Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band have postponed all performances currently scheduled for September 2023, which included last week’s scheduled concert at Camden Yards in Baltimore and the September 29th show at Nationals Park in DC.
Springsteen is being treated for symptoms of peptic ulcer disease and the decision of his medical advisors is that he should postpone the remainder of his September shows. Springsteen made the following comment:
The Maryland Department of Agriculture has confirmed the presence of beech leaf disease and the associated nematode, Litylenchus crenatae maccannii in Maryland. Beech leaf disease is a new disease affecting all beech species including American beech (Fagus grandifolia). The disease has been found in surrounding states including Pennsylvania, Virginia, New Jersey, Ohio, Michigan, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, and Maine.
Beech Leaf Disease causes a dark banding or striping between the leaf veins. Trees with severe symptoms are heavily banded with yellowing, shrunken, and thickened leaves. The disease can kill understory trees in two years and mature trees in six to ten years. Treatments for are currently being researched. “I applaud the department’s Forest Pest team for their quick action on identifying this disease,” said Maryland Department of Agriculture Secretary Kevin Atticks. “The team will continue to monitor and report the spread of Beech Leaf disease as it occurs. Homeowners are encouraged to do the same.”
Per the State of Maryland: Yesterday, Governor Wes Moore and Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller visited Baltimore Safe Haven, a transitional housing facility in Baltimore that provides services for Maryland’s transgender community. The visit, made in partnership with the Maryland Commission on LGBTQIA+ Affairs, provided an opportunity to tour the organization’s housing facilities, learn about the services they offer, and participate in a discussion about the needs of transgender Marylanders.
“In Maryland, we lead with love and inclusion and nobody should have to justify their own humanity,” said Gov. Moore. “Baltimore Safe Haven provides help and hope to the people who need it most. The only way forward is together, and Baltimore Safe Haven has a partner in the State House. We have a lot of work to do, and we must tackle that work in partnership. If we do, we can build a kinder, safer Maryland for all.”
Per the State of Maryland: Governor Wes Moore and Lieutenant Governor Aruna Miller today visited the 142nd Maryland State Fair in Timonium to celebrate the work of the Maryland agricultural industry. In addition to touring the fairgrounds, Governor Moore spoke with farmers and agricultural producers during the Governor’s Ag Day Luncheon.
“Agriculture is Maryland’s number one industry and we produce some of the best agricultural products in the nation,” said Gov. Moore. “Our farmers are the lifeblood of our state’s economy and you cannot understand the story of Maryland without understanding the stories of our farmers.”
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown today filed an amicus brief in Maryland Shall Issue, Inc., et al v. Montgomery County, Maryland supporting the right of Maryland counties to adopt local gun violence prevention laws. The lawsuit, brought by a gun rights advocacy group, challenges recently enacted Montgomery County laws that limit access by children to untraceable “ghost guns” and restrict possession of guns near sensitive locations in the county.
The brief, filed in the Circuit Court for Montgomery County, asks the court to enter judgment in favor of Montgomery County and uphold the challenged county laws. In the brief, Attorney General Brown argues that the challenged county laws do not conflict with any Maryland state laws and, instead, fall squarely within the legal authority of counties to pass gun laws with respect to children and within 100 yards of places of public assembly, such as parks, churches, schools, and public buildings, among other locations. The brief also explains that long established advice given in public Opinions of the Office of the Attorney General supports the compatibility of the county laws with applicable state law.
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: The Appellate Court of Maryland has upheld a Final Order issued by the Attorney General’s Consumer Protection Division (CPD) finding that AT&T, Inc., and Cricket Wireless LLC engaged in unfair and deceptive trade practices, in violation of the Maryland Consumer Protection Act, when they sold Cricket cellphones that they knew would stop working after Cricket and AT&T entered into a corporate merger agreement in 2013.
In its July 21, 2021, Final Order, CPD found that the companies’ merger plans included decommissioning Cricket’s CDMA wireless network, which would, and ultimately did, cause Cricket’s CDMA-only cellphones to stop working. Our Consumer Protection Division determined that AT&T and Cricket violated the Consumer Protection Act by continuing to sell the CDMA-only devices to Maryland consumers for more than 18 months before shutting down Cricket’s CDMA network. The company ultimately sold more than 50,000 soon-to-be-inoperable devices in Maryland, without adequately disclosing their plan to render the devices inoperable. The Division ordered AT&T and Cricket to refrain from similar conduct in the future, to provide restitution to consumers who purchased Cricket CDMA-only devices during the relevant period, and to pay civil penalties.
The Circuit Court for Montgomery County is a court of general jurisdiction with the authority to hear civil and criminal cases. It is the only court in the county authorized to conduct jury trials and is part of the Sixth Judicial Circuit, comprising Montgomery and Frederick counties. This is Governor Moore’s first judicial appointment. Governor Moore is committed to building a strong, impartial judiciary that reflects the people of Maryland.
Jennifer Sue Hollander Fairfax is the founder of Jennifer Fairfax, LLC. She practices family law with a focus on domestic and international adoptions and assisted reproduction issues. Ms. Fairfax authored the preeminent book on adoption law, and has worked with lawmakers on advancing legislation related to both adoption and assisted reproduction. She has also advocated for Maryland laws that expedite the second parent adoption process for married and unmarried partners and provide for gender-neutral terms when referring to parents. Ms. Fairfax has taught law school courses on the adoption process and law including LGBTQ law, adoption process issues, contract issues and family law and has published extensively in this field.
A Severe Thunderstorm Watch is in effect for Montgomery County and surrounding areas until 9:00pm, today, 9/7. The primary risk is large hail, damaging winds, and lightning. Severe thunderstorms can and […]
As previously reported, customers served by WSSC Water’s Potomac Water Filtration Plant (Potomac River) may still notice changes in the taste and odor of their tap water because of algal activity in the Potomac River (map available below). This change is not harmful and is due to an increase in a naturally occurring substance, Geosmin, caused by warmer weather and low water levels in the Potomac River. As Geosmin are prone to fluctuate with rain and changing water levels, customers may notice order is stronger at certain times than others. This is completely normal.
The odors from the naturally occurring compound, Geosmin, are not toxic. Because the human nose can detect Geosmin concentrations at very low levels, the unpleasant smell can cause sensitive individuals to experience nausea/headaches. Despite the taste and odor issues, the water remains safe, meeting all EPA Safe Drinking Water Act standards.
Per the Maryland Attorney General’s Office: As part of a 54-state and territory bipartisan coalition, Maryland Attorney General Anthony G. Brown joined a letter urging Congress to study how artificial intelligence (AI) can and is being used to exploit children through child sexual abuse material (CSAM) and to propose legislation to protect children from those abuses. The danger of AI as it relates to CSAM is in three main categories: the likeness of a real child, who has not been physically abused, being digitally altered to depict abuse; a real child who has been physically abused being digitally recreated in other depictions of abuse; and a fictitious child being digitally created in a depiction of abuse that feeds the market for CSAM.
“The terrifying truth is that for all its potential benefits, artificial intelligence can also be used to hurt children and perpetrate child sexual abuse. With support from states, Congress must act now to get ahead of this manipulation of AI that could have such tragic consequences,” said Attorney General Brown. “We must work together to eradicate the use of this technology to exploit and harm kids.”
Bethesda:
Burtonsville: