Silence

As a psychologist who works with parents, students, and school districts I think we have to keep talking about bullying like you did in your article ("Despite the law, too many schools fail to take bullying seriously," Dec. 27). The saying out of sight is out of mind certainly applies. We don't need another tragedy to happen before we try to find solutions. The last 30 years I have seen an increase in bullying and violence, and treating these problems doesn't happen overnight, but it can happen.

Del. Jon Cardin's recent comment on bullying suggesting that "kids were hurting kids" while "parents and teachers hadn't a clue" was remarkable ("Journey in grief leads to new curbs on bullying," May 2). Where has Mr. Cardin been? As a mother of three since 1980, my children and I can attest to the escalation and prevalence of bullying over the past 30 years. Teacher training on bullying in all its forms, including cyber-bullying, is provided at the start of every school year. Anti-bullying assemblies are held annually.

Thanks for your continuing coverage of the abduction of former Orioles Cal Ripken's mother, Vi. ("As Vi Ripken abduction case continues, police silent on details," Aug. 2). It's been 10 days since this unfortunate incident and still very few facts have been revealed while many questions remain unanswered. I saw family spokesman John Maroon's statement, but why has the victim not described what happened to her? Why have authorities not divulged more details of the investigation?

Harper Lee's leap into the headlines with a lawsuit against a New York literary agent is a remarkable change for the reclusive author, who wrote a great American novel a half-century ago and has hardly been heard from since. Another famous author/recluse, J.D. Salinger, popped up in a legal challenge in a few years ago, when he tried to halt publication of "60 Years Later: Coming Through the Rye," an unauthorized sequel to his classic coming of age novel. A settlement of that lawsuit -- coming after Salinger died -- limited the sale of the book in the U.S. and Canada.  Now Lee, author of "To Kill a Mockingbird, " has accused her former agent, Samuel Pinkus, and others of trying to deprive her of royalties from the novel.

From Liz Atwood: Silent Night. The beloved Christmas carol got me thinking recently that we just don't have enough silence anymore. Kids -- at least my kids -- seem especially addicted to noise. I walked into the family room recently to find the 16-year-old doing homework on his laptop while listening to music on his phone and watching a movie on the TV. The middle schooler usually plays games on his iPad while watching television. I'm constantly turning down the volume on the car radio and warning the kids they are going to hurt their ears if they listen to loud music through their earphones.

The decision to part ways with tight end Todd Heap elicited questions about the ability of Ed Dickson and Dennis Pitta to succeed Heap. Those questions continue to linger, but perhaps not as prominent as they did in the preseason. Dickson led the Ravens in receptions with five, for 59 yards and one touchdown, while Pitta caught two passes for 45 yards in Sunday's 35-7 pasting of the Pittsburgh Steelers. After the game, Dickson could've used part of his interview to rail at critics, but he declined to take the bait.

How do you identify a conversation sustainer? Conversation sustainers are the folks who remove the fuzzies from the sweaters of our nation's social interchanges, razoring off the unpleasant bumps and ridges. Or, if you prefer a tastier image, we're the types who verbally cover the awkward gaps in conversations with an innocuous yet pleasant coating, not unlike the candy shell of an M&M. The conversation sustainer routinely smoothes out social interactions and fosters community.

— Barry Jacobs has been a University of Virginia lacrosse fan for 50 years, ever since he unsuccessfully tried out for the team as a freshman. A season-ticket holder for many years after moving to Northern Virginia, Jacobs came to Klockner Stadium on Saturday night with mixed emotions. Jacobs, a retired State Department officer, was going to root for the top-ranked and No.1-seed Cavaliers against Mount St. Mary's in their opening game of the NCAA lacrosse tournament, but his heart was heavy from the killing of women's lacrosse player Yeardley Love nearly two weeks ago. Virginia men's lacrosse player George Huguely is charged with murder in her death.

The NFL will honor former Ravens and Cleveland Browns owner Art Modell with a moment of silence before each game played this weekend. Modell's two sons, John and David, learned of the news today after meeting with members of the media at the Ravens training complex in Owings Mills.  Both were touched by the announcement delivered by team president Dick Cass from commissioner Roger Goodell. Modell, 87, died Thursday at Johns Hopkins Hospital from natural causes.

Remember Simon and Garfunkel's 1960s-era hit The Sound of Silence? But what exactly does silence look like? And of course, what does it sound like? This is the subject explored in Speaking of Silence I, an extraordinary exhibit by local artists and students on view at Sub-Basement Artist Studios. The show was organized by Art on Purpose, a community nonprofit founded by curator-educator Peter Bruun that sponsors local exhibitions and workshops about social justice issues. At Sub-Basement, Bruun has put together a potpourri of works ranging from minimalist painting and sculpture to photography, performance art and sound pieces.

Adam Jones said Sunday he wanted to “shut up” Red Sox fans Monday during Boston's home opener. But instead, Jones and the red-hot Orioles offense got shut down by starter Clay Buchholz and the Red Sox. Buchholz pitched seven scoreless innings for the Red Sox, allowing three hits and striking out eight batters, including Jones once. He also issued four walks. Buchholz didn't allow an Orioles runner to reach third base. Obviously, a 3-1 loss was not what Jones had in mind Sunday when he said the Orioles planned to spoil Opening Day in Boston . "The more people, the more you want to shut them up. That's how I look at it. I don't care, they can stand up the whole game.

This is the thing that gets me: On March 5, I saw the front page headline - "6 killings continue violent 2013 start" - and it did not faze me one bit. It was not news. It was what I've come to expect in Baltimore and all major American cities. The news, as we say in this business, is not when a dog bites a man but when a man bites a dog. Or when, as in my hometown, New York City, there is such a lull in killings that that is the news: "Homicides in city in deep freeze for 7 days running," Newsday reported on Jan. 25. I might still have paid no mind to that Sun headline except that a good friend called from Philadelphia to tell me that one of those killed was the brother of another friend of his. That headline now had meaning.

The flowers left in condolence are a kind but painful reminder that De'ontae Smith is gone, as is the funeral program his mother carries around to remember the boy stabbed to death downtown just hours after the Baltimore Ravens' Super Bowl victory parade. Chevita Bumbrey and her husband, Donae Wright, have struggled with De'ontae's conspicuous absence. He could usually be found slouching on the couch playing video games or dancing the "mump" to rap music - shuffling wide-legged on the wood floor.

Maybe it was too nice out to protest. Or maybe no one cared what a few hundred conservatives were talking about in this one-party state. But only about 10 people convened Saturday with signs outside the DoubleTree Hotel in Annapolis to oppose Pamela Geller, best known for her opposition to the Ground Zero mosque and her ad campaigns linking the concept of jihad with mass murder. She was the opening speaker at the Maryland Conservative Action Network (MDCAN) conference held the same day at the hotel.

Orioles fans, I don't blame you for being upset. Here we are, the second week of January, and the silence from the Warehouse is deafening. Let's review what we have so far. No major moves to make this team better in 2013. No progress in the hunt for a big bat in the middle of the order. No signing of a much-needed first baseman. (Adam LaRoche, we hardly knew you.) Instead, what we get from the Orioles front-office is the sound of crickets. Here's the team's big off-season move so far: they re-signed Nate McLouth to play left field.

From Liz Atwood: Silent Night. The beloved Christmas carol got me thinking recently that we just don't have enough silence anymore. Kids -- at least my kids -- seem especially addicted to noise. I walked into the family room recently to find the 16-year-old doing homework on his laptop while listening to music on his phone and watching a movie on the TV. The middle schooler usually plays games on his iPad while watching television. I'm constantly turning down the volume on the car radio and warning the kids they are going to hurt their ears if they listen to loud music through their earphones.

All my days I have grown up among sages and I have found nothing better for a person than silence.-- Pirke Aboth, the TalmudPeople go to take sun baths; why have so few had the idea of taking baths of silence?=- -- Paul Claudel, "Lord, Teach Us to Pray"Bethany Beach, Del.SILENCE: It is a difficult thing to find these days.Susan Sontag, in a thoughtful book called "Styles of Radical Will," suggests that the real art of our time consists primarily in making more noise than people of any age before us. Already in 1952, Max Picard, in "The World of Silence" -- the best book ever written about the subject -- made the same point.

At first, Michele Norris didn't think her revelatory, heart-piercing book, "The Grace of Silence," would get so personal. The co-host of "All Things Considered" presumed that writing about race would extend the work she had done in 2008 for a multipart National Public Radio series that asked residents of York, Pa., straightforward questions. "Do white Americans underestimate discrimination? Do black people make too much of it? How would the country be different if led by a black man?"

In response to the editorial on guns in The Sun ("The missing issue: guns," Nov. 5) and a recent show on gun control on WYPR with Dan Rodricks interviewing Johns Hopkins professor Daniel Webster about a report by the Center for Gun Policy and research at the Bloomberg School of Public Health at the Johns Hopkins University: Kudos to The Sun, Mr. Rodricks, WYPR and Mr. Webster for bringing forth this discussion, one that is rarely heard in...

Every four years, presidential candidates tell the American people that this election is a turning point for the country. This year they might actually be right. To be sure, there are always differences between candidates. On a range of issues, from health care to tax reform, voters face a real choice about two different approaches to governing. But the most profound turning point in this election may be the fact that the neither candidate is talking about one of the most critical issues of our time.