Around our office in Berlin, the weekly “Cops and Courts” section is often referred to as this paper’s version of the “comics.” One story this week helps to explain why. There are some stories you just could not fabricate if you tried, and this week the one about a 33-year-old man getting naked and trying to mount wild horses and tackle sika deer falls into that category. The man and another buddy were camping at Assateague when authorities received some reports of unruly behavior. It appears one of the men had more of an affinity with the wildlife than the other, and the only saving grace is he was heavily intoxicated, which at least can be used as an excuse the next morning as well as in court.
Signs the summer season is winding down were apparent this week including the Ocean City Beach Patrol scaling back its coverage. It’s remarkable how early schools are bringing back students and teachers these days. As a matter of fact, Worcester County is now the only public school system opening after Labor Day. Here’s how Maryland breaks down: Prince George’s County opened on Aug. 20; St. Mary’s and Washington counties, Aug. 22; 16 counties including Somerset and Wicomico, Aug. 27; and four counties including Talbot, Aug. 28.
There apparently was some confusion about last week’s blurb about the Ocean City Mayor and Council moving its Monday meeting time to 6 p.m., from 7:30 p.m. I pointed out last week the Monday meetings in the fall and winter have in the past been breezed through, leading some to speculate whether the agenda items were kept to a minimum so officials could catch the Monday Night Football game of the week. I surmised last week whether it was a coincidence the meeting change was made a couple weeks before the start of the NFL season. It apparently was not clear my tongue was planted firmly in my cheek. According to Council President Joe Mitrecic, some folks, including some of his colleagues on the council, came away with the impression the meeting change was made because of Monday Night Football. It seems not everyone gets a little dry wit. It’s a shame it even needs to be said, but I do give the city’s elected officials a little more credit than to conclude they moved a meeting time up solely because of a football game. During a conversation this week, Mitrecic specifically outlined the logistical and practical reasons for the meeting time change. To be clear, none of them included Monday Night Football. At this Monday’s meeting, Mitrecic said the new schedule worked well with the public meeting ending at 8:30 p.m. and the closed session over by 9 p.m. For the record, not that it has anything to do with anything, the Monday night football game between the Colts and Bears started at 8 p.m. and the Bears won 27-24.
At this week’s meeting, the Ocean City Mayor and Council heard a pitch for movies to be played on the beach next summer. There are obvious concerns with this proposal, not the least of which is where the movies will be played, but this is worth considering. The movies in Wildwood, N.J. have been a huge success and it seems feedback has been positive based on Internet comments. This summer-only program could go a long way toward making Ocean City more appealing to a wide range of folks. It’s a bunch of little things like this that add up to a great vacation destination.
The good news is the Snow Hill Police Department is receiving some federal funding, the bad news is our senators’ press office does not know how to spell our county. The headline on a press release this week read, “Cardin, Mikulski Announce Federal Funding For Worchester County Police.”
In other news, we recently posted a general question, “What should happen to Christy Freeman?” A poll of about 250 respondents found the following results: spend the rest of life jail, 29 percent; walk free, 28 percent; be presumed innocent until proven guilty, 25 percent; be put to death, 16 percent; and be given benefit of doubt, 2 percent.
