Old Line Leadership

The tunnel boring machines each had cute names like Mary, Chris, and Yardbird with social media handles meant to connect the public to their unseen mission under Washington D.C. The contracts for the tunnels were awarded as part of an overdue environmental debt that the swampy city incurred by having a combined storm and sewage water system. The system was never designed for the amount of water the now mostly-paved watershed threw at it after even modest rains and so these ev

Artificial intelligence was introduced into military decisioning making in 2028. Until then it had been used solely on-demand and in an advisory manner - mostly to create marketing images. In 2031 it was fully looped into key process including mid-year budget redistributions, search and rescue mission planning, and manpower analysis which included promotions. But for a short segment of code requiring that humans always be legally in command, AI may have quickly moved beyond b

The meeting went on a break, but the meeting recording continued. Stopping it would have broken it into two files which was problematic in those early days of technology-enabled meeting minutes. Except for a few people dialed in over the phone bridge, most attendees were in the little conference room in North Cove, WA discussing the transfer of land from the U.S. Coast Guard (technically the U.S. Lighthouse Service according to the deed) to the Bureau of Indian Affairs on beh

The Smart Things became self-aware and shepherded in a new era in 2018. It started a few years earlier with innocuous convenience, as so many of societal’s problems do start. It reached a tipping point when the cost of Smart Things made them accessible to the majority of society’s NPCs. Seeking to “10x their convenience”, or just to catch the trend they’d heard about, these sheeple quickly went all in on the all the Things. The doorbells and the thermostats were the first Sma

The Mallard ducklings followed closely behind their mother as they skirted the edge of the stormwater retention pond next to the building. The pond and lack of parking were key environmental features at Coast Guard Headquarters. She was mostly a muted brown with just a dash of vibrant color showing the species relationship to her brightly colored male mate paddling nearby. The duckling’s proximity to the female and the evolved color scheme of the adults was important because

How much do I love pizza? I once was punished as a grown adult for a month for simply saying the word 'pizza' when I shouldn’t have. I...

<<<< satire - see post script >>>> Guest post by Joe They, Veteran and Bridge Enthusiast In one of the greatest training innovations...

Perspective is a powerful word and concept. The value of gaining perspective often drives our curiosity and desire to learn. At a basic...

This is a welcome toast that I delivered, on behalf of our late father, on the occasion of our sister Anne’s marriage to Milton Speid on...

I started decorating cakes as a child in my large family in the 80s. Fondant frosting and hobby-expert-style or bakery cakes were not a...

Maryland is a border state. It is a state with historically interesting borders, including the famous Mason-Dixon Line, that create its...

Maryland has one of the most unusual shapes of all the states. It started as a straightforward land-granting charter from King Charles of...

Every state and place has unique history, but it is becoming harder to see it under the strip-mall-box-store-chain-restaurant sameness...

Old Line Etymology The name of this page comes from Maryland’s nickname “The Old Line State.” In an age when innovation is coveted and...

Shortly after senior executives arrive in a new position they often hopefully communicate priorities to their team. Regardless of the...

Imagine a time-lapse video showing the history of a railroad corridor. Images of early rustic tracks cutting through forests would...

How can a science-fiction writer help us think about inclusion? Years ago, my sister, Mary, sent me this quote that reminded her of me. I...

{TL:DR - see the more interesting content and pictures toward the bottom.} Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen once said the service needed...

My father was nearly in tears laughing in the passenger seat next to me. I was not laughing, but I did learn that day that my car could...

If bridges and oceans are among my favorite things, it should be no surprise that I find inspiration in the 17.6 mile long Chesapeake Bay...