Make Mistakes

Now that the Kanasco Ltd. pharmaceutical plant in Brooklyn Park faces criminal prosecution for a 1991 chemical spill, environmental officials should start thinking about what to do the next time Kanasco's permits come up for renewal.The recent indictments, coupled with a $25,000 civil penalty proposed by the Maryland Department of the Environment, are not the end of the Kanasco saga. Though the company faces criminal fines up to $200,000, there is no guarantee it will have to pay that much, if convicted.

BALTIMORE County Councilman Vincent J. Gardina and his attorney are $100,000 richer today. No doubt there's a shiny new car in somebody's future. It's a less fortuitous event for Maryland taxpayers. They're the ones getting stuck for the bill. And whom do we have to thank? Nobody's rushed forward to take credit, but this much is clear: The Ehrlich administration has some explaining to do. Mr. Gardina was fired in 2003 from a $56,000 post within the Maryland Environmental Service. Trouble is, his bosses say he was doing a great job. Politics had nothing to do with his hiring: He got the job after Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. took office.

PHILADELPHIA -- The Washington Redskins' second-half swoon under coach Norv Turner is starting a bit early this year.The Redskins, who were 7-1 in 1996 before collapsing to 9-7 and missing the playoffs, were 4-1 just a month ago. But now the Redskins are 5-4 and in danger of another free fall after a frustrating 35-28 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles yesterday.The only consolation is that the Redskins are tied for first place in the NFC East with the New York Giants and Dallas Cowboys."We looked like a junior high team out there," wide receiver Albert Connell said after the Redskins turned the ball over six times.

Columbia resident John Williams has a soccer problem, and he admits it freely. "I'm addicted," said the Thunder Hill neighborhood resident who manages and plays on two co-ed teams and a men's team and coaches a women's team in leagues administered by the Howard County Department of Recreation and Parks. "It keeps me busy, and it keeps me happy. That's all that matters," said the full-time car salesman, who has played in county adult leagues since they were formed in the early 1970s. Williams started playing soccer, he said, back when it was a "sissy sport."

She was lively and engaging with a high, almost comical voice, a trill imitated everywhere from Sesame Street to The Prairie Home Companion. Yet bubbling through every encounter I had with Julia Child, who died Thursday at the age of 91, was her credo that cooking mattered, that cooking was not only worth it, but fun. I interviewed Julia Child many times during the past 20 years. Most food writers in America did. She was easy to talk to. She had something to say. She read a lot more than cookbooks.

River Hill tried but was swept away. Now, it is Centennial's turn.Northern-Calvert County, a perennial volleyball powerhouse that has earned four state titles in the last five years, defeated the fourth-ranked Hawks yesterday, 15-6, 15-7, 15-9 in the first of back to back homes matches against two of the area's best teams.Top-ranked Centennial takes its turn at Northern today, and has plenty of incentive. In Centennial's season-opener last year, Northern beat the Eagles in their gym, ending a 39-match win streak that included two state titles.

LONG POND, Pa. -- It looked like Jeff Gordon would run away with the UAW-GM Teamwork 500 Winston Cup race yesterday on this speedway's long 2.5 mile tri-oval.But auto racing can be funny that way. It's why fans stay in their seats to the end.It's the unexpected, unexplainable that keeps the game exciting.Race fans saw it displayed at the Indianapolis 500, when Scott Goodyear, obviously on his way to victory, beat himself by passing the pace car on a restart with 10 laps to go and handed victory to Jacque Villeneuve.

TAMPA, Fla. - For high-risk excitement, skip the Ravens' offense and tune in after Super Bowl XXXV for "Survivor: The Australian Outback." During the three-plus hours before that, it will be the same boring and brutal conservative attack that has become the defense's carry-on item throughout this journey to the Super Bowl. The offense doesn't win games, but it doesn't cause the Ravens to lose them, either. There are these rules: Don't make mistakes, run the ball and ... don't make mistakes.

The two pedal-powered submarines didn't exactly travel far in the Naval Academy's giant tow tank.But even though the day had a few surprises, Saturday was far from wasted for a team of midshipmen learning the ropes to become repeat champions in an upcoming international race.The commander of the group of young engineers hopes mistakes madeat the test tank will save the team from losing the race in Florida."We at the Naval Academy will make mistakes, but we won't make mistakes twice," said Lt. Cmdr.

Air travel isn't what it used to be, what with the cramped seats, bag-of-peanuts meals, and security pat-downs. But if you think your last trip was bad, be glad you weren't on the flight where the teen-agers returning from a BMX biking convention in Las Vegas passed around Playboys and ran down the aisles. Or in the terminal with the drunk girls who caused such a ruckus that the airline barred them from boarding. Thanks to Airline, the new Arts and Entertainment network's docu-soap that films real adventures in flying, you can experience these horrors from the comfort of your couch.