Plan

Are the Republicans really that stupid, or has telling lies become such a way of life for them that they can't keep them all straight? I see in the paper from Republican babbling heads like Bob Ehrlich, as well as their cadre of misinformed letter writers, their new "talking point" that President Obama has not issued any plans for Medicare ("Ryan is a good pick - but very risky," Aug. 18). What drug do these guys take that seems to remove 90 percent of their brains? The president already has a plan.

Sexual union between a man and woman is the only reason the human race has survived. If the supreme intelligence that created us had made one sex, or if marriage had only been between members of the same sex, none of us would be here now. Men and women are not the same. Each has a unique role in the creation of life. Traditional and same- sex marriage are not the same either. The former is the framework in which human life has continued to survive for thousands of years. It is the only setting in which life can be created and preserved according to the plan of the author of life.

Baltimore Mayor Stephanie C. Rawlings-Blake plans to merge several city agencies, abolishing as many as 15 positions and saving up to $1.5 million, The Baltimore Sun has learned. Under the plan, the Commission on Aging would be folded into the Health Department, while the community relations, wage and disabilities commissions would be consolidated under a new Office of Civil Rights, according to a senior official who spoke anonymously because he was not authorized to publicly discuss the changes.

Plan for redistricting means diminishing returns for Republicans It's no wonder 1st District Councilman Tom Quirk supports a proposal by Baltimore County's Redistricting Commission to add 6,000 Woodlawn residents to District 1. If the proposal is adopted, District 1 becomes a safe seat forDemocrats. Mr. Quirk may ask, what's not to like? Mr. Quirk can give us all the feel good speeches he wants about turning Security Mall into Harborplace West when this maneuver is really about shifting 6,000 heavily Democratic residents into a district that currently seems evenly divided politically.

The Orioles plan to offer a minor league contract to veteran left-hander Mark Hendrickson with an invitation for major league spring training, a club source said Monday evening. Hendrickson, who last pitched in the majors in 2011 with the Orioles, threw for the team during last week's three-day mini-camp. He threw bullpen sessions on Wednesday and Friday. In December, the 6-foot-9 Hendrickson began to reinvent himself as a sidearm pitcher. Orioles manager Buck Showalter suggested that Hendrickson consider lowering his arm slot back in 2011, believing that Hendrickson's tall frame and athleticism - Hendrickson is a former NBA player - could create some unparalleled deception in his delivery.

For me personally the federal health care reform act was long in coming and provided an important safety net. Republicans (and probably others in Congress) with their own Cadillac-style health plans (paid for with our tax dollars) have no understanding of the difficulties of getting adequate, affordable health insurance when you are between 50 and 65 years of age and have one or more pre-existing conditions. It is just not available, and any small business owner or entrepreneur is just one illness away from total financial ruin.

My suggestion to the Government Accountability Office and the president is to give the citizens of this great nation a venue to buy back our national debt and hold it in perpetuity, never to be used as collateral on a national mortgage again. If the president and the GAO will tell us, the citizenry, the account number and an address to send the money to, those of us who are willing and able can put our money where the problem is. Since Congress is so involved in political wrangling in the midst of a crisis, we shouldn't involve them.

Columbia will develop by June a vision for a network of interconnected pathways that will allow residents to ditch their vehicles and use nearly 100 miles of trails to walk, bike or run to their destinations. Some 130 community members turned out this week to a couple of public meetings to provide feedback to the Toole Design Group as the Hyattsville-based engineering firm drafts the "Active Transportation Action Agenda" to coincide with Howard County's forthcoming bicycle master plan.

I recently wrote about how to determine who gets a "plus one" to the wedding. While there are some solid criteria to consider, you will likely find yourself in a situation where a guest has RSVPed for two but their invite was only for one. So what do you do? (I guess this is a little premature for me since we haven't sent out our invites yet, but I think this is what I would do.) In my opinion, when a guest RSVPs for two when it should only be one I think it's best and easiest to just pick up the phone and be honest.

John Harbaugh is well-renowned for keeping his cards close to the vest. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that the Ravens coach was coy about revealing his plan for the team's preseason opener against the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night.   “The game plan for Atlanta, we don't have one,” he said after Friday's practice at the team's training complex in Owings Mills. “We will not have one. The game plan will be to run our offense, defense and special teams - pretty basic - and evaluate guys and try to execute.