Update: Police Hiring

Today The Capital ran a story that gave a rather current, rather complete summary of the mayor's new initiatives to combat crime here in the city.

The mayor's quotes seem to focus on drug criminals and public housing, and AP finds no problem with using these as starting points.

Perhaps more usefully, we get an update on police recruitment. You will recall that the city failed to offer the entrance qualification exam for a year. Now they have, and here's what happened:

-181 applicants were invited to take the exam
-56 of the invitees showed up to take the exam
-approx 30 will pass the exam, according to Chief Johnson's estimation
-7 will make it through training to become officers (another estimation)

I am excited to see if this comes true!

Also, still no mention from the mayor about filling any specific number of vacancies.

Signs

There have been some debates recently involving, oddly enough, signs. First, there is an effort to ban digital graphic signs because a county councilman apparently was distracted by one and almost got into an accident. AP believes that such a ban would have little effect on bad driving.

And then, some people are giving the county grief because the county built a $20,000 sign that was 10 feet wide and 6 feet high.

I chuckled when I read this. You see the city of Annapolis is planning to do a similar thing--they are building a $10,000,000 (ten million dollar) gateway to Annapolis on outer West Street!!!!

!!!!!!!!!

(Exclamation point. Exclamation point. Exclamation point. Exclamation point.)

As I understand it, this project will be an arch built over West Street at Old Solomon's Island Rd.

For those of you scoring at home, $10 million is enough to hire 23 police officers for more than 7 years, at least according to my math.

Conspiracy Theory

So yesterday my roommate, Kemp Hammond, calls me and says that we have received a note on our door from the Annapolis Department of Public Works. They claimed that our usage has spiked recently, increasing from an average of 34 to the current usage of 63 (whatever those numbers mean).

This does not make sense. Neither of us are ever home, there are no leaks of water in any pipes--basically there is no reason for this spike.

Then, we learned that Kemp's parents (part of the Hammond political dynasty of Annapolis, and famous critics of the mayor) received the same notice. Not only that, but the numbers were the same: from 34 to 63.

That really does not make sense. Their house has 50% more occupants than ours (3 vs 2 people), and a well maintained garden that needs water to thrive.

What are the odds that the Hammonds' house had the exact same water usage, including the near doubling of usage? Not very good.

One of 3 things has happened:

1. An astoundingly rare coincidence.
2. A glitch in public works records.
3. A conspiracy by the administration to 'get' us.

Of course, writing this blog makes my mind conjure up crazy thoughts, and it is probably reason 1 or 2. But seriously, WTF?

Moyer Administration Quotes

In addition to being a voice of opinion, this blog serves as a permanent historical records of some of the goings on of the city.

Pursuant to such efforts, I have started archiving some quotes from the mayor and her administration. To see them click here, and there is now a permanent link to these quotes on the right side of this page.

Only a few now, but more to come!

Another Crime Proclamation From the Mayor

In yet another press release concerning the mayor's strategy towards crime, we learn that the mayor is instructing the police department to step up recruitment efforts:

Mayor Ellen Moyer is asking Annapolis Police Chief Joseph Johnson to expand his Department's recruiting efforts. She is requesting that he augment current department-based recruiting efforts with a committee that will act as ambassadors and positive advocates for the police department.

The committee shall consist of:

-Kimla Milburn: Human Resources Director
-Ray Weaver: Public Information Officer
-Dave Cordle, Alderman Ward 5, Public Safety Committee
-Ross Arnett, Alderman Ward 8, Public Safety Committee
-Sheila Finlayson, Alderman Ward 4, Public Safety Committee
-A Partridge In a Pear Tree

The mayor took some time to hit on her two favorite police quotes:

"In speaking with my colleagues from around the country, it is evident that we are all facing a tremendous challenge in recruiting police officers," she (Ms. Milburn) said.

and

The Annapolis Police Department currently maintains a ratio of 3 officers per 1000 residents. The national average is 1 officer per 1000 residents.

Now I will take time for my two favorite standard responses:

We are not facing a recruiting shortage.

and

The ratio does not matter because we have a lot of public housing, we are a maritime city, and we are a Capital city.

The mayor thinks that word-of-mouth 'advertising' is the best way to recruit, and she admonished the media and letter-to-the-editor writers for saying negative things about the department.

Umm, madam mayor, remember when you said this:

The first thing I get hit with when I get back in town after meeting with our sister cities is "We've got a crime problem. We've got a crime problem. We've got a crime problem."

It is only because we wrote letters to the editor that you even knew we had a problem....you were too busy on sister city business.

More importantly, does this press release mean the mayor is committed to filling the 23 vacancies on the police department? Tough to tell. If so, this will be the first time she has pledged to do so. But somehow, I doubt it.

O'Malley Tax and Spend Mentality

Gov. O'Malley apparently sat down for a lengthy interview with a reporter from The Capital, resulting in some fabulous blogging material. See the full article here. Crossposted.

I imagine the Governor making time for this interview in between sets of bench press at Merritt Athletic Club, and right before his nightly reading of How to Run For National Office, by Spiro Agnew. (Note: this book does not exist.)

When elaborating on his strategy regarding where money to 'fix' the structural deficit will come from, Mr. O'Malley clarified:

"It'll come from the places it always come from."

The governor listed some of Maryland's economic numbers - last among the 50 states and the District of Columbia in spending as a percentage of wealth, corporate and sales taxes lower than surrounding states, a gas tax not indexed to inflation and kept level since 1992 - and said the flat income tax also will be changed so people who make large incomes pay a higher percentage than other Marylanders.

"I don't think too many people would scream about that," he said.

Oh my goodness.

Role of Government is a Fundamental Philosophy

I would describe my political philosophy as relentlessly individualistic. I believe that individuals, given the proper information, can always make a better decision for their own welfare than the government can make for them. This leads me to be a conservative, small-government, personal responsibility, free-market type fellow.

I know this is not about local issues, per se. I am going to use the following letter to the editor to display my point, then I will attempt to relate that point to the local issues.

Regarding the Walter Williams column headlined "Socialized medicine won't work."

I agree with Walter Williams nearly 100% of the time. I cannot recall a disagreement I have ever had with him. You had better be on to something.

The motives of executives of insurance companies, health maintenance organizations and the like are to maximize profit and minimize cost. To survive, profit-driven businesses like food markets and computer manufacturers must deliver products and services that are competitive in price and quality.

I am with you so far. Do I sense a "but" coming?

But the bottom-line philosophy doesn't work so well in health care.

Yes I do. And, you are incorrect, the concept works perfectly well, as you will prove later in your own letter.

It is not uncommon for coverage of a procedure to be denied even if a doctor deems it necessary for the health of the patient. And the decision may be made by someone who is not even a doctor.

Let me make the first mega-important assertion of this post. The health care system is inefficient because there are people who make decisions other than YOU and YOUR DOCTOR. Think about it....if you buy a computer, or food from a market, you give your money directly to the person who made the computer or grew the food. The fact that you make a purchase conveys, via the price system of a free market, that you are satisfied with the people that you bought the things from and that their products provide a value to you as compared with another alternative.

Now think about health insurance. You pay your premiums every month, and then you have nothing to worry about. Except for your deductible, you don't have to pay at all when you receive medical treatment. So you get medical treatment all the time, which drives up the cost of insurance. Doctors--same thing. They get paid by the insurance company. So, when they treat you, they are not concerned about your financial situation at all (as long as you have insurance). The point is, doctors and patients have no incentive to negotiate and do not face normal free market forces that ensure efficiency, because there is a third party involved.

Whenever you lose accountability like this, things go to hell. Consider schools. If you paid a school directly, I promise you that school would be damn good at what they do. Otherwise, you would take your kid out of that school and pay another school. Instead, we pay taxes to the county, then the county gives money to the school board, then the school board gives it to the schools. And what is the result? Everybody complains about the schools.

People who have no health coverage go to emergency rooms, which are required to treat them. This is probably more costly than health insurance.

Clearly. If emergency rooms were cheaper then insurance than nobody would get insurance.

Newsweek (July 30) reported that "the United States spent 15.3% of GDP on health care (Medicare) for some of us. France spent 10.7% and covered everyone." And other European countries with universal health care spent less than France! Other objections to universal health care are debunked in that article.

First of all, friend, if you like Europe so much you can go live there. (Disclaimer: This line is required by the Republican National Committee as the standard response to comparisons with other countries. We can now continue our discussion.)

Let's start with other European countries. Britain has the largest health care system in the world. In fact, it's health care system is the third largest employer in the world--behind only the railway systems of China and India. And what do they get for their great system? Rationing of service, low quality doctors, and poor results.

And what about health care in France? Everybody gets it, but at the expense of the economy. Higher taxes, especially employment taxes, cause higher unemployment and contribute to a per capita GDP in France some 40%-50% lower than here in this fine land. I would rather make 40-50% more money, and spend it buying my own health insurance (or paying my own doctors directly). I know it's cliche to say 'if you don't like it here move', but in actuality if you favor heavy government involvement to fulfill social goals, then this is probably not the place for you. (Although, you may want to stick around to see who gets elected President.)

However, you are correct that France has a highly rated health care system. So why is this? Well, doctors in France insist on retaining all the decisions concerning whether or not a treatment is administered, and the Medicare system there is very streamlined so filling out claims is very easy. In other words, they kept the good stuff and reduced the bullshit! And in the opinion of this blog, bullshit reduction is next to Godliness, as the saying goes.

Our government is inefficiently administering Medicare.

Agreed....you have a chance to redeem yourself and bring this one home....

Efficiently managed universal coverage via a Medicare-type coverage might allow extending coverage to all citizens at at reasonable cost, if our inept government would swallow its pride and see how other countries do it.

You blew it. First of all, AP doubts that the government can efficiently manage anything. If you want an example of this, look what happened when the Annapolis city government tried to enter the landlord business at the Market House. If you want another example, read anything else about any government, anywhere. Second of all, this is just a difference in philosophy. Here is what you say:

Problem: Government mis-manages health care. Government is inept.
Solution: Do what France does to make our government less inept.

And here is what I would say:

Problem: Government................inept.
Solution: Don't let the government run this activity. Find a private market solution.

There are all manner of subsidies and tax breaks afforded to corporations, farmers, and the dairy industry. So why not help the helpless as well as the wealthy?
BARRY FLIEDER, Annapolis

Again, terrible. You say help everybody, whereas conservatives would say help nobody. It sounds mean, but in the long run everybody is better off: there is no time wasted by politicians trying to figure out which people to help (because if you help one special interest group there are like 3 ka-billion more that want handouts), and you eliminate the equity problem that we have now from our (everyone's) taxes being taken and given out to particular industries (not everyone.)

So, how does this relate to Annapolis? Frankly, I don't remember everything I wanted to say about this. You see, I started this post yesterday, then drove to Ocean City for a bachelor party type event, and am continuing this post today. Sufficent to say I am working with fewer brain cells today than I was yesterday. (Do they re-grow?)

I suppose my main points as they relate to our city are role of government and accountability. I don't believe the government should be ever-reaching into our lives. I don't believe they should be spending our money on 'economic development'. I don't think they should be apologizing for slavery. As Ronald Regan said, government should be funded through the strength of the people.

(Disclaimer #2: The above Ronald Regan quote is only marginally relevant, but was used to fulfill another Republican National Committee Mandate.)

And for accountability--follow the money, as they say. Any time the government becomes the middle man between us and our money, we lose accountability and we cannot control what happens to us (at least to the same degree). So we need to make sure, when the city takes our money, that they are using it correctly.

Man, I hope the coffee is ready........

City Priorities

Heavens to Murgatroyd, people! Today's Capital was a gold mine of blogging material. This is the last post I will be writing tonight, but since it will be the first post you see on the page, it is the appropriate time to tell you that you have a lot to look forward to!

This kind citizen writes to The Capital concerning the priorities of our elected officials. In this blog's humble opinion, they have largely been wasting their time, perhaps up until now. I usually don't edit or abridge letters, but this one rambles a bit, and I am tired. So I have shortened it for content.

It's time for our city leaders to take a long, hard look at their priorities....

YES.

.....which should be to:

Ooh! Yay...let's hear 'em.

*Protect our citizens.

Yadda Yadda Dave Cordle Babble Babble $35,000 is not enough to get paid to risk your life.

*Prepare our citizens.

For what?

Our leaders should prepare their own families, homes and workplaces for all emergencies.

This is a little conspiracy-theory-ish. But, agreed: we should have an emergency response plan. And I'm sure we do. Now that I'm thinking about it, what is the city's emergency plan? What would I do? And how would people keep reading this blog?

The rest of the letter goes on to try and define the complete role of government, as well as the description of the ideal leader. Let's fast forward:

(Sincerely)
PATTI DIMICELI, Annapolis

Patti, I included you in my musings because, and only because, you agree that fighting crime should be the city's #1 priority, and they have been doing a hell of a not good job at it. Nice. Point taken.

September is almost here, which means that the city council will actually start having meetings again, and hopefully they can do something meaningful AND helpful.

Plastic Bag Altruism

Another misguided soul. So sad--to think that because your heart is in the right place--you have a noble goal--and you feel good about helping the environment, that you don't have to evaluate bills on the facts.

Another citizen given a forum (hey, just like me!), courtesy of The Capital. Shall we?

With 40 percent of the Chesapeake Bay declared dead, global warming on everyone's agenda and the irrefutable knowledge that plastic bags harm wildlife and the environment, you seem to treat the effort to rid our city of plastic bags as a pointless whim.

Stop right there! See, this is what I'm talking about. People get so fired up about what they think they should be arguing about, and most of the time they agree with the people they are arguing against. I will ignore your global warming mini-tirade and address the plastic bag bit--NOBODY IS SAYING THAT PLASTIC BAGS ARE GOOD FOR THE ENVIRONMENT. We are saying that this bill to ban plastic bags, proposed by Sam Shropshire, is not the best way to help the environment. See the difference? Big difference. The effort, in fact, is a pointless whim because it will be counter-productive.

Exactly who do you think it is who will clean up the bay, protect our wildlife and wilderness areas, and rid our streets of unsightly trash?

Look, lady, banning things does not get rid of the problems people cause by misusing the things. And to answer your question, you will pay city employees to clean the bay, etc.

Someone else is not going to do this for us. It is up to each of us to make a slight change in our daily routines in order to live a bit more sustainably.

You have not given one argument in support of the bill to ban plastic bags. This is what you are talking about, right? I actually agree with you--we all should make slight changes. Take your plastic bags to the store for recycling, for example.

Yes, it can be annoying and inconvenient to change our habits and use cloth bags rather than plastic bags to bring our groceries home.

Alderman Shropshire's bill does not require the use of cloth bags; it merely bans plastic bags.

But if we can't even do something this simple, how in the world is it we think we are going to solve the meta-issues of our time, such as global warming?
CAROLYN HILL, Annapolis

First of all, will someone please proofread these letters? The capital charges people to read, for goodness sake. It's 'mega', not 'meta'. Meta(e) are ancient roman columns.

Now then, we can't solve global warming--that's the whole point. To quote somebody who is more famous than I am, but not famous enough for me to remember his name: "To think that humans in the course of 100 years can change the course of entire existence, and to reverse it nonetheless, is extreme arrogance." But enough about that. And, frankly, enough of your letter. We all want to protect the environment, and this bill is not the way to do it.

Police Questions Answered

This fella wrote to The Capital with a lot of questions, and I'm fixin' to give some answers.

There has been much to say about the county police taking second jobs in bars to supplement their income. At the same time, 22 openings for Annapolis police officers have been left unfilled.

This blog's official number of unfilled positions is 23, but your number is within the margin of error. (+ or - 5%, for those of you scoring at home.) Please continue.

Perhaps this is too simplistic....

probably not: most of politics is unnecessarily complicated.

....but why not offer overtime to the (county) officers?

Because the mayor does not cooperate with the county executive.

At least they'd be working in the area most congruent with their skills, would help reduce the lack of police presence in Eastport, and would earn evidently much-needed additional income.

Brilliant. This is an absolutely magical suggestion. Bonus points for using the mathematical term 'congruent' and the rarely used contraction 'they'd' in the same sentence. Bonus points for me for using the word 'contraction'.

While we're at it, how about reducing or eliminating property taxes for police officers who move into high-crime areas?

This also sounds divine.

What happened to the oft-rumored police station in Eastport?

Don't worry my friend...this is in next year's budget: $3,600,000.

Reducing response time couldn't hurt crime statistics.
BRAD BIEBERICH, Annapolis

Well, response time is its own statistic, but we'll ignore your mistake because the rest of your letter was so excellent.

Brad, good work....I won't try to pronounce your last name, but if I see you at a bar, I will buy you a drink.