|
|
|
|
|
|
Friday, January 17, 2025
Charlestown Dems hold January 25 event with House Speaker Shekarchi
Charlestown's state Senator Victoria Gu to head new committee on artificial intelligence
AI committee to debut in Rhode Island Senate with Gu at the helm
By Alexander Castro, Rhode Island Current
Sen. Victoria Gu has been named chair of the new Senate Committee on Artificial Intelligence & Emerging Technologies. Senate President Dominick Ruggerio formally appointed the seven committee members Tuesday — although the panel is so new it has yet to be listed on the General Assembly website.
The committee has yet to determine an initial meeting as of Wednesday afternoon, Senate spokesperson Greg Paré confirmed, but is in the process of scheduling the first rendezvous.
White House announcing the Equal Rights Amendment has been duly ratified and is now the law of the land
With health care in crisis, Rhode Island hospital workers need to unionize
Residents vote to unionize at Care New England hospitals
By Alexander Castro, Rhode Island Current
Union membership for approximately 230 resident and fellow physicians employed by Rhode Island’s second-biggest hospital network was affirmed Wednesday by the National Labor Relations Board, union leaders announced.
Since December, resident and fellow doctors working at Care New England’s properties — Kent Hospital, Women and Infants Hospital, and Butler Hospital — voted by mail to affirm membership in the Committee of Interns and Residents (CIR-SEIU). The vote counts and outcomes for elections were counted separately but announced jointly Wednesday, with “overwhelming victories” at each hospital, according to union spokesperson Rachel Nass.
Insurance for natural disasters is failing homeowners
I don’t have the answers, but I do know the right questions to ask
Since 2022, seven of the 12 largest insurance companies have stopped issuing new policies to homeowners in California, citing increased risks due to climate change.
California isn’t alone: The same thing has happened in other vulnerable states, including Louisiana and Florida. The proportion of Americans without home insurance has risen from 5% to 12% since 2019. Meanwhile, those fortunate enough to have insurance are paying more than ever: Premiums in California, like elsewhere, have increased dramatically over the past five years.
When the private insurance market fails to provide coverage, the government often comes in to fill the gap. For example, the National Flood Insurance Program was established back in the 1960s because almost all private insurers excluded flood coverage. Meanwhile, the California FAIR Plan, which serves more than 450,000 Californians, is a typical state-created insurer of last resort. Such programs, which are available in many states, offer limited coverage to people who can’t get private insurance.
But the sheer scale of need means it’s hard for public programs to stay afloat. It’s not inconceivable that the recent wildfires could exceed the reserves and reinsurance available to the California FAIR plan. Because of the way the plan is set up, that would force other insurers – and ultimately homeowners – to make up the difference.
These are tricky problems, and – speaking as an expert in insurance – I can’t say I have answers. But I do know the right questions to ask. And that’s a crucial first step if you want to find solutions.
EDITOR'S NOTE: In 2006, after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, homeowners up and down the east coast - including Charlestown - received notices from their insurers. Cathy and I received a cancellation notice, even though we had never filed a claim. We were told we could either go into the state high-risk insurance pool with low coverage at high coast OR we could invest in hurricane-proofing retrofits. Despite the cost, we went with the later. I wrote about the experience HERE.
Banks also play a key role. If your home is mortgaged, the bank requires you to have full homeowner insurance coverage. Weighing on our minds during the 2006 debacle was the need to make sure we met our legal obligations to Chase Bank. Now we have the country's new MAGA leaders who propose political conditions on federal disaster relief. We're caught in the squeeze from MAGA, insurers, banks and climate change. - Will Collette
Thursday, January 16, 2025
Chariho School Committee elects hard-right Richmond rep as new chair
Following a script - or maybe not - the Chariho School Committee elects Louise Dinsmore as Chair
On Tuesday evening, the Chariho Regional School Committee held its second meeting under a new 7-5 Republican majority. Chariho is a regionalized school District with representatives from the Towns of Charlestown, Richmond, and Hopkinton. The School Committee is made up of four persons from each town.
As expected, the School Committee elected
conservative Republican Louise Dinsmore, co-founder of the Forgotten
Taxpayers PAC, former Chair of the Richmond Republican Town
Committee, and Chariho Rotary Club board member, as its
new Chair. Dinsmore also signed onto the Moms
for Liberty Pledge while running for office.
Readers might remember that one month ago, in apparent contravention of the Chariho Act, the 1958 State Law that formed and governs the regionalized school district, the committee voted 7-5 to table the election of a new Chair. The Chariho Act states that a new Chair must be chosen at the first meeting following the election, and the rotation of the Chair meant that the person selected had to be from Richmond.
Sadly, that law has no enforcement method - there are no fines to be
assessed for violating the Chariho Act, and the legal remedy in this case is
difficult to determine. So, the Chariho Act can be violated freely, pending
action by the General Assembly.
Throughout the first meeting, Republicans were coy about their motives in not selecting a new Chair. It was the last meeting attended by Kathryn Colasante, who stepped down and allowed Louise Dinsmore to take her seat. Colasante stressed that she was not stepping down to pave the way for Dinsmore to take control of the school district and that she had spoken to a lawyer before her decision.
Accusations
were made that Republicans on the School Committee may have violated the Open
Meetings Act - and a complaint has been sent to the Attorney General - but
these complaints can take months to investigate. Even if a violation is found,
it is hard to imagine the legal remedy.
Whatever plans the Republican majority made or didn’t make did not deter them from electing Louise Dinsmore as Chair.
The meeting began with Karen Reynolds acting as Chair.
The following transcript has been edited for clarity.
Good news story in Charlestown: Saving Bambi's Mom
Today, Charlestown first responders and DEM team up to rescue doe who fell through Pasquiset Pond ice
By Will Collette
 |
| Safe and sound |
This event made me reflect on how often local news stories feature political squabbles, fires, car crashes, murder and mayhem.
This story does NOT feature an attack from CCA spokes-troll Bonnie Van Slyke on Town Council President Deb Carney for not having the town buy up all the land around Pasquiset Pond as open space.
The story does NOT feature complaints from Jim Mageau that the Charlestown Home Rule Charter doesn't authorize the town to use taxpayer resources to rescue the deer.
It does NOT end with a report on first responders taking the deer up to the Nordic Lodge for an all-you-can-eat venison buffet.
This story is about a kind act, bravery especially by the personnel who went out on thin ice, and great teamwork with a happy ending for that doe.
The Charlestown Police also had this message for residents:
While we are happy we were able to assist with rescuing this deer from the ice, this is a reminder that ponds and lakes in town are not safe to be on. This cold winter has frozen several ponds and lakes that have not frozen over in years, but they are still not safe for human weight. Do not go out on any bodies of water and risk your safety and the safety of the 1st Responders who would have to come rescue you.
Biden extends protection for refugees from Ukraine, Venezuela, Sudan and El Salvador
Hopefully, this will protect them from Trump 2.0
By Ariana Figueroa, Rhode Island Current
.webp)
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security extended Temporary Protected Status, or TPS, for another 18 months for 103,000 Ukrainians, about 600,000 Venezuelans, and 1,900 Sudanese, which is until October 2026. DHS also extended TPS for 232,000 Salvadorians until September 2026.
Roughly 1 million people have TPS, which allows them to live and work in the U.S. because their home country is deemed too dangerous to return to for reasons including war, environmental disasters or violence. It’s up to an administration to determine whether or not to renew a status. TPS does not lead to a long-term path to citizenship.
Big factor in the high price of eggs and chicken
Avian flu strikes more US poultry on East Coast and in Midwest
.webp)
Also, officials confirmed an outbreak at a backyard farm in
Michigan's Oakland County that has 100 birds, an event first announced by
Michigan's agriculture department yesterday.
APHIS also confirmed a detection in Missouri, which involves
poultry at a backyard farm housing 20 birds in Perry County.
Meanwhile, APHIS confirmed one more H5N1 detection in dairy
cattle, which involves another herd in California. The latest
addition lifts the national total to 924 in 16 states and puts California's
total at 707 since the end of August 2024.
Wednesday, January 15, 2025
Here's How the GOP Could Cut Over $5 Trillion—And Gut Healthcare, Climate Action
MAGA legislators want to take a meat cleaver to green energy, healthcare and families
$479 billion cut from Medicare, another $420 billion from Obamacare. $468 billion from green energy programs.
Jessica Corbett for Common Dreams
"Americans: We just want higher wages and lower costs.
Republicans: We are going to take away your healthcare," Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), chair emeritus of the Congressional Progressive
Caucus, said in response to the reporting, which came as
Republicans have taken control
of both chambers of Congress and prepare for President-elect Donald Trump's
inauguration in just over a week.
The one-page list originated from the House Budget
Committee, chaired by Rep. Jodey Arrington (R-Texas), Politico reported,
citing five unnamed sources. One of them explained that the "document is
not intended to serve as a proposal, but instead as a menu of potential
spending reductions for members to consider."
The document lists various policies that it claims would
collectively cut up to $5.7 trillion. Republicans have been discussing how to
offset the high costs of top priorities—specifically, Trump's immigration
policies and plans for tax
cuts that critics warn would largely benefit the wealthy, like the law
he signed in 2017.
Loneliness linked to higher risk of heart disease and stroke and susceptibility to infection
Loneliness is unhealthy
University of Cambridge
Researchers from the UK and China drew this conclusion after
studying proteins from blood samples taken from over 42,000 adults recruited to
the UK Biobank. Their findings are published today in the journal Nature
Human Behaviour.
Social relationships play an important role in our
wellbeing. Evidence increasingly demonstrates that both social isolation and
loneliness are linked to poorer health and an early death. Despite this
evidence, however, the underlying mechanisms through which social relationships
impact health remain elusive.