Stupid quote

This is one of the most moronic things I have read in the Baltimore Sun:

"Pornography is a major destroyer of marriages in Howard County." ~ Allen Harris, senior pastor of Columbia Presbyterian Church

Think what you want about pornography, but to say it is a "major destroyer of marriages"? Get real.

If you read the article, you might be pleased to know that Howard County had to reimburse $187,690 worth of legal fees to a porn shop over a zoning law that was unconstitutional. Interestingly enough, no one even knows who owns the porn shop. Who on Earth would spend nearly $200,000 in legal fees to fight a County with a budget in excess of $1.5 Billion? It worked out in their favor, but that took major guts.

Public forum

I totally forgot that County Executive Ulman hosted a public forum (aka came to listen to complaints) at the Glenwood Community Center last week. The two big issues that were discussed were mostly west county based problems (not surprising). Those two problems were the Cattail Creek septic issue and the issue of a used car lot in Daisy.

The Cattail septic issue was a blast from the past. I have not seen much about it in the news for at least a year, and I can't recall why residents are not suing the developer to get their septic issues resolved rather than get the County involved. I hope anyone who purchased a home in this community since these issues came about was able to negotiate a good price. Currently, trucks are coming 5 times a day to remove the "waste". Eeeewwww.

The proposed used car lot in Daisy has me stumped. Unless I am missing something, this is just NIMBYism.

Residents near Daisy, a rural crossroads where corner lots have been zoned since 1954, are vehemently opposed to a used-car business planning to open there.

Despite the zoning, residents say traffic on the twisting, two-lane roads in the area would become more dangerous, and their quality of life would be damaged by the lot.

"I fear for children and recreational users [of the roads]. Save the county from such blight," Wally Carson of Woodbine said.

Later in the article:

On the used-car lot issue, the executive told the crowd that he is ordering another review by county agencies. Because of the long-standing commercial zoning, the owner has the legal right to build a car lot. Shops that repair sports cars and motorcycles occupy another building at the crossroads, and new vehicles are stored on another corner where a bus company once was located, but the corner in question is undeveloped.

If the owners of this lot have had it commercially zoned since 1954, I don't see what the problem is. Did these residents expect this lot to remain vacant forever? I find it hard to believe that a used car lot will be profitable in such a rural location, but that is beside the point. I really don't think that resident complaints are justified in this instance. Maybe the opposing residents can pool together and purchase the lot themselves. Otherwise, let the owner do with it what he or she feels is the best use with the zoning allowed.

Bad bumper stickers

This is controversial:

A Maryland housing official is coming under fire for a bumper sticker that takes a derogatory shot at poor families.

Dave Mahanney, who runs Cecil County's Housing Authority, has a bumper sticker on his car that reads "Can't Feed 'Em? Don't Breed 'Em."

"He's the director, driving around with this bumper sticker saying if you can't feed them, don't breed them?" said Niakkia Battle, a mother of five. "Am I supposed to be sorry that I had my children? I love my children."

This bumper sticker is completely inappropriate and is an insensitive oversimplification of a much more complex problem, but the message of individual responsibility that it (poorly) attempts to communicate is valid. You simply should not consume more than you produce and then expect government to cover the difference. The response that the mother gave to this bumper sticker is ridiculous and misses the point. No one expects her to be sorry for having children, nor does anyone dispute that she loves her children.

I am not opposed to a social safety net for those who have hit hard times, but someone who has five children and receives government assistance to pay for them is probably abusing that safety net.

Horsing around

Yesterday was the "Open House" for Days End Farm Horse Rescue. They had just moved to a newer, fancier location and decided to let the community take a look at it. I am an animal lover, so I embrace the concept of animal rescue organizations and I welcome them to the community. However, I think DEFHR did a bit of a bait and switch with their "Open House" event. The term "Open House" implies a public outreach event where the community is invited to see what kinds of charitable activities that the host is engaged in. However, DEFHR did not have an "Open House", they instead held a fundraiser.

The difference between an Open House and a fundraiser is that with a fundraiser, it is typically expected that community participants have already embraced the charitable work of the host organization. Therefore, donations are expected at a fundraiser. It is not a public outreach event, it is a "give us money" event. At no time did DEFHR advertise that they were charging mandatory admission to their "open house", which would make it a fundraiser. The admission was only $2 per person, and DEFHR is a private group that can do whatever it wants, but I thought that it was in poor taste to misrepresent their event. That's all.

All that said, if you are in the market for a horse, you should check the rescued horses that are available for adoption from DEFHR.

It either comes from taxes or the fairey godmother

There is a not too shocking surprise in a recent article from the Baltimore Sun:

Requests for more public facilities was a theme for the County Council last week, at a public hearing and at a joint meeting with the school board. But one vital - and politically touchy - element was missing from the debate.

No one among the Elkridge residents who said they want a larger library, fire station, community center and more new schools, and no one among the school officials who need more for renovations and maintenance, suggested a way to get the money.

Elkridge residents that are asking for a new library, fire station and community center are probably asking for $100 million worth of buildings. Throw in some new schools and that figure is very easily doubled (probably quadrupled). And come on. A community center? Really?

No one suggested how to pay for any of this stuff because everyone already knows. The money for this stuff comes from exactly one place: taxes. All government spending is taxation, and that is the bottom line.

Influential People

Freakonomics recently had a post where they solicited readers to think of the greatest thinkers of our time.

I'll lamely steal this idea and put a local spin on it: what person or people, those both living and dead, have had the most positive influence on Howard County? Jim Rouse would probably make most people's short list of influential deceased people, but who are the influential folks that are still alive? Who are some other influential deceased folks that my narrow focus on Jim Rouse is making me overlook?

unFair Assumptions

I received a booklet in the mail that is promoting the 2008 Howard County Fair. Several local politicians and political organizations placed advertisements in this publication, which made an otherwise boring booklet fun to read. One of the most ridiculous advertisements is courtesy of the Howard County Democratic Club, where they shamelessly claim that our high quality of life in Howard County is “brought to you by elected Democrats”. Any Democrat worth their salt would be appalled by such a foolish statement.

Another ridiculous advertisement is courtesy of Republican State Delegates Bates and Miller, along with State Senator Allan Kittleman. These three amigos took out a two page ad, one page of which describes how they are “representing the Howard County farm community in Annapolis”. One of the ways that the three amigos claim to be representing the farm community is by “promoting family values”. What this means, of course, is that the three amigos are opposed to civil unions. As I have stated many times on this blog, I dislike any politician who sees nothing wrong with telling you who you should be allowed to marry or enter into civil union with. But the question I have is what does this have to do with farming? Have the three amigos been watching Brokeback Mountain a few too many times? Aren't the three amigos assuming that the farming community has as the same lack of respect for freedom as the three amigos themselves?

Progress?

I just love this headline about Howard County public schools in the Baltimore Sun: "Educators relish a year of fewer headlines, more progress".

The article goes on to discuss how this school year was better than last year because last school year there were three teachers that were busted for sexual abuse and one that was busted for having cocaine in his car on school grounds. Oh, and a Hammond High School student brought a loaded gun to school. Luckily none of that stuff happened this year but, according to Superintendent Cousin, students "continue to make progress" (I don't even know what that means, but it at least excludes the possibility that students became dumber having attended public schools).

The scariest part of the article is the part where both Superintendent Cousin and school board member Diane Mikulis basically say that HoCo public schools are becoming to big to be managed. Get a load:

"When we have 8,000 employees and nearly 49,000 students to deal with, this is an extensive operation we have to maintain, there are going to be some bumps in the road." [Cousin]

and

One of the biggest challenges for Mikulis was the renovation plan at Mount Hebron High. The school has been the source of frustration for top system officials as a renovation plan has been debated for two years. In April, the school board approved a $57 million construction plan to expand and renovate the school.

"It was even more intense this year," she said. "That took up a lot of time."

Mikulis also said the budget was tougher this year because it was larger.

Great! I am glad to know that the folks in charge of a $737.5 million school budget are so confident in their abilities.

Don't stand so close to me

We all know what a great job that labor unions do for grocery store employees at the expense of grocery store customers. Giant and Safeway labor unions work hard in, among other things, "protecting" food shoppers from the great selection and great customer service of Wegmans. Grocery stores are not the only unionized businesses alive and well in Howard County, we also have an active teachers union. It's concerning to know that the teachers union has so much influence over school board candidates, and our public schools.

Of what significance is the opinion of the teachers union in the endorsement of school board members?

"We not only influence our members, but their families, retirees and community members that value our option," said Ann DeLacy, president of HCEA. "We are respected. We are held in high esteem. Hopefully, they know that we go through a very thorough process and we examine all the factors that contribute to student learning."

And what are those factors that influence student learning?

"Our primary consideration in recommending these candidates to our members is the strong positions and support they have exhibited on behalf of public education and our public school employees," DeLacy said.

Hmmm. If you read that carefully, that has nothing to do with student learning. That means that these folks are protecting jobs of public teachers. Why settle for Safeway schools when you could have Wegmans schools?

Public Forum

Ken Ulman is going to have a public forum June 26th in - gasp - western Howard County. The event will actually take place at the Glenwood Community Center, which I think is the building next to the library.

Howard County Executive Ken Ulman invites residents to join him for an open public forum, to be held at 7 p.m. June 26 at the Glenwood Community Center, 2400 Route 97, Cooksville. County department heads will be on hand to engage in dialogue.

Residents are invited to ask questions, make comments or offer suggestions on any topic. Those who want to speak should sign up before the event and limit their comments to two minutes. Everyone is welcome.

If I recall correctly, last year a similar forum was held in Oakland Mills.

Paying at the pump

Today is an historic day for me. I filled up my Toyota 4x4 and I spent the most I have ever spent for a fill up: $62.55. The tank was almost empty, and the per gallon price was $4.10.

The good news is that everyone is now in conservation mode, which which will benefit the environment. Car pooling, biking and combining trips has suddenly become a lot less costly for many people. As has the burden of making sure your tires are at the proper pressure, your car is tuned up, etc.

This is not Kosher…

I've been a little too busy to post anything recently, but in my absence Wordbones has rocked the blog haus with three posts (the most recent is hither, the first can be found here, and you can find the second yourself) that raise good questions about how much weight the county government should give to the opinions of special interest groups. His examples also raise good questions about who these special interest groups represent, particularly "citizen based" groups who imply that they speak for (or represent the interests of) a wide cross section of citizens.

I think I am going to call the county government and tell them that I am the president of the Howard County Coalition of Residents and let them know that most residents fear publicly funded schools, libraries and drug prohibition. Look for me in an upcoming government sponsored video where I will be representing your interests!