Skip to main content

The Seen and the Unseen: Columbia in the News


 

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

Residents to Columbia Association: Leave our facilities alone, Jess Nocera, Baltimore Banner

I found this article to be helpful in shedding some light onto the current CA controversy. Big news: even if you don’t subscribe to the Banner, you can read it, too. The Howard County Library System has added the Baltimore Banner to its collection of free online resources.

Heads up: you will need your Library Card barcode and PIN to do this.  

  1. Go to HCLS website
  2. Click on Online Resources
  3. Under “Download”, click on enewspapers
  4. Under Current Enewspaper Issues, click on Baltimore Banner 
  5. You will neeed the barcode and PIN for  your library card account to gain access.
  6. Next, you will need to enter the designated code to gain free access.
Whew! You’re in!

Now you just need to find the article. You can search using the handy-dandy magnifying glass icon, or you can simply scroll down until you find it.

Even if you don’t want to read the article, you should still go through these steps for two reasons. Firstly, it’s good to have the ability to access news through the library. Secondly, I’d like you to look at the photographs that accompany the article. (Photo credit: Ulysses Muñoz)

I sighed when I saw the photos of the CA meeting. Can you tell why? Yet again news from the Columbia Association shows us predominantly white people of a certain age. 

We are doomed. Doomed, I tell you.

Deep breath. 

This is not to negate the issue at hand nor to cast aspersions on the people who showed up. But it’s never a bad time to remind ourselves that the New American City was not meant to turn out like this. At least, I don’t think it was. 

“But that’s not the point!” you might say, especially if this particular issue is important to you. And I guess you’d be right. But the longer I live here, the more I’m convinced that it’s always the point.


 



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Getting Fresh

One of my favorite days in the Spring comes when this year’s list of Farmer’s Markets is released. That happened this week. New this year are markets in Old Ellicott City and the “Merriweather Market” which, according to the address, will be located here . I mistakenly thought at first glance that it was in the new-construction part of the Merriweather District. I find the name confusing considering its actual location. I’m going to guess that this market is an initiative of the Howard Hughes Corporation because the name seems chosen more for branding purposes than anything else.  Alas, the market in Maple Lawn is gone. The thread on the markets on the County Executive’s FB page will provide you with quite the education in who actually runs the Farmers Markets vs what people often think is going on. Short answer: they are not  chosen nor run by the county. Each market is an independent entity, sometimes started by community volunteers, other times supported by local businesses...
1 comment
Read more

They Can Wait

This is not a typical Saturday post. That’s because, in my community, it’s not a typical Saturday.  Oakland Mills High School, after years of deferred repair, needs massive renovation. It’s pretty simple: when you don’t fix a problem it gets bigger. The school system itself said the the OMHS school building was  "no longer conducive to learning" back in 2018.  2018 .  But Thursday the Boad of Education voted to push it out of the lineup of important projects which will be given the go-ahead to proceed soonest.  In my opinion it’s a terrible decision and sets a dangerous precedent. To explain, here’s the advocacy letter I sent in support of Oakland Mills High School. I was rather proud of it. I am writing to ask you to proceed with needed renovation at Oakland Mills High School in the most timely and comprehensive manner humanly possible. I have read the letter sent to you by the Oakland Mills Community Association and I am in complete agreement. You are extremel...
1 comment
Read more

What Kids Are Thinking

  It’s a Monday in February, and if you guessed that a lot of Howard County students have the new cell phone policy on their minds, you’d be right. It will mean big changes and it will be stressful, no matter how much good we hope it will do in the long run. But on this particular Monday cell phones might not be top of mind, as amazing as that seems. Some kids will go to school wondering if they or family members will be seized by ICE. Some will fear that their parents’ employment will be purged by the ongoing rampage of Elon Musk and his cronies through Federal Government. Some fear heightened and renewed racism as programs that supprted Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion are vilified and destroyed.  Some worry that it soon won’t be safe for them to use the bathroom in school anymore. It goes without saying that some kids fear going to school every day because of the prevalence of school shootings.  And look! Here’s something new to fear. That old hate group, Libs of TikTo...
1 comment
Read more