Mayoral Words
It is surprising that Mayor Kurt Schmoke would resort to name-calling. Whether we agree with Ellen Sauerbrey or not, name-calling is beneath someone of the mayor's stature.
Because of his position in the community, this might be considered rabble-rousing.
Kathryn Newirk
Woodlawn
Cards on the Table
Watching the news on TV, I heard Gov.-elect Parris Glendening say that Ellen Sauerbrey has to know when to fold 'em. He is attempting to trivialize her efforts to find out who really won the gubernatorial race by comparing it to a card game.
In my opinion, the process is much more important than who actually wins the contest.
We will continue to have elections long after Parris Glendening and Ellen Sauerbrey have left public service. However, the democratic process that is the embodiment of the nation is a truly sacred and hopefully eternal component of the American way of life.
Every effort should be made by all parties involved to protect our voting process. I can't believe that Ellen Sauerbrey has had to file suit against the Montgomery County, Prince George's County and Baltimore City Boards of Elections.
And furthermore, I can't believe that Parris Glendening is not supporting her. Is he more concerned about himself than the process? Is he worried about what her investigation may uncover?
In just watching the recent election and the way the returns have come in, anyone might be a bit suspicious as to the credibility of the vote count.
For example, why were the three jurisdictions that Mr. Glendening won the only ones that had precincts reporting so much later than all the others? . . .
If you were of a suspicious mind, you could think that the time was needed to falsify ballots, couldn't you?
It has happened before; in fact, recently in Pennsylvania. It could happen here. Does it make any sense at all to have a precinct report 128 votes for Mr. Glendening and one vote for Mrs. Sauerbrey?
Also, while watching television last night, I saw a program discussing this very same issue.
It was pointed out that there were addresses on ballots where people may not have lived for up to a whole year. The places were boarded up.
Another ballot was signed by a person who said he did not even vote. They mentioned that there may be evidence of votes by people who have been dead prior to the election.
In such a close contest, don't the boards of election in the jurisdictions that are in question think it is important to remove all doubt? And, if the process did happen to malfunction, shouldn't we all want to fix it? How else can we have faith in our system?
I don't play that much poker, but I know that whenever I was intimidated by high stakes and folded a winning hand, it hurt me more than if I had played it out and lost.
At least that way, I was able to see the other hand.
Ronald E. Miller
Mt. Airy
Left Out
I am surprised (not shocked) by the tax cut proposal offered by President Clinton.
I am shocked (not surprised) by the exclusion of single taxpayers, childless married taxpayers and retirees.
A more equitable tax cut would be to raise the amount of each exemption.
Bernard E. Henderson
Perry Hall
Another Importer
I am writing in reference to Elizabeth Large's Dec. 18 article, "Ornaments of Distinction."
Since my company, a Maryland corporation begun in 1947 in Baltimore by Olga and Morris Whitehurst, is the oldest company in the U.S. to continuously import mouth-blown, hand-painted Christmas ornaments, and since Christopher Radko was a customer of ours before he founded his own business, we at Whitehurst Imports Inc. were understandbly distressed by the narrow focus of Ms. Large's article.
The inference was that Mr. Radko is the only importer of "old fashioned" ornaments.
At the end of World War II, the Whitehursts were the first American glass ornament importers to travel to Lausche in Germany (then in Russian-controlled Eastern Germany), searching out the original mold masters and purchasing their products.
The Whitehursts brought ribbons and wires to the ornament blowers (items not available in those still badly war-torn areas) so that they could recreate the ornaments in the way they were made before the war. . .
The one point worthy of note in Ms. Large's article is the caveat from Linda Kruger of Collectors News that the long-term value of modern collectibles hasn't been proven yet and that one should collect ornaments because one loves them, not as an investment.
We agree with that. Ours have been around for 48 years and people are still buying . . .
Mary Lou Armstrong
Easton
The writer is president of Whitehurst Imports Inc.
New History Standards Advance Learning
As a member of the board of the National Council for History Standards, the only representative from Maryland of this 32-member national group of historians and educators, kindergarten through grade 12, I have been much impressed overall with the broad, instructive and evocative discussion of the standards.
The documents produced (National Standards for History Grades K-4, National Standards for United States History Grades 5-12, National Standards for World History, Exploring Paths to the Present) present vital, lucid, pertinent and factual standards that will engage children and youths in a substantive and challenging manner.
In short, the documents provide the framework for world-class standards in United States history and world history.
As members of the National Council, we met frequently during the past two years to conceptualize what we viewed as salient themes in U.S. history and world history, to establish achievable goals and objectives, to identify teachers who were solidly grounded in their fields to develop the content and activities and to put in place a timetable for completing the mammoth and historic project.
The work of the National Council of History Standards was a very arduous, demanding and fulfilling endeavor.
The time, I believe, is now at hand to separate the proverbial chaff from the wheat in view of some of the negative comments of Lynne Cheney, former director of the National Endowment for the Humanities; Chester Finn, former assistant secretary for elementary and secondary education of the Department of Education; and other debunkers of the national history standards.
There were a number of critical and overriding elements which governed the work as reflected in the following:
* Need for ethnic, racial, religious and gender diversity and inclusiveness in all history themes.
* Need for chronology.
* Need for specific content and performance standards.
* Need for an abundance of student activities for participatory involvement.
* Need for conceptual emphases which promote critical/analytical thinking.
* Needed for a multiplicity of student and teacher resources.
* Need for historic issues -- analysis and decision-making.
There has been a national effort on the part of some individuals to denigrate or obstruct the use of these history standards.
They claim that the Constitution is never mentioned in the standards, that the first Congress is not considered, that white males are "marginalized" or left out and that figures such as Robert E. Lee and Thomas Edison are not included in the standards.
All of these allegations are totally false. The Constitution represents a major theme throughout the U.S. history standards; the 1,000 references to individuals in the standards represent a majority of white males; Lee and Edison are addressed within the themes focusing on the Civil War and technological development.
In terms of the historical omissions of the past, blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Native Americans and women are depicted pervasively and accurately.
The standards affirm the ethnic-racial diversity, a veritable salad bowl, which has characterized our nation since its founding and historical evolution.
The National History Standards for are not a mandated national curriculum.
The standards simply provide a framework for school districts, which decide to adopt and use them as a basis for challenging and demanding high academic standards for all students.
Moreover, the standards, I believe, move away from rote-memorization, show-and-tell and absorption of disconnected facts. They provide a firm basis for excitement, analytical thinking and stretching students' minds to the fullest.
It was a genuine delight to serve as a member of the board of the National Council of History Standards. The standards, based on the solid factual materials, inclusiveness and challenging materials, represent an idea whose time has come.
Samuel L. Banks
Baltimore
The writer is director of compensatory education for the Baltimore City public schools.