Category: Fall 2005 Newswire
Worcester Historical Museum Makes a National Project Local
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 – On the morning of October 10, 1943, Nathaniel Mencow awoke at 3 o’clock.
The day began at an airbase in Framingham, England, the town the namesake of Framingham, Mass., close to his home town of Worcester. After three hours of briefing, the 185 planes in his wing took off to bomb the railroad yards in Munster, Germany.
Mr. Mencow was in front, navigating the lead plane of the 390 th Bomb Group, as it led the whole wing across the English Channel. From the moment they entered European skies the B-17 bombers came under heavy fire from German aircraft and deadly, ground-based anti-aircraft artillery, known as flak. It was more than a year before D-Day, and the German air force still “ruled” the skies, Mr. Mencow recalled. Even at five miles above the ground, planes were dropping on all sides.
Mr. Mencow, in an interview this week, said each mission was “a horrible experience.shear terror.” This mission was particularly deadly, however: Munster was very heavily defended and as they reached the designated “initial point,” his group peeled off and dropped their bombs, then flew to the “rallying point.” They would wait there, he said, “to see whichever planes were still living” at the end of the mission, and lead them back to England.
Many planes-and men-didn’t return to Framlingham. Of the 17 planes of 390th, only nine came back. The 100 th -a sister group in the same wing-only saw one plane return. “I knew a great many friends who were lost, and I miss them terribly,” Mr. Mencow said.
Mr. Mencow was discharged with five Air Medals and two Distinguished Flying Crosses later that year. One Distinguished Flying Cross was awarded for completing the required number of missions, he said, and the other was for the Munster mission, because of its difficulty and danger.
A brother, Lt. William Mencow, was shot down and killed in 1944, “a great tragedy for the family,” Nathaniel Mencow said. Five Mencow brothers fought in three branches of the U.S. Military in World War II. After the war Mr. Mencow served for 23 years in the Air Force Reserves and retired as a lieutenant colonel.
Mr. Mencow, who is 87, is one of approximately 70 Worcester area World War II veterans who have been interviewed by Robyn Christensen, librarian for the Worcester Historical Museum. Their stories eventually will be transcribed, and copies sent to the Veteran’s History Project at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C.
The Veteran’s History Project, which is now in its fifth year, is the largest oral history project in the country, boasting more than 40,000 archived stories which are available for study and will be preserved for future generations. Veterans of conflicts from World War I through the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan told their stories. Diane Kresh, director of the project, said the goal is to collect one million personal accounts.
Ms. Christensen came to the idea of interviewing veterans on her own, before she knew about the Library of Congress project. Her interest in World War II and the men and women who lived it dates back to childhood, when she watched war movies with her father, a Marine. He had a great respect for veterans, she said, and passed that reverence on to her. Ms. Christensen’s father had seven uncles who had fought in different theaters of World War II. All passed away before she could really interview them and preserve their stories.
Ms. Christensen studied military history in college, and after graduate school went to work at the Worcester Historical Museum. She said she didn’t feel she could approach veterans for their stories on her own, but with the museum behind her she began collecting pictures, uniforms, and even one or two diaries of people who served in World War II.
Having a story to go along with the artifacts makes a huge difference. “If you don’t have a story behind it, ‘Oh, it’s just a Purple Heart,’” she said.
All veterans’ stories are equally important, Ms. Christensen said, but she finds the accounts of former Prisoners of War particularly compelling. One gentleman told her the story of being imprisoned in a German camp one winter. The GIs were given Christmas decorations by their captors to celebrate the holidays, ornaments they hung, happy for the distraction. The Germans showed up with movie cameras, however, clearly planning to use the relatively cheery scene as proof they were treating their prisoners well. “It took them three hours to put them up and about five minutes to take them down,” said Ms. Christensen, recalling her interviewee’s words.
She is taking a break from interviewing veterans right now, because the cold and dark of November is keeping many of them at home. Ms. Christensen said she plans to resume the interviews in the spring and is hoping for grant money to help with the cost of cataloguing and digitizing the stories before they are sent to Washington.
The stories are available in audio form to anyone who wishes to go to the museum library and listen to them, provided they call ahead. Ms. Christensen said she could use some volunteer help transcribing the interviews, and perhaps collecting them as well. She said she plans to expand her collection to include veterans of other wars, but has not yet had time.
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A Little More Sex Than You Might Expect
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 - A recent study reveals that sexual content on television is more widespread than ever and may be influencing teenagers' sexual behavior.
The study, conducted by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, was released Wednesday at a news conference with a panel of TV executives, federal regulators and health experts.
Examining a week's worth of programming from such outlets as ABC, CBS, Fox, PBS, Lifetime, TNT, USA and HBO, the study found that 70 percent of all shows include some sexual content - ranging from talk about sex to implied intercourse. The study also revealed that these shows average five such incidents of sexual content per hour.
"You might be wondering why in this digital era we are so concerned about something as, maybe, old-fashioned as television," said Vicky Rideout, Kaiser Family Foundation vice president. "The reason is that young people in our society spend more time watching television, by far, than they do with any other medium."
Studies show that adolescents watch television for an average of about three hours a day, a figure that concerns many parents and some legislators.
"When children are exposed to sex without consequences, they're more likely to have sex with consequences," said Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, a father of two young girls. "We don't teach our children that healthy relationships involve drunken, naked parties in a hot tub with strangers, but that's what they see when they turn on [MTV's] 'The Real World.' "
The Kaiser Foundation study also revealed that 14 percent of programs with at least one sexual reference include a reference to sexual risks or responsibilities, a growing trend in television programming.
"The shows that include at least a passing reference to such issues, while still relatively low, has increased significantly over the last seven years," Ms. Rideout said.
In recent years, television networks have accepted a fraction of the monitoring responsibility by adopting the TV rating system, promoting the V-Chip and running public service announcements to educate parents during prime-time television.
Ultimately, however, many network executives feel that broadcast television is not the sole influence on teenagers' lives and that it is the parents' responsibility to monitor their children.
"To isolate broadcast television as a cause of all this evil in the world is just wrong," said Tony Vinciquerra, president and CEO of Fox Networks Group. "If you take television out of the equation, other influences are still going to be there."
He added: "Parents do have the ability to lock out channels now on just about any cable system, and they can control what their families are able to watch."
The news conference participants also discussed a separate study of 12- to 17-year-olds conducted in 2004 by RAND that found increased exposure to sexual content on television accelerates the initiation of sexual activities, including intercourse.
"Relative to other factors, [watching sexual content] was as large or larger than any other of the factors we looked at," said Rebecca Collins, a behavioral scientist for RAND who conducted the study with her colleagues.
Collins said the only two factors, other than television content, correlating with a higher prevalence of sexual activity in adolescents were found among teens who lived in single-parent households or who described their friends as being mostly older than themselves.
The top 20 programs most viewed by teens, according to the Kaiser study, include a wide range of shows, such as "American Idol," "The Simpsons," "Desperate Housewives," "Family Guy," "The O.C.", "Survivor," "Lost," "7 th Heaven" and "America's Next Top Model."
Two N.H. Communities Honored for Protecting Their Heritage
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 - Hooksett and Keene were among 28 communities across the United States recognized at a ceremony here Wednesday for their dedication to protecting and celebrating their heritage.
"I have had the opportunity to visit Hooksett many times and see the progress the town has made in restoring several of its historic structures," Rep. Jeb Bradley said in a press release. "I commend [Hooksett] for its tireless efforts to promote historic preservation and economic development. The town is truly deserving of this honor, and I congratulate them on a job well done."
Bradley accepted the awards on behalf of both towns at the ceremony.
"Together I think we've made some good progress," said Kathleen Northrup, the chairwoman of Hooksett's Heritage Commission, in a telephone interview Wednesday. "[Hooksett] has changed a lot since I was younger, but it still has a nice personality."
Northrup completed the application for the town that was submitted to Preserve America, a White House initiative that encourages and supports community efforts to preserve local historical resources.
In addition to the Heritage Commission's oral history project and its efforts to refurbish Head Chapel, the town's first one-room, schoolhouse, Northrup said the dedication of the many volunteers who run Robie's Country Store Historic Preservation Corporation aided the city in earning this honor.
The awards, presented by Preserve America in conjunction with the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and the U.S. Department of the Interior, make the towns eligible for project grants that involve public-private partnerships and advance historic preservation, heritage tourism and education and related economic development.
"The city of Keene is steeped in history and tradition and has worked hard to preserve their many historic properties and to promote their treasured heritage," Rep. Charles Bass said in a press release. "Their successful designation as a Preserve America community will enhance the city's ability to promote their unique assets for the betterment of local businesses and community members."
In addition to grant eligibility, White House recognition and a recognition certificate, each town will also receive a Preserve America community road sign.
Anita McBride, deputy assistant to the president and chief of staff to Laura Bush, spoke at the ceremony on behalf of Mrs. Bush, the honorary chairwoman of Preserve America.
"Preservation is about revitalizing the spirit of a community," McBride said, adding that Mrs. Bush has long been a supporter of historic preservation because it has its roots in educating others.
Jeananne Farrar, chair of the Keene Heritage Commission, who completed the Preserve America application on behalf of the city, called the distinction a great honor and said she is exploring whether or not Keene will apply for grants this year.
In addition to the city's museums, historic landmarks and volunteerism, Farrar said, Keene's public school curriculum, which brings heritage preservation education into the schools at all grade levels, also played an important role in the application process and subsequent recognition.
"There's a lot of good stuff going on here," she said. "I was thrilled that we had been asked to apply and that we received this designation and I'm sure that the city of Keene will be equally pleased."
Farrar has lived in Keene for almost 70 years.
"If you have wonderful memories of your hometown it's pretty easy to sing its praises," she said. "I do think we have a particularly wonderful sense of community and a great quality of life."
Two Maine Towns Honored for Their History and Heritage
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 -Camden and Gardiner became the first towns in Maine to be designated as historical communities on Wednesday.
The designations came from Preserve America, a White House initiative spearheaded by Laura Bush, whose mission is to encourage communities to preserve their cultural heritage.
Twenty-eight cities, towns and communities were recognized. About 300 communities in 45 states have received Preserve America designations since the program's inception three years ago
"Preservation is about revitalizing the spirit of a community," Anita McBride, Mrs. Bush's chief of staff, told the community representatives at the ceremony.
The awards reception was sponsored in part by the Historic Preservation Caucus of the U.S. House of Representatives. Designees from the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation and the Department of the Interior (both organizations administer a large portion of Preserve America) also attended the event.
Preserve America's goals are to strengthen historical education and local pride, while at the same time supporting the local economies.
"It's nice to know that whatever you're doing to protect and preserve and utilize your historical assets does rise to their standards," said David Jackson, director of the Conservancy for Camden Harbor Park and Amphitheatre.
As a designated community, Camden also receives a National Park road sign with the Preserve America logo, and the program's official Web site, PreserveAmerica.gov, features a description of Camden with links to the town and the Chamber of Commerce.
Bruce Milhans, spokesman for the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation, said that "heritage tourism" - visiting a town to tour its historical sites - is a growing trend.
"Heritage tourists stay longer, spend more [and] extend their visits to communities or areas when they encounter things that interest them," Milhans said.
Tourists are "going to go to Preserve America communities because they know that these are places where they can go and experience heritage assets that they wouldn't know about otherwise," he added.
Camden, which has a population of 5,300, was settled in 1769. It soon prospered as a ship-building and wool manufacturing town.
To get a town designated as a Preserve America community, a representative must complete a series of application essays about how the town protects and promotes its historic resources. In the Camden application, Jackson wrote that the town "recognizes its historic roots as a coastal town each August with its annual Windjammer days," a celebration of the town's sailing ships. Some of the ships are original and some are replicas.
Gardiner did not have anyone present to accept the designation certificate. Jackson said that his employer, the not-for-profit Camden Harbor Park and Amphitheater, could not afford to send him, and the town manager paid for much of the trip from her own personal travel account.
"It does show that we made an extra effort," Jackson said of Camden.
This year, for the first time, Preserve America will offer competitive grants totaling $5 million. Designated communities or those in the process of designation that are willing to match the funds may apply for individual grants of $20,000 to $150,000. The grants aim to help the communities advance their economies, develop inventive tourism programs and provide historical documentation that tells a story to enhance the local visitor experience. The application deadline is December 16.
Jackson said he plans to apply for a grant to do the research necessary before he can nominate the Camden Harbor Amphitheater as a national historic landmark.
For more information about applying to become a designated community, visit www.preserveamerica.gov .
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Oil Executives Face The Heat In Washington
WASHINGTON, Nov. 9 - The chief executives of five major oil companies were in the hot seat Wednesday as they defended their companies' record-breaking profits before Congress.
In recent months, much of the debate on Capitol Hill focused on addressing the country's growing energy needs in the face of escalating prices. Members of the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee and the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, meeting jointly, questioned the oil industry panelists as to how much of the industry's profits were a result of price gouging during a time of uncertainty made worse by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
"In the midst of suffering, in the midst of sacrifice," companies' raking in so much money is a cause for question, said Sen. Daniel Inouye (D-HI), co-chairman of the Commerce Committee.
For instance, Exxon Mobil Corp., the world's largest non-government petroleum company, with over 86,000 employees and a market capitalization of about $350 billion, posted third-quarter earnings close to $10 billion.
Lee R. Raymond, chief executive at Exxon, said that although the petroleum industry's earnings are at historic highs, when they are compared to other industries on earnings per dollar of revenue, "we are line with the average of U.S. industries. Our numbers are huge because the scale of our industry is huge."
Raymond, joined at the witness table by chief executives from Chevron Corp., ConocoPhillips, BP America Inc. and Shell Oil Co., said that the company's profits have always been reinvested into capital expenditures and research.
In total, the five oil companies earned more than $25 billion during the three months that ended Sept. 30.
Inouye questioned Raymond about reports that an Exxon-branded station in the storm-affected Gulf Coast region raised gasoline prices by 24 cents in 24 hours. If price gouging is defined as "unconscionably excessive," he asked, "then isn't this price gouging?"
Raymond said while he couldn't confirm the specific incident, Exxon doesn't control prices except in the case of company-owned stations. As for wholesale prices on gasoline sold to independently owned stations, Raymond said the corporate directive was to minimize price increases but without lowering prices to the point of causing a gasoline shortage.
"The concept we had was not to price gouge," Raymond said.
Sen. John Sununu (R-NH) urged other legislators not to institute a windfall profits tax on oil companies, as was done in the 1980s. He said reports showed that the tax resulted in an increase in the cost of gas, a three to six percent decline in domestic oil production and an increase in oil imports.
Many senators wanted explanations of how gasoline is priced. James J. Mulva, chief executive at ConocoPhillips, said that crude oil prices are set by the world markets and that growing demand, geopolitical problems in the Middle East and limited production capacity have driven prices up.
"While ConocoPhillips doesn't expect the prices we see today to be sustained, we do want to give you an appreciation of the challenges that lie ahead in supplying the U.S. and the world's energy needs," he said.
Another influence on the market is speculators, or commodity traders, who bid on crude oil in the financial markets and drive prices up further, the witnesses said. Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR.) said he wanted to rein in speculators with legislation.
Wyden asked the witnesses if their companies needed incentives and tax breaks to operate, to which they all answered no. "Then I hope you'll support me when I try to rescind these tax breaks," he said.
Supporters of such breaks argue that the purpose isn't to assist the big oil giants but to help smaller refineries around the country.
Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-CA) brought up executive compensation and said while the industry executives are reaping huge bonuses on top of already huge salaries, the average American is struggling to get by and is concerned about home heating costs this winter.
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Lieberman Meets Judge Alito
By Tara Fehr
WASHINGTON, Nov. 8 - Judge Samuel Alito does not believe in ideological labels and calls himself a traditionalist who respects judicial precedents , Sen. Joseph Lieberman (D-Conn.) said after meeting Tuesday morning with the nominee for the Supreme Court.
"It was a good exchange," Lieberman said at a press conference after the meeting. "He is refreshingly willing to talk about his decisions." President Bush nominated Alito, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit for 15 years, by to replace the retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor..
According to Lieberman, Alito said that as a traditionalist he believed in "line-drawing on the circuit court," which was why he was the lone dissenter after Raymond Rybar appealed his conviction for violating federal firearm laws by selling submachine guns.
In his dissent, Alito wrote that federal firearm laws allowing the control of the sale of submachine guns exceeded congressional power under the commerce clause, which authorizes federal regulation of trade among the states.
When asked about his opinion of O'Connor's "undue burden test" in abortion cases, Lieberman said, Alito would not answer on the ground that he might face that decision in the Supreme Court.
But this is an issue that concerns many Democrats.
"There are important issues I hope that Judge Alito will answer during the confirmation process, including his thoughts on a woman's right to choose and a commitment to equal opportunity for all," Sen. Christopher J. Dodd (D-Conn.) said in a press release.
In 1997, Alito voted against Beryl Bray, a New Jersey woman who said a Marriott hotel did not promote her based on race. Alito wrote in his dissent that the hotel committed "minor inconsistencies" in its rules but did not act with intent to discriminate.
Lieberman said the nominee told him the decision, once again, was based on a "line-drawing theory," which is consistent with how he views the law.
Lieberman said Alito throughout the meeting stressed his respect for precedence, including Roe V. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision striking down restrictions on abortion. Lieberman said he left their meeting encouraged but added that the discussion was not conclusive and that the nomination process will be a challenge.
In the two months before Alito's Judiciary Committee hearing in January, Lieberman said he will read more of Alito's decisions and measure the nominee as a person.
"My mind remains open," Lieberman said.
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Lieberman is “Encouraged” After Meeting with Alito
By Mandy Kozar
WASHINGTON, Nov. 8-Sen. Joseph Lieberman, D-Conn., said he was "encouraged" after meeting Tuesday morning with Supreme Court nominee Samuel Alito, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit.
After talking with Alito for about 40 minutes, Lieberman told reporters that the meeting had gone very well but he still had a lot to do before making a final decision on the nomination.
"Judge Alito is very learned in the law, an impressive person," Lieberman said, "I thought that he was very refreshingly willing to talk about decisions that he has written, and while, obviously, would not say explicitly how he would rule in particular cases as a member of the Supreme Court, I thought we had a very good exchange."
Lieberman is a member of the "Gang of 14," seven Republicans and seven Democrats who are considered key votes on confirmation.
Alito, who was nominated to fill Sandra Day O'Connor's seat on the Supreme Court after Harriet Miers dropped out before Senate hearings began, has been meeting with senators since his nomination Oct. 31.
Since then, critics have accused Alito of being an extreme conservative and someone who would tip the court to the right on issues such as abortion.
"I'm disappointed that it appears President Bush chose to nominate a top choice of the extreme right rather than a mainstream jurist more in line with the views of the American people," Sen. Christopher Dodd, D-Conn., said in a press release.
Lieberman said that when he asked Alito to define his philosophy, the nominee called himself a "judicial traditionalist."
"I think a judicial traditionalist . speaks to a respect for precedent, a respect for constitutional traditions of the court," Lieberman said.
In responding to questions about Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court ruling striking down restrictions on abortion, Alito "basically said that Roe was precedent on which a lot of people rely and has been precedent now for decades and therefore deserves a great respect," said Lieberman, a supporter of abortion rights.
Abortion is likely to be an important issue in the Judiciary Committee hearings scheduled to begin in early January. As an appeals court judge, Alito ruled in 1991 that states should be allowed to require women to tell their husbands before they have an abortion.
The Supreme Court overturned the decision, with O'Connor providing the crucial fifth vote, applying the test of whether the requirement would impose an "undue burden" on women.
Lieberman said Alito refused to comment on the "undue burden" test because he might eventually have to rule on it if he is confirmed to the Supreme Court.
When asked if he would support a filibuster to block the nomination, Lieberman said he had not decided, adding that "this was an encouraging meeting but there are a lot of questions remaining, and I don't feel in a rush to make decision."
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Kennedy and Gregg Differ on Powell for Katrina Relief Coordinator
WASHINGTON, Nov. 2 - After joining forces several weeks ago to propose the appointment of a federal coordinator for the Gulf Coast reconstruction, Senators Judd Gregg (R-N.H.) and Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) have split over the man President Bush has tapped for the job: Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Donald Powell.
Kennedy said he was unhappy with the choice and described Powell's lack of disaster management experience as a liability.
"This appointment is business as usual and shows that the Gulf recovery is not a top priority for the president," Kennedy said in a press release. "Mr. Powell may be an accomplished banker and political fundraiser, but according to the Administration, he has no disaster-recovery experience. I find this terribly troubling -- especially given the tragic missteps of Michael Brown." In the face of criticism for his handling of the Hurricane Katrina recovery effort, Brown resigned as chief of the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
Gregg, however, said that although he has never worked with Powell, he expected him to be successful in his efforts to manage the hurricane recovery and enforce fiscal discipline on disaster spending.
"I don't think disaster experience is key," Gregg said. "I think management experience is key. It is appropriate that the President has moved fairly quickly to put in place someone with an accounting and auditing record."
Powell said he plans to resign from his post as chairman of the FDIC to focus on his new role in the Gulf Coast.
"In my role as FDIC chairman, I had the opportunity to tour the area and see firsthand what the communities in the Gulf region face," Powell said in press release. "I look forward to this new challenge and appreciate the trust that the President has in me."
Powell traveled to the Gulf Coast in September and helped coordinate the effort to restore banking operations. His extensive financial management experience will enable him to coordinate the activities of the federal, state and local agencies that will converge in the rebuilding of the region, according to FDIC spokesman David Barr.
"He will be able to navigate the bureaucratic roadblocks," Barr said. "He created two banks from scratch; he knows how to organize things."
Powell will be reporting to the president through Secretary of Homeland Security Michael Chertoff; an arrangement Kennedy has a problem with.
"I am also concerned that the person responsible for directing federal efforts will not be reporting directly to the president at a Cabinet-level position," Kennedy said. "As I have called for, the redevelopment efforts should be led by a nonpartisan leader, at the Cabinet level, who can cut through the red tape to ensure that federal funds are deployed swiftly, efficiently and effectively."
Gregg said that he thought Powell's financial management experience would be a boon in coordinating the work of the agencies working to rebuild the region.
"It is not so much that he needs to cut through the bureaucracy," Gregg said. "He needs to make it work for him."
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Security Threat Assessment Policy Threatens the Number of Hazardous Material Truck Drivers
By Tara Fehr
WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 - Consumers around the country could see a decline in soft drink, perfume, paint and nail polish products if trucking industries cannot find enough drivers to transport these items, which the government classifies as hazardous materials.
In January the Transportation Security Administration of the Department of Homeland Security implemented a new, fingerprint-based background check for drivers hauling hazardous materials, a move that has drawn criticism from the trucking industry.
With a name-based background check already in place, many within the industry see the fingerprint process as redundant and inconvenient, and, they argue, it could cut down on the number of available truckers..
Officials from the Transportation Security Agency estimate that requiring drivers to receive a "Determination of No Security Threat" notice from the department before renewing or getting a hazardous material permit may reduce the number of such drivers by 20 percent. But the trucking industry fears the decline will be much steeper.
"We estimate that number to be significantly higher based on experiences our fleets have been having with the drivers, now that this has been implemented," said Rich Moskowitz, regulatory affairs councilor for the American Trucking Association.
In order to transport hazardous materials drivers must obtain a transportation worker's identity card, which is only distributed after federal background checks. Industry members fear that when the estimated two million currently-licensed drivers need to renew their endorsements that they just won't bother acquiring the license.
"This is all designed in a way that kicks the driver in the head," Michael Riley, president of Connecticut's Motor Transport Association said. "I haven't heard that there's an effect on the employment rolls, but they're not working it in the right direction to keep people in the field."
In Connecticut, drivers pay a $90 fee and lose time from work because the state only has one fingerprinting site, a problem shared by many other states in the country.
Until last week, Connecticut had fingerprinting facilities in Rocky Hill and West Haven, but the motor vehicle department closed the West Haven site suddenly and without informing drivers of the change.
"Drivers went there to be fingerprinted and were told 'we're not doing this anymore,'" Riley said. "We're trying to figure out what happened, why it happened and what we need to do to fix it."
One potential solution is to narrow the definition of hazardous materials. Syrup for soda, paint, batteries, perfume and nail polish are among many everyday products that the government classifies as hazardous.
"We think that background checks should be required only for drivers who are transporting hazardous materials that can be easily converted into a weapon," Moskowitz said.
Instead, the costs and inconvenience of the program are causing drivers to avoid seeking hazardous material endorsements.
"Companies are beginning to see their number of hazmat-endorsed drivers go down, which diminishes its ability to haul hazmat," Stephen Russell, chairman and CEO of the Celadon Group, told a recent congressional hearing, speaking on behalf of the American Trucking Association.
As of Nov. 1, Connecticut has 15,686 hazardous material endorsed drivers, as compared to the 16,088 endorsed drivers earlier this year, said Bill Seymour, director of communication for the Connecticut Department of Motor Vehicles.
Riley said he has not seen this impact in Connecticut yet, but he would not be surprised.
"We're having a very difficult time finding drivers," he said. "We want only the best drivers operating cargo that's hazardous and we should be working hard to make this a convenient program."
Under the current statute, states and the industry have little flexibility when complying with the new program, but department members have expressed a willingness to work on its policy.
"We welcome the opportunity to look at how we conduct background checks," Justin Oberman, TSA assistant director of transportation of threat assessment and credentialing, said at the hearing Tuesday.
But this can only happen if Congress changes the statute. In the meantime, the industry hopes that the policy does not spur a further decline in drivers.
"Truck drivers are resilient people," Riley said. "They just do what they have to do."
New Hampshire Lawmakers Seek More Special Ed Funding
WASHINGTON, Nov. 4 - Three decades ago, Congress approved landmark legislation aimed at improving the educational opportunities for children with disabilities. But the law has never been funded to the level originally promised.
Now, the members of New Hampshire's congressional delegation are pushing for Congress to finally fully fund the program.
The 1975 Individuals with Disabilities Education Act promised that 40 percent of the additional cost of educating these students would come from federal funding. However the federal government has never funded more than 18 percent of those additional costs in the 30 years since the act was passed. And from 1975 until 1995 the funding level actually hovered under six percent.
"There is no program that impacts local school districts more than the cost of special education," said Congressman Charles Bass (R-N.H.), a long-time advocate of increased federal funding for special education. "This authorization mandate, passed so many years ago in Congress, is still valid and needs to be met -- the promise needs to be kept. If there ever was an unfunded mandate that has not been met it is this one in terms of both its cost as well as its importance."
Under the leadership of Sen. Judd Gregg (R-N.H.), who then chaired the Senate education committee, Congress in 2004 reauthorized the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, overhauling it and promising full funding by 2011. But even with the 2004 legislation, Bass believes that additional measures will be necessary to get full funding by the date promised.
Bass introduced a bill on June 30 to fully fund special education and ensure that the federal government would be paying the full 40 percent by 2011. The bill would mandate annual increases in the funding so that the federal government would have to meet its promise to local school districts.
"That would certainly have a significant impact on every school district in the state," Bass said.
Currently there are concerns among both Republicans and Democrats about the federal deficit and the increases in federal spending for both Iraq and for hurricane relief.
"This was why the bill that Mr. Bass has introduced lays out a plan to provide full funding over time," said Alissa Southworth, spokesperson for Bass. "It sets us on the path to full funding by 2011 with spending increasing incrementally."
Jamie Hopkins, the president-elect of Council for Exceptional Children, an international organization focused on improving education for students with disabilities, recently met with members of the House to discuss her concerns over the current low levels of federal funding for special education.
"It continues to put a great burden on school districts that end up having to take funds away from students in general education in order to pay for special education and that's very frustrating," Hopkins said. "Some children are missing out on what they need. It's really becoming very stressful to get the money in order to educate our kids."
New Hampshire Senators John Sununu and Gregg have both supported funding for the program in New Hampshire. Sununu, who served three terms in the House before being elected to the Senate, has played an integral role in funding increases from $2 billion in Fiscal Year 1997 to approximately $10.5 billion in Fiscal Year 2005 for the Individuals with Disabilities Education program.
Because of the continually increasing cost of special education the burden on New Hampshire's tax payers has consistently risen since the law was first passed. Since it was first enacted, the percentage of those enrolled in special education, served by Part B of the law and identified as having learning disabilities, increased, the Department of Education reported to Congress in 1994.
Part B is the section of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act that funds the services for children ages three to 21. Under Part B, data is collected concerning children educated between those ages.
The report noted that between 1976 and 1994, those identified as having learning disabilities under Part B of IDEA has increased from 23.8 percent to 51.1 percent of all students with disabilities. Since 1994, that number has continued to grow. The cause for these increases continues to be debated.
"There are medical procedures and diagnoses and assessments in medicine that are more efficient and effective in identifying the incidence of a disability or a disease so that over a period of time it's higher -- not necessarily because the incidence is higher, but because of their being better at diagnosing what is there," said Robert Wells, education consultant in the Bureau for Special Education in New Hampshire.
Medical advances and the increase in the ability to identify learning disabilities are two of the most frequently mentioned reasons for increases in the percentage of students identified as having learning disabilities. However, there is some speculation that the extra funding given to special education may have affected the increase as well.
"Where there is not money to provide appropriate education for everybody, kids get identified as having special needs," said Wells. "If there was more money for just good education, certified teachers, qualified people, a lot of the kids that get identified as having learning disabilities wouldn't even pop up on the radar screen.
Bruce Thielen, the director of special education for SAU 29 in New Hampshire, has been following the percentage increase since he began working there in 1989.
"In 1988-89, 8.9 percent of our students were classified as disabled and now it is close to 17 percent," Thielen said. "That's a huge increase."
Thielen also recognizes that there are a variety of factors affecting the increase, including more thorough medical assessments and a greater awareness in the average population of individual learning disabilities. He too has seen the increase affected by those interested in the additional funding provided in special education programs.
"There is some influence of entitlement, feelings of entitlement, like if special ed has the money and if my kid is classified - it could be a mild disability-- but if he was classified as disabled, then he could tap in to some of those services," Thielen said.
As the percentage of special education students, and consequently the increase in funding for those students, continues to rise, New Hampshire's lawmakers understand the burden the law, also called IDEA, has placed on local school districts in their state.
"There is no greater priority for New Hampshire's schools than to fully fund the federal share of IDEA, and I will continue the fight to ensure Congress fulfills the commitment it made nearly 30 years ago," Sununu said in a press release. "When full federal funding of IDEA is achieved, local communities will once again be in the position to utilize critical local resources on important initiatives such as structural improvements to schools, technology upgrades, or to hire new teachers, rather than paying for the federal government's share of special education costs."
While there has been significant improvement, it is currently projected that the federal funding for special education for next year will not be more than 18.6 percent, not even half of what was promised in 1975.
"I know there are a lot of needs right now and Congress is really being pulled in many different directions as far as even helping pay for the victims of the hurricanes, but at the same time we're not talking about legislation that was passed just a couple of years ago," the Council for Exceptional Children's Hopkins said . "We've been going on for 30 years like this."
