United States

Maryland's two senators should not vote for ratification of the international arms trade treaty recently adopted by the United Nations ("U.N. approves landmark global arms trade treaty," April 3). This U.N. power grab is not just aimed at gaining control over all the weapons in the world but also includes a proposal to tax the Internet, which would give the U.N. control of our freedom of speech. I urge Maryland's senators to reject such appeals. Our country is the United States, not the United Nations.

A few weeks ago, I spent a few quiet minutes in Green Mount Cemetery, where its higher ground offers unexpected views of Baltimore. As I looked to the southeast, something curious caught my eye. What was going on in the nearby Oliver neighborhood? What was that thing attached to the mighty bell tower of St. Francis Xavier Roman Catholic Church? This parish — the oldest African-American Roman Catholic congregation in the United States officially founded for people of color — has just begun to celebrate its 150th anniversary.

Now that Hillary Clinton is unemployed, here is a synopsis of world situations she was engaged in and responsible for during her tenure as Secretary of State. China: Officials she upset would not even meet with her the last three years. North Korea: Our attempts to talk with them never commenced and they are now threatening to shoot long-range nuclear missiles at us. Egypt: An ally forever is now run by the Muslim Brotherhood to whom we are now selling sophisticated weaponry.

In Annapolis, some conservative Republicans - having apparently not taken notice of the 2012 election and the conundrum facing their party over its hard-line immigration stance at the national level - are lambasting a proposal to expand and make permanent a two-tier driver's license system in Maryland. One even warned that Maryland could soon become a "Disneyland" for illegal immigrants. But it is opponents who are living in a Disney-like fantasy land if they can't see who the chief beneficiary would be of any system that seeks to ensure all Maryland drivers meet minimum standards of knowledge and competency and are eligible for insurance.

The 10th anniversary of the American invasion of Iraq seems an appropriate time to look back at how it all happened and what it has wrought, not so much for Iraq as for the United States, which poured its own troops, treasure and world reputation into that colossal misadventure. American combat forces have finally been withdrawn, but with a continuing U.S. hand-holding of a propped-up and shaky regime in Baghdad. Saddam Hussein is dead, but outbursts of deadly violence continue as the war in Afghanistan, from which the Iraq invasion was a costly diversion, drags on. Was it worth it?

Well, America survived. Yes, it's true, the United States was able to withstand two months without a labor secretary. The previous secretary, Hilda Solis, stepped down on Jan. 22. That thud you heard was no one noticing. No one noticed because, like most of the federal government, the Department of Labor has become an enormous bureaucracy machine with a life of its own that functions in spite of - and in the absence of - any individual secretary. Nevertheless, President Barack Obama has anointed her successor, one Thomas Perez, formerly head of the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, and presently chief of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division.

Washington College continues to reap the rewards of its success this season. The team moved up to No. 5 in the most recent United States Intercollegiate Lacrosse Association poll, marking the first time since May 5, 2008 that the Shoremen are ranked in the top five. The accolade follows up the program cracking the top 10 two weeks ago for the first time since 2009. “I always take rankings with a grain of salt, but I also think it gets the guys excited and the alums are definitely getting excited at re-engaging with the program,” coach Jeff Shirk said Wednesday morning.

Back this hitch up into the water Untie all the cables and rope Step onto the astro turf Get yourself a coozie Let's go…. Long before the pop-country group Little Big Town introduced its No. 1 hit, "Pontoon," last summer, pontooning had become been a part of the boating community in the United States. Its roots go back more than 60 years to a Minnesota farmer named Ambrose Weeres who came up with the crazy idea of putting a wooden platform on two columns of welded steel barrels and spending his lazy summer afternoons fishing on a nearby lake.

Three banners hang from the wall in the wrestling room at Kenwood. One lists the school's state champions, another honors the school's Baltimore County champions and a third commemorates a junior varsity county championship. At first, that third banner embarrassed Nyonbou "Boo" Farley. He doesn't like to call attention to himself. But two years later, he knows how much it means. After finishing second in the Baltimore County championships last week, Farley's 30-2 record in the 160-pound weight class earned him the top seed in this weekend's Class 4A-3A North regional tournament with a chance to earn a berth in the state championship on March 1-2 at the University of Maryland's Cole Field House.

The State Department is probably very pleased with the outcome of last week's hostage crisis in Algeria, although given the loss of innocent lives it would be impolitic for officials to say so. In case you missed it, Islamic militants had held an unspecified number of people hostage at a gas field in eastern Algeria, including a small number of Americans. Dozens of militants and hostages - including three Americans, according to the U.S. - were killed during a series of attacks by the Algerian military.