Trojan Horse

WASHINGTON -- Now that the Clinton administration has capitulated in the face of a Republican juggernaut, we can expect some kind of overhaul of the widely-hated Internal Revenue Service.But will Congress really defang the tax collection agency?Mr. Clinton and Democrats in Congress were in a political bind as Republicans claimed the unusual role of champion of the underdog."In the David-versus-Goliath battle between the taxpayer and the IRS, David is about to get a bigger slingshot," said House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Archer, a Texas Republican.

Just as the Greeks distracted the residents of Troy with the Trojan Horse, the Columbia Association elected representatives and paid staff have created their own Trojan Horse - the new plan for Symphony Woods. Our elected representatives and our paid staff would like the taxpayers to be focused on the details of the redevelopment plan and not on the proposed mechanism for its implementation. And exactly what is hidden in the Symphony Woods plan? The Symphony Woods Trust, a new organization, to which Columbia taxpayer dollars would be transferred but Columbia taxpayers would have no right to know how those taxpayer dollars are spent.

Baltimore police homicide commander Terrence McLarney calls it the Trojan Horse strategy: Take down on drug charges a major organization believed to be linked to violence, and use the opportunity to clear hard-to-crack murder cases. That's what they say is now happening with Johnnie Butler, a 33-year-old taken into custody last summer after a wiretap investigation into his heroin and cocaine operation. At the time, Butler and eight co-defendants were hit with federal charges of conspiracy to distribute heroin.

Someone actually does do something on Survivor that's never been done before. We jump right into the Redemption Island duel with Christine and Mikayla. I'm rooting for Mikayla. But no, Christine wins again. So do you think Upolu is maybe realizing that it was a mistake to vote someone out so early who turned out to be such a good competitor? Of course, her attitude still kind of sucks. Oohh, Ozzy is thinking waayy out of the box, in assuming that since the merge is happening soon, it might be worth it to purposefully send someone to Redemption Island just for the purpose of defeating Christine.

A new Trojan horse directed at porn-viewing Mac users has touched off the usual barrage of "now those smug Mac owners will get their comeuppance" articles. The exaggerated tone - particularly in some of the headlines - is completely out of proportion with the threat. I'm not saying the Trojan, called OSX.RSPlug.A, poses no threat. It's real and it's out there. But it's not spreading like wildfire. A Mac user needs to do a lot of dumb things to get infected. First, the Trojan is embedded in porn sites, so if you're not using your Mac for porn you should be safe.

MARYLANDERS SHOULD BEWARE of fancily wrapped gifts handed to them by politicians. Especially in an election year. That's why a bill sponsored by Del. Howard P. Rawlings of Baltimore deserves extra-special scrutiny before citizens even attempt to unwrap the package: It is fraught with hidden implications. Indeed, the bill does the exact opposite of what its influential sponsor claims.The Rawlings bill attempts to create the biggest legalized gambling boom in the history of this state. It proposes a constitutional amendment that would allow 10 slot-machine gambling establishments in Maryland -- three at racetracks, two at "resort destinations" and seven at off-track betting locations.

RESIDENTS OF the Crofton taxing district who don't want to build an addition to their town hall if other neighboring community groups will be able to use the facility are looking pretty small.Most everyone in the western Anne Arundel community acknowledges something must be done about the town hall because it is not accessible to the handicapped. Prevented by the U.S. Americans with Disabilities Act from holding meetings at the hall, Crofton now uses other facilities that are accessible.Meetings, however, are not the only problem.

Residents said last night that Crofton leaders may be trying to pull a fast one -- and use the needs of the handicapped to justify building a $70,000 addition to Town Hall."

Think of it not merely as something with which to make music. Think of it not just as a container to protect the mystery within. Think of it as an artwork in its own right, intricate and deceptive. Think of it as a Trojan horse. John Diebboll's colored pencils sketch out the similarities between the piano, the wooden equine on wheels used to win the Trojan war, and Trojans, the opera by Hector Berlioz. A giant horse's head forms the rear of the piano case and looms over a scene from the opera in which Dido and Aeneas declare their love in a lush garden.

WASHINGTON -- Business and insurance lobbyists who helped kill President Clinton's health plan in 1994 are mobilizing a new campaign to block more modest proposals that would set federal standards for the quality of care.Republican leaders of Congress are urging the lobbyists to step up their activities against an array of health care bills backed by consumer advocates as a way to protect patients in a turbulent medical market.The lobbyists, from groups like the Health Insurance Association of America and the National Federation of Independent Business, have swung into action, with briefings for congressional aides and plans for a grass-roots campaign to fight the legislation.

Baltimore police homicide commander Terrence McLarney calls it the Trojan Horse strategy: Take down on drug charges a major organization believed to be linked to violence, and use the opportunity to clear hard-to-crack murder cases. That's what they say is now happening with Johnnie Butler, a 33-year-old taken into custody last summer after a wiretap investigation into his heroin and cocaine operation. At the time, Butler and eight co-defendants were hit with federal charges of conspiracy to distribute heroin.

In the summer of 2005, the Bush administration confronted a fresh wave of criticism over Guantanamo Bay. The detention center had just been branded "the gulag of our times" by Amnesty International, there were new allegations of abuse from U.N. human rights experts and calls were mounting for its closure. The administration's communications experts responded swiftly. Early one Friday morning, they put a group of retired military officers on one of the jets normally used by Vice President Dick Cheney and flew them to Cuba for a carefully orchestrated tour of Guantanamo.

A new Trojan horse directed at porn-viewing Mac users has touched off the usual barrage of "now those smug Mac owners will get their comeuppance" articles. The exaggerated tone - particularly in some of the headlines - is completely out of proportion with the threat. I'm not saying the Trojan, called OSX.RSPlug.A, poses no threat. It's real and it's out there. But it's not spreading like wildfire. A Mac user needs to do a lot of dumb things to get infected. First, the Trojan is embedded in porn sites, so if you're not using your Mac for porn you should be safe.

Think of it not merely as something with which to make music. Think of it not just as a container to protect the mystery within. Think of it as an artwork in its own right, intricate and deceptive. Think of it as a Trojan horse. John Diebboll's colored pencils sketch out the similarities between the piano, the wooden equine on wheels used to win the Trojan war, and Trojans, the opera by Hector Berlioz. A giant horse's head forms the rear of the piano case and looms over a scene from the opera in which Dido and Aeneas declare their love in a lush garden.

Harford County residents are concerned that the Army's plan to open a plant at Aberdeen Proving Ground to dispose of asbestos from military installations in Maryland and surrounding states could contaminate the air with cancer-causing fibers. "They [the Army] have not convinced us that all the safety conditions are in place to avoid asbestos from getting into the air," said County Councilman Dion F. Guthrie, a Democrat who represents the Joppa and Edgewood areas. As a result, Guthrie has scheduled a community meeting at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 25 at the Edgewood Senior Center, 1000 Gateway Drive, to address citizens' concerns.

At the start of Troy, King Agamemnon (Brian Cox), unifier of the Greeks, must cajole Brad Pitt's Achilles out of his tent to engage in single-warrior combat against a giant Thessalian. I kept thinking not of Homer, but how difficult it was to get Marilyn Monroe out of her trailer on the desert locations of The Misfits. This handsome and occasionally exciting movie flounders because it confuses Tinseltown glamour with legendary heroism and beauty. Brad Pitt creates an amazing smudge-free image but no mystery - except, perhaps, "What is his workout regimen?"

A PERSON CAN GIVE just about anything as a gift: CDs, games, clothes, books, anything that means something to someone else. Gifts are even given in stories. Many story gifts are silly and funny, like the two-headed llamas given in Doctor Doolittle. Or sometimes they are splendid, like a chest of gold or a kingdom. But story gifts are not always so wonderful.There is one story about a gift that has endured for centuries. It is the story of the Trojan Horse. Most people know about how the city of Troy was besieged by the Greeks long ago. The armies were evenly matched, and so the Greeks decided to win by playing a trick.

BOSTON - The other night there was a perfect clash of cultures at an intersection in Volant, Pa. An SUV collided with a horse-drawn Amish buggy. The score was SUV 1, Horse 0. The clash was no surprise to those of us who have more horsepower than our Amish brethren but less than a Hummer. SUVs have, after all, become the target of choice for those who have finally connected the dots between the cars we drive, the wars we fight and the globe we warm. In the past months, SUVs have been ticketed, picketed and spray-painted.

BOSTON - The other night there was a perfect clash of cultures at an intersection in Volant, Pa. An SUV collided with a horse-drawn Amish buggy. The score was SUV 1, Horse 0. The clash was no surprise to those of us who have more horsepower than our Amish brethren but less than a Hummer. SUVs have, after all, become the target of choice for those who have finally connected the dots between the cars we drive, the wars we fight and the globe we warm. In the past months, SUVs have been ticketed, picketed and spray-painted.