Let’s have a national primary

‘‘ You know things are bad, politically, when your poll numbers are lower than that of President Bush. But that is where Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley finds himself. ”

Jan Alderton, Managing Editor

Unless you are one of those political junkies who just can’t get enough exposure to campaigns, voter polls and electioneering, these caucuses and primary elections can get awfully tiresome. So why not cut to the chase and come up with a single national primary election day?

To be sure, the idea is not new. Indeed, Congress took up the matter in 1911, only to see it eventually fail.

A national poll would put every state on equal footing and do away with the madness of moving primary elections to January and February as part of “super primary” days. Unfortunately, Maryland moved this year’s primary election from May to Feb. 12 to be part of super something.

Never mind that we may all be up to our knees in snow that day and the voter turnout could be abysmal....

You know things are bad, politically, when your poll numbers are lower than that of President Bush.

But that is where Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley finds himself, at least according to a Fox 5/The Washington Times/Rasmussen Reports poll.

Marylanders gave Bush, a Republican, a 36 percent job-approval rating, just slightly more than the 33 percent they gave O’Malley, a Democrat. A separate poll in Virginia shows 51 percent of residents approving the work of Democratic Gov. Tim Kaine as opposed to 46 percent approval for the president...

If another drug store locates in the area of Virginia Avenue, it will mark the first time in years that The Avenue has had more than one pharmacy.

At last Tuesday’s mayor and council meeting, an ordinance was introduced to close an alley between East and West Industrial Boulevard near Virginia Avenue to make way for a new pharmacy. The identity of the store was not disclosed.

Hank’s Pharmacy has been operating at the old Keech’s drug store site next to the Virginia Avenue underpass for many years. At one time, Keech’s operated at the underpass and also up the street at 43 Virginia Avenue. The 1947 city directory, for example, lists both Keech sites as well as Truitt Drug Company at 238 Virginia Avenue....

Part of the reason tractor-trailers have been using the Blue Bridge to cross from Cumberland into Ridgeley and on to W.Va. Route 28 may be because of GPS and Mapquest-type systems.

The Maryland State Highway Administration said in a letter to Delegate Kevin Kelly that the electronic systems may be erroneously routing trucks across the bridge. The SHA has installed signs on Interstate 68 advising truckers to use Exit 43B and Maryland 51 to access Route 28....

The theft of copper like that plaguing the Western Maryland Scenic Railroad is being seen throughout the nation.

Two men have been arrested for stealing copper from a restroom at Twin Falls Resort State Park near Beckley, W.Va. Two others have been arrested in Virginia for stealing copper from Norfolk and Southern Railway sites. Another $10,000 theft of CSX copper was recently reported in the Charleston, W.Va., area.

The Arizona legislature enacted a law requiring scrap dealers to record detailed information about every sale of metal, other than iron, and to allow only mail payment to sellers....

The Christian Coalition and other groups supporting prominent “In God We Trust” wording on new $1 presidential coins have won a victory.

Scripps Howard News Service said President Bush has signed a bill putting the motto on the face of the coins, rather than on the edge.

One roadblock remains. A federal lawsuit is still pending by a California atheist who says the wording on U.S. currency violates his First Amendment rights....

Seen on the Internet — Election campaign slogans of the past (courtesy of Presidentsusa.com):

• Don’t swap horses in the middle of the stream (Abraham Lincoln)

• Who is James K. Polk? (Henry Clay)

• A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage (Herbert Hoover)

• A full dinner pail (William McKinley)

• Free soil, free labor, free speech, free men and Freemont (John C. Freemont)

• Not just peanuts (Jimmy Carter)

Jan Alderton is managing editor of the Cumberland Times-News. His e-mail address is jpalderton@times-news.com.