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Hard Times at Douglass High," is an HBO documentary that aired last June. It captured much of the 2004-2005 school year at Baltimore's predominantly black Frederick Douglass High School. The tragedy is that what is seen in the documentary is typical of most predominantly black urban schools. Douglass' students are four to five years below grade level. Most of its ninth-graders read at the third-, fourth- or fifth-grade levels. In 2006, only 24 percent of its students tested proficient in reading, in math just 11 percent, and that's an improvement over previous years. Only one student managed to score above...

An idiot caller to "The Chris Plante Radio Show" lost his mind on-air today. This is H-Y-S-T-E-R-I-C-A-L! Click above for direct link, or here: http://www.630wmal.com/Article.asp?id=802992

A fortuneteller is suing Montgomery County after he learned he would not be allowed to open a shop in Bethesda because the county bans the business of forecasting the future. Attorneys for Nick Nefedro, previously of Key West, Fla., say county officials violated his First Amendment rights to free speech and discriminated against his “Roma,” or Gypsy, culture when they refused to give him a business license. Montgomery code dating back to the early 1950s prohibits collecting cash for predicting the future. “The underlying purpose is to prevent people from being taken advantage of, because it’s a scam,” Clifford Royalty,...

Get Kathy Phillips talking about oil exploration off the Mid-Atlantic, and she conjures a scene right out of the Gulf of Mexico, with drilling platforms, pipelines and pumping stations overwhelming the shoreline. "People here on the East Coast don't have a clue what it means to have offshore drilling," said Phillips, an environmental activist with the Assateague Coastal Trust. "It's dirty business. The water is dirty, and your beaches end up being dirty, and you're dealing with globules of oil and globs of tar. "I'm not even talking about oil spills. I'm talking about day-to-day operations." With energy costs continuing...

“The Appalachian voting bloc will be critical in the … 2008 presidential election,” former Democratic National Committee executive director Mark Siegel says. Yet his broad statement comes with its own geopolitical caveat: location. “It all depends on what part of Appalachia you are talking about,” says Siegel. “If they live in Pennsylvania and Ohio, then, yes, without a doubt they are the key voters. If they live in West Virginia, then no, because for the Democrats that is not a state that is in play.” Appalachia is not a single state but a region that has its own unique frame...

WASHINGTON -- A 13-year-old boy was killed, seven people shot and a person stabbed within minutes of each other in a spate of violence in the Trinidad section of NE shortly after midnight Saturday. Police said between midnight and four in the morning a person was also stabbed and another shot citywide. DC Police Inspector Rodney Parks says the shootings appear to have taken place in connection with three attempted robberies. Police are looking for a gold or metallic colored car, possibly a Dodge Intrepid, spotted at each crime scene. The police have no suspects in custody at this time....

The Baltimore Sun is laying off nine people in its newsroom after accepting what a union representative said seemed like most or all of the employee buyout applications it received last week. Of those forced to leave, four are editorial assistants, four are two-year interns and one is a reporter, the company told employees in a meeting held Friday morning. The Sun told the Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild that nine others in the advertising section and call center are also being laid off. Tanika White, co-chair of the Guild, said Friday afternoon management only informed her of the 18 union jobs...

Last time we were in Westminster a passerby couldn’t let the moonbats go unopposed. He had driven by on one of his rare Saturday’s off from work and was disgusted at the moonbats’ signs. He went home, wrote out a quick sign and came to protest the protesters. (BELOW) is the result. Apparently the moonbats believe that only they do not have to obey the laws. They were so upset over the “Clueless Morons” sign that they complained to the Westminster police. I can hear them whining now, “They they they werrrr on ourrrr side botherrrring us”. An officer showed...

A Catholic priest who previously worked in youth ministry and religious education at churches in Germantown and Bethesda turned himself in to police Tuesday evening in Montgomery County after being charged with abusing a former altar boy. The Rev. Aaron Joseph Cote, 56, worked part time in youth ministry at Mother Seton Parish in Germantown between 1999 and 2002 and part time in religious education at Bethesda’s St. Jane Frances de Chantal Parish between 1997 and 1999. Police allege Cote engaged in “inappropriate touching of” and “inappropriate personal sexual activity” in the presence of a then-14-year-old victim, who was seeing...

LoRo, Greg, Matthew, TomTheRedHunter Lurker Bill, PleaDeal, Chris, and VAFlagWaver LoRo, a Freeper, has been very busy working as an intern for the Heritage Foundation. She was able to join us on a fairly regular basis last summer. A few weeks ago she did a little recon and saw that we were still out here keeping Code Pink pushed down the street away from the gate. So she sent out an email to all her associates and friends at Heritage and asked if anyone wanted to join her at Walter Reed on the 11th. We were fortunate that she...

The roll call of our 12 Patriots included Legionnaires Glenn (WWII - USMC), Dave (WWII - Army), Dennis (Korea - Army), Halsey (Korea - USMC), Frank (Korea - Army), Lurker Bill with daughter and grandson, Cindy_True_Supporter, Gavin, Sensei Ern, {Mrs} Trooprally, aka [Mrs] T, and myself, [Mr] T. Pics by [Mrs] T The nine moonbats that showed up this week once again received almost no honks as the stood and sat, holding their signs belittling our soldiers tremendous efforts. Research by Harvard shows a correlation between active anti-troop protest and attacks on our troops. ”We find that in periods immediately...

District Gun Registration Starts Tomorrow D.C. police will start the gun registration process at 7 a.m. tomorrow, when it opens an office at police headquarters at 300 Indiana Ave. NW. It is the start of the 180-day amnesty period in which residents may register handguns they have had illegally, or guns from other states. An officer from the gun unit will meet the applicant at the door and take temporary possession of the gun to ensure safety at headquarters. Officers will tag the gun and run ballistics tests before returning it to the owner. Paperwork indicating that registration is in...

A Park Heights man shot and killed a 45-year-old man who was attempting to burglarize his aunt's home early Wednesday morning, a police spokeswoman said.

Even though at least 34 journalists at The Sun have applied for buyout packages, the paper will still need to lay off employees to achieve its goal of eliminating 60 newsroom jobs by August. According to Washington-Baltimore Newspaper Guild Co-chair Tanika White, 34 Guild members and a rumored 10 more non-Guild members applied for the buyout by Friday’s deadline. White stressed that some buyout applications could be rejected — that Sun leadership may decide it cannot afford to lose certain skill sets, which would add to the number of layoffs. Judy Berman, senior vice president of marketing for the Baltimore...

The funeral service for former White House spokesman Tony Snow will be open to the public. The service will be held Thursday morning at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on the campus of Catholic University in Washington, D.C.The White House announced earlier today that President and Mrs. Bush would attend the service.Details as announced by the Shrine:Mass of Christian Burial for Tony Snow Thursday, 17 July 2008 10:00 am - Funeral Mass - Great Upper Church Open to the Public Doors open at 8:00 a.m. (Will Need to Pass through Security Checkpoint Magnetometers) The Most...

On its Web site, the Alliance for Smart Transportation bills itself as a "coalition of concerned citizens advocating for smart transportation solutions for Montgomery and Prince George's Counties." But read on. The new group criticizes Maryland's plan to build a 16-mile Purple Line transit link between Bethesda and New Carrollton but offers no ideas for how to relieve traffic...Nor does the site identify the "concerned citizens." The site's...founder is a board member at Columbia Country Club in Montgomery, whose 100-year-old golf course would be bisected by the transit line. Purple Line supporters say the Chevy Chase club is merely disguising...

Welcome to Hyattsville, population 15,000, where the downtown looks more like New York City and the neighborhoods more like Iowa. The City Council this spring passed a law reaffirming residents' rights to grow vegetables on front lawns. Three months later, some residents have 8-foot-high corn patches in front of their homes, and neighbors say they don't mind. "I think some people might consider different types of landscapes unsightly, just like different painting schemes or building additions - which may increase or decrease property values - but it is still permitted by our code," Mayor William F. Gardiner said. Residents always...

ANNAPOLIS, Md., July 10, 2008 – Patriotism runs high at Chick and Ruth’s Delly, a mainstay along the Maryland capital’s Main Street. Ted Levitt, the deli’s owner, starts each morning leading patrons as they recite the Pledge of Allegiance. A huge flag hovers high over the lunch counter, and yellow-and-orange walls are covered with photos of troops in uniform. Ted Levitt, owner of Chick and Ruth’s Delly in Annapolis, Md., debuts his Faces of Valor USA project during the town’s Fourth of July Parade. Levitt had the faces of heroes airbrushed on a restored 1931 Buick he plans to...

The Chris Plante Show, 630 WMAL, Washington, DC is discussing RIGHT NOW (during the 10:00 - 11:45 ET a.m. hour) what Obama needs to do to earn the respect of Americans and military families. Perfect opportunity for Freepers to call-in and express your thoughts on this matter!!! LISTEN LIVE: http://radiotime.com/program/p_61017/Chris_Plante.aspx http://www.630wmal.com/article.asp?id=632848 CALL: 888 630 9625

WOW and DOUBLE WOW is the only way I can describe the Patriotic Americans that attended the Walter Reed and Olney FReeps. It’s Saturday afternoon as I started this combined AAR and my heart still pounds with pride over all those who came out, especially to Walter Reed on the evening of the Fourth. Since I’m honored this week to write the Walter Reed AAR and usually write the Olney AAR, I had to combine the two because of their similarities. Several weeks ago a question as to who will be at Walter Reed came up. About 4 or 5...

So this is how it ends: not with a bang, but a whimper. The most senior judge in England has declared that Islamic legal principles in Sharia law may be used within Muslim communities in Britain to settle marital arguments and regulate finance. Lord Chief Justice Lord Phillips said, "Those entering into a contractual agreement can agree that the agreement shall be governed by a law other than English law." In his speech at an East London mosque, Lord Phillips said Muslims in Britain could use Islamic legal principles as long as punishments - and divorce rulings - comply with...

WALKERSVILLE, Md. (AP) - Officials of a rural Maryland town illegally discriminated against a Muslim group by barring them from building a mosque and holding annual conventions on land zoned for farming, the property's owner claims in a federal lawsuit. Developer David Moxley and his father had planned to sell 224 acres in Walkersville to the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community USA for about $6 million. The Silver Spring-based religious group canceled the deal earlier this year after the town's three-member Board of Zoning Appeals voted unanimously to reject their request for a special exception to land-use restrictions. (snip) David and Robert...

If you've seen HBO's "The Wire," you know why those of us who live in Baltimore are often asked whether our city really is the hellhole it is portrayed to be on TV. Our answer is, well, yes. Baltimore deserves the Third-World profile it has developed because it has expanses of crumbling, crime-riddled neighborhoods populated by low-income renters, an absent middle class, and just a few enclaves of high-income gentry near the Inner Harbor or in suburbs. This wasn't what Baltimore looked like in the 1950s. Then it was a prosperous, blue-collar city. [Snip] Today, the city has a population...

The Ravens probably have enough on their plate right now, what with a new coach and a new quarterback and Derrick Martin's recent citation for alleged marijuana possession and impersonation of a Cincinnati Bengal, but they still found time to run afoul of the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

No Dirty Dozen this week but a dozen of clean shaven gents and wise lady Patriots were in Olney today. They included Legionnaires Glenn (WWII - USMC), Francis (WWII - Army), Dave (WWII - Army), (YES - that is 3 WWII Vets!!), Halsey (Korea - USMC), Frank (Korea - Army) Lurker Bill, Fraxinus, Olney-Keith, PrezUSA222, Sensei Ern {Mrs} Trooprally, aka [Mrs] T, and myself, [Mr] T. Below Pics are by our Wise Lady Patriot, [Mrs] T PrezUSA222 is in the Army now but before he actually leaves, he is making the best of it by attending 3 Freeps. YES, that...

The Trooprally's drive in heavy rain on the way to WR In a few weeks PrezUSA222 (Chad) will no longer be able to stand with us at Walter Reed on Friday nights. He's got new responsibilities. Responsibilities that will require 12 weeks of basic training, several months on job training, and then a probable tour in Free Iraq. Chad answered the call. He's in the Army now. We presented him with a plaque of a photo montage of most of the troop support signs we've used over the years. The montage is an original creation by iMacMan. After I...

BETHESDA, Md., July 2, 2008 – They may not be on the pro tour yet, but two military children got a taste of the big time when they helped pro golfer Fred Couples kick off the second AT&T National at Congressional Country Club here today. Jeffrey Dahl, 9, of New Jersey, left, professional golfer Fred Couples, and Margaret Rollins, 13, of Virginia hit the ceremonial first shot to open the second AT&T National golf tournament July 2, 2008, at Congressional Country Club in Bethesda, Md. Both children’s fathers are servicemembers, serving in Pakistan and California, respectively. Defense Dept. photo...

The Prince George's County Revenue Authority, its tax receipts sputtering as home prices plunge, has adopted a novel way to brake the slide. By cracking down on front lawns that resemble used-car lots and on trucks parked in residential areas, the authority reckons it can collect some of the $15 million in unpaid tickets and make neighborhoods more attractive to potential home buyers and prospective businesses. "A lot of the enforcement is for aesthetics because things are disorderly looking, but we also want to increase property values and make the community more livable," said Troy Thompson, director of parking operations...

Several Prince George's County {MD} correctional officers who had access to a 19-year-old inmate found strangled in solitary confinement Sunday have initially declined to speak to investigators of the slaying, a source familiar with the interrogations said. The Maryland State Police and federal agents were investigating the death of Ronnie L. White, who was killed less than 36 hours after he was booked into the county correctional center on first-degree murder charges in the hit-and-run death Friday of county police Cpl. Richard S. Findley.....

Apparently, some District residents aren't waiting on the District Council and the Fenty administration to work out the specifics of how to modify the gun ban to comply to the U.S. Supreme Court ruling last week. Gun shops in Maryland and Virginia suburbs told The Washington Post's Allison Klein that they've gotten a number of inquiries from D.C. residents trying to buy hardware. See the article here: The Washington Post: Gun Shops Await New D.C. Rules.

The FBI and Maryland State Police are investigating the death of a 19-year-old man accused of running down and killing a Prince George's County police officer. He died while in police custody Sunday, a little more than a day after he was charged with the killing. The Maryland medical examiner ruled Monday that the inmate, Ronnie White, died from strangulation. Two small bones in his neck were broken. The FBI, which investigates prison deaths as a matter of course, said it is focused on possible civil rights violations. White had been charged with first-degree murder in the death of Cpl....

Gabe Schwartzman, a tall, lanky high school senior from Montgomery County, can fill up the tank of his 1980 Volvo sedan for less than $20. And he's happy to share his secret: "I take what would be thrown away and turn it into fuel." Over the last several months, Gabe has been hunkered down in the basement of his parents' Garrett Park home, converting used fryer oil from a restaurant up the street into fuel for his car. Brewing biodiesel, once a quaint hobby for green-minded citizens and budding chemists, is becoming more mainstream. The spike in gas prices is...

PRICELESS!!! It was a hot and humid day with a passing shower. After dealing with the dilapidated umbrella that I gave [Mr] Trooprally for our 1st Rain FReep , he gave us big umbrellas just in case! The shower was quick and luckily not enough to even break out the umbrellas. It was, however, enough to get a rain drop on [Mrs] Trooprally's camera lens at one point. So, when you see a little spot in the middle of a few pictures, you will know the reason! Great pics courtesy of [Mrs] T. What a day full of surprises...

Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is scheduled to pay a solemn visit to wounded Iraq veterans at Walter Reed Army Medical Center in Washington on Saturday, Politico has learned. The visit will be Obama’s third. Obama’s staff is keeping his trip low key. It is not on his public schedule, and his campaign would not confirm it. A pool of reporters will go with him, but will not accompany him inside. (snip) McCain occasionally visits soldiers at Walter Reed on weekends when he is in Washington, most recently May 31. McCain’s visits are usually unannounced to the press, and sometimes he...

WASHINGTON, June 26, 2008 – Sunny days will be just around the corner when Elmo and his friends bring “The Sesame Street Experience” to 43 military installations to help children trying to cope with parents’ deployments. Jillian Kules, 13 months, shows Leslye Arsht, deputy under secretary of defense for military community and family policy the new DVD she got June 26, 2008, at the launch of Sesame Workshop's "The Sesame Street Experience." Both the DVD and the live show were developed with the support of Arsht's office to help young military children cope with parents' deployments. Defense Dept. photo...

ANNAPOLIS | Gov. Martin O'Malley said Wednesday that he supports reforming a campaign finance system from which he and other Democrats have benefited immensely over the past decade. "I'm open to any ideas that modernize and update our campaign finances," he said. Mr. O'Malley's statement follows a series of investigations involving Democratic lawmakers in Maryland who also received large contributions from developers who used loopholes in the state's campaign finance law to give the money. Mr. O'Malley received more than $56,000 from Baltimore developer Ronald H. Lipscomb, who is the focus of a six-month state investigation. No charges have been...

The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of terrorists to get access to our courts, illegal aliens can stay even when they agree to leave, and ruled in favor of child rapists. Based on this I wouldn't put it passed them to rule against law abiding gun owners if they ruled against an 8 year old rape victim!!

ACLU tries to halt mealtime prayer at Naval Academy By Josh Mitchell | Sun reporter 8:09 PM EDT, June 25, 2008 A national civil liberties group is renewing a push to end mealtime prayer at the U.S. Naval Academy, where a group of midshipmen recently complained to officials that they felt pressured to participate in the longtime practice. The tradition, believed to date back to the college's founding in 1845, now involves a chaplain's leading grace before a noon meal that all 4,200 midshipmen must attend at King Hall. Midshipmen are not required to pray, though they must stand during...

Date/Time: 6/25/2008 3:20:34 PM Title: Baltimore Sun announces downsizing plans Posted By: Jim Romenesko Memo from Baltimore Sun publisher Tim Ryan Sent: 6/25/2008 3:00 PM Subject: Organizational Update Dear Employees / Owners, The two key factors that will sustain our company for the future are customer satisfaction and financial stability. Achieving both goals is challenging in the very best of market conditions. In the face of today’s tough economy, adapting to consumer trends while maintaining our fiscal strength is proving to be even more difficult – yet even more critical. Our long-term strategy of going on offense and creating growth...

Below is the survey question at Senator Ben Cardin's website. If you are a Maryland Freeper, I invite you to visit the website - http://cardin.senate.gov/ - and participate in the survey. If you are not a Maryland Freeper, vist anyway.

A Maryland judge sentenced an illegal immigrant to more than seven years in prison for coercing a 14-year-old girl into prostitution and forcing her to engage in sex with more than 25 men a day, according to federal prosecutors in Maryland. Javier Miguel Ramirez, 35, a Mexican national living in Hyattsville, was sentenced Monday to 87 months in prison, followed by five years of supervised release for sex trafficking of a minor girl. He had pleaded guilty in March. U.S. Attorney Rod J. Rosenstein said the case was one of the most shameful human trafficking cases he’s seen. “Javier Miguel...

One of the most ambitious pay-for-performance initiatives in Washington area schools is drawing strong teacher interest and local union support even though many national labor leaders have long asserted that it is unfair to link teachers' paychecks directly to their students' test scores.... ...The program's criteria exclude some teachers from certain bonus pools. Half of the bonus money is tied to scores on state tests given in third through eighth grades and in high school: Up to $2,500 is won when the school meets test score targets, and up to $2,500 is given for improving a given class's scores. The...

To their everlasting horror, the global-warming alarmists have discovered that ExxonMobil advertises with the Washington Nationals. This act of free enterprise cannot go unpunished, so the global-warming alarmists have initiated a campaign to educate the Lerner family and baseball-supporting public in the hope the Nationals will end their relationship with ExxonMobil. It is unclear whether the global-warming alarmists walked to the ballpark from their homes, took mass transportation or drove there in an automobile. That, of course, is often the rub with the global-warming zealots. They talk a good game if it concerns you, your neighbor and the person down...

Several hikers ran across eight bares last week in Gathland State Park. A group of men between the ages of 40 and 60 reportedly disrobed and started walking along the trail, said Sgt. Ken Turner, a spokesman for the Department of Natural Resources. About 10:30 a.m. Friday, a man was in the park when he saw the men gathering near the Appalachian Trail. He then saw them hiking in nothing but their shoes, Turner said. His wife reported the sighting to police about an hour later, Turner said. Officials did not release the name of the man or his wife....

After spending the winter in a warmer climate, 3DJoy in back in town for the summer. And she’s back in style. Just arriving last week, she was at Walter Reed, spent Friday night at the Olney Compound and was out at Olney, cheering for our brave troops. Then lunch at Dave’s Bistro. For those who know the place, they actually have a 6 page menu now. And the weather was almost perfect, just a little on the warm side in Olney. What a way to spend her first weekend in town. BELOW 3D in her stylish outfit at Walter Reed....

Here's how rising fuel prices affect an organization with a fleet of 1,273 school buses: The Montgomery County school board today will consider giving Superintendent Jerry D. Weast emergency powers to make students walk farther to school, if need be, in the coming academic year. (snip) Should prices continue to rise, the school system could save money by raising maximum walking distances for students, because more walkers means fewer buses. Currently, elementary school students walk up to a mile, middle school students 1.5 miles and high school students two miles.

Over the past two years, Estes, 43, has conducted a free golf clinic for the [catastrophically wounded] soldiers every Saturday morning in the spring. A section of the range is cordoned off for use by the men and women who make the 30-minute trip from Walter Reed. Every week, in a more formal group session, Estes focuses on a different aspect of the game: bunker shots, chipping, putting, the driver. But he and other staff members also offer individual instruction for anyone who asks. Somehow, Estes manages to find a way to get them to make contact with the golf...

My understanding is the case is to be ruled on this Monday, based on recent decisions and with the left buying off Kennedy we are likely to see another 5-4 decision against the American people. They could put it off until next Monday the 30th, this should be an easy decision in American citizens favor but the length of time it is taking makes it look like the fix is in.

Anti-gun Mayor Sheila Dixon (Baltimore) was awakened at 6:30 a.m. on Tuesday, June 17 by investigators with the state’s prosecutor’s office. Seven hours after the raid, they left carrying boxes, folders, and a blue cooler. For over two years, state prosecutors have been investigating Mayor Dixon’s questionable financial dealings during her time as the City Council’s President between 1999 and 2007. Mayor Dixon, who has called for broad restrictions on the rights of law-abiding gun owners, is a member of New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s anti-gun group "Mayor’s Against Illegal Guns."

Hopeful Science by: Ben Giles, June 20, 2008 Last October, the Center for American Progress launched a new online publication called Science Progress. Their progressive vision for scientific research has now made it to print. On June 13, the Center held a miniature science fair and panel discussion to launch the Spring-Summer edition of Progress, the first print release of the increasingly popular publication. “This first journal edition of Science Progress is yet another step we are taking to ensure that the American people realize that ‘science is the stuff of progress,’” said Center President John D. Podesta. The online...