Category: Fall 2005 Newswire
Antiquarian Society Gets $60k
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 – The American Antiquarian Society in Worcester has been awarded a $60,000 grant to help conserve its collection of more than two million 18 th and 19 th century newspapers.
The grant is part of a $14.9 million effort to preserve the nation’s history and culture under Save America’s Treasures, a public-private partnership between the National Park Service and the National Trust for Historic Preservation.
“We’re terrifically happy about this grant,” said John Keenum, vice president for development of the Antiquarian Society. “Our collection is the premier collection in the world. This grant allows us to survey the whole collection and see what newspapers need special care.”
Mr. Keenum said the grant would be used to help pay for internal laboratory services and for the society’s efforts to make all of its newspapers available digitally.
“[Using the digital service], scholars and readers would be able to text-search for anything they want,” Mr. Keenum said. “And readers won’t have to handle the actual newspapers if they wish.”
To be considered for a grant, the applicant must have demonstrated that its project is of national significance and has an urgent preservation need. In 2005, Save America’s Treasures received 337 grant applications. The Worcester society was one of 61 to receive money.
“Historic preservation and conservation have such an important place in America,” Laura Bush, honorary chair of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities, said in a press release. “Through these Save America’s Treasures grants, and together with our Preserve America initiative, President Bush and I want to help every American -especially children -learn about our nation’s heritage history and culture.”
According to its Web site, the American Antiquarian Society is the third oldest historical society in the United States, founded in 1812 by Revolutionary War printer and patriot Isaiah Thomas. The society’s collection contains 20 miles of shelves that hold more than three million items, including books, pamphlets, broadsides, newspapers, periodicals, sheet music and graphic materials from 1640 to 1876.
Sen. Gregg Wins Big in Powerball
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - A quick stop at a New York Avenue gas station to fill up on his way to the Capitol proved to be a lucky stop for New Hampshire Senator Judd Gregg.
Gregg, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, was one of 47 Powerball lottery winners Wednesday to match five of the numbers, though not the Powerball number. His reward: $853,492 before taxes.
"I've always considered myself to be one of the luckiest people in the country just to be able to represent New Hampshire," Gregg said in conference call with reporters Thursday. "Now this has just sort of been confirmed."
Gregg, who does not frequently play the lottery and has no intention of doing so again soon, spent $20 on Powerball tickets, allowing the machine to select all of his numbers randomly.
"I think everybody in America believes in good fortune and little luck," Gregg said. "I'm no different than everybody else."
Gregg said he and his wife, Kathleen, will donate "a fair amount of money into the [Hugh Gregg] Family Foundation," which assists charities in New Hampshire, adding that he will "await instructions from my wife" about what to do with the remainder of the money.
After taxes, Gregg will receive about $500,000.
Gregg said his wife was initially hesitant, questioning whether he had read the numbers correctly. "I do tend to be a little dyslexic," he added.
When asked what signal it sent to the public for a "budget hawk" to win the lottery, Gregg replied, "I guess it means I'm good with numbers."
Gregg said he deposited his winnings Thursday. "I figured I didn't want to lose it," he explained.
Tighter Travel to Canada
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - It may soon take New Hampshire residents a little more planning to drive across the border into Canada.
All travelers entering or reentering the United States by land would be required to have a passport or other specified secure document as of Dec. 31, 2007, according to the proposed Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative under consideration by the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of State.
And, beginning Dec. 31, 2006, the same requirement would apply to all persons entering or reentering the United States by air or sea from Canada, Mexico, Central and South America, the Caribbean and Bermuda.
"We need to ensure that initiatives aimed at increasing the security of our borders do not unnecessarily burden law-abiding citizens," New Hampshire Rep. Charles Bass said in a press release Monday. "For many Granite Staters, easy access to Canada is essential to their livelihood."
Bass encouraged constituents to contact his Littleton office with their views on the proposed changes.
Other than a passport, other forms of secure identification under consideration are the Travelers Rapid Inspection (SENTRI) card, the NEXUS card, the Free and Secure Trade (FAST) card and the Border Crossing Card, according to the State Department.
Proponents of the initiative say it would strengthen border security against terrorist threats. The proposal is a result of the Intelligence Reform and Terrorism Prevention Act of 2004, which mandated that the Secretary of Homeland Security, along with the Secretary of State, implement a plan that requires U.S. citizens and foreign nationals to present appropriate, secure identification before entering the country.
Because the new requirements will affect many citizens, the two federal departments are seeking public comment on the initiative before making a final decision, according to a press release.
The initiative, which was recommended by the 9/11 Commission, will not affect travel between the United States and its territories.
New Hampshire Sen. Judd Gregg, chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Homeland Security, said he looks forward to working with the Department of Homeland Security on the implementation of this initiative.
"New Hampshire citizens have always enjoyed the ability to cross the Canadian border with relative ease," he said in a statement to the Union Leader Wednesday. "I hope we are able to develop a system that will allow that to continue while ensuring that we are properly safeguarding our borders against those who wish to enter our country to do us harm."
John Sununu, New Hampshire's other senator, said he too wants to ensure that the initiative protects citizens without unnecessarily limiting citizens' travel.
"I share the concerns of U.S. citizens living along the border who feel the initiative may be overly burdensome, especially those in northern New Hampshire who routinely cross the border as part of their daily activities," Sununu said in a statement to the Union Leader.
"Make no mistake; in order to help secure our borders, we must verify the identity of those entering this country, including U.S. citizens returning from Canada and Mexico," he said, adding that to accomplish this "we need to make sure the identification presented to border security personnel is as secure as possible."
Rep. Jeb Bradley said he sees the initiative as a positive way to protect the country "The events of September 11th showed that terrorists could cross our borders too easily with fake documents, or legal documents obtained fraudulently," Bradley said in a statement to the Union Leader. "Nineteen of the 9/11 hijackers had multiple licenses and state I.D. cards which enabled them to board the four airplanes and attack our nation. The 9/11 Commission recommended tighter border security by requiring U.S. citizens and legitimate foreign visitors to show a passport upon entry to the United States." "This will strengthen our border security and establish a universal form of documentation for entry into our country," Bradley added
Funding for Radiologic Technology Program Alleviates a Growing Need
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20-At $8.67 per hour, the filing job Jessica Thompson landed at Sebasticook Valley Hospital, a small "very personable" hospital in the middle of a rural community in Pittsfield, Maine, was certainly not her dream job.
So when she saw that the 25-bed hospital was sponsoring an employee to become a radiologic technician, the 21-year-old leapt at the opportunity. "I didn't want to file forever," said Thompson, who started the two-year radiologic technology program at Kennebec Valley Community College last month.
Sebasticook Valley Hospital is paying Thompson's tuition and supplying her with a part-time job in exchange for two years of service after she graduates if there are positions available at that time. When she gets her first job, Thompson will earn at least $15.58 per hour, the minimum, according to statewide data, and nearly double the amount she is earning as a filing clerk.
The two-year radiologic technology program at Kennebec Valley, in partnership with six Maine hospitals, was instituted last year with money from the U.S. Department of Education and the six hospitals.
On Wednesday, Kennebec Valley was one of 70 community colleges across the country to get some of the $125 million distributed by the U.S. Department of Labor in the form of community-based job training grants designed for employment in high-growth industries including health care, construction and energy.
The $955,831 Kennebec will receive will enable radiologic technology students to expand their education options, according to Kathy Moore, the dean of students. Kennebec also will use the money to expand the number of nursing slots.
Radiologic technology programs have a "huge career ladder," with a lot of levels after students receive the base, two-year degree, Moore said. These advanced levels include specialties using magnetic resonance imaging, mammography machines, X-rays, ultrasound and computed tomography scans and often involve obtaining certificates.
"We will work with our hospital partners to identify the specific need beyond the two-year degree level," Moore said.
"We get people trained to the basic radiology technologies level," said Tom Lizotte, director of marketing and development at Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft, another partner. "And then we can add training so they are cross-trained on those various modalities."
The college also will use part of the grant money to create a "health career pathways" program for adults who want to enter a health care field for the first time. The program is also for students who choose to take some college-level science and math classes during high school to help them prepare to attend Kennebec upon graduation.
Thompson attends classes four days a week while she spends 30 hours a week filing for Sebasticook's health information division. She described the radiologic technology program as "very good."
Originally a cosmetologist, Thompson recently moved back to Maine with her boyfriend. There were fewer cosmetology clients available, and she found herself looking for a career change that would "be beneficial to somebody else and myself." And she liked the small town environment of Sebasticook.
"You know everybody that's working here," she said about the small-town hospital.
Right on the edge of the north Maine woods with little to the north besides trees, mountains and wilderness areas, the 25-bed Mayo Regional Hospital in Dover-Foxcroft has benefited from being a partner in the Kennebec program.
"There's an explosion of need for those types of workers because there's a lot more imaging work being done for patient diagnosis," Lizotte said.
"We've realized it's a lot more cost effective to grow your own home-grown people rather than try to recruit," he said. "If you have local people that you've identified and bring their skill level up, that's cheaper, more cost-effective to do that and they're also more likely to stay because they have roots in the area."
Mayo Regional currently has three employees enrolled in the program. Unlike Sebasticook, which will sponsor students who live in the surrounding area even if they don't work at the hospital, Mayo Regional sponsors only hospital employees, paying the $8,095 in tuition, fees and books for the two years and a small stipend while the students are in school, with the promise that when they finish the program they will work in the hospital for three or four years. If they leave early they will have to repay the difference, Lizotte said.
"They wanted to move up to a higher-paying job with more professional status," he said of the hospital's three participating employees. "We see this as a nice little career ladder for someone who's already here to move up."
The starting salary at Mayo Regional for a radiologic technician is about $40,000 a year, he said. "If you're a medical assistant making $10 to $12 an hour and all of a sudden you get that credential, you can like double your salary pretty quickly," he added.
There is a shortage of radiologic technicians nationally but especially in Central Maine, where "we haven't had a program here in a long [time]." said Kennebec's Moore, who wrote the grant that won this year's award. It's not the only program in the state, she said, but it is the only one in the Augusta-Waterville area.
"Health care is expanding due to aging populations and new technologies," Moore said. "The new technologies that are available now have changed the field. There's less invasive surgeries. . Sometimes you can have a scan done so they can diagnose you instead of having to.cut you open."
Other projects across the country receiving funds ranged from health care and construction to advanced manufacturing and energy, according to the Department of Labor's Web site.
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House Sends Bill to President that Would Protect Gun Industry from Lawsuits
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20-The House passed a bill on Thursday that would grant the gun industry immunity from most civil lawsuits. Because the Senate approved the bill in July, the measure will go directly to President George W. Bush, who is expected to sign it into law.
"A gun manufacturer should not be held liable for a crime committed with their product," said Rep. Charles Bass (R-N.H.), who voted for the legislation. "Neither should a knife or baseball bat manufacturer be liable for those kinds of damages."
The Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act passed , 283-144, with 59 Democrats joining 223 Republicans and 1 Independent.
The bill was part of a larger effort by House and Senate Republicans to pass several lawsuit abuse reform measures and was preceded by House approval a day earlier of a bill to protect the food service industry from lawsuits in obesity-related claims.
"There is a general understanding that this is an overly litigious society," Bass said. "We have to protect these business owners from overzealous trial lawyers."
The National Rifle Association, which has contributed more than $30,000 to Bass' reelection campaigns, has fervently backed the gun legislation from the beginning, according to Sam Cohen, spokesman for Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms and a board member of Gun Owners of New Hampshire, a state affiliate of the National Rifle Association.
"It was obvious to anybody that these lawsuits are what lawyers call frivolous and laymen call dishonest," he said. "It makes no more sense that suing General Motors if a kid gets drunk and runs over somebody with a Chevy."
Zach Ragbourn, a spokesman for the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, attributed the passage of the bill to the Rifle Association's powerful lobbying tactics and said some lawmakers were missing the point.
"It was the number one priority of a powerful lobbying group who took it behind closed doors," he said. "It is not a question of holding gun manufactures responsible for a criminal's actions. It is about holding them responsible for their own behavior that can contribute to a crime. We are not asking them to go on trial for murder, but we are asking that they be held accountable if they are negligent."
The bill does not grant the gun industry immunity from all lawsuits and makes exceptions for the illegal distribution of weapons or the sale of defective products.
"These lawsuits impose unreasonable burdens on interstate commerce in firearms and ammunition and can have a significant economic impact on this industry," said Rep. Jeb Bradley (R-N.H.) in a press release. "We should be focusing on the perpetrators who commit crimes with firearms, rather than lawsuits directed against gun manufacturers, which will only restrict the rights of law-abiding citizens."
Though both chambers have approved the bill, the Brady Campaign has no plans to stop fighting the legislation, according to Ragbourn.
"We hope the President will recognize that the bill is not in the interest of the public and is only in the interest of a very wealthy few," he said. "But there are many ways in which to fight this bill, and if it becomes law, we will investigate ways to fight it on constitutional grounds."
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LIHEAP Funding Warms Up As Winter Approaches
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 -Ruth Mattheson, 84, remembers how difficult the Depression was.
The Lawrence resident recalls when $1 bought a bag full of groceries and when families watched every penny they spent. She remembers when homes were heated by wood and coal stoves, and keeping warm was a great concern.
"There were no storm windows and we had to dress in several layers to keep warm," she said.
Years have come and gone since the Depression and while technology has advanced the standard of living, there are still people who are worried about keeping warm this winter, as Mattheson did so many years ago. They will have to depend on energy assistance programs, such as the federally funded Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, to pay their heating bills.
No one disputes that the assistance program is crucial, but the question that remains is whether there will be enough funding to go around, especially as the energy supply is squeezed and prices soar.
Mattheson, who lives at the Berkeley Retirement Home in Lawrence, does not have any anxieties this year about heating but said if she were still living in her house she would be worried.
In fact, the elderly community and low-income families are at high-risk during the cold months. A nationwide survey of 1,100 energy assistance recipients found that 32 percent either did not fill prescriptions or did not take full doses of medication due to escalating energy bills. The study, conducted by the National Energy Assistance Directors' Association, an educational and policy organization for state and local directors of the program, also found that 16 percent of those surveyed said they became ill as the result of a cold home.
The federal assistance program allocates a block grant to every state, and the funds are then administered locally. In Massachusetts, the Department of Housing and Community Development oversees the state program, and local agencies process requests for assistance.
The program, which runs from November through April, offers financial assistance for home heating to renters or homeowners whose annual household income is less than twice the federal poverty income level, which is determined by the number of family members. A household of four has to earn less than $38,700 to be eligible for assistance.
Facing the Cold
The phone has been ringing off the hook at the Greater Lawrence Community Action Council, Inc., the Merrimack Valley's local agency in charge of distributing the heating funds.
When callers can't get through to the council by phone, program director Judy Brady said, they have been coming in and the waiting room is filled with 20 to 25 people at a time.
"People are concerned and they are considering their options early," she said.
Last year, nearly 8,000 people in the area received energy assistance, Brady said, and the demand for heating assistance will increase. While it is hard to guess the exact figure, she said 3,000 recipients from last year have already recertified and she expects to hear from most of the others. In addition she said she thinks the office will process more than 2,000 new applications.
"We are grateful for (the funding) we get," Brady said. "But it's not enough and we need it up front."
Recipients' benefit levels can't be determined until the overall program funding is determined, which leaves Brady and her staffers "hanging with a lot of paperwork." And if additional funds trickle down from the federal appropriations process during the winter season, it adds up to more paperwork and to funds that some recipients can't use.
For example, Brady said, if an extra $50 is doled out to people mid-season, they would have a hard time getting an oil company out to their house for that small amount.
Brady said she thinks she will be able to serve everyone at least once with the current funding levels, but that might mean 150 gallons having to last an entire season.
State lawmakers have been working with the local agencies, Brady said, to get information to residents. An energy assistance forum, scheduled for Oct. 25 at the Lawrence Public Library, is one of several meetings around the state hosted by the Department of Telecommunications and Energy. She said the discussion about conservation, assistance and energy budgeting would be beneficial to recipients.
Washington lawmakers heat up
Since 2000, the government has annually spent an average of $1.9 billion for the energy assistance program, which dates back to 1982. Last year, the funding broke the $2 billion mark for the first time since 1985, according to statistics provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which oversees the program.
As part of the Energy Policy Act signed by President Bush in August, up to $5.1 billion can be spent for 2006, but so far, Congress only plans to fund $2 billion.
A bipartisan group of senators tried to attach a funding increase to the Transportation, Treasury, Housing and Urban Development appropriations bill this week, but it was procedurally blocked on Thursday and never made it the floor for a vote. Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.) and Maine's Republican Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins, led this second attempt by legislators to appropriate the remaining $3.1 billion.
In the beginning of October, Massachusetts Senators John Kerry and Edward Kennedy proposed a similar amendment to the Department of Defense appropriations bill. Even with half of the Senate's support, it was procedurally blocked by Republican leadership.
But as lawmakers try to work it out, the average family in Massachusetts still faces a winter heating oil bill that is $378 more than last winter's average cost of $1,200, according to a recent Energy Information Administration report.
Even before Hurricanes Katrina and Rita strained already tight natural gas and oil supplies, energy was a source of concern. The oil markets flirted with record highs all summer before finally surpassing the $60 a barrel mark and gas prices have been steadily rising.
Damage from hurricanes shut down seven refineries in the Gulf Coast area, reducing the nation's energy capacity by 11 percent or 1.9 million barrels a day, Kennedy said.
At an energy conference in September, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) said that the energy assistance program is one that works. "It has real meaning in the lives of people who are eligible and need to take advantage of it," she said.
"We refuse to abandon families, especially seniors, who won't be able to afford to keep the heat on," Kerry said in a statement on Wednesday. "The administration's own Energy Information Administration knows this problem is real. Governors across the country see this. So why are the White House and the Republican leadership in Congress going out of their way to do nothing? What's it going to take for the White House to act?"
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Heating Funds Blocked As Energy Bills Expected to Soar
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - An emergency $3.1 billion in funding for heating and energy assistance to low-income households was blocked Thursday for the second time in two weeks.
For now funding for the Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program will remain at a little over $2 billion. The program is slated to begin for the year on November 1.
The procedural block comes two days after a report said the average national home energy bill for a low-income household this winter will be $1,000 more than they can afford. The report, published Tuesday by Boston-based consulting firm, Fisher, Sheehan and Colton, argued that the "Home Energy Affordability Gap" will increase nearly 50 percent from last year's gap.
At $1,760, Massachusetts' gap is higher than the national average of $1,032 per household, ranking it 48 out of the 50 states and District of Columbia.
"There is no excuse for the Republican majority to look the other way but they do," Sen. Edward Kennedy (D-Mass) said in a released statement. Kennedy and Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass) have been outspoken in recent weeks about the need for additional funding to this program.
Estella Fritzinger, executive director of the Community Action Committee of Cape Cod and the Islands, said funding for the federal program, also called LIHEAP, is a serious issue, especially because of the high cost of living on the Cape.
"If there's not a raise done on the LIHEAP dollars we are literally going to be in a situation where someone is going to die in their home this winter," she said. "The government needs to release the monies now."
Nationwide the number of households participating in the program rose from 4 million to 5 million in the past year, according to Kennedy
"We will not give up the fight," he said. "We'll be back again and again and again, until our nation's neediest families are better protected this winter."
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Bill Seeks to Strengthen the Home Front
WASHINGTON, Oct. 20 - While it is rebuilding Iraq, the United States should not be ignoring projects on the home front, according to a bill introduced by Rep. William Delahunt (D-Mass.) that seeks to bolster the U.S. infrastructure by refocusing government spending.
The bill says that for each dollar spent on Iraq reconstruction, the same amount must be spent on domestic infrastructure projects such as schools, dams and public facilities. Delahunt joined Reps. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), Bob Etheridge (D-N.C.) and Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) at a press conference Thursday to introduce the American Parity Act of 2005. The bill was previously proposed in 2003 but never put to a vote.
"This administration has created a mess in Iraq, it's creating a mess in America," Delahunt said. "If we're going to have a strong America let's begin at home, and that's what this act is all about. This is about priorities for America."
Everything from fixing dams and schools to building primary health care centers was mentioned as possible uses for the money. The bill would not affect military spending in Iraq.
Delahunt referred to recent infrastructure problems that have resulted in widespread damage, including hurricane-ravaged levees in New Orleans and a dam in Taunton that is on the verge of breaking, putting some 50,000 residents in danger.
The bill's sponsors said the Bush Administration has ignored infrastructure needs with one hand and given the money to similar projects in Iraq with the other.
Delahunt said the a U.S. Coast Guard fleet was aging while the United States was building ports in Iraq.
Emanuel began the press conference by showing a picture of a $20 million dam built in Mosul, Iraq, next to a photo of the breached levees in the lower ninth ward of New Orleans.
"Not that any of us are against investing in Iraq's future," Emanuel said. "What we should not have is a situation where after this process and after the war and after the investments we made, Americas is weaker and not stronger."
The U.S. presence in Iraq created a moral responsibility to rebuild that nation, Delahunt said. But he said American taxpayers should be repaid and the reconstruction process should be done as a loan and not as a free ride.
"It's a giveaway, it's a welfare program. It's the terrible use of American taxpayer dollars," Delahunt said.
The bill is not expected to make much headway in the House, according to Delahunt, but he emphasized the need for his party to press Republicans on the issue.
"You've got to keep pushing it in their face because they're getting nervous because they're looking at the polling data," Delahunt said. "They're saying to themselves, 'Oh, we're going down the wrong road.' "
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Gales Ferry Student Wins Award at the Discovery Channel Science Fair
By Tara Fehr
COLLEGE PARK, MD., Oct. 19 - Elijah Mena, 14, from Gales Ferry, stood in the middle of his team Wednesday, directing his fellow participants in the Discovery Channel's Young Scientist Challenge. When talking about science Mena sounds like a college professor; talking about anything else, he is a typical teenager.
Members of the teams participating in the interactive event at the University of Maryland were among the 40 finalists chosen from around the country to present their research at the competition for middle school students. The top winners were announced Wednesday night, when Mena won the "Discovery Channel Ice Age Award," acknowledging his skills as a problem solver.
Mena has always showed interest in problem solving. "I've always been interested in science, in doing hands on experiments," Mena said. When he was younger, for example, he enjoyed puzzles.
Mena also was a finalist in last year's competition. Through his tropical fish collection he developed the idea of researching the survival instincts of baby guppies.
Last year Mena came to Washington with his father, and this year he made the trip with his mother, who is a psychotherapist. He also has a brother Josh who is 17.
To qualify for the competitions, Mena first had to submit his project to a local science fair for middle school students. Directors from around the country go to these fairs and nominate students to join the competition. This year 6,000 students applied. Mena had to present his project and display his ability to communicate and relay his ideas through essays.
This year Mena focused on energy.
"There's been a lot of talk on energy," Mena said. "Ethanol has no innate increase on carbon dioxide in the atmosphere."
Corn can produce ethanol, but it's expensive. Mena discovered that fungi also could produce this renewable fuel at cheaper costs. This idea was inspired by his father's explanation about mushroom enzymes, but Mena did most of the work on his own.
"He keeps himself going pretty well," said his father Edward Mena, president of LifePharms Inc., a biotechnology company. "He's always doing things I wouldn't expect a 14-year-old boy to do."
At an early age, Mena had a knack for math and problem solving, his father said. His son's interest in science developed from there; it started about four years ago.
Since then, Mena has read and researched science in his own time, which his father and his eighth grade science teacher said keeps Mena challenged.
"He knows how to get the job done," said Emile Levasseur, Mena's eighth grade science teacher at Ledyard Middle School. "I wished he had asked me for help a little more. I almost felt useless."
Mena's hard work has paid off so far. In addition to the Discovery Channel competitions, he was one of two students at his school who received $500 from the Connecticut Science Teachers Association, he came in first in the state science fair and his middle school math team came in first at the competition sponsored by the Connecticut Society of Professional Engineers.
But science is only one part of this teenager's life.
"He really gets involved in things he does," his father said. "He has a lot of broad interests."
These interests include jazz music, piano, Boy Scouts, running and tennis, which he hopes to play in high school this year at Ledyard High School. He is currently ranked 50 th in New England for tennis players his age, but Mena doesn't like to talk about his accomplishments.
"I've had very few students of his caliber, not just academic, but maturity," Levasseur said. "He has the complete package."
Food Responsibility Act Limits Fast Food Liability
WASHINGTON, Oct. 19 - The House approved a bill Wednesday that would eliminate consumers' ability to bring obesity-related lawsuits against fast food and supplement companies.
The Personal Responsibility in Food Consumption Act, nicknamed "the cheeseburger bill," includes language that would stop all lawsuits pending against food companies such as McDonald's in which plaintiffs are seeking damages for the companies' contributions to their obesity. The bill also would forbid all obesity-related suits in the future.
The measure passed, 306 to 120. The Senate has yet to act on the bill.
John Tierney (D-Salem), who voted no on the bill, questioned why Congress was even considering this issue when his constituents were concerned with other issues, such as energy prices and health care.
Republicans "want Congress to take time out" to work for special interests, he said. "There is not a single piece of evidence that the courts aren't working well."
In the floor debate, opponents concentrated on the fact that the bill would supersede approximately 20 state laws that prohibit such lawsuits and 26 more that are under consideration.
Melvin L. Watt (D-North Carolina) said the bill was "an overreaction" and the "ultimate attestation to the fact that many of my colleagues have lost confidence and faith in the legal system."
Watt said that the legal system was already properly determining which lawsuits are frivolous and throwing them out.
He also expressed concern that the bill might forbid lawsuits against dietary supplement companies even if people developed a serious condition such as heart disease as a result of their use of a supplement.
But Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia) echoed the opinions of many of the bill's supporters when he emphasized the importance of personal responsibility.
"It is common sense that individuals should take responsibility for their personal choices and eating habits," he said.
Goodlatte added that the bill would protect legitimate lawsuits, such as suits over defective products and food poisoning.
Many supporters also said that frivolous obesity lawsuits would threaten jobs and weaken the food service industry.
Ric Keller (R-Florida), the bill's sponsor, originally introduced the legislation last year. It passed the House but was never brought to a vote in the Senate. Keller re-introduced it on Feb. 2.
Bryan Malenius, Keller's chief of staff, said the congressman reintroduced the bill because the playing field has changed. "It's a more favorable environment for tort reform," he said.
Malenius added that the restaurant industry is the nation's largest private-sector employer and that Keller, while confident restaurants would win any obesity lawsuits, believes the bill would help ensure that they "keep investing in communities instead of paying legal fees."
