Commentary

Baltimore has a wonderful opportunity to make lemonade out of lemons, as my father, James Rouse, used to say. He also used to say, ” Every problem is but a challenge, and a challenge is an opportunity in disguise. And when confronting a problem, start by thinking first of what things would be like if they worked and let reality compromise you later.”

Nobody asked me, but I think we — that is, the Maryland news media — missed a story over the last few months, being distracted by the November election, the Angelos family feud, the future of Lamar Jackson and the Ravens (such mishegoss), having a new governor and the new governor having a new puppy.

Maryland, for years, has been at the forefront of environmental stewardship. That is the direct result of engaged stakeholders from every industry and the product of thoughtful, measured approaches to the state’s energy policies. Recently, however, some groups are pushing very hard towards a sole source energy policy — electricity. Such a policy is not only costly but it’s dangerous.

As right-wing censors in several states wage their foolish war against teaching the full scope of American history — racism and all — here comes “To Kill A Mockingbird,” the Aaron Sorkin play based on the Harper Lee novel that people have tried (and mostly failed) to ban from public schools since the book’s publication in 1960.

“I think the most upsetting thing to me was The Baltimore Sun calling me a racist because I said this came from a Wuhan lab.” Those words came out of the mouth of Dr. Robert Redfield, the former head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, toward the end of a three-hour hearing conducted Wednesday morning by the select House subcommittee investigating the origins of the COVID-19 virus.

Maryland, for years, has been at the forefront of environmental stewardship. That is the direct result of engaged stakeholders from every industry and the product of thoughtful, measured approaches to the state’s energy policies. Recently, however, some groups are pushing very hard towards a sole source energy policy — electricity.

An unfortunate mind-set has grown among our nation’s leaders. It is that the United States can overspend by more than $1 trillion a year indefinitely. Lawmakers assured the country that spending increases — for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and then for economic support during the Great Recession and the pandemic — would be temporary. But, with few exceptions, the fatter budget items stuck around.

Rarely does a day go by when there is not another heartbreaking reminder that Baltimore remains among the nation’s most dangerous cities for gun violence, particularly for young Black men and boys. On Monday, it was the tragic news of a 16-year-old Patterson High School student found fatally shot in the head not far from the East Baltimore campus. He was the fifth city teenager under 17 killed this year.