DrMcMeow

DrMcMeow OP t1_iyf8qw0 wrote

An effort to buy out Maine's two foreign-owned utilities to create a consumer-owned utility known as Pine Tree Power Company is moving forward and could be on the statewide ballot in Nov. 2023.

Secretary of State Shenna Bellows announced Wednesday that supporters did collect enough valid signatures on petitions for a citizen's initiative. Bellows said there were 69,735 valid signatures and 10,419 signatures that were not valid. A total of 63,067 valid signatures were required.

As per the state Constitution, the initiative now goes to the Legislature for consideration. The Legislature can choose to enact the bill as written or to send it forward to a statewide vote in November 2023.

In July 2021, Gov. Janet Mills vetoed a bill passed by the legislature that would have created Pine Tree Power. She said that bill was hastily drafted and amended in the legislature, but she acknowledged that Maine's utilities need to perform better.

Supporters have said Pine Tree Power would lower bills for the state's 800,000 electricity ratepayers, while opponents have argued that a consumer-owned utility would be more costly for Mainers.

Opponents quickly responded Wednesday to the news that the citizen's initiative is moving forward.

“Our affiliated unions work every day to build and grow Maine and its middle class. We heard all sides of the issue. We appreciated a thoughtful and lively debate. But in the end, there was little doubt that the proposed takeover of our power grid would not only cost Maine taxpayers $13.5 billion but also functionally cost workers their voice on the job,” said Jason J. Shedlock, President of the Maine State Building & Construction Trades Council and Regional Organizer with the Laborers’ International Union.

https://web.archive.org/web/20221130231220/https://router.infolinks.com/usync/manage?pid=3362112&wsid=0&pdom=www.wmtw.com&purl=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.wmtw.com%2Farticle%2Fwindham-man-lost-wedding-ring-trash-new-hampshire%2F42110602

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DrMcMeow t1_iyf7usl wrote

atrazine is an herbicide / pesticide sprayed on crops, the runoff into rivers is known to chemically castrate, as well as change the sex of male frogs.

Atrazine, one of the world’s most widely used pesticides, wreaks havoc with the sex lives of adult male frogs, emasculating three-quarters of them and turning one in 10 into females, according to a new study by University of California, Berkeley, biologists.

The 75 percent that are chemically castrated are essentially “dead” because of their inability to reproduce in the wild, reports UC Berkeley’s Tyrone B. Hayes, professor of integrative biology.

The 10 percent or more that turn from males into females – something not known to occur under natural conditions in amphibians – can successfully mate with male frogs but, because these females are genetically male, all their offspring are male.

https://news.berkeley.edu/2010/03/01/frogs/

https://www.epa.gov/ingredients-used-pesticide-products/atrazine

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DrMcMeow OP t1_iw1z0iq wrote

it's that time of the year again.

“My mom was fiercely attacked Friday afternoon as she was walking out of her home at Old Carriage Estates,” she wrote. “She was pulled to the ground but was extremely fortunate to have neighbors nearby to assist her. It took the tenacity of one of the women to beat the fox off of her with a metal rod because he would not let go.”

When police arrived at the scene, the fox was no longer in the area, according to Auburn police Lt. Anthony Harrington. The matter was referred to the Maine Wardens Service. A short time later, Harrington said, a caller reported that his dogs had been attacked by a fox near the walking trails at Granite Mills Estates.

The 89-year-old who was mauled is said to have fought the fox as it attacked. She was recovering this week from various injuries suffered in the attack.

“She is on the road to recovery,” Chabot Betsch wrote, “however the wounds to her hands and feet will take some time to heal and of course, she has to go through the course of treatment against rabies. At 89, she still has a lot of fight in her and did everything she could to choke the damn thing!”

In all, Chabot Betsch said, her mother suffered 21 puncture wounds on her hands, lower legs and feet.

According to Harrington, no reports of fox attacks have come in since that attack. However, on Tuesday, Nov. 8, a police officer captured an “aggressive orange male cat” that was found in the area of Hotel Road and Clover Lane. The cat was taken to the Greater Androscoggin Humane Society in Lewiston.

https://web.archive.org/web/20221112090505/https://www.sunjournal.com/2022/11/10/fox-attacks-woman-dogs-in-auburn/

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DrMcMeow OP t1_iu1c4sz wrote

A Maine doctor was arrested today in Kennebunk on criminal charges related to her alleged illegal distribution of opioids and other controlled substances.

According to court documents, Merideth C. Norris, D.O., 52, of Kennebunk, allegedly prescribed opioids, and other controlled substances, outside the usual course of professional practice and without a legitimate medical purpose. Due to her dangerous prescribing, as a condition of her release, Norris cannot prescribe any Schedule II-V controlled substances.

Norris is charged in an indictment with 10 counts of illegal distribution of opioids and other controlled substances. The defendant made her initial court appearance on Oct. 26. If convicted, she faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison on the top counts. A federal district court judge will determine any sentence after considering the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.

https://web.archive.org/web/20221027194700/https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/criminal-division-announces-first-arrest-and-charges-new-england-prescription-opioid-strike

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DrMcMeow t1_ithypo9 wrote

Reply to Limerick, ME by Mikerm3

people still get stuck down there thinking they know better, spinning tires until they're sunk up to their undercarriage.

"how was i supposed to know?"

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