It’s been an exhausting week. Being the “newshound” that I am, I was afraid to turn the
television off at night for fear I would miss a new development in the
Baltimore City protests (or “riots” if you prefer to call it.) I was transfixed by those images of the
crowd and the passion each person exuded.
I knew that I was watching an historic event and one that I pray will be
the real catalyst to addressing the root cause of these repeated incidents.
The problems have been identified. Now let’s set about to fix them.
The policing issue is just one small part of the problem and probably
the easiest to solve. The other issues
like poverty, drugs, racism and violence will require a new mindset. I don’t have a clue how we change the
mindset of an entire country, but I do know it has nothing to do with being a
liberal or conservative, Democrat or Republican.
While it was great to see all races of Baltimore City coming
together, I hope we did not send the message that rioting and looting is an
acceptable way to get the attention of the nation.
The “political junkie” in me couldn’t help but analyze the
dynamics of the key players. The Mayor,
Stephanie Rawlings-Blake. Prior to the
death of Freddie Gray, the Mayor was touted as the rising star in Maryland
politics and aspired to run for U. S. Senator.
At the beginning of this saga she was strong, confident, and providing
exemplary leadership to her city.
Enters newly elected Republican Governor, Larry Hogan. He made the comment, “I’m glad she finally called
me.” Governor Hogan made it seem he had
not spoken to her previously about the situation in Baltimore. Truth is, he knew Mayor Rawlings-Blake was
in a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” situation and he took unnecessary
partisan advantage of that. We all know
that if she had given the go-ahead to call in the National Guard while the
protests were still peaceful, she would have been skewered like the officials
in Ferguson. He puffed his chest and
intimated, “Here I come to save the day!”
He did it right in front of her face and I thought it was offensive and
very unstatesman-like. Imagine what
she thought?
Then, whether from fatigue, frustration, or a miss-speak,
she said something out of character for her.
She said something stupid. The
country jumped on her and performed a “beat down.” By Thursday, the Mayor looked like a shell-shocked zombie as she
was lead into a church by Reverend Al Sharpton.
Then enters Marilyn Mosby, Baltimore City State’s
Attorney. This position is the equivalent
to Georgia’s District Attorneys. And another star is born? Or will she be another fatality of this
historic event? She’s young,
idealistic, and inexperienced. She’s
already playing the political game. How
do I know that? At the press conference,
she thanked the leaders by name, but no mention of the Mayor.
State’s Attorney Mosby, as the chief prosecutor, must now
successfully prosecute the six officers charged in the death of Freddie
Gray. Being on such a high pedestal is
hard to stay there. Like the Mayor, it
can make or break her. I wish her
godspeed.
On another subject, I’m happy to tell you that in case you
were worried, I found Fourth District Commissioner Jarod Lovett. Turns out he wasn’t hiding from High
Falls. He was just busy fixing potholes
in other parts of his vast district.
Commissioner Lovett addressed the High Falls Civic Club Thursday night
and took questions for over an hour concerning various issues facing Monroe
County. If anyone doubts the saying by
former House Speaker “Tip” O’Neal that
“all politics is local,” was not at this meeting. It’s amazing how much people want to talk about potholes, water,
and garbage. Myself included.
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