Rescue at Bay Ridge: The Right Way To Save The Bay
The Bay Ridge community is the first in the state to tax itself to keep land out of development.
Residents of Bay Ridge, near Annapolis, assembled an adroit financial plan to purchase over 110 acres of Bayfront forest land that developers had in their sights — which always is the case with rare tracts along the Bay.
The $4.1 million deal to buy the land included a $300,000 loan from the Maryland Environmental Trust to the Bay Ridge Civic Association, a $140,000 contribution from the county and a $450,000 share from the state.
No. 10, March 7
For God’s Sake, Keep Politicians Out of Religion
In the six months since September 11, Americans have sought how to define our better selves. But one aspect of this search gives us pause. That’s the drive to equate ethics — which are civic standards we all share — with religion — where many of us differ.
No. 11, March 14
A Very Good Deed Caps off Nine Years of Good Words
A couple Thursdays ago, I was driving along Busch’s Frontage Road, filling in on one of Bay Weekly’s seven delivery routes. I hadn’t made it to the bank the day before, so when the other drivers arrived early that morning, I paid some from my pocket and promised to leave payment for the others Friday. Thus I stopped by the bank on my way out of Deale.
And there, were I less absent-minded, the story would end.
Instead, it follows me to Severna Park, Arnold, Broadneck, Cape St. Claire and parts of Annapolis. By mid-afternoon, I was making my second-to-last stop at the Revell Exxon and Tigermart on Busch’s Frontage Road …
No. 16, April 18
A Little Horse Sense for Graduates and Underdogs
Dear Graduate:
We’d bet that none of your commencement speakers has talked about a horse named Magic.
From this horse, you can learn a lot more than from many graduation speakers.
If you’re a race horse, it’s not such a tough thing to get out on the track and run. Horses like to run, and they have limited imaginations. But if you’re an American kid, it’s a lot easier to dream about what you’d like to be: a rap star … a basketball star … a superstar. It’s a lot easier, because dreaming saves you the trouble of doing. The difference between the star and the never-show is in the deed.
No. 23, June 6
When We All Have Bad Air Days
Chesapeake Country was downright eerie on Sunday July 7. The forecast called for a brilliantly clear day, but the sky was hazy in an odd way, and the sun seemed to have hidden somewhere.
We could be feeling the results of one decision already made. Last month, the Bush administration announced plans to relax rules that forced old power plants and dirty industries to install pollution control equipment if they wished to expand. Since many of those plants send their emissions to our region on the westerly winds, the rollback will be coming our way.
No. 28, July 11
Snakehead, Snakehead Sing Us Your Song
Next to sneaky terrorists and corporate criminals, no subject has consumed more newsprint of late than the discovery of the northern snakehead in a Crofton Pond.
If the much demonized snakeheads could speak, they might point out that they’re a noble species just doing what came naturally in that Crofton pond: eating and reproducing.
And speaking of nature, they might add that they’re relatively benign compared to the most invasive species of all.
Humans.
No. 30, July 26
Ten Unexpected Reasons Why We Love Election Seasons
8. Lame-duck Gov. Parris Glendening plays Police Commissioner Herbert Lom to Comptroller William Donald Schaefer’s Inspector Clouseau from the Pink Panther, finally driven so far around the bend that he runs wacky ads skewering fellow Democrat Schaefer.
No. 37, Sept. 12
The Organic Way and Chesapeake Bay
A new label has joined the tens of thousands vying for your attention. The green-in-brown circle proclaims that what you’re buying is USDA (that’s U.S. Department of Agriculture) Organic.
It’s a label worth noticing and one long overdue.
This label does more than describe what’s inside the package. It signifies a system that incorporates health and sustainability from farm gate to dinner plate.
No. 43, Oct. 24
Black & Decker: Tools to Avoid For Holiday Gifts
It wasn’t just what Black & Decker did; it was how they did it.
Last week, the Maryland-based tool giant announced that it was closing its Eastern Shore plant and putting 1,300 people out of work. Most of those jobs will be re-located to Mexico; others will shift to Brazil and North Carolina.
No. 48, Nov. 27
