Maine News Headline Animator

Maine News

Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Maine News for Wednesday, October 10, 2007

PRESS HERALD:

Tribe's racino could require outside help But the Passamaquoddies would be majority owners under any plan, they say.

Clean-air settlement delights Northeast An Ohio-based utility is told to spend billions to cut emissions that are responsible for acid rain.

Wanted: Options for cutting jail costsFacing a proposed state takeover of Maine's county jails, lawmakers seek several alternatives.

Hollis weighs funding to preserve land Plans to buy 58 acres near the Saco River may require taxpayer dollars as well as state and private money.

Gas utility was cited before explosion, leak The state will investigate Northern Utilities after two incidents in one week.

EDITORIAL: Schools' merger power in the proper place In the end, it will be voters, not bureaucrats, who will make the final call on consolidation.

John W. DuncanFind more money for transportation shortfalls Current funding for fixing highways and bridges and supporting public transit is far less than needed.

LTE: Strimling will listen, do what's right for Mainers

BANGOR DAILY:

Group takes aim at racino campaignA radio ad in favor of the Washington County racetrack casino says the Passamaquoddy Tribe will be the "majority owner" of the facility, contradicting past suggestions that the tribe would be the casino's sole owner and operator, Dennis Bailey, executive director of CasinosNo!, said in a prepared release Tuesday.

Slots taxes debated AUGUSTA, Maine - Members of an advisory committee heatedly debated among themselves on Tuesday how the millions of dollars slot machine gambling generates now are allocated, an indication of how complicated the current tax and distribution system is.

Brewer officials dispute claims of tax discountsWednesday, October 10, 2007BREWER, Maine - Washington Street resident Kevin Duplissie is hurling arrows at the city and is taking aim at city councilors and their property valuations.

Expert says volunteering vital to economyWednesday, October 10, 2007ORONO, Maine - Volunteering should no longer be viewed as an occasional, "feel-good" activity, because committed volunteers are essential to the U.S. economy and social services sector, a national expert said Tuesday.

A more expensive winter: Government predicts heating oil prices will rise 22 percent over last yearWednesday, October 10, 2007NEW YORK - It's going to be a much more expensive winter for households that depend on heating oil, the government predicted Tuesday, while those that use natural gas should experience only moderate price increases.

EDITORIAL: The old mill and the seaCianbro Corp.'s decision not to seek permission to dump some of the sediment it proposes to dredge from the Penobscot River into the ocean gives the state and federal authorities an opportunity to reconsider the practice of ocean dumping.

Editorial: Talking with North KoreaDiplomacy with North Korea has reached a solid achievement, but you wouldn't know it from most newspaper front pages or broadcast news.

Wednesday's Letters to the Editor … A good neighbor … Seeking peaceful path

KENNEBEC JOURNAL:

Jail plan options requested Lawmakers discuss cost considerations at hearing AUGUSTA -- Lawmakers want state officials to bring them more than one option to consider to reduce costs in the state prison and county jail systems.

EDITORIAL; Starving DOT needs more than a merger The Maine Department of Transportation faces a perilous future. Which means those of us who travel across Maine face a potentially perilous future as well. The economic and human costs of substandard roads, bridges, rail systems and ferries are significant -- the recent interstate bridge collapse in Minnesota is a reminder of how significant those costs can be.

LTE: Reader has some 'hard questions' of her own In response to Bia Winter's letter (Sept. 28), I think I know some of the "hard questions that need to be asked."

LTE: No new taxes? Then explain the oil change fee No new taxes from the Baldacci administration. Guess that's right, but there's no moratorium on fee additions and increases.

LTE: Citizens vouch for Jones Our House District 83 suffered a terrible blow when our representative, Deane Jones, died so suddenly. But his widow, Pat, has recently decided to carry on his legacy, and the work to which they both devoted themselves for years.

MORNING SENTINEL:

Lawmakers seeking county jail options AUGUSTA -- Lawmakers want state officials to bring them more than one option to consider to reduce costs in the state prison and county jail systems.

SUN JOURNAL:

State examines county jailAUBURN - A team of inspectors peered Tuesday into the cells, locks and the ledgers of the Androscoggin County Jail, gathering data for Gov. John Baldacci's proposed consolidation of Maine's county jails under a single state-run system.

MPBN:


Maine Should Benefit From Clean Air Deal
http://www.mpbn.net/asx/071009cleanair.asx

Heating Fuel Price Rise Projected
http://www.mpbn.net/asx/071009fuel.asx

Prison Industries Seeks to Generate More Sales
http://www.mpbn.net/asx/071009prison.asx


PORTLAND PHOENIX:

US Rep Allen says OK to protest - as long as it's in private
We think it is perfectly safe to attend the "virtual rally" US Representative Tom Allen is hosting tomorrow against the Iraq war. I know, I know - you wouldn't really think so, given Allen's general practice of having protestors ...

YORK COUNTY COAST STAR:

Tree legislation sponsored by Rep. Dawn Hill now in effect
AUGUSTA — A new law sponsored by Rep. Dawn Hill, D-York, requiring that trees cut in shoreland areas be replaced, went into effect Sept. 20.

CBS:
GOP Future Rests On A House Of CardsMark Udall of Colorado and Tom Allen of Maine. Both of them are looking to move over to the Senate. Given the GOP's current problems, perhaps they have a ...

BLOGS:

Maine media unhappy with Susan Collins after she attacks Tom Allen ...
She's just not Olympia.

DOES MARILYN MUSGRAVE GET A FREE RIDE TO RE-ELECTION NOW THAT ...
Tom Allen (D-ME) will be a guest at Firedoglake, discussing the Iraq occupation on the 5th anniversary of the authorization for the Use of Force which, of course, he opposed-- and still opposes. Come meet this extraordinary congressman, ...

This Lady is for turning
... the Democratic Party will vote for the amendment like one - and I can imagine one or two Republicans desperately trying to distance themselves from President Bush, like Susan Collins, to lend the resolution their support. ...

Retiree bills face uncertain future
Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Rep. Tom Davis (R-Va.), would make it easier for agencies to rehire retired federal employees to stave off anticipated staffing problems. The chairmen of committees reviewing the measures have not decided if ...

GOP Prez Candidates & Bush’s Taxing Legacy
The size/cost of Bush’s tax cuts has made it difficult for candidates to propose significant new tax reductions.

The Bush Regime continues to deny that they’re not on al-Qaida’s side!
Oh please. George Bush and his Band of Warmongering Lying Thieves have from the get-go helped Osama bin Laden and The Base (al-Qaida). I swear that al-Qaida is the Bush family & friends base who help the Thieves disrupt world markets and help them get what they want!

Tom Allen: The Safety Assurance for Every (SAFE) Consumer Product Act
In light of all those poisoned and tainted Chinese toys, Tom Allen has cosponsored H.R. 3691, The Safety Assurance for Every (SAFE) Consumer Product Act — which will tighten the regulation of all toys manufactured here or imported from overseas, as well as stiffen the penalties for those who break the rules.

Support the Troops: Bring ‘em Home
72% of American troops serving in Iraq think the U.S. should exit the country within the next year, and nearly one in four say the troops should leave immediately, according to a new Le Moyne College/Zogby International survey.

Rockland's Courier-Gazette Calls for Single Payer Health Care
I know that the saying "as Maine goes so goes the nation" doesn't have much credence anymore, but that's not because we aren't trying. This editorial from my local paper, the Rockland (Maine) Courier-Gazette has called for the creation of a national health care system: