T H E G AZ ET T E
Wednesday, December 4, 2013 r
Hate mail beats no mail Editor, The Gazette has every right to publish opinion pieces, no matter how lopsided and flawed their argument. But, then, by limiting your regular op-ed columnists to just Blair Lee, do you not have a corresponding obligation to feature opinion pieces likely to reflect dissenting judgement? I can’t believe your existing practice comports with the philosophy of the Post Community Media family of which you are a part. Joel Darmstadter, Bethesda Joel, Since when does the Washington Post, The Gazette’s corporate sibling, practice editorial balance? Here’s a list of the Post’s liberal MY MARYLAND opinion BLAIR LEE writers: E.J. Dionne, Dana Milbank, Eugene Robinson, Ruth Marcus, Colbert King, Dana Balz, Chris Cillizza, Stephen Perlstein, Harold Myerson, Anne Applebaum, Marc Thiessen, Robert McCartney, Ezra Klein, Al Kamon, Greg Sargent, Courtland Milloy and Petula Dvorak, and I could go on. Here’s a list of the Post’s conservative opinion writers: George Will, Charles Krauthammer, Jennifer Rubin. That’s about as much “balance” as a Tom Toles editorial cartoon or the Post’s Style section. Come on, Joel, open your eyes. The deck’s stacked in your favor, you can’t lose. Are you really that worried about one crazy guy writing in The Gazette? Blair Mr. Lee, I recently has an opportunity to read your Sept. 27 article in The Gazette,“Why Baltimore Is Not Detroit.” I notice that you selectively omitted the concentration of pov-
erty comparison between Baltimore and Montgomery County. It seems you also missed the concentration of not-for-profit/government land ownership between the two jurisdictions, as well. I understand that those issues may not fit neatly into the narrative, but they are real. Bill Ferguson, Baltimore (Sen. Ferguson represents South Baltimore in the Maryland Senate.) Senator, First, Baltimore City lawmakers fought tooth and nail to locate all those non-property-tax-paying state agencies in Baltimore because Baltimore benefits from all those captive state jobs they bring. I dare you to suggest moving them out of Baltimore. Second, yes Baltimore is poor and that’s why the overwhelming bulk of state aid is distributed to poor jurisdictions, primarily Baltimore, largely thanks to “enlightened” Montgomery liberal lawmakers. In return Baltimore screws Montgomery every chance it gets by repealing state aid programs benefitting Montgomery and recycling the money to Baltimore and P.G. True, our lawmakers are so inept that they’re easy pickings in Annapolis, but please spare me the moral outrage. Carving up the state aid pie has nothing to do with the merits, it’s all about politics. Blair Members of the Montgomery County Delegation, I was absolutely shocked to read in The Gazette last week that Maryland taxpayers are sending well over a billion dollars a year to Baltimore. The article describes a recent study by George Mason University. According to the article [“Why Baltimore Is Not Detroit,” Sept. 27], “Baltimore runs on OPM, other people’s money. Much of what taxpayers in Maryland’s other 23 counties send to Annapolis is recycled to Baltimore as direct and indirect state aid. Thanks to the city’s politicians and those in the state legislature, Baltimore
is now the most subsidized city in America.” Instead of relying solely on The Gazette article (because it’s author, Mr. Lee, sometimes is a little bit biased toward the right) I downloaded the actual GMU study and read he whole thing. Everything Mr. Lee stated is 100 percent supported by the GMU study. Just three weeks ago my wife and I wrote a big check and mailed it to Annapolis. And just a week ago we paid our Montgomery Co. property taxes. In total, my wife and I shelled out a HUGE chunk of our money in state and local taxes. And now we learn that a large portion of that is going to Baltimore. It’s outrageous! Lately my wife and I have been considering relocating to a neighboring state where the tax burden is not as great. Now we are redoubling our efforts to find another place to live. Thomas J. Keller, Chevy Chase Mr Keller, I hear the same story from folks like you every day. Blair Editor, Isn’t it time The Gazette pulled the plug on Blair Lee and his puerile, reactionary, Johnny-one-note drivel? As a 50-year journalism veteran I can assure you his column never would have gotten past me into the paper. Robert E. Cohen, Bethesda Mr. Cohen, Here’s an idea; if you don’t like my column, don’t read it. Instead, you want to silence my opinion because it doesn’t agree with yours. Where did you spend your 50 years of journalism, in the Soviet Union? Blair Blair Lee is chairman of the board of Lee Development Group in Silver Spring and a regular commentator for WBAL radio. His column appears Fridays in the Business Gazette. His past columns are available at www. gazette.net/blairlee. His email address is blairleeiv@gmail.com.
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LETTERS TOT HE EDITOR
Fight porous pavement technology in Ten Mile Creek watershed Clean and healthy drinking water is something that most of us take for granted, and rightfully so; when we turn on our faucets, we have no expectations other than to be greeted by pristine, wholesome and sanitary water. However, what if I told you that this indispensable resource that so may people rely on for sustenance could be in serious jeopardy? According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Stage 4 in the Clarksburg Master Plan could effectively degrade the water of vulnerable Ten Mile Creek in Clarksburg and the drinking water supply for the entire Montgomery County Agriculture Reserve via the Piedmont Aquifer (which is the sole source of water for those outside of the WSSC) because it includes new development and construction implementing porous pavement technology? “The use of porous pavement does create risk of groundwater contamination,” the EPA said in a fact sheet published on stormwater
technology. “Therefore, it is not advisable to construct porous pavement near groundwater drinking supplies,” which is precisely what is happening in the Clarksburg plan. As a resident of the Reserve, I am alarmed, troubled and concerned for my health and the health of fellow residents. Progress and development, like what is going on in Clarksburg, that meets certain critical needs of citizens is very important but is this development worth the environmental and health costs that are an inescapable byproduct? When it comes to the potential harm of humans, there can be no deliberation. The EPA says there is a “risk.” No, risk does not imply inevitability, but that risk is something we cannot afford to take. I, for one, will not stand to have my health endangered. Let’s move forward with development that fits into parameters appropriate and sound, health-centered judgment.
Corey Ahearn, Poolesville
County must limit paved surfaces Ten Mile Creek watershed Twenty groups in the Coalition to Save Ten Mile Creek and the Montgomery County Planning Board’s Staff all agree: Unless imperviousness (hard, paved surfaces) in the Ten Mile Creek watershed are strictly limited, development will degrade the water quality of the creek — the last, pristine creek in Montgomery County that is the main source of clean water to Little Seneca Reservoir. It is obvious to the citizens of Montgomery County that keeping a reservoir as clean as possible is a wise decision, especially when it is our most proximate drinking water supply. The Montgomery County Planning Board did not follow its own staff’s advice and increased the recommended level of devel-
WRITE TO US The Gazette welcomes letters on subjects of local interest. Please limit them to 200 words. All articles are subject to editing. No anonymous letters are printed. Letters are printed as space permits and
opment in the watershed to levels that will irrevocably damage our water quality. This is an outrageous disregard for our future water needs, currently of 4.3 million people in the Washington, D.C., area. We hope that the County Council will listen to its constituents, thousands of whom are deeply concerned, weigh the choice of sound use or destructive development and recommend reduced levels of development to protect our drinking water supply and valued recreational resource, Little Seneca Reservoir.
Anne James, Germantown The writer is the chair of Timber Oak Citizens Association.
are limited to one per person per month. Include your name, address and daytime telephone number. Send submissions to: The Gazette, attention Commentary Editor, 9030 Comprint Court, Gaithersburg, MD 20877; fax to 301-670-7183; or email to opinions@gazette.net.
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