Comments

• On the article Protecting Pedestrians: Traffic Cameras, Fatal Accidents—Is There a Correlation?

  Temperance Blalock

  8:57 am on Wednesday, May 15, 2013

  Automobiles 'contribute to' 100% of all accidents in the states. I have yet to hear of a fatal collision between two pedestrians.

  Reply

• On the article #MoCo Online: Police Operation Targets Pedestrian Safety Laws

  Temperance Blalock

  9:20 am on Friday, May 10, 2013

  I'm glad to see this campaign, but it will be difficult to have a genuine long-term effect on driver behavior. Rockville Town Center is a perfect example of intersections and crosswalks where many drivers continue to behave as though they're driving on 270: they have no respect for pedestrians who are trying to cross in a marked crosswalk, regardless of how large the traffic sign is, or how brightly it's painted. It probably wouldn't even register on them if it was flashing neon, since so many drivers mentally tune out. By the same token, I would like the police to more aggressively target jaywalkers, which are equally flagrant in downtown Rockville. Why are people so lazy that they can't walk 20 yards to cross in a marked crosswalk?

  Reply

• On the article Walmart Responds to Aspen Hill Opponents

  

  Temperance Blalock

  11:17 am on Thursday, May 2, 2013

  Are you not aware that Walmart employees are some of the biggest users of welfare? They are paid so poorly that they qualify for food stamps. Walmart even encourages them to apply for food stamps.

• On the Blog Post Having a second job is not a prison sentence!

  Temperance Blalock

  11:14 am on Thursday, May 2, 2013

  Noblesse oblige, anyone? I mean, how condescending can you get? We should all work second jobs, just to increase our character! Never mind the fact that it would limit the time that we can spend with family, that it increases commuting time by 50% (drive to first job, drive from first to second, drive home from second, plus extra gas and miles on the odometer, and that's if you're lucky enough to own a car), and that it takes away time to do things like cook and prepare food or perform necessary personal maintenance like doing laundry and housework.

  Unless the second job pays very well, it's also frequently not worth it financially, since the income from the second job is eventually taxed at a higher rate, since it's supplemental to the primary income. I discovered that when I worked a second job that paid poorly, and my withholding was being done at the lower rate. But when I filed my taxes for that year I learned that the second income should have been taxed at a much higher rate, and I was stuck owing the IRS several hundred dollars that I could ill afford to pay at the time (mainly because I was working because I was POOR). A remunerative secondary consulting job is a far cry from taking the bus to Lakeforest to work at JC Penney until 10 PM, and then trying to come up with transportation home since the buses are running very sparsely that time of night.

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• On the Blog Post Happy Maryland Day!

  Temperance Blalock

  3:51 pm on Wednesday, March 27, 2013

  I've been shopping for groceries at Giant since 1973, and never once, while standing in the checkout line, have I ever noticed how the shopper in front of me paid for their groceries, other than writing a check or paying cash or swiping a card. I very rarely even bother to pay that much attention, but if they did swipe a card then I have no idea whether that card was an EBT card or a Visa or a platinum American Express card. And then afterward, I don't stalk them out to the parking lot to see what kind of car they drive.

  So, I am always confused when Republicans start ranting about the lady (and it's always a black lady in the story) who paid for her stuff with 'public assistance'. How do you know that? How close were you standing in the checkout line that you could see how the bill was paid? Why did you then follow that woman out into the parking lot to see what type of vehicle she was driving? Why don't you take a picture next time, and post it online? Better yet, why don't you record a video while you're standing in the checkout line, and then yell out "For shame!!"? (I know that you want to.)

  Reply

• On the article 12 Pedestrian, Bike Collisions in 10 Weeks in Montgomery County

  Temperance Blalock

  11:01 am on Friday, March 15, 2013

  How do you 'know' that most of these were caused by something specific, since the article only states that blame was established in a few of them, and in fact it states "All three collisions occurred where the pedestrians had the right of way"?

  "Right of way" does not mean permission for drivers to ignore pedestrians and cyclists. Unfortunately, that's the prevalent attitude of drivers in this area. Every day I see drivers sail through red lights, and pedestrians in crosswalks don't 'register' in the minds of drivers who are legally supposed to slow down and yield. The crosswalks around Town Center are particularly bad: despite the fact that there are huge signs in neon yellow stating that drivers are supposed to yield to pedestrians, in many cases drivers act as though they're on 270 and they're not obligated to notice anyone else.

  Reply

• On the Blog Post Washington Post: Clinton More Popular Than O'Malley In Maryland

  Temperance Blalock

  10:04 am on Wednesday, March 6, 2013

  Sleazy landlords love Section 8 because it's guaranteed income. If you're living in a neighborhood that has tenants who are abusing the rental unit, blame the landlord who just doesn't give a damn and who doesn't screen the tenants properly.

  Reply

• On the article Rockville Man Arrested While Video Recording Police During Traffic Stop

  Temperance Blalock

  12:16 pm on Monday, February 25, 2013

  There have been so many recent cases where police brutalize civilians that many people now view them as a state-sanctioned gang of thugs. The only defense that we have is to be able to record the police when they brutally confront civilians in an unconstitutional way. "Why fear being recorded if you're not doing anything wrong?"

  Reply

• On the article More Red Light Cameras Coming as Citations, Revenue Soar in Rockville

  Temperance Blalock

  9:50 am on Friday, February 15, 2013

  I'll look for them on my backup discs, and if I find them I'll consider whether it's worth spending a couple of hours editing out the license plate information.

  Reply

• On the article More Red Light Cameras Coming as Citations, Revenue Soar in Rockville

  Temperance Blalock

  9:14 am on Friday, February 15, 2013

  I didn't say that I recorded 50 red-light runners in the span of 10 minutes. I stood at a couple of intersections at 10 minute intervals, over the course several weeks.

  Reply