UMBC will go into the modified zone parking starting May 21, 2012. Permit D holders have the option of parking in Zones A, C or D. Permit E holders (gated lot permit) have the option of parking in their designated gated lot or zones A and C. Permits are required during the summer. The modified summer parking will end on Friday, August 24, 2012. Please direct any questions to Parking Services: parking@umbc.edu.
Why don’t private-sector inefficiencies, which drive up costs, drive us crazy the way public-sector waste does? asks Tom Schaller, professor of political science, in his latest column for the Baltimore Sun.
“Hidden costs, inefficiencies, paperwork hurdles, scams and other frustrations are common to everyday business transactions. And these are just the minor irritants. Beyond that are the retail costs — for everything from tuition and clothing to cable and cellphones — that seem to be rising faster than wages,” he writes. “But I get the distinct sense that Americans are too quick to glorify markets and vilify governments… We just tend not to think about the lazy, overpaid person who knocks off early to play golf in the private sector as raising the costs we pay for things.”
The full column, “Government is flawed, but markets are too,” appeared in the Sun on May 15.
“The political dynamics for winning a second presidential term often differ markedly from winning the first. So don’t be surprised by many eerie parallels between Obama’s 2012 reelection bid and Bush’s 2004 campaign,” writes Tom Schaller, professor of political science, in his latest commentary for Salon.
Shaller argues that many of the strategies Obama will need to use to win the election – including emphasizing things that could have gone wrong, but didn’t and portraying his opponent as an out-of-touch elitist – are the ones that George W. Bush used against John Kerry in 2004.
“The president may be asking Americans to look ‘forward’ in 2012, but the best preview of his reelection campaign can be found by looking backward eight years,” he concludes.
The full piece, “Using Bush’s playbook,” appeared on the Salon website on Friday, May 11.
Christopher Corbett, professor of the practice of English, reflected on his local farmer’s market in his latest essay for Style magazine.
“Rain or shine, every Saturday morning, if I am in Baltimore, I swing by the 32nd Street Farmers Market, a habit of city life for me since I moved to Baltimore 32 years ago… I like ritual. And I love the farmers market,” he writes.
He says that one of his favorite things about the market is the variety in both people and what you can find there.
“People talk a good line about diversity hereabouts. But you rarely see a scene as eclectic as the farmers market in Waverly (or its Sunday cousin downtown under the JFX…But the farmers market even accommodates my eccentricities.”
The essay, “To Market,” was published in the May 2012 issue of the magazine.
On Tuesday, May 15, Kimberly Moffitt, assistant professor of American studies, appeared on Midday with Dan Rodricks to discuss President Obama’s recently-announced support of same sex marriage.
“It strengthens our nation in many ways, because now we have a clear sense of basic human rights across the board for everyone,” she said.
Rodricks pointed out that many people believe that Obama’s announcement was a calculated political move rather than a reflection of his true beliefs. Moffitt said that she isn’t sure. “I think this might lure some of these swing voters,” she said. “But I also have some concerns that this might prevent some folks from coming out and supporting him.”
Moffitt is the co-editor of The Obama Effect. The full segment can be heard here.
Join the Imaging Research Center fellows on Friday May 18 for a presentation of this semester’s project: AFFECTion.
The fellows worked with the Walters Art Museum, the IRC, and UMBC’s visual arts department to understand the historical context of what we now call “data visualization.” The fellows worked with Walters curators to learn how artistic works stored and communicated information, and used that knowledge to create a new digital work that will be shown on Friday.
The event will take place on Friday, May 18 at 4 p.m. in the parlor at the Walters Mansion, which is located at 5 West Mount Vernon Place.
From The Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs
The Office of the Vice President for Student Affairs invites you to attend an open forum to meet with Dr. Bruce Herman, candidate for the position of Director of University Counseling Services. The forum will be held Thursday, May 24, 3:15-4 p.m. in the Albin O. Kuhn Library, Seventh Floor.
Dr. Herman will provide a 20 minute presentation and then there will be time for questions and discussion. Following the forum, please feel free to send feedback to charne@umbc.edu by 9 a.m., Tuesday, May 29, 2012.
We look forward to your participation.
