Maryland
Oceans Calling Festival 2024, Ocean City, Maryland – Day 2 – ReadJunk.com
Photo by Bryan Kremkau
Date: September 28th, 2024
Bands: The Killers, The Offspring, The Beach Boys, Rebelution, Young The Giant, The Hives, The Beaches, Switchfoot, The Samples, Katelyn Tarver, Glom
Day 2 of the Oceans Calling Festival couldn’t have been more different from the previous day. After the god-awful weather of Day 1, the sun was shining, the skies were clear, and the temperature was perfect—warm, even hot at times. It was the ideal setup for an outdoor festival. Aside from The Offspring, all the other bands were new to me, and I was especially excited to finally see The Samples live, having recently gotten into their music. Some other bands turned me into a fan by the end of the day as well.
I got to the festival grounds early, grateful it wasn’t raining again. Having soaked and ruined my New Balance shoes the night before, I was stuck in slip-on Vans for the day. Fortunately, my “old man” feet held up, mostly because the walking was on the sand. Hearing horror stories from other photographers about the chaos during and after Blink-182’s set confirmed that leaving early the previous night was the smart decision. Honestly, I probably should’ve left right after Sublime.
The day started with Glom, whose lead singer wore a heavy jacket like it was 30 degrees out—I was sweating just looking at him. Katelyn Tarver, an actress and singer-songwriter, followed. I wasn’t familiar with her before, but I enjoyed the songs I caught from her set.
I’ve been into The Samples for about two months now, though I swear I’ve seen their videos or heard their music before. Maybe I picked up one of their albums back in the ‘90s when I was getting into ska, not realizing they weren’t a ska band and returned it? Either way, it took long enough, but I’m a fan now! Their music is a mix of The Police, college rock, and some jam elements. I was hoping to hear “When It’s Raining,” but it wasn’t meant to be. They played “Did You Ever Look So Nice,” “Could It Be Another Change,” and “Waited Up.” I stayed for most of their set before heading to the Rockville stage to catch Switchfoot.
Switchfoot is a name I’ve heard, but I wasn’t too familiar with their music beyond maybe one or two songs. Their set was energetic, and lead singer Jon Foreman was all over the crowd like a shark—popping up here and there, which made it tricky but fun to photograph. After a few songs, I made my way to the Sea Bright stage, which took some time due to the growing Saturday crowd. I even ran into some people from my high school that I hadn’t seen in 27 years—pretty crazy, considering there were around 60,000 people at the festival.
Next up were The Beaches, and I’m completely hooked now. I hadn’t really listened to them before, but since the festival, I’ve been playing their music every day. This Canadian indie/pop rock band had the crowd bopping with their catchy tunes. They came out in matching shirts that said “Who is Jocelyn?”—a reference to one of their latest singles. Their stage presence was electric, with hair-whipping and infectious energy. Standout songs for me were “Blame Brett,” “Takes One To Know One,” “Shower Beer,” “Me & Me,” and my personal favorite, “Edge of the Earth.” Definitely one of the festival highlights for me.
During The Beaches’ set, I made my way back to the Hives stage, stopping by the amusement park area to snap some pics and catch the view from the pier. I’ve never seen The Hives live but had heard they were a blast to photograph—and they didn’t disappoint. Lead singer Per “Pelle” Almqvist was all over the stage, swinging his mic, climbing speakers, and kicking the bouncers’ water bottles out of the way. At one point, he made his way to the soundboard, rallying the crowd. They played their hits like “Hate To Say I Told You So,” “Walk Idiot Walk,” and “Tick Tick Boom.”
Young The Giant followed, giving photographers the rare gift of four songs to shoot, without any release restrictions—a breath of fresh air. I wasn’t familiar with their music but became a fan after seeing them live. Their set featured a huge screen with vibrant patterns and colors, and the crowd went wild when they played “Cough Syrup.” Lead singer Sameer Gadhia has incredible stage presence, and I’d definitely see them again.
I attempted to grab some food after, but the lines were too long, so I headed over to catch Rebelution. I’ve been a fan for years but hadn’t had the chance to see them live until now. Their reggae rock vibe was perfect for the festival, and the crowd loved it. I couldn’t help but dance during songs like “Count Me In” and “Sky Is The Limit,” even while trying to snap photos. Unfortunately, I had to leave halfway through their set to photograph The Beach Boys.
I’ve always been a fan of the original Beach Boys lineup, but despite their political affiliations – I was still interested in seeing Mike Love and Bruce Johnston perform. However, I’d been warned that they sing over pre-recorded tracks, which definitely messed with my head. It’s a bit disheartening, especially for a band with such a legacy. Despite that, they played crowd-pleasers like “Surfin’ Safari,” a cover of The Ramones’ “Rockaway Beach,” and “Surfin’ USA.” I also missed Dexter Holland from The Offspring joining them for “Wouldn’t It Be Nice” earlier in the set.
The Offspring was next, and while I had a photo pass for the entire set, I only ended up shooting five songs. Like other bands, they had a photo release requiring all images to be approved before posting, which was frustrating. I get that bands want control over their image, but these restrictions are annoying for photographers. It’s pretty ironic for a punk band to impose such rules, but I digress. Despite the restrictions, The Offspring delivered a fantastic set, playing hits like “Come Out and Play,” “All I Want,” and “Want You Bad.” Guitarist Noodles even threw in a medley of classics like “Iron Man,” “Sweet Child O’ Mine,” and “Blitzkrieg Bop.”
I stayed for most of their set, but after two days of the festival and dealing with moving plans, I decided to head home early. I didn’t bother with The Killers since they weren’t allowing photographers, and I’ve never been a fan anyway.
Day 3 featured bands like Dave Matthews Band, Counting Crows, Lisa Loeb, O.A.R. & Friends, and Barenaked Ladies, but it wasn’t really my thing, so I skipped it. Overall, Oceans Calling was a great festival, despite the terrible weather on Friday. I do think scheduling the festival at the end of September, during hurricane season, might not be the best idea. That said, it’s great having such a big event just an hour away from home.
I loved the lineup, the VIP lounges, free water, air-conditioned bathrooms, and decent (if expensive) food. For future festivals, I’d suggest better access for photographers, more buses at the end of the night, and additional exits for emergencies. But all in all, it was a well-run event with an awesome lineup, and I’m already looking forward to next year!
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Maryland
Mifepristone ruling could halt mailed abortion pills in ‘shield states’ like Maryland – WTOP News
Last Friday, May 1, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a 2023 U.S. Food and Drug Administration rule that allowed mifepristone to be dispensed without an in-person visit with a physician.
This article was republished with permission from WTOP’s news partners at Maryland Matters. Read the story at Maryland Matters.
Every month, an estimated 500-plus Marylanders receive abortion medication that was mailed to them after a telehealth medical visit, a convenient method for terminating unwanted pregnancies that has been growing since 2022.
But abortion advocates say a Supreme Court case reviewing mail access for mifepristone, part of a two-drug regimen used for both medication abortions and miscarriage care, could threaten the ability of Marylanders to get abortion medication by mail.
“There’s often the misconception that we are safe in Maryland from these politically motivated attacks on abortion,” Lynn McCann-Yeh, executive director for the Abortion Fund of Maryland, said Tuesday. “This particular Supreme Court case is so concerning because it has nationwide implications on how mifepristone can be dispensed and prescribed if this court case moves forward.”
Last Friday, May 1, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a 2023 U.S. Food and Drug Administration rule that allowed mifepristone to be dispensed without an in-person visit with a physician.
That decision briefly blocked health providers from sending the medication through the mail nationwide, creating chaos and confusion for abortion providers and patients in Maryland, according to Karen J. Nelson, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Maryland.
But Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a temporary stay on the appellate court’s decision until May 11, giving both sides time to file briefs in the case — and allowing mifepristone to be sent over the mail for at least one more week.
“This is politically motivated and it’s a darn shame that our patients have to be concerned about this,” Nelson said. “The voters in the state of Maryland have demanded that reproductive health care be available in this state, and they codified it in the state constitution two Novembers ago.”
Anti-abortion organizations like the Maryland Family Institute agree that the court case has significant implications for reworking abortion policies across the United States and in Maryland.
Jonathan Alexandre, legislative counsel for the Maryland Family Institute, said the temporary stay by the Supreme Court was a “super-wise decision” to allow time to gather enough evidence and data to make the case that sending mifepristone through the mail is harmful.
“We don’t shy away from realizing the cataclysmic effect this will have on reorienting the entire nation’s laws when it comes to protecting life in the womb,” Alexandre said.
The court challenge was brought by the state of Louisiana, which argues that the FDA’s 2023 decision to no longer require in-person visits for mifepristone undermines its near-total ban on abortion, allowing providers from other states to send the medication into Louisiana through the mail.
Louisiana also claims that it paid $92,000 in Medicaid bills for two women who needed medical care due to complications related to mifepristone.
But the current lawsuit against mifepristone has nationwide implications and could threaten even Maryland residents from receiving the medication from a Maryland provider, even though abortions are legal in the state.
“While it was great that there was this kind of temporary reprieve … we know that the broader case is still unresolved,” McCann-Yeh said. “Telehealth medication abortion is an increasingly important way of accessing abortion care in the country.”
Abortion in the U.S. has become a patchwork of state policies since June 2022, when the Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization largely overturned federal abortion protections and sent the issue back to legislatures.
Some states, such as Louisiana, have near-total bans for abortion services, while states like Maryland are known as “shield law” states that protect providers from prosecution for providing abortion care to residents in more-restrictive states.
Nationally, approximately 27% of abortions happen through telehealth services, according to 2025the data from the Society of Family Planning, a research and advocacy group that publishes an annual report called #WeCount. That’s up from just 5% nationwide in early 2022, before the Dobbs decision.
In Maryland, an average of 533 abortions a month took place through telehealth services from June 2024 through June 2025, according to most recent #WeCount data. An average of 2,729 abortions a month occurred in person at Maryland clinics during the same period.
Compare that to data from before the Dobbs decision, when 40 Marylanders received telehealth abortions in April 2022 and just 50 in May 2022.
While most abortions occur in clinics still, McCann-Yeh said the Supreme Court could block the ability to receive mifepristone in the mail, creating hurdles for Marylanders seeking abortion care.
“For a Maryland resident who may not be able to get to a clinic, this is a huge logistical hurdle,” she said. “You now have to travel to the clinic, which might be anywhere from 30 minutes to a few hours away.
“If you are a parent or have disabilities, if you’re working to make ends meet and you’re concerned about costs – all of these create a lot of additional hassles that people in Maryland would have to go to get abortion care that’s otherwise protected and supported in their state,” McCann-Yeh said.
Meanwhile, in states with strict abortion bans, such as Louisiana or Maryland’s neighbor West Virginia, approximately 96% to 100% of abortions were acquired through telehealth services in 2025, according to the data.
Abortion advocates say some providers in Maryland will prescribe and send abortion medications like mifepristone through the mail to residents in other states who are unable to get them otherwise. It’s not clear how much mifepristone is sent out of Maryland into states with more restrictive abortion bans, but Alexandre says that the state’s lax telehealth requirements put women at risk.
“You have males buying this and forcing women to take it, or women will take it past the age of gestation that are safe for ingesting this pill,” Alexandre said. “What this law that Louisiana has passed, and ultimately what the court is going to review, is saying whether or not you should put these safety protocols in place to ensure that the dangers of this pill are fully addressed and that women are offered the protection that they need.”
Abortion providers like Nelson with Planned Parenthood are continuing to provide telehealth care to Marylanders, as she said the organization does not send mifepristone out of state.
But behind the scenes, staff with Planned Parenthood and other abortion advocacy groups are preparing for what may happen if the Supreme Court takes up the Louisiana case.
“We’re super glad that the recent stay does temporarily restore access to medication abortions by telehealth,” Nelson said, “But with the chaos and the confusion, with the back and forth between rulings does have an impact on those who are seeking sexual and reproductive health care.”
BALTIMORE (WBFF) — As Baltimore leaders celebrated a new law limiting city cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Thursday, they also shared new accounts alleging federal agents have gone too far.
At a news conference the same day the mayor signed legislation restricting the city’s cooperation with ICE, City Councilman Zeke Cohen described what he said was a troubling incident outside his children’s school.
“ICE was behaving in ways that were unsafe, that caused stress, and trauma, and harm to our communities, so as a result we asked for increase school police presence,” Cohen said.
He added, “I think it’s incredibly ironic we need our own local school police to protect our kids and our families from the federal government.”
ALSO READ | Baltimore police: Man told guard “I’m an addict” during Orioles Team Store armed robbery
From the floor of the council chambers last month, Councilwoman Odette Ramos described what she said was fear in the community and accused ICE of targeting people based on race.
“Let us call it what it is it’s racism and white supremacy,” Ramos said.
She added, “They wait in parking lots for anyone who is brown. They do not care if you’re a citizen or not, so I’m waiting for my turn obviously.”
Critics have questioned the stories from politicians.
Dr. Richard Vatz, a retired professor of rhetoric, called the city’s approach “utterly irresponsible leadership,” saying, “They ought to think, ‘Who am I helping, who am I hurting?’”
When FOX45 News pressed council members last month on whether they’d witnessed ICE breaking the law in Baltimore, Ramos said, “I have not personally, however, I know that we are now seeing an escalation.”
After Cohen’s account about what happened outside his children’s school, an email was sent to the council president seeking clarification, including: “Did you see the ICE activity yourself and, if so, what was taking place?”
Clarification had not yet been provided.
Sgt. Betsy Branford-Smith, with the National Police Association, said stories of fear put officers at risk too.
“These agents have now been additionally endangered. It’s already dangerous enough,” Smith said.
An online learning management system is back online after a cyberattack created chaos for local school districts and colleges in Maryland.
Canvas, an online portal used by students and teachers, and parent company Infrastructure were attacked by hacking group ShinyHunters. The group is tied to several other notable attacks, including the Live Nation hack.
In a statement to CBS News on Friday, Instructure said the company took Canvas offline after learning that hackers had “made changes to the pages that appeared when some students and teachers were logged in.”
The hackers exploited an issue linked to its Free-For-Teacher accounts, the company said.
“As a result, we have made the difficult decision to temporarily shut down our Free-For-Teacher accounts,” the company said. “This gives us the confidence to restore access to Canvas, which is now fully back online and available for use. We regret the inconvenience and concern this may have caused.”
Canvas was also removed from a dark web leak site created by the ransomware group to publish stolen data.
Several school districts in Maryland avoided using Canvas altogether on Friday, including Anne Arundel County Public Schools, Harford County Public Schools, and Howard County Public School System. Baltimore City Public Schools uses the site, but said it had minimal impacts and does not believe the district’s data was stolen.
Baltimore County Public Schools does not use Canvas, and it was not impacted.
Local colleges and universities halted to a standstill in the middle of finals because of the breach. The University of Maryland urged faculty and students not to access the site on Friday morning. By midday, Canvas was fully restored.
Student reaction
Students at Johns Hopkins University say the website was down for about four hours Thursday night. This breach occurred during the middle of finals at the university, and students say that without the site, they didn’t have access to study materials.
“I don’t think I can manage without Canvas,” Aseel Adam, a first-year student at Hopkins, said. “I had a final today, so I was like, ‘Oh no’. I had to email my teacher about the slides final practice. It was bad.”
Students called it a major inconvenience and said they had a late-night studying after Canvas came back online.
“5 pm hits, Canvas is shut down,” Alveena Nasir, a first-year student at Hopkins, said. “I am screwed. I have a final tomorrow. I have no access to any my files. I have no downloads…For that to shut down, I feel like the whole school shuts down.”
Canvas is used by students to review materials, submit assignments, and view their grades. Teachers are also able to communicate with students on the platform.
Students say they also don’t know what data may have been leaked and if it’s their personal information.
“They can get a lot of my information, fake it for someone else, or some bad, heinous crime. It did kind of worry me,” Adam explained.
Preventing future attacks
The Johns Hopkins University Information Security Institute has been testing websites and platforms like Canvas, trying to find vulnerabilities to help prevent these types of attacks. Now, AI is making it easier than ever to take down this kind of system.
“In the old days, usually [it would] take an expert maybe a month to really come up with those complicated attacks. Recently, with the help of AI, [it takes] sometimes maybe one or two days, they can really come up with those complicated attacks,” Yinzhi Cao, technical director of the institute and associate professor of computer science, tells WJZ.
Cao says everyone needs to be more cyber-aware. To protect yourself, don’t give out deeply personal information to online platforms, use two-factor authentication, and even watch out for phishing emails.
Now, students are questioning the school’s reliance on Canvas and how they can be more prepared if there’s an attack in the future.
“The idea that we depend so much on Canvas for a lot of things is also an issue. I think there should be a balance,” Adam said.
“For having a website so fundamental to our education and not being able to protect it, I think there should be some considerations on improving it,” Nasir concluded.
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