Witch

The American Civil Liberties Union has urged the Senate Judiciary Committee to use the special hearings on Judge Clarence Thomas "to clarify the nature of sex harassment, shed light as to how and why its victims react to it as they do and advance the public's understanding of this complex yet widespread phenomenon."Today's hearing is not the time or place for that. This is a hearing whose sole purpose is to answer if possible this question: Did Judge Thomas behave in an impermissible way toward Professor Anita Hill, when he was her superior in government?

Washington -- AS THE valiant peoples of the Soviet Union this very moment search heroically for new structures of free union, in much the same way as the earliest Americans, here in Washington we also are struggling for "the truth that sets man free."The newest epiphany of our always-searching media occurred last Wednesday at a bookstore in the nation's beautifully revamped Union Station. Before the star appeared who was to lead us to new insights, a line for her autographs stretched for 200 feet, around a corner and almost out the farthest doors into the main hall.

BOOK REVIEWTitle: "Lasher"Author: Anne RicePublisher: KnopfLength, price: 583 pages, $25 First it was vampires. Now it is witches.Just as Anne Rice has kept the story of Lestat alive in the "Vampire Chronicles," she is continuing to breathe life into the Mayfair clan with her newest novel, "Lasher," a fast-paced follow-up to "The Witching Hour.""Lasher" doesn't have to act as a sequel, though. It functions fine as an introduction to the Mayfairs, a dynasty of witches who are anything but stereotypical crones.

How did we as a nation ever get into this mess? Why, having seen again and again the harm wrought by drug addiction, did the present generation willfully plunge once again into the morass?Jill Jonnes doesn't generalize about self-indulgence, self-delusion and self-destruction in "Hep-Cats, Narcs and Pipe Dreams: A History of America's Romance With Illegal Drugs" (Scribner. 510 Pages. $30); but a reader may want to, during this sad, century-long narrative.Jonnes knows her subject: a history Ph.D.

As hard as I try to be sensitive and politically correct, I can't avoid bumbling my way into boorish opinions, thus offending those who are truly enlightened.And it seems to be getting worse all the time. Before noon today, I heard from four members of four groups who bawled me out for insulting them in recent columns.It began with Erin Gallob, of Crawford, Colo., who didn't like something I wrote about politically correct choices of Halloween costumes for children.She says: "You ask why should we be sensitive to the feelings of witches?"

In describing the status of cyclist Lance Armstrong, reporter Jill Rosen somehow managed to turn from straight reportage to editorializing ("To host Lance Armstrong, triathlon drops sanctioning," Sept. 21). Mr. Armstrong has not been proven guilty of anything and has been pursued by the several anti-doping authorities for most of his career. I can only assume that he finally gave up fighting the USADA's most recent attacks because he was worn out after all of this fighting - or maybe it was just the continuing financial cost of defending himself.

DON'T BE frightened if you see witches and warlocks stealing into the Ferndale Senior Center Friday.Their early October appearance will be members of the Friendly Thyme Herb Club getting into the spirit of things as they gather for the 10 a.m. monthly meeting."

POWDERED WIGS and "Yankee Doodle" are out; body piercing and the Macarena are in.(Well, the Macarena was in.) Yet nothing really changes. Here are the opening words of a new book:"It was a special time in the history of America. The Vice President of the United States, Thomas Jefferson, called it a `reign of witches.' A short, fat man who puffed at `seegars' and believed in monarchy was President of the United States. At incautious moments, he predicted the nation's conversion to a kingdom with a titled nobility to oversee Congress.

Long after the dogs and cats were called home last Friday night, after the curtains were drawn and the windows went dark - Roland Park fell silent. Except for the rustle of a slight summer breeze, everything was still. And everything, it seemed, was ordinary. Then, exactly five minutes before midnight, things in the leafy North Baltimore neighborhood took a peculiar turn. The doors of the Children's Bookstore on Deepdene Road flew open, and out of the tiny shop burst 17 men, women and teen-agers, arms filled with cardboard boxes and plastic bags.

The Susquehanna Symphony Orchestra continues its 35th anniversary season on St. Patrick's Day with a "Ghosts and Witches" concert. Sheldon Bair, SSO founder and music director, noted that guest artists from Canada will be featured, and hinted that the concert may conclude with "a little something special for St. Patrick's Day. " The music begins at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 17, at Bel Air High School at 100 Heighe St. Come early, at 6:30, for...