EXTRA...

Cape owners avoid rate hike; Ocean Bill allows Buzzards Bay wind farm; Coastal threat growing

Cape Cod homeowners avoid big hike in insurance
Regulator finds no basis for another 25% increase

If the FAIR Plan's request had been approved, premiums for policies on Cape Cod would have risen to $2,282.Tens of thousands of homeowners on Cape Cod were spared a second straight 25 percent increase in insurance premiums after a state regulator yesterday rejected an insurance association's request for double-digit rate hikes.  The FAIR Plan, as the state's insurer of last resort is called, had sought a 25 percent rate hike for Cape Cod and the Islands. Other parts of the state faced double-digit increases, too. The average increase statewide would have been 13.2 percent.

Some 150,000 Massachusetts residents and about 40 percent of homeowners on Cape Cod get their homeowners' insurance from the FAIR Plan, because they are no longer able to obtain affordable coverage in the private market. The number of FAIR Plan policyholders ballooned after insurers pulled out of Cape Cod's market following a spate of hurricanes in Florida and the Gulf Coast in 2004 and 2005...  The commissioner's decision is a welcome development for Cape Cod and Islands homeowners, who had already been socked with a 25 percent hike in their 2006 premiums. If the FAIR Plan's request had been approved, premiums for policies on Cape Cod would have risen to $2,282, on average, from $1,826 currently, and $1,432 in 2005...  Globe.
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Accord reached on oceans bill
Could allow a controversial wind farm in Buzzards Bay

"We felt it was really important to set up a transparent public process that will get the public interest ahead of the private interest." - Sen. Robert O'LearyThe state would open up ocean sanctuaries to renewable energy development under a legislative agreement that could allow a controversial wind farm in Buzzards Bay to be built under certain conditions.  A six-member conference committee of House and Senate members reached consensus on the bill this week, avoiding more drastic House legislation that critics say would have opened up Buzzards Bay and other ocean sanctuaries to unlimited renewable energy development.

"We felt it was really important to set up a transparent public process that will get the public interest ahead of the private interest," said Sen. Robert O'Leary, D-Barnstable, who filed the oceans bill and served on the conference committee. "In the same breath, we recognize the need for renewables and offshore renewables and we recognize that we need to move in that direction."  Under current law, development can only take place in the state's ocean sanctuaries if it is deemed a "public necessity." The five protected sanctuaries are on the North Shore, Cape Cod Bay, the southern Cape and islands and Buzzards Bay...  Standard-Times.
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Gathering storm
The threat to coastal communities, including in the U.S., is growing

Major weather events are sure to bring collateral damage, and that damage is costing lives as well as lots of money. Residents of Cape Cod, for example, have seen their home insurance premiums double over the past two years. In many coastal communities insurance companies are refusing to underwrite coverage at all.With so much attention being given to the tragedy in Myanmar -- new figures put the number of dead or missing at 70,000 due to the devastating effects of Cyclone Nargis -- it's worth looking at our own shores for potential catastrophe: Half the U.S. population lives within 50 miles of seashore.

In terms of dollars, businesses would be hit the hardest in a U.S. coastal disaster. Taking that into consideration, private and public sector groups are looking at ways to find public policy and private-market solutions to better protect coastal communities...  "Coastal protection needs to be part of our national conversation on climate change," says Ceres president Mindy Lubber, in announcing the joint venture with the Heinz Center at the Ceres conference in Boston last week. "This is an historic moment in which public and private-sector leaders recognize the rising threat of climate change in coastal communities and the need for strong policies and market-based solutions to reduce that exposure"... Market Watch.

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These flies get a moth-ful; P.A. Lander returns; Cape Air makes it official in the Adirondacks; Whales exit bay

That pod (or gam) of rare whales has left Cape Cod Bay

The unusually large concentration of rare right whales that gathered last month to feed in Cape Cod Bay has moved on. The state reported Wednesday that the North Atlantic right whales have left, citing aerial surveys and acoustic buoys that listen for the whales...

About 25 to 50 whales annually migrate to the bay in April, but unusually rich plankton slicks this year drew a bigger crowd. Scientists said 75 to 100 animals were in the bay. That's roughly a quarter of their population estimated at 350 to 400...  WBZ. See a video here.
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Parasitic Flies To Attack Winter Moth
Flies Attack Moth From Within, may save Cape's foliage

A team of scientists planned to release approximately 1,000 parasitic flies in Wellesley, Mass., Friday in an effort to control the invasive winter moth.  The winter moth, which has recently come to Eastern Massachusetts, has been stripping the foliage from "trees in towns that stretch from the North Shore to Cape Cod," the University of Massachusetts said in a statement.

Winter moths emerge from the ground in winter, but only the male is able to fly. The female lays her eggs in a tree and then dies. In spring, the eggs hatch into caterpillars that feed on the leaves. The parasitic fly, known as Cyzenis albicans on right dining on a moth larvae, is a natural enemy of the winter moth.

University scientists said it had effectively controlled the moth in Nova Scotia and the Pacific Northwest.  The fly lays its eggs on the leaves eaten by the winter moth. The eggs then hatch inside the caterpillar and the fly larvae destroy it from within... WCVB.
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P.A. Landers, Inc. can bid on state highway jobs... again
Highway official allows Hanover company which was convicted of fraud in Cape road work to get back in the game

Nearly one year after P.A. Landers, Inc. was convicted by a jury for a scheme that involved overcharging for asphalt delivered to public works projects, the Hanover contractor has won back the right to bid on state highway jobs.  P.A. Landers was cleared to bid on federally funded jobs in December. But the company couldn’t get involved with many public jobs right away because nearly all road projects that use federal funds in the state also rely on state funds – and the firm still had been banned from bidding on state jobs...

P.A. Landers, president Preston “Skip” Landers and another executive were indicted in 2005. Federal prosecutors accused the firm of overcharging on highway paving jobs, primarily on the South Shore and Cape Cod, by adjusting a scale at the company’s Plymouth plant to inflate weight tickets for asphalt and to create phony tickets for nonexistent loads.  Preston Landers and the other executive received prison sentences last year, and the company was ordered to pay a $3 million fine after a jury convicted all three of conspiracy and fraud last May...  Patriot Ledger.
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Cape Air makes it official in the Adirondacks
Officials say funding cuts not likely to happen

LAKE CLEAR — Cape Air just started flying in and out of the Adirondack Regional Airport in February, but as it formally celebrates its recent expansion today, it is also poised to lose all of its federal funding to serve the rural airport if the Bush administration’s 2009 budget proposal passes as written.

Passengers board a nine-passenger Cessna 402 bound for Boston Wednesday afternoon. Cape Air is currently under a two-year contract to serve the Adirondack Regional Airport. (Enterprise photo — Emily Hunkler)

But officials at both the small, Cape Cod-based airline and the town-owned airport expressed confidence Wednesday that they’ll retain the Essential Air Service funding.  “This is nothing new,” Airport Manager Ross Dubarry said. “They are always trying to reduce our funding.”

“I’ll believe it when I see it,” said Michelle Haynes, spokeswoman for Cape Air. “I don’t think Congress will let this happen under the leadership of Charles Schumer. He has always been a great advocate for air service to small communities.”  In February, the airport received a $1.4 million annual subsidy to ensure regular commercial flights out of the area... 

As for Cape Air, there are much more important concerns to address, according to Haynes.  “I’m worried about fuel prices, fuel prices, fuel prices. That’s a reality, and we need to be able to provide affordable flights so people know it’s cheaper to fly than it is to drive.”  The Adirondack Regional Airport in Lake Clear is the only one in the six-million-acre Adirondack Park with commercial passenger flights...  Adirondack Daily Enterprise.

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Casinos could still come; New Ptown PD Chief on his way; Axed Medical Examiner sues Guv; Data snit stalls coast clean-up

Fired chief medical examiner taking governor to court Wednesday
The man who lost a Cape Cod man's body seeks redress

NH Chief departs for new post
Police boss off to Provincetown job

The Bow, NH Police Chief Jeff Jaran is leaving the department to take the top police job in Provincetown, Mass. Jaran, who has been the Bow chief for just less than four years, starts his new job May 19.
  Jaran (on right) has worked in New Hampshire law enforcement for 22 years, including a stint as the chief of the Sandwich Police Department and as an officer in Laconia. He said that he's excited about taking a job in Provincetown, a town at the tip of the Cape Cod peninsula but that he will miss working in Bow.
   "I put my heart and soul into this department and made extraordinary relationships," Jaran said in an interview yesterday. "This is bittersweet. I am going to be working in a terrific community, yet I'm leaving one. It was not an easy decision."
Beat out 85 candidates
   Jaran beat out a field of 85 candidates for the Provincetown position. Jaran said though his length of service makes him eligible for retirement in New Hampshire, he was drawn to the opportunities in Provincetown... Concord Monitor. Embattled Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mark Flomenbaum, fired by Gov. Deval Patrick after an investigation revealed a management breakdown including shoddy work in the trial of Ayer twins Daniel and Peter McGuane, is taking the governor to court on Wednesday.  Flomenbaum will ask the state Supreme Judicial Court to consider whether Patrick had grounds to fire him. The court also is being asked to decide whether an agreement between former Gov. Mitt Romney and Flomenbaum is a contract that is legally binding.

Flomenbaum, who was hired by Romney in 2005 to run the Medical Examiner's Office in Boston, signed a five-year agreement which said he could only be fired for serious wrongdoing or mismanagement. He claims none of the recent incidents during his tenure rose to that level.  Last year, a consulting company hired by the state conducted a months-long investigation, that included the Ayer case, mishandled bodies and horrible health conditions. It released a report that faulted Flomenbaum for the recent problems that put his office on the "verge of collapse."

It was the same week that four employees testified positive for inactive tuberculosis. There had also been reports of a serious backlog of bodies at the morgue, the remains of a Cape Cod man were misplaced, and the McGuane...  Lowell Sun.
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Data dispute stalled Cape Cod coastal cleanup

A multi-billion dollar plan to clean up Cape Cod's coastal waters is stalled as a state agency and university spar over who owns the data for the project.  The Cape Cod Times reports that the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth is balking at the Department of Environmental Protection's request to turn over data collected for the program.

The DEP claims the data is public information. But the university says only its scientists are qualified to run their computer model, which uses the information to advise towns on the most effective steps to reduce pollution.  The 11-month delay has some Cape officials concerned about lost momentum, while others worry that a bill to create zero-interest loans for the expensive project could be jeopardized.  WBZ.
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Patrick: Casinos plan could still fly
Says talk not based on possibility that DiMasi will leave

"There's a lot of interest in it, and issues that die in one session don't die a permanent death. They tend to come back over time." - PatrickDespite a recent high-profile defeat, legislation to legalize casino gambling in Massachusetts may yet come back, Governor Deval Patrick said yesterday.  Patrick said he wasn't basing his statement on the possible departure of House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, a gambling opponent, but a confluence of other factors.

The governor told a Brookline Chamber of Commerce audience that an unyielding need for property tax relief, the possibility of slot machines at the state's racetracks, and ongoing efforts by the Wampanoag Indians to build their own casino will revive the discussions.... Under one scenario, Patrick said, casino gambling supporters might try to expand the slot machine bill to include resort-style casinos. Patrick projected that his plan for three casinos would generate at least $600 million in licensing fees, $400 million in annual tax revenues, and 20,000 permanent jobs.

DiMasi led the effort to kill the plan. He argued the revenues would be offset by social and economic costs, including lost business at other tourist destinations... Globe.

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Axed Medical Examiner sues Guv; Data snit stalls coast clean-up; Gambling comeback

Fired chief medical examiner taking governor to court Wednesday
The man who lost a Cape Cod man's body seeks redress

Embattled Chief Medical Examiner Dr. Mark Flomenbaum, fired by Gov. Deval Patrick after an investigation revealed a management breakdown including shoddy work in the trial of Ayer twins Daniel and Peter McGuane, is taking the governor to court on Wednesday.  Flomenbaum will ask the state Supreme Judicial Court to consider whether Patrick had grounds to fire him. The court also is being asked to decide whether an agreement between former Gov. Mitt Romney and Flomenbaum is a contract that is legally binding.

Flomenbaum, who was hired by Romney in 2005 to run the Medical Examiner's Office in Boston, signed a five-year agreement which said he could only be fired for serious wrongdoing or mismanagement. He claims none of the recent incidents during his tenure rose to that level.  Last year, a consulting company hired by the state conducted a months-long investigation, that included the Ayer case, mishandled bodies and horrible health conditions. It released a report that faulted Flomenbaum for the recent problems that put his office on the "verge of collapse."

It was the same week that four employees testified positive for inactive tuberculosis. There had also been reports of a serious backlog of bodies at the morgue, the remains of a Cape Cod man were misplaced, and the McGuane...  Lowell Sun.
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Data dispute stalled Cape Cod coastal cleanup

A multibillion dollar plan to clean up Cape Cod's coastal waters is stalled as a state agency and university spar over who owns the data for the project.  The Cape Cod Times reports that the University of Massachusetts-Dartmouth is balking at the Department of Environmental Protection's request to turn over data collected for the program.

The DEP claims the data is public information. But the university says only its scientists are qualified to run their computer model, which uses the information to advise towns on the most effective steps to reduce pollution.  The 11-month delay has some Cape officials concerned about lost momentum, while others worry that a bill to create zero-interest loans for the expensive project could be jeopardized.  WBZ.
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Patrick: Casinos plan could still fly
"There's a lot of interest in it, and issues that die in one session don't die a permanent death. They tend to come back over time." - PatrickSays talk not based on possibility that DiMasi will leave

Despite a recent high-profile defeat, legislation to legalize casino gambling in Massachusetts may yet come back, Governor Deval Patrick said yesterday.  Patrick said he wasn't basing his statement on the possible departure of House Speaker Salvatore F. DiMasi, a gambling opponent, but a confluence of other factors.

The governor told a Brookline Chamber of Commerce audience that an unyielding need for property tax relief, the possibility of slot machines at the state's racetracks, and ongoing efforts by the Wampanoag Indians to build their own casino will revive the discussions...   Under one scenario, Patrick said, casino gambling supporters might try to expand the slot machine bill to include resort-style casinos. Patrick projected that his plan for three casinos would generate at least $600 million in licensing fees, $400 million in annual tax revenues, and 20,000 permanent jobs.  DiMasi led the effort to kill the plan. He argued the revenues would be offset by social and economic costs, including lost business at other tourist destinations... Globe.

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Barnstable GI in Afghanistan; Charles Manson's hair for sale; Plankton failure hurts Haddock

'Murderabilia': A Bizarre Twist to Online Auctions
Like a Cape Cod cross-dressing child killer's used sweat socks

Hadden Clark (on right) is a cross-dressing child killer who claimed to have buried victims on Cape Cod. It's hard to believe anyone would want to buy his used sweat socks, or his prison pillow case, but there it is -- online for $20. Keep browsing and you'll find artwork by John Wayne Gacy for $350.

For $850, you can get a lock of Charles Manson's hair. It even comes with a letter of authenticity from Manson himself. It's called murderabilia, and it's sold on several sites like MurderAuction.com. Prosecutor Abby Rivkind is not exactly a collector. "My first reaction was 'ewwww.'  My second reaction was 'who would buy this?' My third reaction was, 'what kind of a person would sell this?'"... WBZ. See Murderabilia.
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Marines ignore Taliban cash crop to not upset Afghan locals
Barnstable GI explains why they ignore the poppy harvest

GARMSER, Afghanistan - The Marines of Bravo Company's 1st Platoon sleep beside a grove of poppies. Troops in the 2nd Platoon playfully swat at the heavy opium bulbs while walking through the fields. Afghan laborers scraping the plant's gooey resin smile and wave...

The Taliban, whose fighters are exchanging daily fire with the Marines in Garmser, derives up to $100 million a year from the poppy harvest by taxing farmers and charging safe passage fees - money that will buy weapons for use against U.S., NATO and Afghan troops.

Yet the Marines are not destroying the plants. In fact, they are reassuring villagers the poppies won't be touched. American commanders say the Marines would only alienate people and drive them to take up arms if they eliminated the impoverished Afghans' only source of income.

"It's kind of weird. We're coming over here to fight the Taliban. We see this. We know it's bad. But at the same time we know it's the only way locals can make money," said 1st Lt. Adam Lynch, 27, of Barnstable, Mass...  Contra Costa Times.
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Plankton failure could lead to fewer haddock at Georges Bank
Georges Bank: 17,000 square mile area 100 miles east of Cape Cod

WOODS HOLE — Federal fishery researchers say last fall's plankton bloom failed to develop on the region's prime fish breeding and feeding ground of Georges Bank, which could reduce the amount of haddock there.  The Northeast Fisheries Science Center's Office of Marine Ecosystem Studies issued its spring 2008 advisory this week. This spring's bloom will be reported next fall. The report said the Georges Bank fall blooms have failed about one year in three for the past decade, and it is not clear why. The center's Mike Fogarty says last fall's failure could impact fishing in two years.

The report said long-term warming on some parts of the northeast U.S. Continental Shelf may also have caused some species of fish to drift north.  Georges Bank is home to vast numbers of fish species attracted by plentiful supplies of plankton thriving where warm and cold ocean currents meet in shallow waters rich in sunlight.

Haddock is considered one of the fragile, overfished stocks of the North Atlantic's great groundfish species, which include cod and flatfish, and the catch is highly regulated.  Georges Bank, some 17,000 square miles of ocean bottom, is southeast of Cape Ann, about 100 miles east of Cape Cod...  Gloucester Times.

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“Dixie” Federico dies in fall; RI gets an "Alliance"; Jay Cashman cancels a Buzzards Bay wind farm

Ptown's David “Dixie” Federico, 53, dies in fall down stairs
Was twice a candidate for selectman; lived here 26 years

PROVINCETOWN – Long-time resident David “Dixie” Federico died sometime Saturday night after apparently falling down the stairs at his home and breaking his neck.  Police received a call around 10 a.m. Sunday from a concerned relative, worried that Federico couldn’t be contacted and hadn’t shown up for work. Officer Rachel Peters responded to Federico’s home at 95 Bradford St. and found the body. She called the Provincetown rescue squad and the case was turned over to the Massachusetts State Police...  Banner.

A story in the New York Times exactly four years ago to the day explained how Federico was helping solve the town's problem created by the legalization of same-sex marriages;

 "Provincetown's Days in Sun Are Coming Early This Year""I always told my mother I wanted to stay a New England spinster."
- Federico in 2004
...To help handle the expected swarm of couples, David Federico, 49, the manager of the Post Office Cafe and once a drag queen known as Dixie, said he went online and became ordained by a small church based in Fremont, Calif. He said he had filed a proof of ordination with the state and was now awaiting the authorization to conduct weddings.

''I've been telling friends I'm going to hang a shingle and all the gay and lesbian couples will ring the bell in the middle of the night to elope,'' Mr. Federico said. ...

Mr. Federico said he had no wedding plans at all. ''I always told my mother I wanted to stay a New England spinster,'' he said from behind the bar at the Post Office Cafe. ''Just because I can get married doesn't mean I want to get married.''

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 Wind turbine plan off Fairhaven dropped;
Two other South Coast sites still eyed by Jay Cashman's company

A developer of a proposed trio of wind farms in Buzzards Bay has dropped part of the project planned off the Fairhaven shoreline, citing the population of endangered roseate terns and the area's high boat traffic.  Patriot Renewables, a Quincy company affiliated with Jay Cashman Inc., announced the decision Monday to end plans for the cluster of turbines off Fairhaven in the area south of Sconticut Neck and West Island.

Patriot Renewables continues to study two other Buzzards Bay locations — off Dartmouth and Naushon Island, one of the Elizabeth Islands.  Liz Isherwood, a spokeswoman for Patriot Renewables, said the firm's goal would continue to be to develop a project that would generate 300 megawatts of electricity. Instead of the three locations for up to 120 wind turbines, there would be two.... Standard-Times.
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Aquidneck Island group raising money to fight wind farm proposal
Rhode Island gets it's own Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound

A group of Aquidneck Island residents has assembled the first organized opposition to Governor Carcieri’s plan to develop a large-scale wind farm off the coast of Rhode Island.  The group’s name, the Rhode Island Alliance for Clean Energy, might be mistaken for an organization that supports wind farms. And its leader, Anthony G. Spiratos, is a young Newport real-estate developer who was once a Carcieri supporter and campaign donor.

“The key word is ‘was,’ ” Spiratos said in an interview. He no longer supports Carcieri, he said.  “When [Governor Carcieri] implemented this plan, I saw the flaws in it. And nobody in the Republican Party upstate is listening.”

A RI version of the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound
The flaws, as the alliance sees it, are listed on the group’s web site.  The arguments are similar to those presented by the people who oppose the Cape Wind project, a proposal to build a similar-sized wind farm in Nantucket Sound: that a massive wind farm would hurt tourism by detracting from the natural beauty of Newport and other coastal areas; that it would devastate recreational sailing and the fishing industry; that it would pose a threat to national security; that construction would be noisy; and that residents who live nearby may become ill from “wind turbine syndrome” –– an illness the group says leads to headaches and nausea among those who live within three miles of the turbines.

The group depicts wind-farm developers as wealthy, out-of-state companies that are working with Carcieri to build an offshore project for their own gain...  Providence Journal.

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Eastham votes "No Beach"; Fake Wamp Tribe exposed; Seal pups rescued; 4Cs excels again; Herring shortage

Second Seal Pup Rescued off Cape

Being Cared For at Seal Rescue Clinic

An infant harbor seal was rescued off Cape Cod on Saturday, according to the Mystic Aquarium.
The stranded animal was first spotted near Sears Point Beach in Brewster, Mass., on Wednesday, April 30. After several days of monitoring, the Cape Cod Stranding Network decided to rescue him.
   The male seal, estimated to be 7 to 9 days old, weighs 7.4 kg and has a full lanugo coat -- the wooly, grayish coat that is shed shortly after birth, the aquarium said. Sham Wampanoag tribe formed in an Arby's restaurant loses federal RICO case

A federal judge has ruled that three men who claim to be Indians and a fourth man who operates an arbitration business used fraudulent civil judgments to retaliate against officials in Uintah and Duchesne counties in Utah.

U.S. District Court Judge Stephen P. Friot ruled that James W. Burbank, Martin T. Campbell, Dale N. Stevens, and Thomas Smith used three organizations to try to intimidate government officials and extort money from them, in violation of the federal civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Burbank, Campbell and Stevens all claim to be members of a group called the Wampanoag Nation, Tribe of Grayhead, Wolf Band. The group — formed in 2003 in a Provo Arby's restaurant — is not affiliated with the Massachusetts-based Wampanoag Tribe, which is federally-recognized.  Friot said the Arby's-founded Wampanoag tribe was used by Burbank, Campbell, and Stevens "as an instrument for the perpetration of fraud, for the purpose of attempting to commit extortion, and for the purpose of obstructing justice."

"As an Indian tribe, the Wampanoag Nation is a complete sham," the judge said, pointing to the fact that Stevens granted one man membership in the group because "he is a believer in fighting for liberty"...  Deseret News.
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Plus 50 Initiative Reaches Out To Graying Students
4Cs one of two mentor schools in project

"The baby boomer generation wants to stay active in retirement and holds a wealth of knowledge and experience that society cannot afford to see leave the talent pool." 
       -George R. Boggs, AACC Turning gray needn’t mean the end of learning.  Thanks to an initiative developed for 15 colleges, baby boomers are being targeted as prospective students. Seed grants from the American Association of Community Colleges is making it possible for ten community colleges to launch new “demonstration” programs for students over the age of 50; five “mentor” colleges will also participate in this unique program.

Program organizers explain that the project is designed to help with one of the largest generational shifts impacting our country, as baby boomers approach retirement and consider how to keep themselves active, healthy, and involved in careers and projects of importance to them... Central Florida Community College and Cape Cod Community College are two of the five mentor schools participating in the program...  CampusLife.
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Eastham ocean beach project buried in the sand at town meeting

An article proposing the construction of a parking lot for a town-managed ocean beach failed on the floor of town meeting last night.  Article 18 failed with 502 votes against the proposal vs.476 votes in support of a new ocean beach parking area.  The article needed at least 657 votes, a two-thirds majority, to pass.  Debate on the article lasted about 30 minutes before the question was moved...  The Cape Codder.
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Herring shortage looms as striper season starts
Bay of Fundy to Cape Cod has been declared a no-fish zone

When 24-year-old bassmaster Porter Bingle hooked what was apparently the first striper of the season this weekend, the catch — and subsequent release — heralded the start of the inshore sport fishing season.  But it's shaping up to be a season awash in questions over the effects of a shortage of two types of herring, a key component of the stripers' diet and the bait of choice for lobster fishermen.

Fishermen and scientists are concerned about the local ecosystem as a huge population of hungry stripers arrives in Cape Ann waters. Because the river herring that stripers instinctively seek for food are almost gone, the fish will take their calories in lobsters and other forage species that share the shallows in the warmer season.

The bait shortage, on the other hand, isn't due to a lack of herring. Area 1A of the Gulf of Maine, currently teeming with Atlantic herring, a related species, is a regulated "no-fish" zone for the mid-water trawlers that usually reel them in. Combine that with the huge increases in diesel fuel prices that will limit searching for fish, and it promises to make fresh herring hard to find and very expensive this season...  But this year, for the first time, all of Area 1A — the most convenient and fertile section of the Gulf of Maine that stretches about 40 miles to sea from the Bay of Fundy to Cape Cod — has been declared a no-fish zone for the mid-water trawlers between June 1 and Sept. 30...  Gloucester Times.

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SE Mass. supports gambling; Feeling green? You'd be wrong.; DC dotes on Dubya

South of Boston region biggest supporters of casino gambling
The area south of Boston is the most supportive of expanding gambling options in Massachusetts of any other area in the state

Southeast Mass - 61%
Rest of Mass - 57%BROCKTON - Residents of Southeastern Massachusetts are more supportive of expanding gambling options than those of any other part of the state, according to a new University of Massachusetts poll.  The latest survey from UMass Dartmouth professor Clyde Barrow shows that 61 percent of Southeastern Massachusetts residents support allowing two or more resort casinos in the state.

That compares with 57 percent of the state that supports allowing resort casinos here. Similar levels of statewide support have been reported in previous surveys conducted by Barrow, who is the director of the UMass Dartmouth Center for Policy Analysis...   The report defines the Southeastern Massachusetts region as Norfolk, Plymouth and Bristol counties, and Cape Cod and the Islands. The results were based on telephone polls last month involving 420 Massachusetts residents.

The report was partially funded by a $6,400 grant from Northeast Resorts Group, a Springfield-area real estate firm that has eyed potential casino projects in Palmer and New Bedford... Enterprise.
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Feeling green? You'd be wrong
Even a Buddhist Monk living in the woods makes smoke

Anyone who lives in the United States - even a Buddhist monk who lives in the forest half the year - emits more than twice as much greenhouse gas than those living in the rest of the world, an MIT class has discovered.  The class, taught by mechanical engineering professor Timothy Gutowski calculated carbon emissions from 18 lifestyles including a monk, a vegetarian college student, and billionaire Bill Gates. While emissions dramatically rise with income, even a homeless person still emits 8 1/2 tons of carbon dioxide, the key heat-trapping gas, a year. The world average is 4 tons.''

Boat dumping questioned
Every summer day off Massachusetts' busy coast, hundreds of boat owners flush raw or poorly treated human waste into fragile bays and inlets. Environmental officials suspect it may be at the root of why some beaches still have high bacteria counts and "No Swimming" signs.

But the Patrick administration is intent on discontinuing the practice. Under a proposal to the US Environmental Protection Agency, boats would be prohibited from discharging sewage - including treated waste - off the coast of the Upper South Shore in Scituate, Marshfield, and Cohasset, and in the North and South rivers. Related efforts to create no discharge areas are also underway for Salem Sound, Cape Cod Bay, and Boston Harbor... Globe. Read previous report on "No Dumps" plan by state here.
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Warning -  this is a SPOOF
City Seeks Restraining Order To Keep Bush From Leaving in 2009

Washington D.C., capitol city of The United States of America, has filed paperwork to receive a restraining order against George W. Bush. The order seeks to keep the President from leaving the city in January of 2009, after the inauguration of his replacement.  Edgar Adams of the City Attorney's office issued the following statement in regards to the order: "We've had the President in Washington for almost eight years. Do you know how hard and expensive it is to find a good, capable village idiot?"

"Even though he will be out of office due to term limitations, we still want Dubya to know that he has a position and is wanted and needed here."

"The good ones stay where they are. Britney Spears will never leave Hollywood. That inbred Kennedy family is locked into their Cape Cod compound (except when they come out to die in flying or skiing accidents, drown their girlfriends, or get drunk in Washington). Rush Limbaugh stays put in his little corner of the world."...  SPOOF.

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Harwich woman helps nab serial murderer; Lost Gardens of New England and Cape Cod

Enjoy the earthly delights of gardens beyond your ken

If you're looking for new gardens to visit beyond Greater Boston's Interstate 495 ring, here are a dozen of my favorites, and each is worth the journey.  I have also included a few other gardens since it's often fun to visit more than one, and gardens usually come in clusters. This is partly because many arose in wealthy summer colonies. The Gilded Age of a century ago was also a golden age for gardens. Though most were to be inexorably devoured by developers, a few were saved by preservation groups including Historic New England and The Trustees of Reservations, the nation's oldest statewide land trust...

CAPE COD AND THE ISLANDS
Heritage Museum and Gardens: The best time to visit this estate garden is the last week in May and the first week in June, when the famous rhododendrons bred by former owner Charles Dexter are in bloom. But there are 100 acres of other attractions. A new innovation is a "guide by cell" tour. Visitors can use their own cellphones to dial numbers posted around the gardens to get information on the various plants. The remodeled American History Museum reopens June 29 with the new exhibit, "Lost Gardens of New England and Cape Cod," which recalls the many once-spectacular gardens that today are parking lots or ruins.  67 Grove St., Sandwich, 508-888-3300. Daily through October. Admission fee.

Polly Hill Arboretum: The late Polly Hill grew thousands of woody plants from seeds and kept meticulous records for half a lifetime on 20 acres of this former farm and summer home, creating an arboretum in the process. Favorite features include the living tunnel of interwoven hornbeam trees and Polly's Play Pen, a fenced area that contains the low-growing Japanese azaleas she introduced as North Tisbury azaleas. The architecture is also notable.  809 State Road, West Tisbury, 508-693-9426, pollyhillarboretum.org. Daily year-round with tours at 2 p.m. Recommended donation... Globe. 
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Detective work led to Scesny - ‘Person of interest’ in deaths of women
Harwich woman's complaint helped lead to capture

WORCESTER— In their investigation into a five-year-long string of murders with similarities strong enough to raise concern that they were the work of a serial killer, detectives kept encountering the name of one man.  The reasons for their interest in Alex F. Scesny, according to investigators, were many and compelling.

For one, they found that Mr. Scesny had a criminal arrest record for choking, beating and raping women, including streetwalkers.  For another, they knew his DNA had been recovered from the body of a woman found strangled to death in Fitchburg. They also knew that he at one time lived on the grounds of a private Marlboro school where the remains of two of the slain Worcester women were discovered...

According to Harwich police reports, officers interviewed the woman on March 3, 2002, at Cape Cod Hospital. Police said she told them that she had met Mr. Scesny in a local Chinese restaurant and he allegedly made sexual advances toward her.

She told police that the two ended up at Mr. Scesny’s home in Harwich, where he became aggressive and tried to have sex with her. The woman rejected his advances, according to the police report, at which point Mr. Scesny allegedly grabbed a necktie, tied it around the woman’s neck and choked her.  The woman told police she blacked out, then came to and found Mr. Scesny on top of her. Mr. Scesny allegedly struck her several times, but the woman managed to stop him and convince him to take her home in his white pickup truck, the police report said...  Telegram.

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New crematory would serve Cape; Cape cats have Rabies; Our Drug Task Force helps Raynham nab four

Cape Cats Test Positive For Rabies
Pet's Owners Undergoing Treatment

Two Cape Cod residents are receiving rabies shots after their pet cats were diagnosed with the disease.  It is the first time domestic pets on Cape Cod have ever tested positive for rabies, which is potentially fatal to humans.

Dr. Thomas Burns, president of the Cape Cod Veterinary Medical Association, told the Cape Cod Times that the discovery of the disease in two domestic animals has dire public health implications.  Burns said cats are a "perfect bridge" for disease to humans. But Burns said only about a third of Cape Cod cats are vaccinated for rabies.

He is urging residents to make sure their cats, as well as dogs and other domestic pets are vaccinated...  WCVB-TV.  Read about Rabies here.

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Plymouth crematory building cost rises $275,000
It would save cemetery space, serve Cape and Islands

Plans for a crematory in Plymouth are on hold at least until next month, when an additional $275,000 for the project will be sought at town meeting.  Building committee members told selectmen this week that bids from companies interested in constructing the 3,000-square-foot building were higher than anticipated. The low bidder was Elizabeth Contracting Inc. at $887,600.

That figure pushes the total project cost to $1.3 million. The total also includes architectural fees and the cost of furnishings, burners and a clerk of the works...  The building is at a gateway into town, and we want it to look nice. We don’t want a cinder-block building with metal smokestacks right off Exit 5"... Public Works Director Roger Hammond said Plymouth’s crematory would draw business from Cape Cod, which has no crematory. He noted that the crematory would be closer to the Cape than the exisiting ones in Attleboro and Duxbury...  Patriot Ledger.
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Raynham police seize drugs, arrest four with Cape Drug Task Force help

Raynham - Police seized $18,000 in illegal drugs and arrested four suspects in a raid on a Nicholas Road house Thursday.  Charles J. Amado, 23, of 69 Short Street in Taunton, Ryan W. Levy, 21, of 157 Nicholas Road, Sarah J. Marshman, 21, of 6 Anderson in Lakeville, and Justin R. Driscoll, 21, of 56 Sherwood Lane, were charged with conspiracy to violate the Controlled Substances Act.  Amado and Levy also face charges of possession with intent to distribute a Class D substance (marijuana) and trafficking in a Class B drug (Percocet)...

The investigation focused on illegal drugs going through the mail.

Federal officers worked with the Northern Bristol County Task Force and the Cape Cod Task Force to supply Raynham Det. William Donnelly and School Resource Officer Louis Pacheco with information...  Raynham Call.

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