the city's efforts at urban redevelopment.

A pack of municipal leaders and community figures escorted Brown along South Potomac Street, where they met with developers Mike Deming and Donald Bowman.

They stopped to gaze at Deming's restored Schindel-Rohrer building, which houses a restaurant and a nightclub, and the adjacent building that Bowman is restoring.

Lt. Gov. Visits

Growth comes with challenges

http://www.times-news.com/local/local_story_156094012.html

An educated work force and a rapidly growing knowledge-based economy has Maryland poised to benefit economically.

But it won't be without its challenges.

Lt. Gov. Anthony Brown offered his thoughts on economic development and opportunities during the Maryland Economic Development Association's banquet held Monday at Rocky Gap Lodge & Golf Resort. With 240 people attending, the group's 46th annual conference, which continues today, is based on the theme "Balancing Growth in Maryland."

Lt. Governor Brown In Town Yesterday

http://www.wcbcradio.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=7629&Itemid=35

The Terrapin Run housing project proposed for eastern Allegany County continues to generate controversy. Lt. Governor Anthony Brown visited Cumberland this week and while not making a firm stand on the project, he noted that the O’Malley administration is emphasizing good use of resources.

Leopold reports for possible jury duty

http://www.hometownannapolis.com/cgi-bin/read/2007/06_05-26/GOV

Among the 85 other potential jurors reporting to the courthouse this morning, only one looked familiar from November's ballot.

"I voted for you," Bailiff Nolan Burgess told County Executive John R. Leopold as he checked in.

"Nobody's above jury duty," Mr. Burgess said a few minutes later.

Wicomico passes $131.9M budget

http://www.delmarvanow.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070606/NEWS01/706060360/1002

Ten days before its deadline, the Wicomico County Council passed next year's $131.9 million budget Tuesday in a meeting ending in handshakes rather than sparring.

"We passed our first test of the new system with flying colors," said County Executive Rick Pollitt, in reference to the new executive form of government that began last December.

Councilman calls for drug legalization

http://www.examiner.com/a-765861~Councilman_calls_for_drug_legalization.html

One Baltimore City Council member wants to change the battle plan for the war on drugs.

Decriminalizing all types of narcotics may be the only option left for quelling the violence of the drug trade, said Council Member Bernard “Jack” Young, who wants the council to hold hearings on the idea.

“We’re losing the war on drugs,” said Young, D-District 12. When teenagers are getting gunned down on the street because of the drug business, then we have to rethink our approach.

National News

Gilchrest Says He's Running Again

http://www.wboc.com/Global/story.asp?S=6613196&nav=QEMt

First District Congressman Wayne Gilchrest is undaunted by challenges from within and outside his party and says he will run for a 10th term next year.

He has not formally announced his candidacy but confirmed Monday that he is running. Gilchrest was in North East to address a meeting of the Cecil County Republican Club.

Haughty and nice

http://thehill.com/cover-stories/haughty-and-nice-2007-06-06.html

Though most interns are young, work for free and have grand ambitions to learn the ins and outs of Congress, they tend to be the most bothersome to service-sector employees on and around Capitol Hill.

They don’t tip well, ask annoying questions and tend to be the rudest people in the nation’s capital, many employees say.

He said he regularly deals with staff members, many of whom are very friendly. Clyburn and Reps. Edolphus Towns (D-N.Y.), Wayne Gilchrest (R-Md.) and Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) are exceptionally nice, he said.

Clinton fundraisers planned in Maryland

O’Malley backing paying off for former first lady, professor says

http://www.gazette.net/stories/060607/montnew21747_32335.shtml

Seeking to transform Gov. Martin O’Malley’s early endorsement into big bucks, U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton will make three fundraising stops across Maryland in the next five weeks.

O’Malley will raise money for the Democratic presidential candidate and former first lady at a $1,000-a-plate reception at Martins West in Baltimore County on June 13.

One week later, financier John K. Delaney will host a fundraiser for Clinton at his Potomac home. O’Malleys fundraisers are also helping to put together a reception in mid-July at the Annapolis home of Thomas L. Siebert, a former U.S. ambassador to Sweden under President Bill Clinton.

House Approves Iran, Darfur Resolutions

http://www.voanews.com/english/2007-06-06-voa4.cfm

The House of Representatives has approved resolutions on Iran and the situation in Darfur. One calls on the government in Tehran to release dual Iranian-American citizens it is holding, the other urges China to do more to pressure the government of Sudan to end violence in Darfur. VOA's Dan Robinson reports from Capitol Hill.

“Their detention is a gross perversion of the rule of law, and the claim that the Iranian government has made that they seek dialogue and improved relations with the west, is belied by the actions they have taken with respect to these individuals," said Chris Van Hollen.

Democrats Fear a Wider Black Caucus-Pelosi Rift

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/04/AR2007060401664.html

Democratic leaders fear that Rep. William J. Jefferson's indictment yesterday on racketeering and bribery charges, coming exactly one year after House Speaker Nancy Pelosi engineered his ouster from the powerful Ways and Means Committee, could rekindle a smoldering dispute between the speaker and black lawmakers who were once pillars of her power.

For months, the Louisiana Democrat's mounting legal peril has bedeviled Democrats as they sought first to point to corruption as a tool to oust Republicans from control of Congress, then pressed for ethics and lobbying changes that they said would usher in a new era of clean politics on Capitol Hill. For every thrust Democrats made against the GOP, Republicans parried with Jefferson, saying problems in Congress were bipartisan.

"For the good of the people of Louisiana's 2nd District, who have been through so much, we hope this matter is quickly resolved," said Rep. Chris Van Hollen (Md.), chairman of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee.

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20070605 News Clips

News Clips

June 5^th, 2007

State News

Officials worried about O'Malley's security ideas

http://washingtontimes.com/metro/20070604-113200-8505r.htm

Homeland security officials across the state say they have become concerned about emergency preparedness in Maryland since Gov. Martin O'Malley has taken office.

Mr. O'Malley, a Democrat, has been slow to fill vacancies in the Governor's Office of Homeland Security, and local homeland security coordinators say the O'Malley administration has not contacted them since taking office.

"What's a little bit disturbing is we have put together strategic homeland security goals for Charles County, and I don't know whether they have seen them," said Donald McGuire, Charles County director of emergency preparedness.

Politicians mostly mum on candidates

Although Rick Weldon supports Giuliani, other legislators taking wait-and-see attitude

http://www.fredericknewspost.com/sections/news/display.htm?StoryID=60964

Unlike other local Republican legislators, Delegate Rick Weldon didn't want to wait when it came to making his pick for the party's 2008 presidential candidate nomination.

He knew whom he wanted to endorse -- former New York Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani.

State Sen. Alex Mooney said he plans to endorse a candidate, but he is waiting a little longer to do so.

He is looking for the Ronald Reagan in the group, and believes some of the candidates with less established campaigns, like Mike Huckabee, might end up being the best fit if they grow and succeed. Right now, though, he said Romney looks to be the closest fit to Reagan.

Weldon said others are "keeping their powder dry" and waiting to see who is a strong candidate in Maryland. They are waiting until they hear the outcome of polls, like the one that will be taken Wednesday night at the Maryland Republican Party's annual Red White and Blue Dinner, Weldon said.

The straw poll will be the first time the state Republicans are asked for a preference as a group, he said.

State Sen. David Brinkley said he has not announced support, but might do so in the fall or sometime around then. Likewise, U.S. Rep. Roscoe Bartlett, a Republican, has not yet made an announcement supporting a candidate, a spokeswoman said Monday. Other members of Frederick's delegation could not be reached Monday.

CASA of Maryland boasts a haven in the center of an immigration storm

http://www.examiner.com/a-763804~CASA_of_Maryland_boasts_a_haven_in_the_center_of_an_immigration_storm.html

Who said the eye of the storm is supposed to be peaceful?

With controversial comprehensive immigration reform lashing the Senate and tracking toward the House, CASA of Maryland Inc., an immigrant support and advocacy group at the local center of the undocumented-dweller dust-up, has, in a sense, learned how to row and bail water at the same time.

“It’s a document to educate our community about their rights the rights of any U.S. citizen,” Gustavo Torres, executive director of CASA of Maryland, said of the nonprofits recently criticized immigrant-rights handbook.

O’Malley: Administration firings not political

http://www.examiner.com/a-763833~O_Malley__Administration_firings_not_political.html

Gov. Martin O’Malley said recent firings in his administration were not for political reasons, as some Republicans maintain, but to put “competent, professional” people in charge to help “make government work again.”

Former members of then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich’s administration are circulating lists of people who they say were fired because of their Republican ties. The Examiner reported Monday that some of those let go called it “hypocrisy” and “a double standard” for Democrats to do the same thing that Ehrlich was accused of doing.

Republican club officers innocent

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2007/06/05/news/local_news/newstory1.txt

Circuit Court judge finds leaders of group did not violate campaign finance rules

Leaders of the Carroll County Republican Club Inc. were found innocent in Carroll County Circuit Court Monday of charges they violated the state’s campaign finance laws.

Visiting Judge Vincent Femia ruled that Club President Scott Hollenbeck of Westminster and Treasurer Suzanne Primoff of Woodbine were not guilty of illegally gathering and spending funds for a political campaign, a charge punishable by up to a year in jail and a fine of up to $25,000.

Carroll GOP club officers are cleared of violations

Campaign finance law called 'ambiguous'

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/carroll/bal-md.ca.club05jun05,0,5297159.story?coll=bal-local-carroll

Two officers of the Carroll County Republican Club Inc. were acquitted of campaign finance violations yesterday in Carroll County Circuit Court.

Club President Scott Hollenbeck, 43, of Westminster and treasurer Suzanne Primoff, 56, of Woodbine and Loxahatchee, Fla., had been charged with illegally spending campaign funds on ads endorsing county commissioner candidates in September's Republican primary, according to the November lawsuit filed by the state prosecutor's office.

GOP club’s officers acquitted in finance case

http://www.examiner.com/a-763823~GOP_club_s_officers_acquitted_in_finance_case.html

A judge acquitted two Carroll County Republican Club officers of election law violations Monday, calling Maryland’s campaign finance law too vague.

Club President Scott Hollenbeck, of Westminster, and treasurer Suzanne Primoff, of Woodbine and Loxahatchee, Fla., avoided up to two years in prison and $26,000 in fines after retired Prince Georges Circuit Judge Vincent Femia ruled in their favor following a half-day bench trial in Carroll County Circuit Court.

Same-Sex Marriage Takes the Spotlight in Forum

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/06/04/AR2007060402103.html

Capital Pride, the annual gay and lesbian celebration that mixes high-minded dialogue with dance parties, began a week's worth of events last night with a "town hall" meeting that focused on such topics as same-sex marriage and faith.

Six panelists fielded questions from moderator Jason Bellini and members of an 80-person audience at the Studio Theatre in Northwest Washington.

The sensitivity and complexity of the issue were also highlighted by the answers of Virginia Del. Adam P. Ebbin (D-Alexandria) and Maryland Del. Heather R. Mizeur (D-Montgomery).

City Council debates tapping surplus fund

Needs of police and schools are called reason enough to use emergency dollars

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-md.ci.bills05jun05,0,7665738.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

Baltimore City Council members debated yesterday using money from the city's surplus fund to pay for police recruitment and promised school construction, with several council members splitting with the majority and tossing out alternative sources of funding.

The debate centered on two resolutions. City Council President Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake introduced a nonbinding resolution to divert $2 million from the city's rainy day fund to step up police recruitment.

Death on the streets

Homicides make city 2nd-most perilous in nation

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/baltimore_city/bal-te.md.ci.police05jun05,0,3275974.story?coll=bal-local-headlines

Baltimore's homicide rate last year surpassed all of the nation's largest cities with the exception of Detroit, according to FBI crime statistics released yesterday.

Violent crime as a whole in Baltimore was down almost 13 percent in 2006 compared with 2005 and is continuing to drop this year, bucking an increase of 1.3 percent nationally, statistics show.

City needs to reverse a culture of death by Dan Rodricks

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/local/bal-md.rodricks03jun03,0,6877954.column?coll=bal-local-columnists

I entertain a strange and ridiculous thought while sitting for a moment in the District Court of Maryland, Baltimore Division, listening to a handsome and well-tailored police detective describe a young man's botched attempt at murder by handgun last month in the city: Couldn't we get Dr. Benjamin Carson, the esteemed neurosurgeon at Johns Hopkins, to rewire some brains? Wouldn't that help reduce the homicide rate?

As I said, strange and ridiculous. ... Excuse me.

National News

Gilchrest to go for 10th term

http://www.cecilwhig.com/articles/2007/06/05/news/01.txt

Rep. Wayne T. Gilchrest, facing challengers from both the Republican and Democratic parties, said Monday he will seek re-election in 2008.

“I’m running for Congress,” the nine-term incumbent from Maryland’s 1st District told a reporter after addressing the monthly meeting of the Republican Club of Cecil County. The meeting was held in North East.

Democrat Kratovil seeks to unseat Rep. Gilchrest

http://www.examiner.com/a-763828~Democrat_Kratovil_seeks_to_unseat_Rep__Gilchrest.html

With a rousing endorsement from Gov. Martin O’Malley to kick off the campaign, Democratic Queen Annes States Attorney Frank Kratovil Jr. officially announced he was running for Congress to unseat nine-term Republican Wayne Gilchrest.

“We need aggressive, effective and unwavering leadership,” Kratovil, 39, said with the Chesapeake Bay as a backdrop. “The issue isn’t party. The issue is effectiveness.” He said that in talking to his Eastern Shore neighbors, regardless of party, he found “on the vast majority of issues we agree.”

Cardin chairs hearing on deceptive voter practices

Gansler to testify on 2006 incidents in Maryland

http://www.gazette.net/stories/060407/polinew163112_32347.shtml

U.S. Sen. Benjamin L. Cardin (D) is slated to chair a hearing Thursday of the Senate Judiciary Committee to discuss deceptive voter practices as part of the 2006 elections.

In Maryland, the balloting last November was marred by allegedly misleading practices. Critics say voters in Prince Georges County were targeted by deceptive campaign literature that contained inaccurate endorsements of political candidates.

Longest-serving Md. congressman

Hoyer a veteran of 26 years, 1 day

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/nationworld/bal-te.hoyer05jun05,0,811984.story?coll=bal-nationworld-headlines

House Majority Leader Steny H. Hoyer, already the highest-ranking congressman in Maryland history, became the longest-serving yesterday.

"I guess if one lives long enough and stays put ... , " the Southern Maryland Democrat said with a chuckle over the telephone from New York, where he was helping a pair of freshmen raise money for re-election in 2008. "It's surprising because it doesn't seem that long to me."

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20070606 If D-Day were to happen today

If D-Day were to happen today - - this is how the New York Times would report it…

June 6^th, 1944 – June 6^th, 2007

This is how today’s media would have reported the Normandy invasion to free France from German tyranny:

June 6, 1944. -NORMANDY- Three hundred French civilians were killed and thousands more wounded today in the first hours of America’s invasion of continental Europe.

Casualties were heaviest among women and children.

Most of the French casualties were the result of poor planning on the part of the American Forces. Artillery fire from American ships attempting to knock out German fortifications prior to the landing of hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops wrecked havoc upon innocent buildings, livestock, and civilians. The unnecessary loss of trees is greatly regretted.

Reports from a makeshift hospital in the French town of St. Mere Eglise said the carnage was far worse than the French had anticipated and reaction against the American invasion was running high.

“We are dying for no reason,” said a Frenchman speaking on condition of anonymity. “Americans can’t even shoot straight. I never thought I’d say this, but life was better under Adolph Hitler.”

The invasion also caused severe environmental damage. American troops, tanks, trucks and machinery destroyed miles of pristine shoreline and thousands of acres of ecologically sensitive wetlands.

Unsubstantiated reports indicate that an environmental impact statement had not been filed prior to the invasion and as a result, the ACLU has filed an injunction.

It was believed that the habitat of the spineless French crab was completely wiped out, threatening the species with extinction. Several military divisions have been pulled back from the front to protect the crab.

A representative of former Vice-President Al Gore said the Democratic leadership in Congress, which had tried to stall the invasion for over a year, was appalled at the destruction, but not surprised.

“This is just another example of how the military destroys the environment without a second thought,” said Nevada Sen. Harry Reid (D). “And it’s all about corporate greed.” It is unconfirmed, but widely rumored that as a result of how poorly World War II has progressed, the Democratic leadership in Congress is drafting legislation to cut off funding for the war and have called for a complete withdrawal of our troops.

Former Senator John Edwards said that the president ought to have sought a diplomatic settlement with Nazi Germany. “The only solution is a diplomatic solution,” said Senator Edwards.

Contacted at her comfortable Manhattan condo, a member of New York Senator Hillary Clinton’s office said the invasion was based solely on American financial interests.

“Everyone knows the President Roosevelt has ties to big beer,” said Senator Clinton. “Once the German beer industry is conquered, Roosevelt’s beer cronies will control the world market and make a fortune.”

Administration supporters said America’s aggressive actions were based in part on the assertions of controversial scientist Albert Einstein, who sent a letter to Roosevelt speculating that the Germans were developing a secret weapon, a so-called “atomic bomb.” Such a weapon could produce casualties on a scale never seen before and cause environmental damage that could last for thousands of years.

Hitler has denied having such a weapon and international inspectors were unable to locate such weapons even after spending two long weekends in Germany.

Senator Reid’s office said that the president lied about such a weapon. “There is no such weapon,” remarked the Senator.

Shortly after the invasion began reports surfaced that German prisoners had been abused by Americans. Mistreatment of Europeans by Germans has been rumored but so far, remains unproven.

Several thousand Americans died during the first hours of the invasion and environmentalists are concerned that uncollected corpses pose a public health risk.

“The Americans should have planned for this in advance,” a spokesperson for Speaker of the House Representative Nancy Pelosi said. “It’s their mess and we don’t intend to clean it up.”

“It’s obviously the president’s war,” said Senator Clinton.

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God Bless our great country. We owe much more than we will ever be able to repay to our men and women in uniform on those God forsaken beaches so many years ago.

Note: Some of this material is not my original material – although, I do not know who originally wrote it… I received the bulk of this a number of years ago, I brought it up, dusted it off, and updated it. For those in need of a second cup of coffee, this is a spoof…)

20070606 Torch Run – Annual Maryland Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Maryland

Flame of Hope Arrives in Carroll County!

Torch Run – Annual Maryland Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Maryland

June 6^th, 2007

Carroll County Law Enforcement Officers Join Forces to Escort the Special Olympics Maryland Torch, Ensuring its Safe Passage to the 2007 SOMD Summer Games

MEDIA CONTACT:

Kelley Wallace/SOMD

PH: 410-789-6677 x117

Cell: 443-386-7965

E-mail: kwallace AT somd.org

OR

Chief Jeff Spaulding

Westminster Police Department

PH: 410-848-4646

E-mail: jspaulding AT westgov.com

Law Enforcement officers representing the various police agencies throughout Carroll County will be out in force on Wednesday, June 6th beginning at 8:00 AM, escorting the Special Olympics Maryland Flame of Hope from five (5) separate points around the county to Westminster, where they will join together and officially present the Flame of Hope in a brief ceremony at noon in front of City Hall.

It is the duty of these Law Enforcement Torch Runners to ensure that the Flame is protected until it is delivered to the waiting hands of the Special Olympics athletes on Friday, June 8th at the Opening Ceremony of the SOMD Summer Games held at Towson University, Towson Maryland.

This portion of the Torch Run Relay is part of the Central Leg, and Torch Run volunteers from the Maryland State Police, Sykesville PD, Hampstead PD, Manchester PD, Taneytown PD, Carroll County Sheriff’s Office, the McDaniel College Office of Campus Safety, Springfield Hospital Police, State Fire Marshals Office, and Westminster PD will escort the flame through various municipalities around the County, eventually converging at McDaniel College and traveling the Final Leg along Main Street to City Hall in Westminster.

With the support of Aerotek, the law enforcement volunteers are raising funds in conjunction with the run by selling Torch Run T-shirts, holding events, and soliciting donations. (See end of press release for details on each of the 6 legs).

“We are proud to join our brother and sister officers from around the world in demonstrating our support for these very special members of our community,” stated Chief Jeff Spaulding of the Westminster Police Department. “We are particularly pleased that we will be joined on each of our runs by Special Olympics athletes from right here in Carroll County. It is a great opportunity to further strengthen the long-standing relationship between law enforcement and Special Olympics that we enjoy in Maryland.”

Chief Spaulding invites the community to attend in a short ceremony at City Hall following the Final Leg during which the Special Olympics Athletes who participated as Torch Runners will be honored for their participation.

Statewide, the Maryland Torch Run Relay consists of four different legs – Eastern, Western, Central and Southern – and during the week of June 4 to 8, thousands of Torch Run volunteers will cover hundreds of miles, eventually converging on Towson where the individual flames will be united in the Final Leg Ceremony and then officers from around the state will travel the final three (3) miles to Opening Ceremonies at Towson University.

It is there that the Flame is handed off to the Special Olympics athletes who have the honor of lighting the cauldron and officially declaring the 2007 SOMD Summer Games open. Carroll County will be represented by Chief Jeff Spaulding and other members of the Westminster PD in the Final Leg on Friday, June 8th.

The Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics Maryland is a year-round movement whose goal is to raise both funds and awareness for the athletes who train and compete in Special Olympics Maryland, and 2007 marks the 22nd anniversary here in Maryland.

When the Maryland Torch Run began in 1986, only a handful of officers participated, raising $50,000. Since that time, the Maryland Torch Run has grown tremendously, including volunteer officers from nearly every law enforcement agency and correctional facility in Maryland; raising more than $2 million for Special Olympics Maryland in 2006.

For more information about the Carroll County Torch Run relay, or to support the Torch Run Relay by purchasing a commemorative Torch Run T-shirt for $10, contact the Westminster Police Department at 410-848-4646. For more information about Special Olympics Maryland and the 2007 Summer Games, contact Kelley Wallace at 410-789-6677 x117 or visit www.somd.org.

THE CARROLL COUNTY TORCH RUN EVENT INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING LEGS:

Sykesville Leg

Members of the Maryland State Police, Sykesville PD, Office of the State Fire Marshal, and the Springfield Hospital Police.

Runners/bikers will depart City Hall @ 8:15 AM and travel north on Route 32, west on Liberty Road, to Route 97 to McDaniel College.

Hampstead/Manchester Leg

Members of the Maryland State Police, Hampstead PD, and Manchester PD.

Runners/bikers will depart Hampstead City Hall @ 8:30 AM and travel north via Route 30 to Manchester where they will join the Manchester PD runners and travel south on Route 27 to McDaniel College.

Taneytown Leg

Members of the Maryland State Police and Taneytown Police Department.

Runners/bikers will depart Taneytown @ 9:00 AM and travel east on Route 140 to WMC Drive to McDaniel College.

Mt. Airy Leg

Members of the Maryland State Police.

Runners/bikers will depart Mt. Airy @ 8:00 AM and travel north on Route 27 to McDaniel College.

Union Bridge/New Windsor Leg

Members of the Carroll County Sheriff’s Office.

Runners/bikers will depart Union Bridge @ 9:00 AM and travel east through New Windsor to McDaniel College.

Final Leg

– Includes all participating law enforcement agencies from Carroll County.

Runners/bikers will depart McDaniel College @ Noon and travel east along Main Street to City Hall where a Torch Run welcoming ceremony and celebration will take place.

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