Posts filed under 'Mail Call'
Is Hagerstown Improving?
“I have a question for our city fathers. If downtown Hagerstown is being improved so much, why are people moving from that area to the outer edges of Hagerstown, where I live? And people that moved into my area all tell me the same thing: They have to get away from the traffic congestion, no parking and the extremely loud stereos up and down the streets all the time. Now we have a couple (of people ) with loud stereos occasionally driving by, and some speeders, of course, but the times I’ve driven through downtown Hagerstown, I see no improvements.” - Hagerstown
This is an interesting question to ask yourself as you drive through the town center and around 40 East and West. I think the simplest answer to this question is yes, the town is improving slowly but surely. The point I would emphasize though is that the progress is slow due to the state that Hagerstown deteriorated into after the 1970’s when the rail yard went away. The economy in Washington County has been so bad for so long that there is no such thing as a quick fix to the situation that we find ourselves in currently.
If you look at the renovation occurring at some of the major buildings around North Potmac street, you will see the face of the Hagerstown to come in the next 10 - 15 years. The transformation will not be overnight, but it will come.
Are their loud stereos in the city? Almost all the time.
Are the streets overly congested? Every weekday rush hour.
Is there a high poverty rate? Absolutely.
For all of these reasons I don’t live in the city center. Actually I live very close to Smithsburg because I like the space and the people that live around me. But then again, as more money gets pumped into downtown, it will become cleaner, more affluent and appealing to young professionals like myself who want to be in a more urban setting. Small, well maintained cities are great places to live and there are plenty of people who want to be in that environment. Hagerstown is moving in this direction and will get there in the next several years.
It seems that all too often people forget that improvement on this type of scale is not fast moving, nor does it always benefit the people living in the town currently. To revitalize a city of Hagestown’s size takes years and lots of capital from outside sources which means the first companies and people to invest in the area are taking a substantial risk. The investors willing to take this step are not easy to find and like almost any business decision there must be a cost-benefit analysis done before any actions are taken. There is enough new money moving into the area now that this analysis is beginning to look favorable to more investors who are slowly trickling into the area.
Keep watching over the next 10 years and I bet you will see an increasing number of projects cleaning up downtown and making it into a much more trendy and cosmopolitant place to live.
Add comment July 9, 2008
Alcohol!? Let’s Bring Back Prohibition!
“I was reading Mail Call this morning, July 1, and I agree 100 percent with the person that called in about having alcoholic beverages at The Maryland Theatre. I think it’s totally ridiculous that we have to have alcohol at any function, such as the blues festival. That was mighty disgusting when we were down there, when we had friends to take down from out of town. We don’t need alcoholic beverages for entertainment. I would like to also add it’d be great if we could bring the fair back to Hagerstown fairgrounds, and some craft shows, such as Williamsport C&O Canal and etc.” - Hagerstown
OK, so I don’t drink much either, but this comment is rediculous. There is no need to ban alcohol at the Blues Fest, if someone wants to have a beer then let them. Are you the same person that was disgusted when there was alcohol at Octoberfest? The truth is, if you could trust people to be responsible with the substance then there would not be any issue with this at all, but at the same time, those that are responsible should not be penalized because of the few that are.
But we banned smoking in public places right? Yes we did, but that poses an iminent health risk to all people around the smoker which is putting the people that don’t feel like having cancer at risk. In the case of drinking, just because you have a personal belief that it should not be going on it does not mean that you are really putting others at risk if it is. Whereas smoking truly does put others at risk no matter if you feel like it should or not.
The bottom line is that if people are not responsible drinking then that is when they get thrown in jail. If you don’t like drinking because it offends you moraly then I would suggest you stick to places where alcohol is not offered. For example, I would never go to a strip club brcause I don’t feel like it is the right thing to do, but I don’t go around telling people they should all be put out of business, nor do I care if my friends go. IF you feel the same way about alcohol and where it is served, just stay away.
Add comment July 4, 2008
Should the Government Limit Gas Mileage?
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“To the Hagerstown caller who commented on bad gas mileage: Spot on. If the government limited weight to under 3,800 pounds and power to under 300 horsepower, then this wouldn’t be a problem, but we are American.”
Why should the government limit the gas mileage of vehicles? Since this is a free market (somewhat) and consumers are supposed to vote with their dollars which is why they will stop buying gas guzzling vehicles eventually. You want to remove the SUVs and large trucks that people don’t need from the roads? keep the gas prices going up, it’s only a matter of time until people can no longer afford to drive them. Or if we want to look at this from a green perspective then the government should tax the heck out of the larger vehicles on the road and that will force people to change. We may be Americans but hit us in the pocketbook and people will change.
Add comment June 17, 2008
Cars Without Tags? How About Cars Without Wheels?
“Can everyone in Washington County have at least one car sitting without tags in their yard? Some people have as many as three or four. Nothing’s been done about it. Has the county zoning gone out of business, or don’t they have enough help?” - Chewsville
I find it amusing that someone in Chewsville is complaining about cars without tags when across the street they have a giant eyesore of a junk yard staring them in the face. I would focus on getting rid of that before I worried about the cars without tags in someone’s yard. Although all of these things do tend to stem from one place, << and this is a very politically incorect statement >> poor, uneducated white people. I came from a place where people liked to put cars up on blocks in their yards and take off the wheels, that was always a plesant sight to see. Growing up and seeing that, I think I can safely say that the people who leave old cars without tags in their yards are the same demographic. It’s good to know that I haven’t completely lost touch with the place I grew up in.
Add comment May 7, 2008
Hillary Clinton: Not the Bra Burner This Person Thinks She Is
“For all the women who wanted women’s rights in the ’60s: Now you have a chance at having a female president with many years of experience, and you’re messing it up. You’re voting for the wrong candidate. You’re a lot of talk. If you’re into women’s rights, vote for Clinton.” - Hagerstown
And if you mean by “women’s rights” you mean a woman who stays with a cheating husband to further her own political career then I guess you are right. Hillary Clinton is not a women’s rights advocate, or if she is then it is only because she is a woman. She is the most conservative democrat in the race currently and last time I checked the 60’s bra burners were not overly conservative. The only thing you’d be messing up by not voting for Hillary Clinton is the chances for her ruining the country.
Add comment March 2, 2008
New Washington County Hospital: What is Up With that Fence!?
“Could somebody please tell me, what’s the purpose of the fence that they’re putting up out around the area where they’re building the new hospital? It’s like three feet tall. You could step right over it. I mean, what are they trying to keep out of there, toddlers? I mean, they could even get over it. But anyway, could somebody respond to this, please?” - Hagerstown
Apparently you have never been around a construction site before, if you had then you would have heard of something called a silt-fence. These fences keep debris from getting blown outside of the site as well as from coming into the site, some are the orange type and others are finer material for keeping out smaller particles. Before thinking that you are pointing out the obvious flaw in what someone is doing you might want to stop and ask someone who knows rather than posting it to Mail Call, especially when your tone suggests you know more than you really do.
Add comment March 2, 2008
Mail Call - Early Dismissals at Washington County Schools
“I’m calling - the Washington County school system has done some absolutely appalling things in the past, but today has got to be the worst - allowing their teachers to go home as an early dismissal, but requiring the … other administrative staff to stay, and to use personal or sick time in case they felt it unsafe and needed to leave because of the weather, was absolutely ridiculous.” - Hagerstown
Mail Call - The Herald-Mail Online - News for Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
God forbid that staff might actually have to put in a full day’s work when it snows outside, this goes for the teachers to some extent too. There really is no reason why people need to leave that early due to some bad weather. The world does keep going when there is snow and freezing rain and the majority of us never have the ability to run home from work just because the weather is bad. If the staff has a problem with working, then I suggest they come with me to work on a day with bad weather so they can see what commuting to Rockville is like days when you spend 15 hours in your car and at work just to have to do it all again the next day.
Add comment February 17, 2008
Mail Call - A Home for $1000 a month? I’ll Take It!
“I would like to make a comment about the rent in this area. I think it’s really ridiculous. I have to move, and I’m on a fixed income. I can find no homes for no less than $1,000, and I think it’s just ridiculous.” - Williamsport area
Mail Call - The Herald-Mail Online - News for Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
I’m not sure why you think $1000 per month is too much money, but try going closer to Frederick or Montgomery county before you complain. I used to live in Germantown and I was spending $1300 per month for a 850 square foot apartment. I moved out here and now spend $940 per month for twice the space which is a huge savings. The reality is that the rent will never go down in Hagerstown again, especially as Frederick becomes more built up in terms of commercial businesses and people start thinking of Washington County as a suburb of DC. The only way you will find cheaper rent is to continue heading west or into PA otherwise I wouldn’t count on spending any less.
Add comment February 17, 2008
Mail Call - A Rarity, I Agree on a Political / Military Stance
“I would like for people to forget their ‘I hate Bush and everything he does’ for a few minutes and seriously think about what would happen if we left Iraq now. Iraq is full of terrorists of many kinds, including al-Qaida. This is a fact I got from my son, who was just there. Would you want to turn the country over to these ‘people’ who have no qualms about blowing women and children up, using Down Syndrome victims for their purposes, and have no regard for life? You would be throwing innocent people to the wolves, along with the oil revenue to use to spread their terror further. Terrorists are not like we are. They have one objective - to kill anyone who does not share their warped version of Islam. Please think before you speak.”
Mail Call - The Herald-Mail Online - News for Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
For once I agree with something in mail call, this person is absolutely right that we could not simply up and leave in Iraq, as we would be turning it over to the Iranians which would be worse than what we’ve got now.
Here is where I stand:
- Establish a timeline that we can actually adhere to, one which provides a realistic amount of time for the Iraqi government to get their act together and shape up.
- Establish a realistic victory scenario. This is not wiping out all terrorism in the middle east, I have news for you all, it isn’t going to happen. This should be more like getting a government together that would work to try and sort out the social issues without killing each other first.
- Begin a draw down of troops now. We need to make the Iraqi government realize that it is their country and they need to commit to training their soldiers to fill the gaps. If they can’t agree on this then we may be destined to see the country slip away from us regardless of the progress militarily.
- Begin to seriously promote national unification under the banner of the state rather than that of individual sects. This is going to be the hardest thing to do and could take time, but to be truly successful this must happen.
I’m sure these could all be elaborated on quite a bit but since I am not running for national office I will put them out there for others to see and then hopefully policy makers will see them someday.
Add comment February 11, 2008
I Never Seen this New Fangled Math Before!
“I seen in the paper where they gave that Brandon Morris life in prison. He’s a young kid. Imagine if he lives another 50 years - this all I’m saying - what’s it gonna cost the state? I saw the other day where it costs $30,000 a year for each inmate. If he lives another 50 years - I just figured it out - it’s gonna cost the taxpayers $2,280,000.” - Funkstown
Mail Call - The Herald-Mail Online - News for Maryland, Pennsylvania, West Virginia
So I just though I would reiterate that some people in this area really need to refrain from ever attempting to do math that will result in some type of public display of their work. I’m sorry Funkstown, but last time I checked, $30,000 x 50 = $1,500,000 which means no one knows where your $2,280,000 number came from. Now if you had stated that he will live for another 76 years then you would be dead on and I would be going “Yay Funkstown! You can multiply correctly!” but alas, I cannot be so cheerful because you have proven that you can not multiply numbers very well at all. My advice… Get a calculator.
Add comment February 5, 2008
Jonathan
