Ballot Box

Advertisements praising Maryland's new gun control law will appear on Baltimore-area televisions soon after the measure is signed Thursday - the first volley in a two-pronged effort to defend the legislation and the politicians who voted for it. The gun control advocates behind the ads want to bolster support among Maryland voters in case there's a referendum next year. But they also want to counter a campaign to oust lawmakers who backed the bill in the General Assembly. "We know that the other side will be attacking the legislators who voted for it, and we want people to know those legislators were doing the right thing to save lives in Maryland," said Vincent DeMarco, president of Marylanders to Prevent Gun Violence.

National Rifle Association President David Keene said Tuesday that the organization intends to challenge the constitutionality of Maryland's newly passed gun law, as a conservative group readied plans to try to overturn the law through voter referendum. Keene said during a radio interview the group will “absolutely” go to the courts. “We are already in court in New York and we will be in court and aiding those in Maryland - and I am myself a Maryland resident - who want to challenge the constitutionality of this and other provisions here in Maryland,” Keene said to the Washington, D.C., station WTOP.

A fellow who needed money for an operation walked into the American Political Items Collectors (APIC) convention in Anaheim, Calif., last August with a couple of old campaign buttons to see what he could get for them. The convention was called to order over the public address system and, in keeping with an APIC tradition, the buttons were auctioned, right then and there. One was an extremely rare button picturing John W. Davis and his running mate, Charles Bryan, the 1924 Democratic candidates.

Maryland's Joe Smith took a significant step toward being named the Atlantic Coast Conference's Player of the Year yesterday, as the 6-foot-10 sophomore was the leading vote-getter of the Atlantic Coast Sports Writers Association's all-conference team.Smith was named to the first team on all but two of the 114 ballots cast. Joining Smith on the first team were three other sophomores -- Jerry Stackhouse and Rasheed Wallace of North Carolina and Tim Duncan of Wake Forest -- along with senior guard Randolph Childress of Wake Forest.

WASHINGTON -- The Republicans are muttering darkly about another "October surprise" -- in this case President Clinton ordering an invasion of Haiti to crystallize support behind his administration shortly before the Nov. 8 congressional elections. Even Dan Quayle took a moment from his new role as self-anointed arbiter of family values to charge that the president is planning the action for political reasons.In fact, the situation in Haiti presents far more political risk for Clinton than any gain he could hope to realize.

Democracy in action is a beautiful thing.The Constitution of Maryland, Declaration of Rights, Article 1, states, "That all Governmentof right originates from the People."It continues, "That the right of the People to participate in theLegislature is the best security of liberty and the foundation of all free Government; for this purpose, elections ought to be free and frequent; and every citizen having the qualifications prescribed by the Constitution, ought to have the right of suffrage."

I have to send in an American League Most Valuable Player ballot tomorrow, and after spending hours talking to players, executives and other writers the past month, I've only figured out this much: There is no right answer.Orioles center fielder Brady Anderson thinks Seattle shortstop Alex Rodriguez should win, hands down. Rafael Palmeiro: Boston first baseman Mo Vaughn, no question. Bobby Bonilla would pick Juan Gonzalez of the Texas Rangers. Others have mentioned Cleveland slugger Albert Belle ("If you guys don't vote for him this year," said one player, "we'll all know it's a personal vendetta."

LOS ANGELES -- On a radio talk show shortly after the verdict in the O.J. Simpson case, a caller half-jokingly urged whites to riot. The talk-show host and subsequent callers concluded that, of course, white people don't riot. But in reality, if ''to riot'' means something like ''to wreak havoc on others,'' then white Americans have been rioting for some time. But when white people riot, they do it silently, almost invisibly, albeit painfully.Who are these white people? They are mostly the powerful elites who control decisions and shape public opinion.

The "It's gonna be Close," slogan that county executive hopeful Geoffrey R.Close used in his race rang true to its pun last week.He was defeated by a 775-vote margin by Democratic opponent Eileen M.Rehrmann.Harford's first female county executive-elect said she's planning to forge ahead with a good working relationship with the Republican majority-held council and with a project to get a high-tech campus and business park started in the county.She said she also wants to begin work on the county's public water and sewer needs.

DETROIT - For just a moment the other day, as Barbara Barnett sat down in a local union office, its auditorium festooned with green and white balloons, a laptop computer became her own polling place. With the click of a mouse, Barnett voted for the Democratic presidential hopeful of her choosing, simply by finding an available laptop, well before many other Michigan voters will cast ballots the traditional way in the state caucuses today. "They make it very easy and accessible," said Barnett, 60, a retired state worker.