Recent Happenings

Nothing like getting the gears moving with a good old link dump:

Anthony Jordan has a new post related to his toy drive. Let me know what you think about the new site.

The Baltimore Sun presents a model in slanted journalism in its "reporting" on Anne Arundel slots. By the way, if you want to know if a journalist is trying to pull one over on you, a good indication is the use of the work "lucrative."

The new stimulus will be called "Proposals to Accelerate Job Growth and Lay the Foundation for Robust Economic Growth." Um...not to be a Debbie Downer or anything, but wasn't that what the first stimulus was for? Maybe the new stimulus should be called "This Hole Has to Have Bottom, So We are Going to Keep Throwing Money Into It...Change."

Obama can't ignore the success of Charter Schools. Thank goodness.

Dr. Atul Gawande, one of the best medical writers we have, gives an interesting analysis of health care costs and the Health Care Bill's real effect on those costs. This isn't partisan and definitely worth a look. I still think that he ignores the political spin that removes caps on malpratice damages thereby bringing insurance premiums for doctors to new highs, but he still presents some good points.

I'm melting...meeeeelting.

John Bailey (Candidate for State Delegate) has a post advocating Columbia Redevelopment. He makes a strong point that while this plan may contain risk, we are already seeing the effects of business flight. He also responds to the traffic issues by suggesting that the new plans may have less cars on the roads and more people on foot. Honestly this is the best written advocacy for the new development that I've seen, and as you know, I've been against the plan from the start. I'll be following John's blog a little closer in the coming months. He's not afraid to take a stand on the issues, which is the most important characteristic we can ask of a candidate.

I would like to thank, and welcome, all the new followers on Facebook. Please spread the word. And thank you, as always, to my most loyal reader: Anonymous.

Harry Reid Has No Shame

Traffic Issues with Columbia Redevelopment

Try to go to the Columbia Mall this weekend. I dare you. While mushing through the nearly stopped traffic, think about what it will be like when thousands of new Columbia residents are injected into the community. The Howard County Times has an article on a recent Council meeting where they discussed these issues, including a new interchange on the already jammed Route 29.

I still feel like the glitz and glammer of the new development is being put in front of the logistics. I remember when I played Sim City as a young kid. In order to keep the people from rioting, you had to build the infrastructure BEFORE you built the big projects. Otherwise you lost money and crime went through the roof. I'm not saying that this is like a video game, but I hope at least one of these council-members has played it. Otherwise we are in trouble.

Dixon Convicted

As you know by now, Mayor Dixon has been convicted of one of the six counts brought against her in the first trial. She was acquitted of three and the jury was hung on two. In case you were not aware, the jury must be unanimous for either conviction or acquittal.

I really feel that with all the dirt Rohrbaugh has received over this trial, it could do a lot of good for the city. You never like to see "example-setting" justice (mostly due to the harshness with which it is administered) but if a message needs to be conveyed, Dixon is the one to get it across. As far as I am concerned, "innocent until proven guilty" only applies to legal terms. I believe Dixon was guilty of much greater depths of corruption than were allowable in court due to the ridiculousness of legislative immunity. She clearly cared about her position (the Sun suggests this was care for the "city," ha), but knew where the lines could be "fudged." This had nothing to do with race, although it will certainly be painted as such. This had to do with lax ethics and a culture of corruption. A wall was placed between the elected officials and the public, and Ronald Lipscomb was the crack that tore the wall down. I see london, I see France, I see Baltimore's underpants.

Unfortunately I feel that politics has become a "Players' Game" that excludes those that truly care and have the mind to make a difference. The only good news is that at least one of those Players is suspended indefinitely.

Climate-Gate

This fascinates me, so I wanted to make sure I posted it for discussion.

A few observations:

1) Someone that can hack into a secure system also will have the capability to manufacture data. These e-mails certainly raise questions, but they aren't a slam dunk.

2) There is a lot of money to be made by playing Chicken Little. Don't dismiss this. Imagine if you could convince people that rain caused cancer, but that there was a Raincoat 5000 that they could buy for, you guessed it, $5,000, that protected you. You then also say "Well that is too expensive for your regular schmo, let's make corporations who cause the cancerous rain subsidize the Raincoat 5000" (i.e., Cap & Trade). The only thing you need to worry about is being seen walking around in the rain without your Raincoat 5000.

3) Why is it so hard for people to understand that science is an argument that started at the beginning of modern thought and continues to today? There is no certainty in science. The only thing that is certain is that the very things we know to be true will be challenged by those that we believe to be false. Stop ridiculing challengers.

Gobble Gobble Link Dump

(I apologize for being away so long, but I've got a few too many discs spinning right now)

Didn't O'Malley, Franchot, and the Baltimore Sun all tell us that there would be no millionaire flight as a result of the tax hike? Well don't they have egg on their face.

Follow Up: Jose got his groove...I mean truck back. (Stay tuned for an upcoming fundraiser)

Maybe it's just me, but this zoning ethics bill doesn't look like it stands a chance.

Washington's answer to the Economics exam: I don't understand this question, so I am going to draw a picture that makes me happy.

Interesting development in the red & blue approach to crime. Both sides think too many things are illegal.

David Brooks: "The system after reform will look as it does today, only bigger and more expensive." It made me think of how ridiculous it is to let those who argue for public health care to say that the system is too expensive. So we should increase the amount of people covered, and put the government in charge...that's the ticket to efficiency.

11/20 Anthony Jordan Happy Hour Recap

Last Friday was the first of many AJ Happy Hour's in District 2. The goal will be to have these at establishments throughout District 2 to give people the opportunity to get to know Anthony and get involved.

As far as I can tell, it was a success. Per the regular happy hour protocol, people were filtering in and out throughout the evening. It was great to see elected officials, such as Gail Bates, spend some time chatting as well as candidates, such as Jeff Robinson.

On that topic, I really think everyone should give Jeff some attention (if you haven't noticed, that's code for "I like this guy"). I spoke with Jeff for about an hour at the happy hour and not only is he a smart man, but he has the good sense and modesty that we should want from our elected officials. Too often you will see campaigns go to the heads of candidates. They think that the sycophants that come to their events really mean what they say and that they are...Spartacus! When I spoke to Jeff, it didn't seem like any of "this" was affecting him. I'm not sure what parts of our conversation were private, so I won't go into any more detail here, but I strongly recommend you find a way to get to one of his events and chat.