Seeds of liberty

Editorial preview: Meyerhoff tries to boost the middle class

To attract more families back to the city, focus on schools.

King of pop, dysfunction

Editorial Notebook: Michael Jackson had it all as a pop star - catchy beats, an unmistakable voice, inimitable dance moves and a distinctive look. But he also had it all when it came to celebrity dysfunction. In his 50 years, he managed to embody virtually all the tropes of weird celebrity that...

Council should challenge Dixon budget veto

Mayor's action makes a mockery of the separation of powers

The suit must go on

Our view: Baltimore has raised enough questions about possible racial discrimination in Wells Fargo's lending practices that its lawsuit should be allowed to continue

Raising the bar on sex scandals

After South Carolina Gov. Mark Sanford's admission Wednesday that he wasn't really hiking the Appalachian Trail last week, as his spokesman told the press, but instead was spending the time in Buenos Aires with his Argentine mistress, you've got to wonder if there's a limit to the antics of...

Art of development

Our view: Lofts, townhouses will lure creative class to the Station North arts district

Judicial overreaching

In one of the most anticipated decisions of the year, the Supreme Court ruled 5-to-4 Monday in favor of white firefighters in New Haven who claimed they were denied promotions because of their race. But in doing so, the justices not only issued a confusing,...

Expecting the unexpected

Our view: Panels' safety findings set a new standard for bridges, tunnels

A milestone for youths

The stories were horrifying and heart-wrenching: a boy beaten bloody while in foster care; a 15-year-old girl tortured and starved to death by a mentally ill guardian; a 5-year-old fatally scalded by his mother after state officials removed him from a safe foster...

Private pay, public business?

State Sens. Jim Brochin and Jamie Raskin last week asked Attorney General Douglas F. Gansler to investigate whether the state has an interest in Constellation Energy CEO Mayo A. Shattuck III's compensation package. The senators want to know if it amounts to an unlawful use of assets paid by the...

Lift restrictions on legal aid

Rules prevent adequate representation of the poor

Horror in D.C.

The deaths of nine people in the crash involving two Washington Metro subway trains Monday evening was, as more than one person on the scene described it, a horror. It seems all the more so because such an event is so uncommon on commuter rail systems, particularly...

The climate bill

As expected, Friday's debate on the floor of the House of Representatives produced the usual misinformation and hysteria that have typified the nation's climate change deniers. But in the end, some measure of reason prevailed, and House passage of the landmark...

A dishonest delay

Our view: Legislators shouldn't drag out approvals of execution regulations to maintain a moratorium; the governor should commute death sentences instead

The justices speak

In one of the year's most anticipated decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court on Monday let stand a key provision of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 that gives the federal government the power to block states with a history of discrimination from changing election laws...

A suspicious veto

Our view: Whether it's legal or not, Mayor Sheila Dixon's line-item veto of City Council cuts makes a mockery of the separation of powers

Under the influence

Our view: Big money spent on health care lobbying could block real reform

An auspicious deal

Our view: Lipscomb's testimony may reveal how business gets done in Baltimore

The myth of 'safe drugs' from abroad

More than 150 years ago, Baltimore's port inspector saw Europe's poorest-quality drugs being dumped on...

Fairness for disabled kids

The Supreme Court recently ruled that a child with special needs does not have to first experience failure in a public school setting before...

Canton residents need Red Line too

In 1969, strong community action from all over Baltimore defeated an expressway plan that devastated...

Viewpoint: Society needs to talk about dependence, too

This is probably not the best week to air any reservations about the American passion for independence. After all, we don't have fireworks...

Real stimulus: money in people's hands

Lately we've been hearing a lot of cheerful talk about "green shoots" of economic recovery, but out in...

Trains or stadiums?

Who will be the next to die because our cities spend money on sports stadiums instead of basic...

When in the (appetizer) course of human events ...

I walked the length of the westbound Lake Shore Limited as it left Albany last Sunday, six crowded...

Dan Rodricks: For Catonsville record store owner, vinyl still thrills

The first customer tapped on the glass door of his vinyl record store an hour before Gary Gebler opened...

Try something different to fight drugs

Should Baltimore try a heroin maintenance program?