"RI hospital to lay off about 4 dozen nurses
WARWICK, R.I. --Kent Hospital says it's laying off nearly four dozen licensed practical nurses. The hospital said Tuesday the layoffs are intended to save money as it goes through tough financial times, caused in part by an increase in uninsured patients and declining reimbursements from the state and federal government....
--more--"Related: R.I. hospitals increasingly turn to foreign nurses
WTF, readers?
That is if you can get around Rhode Island at all:
"RI getting $3 million to repair roads, bridges
Rhode Island will receive an additional $3 million in federal funding to repair roads and bridges damaged by last month's flooding. The $3 million is being provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation. It will be used to repair or rebuild six bridges, including the Laurel Avenue Bridge in Coventry -- which officials last week feared was in danger of collapse. The money will also support the inspection of 180 bridges across the state....
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More: R.I. businesses, residents may face daunting task
Related: Around New England: The Roads of Rhode Island
And they are not asking for help?
"Many in R.I. not seeking FEMA aid
The Federal Emergency Management Agency says many Rhode Islanders eligible for help because of the record-setting floods in March have not applied for benefits. FEMA has stationed personnel at home improvement outlets including The
Meanwhile, the US Small Business Administration has approved upwards of $18 million in loans to flood victims, more than it has approved for all Rhode Island disasters in the past 20 years combined.
We don't want anymore loans; it is OUR MONEY!
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Also see: Officials in R.I. issue an alarm
While we are on the water:
"Waters reopen to shellfish harvesting
More Rhode Island waters are being reopened this weekend to shellfish harvesting, after tests determined that they’re safe. Mount Hope Bay, Greenwich Bay, and the Kickemuit River were reopened to shellfishing starting at sunrise yesterday. The waters had been closed after massive flooding in the state last month raised concerns of bacterial contamination (AP)."
I don't eat fish.
"5 swim to RI lighthouse after boat sinks
Authorities in Warwick have rescued five people, including four children, from the Conimicut Lighthouse after their boat sank. Officials tell WPRI-TV that the boat went down on Tuesday afternoon and that the boaters were able to swim safely to the nearby lighthouse. A rescue boat transported them to Oakland Beach a short time later....
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Have to make a pit stop, readers:
"$1.4m US grant to foster green living
An affordable housing development for elders in Warwick is receiving $1.4 million in federal money to build a wind turbine and take other environmentally friendly steps. US Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan announced the grant yesterday during a visit to Shalom Apartments. The money will pay for new boilers, high-efficiency refrigerators, low-flow toilets, and other steps. It will also build a wind turbine that is expected to generate 80 percent of the electricity used in the property’s common areas (AP)."
I thought I smelled something.
Okay, let's go:
"3 in R.I. charged with bribery" by Eric Tucker, Associated Press | May 7, 2010
PROVIDENCE — The North Providence town council president and two councilmen were arrested yesterday on charges they shared a $25,000 bribe paid by a developer who wanted them to approve a zoning change to build a Stop & Shop supermarket.
Related: Around New England: In the Aisle at the Stop & Shop
Federal complaints unsealed yesterday accuse Council President Joseph Burchfield and Councilmen John A. Zambarano and Raymond L. Douglas III of accepting the bribe in February 2009 from an unnamed developer. Zambarano took the bribe the night the council approved the zoning change 7-0, then split the money up, prosecutors said....
A town councilman acted as a confidential informant for federal investigators....
Hah! The TYRANNY ENSNARED THEM!
Councilman Mansuet Giusti said in an interview that it was not good “when the FBI’s arresting half your council . . . It’s embarrassing for the town.’’
No, not good at all.
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"Official quits after accusation of bribery; US says 3 shared $25,000 payment" by Associated Press | May 15, 2010
NORTH PROVIDENCE, R.I. — A third North Providence councilman accused of corruption resigned yesterday, more than a week after being charged with sharing in a $25,000 bribe....
--more--"Which probably means kicking out the gamblers is a good idea:
"R.I. House panel takes up gambling bill; State seeks cure for financial woes" by Eric Tucker, Associated Press | May 14, 2010
PROVIDENCE — Voters would be asked to approve expanded gambling in Rhode Island under a bill up for debate at the State House next week.
The bill proposes a constitutional amendment that would permit full-scale casino gambling at the state’s two licensed slot parlors, Twin River and Newport Grand....
Proponents of the bill say Rhode Island is constantly losing gamblers to sprawling casinos in neighboring Connecticut, and they fear competition from Massachusetts, where the House approved legislation to license two resort casinos and allow up to 3,000 slot machines at the state’s four race tracks. The measure has not yet been taken up by the Senate....
Similar measures have been proposed and have failed previously. In 2006, for instance, voters rejected a proposed constitutional amendment....
You know “what is it about democracy that these groups don’t understand,’’ huh?
--more--"Related: Casino Comparisons: Rhode Island's Red Ink
"Greyhound racing in New England ends with RI billGreyhound racing has come to an end in New England. Rhode Island Gov. Don Carcieri on Friday signed legislation that allows gambling parlor Twin River to stop offering dog racing, which had been required by law. The owners of Twin River filed for bankruptcy protection last year, and wanted to stop dog racing because they said it was too expensive. The slot machines at Twin River are the third-largest source of income for the state. The passage means the last dog racing in New England happened in December, at Raynham Park in Massachusetts. Massachusetts, Vermont and Maine also have outlawed dog racing. It ended for financial reasons in New Hampshire and the state Senate recently voted to make live racing illegal. Connecticut's last greyhound track closed in 2006.
Yes, it is time to END the ANIMAL ABUSE!
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But we keep on abusing ourselves:
"Police hunt for drivers in hit-run fatality
Rhode Island State Police said yesterday that they had not yet found two vehicles believed to have been involved in a fatal pedestrian accident Saturday. The driver of the third vehicle to strike 24-year-old Douglas Berman of Smithfield just after 2:35 a.m. reported that two other vehicles had hit him as he walked along Interstate 95 north between exits 22 and 23. “We don’t really know why he was walking along the highway,’’ said State Police Lieutenant Karen Pinch. Pinch said the driver of the third vehicle, whose name was not released, reported seeing a
"Pawtucket settles fatal police shooting suit
The city of Pawtucket has agreed to pay $1.3 million to settle a federal lawsuit over the fatal police shooting. The settlement resolves a lawsuit over the February 2008 shooting of Jason Swift. Police found Swift brandishing a sheathed sword after responding to a call from his mother, who said her son was acting “crazy right now.’’ Marc DeSisto, a lawyer for the city, said yesterday that the city was not admitting any wrongdoing as part of the settlement (AP)."
"Bells worth $100,000 stolen from church
Church bells valued at $100,000 have been stolen. The Rev. Vasily Lickwar, pastor at Dormition of the Virgin Mary Church in Cumberland, said moments after he saw a man quickly getting into a van parked in the church’s driveway, he discovered that five of the six bronze and brass bells were missing from a chapel next to the 102-year-old church (AP)."
Yeah, I thought I heard something ringing.
Time to get to school I guess:
"RI 2nd-grade girl wields knife, nicks boy's finger
A Providence second-grader has been suspended indefinitely after allegedly bringing a pocket knife to school, demanding a classmate's lunch money and nicking his finger.
Related: Walking to School in Boston
Eight-year-old Alvin Bedgood tells WPRI-TV that the girl put the knife close to his face on Monday and said, "Give me all your money or I'm going to cut you." He calls her the class bully.
A GIRL BULLY?
His mother, Natasha Bedgood, says he was cut after a teacher's assistant tried to stop her, startling the girl, who nicked her son as she brought the knife down.
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Well, class dismissed, readers.
Let me get some stuff out of my locker and we will head home.
"3 suspects found in hoax device case
Three suspects have been identified in an incident involving a suspicious device found attached to a locker at Silver Lake Regional High School in Kingston, which caused an evacuation yesterday morning, authorities said.
See: False Alarm Photo
Kingston police and firefighters and the State Police bomb squad responded at 7:15 a.m. to a teacher’s report of a suspicious device, determined to have been a hoax device, at the Pembroke Street school, Kingston police said in a statement. “It was described as round, like a ball of clay with wires coming out of it attached to a student’s locker,’’ said David Procopio, a spokesman for the State Police. The school was evacuated immediately. Students and faculty returned about three hours later, after the scene was cleared.
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Oh, that's right!
It is SLOW SATURDAY!
No school today!
