Frederick County to Declare English Official Language? // Dear Neighbors, Please Do Something About Blaine Young (Seriously)

A Message to Frederick County Residents:

DE-THRONE YOUR KING: BLAINE YOUNG

Blaine Young, the elected leader of Frederick County's government has turned the Frederick County government into a taxpayer-funded Tea Party press operation. The Frederick News-Post is reporting on more embarrassing theatrics from up the I-270 corridor:

Frederick County has moved one step closer to making English its official language.

The Board of County Commissioners decided Thursday to hold a public hearing next month on the proposed ordinance. Residents will get a chance to speak on the issue before the commissioners vote....

"It just sets the tone," Commissioners President Blaine Young said.

Montgomery vs. Fairfax: Montgomery County Planning Board Member Casey Anderson Weighs In

CASEY AT THE BAT: Montgomery County Planning Board member Casey Anderson recently forwarded Maryland Juice a series of articles regarding the ongoing Internet and media discussions comparing Montgomery County & Fairfax County (or Maryland & Virginia). His primary point in forwarding the news items appears to be to respond to a recent Washington Post editorial jumping in on the side of the Chamber of Commerce, Republicans, and business lobbyists:

The growing breach between Fairfax and Montgomery — which together account for 2 million people, more than a third of the region’s population — is laid bare by new federal data. The data were the centerpiece of an eye-opening presentation to the Montgomery County Council this month by Stephen Fuller, director of the Center for Regional Analysis at George Mason University....

Elected officials — some of them, at least — have at last concluded that ever-spiraling taxes and bloated budgets, driven largely by the county’s powerful and aggressive public-employee unions, are not conducive to attracting major employers and high-end, knowledge-based jobs. 

Mr. Anderson questions this framing of the issues. He sent the following explanation to place his three news snippets in context:

My main concern is not so much whether Fairfax is in fact "ahead" or "behind."  It is the (way overdone, in my view) idea that Fairfax is the only or at least most relevant benchmark for where Montgomery County should be.  Montgomery County is not perfect, but when I think about how it might be different I don't say to myself, "Gee, if only we could be more like Fairfax County, this place would be fantastic!"

TIME: Putting the Propaganda in Perspective // Don't Blame U.S. Business Regulations for American Job Losses or China Success

This week, TIME Magazine had a surprising chart that I think is worth sharing with Maryland policymakers. Call me old school, but I still subscribe to TIME and read it religiously just to get a sweep of newsworthy tidbits that would otherwise fall outside my natural interest.

The chart below, however, is very much related to things Maryland Juice has been pondering lately. As the Republican case against taxes evaporates, the "problem" of business regulation is increasingly being highlighted by national conservatives, think tanks, and business leaders. TIME's chart below debunks myths that developing economic powers like China, India and Brazil owe their recent successes to a lawless regulatory environment for businesses (note: I added emphasis with red-flags below):

Of course, many business lobbyists are currently arguing that the United States must de-regulate various industries in order to compete with China (or Virginia). The chart above notes that the U.S. is number 4 in the world for business-friendliness. Moreover, many of the aforementioned nations actually have very difficult aspects to their business environments. TIME notes two counter-intuitive examples:

1. "Despite rapid growth in China, it takes 311 days to build a warehouse there -- twice as long as the rest of the world," and
2. "Companies spend an average of 2,600 hours a year complying with Brazil's tax code."

The text that accompanies the chart states:

Overregulation has been a persistent economic bogeyman this year.... In mid-October the World Bank released its annual ranking of countries on the basis of ease of doing business; it took into account the number of regulations, tax rates, the time it takes to start a business and other factors. 

Out of 183 countries, the U.S. was deemed the fourth easiest place in the world to do business, unchanged from the year before. What's more, a number of lower-ranked nations--including South Africa, China and Brazil--have had much faster-growing economies than the U.S. in the past five years. Neil Gregory, a deputy director for indicators at the World Bank, says regulations kill some jobs but create others. He says rules that promote small-business lending are essential. The search for the true job killer continues.