A monthly column of polical commentary. This month: News Media Control

As arctic ice melts, vast untapped reserves of oil, natural gas and coal are becoming easily accessible. Open water in the arctic also means cheap and easy Atlantic-Pacific transport of said oil, gas, and coal. There's billions to be made by the greedy in an ice-free arctic and an environmentally devastating "gold rush" has already begun….

20 protesters descended upon the public hearing of the Baltimore City Planning Commission at Frederick Douglas High School on April 1st. The protest's concern was inadequate input into the process of the City's acceptance of a Comprehensive Master Plan for urban development.

Most Marylanders can expect their electric bills to go up by $743 a year--a 74 % increase! The Maryland legislature deregulated the industry in 1999. As a result of this sweetheart deal, BGE was absorbed by Constellation Energy and required to begin buying its electricity on the open market. Meanwhile, BGE’s electric-generating assets, originally paid for by the people, were turned over to Constellation in “a cash-free shuffle.” The ratepayers are now being asked to pay again!

From beneath earth’s eastern curve, two rays—
one flat pink and one a higher, wider band of yellow—
cross the blue-awakening sky. They soar through the reconstituting blue
as people mill outside a dusty, Baltimore meeting hall
waiting for two buses to carry us all
from under this cold canvas of light.

BGE has proposed a 72 percent rate increase to begin in July 2006 for its Maryland customers. The BGE price hike comes in the wake of Maryland state's deregulation of the utility industry in 1999. At the time the legislature imposed price-hike freezes that expire this year.

A monthly column of political commentary. This month a medley of topics: water, impeachment, voting and political ignorance, the rich and the Shrub, & more.

Recently, 8,600 U.S. companies have been taken over by foreign ownership, while 20 percent of all U.S. assets are held by foreigners. The politicians were silent. Now, a United Arab Emirates’ enterprise will soon be operating stevedoring companies in six U.S. ports, including Baltimore’s. Its Mayor, Martin O’Malley, almost broke a blood vessel complaining. However, he didn’t say a word while the preceding British outfit was doing the work. Go figure!