Some important letters

In lieu of a post on issues concerning Maryland I wanted to post some letters, specifically form letters, I found in my collection of stuff from Maryland politicians. Not all the letters are completely true in facts, so judge them for yourself

Letter #1 (about Iran & terrorism)
US Sen. Barbara Mikulski
3/9/07

Thank you for contacting me to express your concerns about policy toward Iran. I have heard from many Marylanders on this important issue. I appreciate your taking the time to write.

Iran remains a serious national security challenge to the United States. This undemocratic regime provides arms and funds to terrorist groups, including Hezbollah and Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Iran continues to target Israel and is a source of regional and global instability. In fact, the U.S. State Department says that Iran’s “extensive involvement in supporting terrorism puts it in a class by itself.”

Iran also has admitted to conducting small-scale experiments to create plutonium. This is further evidence that Iran’s nuclear research has been directed at developing a weapons program. I am glad to see President Bush working wirh leaders from the European Union (EU) to negotiate an end to Iran’s nuclear weapons program. Earlier this year, I was hopeful that on-going talks would have positive results when Iran promised to suspend its uranium enrichment activities. However, despite a resolution from the United Nations Security Council threatening economic and diplomatic sanctions, Iran keeps refusing to suspend its uranium program.

It is certainly too early to start thinking about using force against Iran. I believe the Bush administration and the international community should continue to work diligently toward a diplomatic solution to the crisis. U.S. allies rely too heavily on crude oil bought from Iran for the threat of sanctions to be credible. But, Iran has no refineries and so must import gasoline. This means strong sanctions on gas sales to Iran might provide the leverafe needed to force Iran to stop its nuclear program. As a member of the Senate Appropriations Defense Subcommittee and the Senate Intelligence Committee I will continue to follow this issue very closely.

Again, thanks for sharing your views with me. Knowing of your views will be very helpful to me as the Senate considers this issue. Please let me know if I may be of assistance ib the future.
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Letter #2 (about death penalty)
Kumar P. Barve, Majority Leader of the House of Delegates
3/19/12

Thank you for your correspondence to discuss your thoughts about the repeal of the death penalty. I appreciate the time you took to share your thoughts on the issue.

As you may know, legislation to repeal the death penalty has been introduced in previous sessions of the Maryland General Assembly. House Bill 949 would repeal the death penalty and is currently before the House Judiciary Committee, of which I am not a member. If HB 949 comes for a vote before the full House of Delegates, I will vote in favor of repeal.

Thank you again for sharing your perspective with me. Please stay in touch as this issue moves forward.
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Letter #3 (overview of legis. session)
MD Sen. James Brochin, 42nd legislative district
5/26/09

Perhaps more than any other session I was able to incorporate what I believe as common sense solutions into major public policy issues that confront Marylanders.

One of Governor O’Malley’s goals for this session was to repeal the death penalty. My belief is that the death penalty is an important tool for prosecutors when going after serial killers. As a result, I offered an amendment (which was adopted) that rejected the Governor’s repeal, but instead prohibits the death penalty in cases where there is only one eyewitness testimony.

Another issue debated during session was lawful presence. For the last ten years, Maryland has allowed illegal immigrants to obtain Maryland driver’s licenses without having to show that they are in this state or country illegally. I think this practice is unconscionable. In fact, this is how one of the 9/11 hijackers obtained his Maryland driver’s license. The House of Delegates position was amnesty for all 250,000 people who have received Maryland driver’s licenses without having to show they are in this country illegally. I simply cannot accept amnesty. It’s not fair that people who have filled out the paperwork and waited their time to become citizens get supplanted by those who sneak over the border to enter this country illegally. I co-sponsored a Senate bill to require documentation verifying that an individual is either is a citizen, or is lawfully present in the United States prior to the MVA issuing a driver’s license. I also negotiated a compromise on behalf of the Senate that said beginning June 1, 2009, if you can’t show lawful presence, then you can’t get a Maryland driver’s license. In addition, the 250,000 people who entered the country without showing lawful presence have until July 1, 2015 to obtain lawful presence or their license will become invalid.

Despite these compromises, there were other bills and issues which I believe were just as important. I co-sponsored a bill which passed by one vote in the Senate which stated if you live in Critical Areas (1,000 feet from the Chesapeake Bay) and your septic tank is failing, you need to get it upgraded. Six percent of the nitrogen in the Chesapeake Bay comes from failing septic systems. This legislation, along with the upgrades in our wastewater treatment plants (which I supported four years ago), should continue the progress we have made in reversing the damage to the Bay, and shoud continue the re-growth of our underwater grasses.

Another issue, on which I cast two critical votes, permitted a judge the authority to seize guns from a domestic abuser who has a temporary or final protective order against them. While I continue to believe in the inherent right to self-defense, I do not believe guns and domestic abusers are a proper mix. Too much bloodshed in those critical days and hours after a domestic violence situation erupts. With the help of this legislation, we can hell put an end to this unnecessary violence.

On the education front, I again, with the help of the University of Maryland System, stopped Morgan State from shutting down Towson University’s MBA program. Towson University’s MBA program is now the largest in the Baltimore Metropolitan area, and I believe it is an asset to all of Baltimore and the employers who hire our young adults.

On the elementary school level, I worked closely with Towson Families United to help Towson to get a new elementary school, which will open in the fall of 2010. I also worked with the parents and the school supporters in the Loch Raven area to stop an ill thought addition to Loch Raven High. Rest assured I will continue to work with this County Executive and the next County Executive to acquire land to build a new high school to alleviate overcrowding at Dulaney, Towson, and Loch Raven High Schools.

This job is always a challenge, and continues to be rewarding. It is an honor and a privilege to be your Senator, and I deeply appreciate the confidence you have bestowed upon me. If there are any thoughts or issues you wish to discuss, please do not hesitate to contact me at 410-823-7087.

I look forward to seeing you this Summer.
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Letter #4 (about the stimulus)
US Rep. John Sarbanes
2/18/09

Thank you for responding to my recent constituent survey on how to strengthen the economy. These are such important times and it is critical to hear from individuals who actively follow the proceedings of Congress and their government.

This week, after significant consultation between the President and bipartisan leaders in Congress, we passed the Americab Recovery and Reinvestment Act. I strongly supported this measure because I believe it will stimulate our economy in the near term, assist working families that arw struggling to make ends meet, and set the stage for long term economic growth.

First, this measure will put Americans to work rebuilding our nation’s critical infrastructure — roads and bridges, public transportatiob, water and sewer systems, and public schools. But the 21st Century, our electronic infrastructure is just as important for economic success as our physical infrastructure. This is why the recovery package provides resources for broadband deployment, so all regions of our country can enjoy the economic growth that accompanies high speed Internet access. It also provides grants to relieve congestion on our electrical grid and commits us to digital health records so we can reduce cost and help more Americans access care. There are investments we have put off for much too long. By taking action now, we will save or create jobs for three million Americans, strengthen our nation’s economic backbone, and allow commerce to flow more freely to all parts of our country. We are literally building stronger communities and a more secure America.

Some have criticized this package because they believe it includes too much spending. It is a fair concern and I do not take the investment of this amount of taxpayer money lightly. But throughout our nation’s history, and ever since the New Deal helped to ease the crush of the Great Depression, there has been general consensus among economists and policy experts that targeted government spending is an effective form of stimulus in an economic downturn. That we are using this spending to rebuild the infrastructure upon which our long term economic competitiveness depends is a further benefit.

I also acknowledge that tax cuts for working Americans can help ease the pinch by allowing families to keep more of their hard earned money. If tax cuts are effectively targeted, they also encourage consumer spending. That is why the package:
- provide a tax relief to 95 percent of American workers through a refundable tax credit of up to $400 per worker
- offers a $250 credit to disabled veterans, social security recipents no longer in the workplace and federal retirees
- increases the earned income tax cut (EITC) and expands the child tax credit
- creates an “American Opportunity” education tax credit for individuals seeking a college education
- increases the homebuyer tax credit passed last year and eliminates the repayment requirement for all homes in the first half of 2009.

To assist small businesses in creating jobs and spur investment H.R. 1 [the stimulus bill]:
- allows businesses to write off of losses incurred in 2008 against taxes assessed over the previous five years;
- extends the increased bonus depreciation and small business expensing for any investments in new plants and equipment in 2009;
- allows tax credits for hiring recently dischsrged unemployed veterans and youth.

Ths action we have taken will be a desperately needed “shot in the arm” for our ailing economy but we also need a long term strategy that will ensure America’s prosperity for future generations. One example of where we can take bold steps to address economic, national security, and environmental policy priorities is the energy sector. It is more important than ever for America to adopt an aggressive strategy to develop alternative forms of energy. Only by ending our addiction to oil will we be able to retain our competitive advantage as a nation and ensure a promising future for our children. Just as growth in information technology served as the driving for e behind the economic boom of the 1990′s, the development of green technology and green jobs will spur tremendous growth and offer long-term relief to the American economy by making us less dependent on energy from volatile areas of the world.

Again, I appreciate you taking time to participate in the survey and I look forward to maintaining this dialogue as Congress considers future measures to put our nation back on track. I will continue to keep you updated on this situation and, more generally, my work in Congress. If you would like to find more detailed information about the recovery package, you can go to www. recovery.gov — a site established by the Obama Administration dedicated to transparent and accountable government. If you would likw to sign up to see more direct updates from my office, please sign up for the Sarbanes Standard at http://www.sarbanes.house.gov
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Letter #5 (against troop increase in Iraq)
Rep. John Sarbanes
3/13/07

Thank you for contacting me about President Bush’s plan to escalate the American military presence in Iraq. I appreciate hearing from you about this important issue and I welcome the opportunity to respond.

As you’ll see from my attached statement, I am opposed to the President’s proposed plan for Iraq and I voted in favor of H.Con.Res. 63, a resolution disapproving of the deployment of more than 20,000 additional United States combat troops to Iraq. This measure passed the House on February 16, 2007 by a vote of 246 to 182, representinf another step in the steady and deliberate effort to change course in Iraq and get our troops out of harm’s way.

Again don’t hesitate for contacting me about this important issue. If I can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to get in touch with me.

ATTACHED STATEMENT:

Statement to the US House of Representatives on H.Con. Res. 63 (sources: http://capitolwords.org/date/2007/02/15/H1674-5_iraq-war-resolution/, & http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CREC-2007-02-15/html/CREC-2007-02-15-pt1-PgH1674-5.htm)

Madam Speaker, the resolution we are debating today is simple and direct. It declares strong support for our troops on the ground in Iraq and opposition to the President’s decision to send an additional 21,000 men and women into harm’s way. I wholeheartedly endorse the resolution and pray that the President will heed its call. Most agree now that it was a mistake to invade Iraq. Hearings in the Senate and the House are stripping away the last thin veneers of justification for that fateful decision. They are offering compelling evidence that the administration sacrificed wisdom, judgment, and conscience in favor of shock and awe.Many of us sense a similar impulse at work in this administration’s dealings with Iran. Let us serve notice, this Congress will not allow the administration to pursue yet another ill-fated mission. Madam Speaker, bringing our troops home from Iraq is no longer a whispered prayer; it is now the clarion call of the American people.One year ago those proposing a new direction in Iraq were labeled as unpatriotic and marginalized in the national discourse. But we have come a long way. Elections do matter. On November 7, the people in my district in Maryland and across the Nation sent a strong message.The next day Secretary Rumsfeld resigned. Shortly thereafter the Iraq Study Group issued its report sharply criticizing the war. And in the next few days the United States House of Representatives will pass this resolution signaling stiff opposition to the administration’s proposal for a troop surge in Iraq.To those patriotic Americans who have been relentless in their call for an end to the war, know this: collective voice has been heard. In my home State of Maryland, nearly 400 men and woman have died or been wounded in Iraq.Two days ago, one of my constituents reminded me that the war is no longer being measured in time, but in lives. To the families who have sacrificed so much and who have suffered the ultimate loss, do not fear for a moment that a change in our policy in Iraq, that the effort to stop the escalation and begin drawing down our troops in any way dilutes the value this country places on the service of your loved ones.History will treat harshly those policymakers at the highest levels who let ideology trump sound and informed judgment. It will fairly criticize politicians who have exploited this war for partisan gain. But it will reserve only pride and lasting gratitude for the sacrifice of our men and women in uniform amidst this sad tale of bungled intelligence and ill-advised policy. They alone are untarnished.Madam Speaker, I have never been to the war. Never kissed my wife and children goodbye, wondering whether I will ever see them again. Far from the harsh reality in Iraq, I am blessed with the sweet ebb and flow of life’s daily routines.But like many Americans who witness our soldiers dutifully pushing forward every day under impossible circumstances, I am ill at ease. I know that the current policy in Iraq will only lead to more pain for many families and for our country. Madam Speaker, the American people are tired, they are tired of rhetoric, they are tired of promises to put politics and partisanship aside when all they see is bickering and recrimination. Let’s give them hope. Let’s send a powerful message contained in this resolution, but let’s not stop there. Let all of us, the President, the House, the Senate, have the decency and dignity of purpose to put differences aside and work every day, beginning this day, to bring our troops home to their families, to their communities, and to a Nation that stands humbled by their sacrifice.
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Letter #6 (About Obamacare: This letter was prepared, published and mailed at taxpayer expense)
Rep. John Sarbanes
Sometime in August 2009 seemingly (exact date unknown)

As you know, health care reform is front and center on the national policy agenda. As a member of the Health Subcommittee of Energy and Commerce Committee, I have been fully engaged in the health care debate since the beginning of the year. On July 31st, my committee reported a comprehensive health reform bill (H.R. 3200) to the full House of Representatives. The bill will be considered on the House floor this fall, which gives members of Congress and the public time to discuss and debate the bill’s key elements. Your input is very important to me as this process continues.

I believe we have a good bill, which will address the public’s chief complaints about the current system. Of course, any time we undertake major change, it is natural for people to feel sone anxiety. Sadly, those who want to keep the status quo are exploiting people’s apprehension by spreading false information on the internet and in television ads. They are distorting the intentions of Congress and the content of health care reform legislation. That is why I am writing you to set the record straight on what is and what is not in the bill.

An American System
First I want to be clear that this proposal is not a radical attempt to eliminate private health insurance in favor of a government-run system. It does not seek to replicate the Canadian, British, French, or any other health system. The proposal I supported in the Energy and Commerce Committee will create a uniquely American health care system that builds on what works and fixes what doesn’t. If you like your doctor and your current plan, you can absolutely keep them if this propsal becomes law.

Value for Your Money
This bill takes a measured approach designed to ensure that you get high qualty care in return for the hard-earned premiums you pay each month. The bill will prohibit insurance companies from increasing your rates for pre-existing conditions, gender, or occupation. It will cap annual out of pocket expenses and do away with lifetime limits on how much insurance companies will cover. And it will do away with co-pays and deductibles for preventive care.

More Choices and More Affordable Coverage
For those who do not have health insurance, are looking to change plans, or are worried that they will lose their coverage because their job, there will be a new framework in place to give you options. The bill creates a health insurance exchange where individuals can choose from multiple plans and benefit from access to the kind of group rates that only large employers can offer now. This approach will also make health insurance more “portable” and give Americans the assurance that they can continue to receive health care if they change jobs, are laid off, or simply don’t like the plan offered through their employer.

A Public Option to Create Healthy Competition
Along with the many plans offered in thw exchange by familiar private insurers, there will also be a public health plan option that will offer some long-overdue competition for the private health insurance industry that currently has a stranglehold on the system. Enhanced competition in the health care market will reduce cost, promote innovation and provide recourse for those who are currently without coverage. The “public option” makes a lot of sense. Unfortunately, it has been widely characterized as a “government takeover.” This has been flatly refuted by the Congressional Budget Office, which projects that the public plan will draw approximately twelve million participants by 2019. That’s large enough to help influence best practices and push private insurers to provide consumers with quality service, but at 4% of the total population of our country, it’s about as far from a “government takeover” as you can get.

Having discussed some of the things the bill will do, I would like now to talk about some of the things it will NOT do:
- It does not require anyone to enter into a government-run health care plan.If you like your doctor and your current plan, you can absolutely keep them if this proposal becomes law. For those who want to study other plans, it will give you more choices at lower ratex than individuals can get in the current market.
- It does not attempt to “ration” care.Nothing in the bill empowers any government official to prohibit private health coverage of particular medications or treatments. It does funs scientific research that will empower doctors to make decisions about what workd beat for their patients and improve care.
- It does not provide subsidies for undocumented immigrants to purchase health insurance.The bill explicitly states “Nothing in this statute shall allow Federal payments for affordability credits on behalf of individuals who are not lawfully present in the United States.”
- The bill will not cause employers to “dump” their workers into the the public plan option. Some worry that large and small businesses will have an incentive to terminate coverage for their employees and dump them into the public option. In fact, these employers will have plenty of reasons to continue coverage. For example, small businesses are largely exempt from the coverage mandate in the bill and those that are obligated will have access to tax credits to help with their expenses. Large businesses will need to keep offering coverage in order to compete for workers in the market. That’s why the Congressional Budget Office projects that by the Year 2019 only about 4% of the population — about twelve million people — will be in the public plan.

A bill of this importance will not be rushed through Congress. Since January, the three House committees of jurisdiction have held more than 20 hearings on all aspects of the health care system. These committes released a discussion draft in June, introduced a formal bill by July, and each conducted through markups of the bill. The full House is likely to take up the bill in the fall and the Senate must follow suit. Differences between the House and Senate bills must be reconciled by a conference committee.

I hope this information is useful to you as the Congress continues to make progress on health care legislation. I believe it is possible to make intelligent reforms to our health care system that expand coverage and improve quality of care. I also believe there are many areas where we can reduce cost by eliminating waste and making our system more efficient. The status quo is unsustainable for our economy and I am convinced that long term security will be elusive until we fix our health care system. If you have access to the internet and would like more information about the health care reform bill, please visit the Energy and Commerce website at

http://www.energycommerce.house.gov

. If you have specific questions, feel free to contact my office at 410-832-8890
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Is a good deed enough?

This week I’ve been writing some articles and doing some other stuff. Yesterday, my dad and I were going around Towson, the capital of Baltimore County, and there was an elderly white lady on the sidewalk with a shopping cart. I had seen similar people in DC before and it almost made me cry. She was yelling (I still don’t know why) and it probably annoyed people no doubt. My dad honked at her and I chastised him greatly for it & we went back. I talked to her and she said she had been homeless for over a year. She told us she sleeps in a bus shelter and smiled about the good times she had. I liked that she was very hopeful. I eventually gave her five dollars and wished her luck. Just before I got back in the car, a punk kid said something about random acts of kindness making the world a better place. This brings me to one central question: do Marylanders think the poor are invisible?

Let us first recognize the reality. In the US as a whole, from sources I’ve read over 3.5 million people experience homelessness every year and approximately 842,000 people every week. In one of Maryland’s biggest cities, Baltimore, the “streets are home to at least 3,002 people on a given night, one-third of whom are chronically homeless” according to the National Alliance to End Homelessness (some have said this is over 4,000!). In Baltimore County where I was, the Baltimore Sun wrote in January 2012 that “the largest increases in homeless populations are notable for where they are occurring: in the suburban rings around cities” in places like Anne Arundel, Baltimore and Howard Counties and Baltimore City. However, this only accounted for students. From what I could find it just seems the amount of homelessness in Maryland is rising especially in places like Baltimore. Healthcare for the homeless says 50,000 Marylanders are homeless each year on average! According to the Baltimore County government website, about “891 individuals are homeless in Baltimore County at a point in time,” one quarter of whom are families, 75 percent who not part of families. Even with this amount there are only “517 emergency and transitional shelter beds for individuals and families in the County,” which means that 374 aren’t allocated beds! But considering numerous homeless don’t want to be found, this is just an estimate.

This seems to be a serious problem but that ignores the societal view. Part of what Michael Harrington wrote in his classic book in 1962, The Other America still rings true in American society:

“There is a familiar America. It is celebrated in speeches and advertised on television and in the magazines…In all this, there was an implicit assumption that the basic grinding economic problems had been solved in the United States…there existed another America. In it dwelt somewhere between 40,000,000 and 50,000,000 citizens of this land. They were poor [still] still are…The other america…are the unskilled workers, the migrant farm workers, the aged, the minorities, and all the others who live in the economic underworld of American life…The millions who are poor in the United States tend to become increasingly invisible…Now the American city has been transformed. The poor still inhabit the miserable housing in the central areas, but they are increasingly isolated from contact with, or sight of, anybody else. Middle-class women coming in from Suburbia on a rare trip may catch the merest glimpse of the other America on the way to an evening at the theater, but their children are segregated in suburban schools…In short, the very development of the American city has removed poverty from the living, emotional experience of millions upon millions of middle-class Americans. Living out in the suburbs, it is easy to assume that ours is, indeed, an affluent society…Clothes make the poor invisible too: America has the best-dressed poverty the world has ever known…It is much easier in the United States to be decently dressed than it is to be decently housed, fed, or doctored. Even people with terribly depressed incomes can look prosperous…And finally, the poor are politically invisible…The people of the other America do not, by far and large, belong to unions, to fraternal organizations, or to political parties. They are without lobbies of their own; they put forward no legislative program. As a group, they are atomized. They have no face; they have no voice. That the poor are invisible is one of the most important things about them. They are not simply neglected and forgotten as in the old rhetoric of reform; what is much worse, they are not seen.”

While this doesn’t perfectly fit with homelessness and my story originally about a town, not a city, it still works. The reason is, homeless people are often poor and the poor are often homeless. Both groups of people are invisible. They do have more of a voice in terms of political groups than back in Harrington’s time (1962) but now its more drowned out by money than from affluence. Nowadays, half of America is at or near poverty. Times are tough. More than 70% of Americans are bankrupt.

What can we do? Well, I think bringing the poor and homeless out of the shadows, not making them invisible is a start. Already, the closure of Camp 83 put more light on this lower caste in society as I wrote about and reblogged articles on numerous occasions (here,
here, here, here, and here).
Secondly, pushing for enforcement of Maryland law that attacks on homeless are hate crimes (which are a nationwide problem). Thirdly, we must push for solutions as I called for in the aftermath of the destruction of Camp 83, but that is not enough. As I say always, there must be nonviolent resistance like picketing, vigils, leafletting, protest art, protest music and poetry, community education and consciousness raising, lobbying, tax resistance, electronic civil disobedience, civil disobedience, principled refusal of awards/honours, and general strikes. Stuff like that will turn the tide. We must also organize and demonstrate in marches like the recent Poor People’s Campaign March to DC (Thanks to my parents which refuse to go, I couldn’t and I was very sad) and those done by the Occupy Movement.

More corrupt stuff happening in Baltimore City

I didn’t have that much time to put this post together but I thought I’d write about something rather than have a gaping hole of over five days. So here’s some of the recent stuff that’s happened in Baltimore, thanks to the Baltimore Brew.

SUING A SLUMLORD [link]

“As she’s watched the block across the street from her East Baltimore home go downhill over the decades, Jeanine Jones long ago gave up on getting help from the city. Trash continually piles up outside the nine vacant, boarded-up row-houses on the north side of her block, the 700 block of East 21st Street. Tall grass and weeds grow in patches in front of the buildings. But Jones, whose home is on the south side – the side with the owner-occupied homes and flowerpots with freshly-planted hostas – says the city ignores her requests for help cleaning up the blight that greets her when she steps out her front door…Jones had a mixed reaction to news this week that one of the nine blighted units – 714 East 21st Street – is part of the Community Law Center’s lawsuit against its owner, the Texas-based company that the group says is possibly the city’s largest out-of-town “slumlord.”…The $8 million lawsuit, filed Tuesday in Baltimore City Circuit Court, challenges the practice of buying properties at tax sale and “leaving them for dead with unaddressed city code violations,”…Wizig was targeted because he appeared to be the biggest single offending property owner in the city…Grace Willis, of the Greater Greenmount Community Association, says city redevelopment efforts such as the $85 million Telesis Barclay project on the west side of Greenmount Avenue are a positive step – but that residents are still faced with nuisance properties on the east side of Greenmount…Carol Ott, meanwhile, who runs the blog Baltimore Slumlord Watch, points the finger squarely at political leaders like the mayor and city council….The lawsuit provoked no apparent interest among top officials assembled at the Board of Estimates’ weekly meeting yesterday…City Solicitor George Nilson, asked about the lawsuit, said he had not been aware of its existence until he read about it in the morning newspaper…Dunkerton noted that the Wizig suit will be a test of a state law revised last year in Annapolis that “lets communities step into the shoes of code enforcement.”…The strengthened law makes it easier to sue property owners for the damage that blighted properties cause in a community.”

Catonsville 9 still revered [link]

“Are the Catonsville Nine a little blurry and Insta-gram-hued for you, decades after those Catholic activists burned draft files in a parking lot behind the Knights of Columbus Hall out on Frederick Road? A new documentary, “Hit & Stay,” premiering locally at the Maryland Film Festival next week, brings that bold act and those dire times into sharp focus. We go down the rabbit hole via shaky black-and-white footage shot that day, May 17, 1968…But the Catonsville action had the narrative hook of the dashing priest-brothers Philip and Daniel Berrigan, defying the pro-war Catholic Church hierarchy, an angle the activists knew would prove irresistible media bait…The filmmakers tell the story using old footage, recent interviews with surviving members of the group and their supporters, explicit images of war horrors, like the ravaged flesh of Vietnamese children burned by napalm, and the reflections of eminences of the Left such as Howard Zinn, Noam Chomsky, Bill Ayers and Amy Goodman…That the draft was stopped by the bold actions of regular folk, not heroic saints, is just one of the insights that emerged for Tropea from the six-year process of making the documentary, a project he undertook after writing on the subject for his masters thesis at University of Maryland Baltimore County…Baltimoreans will recognize many of the people and places in the film. The massive march downtown for the trial, for example, started at the Wyman Park Dell and flowed down Howard Street…Had the government’s case – which was “really insubstantial” – prevailed, Tropea said, they could have faced serious prison time. Finally, he said, he was struck by the way the U.S. government had continued to pursue deadly military adventurism abroad but with less resistance from a disengaged mainstream culture.”

Millions in sewer contracts pushed through BOE [Board of Estimates] [link] [also see this one]

“The Rawlings-Blake administration won approval to pay $27 million to three consulting companies to help manage city sewer projects, as the head of the agency that sought the contracts broke a tie vote at today’s Board of Estimates meeting. The “yes” vote by Alfred H. Foxx, whose Public Works Department supervises the city’s sewer operations, allowed the contracts to pass, 3-2, over the opposition of City Council President Bernard C. “Jack” Young and City Comptroller Joan Pratt. Foxx said the contracts are essential for the city to meet a federally-imposed deadline to fix its aging sewer system. Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake and City Solicitor George Nilson also voted in favor of the contracts…The Brew disclosed the terms of the three contracts yesterday and noted that the fees would greatly exceed the city’s maximum fee for consultants. This fact was seized upon by Pratt today, who said that each $9 million contract would exceed the city’s “upset limit,” or maximum fee, by 18 times. But by winning a waiver from this limit today, the contracts will go into effect for three years without further board action…Pratt called the arrangement further evidence that the city depends too much on consultants to do often routine work…Given the extent of the rebuilding program required by EPA – with estimates of total costs exceeding $1 billion – Foxx said his department’s Wastewater Construction Management Division needs the consultants to supplement its staff.”

Giving protesters Balt. Sun badmouthed a voice

For a good amount of time, I had some trust in the Baltimore Sun…until the past year especially with the possible buying of the Tribune Company (which owns the Sun) by billionaire bandits, the Koch Brothers, who have deformed the “Tea Party” movement with gobs of money. This time, it was clear which side the Sun was taking.

In a recent article by Jon Meoli in the Sun, he slammed the protesters without clearly explaining why they opposed the construction of a new school. Meoli made it seem that the groundbreaking of the school was serene before the protesters interrupted it. Specifically he said that an “eruption [of authority by Kamenetz], which lasted just under three minutes, came after protesters carrying signs that read “Build neighborhood schools not commuter schools,” drowned out remarks by Kamenetz and Board of Education President Lawrence Schmidt.” He further noted that:

“opponents of the 700-seat elementary school at Mays Chapel Park believe it will take away the area’s only green space and is a bad place for a school because there are few children in the area…around 75 protesters turned up at the groundbreaking to try and steal the spotlight from county officials…During Schmidt’s remarks, the crowd chanted “Save our park,” at the school board president, who himself is a Mays Chapel resident. When Schmidt said he looked forward to returning to the site for the school’s opening, a protester yelled that they didn’t want him to come back. Kamenetz’s speech followed, but not before he engaged with some of the more vocal opponents in what became a shouting match between himself and a handful of audience members…Kamenetz shouted down the dissenters from the podium and alternated between asking them to be quiet and to allow him to speak…Once the crowd calmed, Kamenetz explained that the school was necessary to accommodate elementary school overcrowding in the York Road corridor…Officials have said the Mays Chapel school will help alleviate overcrowding at eight schools in the central corridor: Cockeysville, Lutherville, Padonia, Pinewood, Pot Spring, Riderwood, Timonium and West Towson…After a second public hearing in January, the board approved the site again…However, Project Open Space laws protect the land, and the Save Mays Chapel Park Committee, made up of school opponents, has filed a lawsuit claiming the council skirted real estate regulations in making the swap…opponents still believe they can stop the school…The protester’s outbursts cast a shadow on the day for others in attendance: the parents and children from Pinewood and Pot Spring, and school officials who put their time into the project.”

There’s a lot more to this article but mostly it either quotes the public officials there or quotes some parents that is distressed a child had to hear the protesters. I have a sense that such ideas and making it seem like the protesters were trying to steal the limelight puts them a negative light even though their position is explained (sort of). At the same time, WBAL called the protesters “hecklers.”

Why would Meoli write such a negative article? Consider his past campaign contributions [according to the Maryland Campaign Reporting Information System] to politicians and groups since 2007 including [parties aren't mentioned because it is largely irrelevant in that he supported people of both parties]

1. Senator Nancy Jacobs ($9,400.00) [sponsored one of the bills that would have lowered corporate tax rates this legislative year, SB 411, this one sponsored by the Democratic majority leader, which I wrote out in the past]
2. Howard County Executive David R. Craig ($4,930.00)
3. Former Governor of Maryland and Sun columnist Bob Ehrlich ($4,000.00)
4. Senator Barry Glassman ($1,250.00)
5. Curren Governor Martin O’Malley ($1,000.00)
6. President of Harford County Council Billy Boniface ($1,000.00)
7. Harford County Council member Mary Ann Lisanti ($1,000.00)
8. Former Baltimore County Executive Jim Smith ($900.00) [Kamenetz during his campaign praised his work on numerous occasions: here, here and here among other places]
9. Delegate H. Wayne Norman Jr. ($530.00)
10. Delegate Keiffer J. Mitchell, Jr. ($500.00) [also ran for Mayor against Sheila Dixon in 2007]
11. Delegate Mary-Dulany James [M-d James] ($500.00)
12. Ken Holt ($500.00) [the person who ran against Kamenetz in the Democratic primary to become County Executive]
13. Senator J. B. Jennings ($200.00)
14. Health Policy Leadership Alliance ($100.00) [connected to the hospital and medical industry]
15. Maryland Attorney General Doug Gansler ($100.00)
16. Howard County Council member James V. McMahan ($100.00) [also called Capt'n Jim]
17. Current Lt. Governor Anthony Brown ($5.00)

These contributions don’t really prove anything as none of these people are those on the Baltimore County Board of Education, and no one on the County Council (Tom Quirk, Vicki Almond, Todd Huff, Kenneth N. Oliver, David Marks, Cathy A. Bevins, and John Olszewski Sr.). However, it does show that Meoli has bribed politicians (each contribution is a bribe) to work in his interest. One must still remember that the Sun endorsed Kamenetz in 2010 so would be in their interest, as they noted shockingly that “the job of leading Baltimore County government is not unlike running a major corporation…
The county would be better served by Mr. Kamenetz’s depth of knowledge when it comes time to navigate the rough waters ahead…This spark of progressiveness is also something we’d like to see out of a county with so much untapped potential.” In the past I have deliberately criticized Kamenetz for possibly having business connections to push forward a plan to close Towson Manor Park (which after a lot of public pressure he backed off), the almost $1,000.000 Pollard Towing gave him in campaign contributions, and the numerous corporate contributors that forked money into his campaign coffers since 2006.

Now, instead of getting all tied up in trying to figure out why Meoli would write a negative article, it seems important to understand what the activists have to say in this fight. Contributor James Mezner to the Lutherville-Timonium Patch wrote that “A group of Mays Chapel residents filed a lawsuit against Baltimore County Council related to the proposed Mays Chapel Elementary School….[saying that] a land-swap approved in January by the council to build the school at Mays Chapel Park was done illegally, since part of the park land was bought with open space funds through the Department of Natural Resources…the lawsuit is only part of the group’s concerns. Its members are also looking out for the children who would be bused far from their homes to attend the proposed school.” While this was helpful, I looked up the group described by the Sun earlier and it even had its own website!

To fully understand their position, I wanted to present their position paper from their website which notes an interesting history implying that they fought this before, something the Baltimore Sun DOES NOT mention, [important parts are bolded]:

The Baltimore County Board of Education has proposed building an additional elementary school in the Lutherville/Timonium area to alleviate the overcrowding of schools along the York Road corridor. Once again, the Mays Chapel Park is one of two sites being considered for a proposed 700+ student elementary school.

An article written by Liz Bowie, Education Reporter for The Baltimore Sun, was published in its Thursday, October 20^th issue.  Ms. Bowie wrote that the local parents claim that communities around Towson are attracting more young families who want access to the county and good schools and, because of the economic downturn, parents are sending their children to public schools, instead of paying private school tuition that can top $20,000 a year.

Whistler Burch, co-chairman of the Save Mays Chapel Park Committee, was quoted in the same article stating “Within one square mile there are 2,200 residential units.  We think there are better solutions.”  While county school officials are counting on an elementary school at Mays Chapel to ease overcrowding, the Save Mays Chapel Park Committee is determined to stop the construction.

The 20 acre Mays Chapel Park consists of 10 acres owned by the Baltimore County Board of Education, and the other 10 acres owned by Baltimore County.  The 10 acres owned by Baltimore County, was bought ironically with State Program Open Space Funds. The ten acres owned by the Baltimore County Board of Education was developed at a cost of approximately $2,500,000 and is managed by the Baltimore County Department of Recreation & Parks.

The Park and its athletic fields are presently used extensively by the Baltimore County Parks and Recreation for the youth of Baltimore County, along with the large senior population residing in Mays Chapel that use this park and its paths throughout the wooded area for exercise and needed socialization.

There are other solutions to the overcrowding issue than building a new school in either of the proposed locations.  The solution should be the soon-to-be-vacant Carver Center for the Arts and Technology School in Towson.  In the near term it may be used to house the Stoneleigh students while their facility undergoes an addition and refurbishment.  Carver can then be refurbished and an addition added, if required, and then become the new Towson East Elementary School.  This solution should be quicker and cheaper to complete than building a new school.  In addition to the cost saving, its location would better accommodate bus traffic and both neighborhoods would maintain their most needed “Open Space.”  Another solution would be to add on to existing overcrowded elementary schools, therefore allowing students within the geographical area of that school to go to the school closest to their residence.  This would alleviate the problem of redistricting all of the schools in this overcrowded corridor.

The Save Mays Chapel Park Committee needs your help!  Go on line, www.SaveMaysChapelPark.com, download the petition, sign it and email, fax, or mail the petition.  Also, write to your County representatives – County Executive, Councilman, Delegate and Senator – and tell them that you oppose the construction of a school at Mays Chapel Park.  The web site shows two lists of names from which to choose, depending upon whether you live north or south of Padonia Road.  If you want to volunteer your time to help the Save Mays Chapel Park Committee fight this initiative, contact Whistler Burch, co-chairman of the Committee, at SaveMaysChapelPark@gmail.com, or call him at 410-913-7122.

Help the Committee save Mays Chapel Park.  Our Park should not be allowed to disappear forever!

Here are some more comments on the park from the now-closed petition on the subject, showing the anger of ordinary neighborhood residents, numbering 182 in all:

• Please consider the need for land and neighborhood conservation and the significant tax base the residents of Mays Chapel hold who would be little benefited by construction of the school. I also believe that the proposal has the potential to impose fear on the social fabric of the area due to unwanted influx and the unknowns of increased commercialization.
• I live within 50 yards of the park and am opposed to the school!
• We are considering moving to Mays Chapel and were upset to hear about the proposed school.
• If this school is built I am told there will be redistricting necessary to fill the seats. My family lives in Mays Chapel and we enjoy the ability to walk our children to school at Pinewood. This new school would force me to drive my children to school each morning. What sense does that make??? I have further concerns over redistricting changing our middle school as well from Ridgely to Cockeysville. Pinewood is only over by 20 students. Not a crisis in my mind. This proposed location is all wrong. This school would be almost entirely a commuter school. Has the county considered the added cost of fuel for all of the many buses that would be necessary to support the student population?
• This would be an absolute disgrace to put a school in place of the park where that section of the park is mainly retired seniors who moved there because of the park and wildlife, walking path, etc.
•  Seriously there’s plenty of other unoccupied spaces around. Go someplace else, don’t ruin my damn park.
• We need to keep a least SOME open spaces for everyone!
• Mays Chapel Park is a beautiful, well used park that promotes the health and well-being of the surrounding communities.
• Contact me if can assist Save Mays Chapel Park!
• There are no where near enough athletic fields around here for our children. Building a school at the expense of these fields is idiotic. There MUST be a better location for the school.
• One of the key reasons I moved here last year is because of the park, which is a central part of the community. The local infrastructure does not support an elementary school. It’s a ridiculous idea all around.
• It would be terrible to take away this park from the residents of the area.
• This plan would literally be a big mistake! So many benefit form this park and putting a school there, is not beneficial to anyone. I”m sure there are other locations that would would be better to accommodate the plans for a new school! This area is certainly not structured for a plan like that!
• Build the school where it is needed!! There is clearly a much higher level of overcrowding elsewhere. Why waste already stretched resources on building a brand new school from the ground up when an existing school (Carver) could be updated and used? GOVERNMENT WASTE!!
• Parks and recreation are equally important; and there are a lot children that have already started at a school and have forged great friendships
• My daughter currently walks to Pinewood ES, we are only steps away from the crosswalk and can see the school from our house. It would be such a waste of money to pay for the gas to bus those in this area to another school. I want you to try to explain to my daughter why she wouldn’t go to the school right across the street and take her away from her friends! I can’t believe busing from this area is even being considered.
• Population density is mostly east of I83, so the new school should be built on that side of I83, where it is truly needed.
• You just spent $2.5 million making that a green space, and you know Mays Chapel did not turn out to be a dense family location, so why would you do this? Look at the already-zoned, already marked “School Site” (on county maps!) at Orchard Hills, just off Bellona at Charles. Our school board at work – not doing their homework!
• We just moved here from Potomac and it took our daughter a long time to adjust to a new school – Pinewood ES, 3rd grade. She is finally very happy there as are we with the special services she receives. I would not want her to be sent to a different school which would probably happen as a result of redistricting. Nor do I want the disappearance of open spaces and parkland.
• Our Towns of Strandhill community represents 39 homeowners who will be affected by any short-sighted action by BCPS and our PUD association directors. Since the BSPS (Baltimore County School System) was granted ownership of the land, the practical complexion of the community has changed and density has increased beyond any realistic scope of the original community plan. The school is not in the best interest of the community. BCPS knows this and are trying to force it here without public hearing. It becomes a complicated and inconvenient “benefit” for BCPS families to be redistricted and routed to this proposed site. Nobody wins with a school here. The plans must be stopped and an alternate selection made. Sign the petition against the school.
• Elementary schools should be built in the neighborhoods where the students live. The Mays Chapel area has very few elementary school age children.
• Please do not take our wonderful park. This community is already densely populated and the demographics are not conducive for an elementary school. Our park is one of the few open outdoor recreational areas servicing not only this but many surrounding communities. In addition the added congestion to the roads and the redistricting and busing of students are major issues. Thanks in advance for your consideration
• I was very disappointed to hear about the plans of Baltimore County to eliminate Mays Chapel Park in order to build a new elementary school. This park serves as a peaceful and tranquil location for the senior citizens in that area, which is actually one of the main reasons many live close to the park. Please consider a different area for the sake of all who enjoy the park as it is.
• Please keep this park! It is one of a very few paved trails in the area (and the only one I ever use).
• A LOVELY PLACE FOR A WALK, THE DOG, AND SPORTS. IT IS VERY MUCH NEEDED AND WOULD BE SORELY MISSED BY THE MANY WHO VISIT THE PARK.
• I believe this site is valuable as open park space as it is. It is highly used and valued in its current form. Putting a school on this site would be devastating for the traffic situation on already busy Padonia Rd, and also eliminate available open space for residents in that area.
• I’ve used this park for years. I would hate to lose it!
• please don’t build a school at this site, many children use it to play, and seniors use the area for much needed exercise.
• The only open space in neighborhood seniors can utilize for a variety purposes. Safe and quite place.
• Mays Chapel Park is a beautiful environmental part of my neighborhood used for children and adults of all ages. It is family and community. It is morally, healthy and value orientated.
• The area that was designated for the school 15 years ago was used for MORE CONDOS!!!!! Baltimore County POLITICS!!!!
• This is a senior community, and a school would not be conducive to the life this wonderful people have come to enjoy!
• IF CARVER CENTER BECOMES AVAILABLE IN A TIMERLY FASHION OBVIOUS CHOICE IS TO USE THIS FACILITY, NOT SPEND MONEY ON NEW CONSTRUCTION. IN ADDITION,WE HAVE ALL TOO LITTLE OPEN SPACE AS IT IS. WE DON”T WANT TO LOSE WHAT LITTLE WE HAVE.
• I see directly into the park and the lacrosse goal net that is used in the warm months. A school building and school buses would geatly detract from my enjoyment of the present quiet, open view i enjoy. .
• the area has mostly seniors whose wellbeing would be greatly impacted negatively by the noise, traffic problems(cars & busses) and loss walking trails, etc.
• I chose Mays Chapel for peace and quiet a senior needs, plus exersizing with fellow seniors, AND it was promised to be that enviornment
• Why build what is already standing? Recycling can include buildings – stop the waste!!
• Keep Park as it is now and build school elsewhere!
• This park was created for the residents of this community for athletics for youths and excercise and enjoyment for the senior population for Mays Chapel. Select another location that won’t impose the B of E’s will on a peaceful and settled community. Perhaps place the school in one of the Board members neighborhood . Hits home doesn’t it?
• I moved in this area for the park. Senior citizen need a park to walk
• Many of us have many fond memories of this park. May we continue to make them!
• This park is valued by, and important to, all generations! Please preserve it!
• This area is already overbuilt and park is used by kids and seniors
• There are VERY FEW children in the immediate vicinity of Mays Cha pels Park while there are MANY people without young children. I’m sure you could find a site that would better serve the children.
• There are a lot of seniors that live off Roundwood who walk- they use the trails and the park ALL THE TIME. A school will bring more traffice to that area- a light at the other end of Grauls and will take away why the seniors moved there. The other school on Old Bosley is fine and out of the way. Mays Chapel is an established community and does not need the headaches, the traffic, the crowding, etc.
• This park is desperately needed to serve the seniors in the high density housing (high rises) across the street. To zone that area for high density and then take the only park away would be terrible and outrageous.
• It’s anti–environmental proposal. Why destroy woodland for more concrete? The area is already crowded with buildings. The infrastrucure won’t tolerate more traffic. Can Seniors who use the park ever get a break?
• I walk in the park all the time and enjoy it. I don’t want to lose it.
• The added congestion to the area would not be good planning
• It is not logical to build a school in the only open area of a congested neighborhood occupied primarily by senior citizens.
• Too few children live within walking distance of this site so virtually everyone will have to be bussed in. This is the only green space in the area and it needs to remain as such. Consider reopening the Loch Raven school and expanding existing facilities which would be much less expensive.
• One of the best parks for seniors walking, kids rec…allows this to be a pedestrian community. Critical for all the older people living there.
• please dont build an elementary school. we need this area for residents and their dogs. please there is not enough room for a school
• my dog will be so, so sad!!!! please save the park. it’s so beautiful and we love it.
• Mays Chapel is a densly populated area with a lot of traffic on Padonia Rd. Building a school in this area is not in the best interest of the children nor the population who reside in this area. Too much traffic, not enough green recreation area & not that many children live within walking distance. Please reconsider your other options & find vertical space to enlarge the schools…
• We need to save our limited open space.
• Existing schools have space to enlarge their facility. Construction on new property would cost much more. Our taxes are not to be wasted but they should be used as effectively as possible. This school administration needs to review their budget and make wise budget expenditures.
• lived here for 15 years , expect on living here forever , a well liked park for us senior citizens , flat , shaded , beautiful landscaped, a place to connect with other people, not ant other walking areas close . much needed area for to walk , schools and buses would take so much away from that beautiful park.
• Already too much traffic on Padonia Road. The Mays Chapel Athletic Field is always in use and their are two few available for young activities. Too dense a population already in area and with parking on one side emergency vehicles find it hard to access the area. Too many seniors that do not pay attention while driving and have already taken down several brick pillars.
• This is a wonderful little park. We enjoy walking here most days.
• http://www.thepetitionsite.com/33/help-to-plant-2-trees-daily-20111020/ http://www.thepetitionsite.com/41/take-action-care2-members-visitors/ support!
• School overcrowding is certainly a major issue, but closing down this park will be detrimental to the physical and mental well-being of countless invividuals who live in the Mays Chapel community, and enjoy the park on a daily basis. Please reconsider your consideration and look for an alternative location to build the elementary school.
• Let’s fight this as strongly as we did three years ago!

Personally, I can see what from an environmental perspective this would be a horrible idea. Getting rid of just this park won’t help out the habitat of the animals that live in the wooded and non-wooded area, making these animals homeless if the park is destroyed. Additionally, it seems that all of the energy used to build the school and bring students to the seemingly commuter school would caused increased greenhouse gases, contributing to global warming along with threatening the area’s sense of community. Not only this but more of those evil impervious surfaces will be created which creates more runoff after there is already enough of those types of surfaces in this county.

Where have the posts been, man?

Well, I’ve got to say I’ve been busy in recent days with a bunch of stuff through the whole semester. I’ve been thinking of doing a bunch of stuff, maybe making a human rights abuses by mayors (here and here), county executives in the State as a whole including crackdown on Occupy, etc… This would be based on violations of the Maryland Declaration of Rights, the US Constitution, International Human Rights Instruments, and of course the UN Declaration of Human Rights. Also there’s this really nice site called b’more mobile. Otherwise I guess its good to tell about some headlines in the state recently [specifically Baltimore]:

“When the illegal dirt bikers come through…South Baltimore, sometimes 50 or more of them at a time, the sound is deafening and the sight is frightening…Some residents…will call the police. Others are afraid to…Yesterday, the Baltimore Police Department announced a plan to crack down on illegal dirt bikes, the latest attack in a long-running battle…The department created an email account – dirtbikes@baltimorepolice.org – where residents can send anonymous reports about where illegal dirt bikes are being ridden or kept in the city…So will seized dirt bikes just wind up back on the street? Delgado said those who can show documented proving ownership will get them back, but that stolen or unclaimed dirt bikes will be destroyed…As the police and anyone who travels Reisterstown Road near Druid Hill Park know, that area is the center of Baltimore’s defiant, wheelie-popping illegal dirt bike culture…Asked to cite any recent instances of serious problems with dirt bike riders, Delgado mentioned a recent incident in West Baltimore in which a dirt bike rider was shot.”- http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2013/04/18/illegal-dirt-bikes-featured-in-film-decried-in-neighborhoods-now-targeted-by-police/

“In February 1967, a few concerned residents of Fells Point banded together to challenge the merits of an eight-lane elevated highway bisecting southeast Baltimore. Their activism so infuriated then-City Councilman William Donald Schaefer that he cut short a public hearing and, three months later, rammed through an ordinance condemning hundreds of homes. But the citizens persisted and, a decade later, Mayor Schaefer agreed to halt the “East-West Expressway” through Fells Point and Canton, kicking off the area’s stunning success story of rejuvenated communities…Calling themselves the “Right Rail Coalition” (a pun on “light rail,” the term used by the Maryland Transit Administration to describe the Red Line), the group is led by several Canton residents, a high-powered lawyer and a veteran of the expressway fight. The group is calling for a streetcar network, running on city roads, to replace the eastern leg of the Red Line – a plan that follows the streetcar-building programs underway in Washington, D.C., and other cities. Their proposal has won the backing of state Senator William C. “Bill” Ferguson IV (46th district)…Even though it’s been talked about for years, the Red Line – the biggest public works project in Baltimore’s history – is still in an early phase of development…Given these imponderables – and the sense by some politicians in Annapolis and Baltimore that the Red Line has grown too costly – the streetcar proposal is gathering steam. In opposing the Red Line’s route through Canton, the Right Rail Coalition says they are not NIMBY’s trying to derail the project because it may run (literally in some cases) through their back yards…Rail Right member Art Cohen says the Westside line would serve a community that was uprooted by the expressway and provide environmental and social “justice” as required by federal law…East of downtown, the Red Line would tunnel through Fells Point before emerging at Boston Street near Montford Avenue and Hudson Street. The line’s resurfacing is a huge problem, according to the coalition…The MTA estimated that Boston Street would undergo “heavy construction” for up to 2½ years. The project would either require the closing of the thoroughfare for long periods…The news caused an uproar among Boston Street residents, who immediately began phoning local elected officials to complain…Kittleson & Associates, a transit engineering group, plotted four streetcar lines radiating from downtown – as well as a circulator route along Broadway and North Avenue – that would roughly cost the same…Ferguson says a neighborhood-based streetcar network should be explored in Baltimore.”- http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2013/04/16/pro-transit-coalition-seeks-alternatives-to-red-line-on-east-side/

“The speed cameras that the Board of Estimates has agreed to buy from the Brekford Corp. are 18% more expensive than the speed cameras offered by the city’s former vendor In fact, Brekford’s price is considerably higher than those that were offered by Xerox State & Local Solutions – and only marginally lower than a third bidder, Redflex Traffic Systems, according to city documents…An upstart in the traffic photo enforcement business, Brekford started as a security technology provider. A prominent member on its board is Douglas DeLeaver, whose long career in law enforcement includes being chief of the Maryland Transit Administration (MTA) Police. Another director is Jessie Lee Jr., executive director of the National Organization of Black Law Enforcement Executives, which has  longstanding connections to the Baltimore City Police. The head of Brekford’s speed camera division, Maurice R. Nelson, was hired from Montgomery County’s automated traffic enforcement program…The November contract was submitted to the board as a “revenue contract” that would not cost city taxpayers any money. The vendor would service the city’s 72 existing speed cameras and other upfront costs…Mayor Rawlings-Blake and her two appointees, Nilson and Ben Meli, representing Public Works Director Alfred Foxx, voted for the $2.2 million award, as did Jack Young. Pratt’s was the single “no” vote.”- http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2013/04/19/new-speed-cameras-will-cost-more-not-less-from-citys-preferred-vendor/

Baltimore City favors developers over people

Once again, the city government is ready to give developers a big tax break. This follows the continuing failure of downtown redevelopment in places like Inner Harbor.  Mayor Stephanie Failings-Blake is back at it again.

Baltimore Brew recently reported that the city is trying to bring in development through tax breaks which will supposedly bring more people to the city. They explained that these tax breaks are “a wrinkle on the city’s PILOT (payments in lieu of taxes)  program – which subsidized the building of Harbor East and other swanky properties – by offering 15 years of property tax breaks to developers.” This tax break was brought on when the newly merged Exelon “picked Harbor Point…for its new regional headquarters [after being] vigorously lobbied…to locate either in the downtown or near the Inner Harbor.”  Also this measure could result in zero property taxes for developers and a rebate given to them! This doesn’t support the poor people of the city because the bill doesn’t “specifically provide for low-income housing” but calls for houses basically at “monthly rents affordable to professionals.” The Brew also wrote about this days before. There is one other recent business friendly move: granting a contract of over $2.2 million dollars to Brekford Corporation to put in place new speed cameras. This is interesting because the members on the panel approved such a measure.

Now, I was thinking why this is the case. I looked at the city government for starters. It is already well-known that there is a Democratic party machine in the city itself. When Libertarian, Green and Republican candidates ran in 2011, they were defeated because the turnout of the voters was so low, not because of their ideas necessarily. I decided to look at the Baltimore City Council for starters. This doesn’t mean people like the mayor, who I’ve already wrote about in the past about her corruption by corporate forces (here and here). Here’s all the people on the council and the breakdown of their corporate contributions from there thanks to publicly available information from the Maryland State Board of Elections [note that almost all of them received money from big trade unions]*:

1. Mary Pat Clarke [Chair of Education Committee]–> tied to the Democratic Party machine (sort of) and was funded by business interests at the beginning but not so much anymore.
2. James B. Kraft [Chair of Judiciary and Legislative Investigations Committee, Vice Chair, Budget and Appropriations committee and Vice Chair, Land Use and Transportation committee]–> received money from PACs of 1st Mariner Bank, Restaurant Association of MD, GREATER BALTIMORE BOARD OF REALTORS, REALTORS PAC [Maryland], Constellation Energy, MARYLAND COCA COLA ENTERPRISES EMPLOYEES and HARBOR ENTERPRISE CENTER LLC., Bollinger Energy Corporation, VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC. GOOD GOVERNMENT CLUB, AMERICAN SUGAR REFINING INC., Chesapeake Real Estate Group, LLC., and THE WINNER DISTRIBUTING COMPANY among others.
3. Brandon Scott [Vice Chair of Public Safety committee] –> Received money from Frankford Towing, Inc., Colspring Co., Inc., McCray Properties, LLC., and Verizon Good Government Club. A lot of individual contributions
4. Bob (Robert) Curran [Chair of Health and Labor committees]–> received money from the Maryland Soft Drink Association PAC, First Mariner Bank Political Action Committee, Constellation Energy Group State PAC, Comcast PAC, American Sugar Refining, Burlington Holdings LLC., Berman Towing Inc., Carbond Inc., and Domino Foods Inc., among others
5. Bill Henry [Chair of Housing and Community Development committee, Vice Chair, Taxation, Finance and Economic Development committee and Vice Chair of Education committee]–> received money from the Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors, Association of Maryland Pilots PAC, Comcast PAC, Verizon Communications, Inc. Good Government Club, Maryland Coca-Cola Enterprises Employee Non-Partisan Committee, Constellation Energy State PAC, Property Owners Association of Greater Baltimore PAC, JRRG Corp, CSX Transportation, and a bunch of individual contributions
6. Rikki Spector [Vice Chair of Urban Affairs and Aging committee]–> received money from the 1ST MARINER BANK PAC, CONSTELLATION ENERGY GROUP, INC. STATE PAC, GREATER BALTIMORE BOARD OF REALTORS, P&O PORTS BALTIMORE, INC., PROPERTY OWNERS ASSOCIATION OF GREATER BALTIMORE PAC, DELTA CHEMICAL CORPORATION, Frankford Towing Inc., and a bunch of individual contributions
7. Sharon Middleton [Chair of Chair of Urban Affairs and Aging committee]–> received money from Carefirst Bluecross Blueshield Associates PAC, Association of Maryland Pilots PAC, Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors PAC, 1st Mariner Bank, Property Owners Association of Greater Baltimore PAC, Group Dental Service, Inc., Polaris, Coalition for Port Dredging, Maryland Unified Licensees Beverages Assoc, Inc., Verizon Communications Inc. Good Government Club,  Walgreens, and a bunch of individual contributions
8. Nick Mosby [Vice Chair of Labor committee] –> received money from Rodwell Development Group LLC., Greater Baltimore Political Action Committee, Bradley’s Enterprise, Inc., Rosenberg Martin Greenberg, LLP, and a bunch of individual contributions
9. Helen Holton [Chair of Budget and Appropriations committee and Vice Chair of Health committee]–> received money from Maryland Soft Drink Association PAC, The Association of Maryland Pilots PAC, Constellation Energy State PAC, Maryland Bank PAC, Property Owners Association PAC, Betor Corporation, Baltimore License Beverage Association, Inc., Chevy Chase Bank, Miller Capital, LLC., Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company, Verizon Communications Inc. Good Government Club, Walgreens, Verizon Communications Inc., Carefirst Bluecross Blueshield, Information Control Systems Corporation, among others
10. William Pete Welch [Vice Chair of Executive Appointments committee]–> received money from the MD-DE-DC Beverage Association, Cherry Hill Towing, Realtors Political Action Committee (Maryland), and a bunch of individual contributions
11. Edward Reisinger [Chair of Chair of Land Use and Transportation committee]–> received money from the Property Owners Association of Greater Baltimore PAC, Maryland Bankpac (State), Maryland Association of Mortgage Brokers PAC, Constellation Energy State PAC, 1st Mariner Bank Political Action Committee, Greater Baltimore Board of Realtors PAC, Maryland Soft Drink Association PAC, Verizon Communications Inc. Good Government Club, Delta Chemical Corporation, Royal Farms, Domino Foods, Inc., Curtis Bay Energy, Inc., South Baltimore Business Alliance, STX, Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc., Dunkin Donuts, and many more
12. William Cole IV [Chair of Recreation and Parks committee, Chair of Executive Appointments committee, Vice Chair of Housing and Community Development committee]–> received money from the Association of Maryland Pilots, Mid-Atlantic Regional Council of Carpenters, Verizon Communication Inc. Good Government Club, Maryland Soft Drink Association PAC, Constellation Energy State PAC, PNC Bank PAC Maryland, 1st Mariner Bank PAC, Realtors PAC, GGC Investments, Cecil Federal Bank, Delta Chemical Corporation, Clear Channel Outdoor, Inc., Maryland Hotel and Lodging Association – Baltimore Council, Belvedere Restaurant Group, LLC and so on [lots of individual contributions]
13. Carl Stokes [Chair of Taxation, Finance and Economic Development committee, and Vice Chair of Recreation and Parks committee]–> received money from Verizon Communication Inc, Good Government Club, Realtors Political Action Committee, Maryland Soft Drink Association PAC, CLEAR CHANNEL Outdoor Inc., Bridge Private Lending, LP, VERIZON COMMUNICATIONS INC., CCA Air Charter, LLC., PGA Rossville, LLC., and others
14. Warren Branch [Chair of Public Safety and Health committee]–> received money from Verizon Communications Inc. Good Government MD Pac, Realtors Political Action Committee, Constellation Energy PAC, Lambda Development LLC., Verizon Wireless, American Sugar Refining Inc., Safeway Inc., Clear Channel Outdoor Inc., Maryland Hotel & Lodging Association and many others
15. Bernard  C. Young [City Council President]–> received money from CONSTELLATION ENERGY STATE PAC, GREATER BALTIMORE BOARD OF REALTORS, ECONOMIC GROWTH PAC, RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION OF MD, 1ST MARINER BANK, MARYLAND COCA COLA ENTERPRISES, EAST HARBOR PROPERTY MANAGEMENT, BALTIMORE MARINE CENTER, LLC., MARYLAND HOTEL AND LODGING ASSOCIATION BALTIMORE COUNCIL, AMERICAN MINORITY CONTRACTORS AND BUSINESS ASSOCIATION INC., AMERICAN BEVERAGE ASSOCIATION, BALTIMORE LICENSE BEVERAGE ASSOC., COLDSPRING CO, INC., Safeway Inc, Rite Aid Headquarter Corp., and many many others.

*All campaign contributions are basically bribes in a sense, no matter who they are from.

This list shows that for the most pat, every member of the city council has been bribed by the business interests of city except for Mary Pat Clarke (unless there are some hidden business interests supporting her). How does this affect the people of Maryland? Well for one, it allows there to be powerful slumlords in Baltimore as described by Baltimore Slumlord Watch and distorts the scale for the very wealthy. What is needed is community control, which will be hard but is definitely possible, not “survival by any means necessary.”

Reflecting on the Maryland legislative session

Governor O’Malley, a corporate clone for the Dems, is probably happy with legislation that passed this year’s legislative session

I have been following this years legislative session more than sessions of others. I used a number of different sources to see the full picture of what happened.

I start with a letter sent by President Joesph Urgo to St. Mary’s College of Maryland students about how the college’s board of trustees has decided to freeze tuition for the next two years thanks state legislation:

“Moments ago, the College’s Board of Trustees voted to freeze in-state undergraduate tuition for the 2013-14 academic year at the 2012-13 rates, as a result of new state legislation that also positions the Board to continue the tuition freeze through academic year 2014-15. The legislation, passed unanimously by both Maryland’s House and Senate during the legislative session that ended April 9, 2013, enabled the Board of Trustees to reverse the 2013-14 tuition increase for undergraduate in-state students, previously announced at 4% and passed at the February 2013 board meeting. In addition to facilitating a tuition freeze, the state’s funding supports St. Mary’s efforts to expand our DeSousa-Brent Program from a one-year to a four-year program as well as increase the number of students served, providing the College meets retention and graduation performance objectives. The DeSousa-Brent Program builds leadership skills and provides mentorship for students from traditionally underserved populations. The net result of this legislation will be a $2.4 million permanent addition to the College’s annual block grant from the state. The College is grateful to Governor Martin O’Malley; lead bill sponsors Senator Richard Madaleno and Delegate John Bohanan; co-sponsors, Senators Verna Jones-Rodwell and Nathaniel McFadden; and to the Legislature, for their continued support of students and families at St. Mary’s College of Maryland. While the tuition rollback funding replaces tuition dollars and does not increase our operating budget, it contributes to our goal of providing a quality liberal arts educational experience at an affordable price. We are pleased with what this legislation means to our college and our state. We know that over time our students’ experiences at St. Mary’s College serve as platforms for tremendous opportunities and personal achievements. An investment now is an investment in our graduates who will make a positive impact on every community in which they live and work. I thank all of you for your role in ensuring that St. Mary’s College, as Maryland’s designated public honors college, can deliver on its promise of providing the highest levels of academic quality to all students.”

This can be accompanied by other “victories” as noted in an email sent by Public Policy Director Sara Love of the Maryland branch of the ACLU. These included:

• Repeal of the death penalty, making  “Maryland officially the 18th state to repeal capital punishment.”
• The marijuana decriminalization bill which would “make the use or possession of small amounts of marijuana a civil, rather than criminal, offense…got further than ever before – passing the Senate for the first time.”
• A one billion dollar plan that spans over ten years to make  “healthy, safe schools in Baltimore a reality”
• A bill about equality for pregnant women in the workplace passed meaning “pregnant women in Maryland will receive the same kinds of accommodations that are currently provided to other employees with temporary physical restrictions.”
• A bill passed, allowing driver’s licenses to be given to undocumented immigrants who have lived in the state for over two years.

There were many other victories like the passage of a gun-control bill. As the business paper, The Daily Record put it, “Maryland’s already-strong gun laws will become among the strictest in the nation with a measure passed by the General Assembly…Maryland will become the first state in nearly 20 years to require people who buy a handgun to submit fingerprints to state police…The measure also bans 45 types of assault weapons, although people who own them now will be able to keep them…The measure limits gun magazines to 10 bullets. It also addresses firearms access for the mentally ill. People who have been involuntarily committed to a mental health facility won’t be allowed to have a gun…people will be able to keep the guns they have, even the assault weapons under the ban…Another provision requires someone to report a lost or stolen firearm, another effort to keep guns out of the hands of people who are not allowed to have them. The measure also calls for $25 million to be made available for schools to invest in security such as locks, cameras and buzzer entrance systems.” I’m not so much for the money for school security though. On top of this, veterans will supposedly be assisted in a getting jobs, clamping down on corporations who make multiple contributions, and a bill that allows police to pull over drivers for talking on the cellphone. Even the Governor’s wind energy bill was passed this session with flying colors.

Unfortunately there were some defeats in this session. Even with all of the controversy over decision regarding pitbulls, no law was passed to that affect which is troubling. A bill that as the ACLU put it, “would have banned the shackling of women during labor and delivery in prison…did not pass this year.” Another law that would help protect property owners from landlords was shelved and never made it to the floor of the Senate. Maryland Reporter wrote that “A bill that would prohibit landlords from screening prospective tenants based on their source of income was sent back to a Maryland Senate committee after three days of floor debate…The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Jamie Raskin (D-Montgomery), said that he was disappointed by the resistance of his fellow senators.” Additionally, the transportation fund which seems to keep being raided for other projects was put in a “lockbox.” While Republicans called it a sham, the bill said that unless the Governor declares a “fiscal emergency” and then 3/5 of both houses can take money out of the Transportation Trust Fund. Once again, that evil Kasenmeyer, who is a corporate clone, was against fees that would be “calculated based on the square footage of impervious surfaces on a property…[and] local jurisdictions are supposed to determine how much to charge per square foot, but in general, the size of the fee would depend on the size of the buildings and paved surfaces on a property.” This would seemingly help clean up the bay, not impose some strange other tax that was not delayed as had been previously proposed.

There were also some troubling aspects of this session. As I noted in my previous article, part of the corporate assault was successful (passing of the biotechnology tax credit which was recently signed by Governor O’Malley) but now it is even worse than I previously stated. The bill that makes Lockheed Martin’s hotel a tax-free zone was passed [it hasn't been signed by the Governor but likely will be]. This makes me very mad. This bill is basically a give-away to one of the most evil corporations on Earth that is deeply part of the military-industrial-complex. Luckily, Maryland Juice gave a brake down of the votes on this bill [I'll possibly focus on this in a future article].  In other areas, the budget bill was passed by both houses of the Maryland legislature, that numbered over $37 billion dollars. This bill was bad in many regards by “cut[ting] reduced the use of additional salary contributions from state employees and teachers…[a] cut in pension contribution…textbook aid to private schools, a sometimes controversial program, goes up by a third to $6 million” and over $7 million in cuts to the mental health program. However, the bill did increase “school spending [by]…$110 million…$25 million…for school safety and security improvements at schools; [7% more for] state colleges and universities…[keeping] tuition increases to 3%; [and giving] state employees will get both a 3% cost-of-living adjustment and merit increases.”

There were even more problems that even made me more mad. This included changes to the “InvestMaryland” program which… Also, the Governor has already signed bills to expand gaming in Dorchester County on Sundays, a bill that ends testing of waters in restricted shellfish harvest areas, expanding wiretapping of electronic communications to Medicaid fraud cases, establishing an “employment advancement” program to dole out grants and protect “intellectual property,” giving employers longer time to decide how unemployment contributions will be paid,  allowing Howard County to promote property tax credirs and so on. This is why it makes it no surprise that The Daily Record would say this session was “business-friendly.”

I am still unsure about the gas tax and if to support it or not. I seem to be leaning toward supporting it, but I can’t really say where I exactly stand. This is how I feel and I feel that everyone deserves to read it.