Enjoy!
"Maine fishery managers look to explain shrimp stock collapse
Fishery managers are using trawlers and trappers to collect data to better understand the future prospects of the Gulf of Maine’s collapsed shrimp population. Regulators say the data will help track size, gender, development of the shrimp and timing of egg hatch. The Maine Department of Marine Resources is paying four trawlers $500 per trip and allowing them to sell up to 1,800 pounds of shrimp per trip. It is also allowing five trappers to keep up to 100 pounds of shrimp per week for personal use. Maine’s shrimp fishery is in its second year of closure. Fishermen landed nearly 5 million pounds of shrimp in 2012 before the fishery collapsed to 563,000 pounds in 2013. Regulators say the decline is linked to environmental factors such as warming ocean temperatures."
I think I just solved your problem: water too damn cold (just ask the turtles). Either that Fukushima radiation making its way around. Or general pollution. But the real concern is climate change (always is, never static) leading to a carbon tax.
Good thing lobsters are doing great(?). Not so unusual?
Maybe you would like some real meat:
"Maine accepting applications to hunt moose
Maine wildlife managers are accepting applications to participate in the state’s moose hunting lottery. The Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife will accept paper applications until April 1 and online applications until May 14. The drawing will take place on June 13 at Moose Festival in Bethel. Moose season will take place in the fall and is limited to specific wildlife management districts. The Maine wildlife department said 2,022 hunters succeeded in harvesting a moose in 2014 — about two-thirds of the hunters who received 3,095 permits. That is down from a 73 percent success rate in 2013."
Maybe you would like a hot dog instead:
"Dog Thwarts Maine Gas Station Robbery, Bites Suspect in Face
Police in Maine say a dog has thwarted a gas station robbery by biting the suspect twice on the face. Saco Deputy Chief Jeffrey Holland says the man attempted to rob an employee at a Portland Road gas station Monday afternoon. The employee refused to hand over money and was holding onto his dog when the animal lunged at the robber. Holland says the man fled in a pickup truck and is still at large. He described the dog as a "good-sized" pit bull-boxer mix. He says the employee typically brings the dog to work with him."
Looks like that took a bite out of you, and I'm starting to have trouble breathing:
"Owners of apartments cited last March
The owners of a Gorham apartment building where 10 residents were stricken with carbon monoxide poisoning had been cited in March for safety code violations, including a lack of carbon monoxide detectors. Six tenants were taken to the hospital Monday, treated, and released. Four were treated at the scene. Firefighters found carbon monoxide at three times accepted levels. The cause was traced to a cracked boiler in the basement. Tenants were allowed back inside Tuesday after the landlords addressed some problems. One owner, Donna Bolling, told the Portland Press Herald the apartments were equipped with carbon monoxide detectors, but they had been disconnected by tenants. Fire Chief Robert Lefebvre said there were no carbon monoxide detectors, only smoke detectors, and some of them were disconnected (AP)."
Let's just stop the name-calling, all right?
"NAACP asks school to drop Indian sports imagery, nickname
Pressure is building on Skowhegan High School in Maine to drop its Indian sports nickname and mascot. The president of the Greater Bangor Area NAACP has asked school officials to stop using the name “Indians” and the image in its logo. In a letter dated Friday, accompanied by a petition, NAACP president Michael Alpert wrote: ‘‘The implications of cultural violence embedded in Skowhegan High School’s nickname and mascot are deeply offensive to native people.’’ The NAACP is supporting efforts already under way by a former chief of the Penobscot Nation. Several other Maine high schools have dropped Indian-themed mascots or names in recent years. Superintendent Brent Colbry and principal Monique Poulin told the Morning Sentinel they are willing to listen to concerns, but said changing the nickname is a community decision."
"Maine woman sentenced for kidnapping her children
A Maine woman convicted of kidnapping her children and driving them to South Carolina has been sentenced to five months in jail. BethMarie Retamozzo, of Fairfield, was sentenced Friday after being convicted of two counts of criminal restraint by a parent. The children were in the legal custody of Retamozzo’s mother, after Retamozzo surrendered custody to enter the military. Prosecutors say the 36-year-old woman abducted her daughter and son, then 7 and 6, in August 2013. Three days after they disappeared, she and the children were found in South Carolina, en route to Florida. Retamozzo’s attorney said there was some confusion on what his client was allowed to do with the children (AP)."
Must be why they want to get into your living space:
"Maine gets $1 million for home visit program
The federal government is giving Maine $1 million to support a program that provides home visiting services to pregnant women and parents with young children. The grant from the US Department of Health of Human Services will fund the Maternal, Infant and Early Childhood Home Visiting Program. It’s part of $386 million in grants being distributed nationwide. The department said that 115,000 parents and children were served through the program last year. Secretary Sylvia Burwell says in a statement that having nurses, social workers or early childhood educators visit homes during pregnancy and after babies are born makes a ‘‘tremendous difference’’ in families’ lives."
Then why are DCFs failing all across this country?
Time to smoke a Dube and Face(book) up to your sins:
"Maine Facebook murder trial starts; Defense says man didn’t kill teen" by Patrick Whittle, Associated Press February 24, 2015
BANGOR — A man accused of luring a 15-year-old girl to her death with a fake Facebook page was at home with his family on the night of her killing, his attorneys said Monday, accusing the prosecution of making ‘‘big mistakes’’ in their case.
But prosecutors said the evidence linking 21-year-old Kyle Dube to Nichole Cable’s 2013 murder and abduction is considerable — the phony Facebook account was traced to his home, his DNA was found on a hat at the end of Nichole’s driveway, and cell tower records show that he was in the area of Nichole’s home.
Dube’s trial got underway in Bangor with opening statements and tearful testimony from the mother of Nichole, a high school sophomore from Glenburn whose body was found in woods in nearby Old Town after an eight-day search.
Police have said Dube told others that he had intended to abduct Nichole and later come to her rescue. His plan was to kidnap her while wearing a ski mask, return later without the disguise, find her, and be hailed as a hero, authorities have said.
But defense attorney Wendy Hatch said Monday that the state rushed to judge Dube, and she argued that someone else had committed the crimes.
"We are here to show you the state has holes in their case. They have mistakes, big mistakes," Hatch told the jury, adding that Dube "got up the next morning, got dressed, kissed his daughter goodbye and went to work."
Assistant Attorney General Donald Macomber said Dube's DNA was also found on Cable's fingernails, and he had scratches on his face after she disappeared. He also said Dube alluded to the crime while having an emotional outburst as officers tried to calm him down while he reported to jail for an unrelated traffic offense. "Dube responded it was what he had done, that they didn't know he had done, that he was worried about," Macomber said.
Monday's statements marked the beginning of a trial that is expected to last two weeks and includes a witness list with more than 80 names. The case prompted discussions about the appropriate use of social media at the high school she attended in Old Town.
Nichole's mother, Kristine Wiley, testified that she knew Dube as a friend of her daughter's who came by their house two or three times before her disappearance. Between tears, she testified that Dube reached out to her with an offer to baby-sit her other children after Nichole vanished but before her body was found.
Wiley said Dube first told her he had heard Wiley said he was responsible for Nichole's disappearance. Wiley said she denied the accusation and that Dube then told her "if I needed anything, call" and that he would watch her other children for her. She said she never took him up on the offer.
Dube, of Orono, appeared in court Monday with closely cropped hair and wearing a black suit. He showed little emotion as the trial began.
Police have said the fake Facebook profile was under the name of another young man who had no involvement in the abduction. That man, Bryan Butterfield, testified Monday that he was aware Dube didn't like him."
--more--"
See what drugs do?
"Lawmakers push to expand access to Narcan
After widening access to an antidote for drug overdoses last year, Maine lawmakers are making another push to put naloxone, widely known by the brand name Narcan, in the hands of more friends and relatives of drug users. But the effort faces continued opposition from Governor Paul LePage, a Republican, who argues that making the antidote too readily available could encourage drug use. A measure introduced by Representative Henry Beck, a Democrat, would allow a friend of an addict or ‘‘another person in a position to assist’’ to administer naloxone. It also aims to make it easier for those needing the antidote to get it. LePage said Tuesday professionals should be dealing with drug issues, ‘‘not just everybody’s friend.’’
And drugs usually lead to this:
"LePage bans officials from accessing porn
Republican Governor Paul LePage has issued an executive order banning state officials from accessing pornography on their work computers and other state-issued devices. LePage said Friday that the practice continues despite state agency rules prohibiting such behavior. He said he wants to make it clear to all state employees that it is unacceptable. The governor said it will not be tolerated even if someone is off duty. He said state policies will be updated to provide clear notice to employees that this misconduct will result in termination (AP)."
For some reason such things are rampant in government.
Time to search your laptop:
"Professor whose laptop was stolen violated university policy
The University of Maine professor whose laptop was stolen, compromising the personal information of more than 600 current and former students, violated a university policy that prohibits employees from having students’ Social Security numbers stored on electronic devices, officials said. John Forker, chief information security officer for the University of Maine System, told The Portland Press Herald that all system employees receive annual online computer-security training that spells out the policies. UMaine spokeswoman Margaret Nagle would not say whether the physics professor would face any repercussions. Officials said the items were stolen from a checked bag on a Seattle-to-Boston flight this month (AP)."
NDUs:
"Snowy 70-vehicle pileup injures 17
State Police in Maine said more than 70 vehicles got tangled up in a series of chain-reaction pileups on a snowy stretch of Interstate 95 on Wednesday, injuring at least 17 people. The crashes in Etna, near Bangor, started stacking up about 7:30 a.m. and involved several cars, a school bus, and a tractor-trailer. At least 50 vehicles had to be towed from the scene, and State Police said it was the largest crash in more than 15 years. Two hospitals reported taking in 17 patients, some in serious condition. One person at the scene of the crash had a heart attack and some people suffered broken bones (AP)."
FURTHER UPDATES:
"Judge says prescription imports violate federal law
A federal judge said a Maine law that allows residents to import prescription drugs from foreign countries through the mail violates federal law. The law is aimed at lowering the cost of prescription medications. But the Maine Pharmacy Association, Retail Association of Maine, and others argued in their lawsuit that allowing people to import prescriptions would put residents’ health at risk. US Chief District Judge Nancy Torrensen made her ruling Monday. Tim Feeley, a spokesman for Attorney General Janet Mills, said her office will review the ruling and decide on the next steps. He said federal officials should reexamine their policies on prescription drug importation."
That's AmeriKan JU$TUS all right!
