CP Needs Your Money to Attend Mayor's Fundraiser. Please Help. Call Kathleen Nieberding at 410-212-1051 To Ask Why The Mayor Needs More of Your Money

My annual campaign to raise money from you so I can give it to Ellen Moyer is again underway. Please give until it hurts. What's Cooking in Ellen's Creative Kitchen? Mayor Ellen Moyer's campaign finance report shows that $7000 went to Ken's Creative Kitchen, listed as being on Awald Road, which is at least in the city, while her big upcoming fundraiser is not. Why is our lame-duck, last-term mayor even holding a fundraiser? Politics as usual? When she did this last year, we questioned why she needed to raise money. See: please donate to cp today to attend friends of ellen moyer fundraiser and mayor moyer's fundraiser take two .

Here are the details:

Friday, December 12, 8:30 to 11 p.m. Holiday Tribute to Mayor Ellen Moyer in the "seasonal splendor" of Homestead Gardens, 743 West Central Avenue (Route 214), Davidsonville (near the junction with Route 424). Gourmet hors d'oeuvres by Ken's Creative Kitchen; live music for dancing by Unified Jazz Ensemble. Black tie optional. Tickets are $75 per person; patrons are $500 and sponsors $1,000. RSVP by December 6. Checks payable to Friends of Ellen Moyer should be sent to P.O. Box 3527, Annapolis 21403; for further info, contact Kathleen Nieberding at 410-212-1051 or knieberding@comcast.net.

Yep--it's a tribute! Tribute to what? Arrogance and incompetence in government? Oooh, it's black tie optional. Go ahead and give her $500. Heck, give her $1000, but please give me some so I can go. Again--for what is she raising money? Perhaps Ms. Nieberding can explain. Call her and ask. Ms. Nieberding received a $3000 check from the mayor last year so I can certainly see why she wants to help her raise the bucks. Oh-maybe that's why she gets the bucks? Dunnh!

Maybe the least the mayor could do would be to hold her fundraiser in Annapolis. Oh, I can see why she may not want to do that. Maybe she could price it so average folks could attend. On second thought, I guess I can see why she does not do that.

By the way, Nieberding served as Alderwoman Finlayson's campaign manager and received $500 from her campaign. Finlayson, who may run for mayor, is leading the way to keep us from getting a city manager form of government. To learn more about her fundraising, see here: Aldermwoman Finlayson...Golfing with Celebrities in PG County
and
CP Apologizes to Alderwoman Finlayson: Your Mercedes is Blue, Not Black!

See the mayor's fundraising report at: See Ellen Collect and Spend

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What Day? What Week? What Month? How Many 110k+ Per Year School Officials Do We Have? TOUCH BASE?

The below message was sent and received on Wednesday, November 19th from Annapolis HS. Please read it carefully and see if anything about it makes any sense to you. Sent on the day of the event? The day and date don't work. Did he mean November 24th? We are all waiting for the correction notice.....Don't miss the typo in red!:

A message from ANNAPOLIS HIGH SCHOOL

ANNAPOLIS HIGH SCHOOL Message sent - 11/19/2008 Parent teacher Conferences

This is Principal Don Lilley with a message abouat Parent Teacher Conferences. On Monday, November 19 we will have Touch Base Parent Conferences for all Parents. This is a great way to touch base with your child's teacher to monitor their success. No appointments are needed - just stop by the cafeteria to see your child's teacher between the hours of 7 am - 11 am or from 3pm to 7 pm. Thanks, and we look forward to seeing you on Monday, November 19!

A new notice came a day or so later, but it did not mention that it was a correction to the previous notice. It also has a typo in it, which I have shown in red. Also teacher was lower case above and upper case below. They also changed the hours slightly. Do you think it should have mentioned that this was a correction?:

ANNAPOLIS HIGH SCHOOL
Message sent - 11/20/2008
Parent Teacher Conferences11-08
On Monday, November 24th Annapolis High School will have Touch Base Parent Teacher conferences for all parents. This is a great way to have a short 4 minute conference with your child's teachers to monitor their success. No appointments are necessary - just stop by the cafeteria to see your child's teachers from 7:30 am to 10:00 am or from 4:00 pm to 6:30 pm in the evening. If you cannont attend or believe this time is insufficient for your concerns, please contact your child's school counselor at 410-266-5240 to schedule a formal Parent/Teacher conference. If you need transportation, please call Annapolis High at 410-266-5240. We look forward to seeing you on Monday, November 24th.


CP asks, do you think four minutes is insufficient time to speak with your child's teacher? As for transportation, Annapolis Transit buses come to within a short walk of the school three times per hour. Why would anyone need the school to provide transportation?


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Save the 921 Bus to New Carrollton...This Thursday

I think the only real factor in determining if the 921 stays or not is Governor O'Malley. Only massive citizen outcry will convince him to direct MTA to keep the route. CALL THE GOVERNOR. ASK YOU DELEGATE OR SENATOR TO CALL THE GOVERNOR. See: governor . Come to the public hearing--come on out and scream! Make your voice heard...or at least speak softly and carry a big stick. Thursday, November 20, 2008 at 12:00 PM – 2:00 PM and 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM Stanton Center Gymnasium, 92 West Washington Street--easily accessible by bus, including the 921 route.

By email, address comments regarding Commuter Bus proposals to commuterbus@mtamaryland.com with “Hearing Comments” as the subject heading.

For more information, see my recent post at: Can We Afford to Cut the 921 Commuter Bus to New Carrollton? and see the MTA's site at: 921

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CP to Host Delegate Ron George and Author Ed Kritzler at Ahh, Coffee!

Delegate Ron George (pictured above) and Author Ed Kritzler will join CP and guests this Thursday at Ahh, Coffee in Eastport. George, a Republican from District 30 and well-known local jeweler, will join us from 8-9 to talk about whatever is on your mind--and his....but I suspect we may talk about city/state relations or perhaps how impending budget cuts may affect our transportation system.

At 9, we will have a "gam" with Ed Kritzler, who will sign copies of "Jewish Pirates of the Caribbean", true tales of adventure and intrigue on the high seas as Spanish and Portuguese Jews sought treasure, freedom and revenge in the 16th and 17th century. Shown below is the famous pirate Jean Lafitte, a Sephardic Jew and descendant of the Lefitto family of Iberia.










Bring your own mug and get a discount. Those who walk or ride a bike will receive a smile.


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Second-Guessing in Rescue at Sea; Where Was Kevin Costner?

Every once in a while we read of stories of mishaps and rescues on the bay or even at sea and the story of the five adults and child who were recently rescued from the 47' sailboat Panache by our Coast Guard was widely reported in the media.

It pains me to read stories of people who are "rescued" when it appears, at least according to the news accounts, that they were not really in need of a rescue. The boat was not on fire, nor was it sinking, dashed upon a reef and breaking up, etc. etc. But every sailor knows you can run into bad weather--and sometimes that bad weather can be dangerous, especially if the boat gets knocked down, or a crewperson falls or the boat broaches or something like that but why should high winds and big waves require a rescue? Boats are made to bob up and down and pop back up. Loss of engine propulsion? Well, you are on a sailboat and sailing ships plied the oceans for hundreds of years before engines were invented. Loss of your rudder? Again, you are on a sailboat, you can always lie-a -hull, put out a sea anchor or lash a board or ropes or buckets or a spar or a table or something and try to steer or perhaps try to heave-to or maybe steer with the sails or for gosh sakes--do something!

But call the Coast Guard by satellite phone (which was only invented recently)? In this case they were what normally would be but a day or so out from Bermuda, but perhaps as their condition deteriorated, so did crew morale and who knows what else. Maybe it was much worse. Maybe they feared for their child and erred on the side of caution. But even a rescue presents dangers! According to the story:

"The Coast Guard dispatched a small, four-engine airplane, and a Jayhawk helicopter from Elizabeth City out toward Bermuda. Rescuers found the sailboat about 430 miles from the U.S. coastline, and about 175 miles west of Bermuda. Because the boat's mast was swinging back and forth as the boat rocked in the wind, the helicopter couldn't lift the passengers directly off the boat.

A rescue swimmer was lowered from the helicopter, and one by one, he helped the six people into the water and away from the sailboat, where they were put in a basket and hoisted up."
A million-dollar rescue effort is launched and a highly-trained rescue swimmer at great risk to him or herself and everyone involved, pulls this family to safety--or to more relative safety. And I must ask, what is a "small-four-engine airplane"??? The reporter should have learned that the Coast Guard's four engine planes are the HC-130's and they are certainly not "small". By the way, the reporter described the ocean between the US and Bermuda as a 600-mile wide channel.

When you sail to Bermuda in November, expect some bumpy weather and when you take a four-year old child, think twice...think thrice. Perhaps in an age where so many rely on gadgets and gear, and when we know we have satellite phones, some of us don't prepare as well as we should. It may be arrogant and unfair to second-guess these unfortunate sailors, and I may have to eat my words one day if I find myself in a similar situation, but many sailors have come through much worse without help from anyone else. The bookshelves are filled with their tales. We can learn a thing or two from them and these people would probably have been fine had there not been the highly trained men and women from the well-equipped Coast Guard Air Logistics Center but a couple of hours away.

The old saying goes, you never step down into a liferaft. By the way, where is the boat? Had the reporter checked, she would have learned that it was abandoned. It will be bobbing around in the ocean making it a real danger to other mariners for months or years. In such cases, maybe the Coast Guard should pump a few 7.62 mm rounds into the hull or fire some flares into the cabin? Maybe the insurance company will hire a plane to find the boat, which according to more research I easily did on line, was in Annapolis recently where it was outfitted and where crew was obtained. The Bavaria 47' is generally listed within the 150k to 200k range.
See The Capital's article:rescue
There is even a video supplied by the USCG: panachemovie
For further discussion of this mishap from the viewpoint of cruising sailors, visit: panache

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Goings on In Eastport!

In Celebration of the Girls in Our Community Eastport girls: Strong. Smart. Successful.

Special Family Night Celebration Wednesday, Nov. 19, 6 p.m.
Eastport Recreation Center 1014 President Street

After a brief celebration and informative performance, dinner will be sponsored by these local community partners:

• Eastport Civic Association
• Mt. Zion United Methodist Church
• Eastport United Methodist Church
• St. Luke's Episcopal Church
  

The Eastport Girls Club is hosted by women volunteers in Eastport who are working directly with girls in Eastport as positive role models. More Information: Contact Jane Lawrence.

ECA Meeting This Thursday: First Peek At Sailing Hall of Fame! Help the Families of Eastport Elementary The ECA membership meeting will be held this Thursday, November 20, at 7:30 p.m. at Eastport Elementary. Come early and enjoy a cup of coffee and cookies, catch up with your neighbors, and hear about what's going on in Eastport. The agenda will include: A display of the 3D architectural model of the Sailing Hall of Fame Election of Officers and Board Members Briefing by Alderman Arnett on City Manager legislation A book signing of Over the Bridge: A History of Eastport at Annapolis by author Ginger Doyel. Bring your copy, or purchase one at the meeting. And don't forget to bring with you any non-perishable items you would like to donate to the Eastport Elementary Thanksgiving Food Drive: This month, Eastport Elementary School will be giving Thanksgiving Baskets to the families of students in need. You can contribute to Eastport Elementary's food drive by bringing any non-perishable items you wish to donate to the November 20 ECA Membership Meeting. Join us, and help fight hunger in Eastport over the holidays! See you at the meeting!

Grand Ole Osprey - a show about our heritage This Saturday, November 22 Celebrate the unique maritime heritage of Annapolis and Eastport with an evening of music and fun for the whole family, at Maryland Hall -- brought to you by the Annapolis Maritime Museum. The VIP reception and live auction begins at 5 p.m., and the program begins at 7 p.m., featuring Them Eastport Oyster Boys, Calico Jack, the Annapolis Chorale, Tony Spencer, and actors from Remember, Inc., under the direction of Shari Valerio. The "set" will be historical images and photography, including pictures from Ginger Doyel's new book, Over the Bridge: the History of Eastport at Annapolis. The event includes a live and online auction -- which is open now! Visit the AMM website to see the auction items, bid, and buy your tickets to the event. Proceeds benefit the Annapolis Maritime Museum. General admission: $25. VIP admission: $100. And, students and seniors over 65 can buy two for one! To order tickets, call 410-295-0104 or see amaritime.org. printer friendly flyer

Volunteers Needed at Annapolis High School You can help a student prepare for the Maryland High School Assessment (HSA) Exam at a time Convenient for you!Annapolis High School has 25 seniors who will not graduate in June if they don't pass the HSA Exam. The school is requesting volunteers to practice one-on-one with students in preparation for January and April exam dates. HSA study times are planned at the school for 8:30-10 a.m., 12-1 p.m., or 4-5 p.m., Monday-Friday, but meetings can be moved to accommodate your schedule. Try it out once! For more information contact Assistant Principal Merlene Clarke, 410 266-5240.

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Another Shooting in Annapolis....Victim in Hospital

This one took place on a Sunday afternoon.......in Newtown off Forest Drive.

From our Police Dep't:
UPDATED November 17^th, 2008 12:00 PM

Release Date: November 16th, 2008

Release Time: 3:00PM

RE: SHOOTING

UPDATE:

The victim has been identified as Maurice LashernBrown, 29, of the 800 block of Candlewood Court in Severn, Maryland. He was visiting his girlfriend at the time of the shooting, who lives in the 800 block of Betsy Court. He was found outside, lying on the ground near 819 Betsy Court by citizens after they heard shots fired. He was last reported to be in “ Serious, but Stable ” condition by Shock – Trauma. No motive has been established and there are no suspects at this time. Anyone with information about this crime is asked to call Annapolis Police at 410-268-4141.

ORIGINAL RELEASE:

At approximately 1:16 PM on November 16th, 2008, Police Dispatch received a report of a shooting in the 800 block of Betsy Court. A male victim was found at 819 Betsy Court suffering from gunshot wound(s) He has been flown to Shock - Trauma in Baltimore and his condition at this time is unknown. There is no motive or suspect information at this time.

Police are in the initial phases of the investigation at this time, checking for physical evidence and attempting to locate witnesses. The name of the victim is being withheld pending suitable time for family notifications. Further details will be released as they become available.

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Andy Harris' Web-Site: Still No Thanks/No Congratulations

It has been two weeks since the election and at least a week since the official concession. One would think that by now Andy Harris might have posted a thank you to supporters and a congratulatory note to Frank Kratovil. We always knew that graciousness was not his strong point. There but for the grace of  Andy goes God (did I get that right?).  Let us all reflect how his emphasis on turning "liberal" into a dirty word has been repudiated by the people.

See for yourself at:  www.andyharris.com/

Kratovil, who seemed to have taken the high road while campaigning, and as might be expected of the winner, did write a note on his web-site (items in bold are my emphasis):


 Dear Friends,

For more than a year and a half I have traveled throughout the region listening to the thoughts, concerns and ideas of the families that make up Maryland's First Congressional District. This race was not about Democrat or Republican, liberal or conservative, it was about protecting our Bay, securing the middle class, and preserving the quality of life that folks in this part of Maryland come to cherish. Now, with the race at its end, I am honored and humbled that the voters of the First District have entrusted me to become their next Representative in Washington.

I go to Congress not to represent a party, a President, or a narrow ideology, but to represent you, my neighbors from across this district. From fixing our ailing economy to launching an energy revolution, the challenges before us are great. Meeting these challenges will require leaders with the courage to set partisanship aside and work across party lines for the greater good. In the weeks ahead, I look forward to working closely with Congressman Gilchrest and his staff to ensure a smooth transition on behalf of the residents of the first District. Thank you for your support and friendship.

Sincerely,

That sounds like a class act to me. He's reaching out to reassure the large portion of voters who did not choose him, and he's also carefully showing why Harris was rejected. Let us hope that he does represent our interests, help launch an energy revolution and protect the Bay as he said. As for the other congressman that represents most of our readers, we know that John Sarbanes has remained popular and in frequent contact with his constituents and he now enters his second term. Steny Hoyer, again easily re-elected, solidifies his power base in Washington. If the even larger national and now state Democratic majority cannot move a positive agenda through Congress in the next couple years....well, let's just hope for the best.

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