Tuesday, April 7, 2026
Charlestown Breachway, two other DEM campgrounds opening this weekend
In-Tents Fun: Three State Campgrounds Open April 10
Editor's Note: That's not my pun ☝. It's DEM's - Will Collette
South County Tourism
The Rhode Island Department of
Environmental Management (DEM) announces that three state campgrounds will open for the
season on Friday, April 10. The annual opening of Charlestown Breachway,
Fishermen’s Memorial, and George Washington Memorial State Campgrounds aligns
with spring school vacation and trout fishing season,
offering families a chance to enjoy Rhode Island’s outdoors. East Beach State
Campground will open Friday, May 22. Book your stay at a RI State Campground
at riparks.ri.gov/campgrounds.
Burlingame State Campground is expected to open later in May
due to ongoing work to complete a modernization project for its showers and
restrooms. As a result, the release of reservations for the 2026 camping season
at Burlingame will be delayed. DEM appreciates campers’ patience as we enhance
Burlingame with modern, sustainable, and accessible amenities. Please stay
tuned for updates by visiting the project webpage at: https://riparks.ri.gov/campgrounds/burlingame-campground-new-shower-and-restroom-facilities-project.
Why flu and COVID hit older adults so hard
Aging lungs may spark runaway inflammation that makes infections far more dangerous.
University of California - San Francisco
These findings provide new insight into age-related
inflammation and help explain why something as simple as a cough can sometimes
lead to hospitalization in older individuals.
Aging Lung Cells and Inflammation
To explore what changes in older lungs, researchers focused
on fibroblasts, the structural cells that help maintain lung tissue. In
experiments with young mice, they activated a stress signal typically linked to
aging. This caused the lungs to develop clusters of inflamed cells, including
some marked by the GZMK gene, which was first identified in severe COVID-19
cases. Scientists believe future treatments could target these cells to
interrupt the harmful cycle known as inflammaging.
"We were surprised to see lung fibroblasts working
hand-in-hand with immune cells to drive inflammaging," said Tien Peng, MD,
a professor of Medicine and a member of the Cardiovascular Research Institute
and Bakar Aging Research Institute at UCSF. "It suggests new ways to
intervene before patients progress to severe inflammation that can require
intubation."
Peng is the senior author of the study, published in Immunity on
March 27. Nancy Allen MD, PhD, a clinical fellow in the Pulmonary and Critical
Care Division in the UCSF Department of Medicine, is the first author.
Foulkes Releases Plan to Lower Utility Bills and Advance Clean Energy
No False Choices
News release from the Foulkes campaign
“Choosing between lower energy costs and addressing climate change is a false choice that Rhode Island cannot afford to make,” said Helena. “As governor, I’ll focus on cost-effective sources of renewable energy to meet our climate goals while working to lower costs for Rhode Islanders. Today, I’m outlining my plan to do exactly that.”
Last year, 89% of Rhode Island’s electricity came from natural gas, and our state ranks 44th in energy affordability. Meanwhile, renewable energy sources are consistently the cheapest energy options available to meet rising demand. Helena’s plan focuses on increasing clean energy generation in Rhode Island and taking basic steps to hold our for-profit utility accountable to lower costs for Rhode Islanders.
Ensuring lower rates for Rhode Islanders starts with holding the utility accountable for proposed rate increases. The McKee Administration has allowed Rhode Island Energy and its parent company Pennsylvania Power & Light broad latitude to pass more and more costs on to Rhode Island ratepayers. Thankfully, our AG has fought to hold them accountable to the tune of tens of millions of saved ratepayer dollars.
Helena’s plan, titled No False Choices, rejects the premise that clean energy and lower costs are at odds. As governor, Helena will:
Monday, April 6, 2026
Something deeper than greed drives Trump’s compulsion to destroy
Will the planet survive this meddlesome moron?
Doug Burgum announced
the deal, claiming, “the era of affordable, reliable and secure energy is
here to stay.” Someone might want to tell Burgum that we’re in the middle of a
war proving just the opposite. With crude oil prices skyrocketing, and
WWIII looming
over the Strait of Hormuz, there’s nothing reliable or secure
about fossil fuels except for campaign
donations to Trump.
Trump’s war on alternative energy has led to an
extraordinary transfer of public money to prop up fossil fuels, the main driver
of climate change, which Trump still
calls a “hoax.” Trump’s fight
to overrule science and abandon all climate protections seems like a
compulsion to destroy more than anything; Trump likely assumes he’ll be pushing
up daisies before Big Oil is forced to compensate victims.
Tomorrow is the day when Trump's Easter war crimes threat is supposed to happen
Will he do it or will he TACO?
Attorney General Neronha, coalition sue Trump Administration for rolling back limits on toxic air pollutants
Fighting to stop Trump's attack on public health
The MATS Rule implements nationwide standards that limit emissions of toxic air pollutants from coal- and oil-fired power plants, including mercury, arsenic, lead, and other toxic metals, as well as acid gases such as hydrogen chloride and formaldehyde.
In 2024, following significant
developments in technologies for controlling pollution, the Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) updated the standards for emissions of these hazardous
air pollutants from power plants. Last month, the Trump administration rolled
back the updated standard, allowing for more of these dangerous emissions to be
released into the air.
“Public health and safety should be the top priority of any government,” said Attorney General Neronha.
Judge orders Matunuk owner Perry Raso be given another shot at starting to aqua-farm scallops
‘Do it again, but the right way.’
By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current
The embattled Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council was dealt another blow last week after a Superior Court judge tossed one of its most high-profile and controversial decisions because the panel violated its own procedures.
Perry Raso. Photo: Chip Riegel, Edible Rhody
The 48-page order from Associate Justice Joseph Montalbano reopens the longstanding battle between acclaimed restaurateur and oyster farmer Perry Raso and nearby property owners, remanding the case back to the council for additional public hearings and consideration.
Raso, originally known for the now-closed Matunuck Oyster Bar, sought to expand his shellfish empire with a scallop farm in Potter Pond in South Kingstown. The expansion spawned public outcry by property residents who argued the shellfish beds would interfere with recreational boating, fishing and other activities within the cove. A five-year standoff ended in June 2023, when the coastal agency’s appointed panel approved a scaled-down version of Raso’s original proposal, cutting 40% of the acreage and banning floating cages. The council later signed off on further modifications submitted by Raso that changed the size, layout and position of the submerged scallop nets.
Two sets of property owners took their case to the judiciary, filing two separate lawsuits in Providence County Superior Court in September 2024, later consolidated into a single case. The property owners, through their attorneys, again argued the scallop beds interfered with their ability to enjoy the cove — a point Montalbano rejected in his order.
However, Montalbano, who is on track to become the court’s presiding justice, found credence in the plaintiffs’ arguments over process. Specifically, he said the council flouted its own rules by failing to fully explain the rationale for its decision, which contradicted the recommendation from a smaller subcommittee that gave a preliminary, and more comprehensive, review. The council also violated its procedures by failing to give public notice or opportunity for additional public input in the “substantial” revisions Raso submitted after the final vote.
Disgraced former Rhode Island general Mike Flynn just ripped you off for $1.25 million
DOJ payout to Mike Flynn has J6-ers lining up at the trough
Flynn’s claims were entirely without merit, and a federal
judge had already dismissed them once. But the Justice Department decided to
pay him anyway, calling it a righteous vindication of Trump’s constant whining
that he was illegally targeted by the FBI and Robert Mueller.
"Those who instigated the Russia Collusion Hoax and
Crossfire Hurricane abused their power to mislead the American people and
tarnish the reputations of President Trump and his supporters,” a DOJ
spokesperson told ABC.
“Today’s settlement, secured by this Justice Department, is an important step
in redressing that historic injustice."
Encouraged by this blatant corruption, Trump’s most ardent
supporters are demanding their own cut. This week, a group of January 6 rioters
filed a class action lawsuit demanding recompense for the injuries they
suffered when they attempted to overturn the election.
The stage is set for the wholesale looting of the federal
coffers by Trump and his MAGA allies.
Sunday, April 5, 2026
“I’m the opposite of desperate. I don’t care.”
The Catastrophe of Trump’s War and Its Mounting Costs
After Tehran dismissed his 15-point ceasefire plan,
Trump claimed
today that Iran is “begging to make a deal” and that he wasn’t
the one pushing for negotiations. (Earlier, he told Tehran to “get serious
soon” about negotiating an end to the war.)
“They’ll tell you, ‘We’re not negotiating,’” Trump said.
“Of course, they’re negotiating. They’ve been obliterated.” He said Iran is
allowing some oil tankers through the Strait of Hormuz as a “present” to
show how serious it is about negotiating to end the war.
He rejected reports that he was looking for an exit ramp. “I
read a story today that I’m desperate to make a deal,” Trump told
reporters. “I’m the opposite of desperate. I don’t care.”
Is he naive? Ignorant? Stupid? Or does he think we’re so
stupid as not to see that he’s making this up as he goes, that he has no plan,
no exit strategy, no way out?
Trump — and Pete Hegseth and anyone else who may be advising
him — have already blown this.
They thought the Iranian regime would fall as easily as the
capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro. They assumed they could use air power
alone. Wrong on both counts.
They overestimated the capacity and desire of Iranians to
overthrow the regime.
They underestimated the regime’s resilience. They didn’t
count on it expanding the conflict through the use of cheap drones aimed at
closing the Strait of Hormuz, disrupting supply chains throughout the region,
and raising oil prices — thereby putting mounting political and economic
pressure on the United States.
They didn’t anticipate that they’d have to lift sanctions on
Iran, delivering the regime a huge windfall. Nor that they’d deliver vast oil
profits to Vladimir Putin.
To the extent they engaged in any planning at all, they
focused on America’s military might rather than the consequences of what might
happen next. But as we should have learned years ago from bombing North
Vietnam, political outcomes cannot be achieved solely from the skies.
Donald Trump issues his most inspiring and profound holiday message yet
Will someone PLEASE go get the 25th Amendment!
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