Ambitions rise, the county slides downhill

     Maryland's legislators have demonstrated that they can be just as dysfunctional as the national Congress. Gov. Martin O'Malley is justified in his dismay -- it is a disgusting sight to watch grown people throw citizens under the bus in order to play to special interests.
     Not to be overshadowed, Carroll County's commissioners seemed to make a special effort to show they have no clue as to how to meet public needs. For Robin Frazier, it seems to be as simple as cutting taxes, even when there are insufficient revenues to cover the costs of necessary programs, like public education.
     Richard Rothschild seems to be on some kind of power display. He has status and an ego that exceeds it. He wants to run everything, and insists that he alone has the chops to run a county like a business. He oversteps his bounds by telling the school board, a separately elected entity, to close schools. Perhaps he will support closing down classrooms in his Mount Airy district and busing students to Westminster, New Windsor or Eldersburg. Hold classes for 200 at a time in the gym.
     Both Frazier and Rothschild have constituencies that have little respect for public education. If were up to that element, there would be more support for private schools and less tax dollars spent educating the offspring of the less affluent masses.
     That's the idea: Private, preferably church-related (as long as they aren't Muslim), schools where the better people's darlings do not have to be subjected to consorting with the unwashed and unsaved.
     David Roush is of little help. He would continue maintenance of effort for educational spending, which means a step backward, larger classes, less attention to music, arts, sports and all the benefits he had and his children enjoyed when they were in school.
     Only Doug Howard and Haven Shoemaker are in favor of what has traditionally been a strong foundation of Carroll County's quality of life -- good teachers in good schools. But both undermined their ability to stand up to the growing specter of hard right wing minimalist government with past deeds and words. They sold out early, and now represent a minority opinion on what counts most to a majority of parents.
     And then we have Sheriff Kenneth Tregoning, whose track record for getting all that he can and then coming back to ask for more raises for his increasing roster of employees began with the last board of commissioners. He wants raises for his people even though teachers, courthouse employees, roads workers, administrators, clerks and maintenance people have gone without hikes for years. He is relentless.
     He has said he will not run for reelection, and it's known inside (much to the dismay of many departmental employees) that he sees former Marine, Major Phil Kasten, as his successor. Hand-picked, groomed, promoted over senior deputies, coddled, promoted, Kasten would seem to the the heir-apparent.  Well, like Tregoning, he looks good in a uniform. Snappy dresser.
     But the word is that Rothschild, not satisfied with running the state, the school board, and most of the rest of the known world as he sees it, has hand-picked his own choice to succeed Tregoning.
     Meanwhile, the public pays for less, gets less, and the slide is downhill.