Panhandlers

It's a common sight: church volunteers, school kids and homeless people pacing road medians, extending buckets and hands so that motorists stuck at red lights can donate money. However in Anne Arundel County, where the practice is highly visible on major roads such as Ritchie Highway and West Street, some local officials say such soliciting is a safety hazard and a nuisance to drivers. So they're pushing to make Anne Arundel and Annapolis the latest jurisdictions to limit the practice.

FORT MYERS, Fla. - As rare back-to-back tropical storms - one a hurricane, the other likely to become one - churned toward Florida, Gov. Jeb Bush declared a statewide emergency and mobilized the National Guard yesterday. Tourists were told to evacuate the low-lying Florida Keys. "Tomorrow's going to be an interesting day, to say the least," said Ben Nelson, state meteorologist for the Florida Division of Emergency Management. In 150 years of reliable storm data, he said, there was no precedent for two hurricanes striking Florida in such rapid succession.

Members of the Baltimore City Council said yesterday they would kill a hotly contested proposal to make it illegal for homeless people or anyone else to sleep or lie on sidewalks downtown. Meanwhile, officials announced they would move the city's Office of Homeless Services from the city's housing department to its health department as part of an effort to provide more drug treatment and mental health services for the indigent. "The sidewalk law will have a respectable death in committee," said City Councilman Robert W. Curran, chairman of the Judiciary and Legislative Investigations Committee, which was considering the ordinance that had been advocated by downtown business owners.

From the heat of August to the chill of February, Larry Foster walks along the intersection of Ritchie Highway and Marley Glen carrying bins of Tootsie Rolls. He knocks on car doors and, as the drivers roll down their windows, he hands out candy and they hand him change. Foster and other members of the Glen Burnie council of the Knights of Columbus donate the money to special education schools and nearby churches. Last year, they donated $13,000 to the Ruth Parker Eason School in Millersville.

If downtown business owners get their way, soon there will be a lot less panhandling at night on city streets. Today, members of the city's Planning Commission will hear proponents argue for legislation making it illegal to aggressively beg for money at night. The discussion will also center on programs and services needed to assist the city's growing homeless population. The Baltimore Safe Streets Coalition -- an organization of downtown business owners, retailers, health care advocates, property owners and individuals -- is strongly pushing for the two-pronged approach, which they say is necessary to make tourists and residents feel safer when they are downtown at night and to aid homeless people.

Don't beg after dark. Don't sleep on sidewalks. Don't smoke in bars. Those possible restrictions are under consideration by the Baltimore City Council -- with legislation for all but the smoking ban introduced at its meeting last night, and the latter to be studied. The Downtown Partnership business advocacy organization proposed a pair of laws that would impose a civil fine for anyone who panhandles at night, lies on a sidewalk or sits on a public walkway for more than an hour. Meanwhile, Councilwoman Helen L. Holton introduced a resolution asking for a hearing on the potential impact of a smoking ban in city bars and restaurants.

FAR BE IT from us to promote vices of any sort, but let's face it, life is one shortcoming after another. As the weather got warmer we rummaged around among our own failings and soon came to realize: Baseball is best in the afternoon - during the week. Novels are best when we're supposed to be reading a well-documented report on a vital and worthy topic. Little can match the enjoyment of a late-night friendly poker game, as long as there's enough beer on hand to keep it friendly. It's just as well that smokers have been forced outside, and every case of tobacco-related lung cancer makes us sad and angry, but if an occasional cigarette provides some people a measure of solace in an otherwise virtuous life, well, let them smoke.

There is great hiking in the hilly terrain around Charles Town, W.Va. Tourists can go tubing on the Shenandoah River, play golf at several public courses or take in auto racing at Summit Point Raceway. History buffs can see the wagon that bore the abolitionist John Brown to his hanging in 1859. Gourmands can feast at the Hillbrook Inn, a charming Tudor-style estate tucked away in the woods. In summer, theatergoers troop to nearby Shepherdstown, where the Contemporary American Theater Festival showcases up-and-coming playwrights.