Fare

For someone as partisan as Gov. Martin O'Malley, it seems strange that his party's most partisan affair - the Democratic National Convention - has, historically speaking, not been especially friendly territory for him. At the 2004 Democratic convention in Boston, then-Mayor O'Malley delivered a full-throated endorsement of presidential nominee John Kerry. The speech is now remembered for its exaggerated rhetoric - "America the beautiful, whose alabaster cities gleam undimmed by human tears; oh, my friends, to govern is to choose" - and delivery.

The high school football season kicked off for public schools Friday night, so everyone was in action over the weekend - well, almost everyone. Mount St. Joseph's Saturday night game had to be canceled because of the weather. Following is a look at how The Baltimore Sun's ranked teams fared this week and whom they play next. Look for the new rankings in Wednesday's paper (a day later than usual because of the Labor Day holiday). Ranking, Team Record Lastest result Next opponent 1. Gilman 0-2 Lost to Good Counsel 20-19 OT Vs. Don Bosco Prep (N.J.)

Baltimore has its own beloved Afghan restaurant, The Helmand, which opened in Mount Vernon in 1989 and from the start charmed diners with its refined version of Afghan cuisine in a candlelit urban setting. Howard County has Maiwand Kabob, which is equally beloved. Naseem and Roxanna Rafiq opened the first Maiwand Kabob in 1991 in the Harpers Choice Village Center. Two more locations followed, in Linthicum Heights and Hanover. In June, the Rafiqs, with their daughter, Nina, opened a new location in Columbia Crossing.

Rookie Kelechi Osemele said that he found out that he'd be playing right tackle the day before Thursday's preseason finale against the St. Louis Rams so he had little time to consider who he'd be lining up against. But it took just one Chris Long bull rush for Osemele to realize that he would be tested by the Rams' defensive end. “He was way stronger than I thought he was going to be,” said Osemele, the Ravens' second-round pick out of Iowa State who started all four preseason games, two at right tackle and two at left guard.

Chef Mark Littleton has groupies. During his stints at a string of pubby Baltimore restaurants, including Simon's, Lulu's and Annabel Lee Tavern, Littleton developed a strong following, thanks to his inventive take on comfort food. In July, Littleton and his fiancee, Cheryl Gavoni, opened Adam's Eve in the old Crossroad's Bar and Restaurant space in Canton. And just last week, we overheard a few of Littleton's fans gushing about him. "We used to go to Annabel Lee's all the time when the chef was there," one patron said.

I thought I had said all I was going to say about Fareed Zakaria's plagiarism Friday night when I wrote about how wrong it was to steal the words and ideas of another -- and how deadly for a public intellectual. Read here what I said about Zakaria's actions shredding any sense of intellectual authority I once thought he had. But then, came the lame defenses from some other people in the media the last two days -- defenses that only underlined in my mind what I said about the deeply confused and debased state of journalism today.

UPDATE: See end of post for update on another journalist saying Zakaria "borrowed heavily" from him. Following the lead of Time magazine, CNN Friday suspended Sunday morning show host and international affairs analyst Fareed Zakaria for plagiarism. The magazine said its suspension was for a month "pending further review," while CNN put no time limit on its removal of Zakaria from its airwaves. Plagiarism used to be a deadly journalistic sin from which there often was no redemption.  Given the lack of values and ethics in journalism today, however, who knows what will happen to Zakaria.

Dodgers plugged holes Lance Pugmire Los Angeles Times While the Angels landing former Cy Young Award winner Zack Greinke filled a much-needed gap in their effort to win the AL West, the Dodgers stand as the trade-deadline winner by plugging so many holes. In addition to their acquisition last week of five-tool infielder Hanley Ramirez, Los Angeles added a proven big-league closer in Brandon League to help protect late leads and proven October pressure player Shane Victorino to further fuel the batting order.

As a rookie Courtney Upshaw is bound to make mistakes. But if the Ravens rookie outside linebacker erred in his first practice of training camp Thursday, inside linebacker Jameel McClain didn't notice. “I think there were [a few] mistakes out there for everybody at some point, but he didn't really make any glaring rookie mistakes because he was always on his P's and Q's,” McClain said. “He knew where he had to go, and he got there and he got his job done.” That approval brought a smile to Upshaw's face, but in a sign that he understands his role as a rookie, Upshaw quickly downplayed the compliment.

Irish pubs should be a few things: cozy, welcoming and convivial. They need a seemingly endless supply of Guinness, Harp and whiskey. Kelsey's Restaurant, an Ellicott City fixture for almost two decades, fits the bill, turning out pub-friendly food that's fresh and tasty. Hoping to create a neighborhood gathering spot in the mold of traditional Irish pubs, Chris and Maureen McManus opened Kelsey's in 1994. A few years ago, Mark Mays and Chad Medina bought into the restaurant, creating a four-way partnership.