Commentary

The most obvious strategy for addressing the escalating violence and crime in our city and nation is to eliminate the easy access to guns. But this action, although supported to some extent by a majority in the U.S., seems politically unattainable, despite the almost daily carnage experienced by victims, families and communities. This carnage features plenty of bullets, but no magic bullet exists to mitigate the pervasiveness of violence and gun culture that subverts every fiber of our humanity. We are faced with only tough choices.

The writer of a lengthy cover story in the New York Times Magazine earlier this year on Randi Weingarten, head of the national American Federation of Teachers union, described his months of interviews “about the convulsions in American education. ” The author’s big takeaways: “it’s no longer possible to separate education from politics, and public schools are more vulnerable than they’ve ever been.”

In 2009, I began working toward a dream to create software with a soul to improve lives. I started Fearless with $6,000 in my mom’s basement. At Fearless, we believe good tech isn’t enough – good people are needed to drive impact. We work with organizations such as the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to help people access health care. We worked with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture to create the first digital platform to tell the African American story.

In a marble-lined courtroom in the grand old courthouse on North Calvert Street, a Baltimore Circuit Court jury hears a story that makes the list of the most tragic in the city’s modern history.It’s about a middle-aged man — a husband, father of three, an engineer with a degree from the city’s most prestigious university — shot to death after swinging a baseball bat at a group of young squeegee workers last summer.

The countdown to a transit fiasco has begun in the Washington metropolitan area. Unless unresponsive regional leaders act soon, with significant additional aid from Congress, subway and bus commuting times will likely triple or quadruple, train and bus service would halt at 9:30 p.m. Three in 5 subway trains would be removed from service, as would nearly 7 of 10 bus lines. That would drive away transit passengers, worsen rush-hour traffic jams and strike a lethal blow to the downtown core’s hopes for post-pandemic revival and the region’s prospects for long-term prosperity.

There is a popular song, a chant really, in Annapolis this summer. Maybe you’ve heard it? It’s like the old football — er, soccer — anthem: “Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé.” It’s the one with roots in “Anderlecht Champion,” a Belgian song that twisted the Spanish bullfighting cheer “Olé!” into French, “allez, allez, allez.” Then the Mexicans made it their own with “E Viva Mexico” in 1986, the story goes, chanting “Olé, Olé, Olé, Olé” to support the national team in the World Cup. Now everybody uses it.

From ancient Taoist philosophers like Lao Tzu to contemporary celebrities like Robert Redford, there is no shortage of famous people who have publicly observed, with only minor variation, that within every problem resides an opportunity. The context may vary, but the core message is plainly true. Just look at the history books. A lot of important progress takes place when things look most discouraging.

Former Gov. Larry Hogan and a nonpartisan group he co-chairs, No Labels, deserve credit. They’ve worked hard to promote politically moderate ideas in a time of growing polarization and anger. Hogan, in particular, accomplished quite a feat: Winning consecutive gubernatorial elections as a Republican in a deeply blue state.

Going into the important series this weekend with the Tampa Bay Rays, Anthony Santander, right fielder of the Baltimore Orioles, had a batting average of .272, with 17 home runs, 54 runs batted in and an increasingly solid command of English. In fact, in a recent postgame interview on MASN, the native Venezuelan answered all questions without the assistance of translator Brandon Quinones.