It's a family affair...

Today, consider me your helpful traffic cop. I'm just pointing you in the right direction.

First, a great piece from the Flier about state delegate Guy Guzzone and his struggle to balance family and politics. Maybe I've been blinded by his tallness, but after working for a summer as an intern in Guy's council office, I think very highly of him. The story is well worth a read.

Second, woo-hoo, my candidacy for Columbia Council finally gets mentioned in a newspaper! It's here, just below the bit about the sex offender sweep. Fine company I keep.

Finally, if, as has been said, the estimates of population growth from BRAC are being inflated to influence public opinions about growth pressures, then what are we to make of this:

The number of jobs that will locate to Anne Arundel's Fort George G. Meade over the next six years is likely to be more than double or triple the total approved in 2005 as part of the Pentagon's base realignment and closure plan, says the Howard County official who helps track the installation's regional impact.

As many as 22,000 jobs may be added to Fort Meade by 2013, though the figure is an early estimate and is subject to change, said Kent D. Menser, executive director of the Howard BRAC office.

The total reflects jobs locating on Fort Meade property and does not include contractor jobs that might locate off the post in the surrounding area, or jobs in fields such as public safety and education that would be generated by the post's growth. The 90-year-old facility, named for a Civil War general, employs the fourth-largest workforce of Army installations in the continental United States.

I've always taken these estimates at face value and will likely continue to do so. But I usually tilt more towards naivety rather than cynicism.

Regardless of the actual magnitude of BRAC, regional growth (or, at least, demand) is going to be around for a while. As much as I like to dream of a world where each woman has 2.1 children (replacement fertility rate), this probably won't happen any time soon. What's more, even if the U.S. population ceases growing immediately (no immigration, no more than replacement fertility), populations will still change on local or regional levels. Although I'm open to arguments to the contrary, I don't see Howard County being a net population loser.