The In Box

Can newcomers and old-timers get along in the North Country?

2010-03-19T07:39:00.006-04:00

In many North Country communities -- including my adopted hometown of Saranac Lake -- one of the trickiest fault lines runs between "locals" and "outsiders."

It's not just seasonals vs. year-rounders.

There is often a thorny tension between neighbors who have lived in our small towns for generations, and the full-time residents who have chosen to move here.

Researchers who look at rural America sometimes talk about the "place-bound" community.

These are the folks who choose to stay in a hamlet or village, even when there are better opportunities elsewhere.

Their loyalty can pay big dividends.

These people often anchor whole communities, providing fire service and working as police officers.

They create much of the deep memory, sharing traditions and stories from one generation to the next.

But intermingled with these families are a growing number of newcomers, who like most Americans are far more transient.

They come to the North Country because they see something here that they want: a job, a lifestyle, the beauty of the place, a slower-paced life, and a sense of community.

Many times, they bring with them different values and different ideas.

Most people who study the health of communities will tell you that rural towns need this kind of fresh infusion of talent, energy and ideas.

The intermingling of the new and the old can spark creative partnerships, from the building of the Wild Center in Tupper Lake to efforts in Saranac Lake to revitalize Mt. Pisgah.

But all too often, the result is resentment, suspicion and anger.

One problem is that our two communities tend to live separately.

Yes, we're next-door neighbors. But we eat at different cafes, we listen to different radio stations, we join different civic organizations and churches.

In our college towns, this divide is sometimes even more stark, with life on campus divorced almost completely from the world just a few blocks away.

It's also an uncomfortable fact that many of the newcomers tend to be Democrats, while many of the place-bound folks tend to be Republicans or Conservatives.

So when it comes to hot button issues (Wal-Mart, say, or the merits of a new resort development) there are few lines of communication, and not nearly enough trust.

I worry that this tension will grow, especially if the economy worsens.

If prisons close and local governments lay off more workers -- both are prime sources of employment for native North Country families -- we could see the place bound community suffer more than their newcomer neighbors.

Honestly, I'm not sure how to narrow this gap. But I am convinced that we need each other.

Small towns are fragile places. The ones that survive and thrive will manage to put all the pieces together in interesting ways.

They will protect their traditions and their sense of place, while also welcoming the risk-taking and experimentation of the new.

Your thoughts welcome below.

NY Dem Arcuri will vote No on health care bill

2010-03-19T07:14:00.001-04:00

One New York congressman who represents a chunk of the North Country says he'll vote "No" on the Democratic health care bill.

Mike Arcuri, whose district includes the area around Old Forge, voted Yes on a health care bill last year.

But the Democrat told the Utica Observer-Dispatch that growing opposition within the 24th district swayed his opinion.

?During the summer, the constituents were 50/50,? Arcuri told the newspaper, adding --quote-- ?That has drastically changed now.?

He called for health care reform to be accomplished incrementally through smaller pieces of legislation.

Arcuri is expected to face a tough fight for re-election in November.

Plattsburgh rally planned to oppose health care bill

2010-03-19T06:38:00.004-04:00

I spoke at length last night with Mark Barie -- head of the UNYTEA, the Upstate New York Tea Party -- and a colleague from our days doing public television together.

Mark is a passionate, thoughtful conservative, and his organization is sure to play a role in this year's North Country congressional races.

He's convinced that the Democratic bill now being debated in Congress is too expensive and takes away too many liberties.

He's particularly concerned about a provision requiring that Americans buy health insurance.

You can hear our conversation here and visit UNYTEA's website here.

Meanwhile, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office is reporting that the Democratic bill would actually reduce the deficit over time by tens of billions of dollars, while insuring an additional 32 million Americans who now have no coverage.

You can also read Politifact's non-partisan effort to fact check the health care debate here.

And of course, you can offer your own opinion. Is this a common sense way to move tens of millions of Americans toward better health and more security.

Is it a costly boondoggle, one that expands government power in ways that make you nervous?

Or something in between? Comments welcome.

Our 15 seconds of fame

2010-03-18T15:33:00.001-04:00

Today the mics (and cameras) were turned on NCPR. The good folks at
Mountain Lake PBS in Plattsburgh were at our studios today filming for
an NCPR underwriting spot to air on public television. Soon you'll be
able to see what Brian Mann looks like in a real life news meeting.

They also filmed me interviewing Ray and Stephanie Hill of Windy Ridge
dairy in West Potsdam.

Thanks Mountain Lake PBS!

Scott Murphy is still thinking about it

2010-03-18T15:22:00.003-04:00

Glens Falls Democrat Scott Murphy issued a statement this afternoon:

“I am happy to see that we now have a final bill. I am in the process of reviewing it and will determine if it goes far enough to fix the broken incentives in our health care system. I am posting this, along with the Senate bill on my website so that the public has a chance to review it. I continue to encourage people to contact my office to let me know their questions and opinions.”

Is the "circuit breaker" a good way to restrain property taxes?

2010-03-18T15:13:00.003-04:00

State Senator Darrel Aubertine is supporting a bill that passed today 58-to-1 that would effectively link property tax payments to local residents' incomes and their "ability to pay."

The idea is that land-rich but cash-poor New Yorkers wouldn't have to pay as much in taxes every year.

That would provide relief to a lot of low-income families in the North Country.

The bill also provides tax cuts for seniors and farmers. (The full press release is below.)

The problem, of course, is that local governments and school districts in the North Country are already hundreds of millions of dollars in the hole.

And state aid is being cut dramatically year by year.

Anything that cuts local tax revenue will, by definition, add to all the red ink.

So what do you think? Is this the time to slash property tax payments for thousands of our neighbors?

And if so, what should we cut? More teacher lay-offs? Fewer snow plow drivers? Should we mothball nursing homes?

Or should we raise taxes on those North Country residents wealthy enough that they don't "trip" the circuit breaker?

Here's Sen. Aubertine's statement:

Senator calls “circuit breaker” legislation the beginning of a meaningful debate

ALBANY (March 18, 2010)—State Sen. Darrel J. Aubertine today said meaningful bipartisan discussions on property tax relief must start now, while lawmakers are engaged in the budget process and well before the close of session in June.

To that end, the Senator today joined his colleagues for a near unanimous vote (58-1) to pass a bill that would create a circuit breaker tax relief system, restore rebate checks for seniors and put a cap on property tax levy increases which still maintains for school districts the latitude they need to educate our children.

“This is about finding ways to cut taxes,” Sen. Aubertine said. “New York State has the highest property taxes in the nation and we need to install a system that will provide meaningful relief based on an individual’s ability to pay. This legislation starts us toward that goal with an income based relief structure which is needed because the value of a home is not an indicator of a homeowner’s ability to pay.”

The legislation passed today would provide millions of dollars in relief to property owners in a fiscally responsible way that restricts rebates to middle class New Yorkers to fit within the economic constraints of the state’s difficult financial crisis. The Senator has been pushing for a circuit breaker and has voted in favor of caps on property tax increases, working toward a system that balances the needs of property taxpayers with the education needs of our students.

This legislation would also enable farmers to discount the payments made on equipment and machinery from their income for eligibility in the program, similar to legislation the Senator introduced (S.4451).

“This bill captures the essence of a bill I introduced in this house to enable farmers to show their real income when determining eligibility for STAR,” Sen. Aubertine said. “Currently, many farmers unable to receive STAR benefits because the payments they make on equipment cannot be deducted from their adjusted gross income. This bill addresses that and will provide new relief to many farmers.”

In addition to this direct property tax relief, the Senator pushed for and passed Tier V pension relief, which will save the state, local governments and school districts billions over the next few decades. Earlier this week, he voted for mandate relief which passed the Senate to free up school districts to do more with less and more efficiently use taxpayer revenue in the education of our children. Likewise, he is pushing for legislation to provide retirement incentives for teachers at 55 years old with 25 years of service, a move that will clear school districts of high salaries and open up opportunities for new teachers.

Can you reshape a local economy with $22 million?

2010-03-18T12:14:00.003-04:00

It's really amazing to think 2,000 people were at last week's rally to save Ogdensburg's prison. There's a lot at stake for the community - 287 jobs, an annual payroll of $22 million.

But it's impossible to sidestep the fact that the prison system is contracting. The state's inmate population has decreased by a staggering 14,000 people. At a time when the state can't rub two pennies together, we're paying for 5,000-6,000 empty prison beds. Don't we have to start closing prisons somewhere?

Groups like the Correctional Association are holding their own rallies in support of prison closures. Director Robert Gangi says it was a mistake to boost rural economies with prison construction in the first place.

I asked Gangi, then, what he says to places like Ogdensburg that will be hurt. You can hear him struggle with the answer.

Gangi says he supports an Assembly bill that would put finding another use for empty prisons in the hands of the state economic development agency rather than the department of corrections.

Let's think bigger...

What if Albany said to Ogdensburg: "Look, we have to close prisons. But we get it. You can't lose 287 jobs. How about this? We don't use this closure to help balance this year's budget, or next year's. We ease you to a more self-sufficient economy."

The state sets up an economic development/entrepreneur trust fund for Ogdensburg. The fund gets $22 million the first year, $20 million the second, $15 million the third, $10 million the fourth year, etc., until after 6 years Ogdensburg has to go it alone.

Could Ogdensburg create new businesses to re-employ 287 people?

$22 million sounds like a lot of money. How would you spend it? How would you re-envision your community to make it less dependent on government funding?

Do you think Ogdensburg or any other North Country town has the political and civic foresight to use the money responsibly?

Tomorrow on The 8 O'Clock Hour and All Before Five, we'll talk with prison reform advocates who say prisons are not good for rural economies.

Is Canada's seal hunt 'sacred'?

2010-03-18T10:03:00.023-04:00

An earlier In Box post looked at the ethics of Canada's seal hunt.
Here's more on the politics of that issue.

Elizabeth Payne is on the Ottawa Citizen's editorial board. In today's paper she writes:

You can debate abortion, the death penalty, polygamy, burqas, even UFOs, and get a polite hearing. But not the seal hunt. That is one subject that, on the Canadian political landscape, will get you put on an ice floe in a hurry. Go there at your own peril...

Payne goes on to describe Senator Mac Harb's struggle to introduce a private member's bill on the issue. Harb says he supports the sealers, but thinks their market is probably gone. He wants to examine the viability of the hunt and at least consider a ban.

But when he introduced that bill last year, it was met with a resounding silence. Not a single senator could be found to second it, which meant there could be no debate. "I was stunned." Harb was told such a thing had never happened before. That, he argues, is what the Senate is for -- a place to discuss "difficult issues that the House of Commons doesn't want to discuss."

Harb tried again last week. A fellow senator agreed to second the bill, on the principle of permitting debate.

"I know some of my colleagues are upset. They have a right to be upset, that is fine," he said, "but I should also have a right to bring the issue forward."

Read Payne's full column here.

Owens also undecided on health reform

2010-03-18T09:39:00.002-04:00

Add the 23rd CD's Bill Owens to the key Democratic votes on health care reform. The Watertown Daily Times has this from Owens this morning.

Mr. Owens remained steadfast in his neutrality, saying Wednesday afternoon that he would take no position until reading the bill, which leaders signaled could be released late Wednesday or today.

The paper goes on to note that Owens hasn't had a face-to-face with the president, though.

Owens voted for the House's own health care reform bill -- which came up just after he won his seat in last fall's special election.

SLU Saints broadcast schedule

2010-03-18T09:26:00.002-04:00

You have no excuse now not to catch the weekend hockey action in Albany via some medium. The official digits from St. Lawrence...

Both ECAC Hockey semifinal games and the championship game will be televised on Fox College Sports channel 235 on the Time Warner sports package and channel 617 on DirectTV.
The third place game will be on the B2 Network only with an in-house feed for the video. The B2 coverage of the semifinals and championship game will be the Fox College Sports feed.
The Saints' games will also be broadcast on the WOLF 95.3 with Greg Lapinski and Wally Johnson. The Saint radio broadcast is also available online through the St. Lawrence athletics web site. The Saints will play Union at 7 p.m. on Friday night in the second semifinal game. The third place game is slated for 4 p.m. Saturday with the championship game at 7 p.m.

For the set-up, check out this interview with Coach Joe Marsh. Go Saints!

Will North Country lawmakers decide the fate of the health care bill?

2010-03-18T08:16:00.003-04:00

It's a little exhausting how often North Country lawmakers wind up at the epicenter of national politics.

And now two of the region's Democratic lawmakers, Mike Arcuri (who represents the area around Old Forge) and Scott Murphy (who represents Glens Falls and much of the eastern Adirondacks) are pivotal figures in the health care debate.

In an interview this week with NCPR, Murphy insisted that he remains truly unsure of the merits of the bill. It's not politics, he insists, but a desire to be thorough.

But according to the Oneonta Daily Star, both men are getting hammered with political pressure and calls from constituents.

Arcuri spokesman Mark Cornell asked reporters to contact him by cell phone Wednesday, as the Washington, D.C., office number was tied up with health care callers.

``Yesterday alone, just in our D.C. office, we received about 450 calls from constituents,'' he said. Others with an interest in the issue also called on a day when the phone rang about 1,000 times. Cornell said the callers were about evenly divided in their advice on how to vote.

Murphy spokesman Josh Schwerin said the situation is similar in the 20th District, as residents and others with an interest in the issue are on the airwaves and telephone.

That pressure can only build in the hours and days ahead. And there's really no way either politician can get this right politically.

President Barack Obama is suggesting now that his entire agenda could be crippled by a defeat on health care.

If either Democrat votes No, they could enrage a big chunk of their base -- including key union supporters.

A Yes vote, on the other hand, could alienate many independents and energize Republican opposition.

Right now: Saints practicing for semi-finals

2010-03-17T16:24:00.000-04:00

That's goalie Robbie Moss At SLU's Appleton arena where the Saints are
practicing for Friday night's game in Albany against Union. One of
the coolest things about the North Country is we have bigtime
colleagiate hockey. It gets fun this time of year!

Tune in to the 8 oclock hour tomorrow morning for an interview with
the Saints coach and standout player...

North Country voters send mixed messages on property taxes

2010-03-17T07:18:00.004-04:00

It's a conventional wisdom of North Country politics that folks are furious about high property taxes.

But in recent weeks, voters and local leaders from Elizabethtown to Lake Luzerne to Port Henry have sent a very different message.

In Port Henry this week, residents decided to keep their village government, despite assurances that dissolving a layer of bureaucracy would save them at least 24% on their property tax bills.

Disbanding the village had strong backing from conservative activists, including a newly formed regional group called Unshackle Upstate.

"Each of those [local governments] have an inherent cost to them," said Unshackle director Brian Sampson.

But local voters decided to maintain their two separate governments, by a decisive margin of 186-146.

Meanwhile, in Lake Luzerne, officials at the Hadley-Luzerne Central School District were considering deep budget cuts and planning lay-offs.

Even with those proposed cuts, taxpayers in the area were facing a 17% property tax hike.

But on Monday, local residents turned up at a meeting and demanded that the teachers be reinstated.

"There were several people who said, ‘Don't change anything, and leave [the tax hike] at 30 percent, and we would support it,'" board president Lisa Moses told the Glens Falls Post-Star.

Some elected officials tell me point-blank that they think North Country residents will agree to pay more local property and sales taxes, if that's what it takes to maintain government jobs and services.

"I don't think people will have a choice at that point," says Cathy Moses, town supervisor in Schroon.

"I think if you want to be part of a community, if you're going to be part of a county, I think that we're all going to have to tighten the belts and work together."

The next big test of this question -- higher taxes vs. deep spending cuts -- may come as Essex County residents decide the fate of the Horace Nye nursing home.

The facility, with a hundred elderly residents, loses around $4 million a year, even after state and Federal subsidies.

County leaders have formed a panel to review Horace Nye's future.

"That's one of those services that we've got to decide, either we stay in the nursing home business or we don't," said Essex County manager Dan Palmer, speaking in December.

"I'm not sure we can," he added.

But last month, Essex County officials insisted that there was no chance the nursing home would close.

"I don't believe it's the intention to close Horace Nye Nursing Home," Moriah town supervisor Tom Scozzafava told the Plattsburgh Press-Republican.

"We need to make it clear it is not our intent to close down and get out of the nursing-home business," he said.

As state aid dwindles, this debate is one that locals will likely have to wrestle with again and again.

Do we mean it when we say that property taxes have pushed us to the breaking point?

Or are we really willing to pay more -- maybe a lot more -- to maintain the services we and our neighbors have come to rely on?

Your thoughts welcome.

Watch the healthcare ads targeting Rep. Scott Murphy

2010-03-16T15:55:00.002-04:00

Scott Murphy, the freshman Democrat from Glens Falls, is being hit from all sides on the healthcare debate.

We'll hear from him in-depth tomorrow morning, explaining why he's still on the fence.

But to gauge the amount of pressure he's facing in these final days of the debate, check out these advertisements.

The first, urging him to vote No, was produced by the US Chamber of Commerce.

The second, produced by MoveOn.org, is urging Murphy to vote Yes.

Okay. Life really does stink.

2010-03-16T14:21:00.002-04:00

People have been beating up on me (a reporter!) the last few days for being too positive. And then David Sommerstein goes and posts a happy photo from his mental health break.

So to preserve balance, here's my "life sucks" post of the day, from an AP story out of South Carolina:

A 38-year-old father of two was jogging and listening to his iPod when he was hit from behind and killed by a small plane making an emergency landing on the beach, officials said Tuesday.

Robert Gary Jones of Woodstock, Ga., died instantly Monday evening when he was hit by the single-engine plane, which had lost its propeller, said Beaufort County Coroner Ed Allen. The pilot's vision was blocked by oil on the windshield.

Jones apparently did not see or hear the plane, which was "basically gliding," the coroner said.

I'll never be able to jog on a beach again without looking nervously over my shoulder...

Mental health break

2010-03-16T13:36:00.001-04:00

The Grasse River from the (relatively) new heritage trail on Falls
Island in Canton. Happy beautiful day!

Think wind farms are problematic?

2010-03-16T13:29:00.002-04:00

Wind farm opponents raise some legitimate concerns, about the efficiency, environmental impacts, and sustainability of the wind industry.

But one of my beefs with their argument is that they often compare wind to...nothing.

As if the choice is either wind turbines, or no other alternative.

But the reality is that we currently rely heavily in the U.S. on coal-powered electric generation.

That reliance is expected to grow in coming years.

A photographer for GQ. J. Henry Fair, has created a slide show of what happens to landscapes that are targeted for coal extraction or burning.

Dirty Pretty Things: Coal Ash Containment Site Photos Big Issues: GQ.com

It's fair -- even crucial -- that we ask tough questions of the wind energy and its backers.

But we should also be aware that the alternatives to wind aren't always pretty.

Your thoughts?

Mumps outbreak confirmed at SUNY Plattsburgh

2010-03-16T13:17:00.002-04:00

State health officials are urging vigilance -- and advising some students to stop attending classes -- around Plattsburgh.

Mumps is normally fairly mild, but it can cause severe and even life-threatening symptoms. The full statement from NYS Department of Health is below.

It includes a schedule of vaccination clinics in the Plattsburgh area:

ALBANY, N.Y. (Mar. 16, 2010) – Three confirmed cases of mumps have been reported at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Plattsburgh among students since February 23, this year. To prevent the spread of this outbreak, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) recommends that all students who have not received two doses of mumps vaccine be excluded from attending school at SUNY Plattsburgh until they are fully vaccinated and or can show evidence of immunity.

DOH and the Clinton County Health Department are investigating the outbreak.
There is no relation between this outbreak and the mumps outbreak that began last summer in Orange and Rockland Counties in a religious community.
SUNY Plattsburgh has notified students of the outbreak and reviewed student immunization records. During spring break, the University will be holding mumps immunization clinics with the Clinton County Health Department for all students and staff who have not received 2 doses of mumps vaccine. Clinics will be held all day Wednesday, March 17 by appointment only (call 518-565-4848) and on Monday, March 22, at the SUNY Plattsburgh Health Center starting at 9 a.m. on a walk in basis (call 518-564-2187 for information).

Mumps is a viral disease characterized by fever, headache, muscle weakness, loss of appetite, and swelling and tenderness of one or more of the salivary glands situated along the angle of the jaw and inside the mouth, including the parotid gland (located within the cheeks just below the front of the ear). Approximately one-third of infected people do not have noticeable salivary gland swelling.The disease is transmitted by direct contact with saliva and discharges from the nose and throat of infected individuals. The incubation period is usually from 16 to 18 days, but may vary from 12 to 25 days. Mumps is contagious from 3 days before until 5 days after the onset of swelling and tenderness of the salivary glands. Immunity acquired after contracting the disease is usually long term.

While severe complications are rare, mumps can cause inflammation of the brain and /or tissue covering the brain and spinal cord (encephalitis/meningitis), inflammation of the testicles (orchitis), inflammation of the ovaries, and inflammation of the pancreas, spontaneous abortion and deafness.

To help prevent the spread of the outbreak, individuals who may have been exposed to mumps and or who have symptoms should not attend classes and call their health care provider first before making an office visit, to avoid exposing other patients. Individuals who may have been exposed to mumps and do not know whether they are up-to-date on their mumps vaccination should contact their health care providers to find out whether they need to be vaccinated.

All health care providers should report suspected cases of mumps immediately to their local health department and obtain a blood test to confirm the diagnosis.

To locate a local health department visit the web site at http://nyhealth.gov/nysdoh/lhu/map.htm and to learn about mumps visit the state health department web site at
nyhealth.gov/diseases/communicable/mumps/fact_sheet.htm

Queensbury supervisor's congressional bid hits Tea Party snag

2010-03-16T10:08:00.005-04:00

Corrected...

Queensbury town supervisor Dan Stec is hoping to give Scott Murphy a tough run in the NY-20 race this fall.

But his own home county gave the endorsement to a different candidate, a Tea Party activist from Burnt Hills.

Here's the coverage from the Glens Falls Post Star.

Queensbury Supervisor Dan Stec's bid for Congress hit a snag on Monday when he lost the endorsement of the Republican committee in his home county.

Stec narrowly lost the endorsement vote to Patrick Ziegler, a TEA Party activist from Burnt Hills.

"It was between Ziegler and Stec, and Ziegler squeaked by," said Warren County Republican Chairman Michael Grasso.

Healthcare pressure on Murphy includes one-on-one with Obama

2010-03-16T09:48:00.003-04:00

Politico is reporting that President Barack Obama sat down with Glens Falls Democrat Scott Murphy.

“They spoke about the need for effective cost control measures in the health care bill,” Murphy’s press secretary, Josh Schwerin, emailed POLITICO.

Murphy is still undecided on how he will vote on the bill, Schwerin said, and is waiting to “see the final bill language.”

“He will make his final decision based on whether or not he feels that the bill does enough to fix the broken incentives in our health care system,” he said.

What will the next, more balanced America look like?

2010-03-15T21:29:00.002-04:00

This is a thread I've pulled a couple of times in the past and as New York's fiscal crisis deepens, it seems worthwhile tugging it again.

Here's what we know, regardless of our political stripes or our ideological persuasions: We've been living beyond our means.

Whether you're a Wall Street investment banker or a local government official bringing home the bacon for your hamlet.

Whether you're a college student racking up huge credit card debts or a senior who didn't put enough aside for retirement.

We are a society built on debt; and at long last the bill is coming due.

Which is painful and frightening and potentially devastating.

But I can't help thinking it could also be renewing and full of opportunity.

So here are some of my questions:

What will the government of the future -- one taxpayers can actually afford -- look like?

What services will we still want when we stop borrowing to pay for them?

Will we spend more of our own time and money taking care of our elderly parents, rather than handing them over to the government?

Will we expect a slightly smaller paycheck if we have the good fortune to enjoy a stable government job?

Will we stop spending more on our military than the next half-dozen largest nations combined?

And how about our personal lives? After we max out our last credit card, will we sit around glumly thinking of the good old days?

Or will we find more rewarding things to do that aren't built around spending money we don't have?

Is it time to swap the TV dish for a night at the grange?

I'm guessing similar questions are coming due on the environment.

If the vast majority of scientists are correct, we can't keep burdening our climate and our soils and our oceans.

But maybe forging a cleaner economy will have real virtues in our lives; and it might prove far more sustainable.

I don't want to sound overly pollyanaish here. This is going to sting. For millions of Americans, it already stings.

And compared with about 99% of the planet's population, we have it really good.

But I have the feeling that we're going to have to do this, one way or the other.

Our lines of credit are tapped; China's getting squirrely about loaning us money; New York state is going begging; the planet is heating up; and we're past peak oil.

So here's the question for the thread:

What are some real-world, practical, normal life changes that you think are coming.

Not ideological stuff, not hairshirt suffering and finger-wagging.

I'm interested in the little, cumulative ways that you think our lives will likely shift, for better and for worse.

Comments welcome below.

Man vs. tree

2010-03-15T16:40:00.003-04:00

I spend a lot of time in my wood lot these days, cutting firewood, clearing trails, tapping maple trees and (yes) pulling brush.

So I watched this video (press Play below) with a heck of a lot of sympathy. Caution: There's a bit of light profanity, of the "Uh-oh!" variety.

Canada's seal hunt fights back

2010-03-15T13:24:00.032-04:00

Cute, eh?

People do get touchy about things like animals. Or food.
Not to mention money.

Many North Americans love a good steak, sliced from an animal Hindus consider sacred. Observant Muslims and Jews avoid pork. I can think of several cultures that consider a nice, tender dog quite the delicacy. As a child, our son was horrified to learn I quite enjoy lamb. (“Mom, how can you eat babies?”) Meanwhile, my vegetarian husband won't eat anything that has to be killed first – excluding plants.

Japan is widely reviled for continuing to hunt and eat whale. That nation is getting even more bad PR thanks to The Cove, an Oscar-winning feature documentary on a methodical dolphin slaughter in Taiji, Japan

Enter Canada and the seal hunt.

Images of baby seals getting clubbed to a bloody death on white ice flows proved so gruesome that the practice has been banned since 1987. But more restricted seal harvests continue, and remain a significant economic activity in some communities where there isn't much else going on.

Canada's East Coast seal hunt is the largest of its kind in the world, with an average annual kill of about 300,000 harp seals. It exported around $5.5 million worth of seal products such as pelts, meat, and oils to the EU in 2006.

Animal rights groups, such as Sea Sheperd, have worked to end economic seal hunts that have little to do with subsistence hunting. The campaigns succeed to the point that the European Union enacted a ban on most seal products which will take effect in August 2010.

The seal hunt has defenders too, including this industry site, which has a page dedicated to challenging what it calls 'myths'.

Canada's Gov. Gen. Michaëlle Jean made headlines last May when she pointedly ate raw seal heart on a tour up north. That played very well in Canada, since she was visiting a local community where hunting is a matter of cultural and personal survival.

The issue moved to Parliament Hill last week Wednesday, when politicians from all parties eagerly partook of a lunch spread featuring seal, sponsored by Liberal Quebec Senator Celine Hervieux-Payette, in support of the seal industry.

The event generated wide coverage, from local media, to European and British press, all the way to Australia.

According to this CBC account:

It is the first time seal has been served in the 100-year-old Parliament Hill institution. And all the double-smoked bacon wrapping, port reductions and organic vegetable medleys couldn't mask the meal's true intention: telling animal rights groups and the European Union to get stuffed.

A Reuter's report that included 6 photos quoted Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff thusly:

"The Europeans simply don't know what they're talking about. Since time began human beings have lived with animals and they have culled animals...It tastes delicious, actually. It's a meaty taste, a little gamy”

In the face of the EU ban, Canada has looked elsewhere to market seal products, including reaching out to the Chinese market.

These issues get complicated. Personally, I'm very sympathetic to the earth-friendly vegetarian cause, but I can't see that choice working for everyone. It also seems very hard to dismiss arguments about animal intelligence, the threat of extinction and outright cruelty.

On the other hand, maintaining it's OK to eat very smart creatures - like pigs and octopus - while making dolphins and dogs off limits, seems culturally selective to the point of hypocrisy.

When humans kill animals, what moral and ecological code makes sense - without playing favorites among countries? Or species?

Cutting the Federal deficit could "test social cohesion"

2010-03-15T12:30:00.004-04:00

The investment rating agency Moody's Investment Services issued a report today, which still gives the US its AAA rating.

That allows us to keep borrowing money from foreign lenders at relatively low rates. But Moody's also cautioned that our reliability as a debtor has been 'substantially diminished.'

Here's the nervous bit. Moody's also cautions that addressing the debt situation will be brutally hard, according to the New York Times.

“Growth alone will not resolve an increasingly complicated debt equation,” Moody’s said. “Preserving debt affordability” — the ratio of interest payments to government revenue — “at levels consistent with Aaa ratings will invariably require fiscal adjustments of a magnitude that, in some cases, will test social cohesion.”

The Times article points out that countries like Greece and Portugal are already wrestling with fundamental realignments in how their private and public sectors function.

Breaking: Murphy may vote Yes on healthcare bill

2010-03-15T10:59:00.002-04:00

Democrat Scott Murphy from Glens Falls was a No vote last time the House wrestled with the big health care package.

This time, though, he may be leaning toward a Yes. This according to The Hill newspaper in Washington:

Rep. Scott Murphy (D-N.Y.) is telling local media that he is keeping an open mind, and he sounds optimistic that the high costs that concerned him in the House bill in November may be mitigated.

"That’s why I’m spending the time to read the bill, to get into the details, and if, at the end of the day, I think it’s going to make the system better for people in my district, I’m going to vote for it," Murphy told the Oneonta Daily Star.

North Country Congressman Bill Owens is seen as a likely yes. Both men are expected to face staunch Republican challenges in November.