“Take Your Child To Work Day” gets a no go from Superintendent Haas

“Take Your child To Work Day”… seems like an easy concept. I can remember as a child I looked forward to the fact that my mom, a speech pathologist in the school system, would take my sisters and I to work on that special day.

The whole day was so cool right down to eating lunch in the classroom and using the faculty restroom. Wow, we were easily pleased. We saw all that the ‘big bad’ world had to offer and that our mother was something other then ‘mommy.’ She was someone that taught and was important to others as well. I can remember marveling at the teachers and then returning home to play school.

Now, that very same “Take Your child To Work Day” is considered an UNLAWFUL ABSENCE. I have a real problem with that.

Our eldest daughter has been asking about this day for years and now that she’s old enough to understand the concept and follow directions safely, she will not be able to attend work with her father on Thursday, April 24th. Continue reading “Take Your Child To Work Day” gets a no go from Superintendent Haas

Spreading Ink: The Rise of the Suburban Tattoo Parlor in Maryland

Growing up in 1980s Harford County, I knew of only two kinds of people who had tattoos - members of the military and members of rebel motorcycle gangs.

Back then, the faded blue and gray images were largely unrecognizable in shape or design. Any lettering had long since bled into an amorphous set of unreadable characters. Tattoos weren’t considered artwork as much as they were branding - an anchor on the arm, an eagle on the back, the initials of a long lost love on the shoulder. It wasn’t pretty, but it was still rare enough that neighborhood children gathered around to gawk when the local biker rolled up his sleeves to work on his hog. It was still ink injected into skin. It was a tattoo.

Today, ink is everywhere. It is becoming rarer, at least in my circles, to meet someone who has a body completely untouched by ink. It’s virtually a requirement for a musician or actor to have some sort of body art done before they reach stardom. There are magazines, reality television shows and web sites devoted entirely to tattoos, the artists who create them and the bodies who serve as the canvas.

Long gone are the days when inked arms were reserved for hardened criminals and punk rockers. Let’s face it, tattoos have gone mainstream and they’re spreading like wildfire through suburbia. Continue reading Spreading Ink: The Rise of the Suburban Tattoo Parlor in Maryland

Broadcasting Crime: Should YouTube Be Held Responsible for Replaying Lawlessness?

We live in the world of 24/7, in your face, here-and-now media. And whilst I am the first to admit that I take full advantage of all news media being offered to me, ashamedly even Perez Hilton, I also think that there has to be a breaking point. There needs to be a line drawn clearly in the sand that says, “stop here and do not cross.” But is there?

Take for instance YouTube. Again, I am a fan, but the most recent controversy surrounding the network is rather bothersome. If the fact that eight Florida teenagers beating their peer and rendering her unconscious wasn’t enough to catch my attention in the news, how about the fact that I could watch the whole entire “animalistic” fight on YouTube?

Was it for five minutes of fame? Was it to empower themselves? I can not even begin to fathom what thought process would go behind something like that attack but I do know that they received the attention they were so desperately seeking. Continue reading Broadcasting Crime: Should YouTube Be Held Responsible for Replaying Lawlessness?

Del. Jennings: Few Victories During Expensive, Disappointing General Assembly Session in Annapolis

Dear Editor, 

      The Maryland General Assembly’s 425th Legislative Session has come to a close in the Annapolis.  With the State still feeling the “sting” from Special Session, the Democratic Majority’s agenda and non bi-partisanship was not hindered during this General Session. Instead,  it was solidified by the legislation they introduced and the policies they implemented.   

      During Special Session, the General Assembly approved the largest tax increase ($1.4 billion) in State history (with the most tax categories ever raised in a single legislative session) to resolve the State’s budget shortfalls – these shortfalls were the result of  the Administration’s budget for the ‘2008’ fiscal year.  At no time was there any serious attempt to control spending, in fact, the Special Session created $128 million in net new spending.  With our nation’s troubling economy and the tax increases implemented this past November, the General Session was a critical time for our State Government to finally initiate fiscal responsibility.   Despite these grim realities, the General Assembly approved the Governor’s budget package for the ‘2009’ fiscal year (Senate Bill 90).    Continue reading Del. Jennings: Few Victories During Expensive, Disappointing General Assembly Session in Annapolis

Del. McDonough: Illegals Gain Power

Maryland continues to become the worst state in the nation in terms of protecting its citizens against the invasion of illegal aliens. It is accurate to characterize Maryland as the Number One “Sanctuary State” in America. The Governor and General Assembly leaders support the legislative agenda of CASA of Maryland and other pro-illegal proponents. Once again, i n the 2008 session of the Maryland General Assembly, all of the legislation proposed by lawmakers in opposition to illegal aliens was defeated. Moreover, none of these much needed proposals were allowed to emerge from committee for a full floor vote.

I introduced the Citizens Right Act which many consider to be the centerpiece of any anti-illegals agenda. This initiative would have, for the first time, permitted ordinary citizens to file a complaint against elected officials based on the premise that the official is violating the Federal Immigration Act. The complaint could eventually result in the official being removed from public office.

Another important bill was the Voter Verification and Fairness Act which would require affidavits confirming that an individual is an eligible voter. The bill would prevent illegal aliens from voting, especially the ones that are exploiting the motor-voter law associated with acquiring drivers’ licenses. Continue reading Del. McDonough: Illegals Gain Power

Packing Heat and Painting Keisters: The Paintballer’s Guide to Vengeance

Picture your “favorite” politician in his bulging green Under Armour, protecting his house. Or a boss that just doesn’t seem to listen, let alone care. Picture the ignorant speedster who just cut you off on I-95 south, cell phone permanently affixed to their ear. Picture for just a moment, anyone who has wronged you or plucks your nerves.

Now picture yourself in an open field, you’ve got an automatic weapon in your hand, loaded, target at the ready. Focus. Steady. Aim. Fire. Splat…a rainbow of bright color bursts upon impact. Got em! Finally, ah-yes, picture that person’s keister, painted in neon. Damn, that feels good.

That’s why I play paintball. I’m not a gun-lover or a member of the NRA. In fact, when I was 8 or 9 years old my brother Jimmy accidentally shot me in the eye at close range with his BB gun. He got the belt and I got a Dairy Queen buster-bar. I don’t like guns. They scare me. What I do like is paint-ball. And I own a paintball gun. It’s done wonders for the gamer in me, as well as that part of my soul that exacts such cold and calculated revenge. Continue reading Packing Heat and Painting Keisters: The Paintballer’s Guide to Vengeance

The Iraq Conflict by the Numbers

4,023: The number of dead U.S. G.I.s and Marines as of 04.07.08 http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

296,281: The number of U.S. wounded as of 04.07.08 http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

1,194,935: Iraqi deaths due to U.S Invasion http://www.justforeignpolicy.org/iraq/iraqdeaths.html

3,884: The number of dead U.S. G.I.s and Marines since “Mission Accomplished” http://www.antiwar.com/casualties/

$506 Billion: Cost of Iraqi Conflict http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

$341.4 Million: Cost of Iraqi conflict per day http://www.nationalpriorities.org/costofwar_home

Continue reading The Iraq Conflict by the Numbers

Del. McComas: 2008 General Assembly In Review

As the 2008 General Assembly comes to a close, I’d like to review some of the highlights of the legislation important to us in Harford County.

The Harford County Delegation succeeded in passing all but two bills – the election of the school board and the slot machines for our veterans’ organizations. These bills did not pass for political reasons and no other reason. The Annapolis oligarchy allows a select few to kill a bill, give no reason, and pay no price. If one member of a delegation chooses to force the will of one to subvert the will of the majority, then the voters need to intercede in the next election. Some folks will do almost anything to maintain power and control, even to the point of thwarting the will of their constituents and their representatives.

The school board bill appeared to be on the fast track when Senators Barry Glassman (R) and Andrew Harris (R) gained unanimous approval for it in Senate Education, Health & Environmental Affairs Committee and the full Senate. As approved by the Senate, the bill—SB 306—would authorize six members of the school board to be elected and three to be appointed by the Governor. With the Senate’s unanimous approval, the delegation was hopeful SB 306 would move quickly in the House after being referred to the House Ways and Means Committee, but Chairwoman Sheila Hixson refused to take any action on either SB 306 or the cross filed bill, HB 799.
Continue reading Del. McComas: 2008 General Assembly In Review

Maryland Global Warming Bill Frozen as Session 2008 Ends

State Delegate Donna Stifler (District 35A), tells The Dagger that Senate Bill 309 has been killed by the House Economic Matters Committee.

The bill would have required the Department of the Environment to develop plans, adopt regulations, and implement programs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 25% from 2006 levels by 2020. It also would have set goals of reducing emissions 90% by 2050.

To read more about the now-defeated bill, you can see it here: http://mlis.state.md.us/2008rs/billfile/SB0309.htm.

Glengarry (Wetlands Redux): Aberdeen Considers a Softer, Gentler 500-acre Annexation Request

Take the Aberdeen Annexation Survey and let them know what concerns you the most!

The Aberdeen Planning Commission will entertain a request next week for the city to annex the nearly-500-acre Glengarry Community, which is basically a rebranding of the already-once-defeated Wetlands Golf Course property annexation attempt - minus a key group of Locksley Manor residents.

Before addressing the planning commission next week, the development team, led by engineering firm KCI Technologies, will present their annexation proposal in Aberdeen City Hall on Wednesday, April 2 during a 6:30 p.m. community input meeting.

It remains to be seen how the new look city hall, helmed by Mayor Mike Bennett and his chief booster Art Helton, will deal with the return of the annexation request, which was largely responsible for booting former mayor S. Fred Simmons from office and ushering Bennett into his seat.

In anticipation of the community meeting, Wetlands/Glengarry development partner Chris Michel issued a letter through KCI to select property owners, apprising them of the situation, informing them of Wednesday’s meeting and also presenting a questionnaire regarding citizen opinions in specific areas: Continue reading Glengarry (Wetlands Redux): Aberdeen Considers a Softer, Gentler 500-acre Annexation Request

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