Bottom Line

I recently retired to the Outer Banks of North Carolina, but because I grew up in the Baltimore suburbs, I still have much family and a strong interest in my home state. I'm grateful to be able to keep abreast of the news by reading The Baltimore Sun online. This past weekend I wasn't shocked when I saw how much money Bob Ehrlich has made since leaving public service four years ago ("Ehrlichs' earnings since 2007 nearly $2.5 million," Aug. 28). You can't fault Bob Ehrlich for this because there's nothing more American than making a quick buck.

Jake Arrieta spoke for a few minutes about being sent down to Triple-A Norfolk on Monday. He expects to start Friday for the Tides. Here is what he said: "I wasn't doing my job well enough. That's the bottom line. The team needs me. They need me to be better. That's the bottom line, really. I wasn't good enough right now. " What will you work on at Triple-A? "It's pretty obvious. I talked to Buck about a few things. We talked about things as far as high anxiety situations, and he pretty much asked me, 'Why do you have high anxiety in any situation with the stuff that you have?

WASHINGTON -- From Pasadena's Colorado Boulevard to downtown Monticello, N.Y., and from controversies about coffee shops in various American neighborhoods to stiffening resistance to a single European currency and other devices of European unification, many apparently dissimilar skirmishes are actually aspects of a single quickening argument about the proper jurisdiction of politics.These skirmishes are facets of a revolt against economics, and a reassertion of the sovereignty of politics.

The liberals in the Maryland General Assembly are at it again wanting now to give driver's licenses to undocumented and illegal immigrants. This is the wrong way to go, and illegal immigrants do not deserve or should not be given drivers licenses in Maryland. At a time when Maryland is furloughing and laying off state and local employees and cutting service and raising taxes, we should not spend another nickel for illegal immigrants to let them drive on our highways and roads.

As a resident of Baltimore County, I am opposed to CZMP Issue 5-019 filed by JC Bar (CVS). The issue is one of public safety and continued quality of life in Carney. The proposed CVS location is on Harford Road only slightly south of the intersection of Harford and Joppa roads. Having vehicles, both northbound and southbound on Harford Road, enter and exit from CVS at this point so close to the failing intersection of Joppa and Harford roads will be very unsafe. What the failing intersection does not need is another large commercial enterprise to disrupt the traffic flow at this critical point on Harford Road.

Let's agree that whatever took place on the sideline between Derrick Mason and Joe Flacco on Sunday was not exactly Tyson vs. Holyfield at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. Nobody swung at anybody. Nobody head-butted anybody. Nobody bit off a chunk of anyone's ear. But let's be clear about this, too: Mason can't be going off on his quarterback the way he did, either. OK, we don't have all the details of what transpired between the two in the second half of the Ravens' 37-13 win over the Carolina Panthers.

COLLEGE PARK - For much of Maryland's season, the goal very simply was to perform better than in the game before. Coach Mark Turgeon said victories should be byproducts of playing the game properly, and he discouraged talk of winning and losing among players and coaches. But as the Terps (15-10, 5-6 Atlantic Coast Conference) prepared for Saturday's game at No. 22 Virginia (19-6, 6-5), the calculation had shifted. Turgeon is talking more now about the bottom line as the team makes a final push to qualify for postseason play.

The Ryland Group Inc. yesterday reported strong earnings for the third quarter and nine-month periods, signaling that changes the homebuilder made earlier this year are beginning to boost its bottom line.The Columbia-based company earned $8.4 million, or 50 cents a share, on revenue of $447.8 million in the third quarter that ended Sept. 30. In the same period last year, Ryland lost $22.6 million, or $1.52 a share, on revenue of $376.6 million.In the first nine months of 1994, Ryland generated net income of $22.2 million, or $1.31 a share, on revenue of $1.2 billion, vs. a net loss of $10.3 million, 80 cents a share, on revenue of $1.04 billion in the comparable period in 1993.

The British Broadcasting Corporation wants to get rid of its cliches with a new style book aimed at banning tired phrases. At The Baltimore Sun, getting rid of just one cliche, such as "the bottom line," might be as tough as cleaning up the Chesapeake.Since 1990, Sun and Evening Sun writers, letter and other writers and subjects used the accountants' phrase, "bottom line" (the point of something) 2,094 times. In a July 1993 sampling of 50 examples, Sun story or headline writers used the phrase 16 times; others or people quoted were guilty the other 34 times.

Eli Jacobs says he is considering selling the Orioles because he no longer has enough time to read two or three books a week. He didn't mention the $25 million profit his group stands to make in less than three years of ownership. It probably has crossed his mind.He says he is thinking about getting out because owning a team is a venture too public and time-consuming. He didn't mention that the upcoming free agencies of Cal Ripken, Glenn Davis, Ben McDonald and Gregg Olson could cost many millions, taking a big whack out of that profit.

Wearing a dark suit and a purple striped tie, an outfit that he said his wife picked out, Ravens coach John Harbaugh met the media for the first time here and set the tone for his team ahead of Sunday's game against the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII. His message was simple: the Ravens will enjoy all that comes with playing in the Super Bowl but they will be ready to play Sunday. Harbaugh joked with reporters, playfully encouraging them to ask repetitive questions to his younger brother, Jim, the head coach of the 49ers.

Hardly anyone could blame Ray Rice if he got a little excited after learning Tampa Bay Buccaneers rookie Doug Martin had rushed for 251 yards and scored four touchdowns in last Sunday's 42-32 win against the Oakland Raiders - who are the Ravens' opponent this Sunday. But Rice said he fully expects Oakland to spend this week of preparation fixing the run defense and containing Rice and rookie Bernard Pierce. “That's a prideful bunch,” Rice said Wednesday. “I'm sure they are going to come in here with a high motor.

Regarding your editorial about the student protest against Chick-fil-A at University of Maryland, I think you have the right bottom line ("College Park should think bigger," Aug. 21). After all, one of the definitions of liberal is tolerance of others' ideas. Yet you fail to mention that Chick-fil-A does not practice discrimination against its employees or customers. And where was the school administration on this issue - "out to lunch," as usual? But surely not at Chick-fil-A.

We have less than a week now until the non-waiver trade deadline. As Buck Showalter says about trade talk, "[it's] good for the fans and that's the bottom line. They like it. It keeps them engaged. " OK, so let's get engaged -- and no you don't have to have a few shots at the bar and drop to a knee for that. I'm allowing you to pick one guy who is rumored to be on the trade block and add him to the Orioles' 25-man roster. You don't even have to tell me who you are giving up to get him (though that makes it more interesting.

I was riding in a van near York, Pa. last week when one of the passengers pointed with pride to a giant new facility owned by a major grocery chain and announced, "That's going to be their regional distribution center. It will be fully-automated, requiring only about 10 people to keep it running day and night. It will replace a distribution center that requires more than 100 workers. " Wow, I mused, so this is how businesses create jobs. Hire 10 techies so they can fire 100 laborers.

I read with great interest The Sun's coverage of Maryland obtaining a waiver from the No Child Left Behind federal law ("Leaving NCLB behind," May 31). In fact, it seems 36 states are going this route. This is a big reprieve to Maryland after spending millions of tax dollars on administrative programs with minimal results, not to mention a huge increase in administrative personnel to implement these new programs. This law is flawed, as are the people who instituted it. If you read the name No Child Left Behind it says that this program is not going to allow one child to fail.

Has your prescription been changed recently even though the old drug was working just fine? If so, you may be an unwitting victim of a war being waged in the pharmacy.Once upon a time, doctors prescribed medicine without interference. They tried to use their clinical experience and judgment to make the best decision for the patient.Nowadays, many doctors are finding that their choices are limited by the patient's insurance plan.For years, John took Zantac for severe heartburn brought on by a hiatal hernia.

There is nothing flashy about Mark Rypien. Not in the way he runs the Washington Redskins offense, not in the way he delivers the deep pass, not in the way he deals with the media.For most of the four seasons that he has quarterbacked the Redskins, Rypien has been workmanlike and erratic and an easy target for his detractors.He may not be perfect, but after six weeks this season he is unbeaten. And only one other quarterback in the NFL -- New Orleans' Bobby Hebert -- can say that."He's done a heckuva job," says Redskins coach Joe Gibbs.

Gov. Martin O'Malley is looking for ways to trim his workforce - not the number of people, but their waistlines. The administration has launched a wellness program aimed at state workers. The governor known for his statistical analysis of programs will also be tracking the workers' progress. The goals, officials say, revolve around promoting a healthy diet and exercise at work, making sure worker health insurance plans promote proven and cost-effective practices and smoking cessation.

**The most impressive thing about 22-year-old outfielder Xavier Avery is the maturity and patience at the plate he has exhibited. It's something I didn't expect when he was recalled last week. The perfect case in point was in the third inning Monday. He came up with the bases loaded in a 2-0 game - and most rookies would have been feeling the heat in that situation. But Avery didn't try to do too much. He took a called strike from Clay Buchholz, and then fouled one off. So the kid was down 0-2. He ended up working a nine-pitch walk that scored the Orioles' first run. Ten-year veterans sometimes get too anxious in an at-bat like that.