Oh, say can you see D.C.’s inferiority complex

The Washington Post saw fit recently to publish a letter by one of its town’s fans branding as unpatriotic the Baltimore baseball fans who yell “O” as they sing the national anthem (“I’m a veteran. The Orioles’ national anthem cheer is fine by me.” May 16).

Fair’s fair, but I will point out that Baltimoreans did not brand as unpatriotic the stumblebum Washington militia who fled the British in 1814 and let them burn the White House and other edifices. Baltimoreans forgave our neighboring town’s humiliation and let the Brits — army and fleet — come to our town, to be handed their martial patooties at North Point and Fort McHenry (and occasion the triumphal writing of our national anthem).

Washington lost cravenly, we won heroically, but we didn’t rub it in — although we did build the nation’s first Washington monument (completed in 1829) while our neighbors were cleaning up after they had let the redcoats torch their public buildings.

Washington’s inferiority complex about Baltimore is thereby deserved, enduring and kind of heartwarming but should not manifest itself in sports fan insults.

— Stan Heuisler, Baltimore

Habeas corpus is not to be taken lightly

Testifying before a U.S. Senate committee on Tuesday, Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem was asked what the writ of habeas corpus is. Her response was that “habeas corpus is a constitutional right that the president has to be able to remove people from this country” (“Kristi Noem says habeas corpus lets Trump ‘remove people from this country,'” May 21).

This is the equivalent of saying that the First Amendment is a law that gives the government the right to stop people from speaking and to shut down churches. In other words, it is not just a little wrong. Habeas corpus allows people to challenge what they feel is an unlawful imprisonment or detention by seeking relief from the courts. It is a right provided to the people against the government, not vice versa.

In fairness to Secretary Noem, habeas corpus (often called the “Great Writ” because of its immense significance) has only been around about 800 years and first appeared in a little-known document called the Magna Carta. Perhaps Noem is not a student of world history. I would then suggest she peruse another document — the Constitution of the United States. Admittedly, the Constitution is not quite 250 years old, but as she is bound by its terms, she might have scanned it.

If she had, she would have discovered in Article I: “The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion the public Safety may require it.” A definition of the writ does not appear there, perhaps because those who wrote our Constitution figured that government officials bound by the writ would actually know what it was.

They blew that one.

— Steven P. Grossman, Pikesville

Why won’t Alsobrooks talk to peace activists?

For months now, peace activists in the Baltimore community like myself have been reaching out to the office of U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks to request meetings with her to discuss the issues that are so important to us.

We have found it impossible to establish meaningful communication with her staff and a Baltimore office has yet to open (“Maryland Sen. Alsobrooks calls for RFK Jr. to resign,” May 10).

Because we have been unsuccessful after so many attempts, we are issuing a public appeal.

Senator Alsobrooks, please allow your many Baltimore constituents the opportunity to have our voices heard. Because a large number of the voters who got you elected live in Baltimore, you must have an office in Baltimore so people who live here can come to your office and drop off letters or speak with you or your staff since our attempts at direct contact via phone and email continue to go unanswered.

— Jeannie Athey, Baltimore