Wednesday, April 2, 2025 | Baltimore, MD
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Commentary

Don’t abandon your right to vote the stakes are too high

It’s easy to be dissatisfied with the actions, or inactions, of government these days. While Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives dithered over a plan to keep the federal government funded in order to avoid a calamitous shutdown — a scenario that has “always been a loser for Republicans politically,” according to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell — their leaders still found time to schedule a hearing on their ill-advised impeachment inquiry of President Joe Biden.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
red and white train on train station
Can Md. public transportation give you a lift? Now is a good time to find out: It’s free this weekend

For about half of Americans, public transit is not a viable option as they simply don’t live close to a bus route, light rail, subway or commuter rail line. But to many who could make that choice but do not — including quite a few in the Baltimore area — it’s perceived as a hassle, a too-slow, too-crowded, too-unpleasant alternative to jumping into your vehicle and driving to your destination.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
A call for peace during the latest battle over backyard chickens

I am rarely in Thurmont. I live on the opposite side of the county. But recently, an issue has come up among the powers that be in my county’s far north neighbors. An issue that my own section of the country dealt with years ago, but feels just as fresh and controversial as if it were yesterday. An issue that threatened, and in some ways continues to threaten, the very fabric of what we call community in and around the Brunswick area. Or not.

This therapy could save lives from suicide — if more people could get it

In the 1980s, when Anthony DuBose set out to become a psychologist, he was told never to work with people with borderline personality disorder because they had high rates of suicide and intense emotional distress. They were considered untreatable. This is no longer the case. Today, an approach called dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) can help patients struggling with suicidal ideation, self-harming behavior, addiction and mood disorders. It has become the gold standard for treatment.

Want to foster successful learners? Take them outside

As children head back to school, it is critical that we give them the best environment in which to learn and grow during the next nine months. Whether one considers students’ physical and mental health, educational achievement or other metrics, it is clear that the best learning environment includes time outside, engaging in educational opportunities within our natural environment.

‘The People’s Council’ must allow independent review of police misconduct

After new members were elected to the Prince George’s County Council last fall, the council dubbed itself “The People’s Council.” While this is encouraging to hear, as residents of this county, the actual litmus test for whether this new council is genuinely dedicated to the concerns of the people, and in particular, the needs of residents from less affluent, over-policed communities, is the passage of CB-81-2023, a bill to give the county’s new Police Accountability Board independent investigatory and subpoena powers. In other words, we’ll believe it when we see it.

Car thefts: When a national trend, car maker’s folly and Baltimore politics intersect

Baltimoreans can be parochial with the best of them, so it’s hardly surprising that the recent uptick in car thefts within Charm City has quickly driven some to question whether police and local officials have misfired on yet another public safety concern. City Councilman Zeke Cohen’s call for a hearing on the topic by the council subcommittee that oversees public safety, is notable for at least two reasons.

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Transit-oriented development is not enough

The Washington region is the proud exemplar of transit-oriented development (TOD). Densifying around Metro stations has given us more new homes than other superstar metro regions, keeping our housing prices moderately less inhumane. Building near the train is fantastic, but insufficient to produce all of the housing we need. According to Up For Growth’s Housing Underproduction Report (which might be a low estimate) the Capital region had a shortage of 156,597 homes in 2019, or 6.5% of the housing stock.

Chesapeake Bay Bridge in Annapolis, MD
The toll truth: No more free (or deeply discounted) rides

The year was 1952 and gasoline sold for 27 cents a gallon, a new car cost less than $3,000 and postage for a first class letter was all of 3 cents. On July 30 of that year, then-Gov. Theodore McKeldin cut the ribbon officially opening the Chesapeake Bay Bridge. Thousands of people crowded Sandy Point to see the wonder of this two-lane, 4.3-mile-long engineering marvel, which would replace ferries connecting the Eastern Shore with the rest of Maryland. The

Read More: Baltimore Sun
Kalman Hettleman: The Shakespearean rise and fall of schools superintendent Mohammed Choudhury

The appointment of Mohammed Choudhury as state schools superintendent has been a gripping story which I have followed closely. As he was about to assume office in July 2021, I commended the state board on appointing someone with his potential. Then, in a review of his first 100 days, I wrote that he “seems to be living up to his advance billing … as a smart and high-powered change agent.”

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