Does the important topic of ethics in Frederick County government really have to be framed by an idle comparison to a Roman conquest?
I’m never amazed anymore that when the political winds shift dramatically, as they tend to do here in Frederick County, Maryland every four years, how the power of a victory will often distort the minds of those and their supporters who reach the summit.
A couple of weeks ago I was directed to read a letter to the editor in the Washington Post entitled Searching for Equilibrium in a New Suburban Reality, where Linda Norris-Waldt (one whom I have endorsed in past elections) authored a short piece that announced to the Greater Washington DC Metropolitan Area the grand accomplishments of a citizens task force that she recently chaired.
This group was charged with drafting new ethics regulations for elected Frederick County government officials. She referred to these in the article as “some of the most detailed ethics legislation in the region.”
Now, I am sure that Ms. Norris-Waldt is very proud of the accomplishments of her task force, just as I was when I served on the Frederick County Charter Board charged with drafting a new charter to replace the county commissioner form of government just a few years ago. As in the case of the draft charter, the next step toward approval is to bring the work of the task force to a public forum for debate.
For those in Montgomery County and other parts of the Washington, DC area, who don’t thrive on the wacky world of Frederick County politics or our ethics, the interpretation to those who read it is likely quite different … more like the manner in which I wrote this article:
All hail those powerful NEW URBANITES, for they have finally gained a political foothold in the wilderness known as Frederick County and are about to finally conquer the barbarians known as Frednecks!
… and, I guess that is what we want others in our region to take away from an article in the Washington Post about our beloved community!
The author: Rocky Mackintosh, President, MacRo, Ltd., a Land and Commercial Real Estate firm based in Frederick, Maryland. He has been an active member of the Frederick, Maryland community for over four decades. He has served as chairman of the board of Frederick Memorial Hospital, as a member of the Frederick County Charter Board from 2010 to 2012, and currently serves as Co-Chairman of the Economic Development Advisory Council to the Mayor of the City of Frederick … to name a few.