Sheila Dixon

Wednesday's paper contained the good news for fans of Sheila Dixon that she is working with those hoping to unseat Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake ("Dixon at work behind the scenes," July 3). Should any of those candidates prevail, we expect Ms. Dixon would carry considerable influence in city government in the coming years. Will Baltimore voters follow the example of voters in Washington, D.C., who keep returning Marion Barry to office? Alma T., Baltimore

WEATHER Today's forecast calls for highs in the lower 70s and clear skies. Clouds are expected to move in for the evening, with a 20 percent chance of showers after midnight. TRAFFIC Check our traffic map for this morning's issues as you plan your commute. FROM LAST NIGHT... Former mayor Dixon roasted for charity : Sheila Dixon sat onstage at the Comedy Factory in Power Plant Live as radio hosts and comedians skewered her over the scandals that led to her resignation from the mayor's office two years ago. City pastor convicted of sexually abusing a teen girl : Pastor Leon W. Jones, who founded the Renewed Hope Christian Church on the 700 block of N. Paca St., was convicted Wednesday of sexually assaulting a teen girl, the Baltimore State's Attorney's Office announced.

Come on now, is it really front page news? Who cares about Shiela Dixon's furs and whether they are for sale on eBay ("2 coats with a notable past go on sale as part of Dixon deal," March 11)? I sure as heck don't. As a retired journalist, I do not feel this item warrants front page coverage and more inside. Shiela Dixon is a disgrace to the city of Baltimore, and it's time the Sun dropped any and all coverage of her. Please! Louis Kordek, Fallston Send letters to the editor to talkback@baltimoresun.

The purloined gift cards. The fur coats. The bicycling tours of the city with staffers.  And, of course, the famous shoe incident. Former mayor Sheila Dixon's tenure in City Hall is ripe with material for comedians.  On Thursday, seven comics and local media personalities will be poking fun of  Dixon -- to her face-- at a "Roast and Toast" at the Baltimore Comedy Factory. Why would Dixon, who resigned in 2010 as part of a plea deal to settle criminal charges, agree to a such a thing?

Call me old-fashioned, but I figure the process should be like this: guilt and punishment, followed by disgrace and shame, followed by a period of humility and self-examination, followed by insight and contrition, followed by a public appeal for forgiveness, followed by hard labor in good deeds, then redemption and grace, and maybe someday (if the statutes, stars and voters allow it) re-election. That's my idea of how a corrupt American politician who betrayed the trust of the people who elected her — say, Baltimore's former mayor, Sheila Dixon — might execute a successful political comeback.

I simply want to throw up after hearing about Sheila Dixon's attempt to influence the city's current political scene. What are these people thinking? It makes me lose respect for any candidate who would listen to her. Aren't we concerned about passing on any values of rightness and responsibility to our children? Here is a woman so narcissistic she has yet to deliver a sincere apology or ask forgiveness from those she once served. She really believes she committed no sin other than getting caught, and that her "good deeds" outweigh the bad. Now we have a mayor who is sincere, hard-working, ethical and smart.

The purloined gift cards. The fur coats. The bicycling tours of the city with staffers.  And, of course, the famous shoe incident. Former mayor Sheila Dixon's tenure in City Hall is ripe with material for comedians.  On Thursday, seven comics and local media personalities will be poking fun of  Dixon -- to her face-- at a "Roast and Toast" at the Baltimore Comedy Factory. Why would Dixon, who resigned in 2010 as part of a plea deal to settle criminal charges, agree to a such a thing?

Sheila Dixon has something that doesn't belong to her, but she's trying to keep it anyway. Seems like old times. Nearly seven months after ill-gotten gift cards, furs and cold, hard cash cost the mayor her job, Dixon still has a bunch of city-owned video surveillance equipment at her Hunting Ridge house. The Police Department had the stuff installed as a security measure when she became mayor. After she became Citizen Dixon in February as part of a plea deal, police asked for it back.

Why don't those running down former mayor Sheila Dixon realize that they too may have some hidden sins that may not be as public as hers ("A Dixon comeback?" July 14)? We are the most accusatory people on earth. I understand that those in authority have a greater responsibility to display good character and integrity, and I know she did wrong. But she paid for her crime, and people still aren't satisfied. They want her to keep on paying her debt to society forever. The truth is that Ms. Dixon loved Baltimore, and there has been a great vacuum since she left.

I have been thinking about media and public shame a lot lately. And events this week with Rupert Murdoch globally and Sheila Dixon locally have focused my troubled thoughts. The litany of public figures who have been in the news lately for behaving shamefully is a long and sad one. The indictment of former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards in June brought back the whole sorry saga of him fathering a child out of wedlock with a campaign videographer as his wife fought a cancer that would claim her life in 2010.

Ho hum is the only thing I came up with when I received my elections reminder card last weekend about yesterday's elections. I have never seen such a pitiful list of "contenders" for major political offices. I am normally "charged up" with at least one candidate on the list when I review the ballot box choices, but not this year. I know it has been challenging journey for Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake to fill the shoes of Sheila Dixon - to have to continue someone's else's legacy, and create a "brand" of one's own simultaneously.

Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake spoke briefly Wednesday in her first public appearance after securing the Democratic nomination for mayor, but was tight-lipped on plans for her first full term in the office. "I'm glad it's over and now we can continue to do the work to move Baltimore forward," Rawlings-Blake said. She swept a field of challengers in the Democratic primary Tuesday with 52 percent of the vote. In heavily Democratic Baltimore, the general election in November is seen as a formality for the party nominee.

A majority of Baltimore's most engaged Democrats approve of how Sheila Dixon handled her job as mayor. But they're not keen for a comeback. Dixon, who is barred from running for office this year as part of a plea deal to settle corruption charges, has said she might campaign for mayor in 2015. But while 53 percent of respondents to the Sun Poll said they approve of her work for the city from 2007 to 2010, 54 percent said they would not consider voting her back into the office.

The City Council president showed me his underwear. The state prosecutor let me try on Sheila Dixon's ill-gotten mink. A state delegate swore at me for asking why she'd lied about her age. A priest denounced me from the pulpit. And David Simon sent me lots of angry messages. Mencken had it right when he called news reporting “the life of kings.” My regal run at The Baltimore Sun comes to an end this week, after 11 years at the paper, nearly six of them writing this column. I am leaving for a job at The Washington Post, where I'll cover Virginia politics out of Richmond.

Why don't those running down former mayor Sheila Dixon realize that they too may have some hidden sins that may not be as public as hers ("A Dixon comeback?" July 14)? We are the most accusatory people on earth. I understand that those in authority have a greater responsibility to display good character and integrity, and I know she did wrong. But she paid for her crime, and people still aren't satisfied. They want her to keep on paying her debt to society forever. The truth is that Ms. Dixon loved Baltimore, and there has been a great vacuum since she left.

In reference to your editorial about Sheila Dixon ("A Dixon comeback?" July 14), I can only say, well, why not? Remember, the ex-mayor of Baltimore was only found guilty of embezzlement, a slap on the wrist type of a crime. She was only playing "Robin Hood" for herself and family members and no one told her about being a team player to the poor folks of Baltimore. Perhaps she did not see them standing around on our city street corners or at night lying in the streets. I think her fur coats had such large collars that it covered her eyes.

I was confused about the charges against Mayor Sheila Dixon, but thanks to the politicians and law professors supporting Ms. Dixon, I now understand: Apparently it's OK allegedly to steal if you steal a small amount ("'That's all they've got?' Rising to her defense," Jan. 10). Ronald W. Walters, a professor at the University of Maryland, College Park, says, "That's all they've got?" And Larry Gibson, a professor at the University of Maryland law school, finds the case "underwhelming," according to The Baltimore Sun. What makes me sad is that so many citizens seem to expect their leaders to steal and lie, as long as they steal a little and tell small lies.

Less than a year ago, many Baltimoreans thought their city was doomed -- doomed not only to persistent crime and poverty but also to weak leadership. Hardly anyone looked forward cheerfully to City Council President Sheila Dixon as the city's next mayor. There was fretful talk of radical opposition: Shouldn't the city's voters try to re-elect Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. so that Martin O'Malley, the Democratic candidate for governor, would have to stay on as mayor? In that event, Ms. Dixon would be confined to the council presidency.

The recent articles concerning Sheila Dixon ("Dixon at work behind the scenes," July 13) and Del. Joseph J. "Sonny" Minnick ("4 charged in tavern gambling raid," July 15 ) show how prosecutors deal with politicians accused of crimes. Ms. Dixon was allowed to plead guilty to a lesser crime after a jury found her guilty, solely to protect her pension and to allow her to continue to run for elected office in the future. Mr. Minnick co-owns the bar where authorities say illegal gambling was held at and where the bartender is reported to have claimed that Mr. Minnick was involved.

I have been thinking about media and public shame a lot lately. And events this week with Rupert Murdoch globally and Sheila Dixon locally have focused my troubled thoughts. The litany of public figures who have been in the news lately for behaving shamefully is a long and sad one. The indictment of former Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards in June brought back the whole sorry saga of him fathering a child out of wedlock with a campaign videographer as his wife fought a cancer that would claim her life in 2010.