Home Delivery

Saturday in the mail we received a rather perplexing notice: a bill for our subscription to the Columbia Flier. It was indeed perplexing because a) we hadn't initiated a subscription b) we thought the paper was free and c) it was addressed to a Tim McCready. There is no Tim McCready at our address.

 

For many years a pile of Fliers has been dumped off at our community mailboxes each Thursday--about three or four, I'd guess. If you wanted one, you took one. Then, several weeks ago, we started getting ours delivered right to our front door. And then--bingo!--a bill.

 

I already pay a monthly fee to get digital access to the Sun and the local Howard County Times coverage. Why would I pay additionally for a paper copy of the Flier? Which I thought was free? I joined a conversation on the topic on Facebook. Someone remarked, "I got that bill awhile back. I ignored it, and the paper still keeps on coming."

 

Is this a scam? Is some third party trying to make money off of our free community newspaper? Or is it a rather sad attempt by the Flier to solicit donations to a financially strapped publication?

 

It's just weird.

 

We really need a local newspaper. I'd like to see more news, more local coverage. And I can see where the Flier needs more money than just advertising to make that happen. Print advertising isn't what it used to be. But billing some people and not other people for what has traditionally been a free paper looks unprofessional and haphazard.

 

It would apparently cost us $19.54 for a yearly subscription. Why don't they just have a fund drive? Twenty dollars to help support a struggling local institution is certainly reasonable. Then, those who can afford it can chip in. I'm guessing that some folks would be willing to give more than that.

 

But if you're going to change a free paper into a subscription one I'd like to know more about it first. Here's an idea: maybe someone could write an article about it for the paper?

 

Sunday Leftovers

It's Sunday and all the dribs and drabs of unfinished topics and ideas are lurking in the fridge. Time to lay them out for a hodgepodge buffet. Take your pick from undeveloped premises, one-sentence theories, arch pronouncements without a thesis statement, overly candid confessions, and as-yet unresearched claims.

Tasty.

I can't vouch for how well they'll go together. A little catsup or HP Sauce should help. Perhaps some Sriracha.

This week's offerings:

• Tales from the Second Chance Saloon
• Why we give a lion the benefit of the doubt
• Mental health issues and families
• The Marketing Committee vs. The Neighborhood Enhancement Advisory Committee in Oakland Mills
• The strange case of the traveling squirrel corpse
• The Nutritional Standards controversy as a Gilbert and Sullivan operetta
• All the jobs I am not qualified to do, or stories from the job hunt.

All this from just one week!

I hope you've enjoyed this glimpse into a blogger's intellectual pantry, as it were. Even when I say I can't think of anything to write about, there are always at least a handful of stub-ends of topics vying for attention. Sometimes they work their way into a whole post.

Sometimes they're just dishes in a Sunday buffet.

 

Tell Me Something Good

Once upon a time, a long time ago, about last Friday, when Ken Ulman was County Executive, Martin O'Malley was Governor, and Democrats hadn't yet lost their sense of self esteem, I used to be amazed and annoyed by Republican trolls who'd jump on the politicians' social media accounts to say dirty, nasty, filthy things.

Everyone has a right to their opinions, of course. Certainly the party that is not in power has strong feelings and frustrations. I get that. But it doesn't mean that ongoing nastiness is the right way to go in community discourse. Why not celebrate what you love instead of bashing what you hate?

Now the tables are turned. And I am worried that I am seeing Democrats that I like and respect beginning to show some signs of regressing into those angry trolls of yesterday. Not a lot. Just a bit. But it worries me. Again, they have a right to opinions, feelings, frustration. Yet something valuable is lost is our focus becomes attacking our opponents.

I can't speak for Republicans, of course. But as a Democrat, I say--Come on, folks. This is not who we are. Don't get caught in that trap.

Marcia White and Abby Hendrix of the Howard County Democratic Club have been making short videos of members entitled "Why I am a Democrat." I like that. It's an opportunity to bear witness to the good. While I am not a dues paying member of the HCDC, I thought I'd I try my hand at crafting a statement.

Why I am a Democrat.

My name is Julia McCready and I'm a Democrat because I believe in "We, the People." I believe that "we, the people" means that we share our good fortune and our successes with our friends, neighbors, and communities, and that we also share and help to bear the burdens, sorrows, and injustices of our friends, neighbors, and communities. This country which grants us such precious freedoms also calls us to be the change that makes our country better.

I am a Democrat because I believe that "We the People" is more than "I get mine." Being a Democrat is about reaching out, lifting up, making community-minded choices and not selfish ones. It's about our responsibility as citizens to participate in good government for all. It's about promoting what we love, not bashing what we hate.

*****

And that's why I am a Democrat. But, no matter what your political leanings, I think that showing people what's good, honorable, and trustworthy about your cause lays a much better foundation than slinging mud.

 

Getting Things Done with Girl Scouts in Oakland Mills

With a combined total of twenty-seven years in Girl Scouting, the young women I met on Tuesday night came prepared to share a message. Anthea Pecot, Riya Gupta, and K.C. Lay were at The Other Barn in Oakland Mills to make a presentation to the Village Board on their most recent service project. Along with two of their leaders, Jeanne Lay and Puja Gupta, we sat down in the lobby to discuss "Got Milkweed? Monarch Butterfly Awareness."

 

When I asked how the girls decided on this particular project, they gave me a glimpse into their brainstorming process. The scouts choose their own service projects, which makes their work all the more meaningful as they craft and enact a plan. Inspired by a neighbor in Oakland Mills, Mrs. Bird-Walker, who had created a certified Monarch Butterfly Way Station in her yard, they chose to spread awareness of Monarch butterflies in the community.

 

The project has a two-pronged approach. In addition to educating the public on Monarch Butterflies, they undertook to encourage the planting of milkweed in various locations in the area. Milkweed, a native plant, is the only place Monarch butterflies will lay their eggs. The scouts were able to get milkweed plants growing in three school gardens in Oakland Mills, (Talbott Springs Elementary, Oakland Mills High School, and Child's Garden Learning Center) as well as in numerous home gardens.

 

As a follow-up they are creating milkweed seed balls which will be distributed at no cost to community members at the local Farmers' Market. The seed balls will include instructions to freeze until next Spring, then thaw, plant, and begin a new milkweed growing cycle. When they were done describing their project I found myself already so enthusiastic that I wanted to know when I could get a seed ball and get involved. Their commitment was that contagious.

 

Overall the project was a low cost one, they said, under a hundred dollars, and was funded through family donations. They faced several challenges along the way. They had more places they wanted to plant than they had milkweed pods available. They had to schedule times to plant around their own schedules and those of the participating schools. They had to take responsibility for communicating with all the school participants and finalize plans.

 

I asked the girls what kept them in Girl Scouting after all these years. They agreed that they had originally signed up under the guidance of their moms, because it sounded fun. But as teenagers their reasons for staying were many and varied: camping, singing, fun activities, volunteering as assisting counsellors at Girl Scout Camp, friendship and camaraderie, supportive Girl Scout leaders, and, yes, helping to make the world a better place. Actually, that was the first answer given.

 

At the end of the interview I asked the girls to think what the world would be like if there weren't any Girl Scouts. The answer was immediate.

 

"Nothing would get done."

 

After meeting with these confident, articulate young women, I'm inclined to believe they just might be right. Thank goodness we don't have to find out.

 

 

 

 

Appeasing the Vending Machine God?

To: Calvin Ball, Howard County Council

Subject: CB-17 Nutritional Standards

 

I'd like to thank you and your colleagues on the council who worked hard to craft this bill and show leadership in public health for Howard County Citizens. Obesity and all its related diseases are a serious concern today. I strongly believe that this is one of the biggest public health concerns of this generation.

Sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks have an entire industry to support and advocate for them. It is difficult to make one's voice heard over the din of advertisement and false claims of "part of a healthy diet". All one need do is look around and see the changes in eating habits and unhealthy diet-related illnesses to see that something is dreadfully wrong.

This bill supports the citizens of Howard County Maryland by taking a stand for public health. It offers more choice, not less. It has a limited scope--Howard County buildings and facilities--and does not prevent citizens from exercising free choice in what they eat and drink.

I was disappointed that the County Executive vetoed this bill. I think he has missed a valuable opportunity to work with the Council on behalf of County Citizens. This shouldn't be about politics. It's about public health. I sincerely hope his position will evolve over time--Howard County needs his leadership on this issue.

In closing, I support a Council override of the County Executive's veto of CB-17. It is time to move forward in supporting healthier citizens in Howard County. There's really no time to waste.

*****

On second thought, this post should really be entitled "Challenging the Vending Machine Gods". But I have a migraine so perhaps that put me in mind of appeasement. Ah, well. You get the idea.

 

 

 

Background Check/Reality Check

If you have ever tried to get a job with Howard County Schools, or know someone who has, you know that it is not simple or straightforward. It takes forever. I believe they have worked in recent years to streamline the process, but it still takes forever.

I always assumed this was because their human resource department was doing thorough, perhaps multiple, background checks, transcript evaluation, calling references, and so on.

Perhaps not.

This article describes the case of a former Howard County substitute teacher who is now in prison on child pornography charges. The parents of one of the victims are bringing a civil suit against the school system, to the tune of $600,000. Their point? That the school system bears the responsibility of adequately vetting employees and protecting students.

Aside from the violation of student privacy, which is the worst thing going on here, I imagine the school system looks upon this as a public relations nightmare. Expensive, too. In a time when we are cutting back on direct classroom support for students, hcpss has been increasing moneys spent on public relations personnel. Also on fees for freelance lawyers.

It sounds like a self-fulfilling policy--the more we focus on PR and lawyers, the less we focus on students. And the less we focus on students, the more we appear to need the spin of PR people and the protection of lawyers.

May I respectfully suggest that our priorities appear to be backwards?

 

 

 

 

 

Making Noise

"The more affluent children had been taught to submit," he said, describing a job working in a pediatrician's office. "Their mothers would coach them to behave, and apologize to the doctor if they acted out or objected during the exam."

"But the less affluent kids were different. They reacted. They had righteous indignation--'ow! Don't do that! Why are you doing that?' I think you lose something when you lose that righteous indignation."

This conversation happened probably twenty years ago, with someone I knew only briefly, but it has stuck with me. I always thought it was so important to be well-behaved. Here was someone who said we lose something if we no longer have the language of righteous indignation.

We lose the ability to stand up for our rights, to protect ourselves. We lose understanding and empathy for others who are making noise for a just cause. Why don't they just submit? I would submit, a little voice whispers.

Righteous indignation is loud. It can make other people uncomfortable. It can draw criticism from those who benefit from our silence.

I speak from this blog, sometimes rather pointedly, but I find making noise in real life extremely difficult. I have been taught to behave. Don't embarrass yourself. Don't embarrass anyone else. But we are living in times that call for good people to cry out--Ow! Don't do that! Why are you doing that?

• because guns are valued more than lives.
• because people of color are valued not at all.
• because the bodies of women and girls are not treated as their own.
• because money has replaced the democratic process.

The voice of injustice is loud: forceful, controlling, and bullying. And yet we keep passing judgement on the victims for "breaking the boundaries of good behavior." Why?

Righteous indignation can be messy. But when we lose it we lose a unique power deep within ourselves to stand up. To be heard. To reject oppression. To make noise that bears witness to the truth.