Commentary

For anyone who loves a child, the news about the cause of death of Ray Lewis III, former Baltimore Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis’ 28-year-old son, is heart-wrenching. His was yet another life cut short due to the relentless drug epidemic — in this young man’s case, he died from an accidental overdose after taking a mix of fentanyl, cocaine and methamphetamine. Regardless of his father’s fame, this could have happened to anyone’s child.

The headlining photo of a glossy spread that hit The New York Times on Monday morning featured not a player, a coach or a baseball operations executive from the team that still leads the American League. It was John Angelos, standing alone. He’s the exact figure in the Baltimore Orioles we all could use a little less of in the news cycle. If you’re one of those fans who wants to feel good about the future of their team, bad news, everybody: Angelos, and the aspects of the franchise he actually controls, continue to be the dark cloud hanging over baseball in Baltimore.

As Canadian wildfire smoke passes over Baltimore City again, I sit in deep contemplation about how to show up as a good community organizer. I run a program called Free Baltimore Yoga, and we host more than three free yoga classes a week. Many are outdoors. When the first wave of wildfire smoke passed over the city and the Air Quality Index soared to 150, Free Baltimore Yoga canceled all classes until the air quality was below 100.

Frederick’s mayor and aldermen have some important development decisions ahead as they consider two proposals that will have a major impact on the future of the city. The first, and far easier, decision is whether to rezone the site of the Westridge Square shopping center along West Patrick Street, which could be a major step in the revitalization of the city’s troubled Golden Mile.

I feel like I write this column over and over again. It’s probably not the last time. About a month ago I explained that my long-planned Amtrak trip to Montreal, for which my son and I were learning French, had been canceled because of the heat from Canadian wildfires, a literal casualty of climate change. Undeterred, I pivoted, adding stops in Mystic, Connecticut, and Maine, with a longer stint in New York on either end.

The recent news regarding retired Baltimore Ravens star and Hollywood melodrama subject Michael Oher is distressing in a number of ways. The protagonist of the Oscar-winning film “The Blind Side,” based on a book by Michael Lewis of the same name, Oher has long been at the center of a number of compelling themes related to sports, class, and race in America. While many have encountered his story as a rags-to-riches narrative seen through the lens of a white family’s benefaction and love, Oher’s new allegations of financial exploitation suggest a darker side to the story — and speak to a history of the exploitation of Black bodies for white financial gain.

“I, Steven Howell Wilson, do solemnly swear or affirm that I will uphold and support the constitution of the United States; be faithful and bear true allegiance to the state of Maryland and uphold the Maryland constitution and laws thereof; abide by the constitution and bylaws of the Maryland Republican Party; and faithfully execute the office upon which I am about to enter with diligence to the best of my skill, abilities and judgment without partiality or prejudice.”