Congratulations, South Kingstown!

South Kingstown passes Immigrant Protection Ordinance

By Bob Plain in Rhode Island’s Future

Rebuking the Trump Administration’s increase in immigration enforcement, the South Kingstown Town Council passed last night what it calls the Immigrant Protection Ordinance. 

The new law, approved on a 3 to 2 vote, prevents local police officers from enforcing federal immigration rules, unless so ordered by a federal judge.

“My family,” Council Vice President Abel Collins said prior to voting in favor, “came here because they were chased out of England for religious persecution over 300 years ago. People are being chased out of their own country now for the same reason. America should be the place that welcomes them and South Kingstown came make that stand.”

Council President Margaret Healy and Councilor Joe Veile voted against the bill, saying they preferred a resolution instead. “We are all here for the same reason,” Healy said. “We want our town to be safe.”

But Councilor Liz Gledhill, a proponent of the ordinance, said changing the law is vastly different than a resolution.

“There’s a difference between talking about something and giving something some teeth,” Gledhill said. 

“I certainly didn’t think a year ago I would be worrying about any of this. These are unprecedented times … when I look back at this time in our history I want to know I did what was best was for the people of our community and something that I could be proud of and my kids could be proud of.”

Councilor Bryant Da Cruz was the swing vote. When he announced his support, the packed Council Chambers erupted into applause.

You can watch video of the meeting here.

Technology will save us

For more cartoons by Ted Rall, CLICK HERE.

At the Mystic Aquarium

A sea witch and wizards and magic - oh my! Hear Tails of the Deep as you cast spells at the Aquarium. Click for More Hocus Pocus Scare up some smiles during this Halloween-themed Pancakes with the Penguins! Register today. Register Here  Give a time out your toddler will enjoy with a different kid-friendly activity each Tuesday. Time Out! U.S. military veterans and active-duty members receive FREE admission; plus family discounts. We Salute You Enjoy a five-course meal featuring pairings of local craft beers from Epicure Brewing. 21+ event. Buy Tickets Now TAIL US ON SOCIAL MEDIA

Mystic Aquarium, 55 Coogan Blvd., Mystic, CT 06355

Audubon, Save the Bay and the Nature Conservancy oppose controversial fossil fuel proposal

R.I.’s Environmental Big Three United Against Power Plant

By FRANK CARINI/ecoRI News staff

Some power plant opponents have put their bodies on the line. Actually,
"jumping up and down and getting mad" has held the line for almost
two years (RI Future photo)

Since the Clear River Energy Center was proposed two years ago, the state’s environmental Big Three have been criticized by some power-plant opponents for not being more aggressive in their denunciation of the controversial fossil-fuel project.

The Rhode Island chapter of The Nature Conservancy, the Audubon Society of Rhode Island, and Save The Bay could be accused of entering the fray a little late, some would argue by about six months, but all three organizations, along with the Conservation Law Foundation, have been vocal opponents of the natural-gas/diesel facility.

“There are arguments that could stop it,” said Larry Taft, executive director of the Audubon Society of Rhode Island. “But jumping up and down and getting mad won’t make a difference. We’ve been remarkably consistent in our opposition, but perhaps more restrained than some might like.”

$300M Puerto Rico Contract Awarded To Tiny Firm Owned By Big Trump Donors

When you’ve only got two employees, it helps when “you know a guy”

By ALLEGRA KIRKLAND in Talking Points Memo

A tiny Montana utility company that received a $300 million contract to help restore power to Puerto Rico after its electrical grid was devastated by Hurricane Maria is financed by major Trump donors and run by a CEO friendly with Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, a series of recent reports has revealed.

The Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority’s granting of the huge contract to Whitefish Energy Holdings, a two-year-old company that reportedly had two full-time employees when the hurricane first hit, was first reported by the Weather Channel last week.

The Washington Post and the Daily Beast on Tuesday offered more details on the company’s backers.

The Post noted that the firm is based in Zinke’s hometown and that its CEO, Andy Techmanski, is friendly with the Interior secretary. 

The Daily Beast reported that Whitefish’s general partner maxed out donations to the Trump primary and general election campaigns, as well as a Trump super PAC, in 2016.

That newly surfaced information has raised eyebrows about just why Whitefish was awarded a contract to restore electricity to hundreds of thousands of Puerto Rico residents. 

The firm insists that everything is above board, with both Zinke’s office and Techmanski told the Post that the Interior secretary played no role in securing the contract.

Sure, let’s trash the economy too

Leaked Transcripts of FOX Interview Just Revealed Trump’s Incoherent Comments on the Federal Reserve

BY LUCIA BRAWLEY

Transcripts from a Trump interview with FOX News’ Maria Bartiromo that will air Sunday morning have just leaked and they suggest what many Americans already feared — that this president is somehow mentally incapacitated.  

Whether, as numerous prominent psychiatrists have suggested, he is mentally ill, or he is suffering from early-onset dementia, or he simply is simply too unqualified to have any idea of what he’s talking about, this president’s monosyllabic speech patterns and garbled monologues have many Americans, including prominent Republicans, questioning his fitness for office.

But his answer to Ms. Bartiromo’s questions about the Federal Reserve may take the cake.

When the prominent business journalist asked Trump if he was considering Federal Reserve Governor Jerome Powell and Stanford University economist John Taylor as possible appointments for Fed Chairman and Vice-Chairman, the leader of the free world literally said these words:

‘Why Trump’s Mental Health Matters’

Republican Ethics Attorney And A Clinical Psychologist Explain

By Samuel Warde 

“Is America today in need of an unprecedented constitutional intervention?” George W. Bush’s ethics attorney, Richard Painter, and clinical psychologist Leanne Watt discuss the 25th Amendment and Trump’s mental health matters.

Painter and Watt began their opinion piece for NBC News with a quick explanation of the 25th Amendment:

The 25th Amendment is the ultimate constitutional “check” — a corrective mechanism for an American president who is physically or psychologically unable to lead. Most important, it grants legal authority to those closest to power — first, the vice president and Cabinet members, then members of Congress — to stage an intervention. At the very least, these individuals are authorized to call a temporary timeout if the president is judged unfit to govern.

Dogs and Cats

From Fake Science, Donald Trump's only source for science news

Imagine if it was Hillary

The questions we need to ask about the deaths of four Green Berets in Niger, a place most people couldn't find on a map, where we apparently have at least 1,000 troops stationed.

What’s next? An end to federal funding for Rhode Island climate science?

Fallout from Trump decision to keep EPA from presenting local climate findings

By Bob Plain in Rhode Island’s Future

Photo by Tim Faulkner (ecoRI News). Read Tim's coverage of the
aftermath of this event by CLICKING HERE. 

The authors and supporters of a new report called The State of Narragansett Bay and Its Watershed hoped the new report would help call attention to the dire effects of climate change on coastal Rhode Island. Instead, the report is calling attention to the dire effects of the Trump Administration on science and speech.

“I expected to be telling a relatively simple story this morning but it turned into something else,” said University of Rhode Island oceanography professor John King, who contributed to the report.

He expected to present the report with three federal Environmental Protection Agency employees who helped him write it. The Trump Administration had different plans. 

According to the New York Times, “The Environmental Protection Agency has canceled the speaking appearance of three agency scientists who were scheduled to discuss climate change at a conference on Monday in Rhode Island, according to the agency and several people involved.”

Rhode Island’s all-Democratic congressional delegation, already scheduled to appear at the event, were not pleased.

Better understanding of killer cancer

New findings explain how UV rays trigger skin cancer

By Krishna Ramanujan, Cornell University

Melanoma, a cancer of skin pigment cells called melanocytes, will strike an estimated 87,110 people in the U.S. in 2017, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A fraction of those melanomas come from pre-existing moles, but the majority of them come from sources unknown – until now.

Cornell researchers have discovered that when melanocyte stem cells accumulate a sufficient number of genetic mutations, they can become the cells where these cancers originate.

Under normal conditions, ultraviolet (UV) radiation from the sun activates melanocytes to release melanin, a pigment that protects the skin from the sun’s rays. But if melanocyte stem cells have surpassed a threshold of genetic mutations, a tumor can start to grow when those skin stem cells are activated by sun exposure.

Dog of the week

Meet Curly

Animal Rescue Rhode Island

Curly is a 5 year old, medium sized shepherd mix.

She is a sweet old soul who is very humble and respectful.

The school of hard knocks has worn the puppy foolishness right out of her, so if you're looking for a quiet dog who just wants to be with you in her golden years, look no further.

Curly is the girl for you!

Charlestown water fight gets even more complicated

Invenergy Water Deals Popping Up and Springing Leaks

By TIM FAULKNER/ecoRI News staff

Developments in the fossil-fuel power plant drama are happening at a furious pace.

On Oct. 20, the Tribal Council of the Narragansett Indian Tribe asked the Energy Facilities Siting Board (EFSB) for intervenor status in the process to vet the proposed Clear River Energy Center.

The recent request highlights the rift within the Narragansett Indian Tribe over its decision to serve as a backup water source for the $1 billion energy project.

At an Oct 10 public hearing at Burrillville High School, tribe members Randy Noka and Silvermoon LaRose said the agreement goes against land-use needs at the reservation in Charlestown.

They promised to fight the decision, which they said was made by tribal leaders in September without a vote by the full tribe.

“We do not support the agreement. It was made in violation of tribal constitution and bylaws,” LaRose said.

The letter from Tribal Council attorney Shannah Kurland states that tribal members haven't seen the agreement, much less voted on it.

They can only assume that the water will be drawn from the lower Wood River aquifer and wells that supply water to the reservation.

“The outcome of the EFSB's decision, should it precipitate or allow for the sale of any of the Tribe's water, even on a contingent basis, could potentially bind Narragansett Tribal members and the Tribal Council charged with representing them, for generations to come,” Kurland wrote in the request to the EFSB.

Lose-Lose-Lose

For more cartoons by Jen Sorenson, CLICK HERE.

Trump and cancer