For the citizens of beleaguered Baltimore, channel surfing this season is an exercise in confusion. Of the 27 original candidates for mayor, six have criminal-arrest records, three have filed for bankruptcy, and one is a convict. Maryland's largest city seems to have more razor wire and abandoned buildings than Kosovo. Meanwhile, the prevalence of open-air drug dealing has made no loitering signs as common as stop signs.
Government officials dispute the last claim.
And we've probably lost count. You can check out Bell's new pinstripes as he walks the campaign trail. The repo man came and got his Mustang a couple weeks back. At least Bell has a shot. Or at least an indoor job, as in the case of Republican Roberto Marsili, a stone mason who boasts of an eighth-grade diploma.