Schools merit more credit and funding

Kalman Hettleman is right on the mark when he says that the continuing shouting about the city schools' budget deficit has become overblown and unnecessary ("Don't let budget blunder sidetrack city schools," Opinion* Commentary, Jan. 24).

What would be constructive is recognition of the city schools' progress in academic achievement over the last four years and a lot stronger political and public support for our students and teachers.

While it is true that the school board and administration seemingly took their eyes off the financial management ball, they can recover. And even their missteps do not warrant the disingenuous rantings of state politicians who knew for more than a year of the state's own budget woes and did nothing except to leave it to a new governor to make the hard choices.

And city elected officials ought to hang their heads in shame. City schools are getting better, marginally, despite the fact that practically no new city monies have gone to the schools' operational budget in years.

By contrast, the Police Department received an approximately 33 percent budget increase over the last three years, has run up multimillion-dollar deficits each year and received supplemental city bailouts each year. Yet the city government's contribution to our children has not increased even 1 percent.

Baltimore schools CEO Carmen V. Russo and her team's decisions on how to spend money have not been wrong - class size has been reduced and reading curricula have been aligned, which has resulted in higher achievement as teacher salaries have gone from 17th- to third-best in the state. But the board has not had enough money to push its reforms to the next level.

So, slap their wrists for not making tough, if not nearly impossible, choices for our children, and raise our voices at them for not telling us about budget problems sooner. But give them the support and resources they need now.

Let's give as much of our voices and resources to books and pencils as we give to bullets and pistols.

Carl Stokes

Baltimore

The writer is chairman of the Maryland Education Coalition and a former member of Baltimore's school board.

Cutting child care is a step backward

As an early care and education professional, I read about the budget cuts for child care initiatives with great interest ("Funding in peril for child care network in Md.," Feb. 3).

From 1984 until 2002, I directed child care facilities in Baltimore, and for the past year I have worked with the Child Care Network at the Baltimore City Resource Center. At national meetings I have always been proud to say I was from Maryland - because all my colleagues knew I was from a state that sincerely understood the issues of working families and cared about the welfare of its youngest citizens.

But by deeply cutting funding for child care initiatives, Maryland will take a gigantic step backward that will prove to be unwise and harmful to the welfare of young children.

If it is a state priority to achieve the goal of having every child come to school ready to learn, we must realize that this goal will never be achieved if we allow our excellent system of child care to be dismantled.

Nancy Pelton

Baltimore

The writer is training director for the Baltimore City Child Care Resource Center.

Slots boost treasury and neighborhoods

Many articles and letters in The Sun have outlined a multitude of reasons why Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s proposal to place slot machines at Maryland racetracks is a bad idea.

How about some reasons slot machines will be good for the citizens of Maryland?

Maryland racetracks are heavily taxed and represent a major source of income for the state. By helping the racing industry we would be helping the state collect more taxes from this ailing industry.

Slots don't represent a new tax, but a tax on a new industry. People can elect to play the slots or not to play. People who elect to play will pay the new tax, but those who choose not to play will leave the tax payment to others.

Neighborhoods close to the racetracks will benefit from slots, because some of the revenue from slots can be earmarked to improve these neighborhoods and increased business at the tracks will lead to more jobs.

Those who argue that it will be mostly poor people who play the slots seem to be saying that poor people are too stupid to know that throwing away their income on gambling is a bad idea.

I think poor people are smart enough to know excessive gambling is a bad. And that the benefits to the state and its neighborhood will be a good thing for the taxpayers of Maryland.

Murray Spear

Baltimore

Gambling revenue comes at high cost

When the creation of the Maryland Lottery was under debate in the General Assembly, I could not fathom why any rational person would oppose such a simple and painless way for the state to raise additional revenue. After all, people are going to gamble anyway, so why not give the state a piece of the action?

I was so wrong. Raising revenue from gambling is neither simple nor painless. Every study has demonstrated that revenue from state-run gambling is a regressive tax on those who can least afford it - rich people don't generally play the lottery.

And Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr.'s proposal to legalize slots is an even worse idea. Not only are the people most likely to patronize the slots casinos those least able to afford to do so, but the state would give away the lion's share of the profits to the few individuals who own the racetracks where the casinos would be built.

Thoroughbred racing in Maryland has been dying for years. Its audience is simultaneously shrinking and aging. Slots will not resurrect racing, but they will unjustly enrich the track owners.

The structural deficit Mr. Ehrlich inherited from his profligate predecessor needs to be fixed. But there is only one way to do so - cut spending and raise taxes to levels commensurate with each other.

Benjamin Rosenberg

Baltimore

Tax hike can help protect vulnerable

I hope the governor will raise my taxes. I can handle a 1-cent increase to the state's 5-cent sales tax if I buy a regular coffee rather than a latte for two or three months ("Ehrlich says stand against new taxes is the stronger one," Jan. 30).

Such a tax hike alone would generate revenues of more than $500 million a year. Especially if slots don't fly this year, this could help avoid very painful cuts to needed state and local programs.

And it's not programs that will feel the pain, it's tens of thousands of Marylanders - real people with real needs. And eventually our economy will also suffer when, for example, the mother of young children who wants desperately to break the cycle of poverty in her family, but needs help getting decent child care, cannot get the help she needs.

There are many who claim that we are already taxed too heavily. But let's look at the facts. Maryland ranks 38th in the nation for overall taxes paid in relation to our personal income and 45th in sales tax as a percentage of income.

I believe there is the civic and political will for at least another penny in taxes (not to mention closing the many corporate loopholes that exist). And to do otherwise is shameful, especially in one of the wealthiest states in the nation.

William Sciarillo

Lutherville

CareFirst conversion does public no good

How fitting that The Sun should place CareFirst CEO William L. Jews' letter on the same page as a large caricature of Baltimore's John Waters knitting his eyebrows ("CareFirst sale could help fund state priorities," Jan. 19).

We all should wear such an expression of bewilderment when digesting Mr. Jews' flawed argument that the conversion of CareFirst and its acquisition by WellPoint has "immense potential for good."

Even after CareFirst trimmed its executive compensation package in a final bid ("New CareFirst proposal trims bonus, adds $70 million to bid," Jan. 24), Mr. Jews still would clear nearly $14 million from the deal, or roughly 75,675 times what an uninsured disabled adult receives in state assistance each month.

Certainly the deal has "immense potential" to line Mr. Jews' pockets. But independent experts agree a for-profit CareFirst would mean as much to vulnerable, uninsured Marylanders as a nonprofit CareFirst means now - and that's nothing at all.

By even attempting to sell the deal as good for Maryland, Mr. Jews insults our intelligence and tries our patience. For him the deal is indeed "Divine," but only universal health insurance will enrich all Marylanders.

Kevin Lindamood

Baltimore

The writer is chief external affairs officer of Health Care for the Homeless Inc.

City police remain state's best-trained

I read with dismay Del. Tony E. Fulton's assertion that the Maryland State Police "have better training, better skills to deal with these crimes" than the city police ("City and state move closer on pact for police," Jan. 30).

Mr. Fulton needs to realize that the Baltimore Police Department not only is the best in Maryland for training, investigative skills and crime resolution, but that the Baltimore Police Department's academy trains members of no less than eight Maryland police agencies. Why? Because we are the best.

Baltimore police trainees receive approximately 1,000 hours of training, which exceeds the Maryland Police Training Commission's mandated instruction time by 400 hours. Additionally, Baltimore police officers' exposure to an urban environment creates multifaceted individuals with the ability to resolve quality of life complaints as well as perform traffic enforcement, crime prevention and drug arrests and interdiction.

Officers of the Baltimore Police Department welcome the Maryland State Police's help in the endeavor to reduce crime and improve the quality of life for the citizens of Baltimore, but not at the expense of our reputation and labors.

Daniel J. Fickus

Baltimore

The writer is president of Fraternal Order of Police Lodge No. 3.

Great performances featured BSO chorus

The column by Baltimore Symphony Orchestra president John Gidwitz described maestro Yuri Temirkanov's interpretation of Gustav Mahler's Symphony No. 2 in his debut concert and mentioned three selections that provided experiences "that will be remembered for a lifetime" ("BSO welcomes programming suggestions," Opinion* Commentary, Jan. 28).

How ironic that each of those critically acclaimed BSO concerts were choral concerts that included the Baltimore Symphony Chorus, which was disbanded by the BSO management last June.

Mr. Gidwitz's column should evoke questions regarding the necessity of ending the 32 years of service by the chorus to the orchestra and the community and about the part great choral works will play in future BSO programming.

Barbara Galletti

Timonium

The writer was a member of the Baltimore Symphony Chorus.

Bush's tax cuts won't aid economy

President Bush's tax cuts and stimulus plan are bad news for the economy and American people. They will increase federal budget deficits to record levels, make critical measures (including saving Social Security and revamping Medicare) unaffordable and primarily benefit wealthy citizens.

However, the main reason the plan will fail to revive our faltering economy is that it is designed to enhance our capacity to produce goods and services with measures such as dividend tax cuts.

This approach ignores the fact that the economy is sputtering not because of a lack of productive capacity but because of a lack of consumer and corporate demand for goods and services.

This problem would be much better addressed by the Democrats' plan, which puts more relief in the pockets of those of modest means who would spend their money quickly and give the economy an immediate boost.

Jack Kinstlinger

Hunt Valley

Rushing to war is a bigger risk

In his State of the Union address, President Bush gave us a long and compelling list of the uncertainties of U.N. weapons inspections in Iraq. He almost had me convinced. But what nags at me is how little the president has told us about the much greater uncertainties of a war with Iraq.

What will be the cost in human life? Unlike the 1991 war, this war could be fought in Iraq's densely populated cities. And if Saddam Hussein does have weapons of mass destruction, he will have every incentive to use them. And if he uses chemical or biological weapons against our troops, Mr. Bush has threatened to retaliate with a nuclear strike.

I am much more afraid of what will happen if this country chooses to go to war than if we take a chance and let the inspectors do their job.

After all, the inspectors are now back in Iraq, as they should be. Their presence is backed by an international force that could respond immediately and devastatingly to any aggression.

It would be extremely difficult for Saddam Hussein to stage an attack of any consequence now. We've got him cornered and we can keep him that way.

Let's now turn our attention and defense money to fighting terrorism, a much more real and challenging threat, rather than turning all of our big guns on one fanatic but relatively powerless dictator.

Annick Barker

Baltimore

Disarming Hussein discourages terror

Michael Olesker's column "Amid war talk, voices from past remind us of the cost in blood" (Jan. 30) calls to our attention the blood, suffering and tears of war. However, he avoids the need to respond to the terror, blood and tears suffered by our nation on Sept. 11 in New York, Pennsylvania and Washington.

We are a changed nation now because of terrorists who attacked us, whom I believe were aided and encouraged by Saddam Hussein. We need the demonstrated leadership of President Bush to confront Mr. Hussein and force him to surrender his weapons of mass destruction so that they will not be used again against us, possibly in Baltimore.

America was attacked on Sept. 11. Therefore, America must respond if Mr. Hussein doesn't disarm, preferably with the support of the United Nations, but without that support if necessary.

Otherwise, terrorists and nations that support them will be encouraged to act again against innocent civilians in our cities.

President Bush is acting responsibly, justly and bravely. I, for one, support him.

Samuel A. Culotta

Baltimore

Military isn't cavalier about dumping waste

The Sun's editorial "Homeland threat" (Jan. 23) and the article "Senators oppose military exemption" (Jan. 22) addressed the environmental hazards posed by the waste dumping that took place at military installations decades ago.

The articles suggest that the military has not taken care of the clean-up process and currently seeks exemptions to some civilian standards.

These points are valid, but the narrowness of the editorial, in particular, could make the public believe, mistakenly, that the military is insensitive to public safety and environmental issues. And absent from both articles are the following points:

In the materiel development process, the military is bound by civilian environmental standards unless specific military standards are in place. And any unique military standard must be sanctioned and approved by the specific military agency's surgeon general's office.

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health provides exposure limits for every chemical known to mankind. The military adheres to those limits.

Historically, Congress has been lax in providing funds for cleanup of military installations such as at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

From time to time, the media have reported that toxic compounds have been found in residential homes surrounding APG and Edgewood. Of course, the military is blamed for that as well.

But if the area's zoning commissioners had paid more attention to the details that may have been lacking in the environmental impact statements filed with them before they issued construction permits, the unfortunate people who purchased properties might not now have reason to complain.

Sy Steinberg

Baltimore

The writer is a retired U.S. Army safety engineer who worked at Aberdeen Proving Ground.

Shuttle crew reflects spirit of adventure

The crew aboard the space shuttle Columbia were not only courageous, they were among the most accomplished and capable among us.

And these astronauts are the latest in a long line of brave adventurers stretching back to our prehistoric ancestors who began the journey from mankind's home in Africa into unknown territory to begin populating the rest of the world.

The men of the Age of Exploration, who crossed the uncharted oceans and faced great peril, were cut from the same cloth. It is bred into the best of the human race.

This Columbia's crew, composed of men and women of various races and nationalities, was representative of all of mankind. Their tragic loss will not diminish our desire to learn, to explore and to face danger when necessary, in furtherance of humanity's never-ending desire to increase our knowledge of the universe.

They deserve to be honored and revered for their bravery, skill and determination to venture where so few dare to tread.

Sig Seidenman

Owings Mills