OK, it’s a little late, but it would have been better for all concerned if Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. had listened to his inner handicapper and stayed out of last year’s race for governor. Why? Glad you asked. He wouldn’t ...

Tagged with: Annapolis C. Fraser Smith democrat election Martin O'Malley maryland Paul E. Schurick politics republican robert l. ehrlich jr.

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK, Wyo. — Traffic slows and everyone looks for the park rangers who always seem to be around when something’s afoot on the highways. What is afoot? Bear? Bison? What? Black bear, says the ranger. Where? “Close enough ...

Tagged with: black bear C. Fraser Smith elk national park service wyoming

People are hurting. They’re struggling to keep their houses. They’re fighting off slick operators who promise, for a fee, to reduce their debt but then disappear with the money. Many Americans are unemployed. Are they apt to pay bills late ...

Tagged with: Baltimore C. Fraser Smith Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Enoch Pratt Free Library maryland

For much of his Horatio Alger-like life, William L. “Little Willie” Adams was an avid golfer. One of his favorite partners was the heavyweight boxing champion, Joe Louis. When Louis was in the area, they usually played at Carroll Park, ...

Tagged with: Baltimore blacks boxing C. Fraser Smith maryland naacp segregation

Come on, folks, there’s really something more alarming than a congressman’s gray underwear. I give you the Grand Old Tea Party and the 2012 presidential race. That’s what it is, right? The GOTP? Republicans were more inclusive. Remember Mac Mathias? ...

Tagged with: Barack Obama C. Fraser Smith debate GOP presidential campaign republican romney tea party united states

Much has been made of Willard Hackerman’s offer to put a lot of money into the evolution of Baltimore’s renaissance. But focusing on the money misses the point. It’s the leveraging, the kick-starting and the daring that will matter most. ...

Tagged with: arena Baltimore C. Fraser Smith Camden Yards Development finance hotel Inner Harbor willard hackerman

TOMBSTONE, Ariz. — The talk here in the desert is all about what locals call the monsoons — heavy summer rains that make the flowers bloom. Something about air currents shifting aloft and altering their ability to pick up and ...

Tagged with: arizona borders C. Fraser Smith governor illegal immigrants immigration Mexico undocumented united states

Every day seems to bring more good news for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. Every day, it seems, there’s a new candidate for mayor. The more the merrier, she may be thinking. State Sen. Catherine Pugh, in a fund-raising letter, says she’s ...

Tagged with: Baltimore baltimore city council baltimore mayor C. Fraser Smith candidates carl stokes Catherine Pugh city council Martin O'Malley Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake otis rolley peter o'malley Sheila Dixon U.S. Sen. Barbara Mikulski

Baltimore needs a mega-casino at the Inner Harbor. So says former mayor Thomas A. D’Alesandro III. The city can’t pay its own way anymore and gambling is the only revenue game left in town. As a mayor of Baltimore, D’Alessandro ...

Tagged with: Baltimore C. Fraser Smith casino city Inner Harbor problems state center william donald schaefer

We are back to earth now, dropped gently from the whirlwind that was the Maryland Film Festival. Like Dorothy and Toto, we don’t immediately know what to make of our trip. One minute we’re in a parking lot given over ...

Tagged with: Baltimore C. Fraser Smith theatre