Commentary

Outside the Arundel Center, the headquarters of Anne Arundel County government in Annapolis, a POW-MIA flag proudly flies. If the county adopts Bill 74-22, it will have to be taken down. The flag honoring those still missing and unaccounted for from the Vietnam War would also be banned from any other county-owned flagpole, nor could it be displayed inside or outside any county building. Under the ordinance filed by County Councilman Nathan Volke, only the national flag of the United States, the state flag of Maryland and the official flag of Anne Arundel County could be displayed anywhere on county property.

The right to vote, Dr. Martin Luther King taught in his famous “Give Us the Ballot” address, is one of the “highest mandates of our democratic tradition.” Democracy is founded on the right of citizens to decide via popular, free and fair elections who should represent them. Across the world, the U.S. champions democracy. Yet at home the right to vote is embattled.

Our cities are in peril. We can and must save them. Here in Baltimore, police report more than 665 shootings so far in 2022. That’s an average of 88 shootings a month, up 12% from last year at the same time. Across the country, the story is the same, and we fear the public has become numb to the vast number of shootings and homicides. Each victim of violence is a person with a family. Gun violence often alters a person’s life forever as well as that of their families. Our clinical staff at the R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center at the University of Maryland Medical Center in Baltimore fight to keep people alive, while the violence only intensifies. Imagine having to tell a family they’ve lost a loved one.

It is not really a surprise that the master plan Frederick County has been trying to produce for the Sugarloaf Mountain area is generating some controversy. It is a document of sweeping scope, 200 pages covering the history of the region, the economic pressures on it and the many excellent reasons to protect the area. The authors write for the present time, but are speaking to the future, as well, to future officials and planners explaining why they are making these choices in this way. The County Council, which is reviewing the Sugarloaf Treasured Landscape Management Plan in multiple workshops, has heard from area residents and advocacy organizations seeking changes, including about one paragraph in particular.

Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan’s persistence paid off last week with a milestone in his ambitious toll lane plan to expand portions of the Beltway and Interstate 270, two of the most gridlocked highways in one of the nation’s most gridlocked metropolitan areas. After years of study, the Federal Highway Administration approved a massive environmental review, thereby clearing the way for federal funding. Now Mr. Hogan, a Republican, has less than five months in his term to get further approvals. He’ll need it.

There is an increasing urgency for U.S. companies and organizations to partner with the FBI to effectively protect their information, technology, trade secrets and research from the growing cyber threat. Over the past several years, cybercriminal’s use of ransomware has had the most visible, direct impact on industries the U.S. government considers critical infrastructure. Their assets, systems and networks are so vital, losing them would debilitate national security, economic security and public health or safety. Nothing appears to be off-limits for these cybercriminals, including children’s hospitals. Ransomware is exactly what it sounds like — hackers stealing someone’s data and holding it hostage for payment.

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has fended off challengers for his job in the Democratic primary, all but guaranteeing him a second term as the top local elected official in Maryland’s most populous locality. He won by a gossamer margin, beating his closest rival, businessman David Blair, by fewer than three dozen votes out of more than 141,000 cast. His victory was hard-fought and legitimate — it took election officials more than a month, including a recount, to tally the ballots.

I broke from my wellness regimen and opened an account on Truth Social, Donald Trump’s social media platform. I did this as a public service, just to follow Dan Cox, the Republican candidate for governor of Maryland who thinks the 2020 presidential election was stolen from the nation’s leading hoarder of top-secret documents. Cox went on Truth Social the other day and posted a meme that said, “Maryland Does Not Need A Woke Governor.”