Is It Time For Vermont to Take Control of Our Landlines?

Let me be one of the first Vermonters to jump on the "I told you so" bandwagon. Many folks wiser and dumber than I called this one from the start. The original idea defied logic. Verizon, with their internet and mobile business thriving, decided that it was a good idea to get out of the declining landline business. So, they sold the landlines to a much smaller company with far fewer financial resources. If Verizon couldn't make those lines profitable, how could a reasonable person believe that Fairpoint could turn a profit?

One of the major sticking points with either company has been the rolling out of all services to all rural areas. Verizon had made all kinds of promises to the PSB to gain rate hikes. Everytime they wanted to raise rates they promised to do more towards the goal of ruralfication. Verizon never met these goals and when it came time to pony up, they bailed. Surprisingly, Fairpoint made more promises in order to get approval of the Verizon buyout deal. Now it appears that they too will be bailing out on these promises.

This whole folly raises two strongly conflicting questions. First off, I'd like to know what jokers in Montpelier keep taking these promises hook, line and sinker? If someone (presumably) less educated and as out of the loop as I am could see this coming, why couldn't our elected/appointed officials see this and put their foot down before it happened? How hard is it to call obvious BS? Isn't the proof in the pudding? Who exactly is responsible for buying into these lies and why do they still have a job? These are questions that need answers. Before everyone jumps onto the blame the PSB bandwagon, lets not forget all the smoke and mirrors about "Ruralfication" we've heard from Washington and the Douglas administration.

Ok, so I admit that was a whole bunch of questions that were raised, but they are related and lead up to the second bigger question.

Should the state step in and take control or outright ownership of the landlines as a part of critical infrastructure? Before you scoff at such a huge expenditure in such harsh financial times, consider the fact that there are reasons that our sewer and water lines are not privatized. These are basic services that should not be impeded by profiteering. If no company will step in and deliver because it's not profitable, maybe we should do it ourselves. Perhaps there are Federal funds available to assist in the transition. As I recall, this was one of the many planks in the Obama presidential campaign. Why do people in larger areas have fiber optic cable right to their home and businesses while people in rural areas have 1950's copper wire technology to their's? Because it's not profitable. As our rural state struggles to compete for jobs, can we afford to be at a disadvantage because of inferior infrastructure?

Let's face it, we've been held hostage by one company or another since the dawn of time. Ok, so at least since the dawn of the Bell monopoly. Perhaps now is the appropriate time to take control of our own future. Many will point to the successes of the city of Burlington as they've wrested control of essential services as one company after another failed to deliver. There are already efforts underway to deliver high speed internet to several counties in the southeast portion of the state. These communities have taken it upon themselves to bring high speed to their towns because the phone company (insert name here) hasn't delivered the promised coverages.

Of course all of this crap has gone on directly under the noses of several administrations of both political flavors. Call me skeptical for doubting the ability of the pinheads in Montpelier to agree on a good solution that makes a real difference. I've sat and watched us all get the shaft for years. It makes sense for the state to end this once and for all by taking control and eventually return the control of local services to the local municipalities. I'd be be happy to pay for the actual use of communications services just like I pay for the actual use of water. When I have a service problem I can call someone local and someone that has filled the newly created local jobs will have been dispatched to my home to do the repair.

I know there will be some who cry socialism and other such ballyhoo, but haven't we endured enough. All we're really looking for is the ability to be connected to the rest of the world with a technology from this century. Apparently, that's too much too ask. My guess is that we will remain on the short end of the stick unless we do something drastic to change the way these services are delivered and maintained.

Is it time for Vermont to Privatize Rest Areas?

The Douglas Administration will permanently close three interstate rest areas that were temporarily closed earlier this month.

The facilities in Highgate and Hartford and the southbound rest area in Sharon will either be torn down or sold. We should emphasize it's the southbound Sharon rest area-- not the northbound which is a memorial to Vietnam Vets.

The Randolph rest area will close later this month but will re-open next year. And in July the state plans to reduce the hours of operation at the state's 17 other rest areas.

This plan is expected to save the state $1.5 million a year."

Rest Area Closures Permanent

Here we go with another round of Rest Area roulette. Whenever the budget gets tight the first thing the politicians go to cut are the rest areas. When times get better they are then the first ones to lament the disadvantage we are put at when we don't have rest areas to direct travellers to local attractions. There seems to be no consistentcy on this issue and it appears to transcend party lines. When you think it couldn't get any more bizarre, we spend enough on the Veterans Rest Area to renovate the rest of the existing rest areas.

I would like to put forth the notion that the state has had enough chances to screw this simple task up. We live in a state with a tourism driven economy and we can't seem to all get on the same page to point travellers in the right direction. When you visit other states, it's easy to see how we've missed the boat. I think that we could partner with the private sector or simply put it out to bid and get far better results at a better cost to the businesses and taxpayers of the state. Closing more rest areas simply isn't a good return on our already stretched dollar.

Vermont OKs the Creation of Virtual Corporations

On June 6th, Gov. Jim Douglas signed an inauspicious-sounding bill entitled “H.0888, Miscellaneous Tax Documents” that could revolutionize the way startup companies are formed and run. As New York Law School professor David Johnson explained to me, up until now, U.S. law required LLCs to have physical headquarters, in-person board meetings and other regulations that have little relevance in the digital age.

No longer. Under the new law, for example, a board meeting may be conducted “in person or through the use of [an] electronic or telecommunications medium.” A “‘virtual company’ will be, as a legal matter, a Vermont limited liability company,” said Johnson. And other states are required to recognize the corporation as a legitimate LLC. So while in the past many companies registered in Delaware to take advantage of that state’s business-friendly policies, with this law, Internet-driven startups may find Vermont even more ideal.

Vermont OKs the Creation of Virtual Corporations

This appears to be along the fuzzy business lines like the "captive insurance" industry. A lot of revenue flows through these corporations, and a tiny percentage stays in the state. I think Vermont needs to create whatever business advatages it can, to bring new revenues to the state. We should also be focusing on attracting green technology businesses, but our digital infrastructure is ancient or non-existient. So far the private sector has been unable or unwilling to bring us out of the information stone age. Perhaps it is time for the state to find the funds and a partner to provide statewide broadband and cellular coverage. The only way we can retain our way of life is by being connected to the rest of the world in order to compete in the global marketplace.

Should Vermont Schools be Teaching Internet Safety?

Virginia is the first state to put Internet safety classes into action as being mandatory, but Texas and Illinois have also passed legislation to have some form of classes in the near future. Judi Westberg Warren of Web Wise Kids, a non-profit organization providing free lessons to schools to teach 11 to 16-year-olds about Web safety, said that other states are also considering similar legislation. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children estimated that in 2006, 13% of children between the ages of 10 an 17 that were online had received unwanted sexual advances, and 4% of those children had been asked for sexually explicit or naked photos of themselves.

The Virginia program is attempting to safeguard the children by educating the students as well as the parents. To the children, they are trying to explain never to meet anyone you meet solely online, as well as trying to remember that anything you post today could come back to haunt you years from now when applying to a university or a job. For the parents, they are trying to explain that they should install filtering software as well keeping computers in common areas of the home so they can monitor their child’s activities while online.

Virginia Schools Start To Teach Internet Safety

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I think it would be a wise choice to enact a program like this in Vermont. Kids and parents should be alarmed at the amount of sleaze on the internet. Many kids are exposed to crap and never tell an adult. This makes it difficult to get accurate data. I would bet that the numbers are probably higher. I've seen most everything on the web there is to see, but every once in a while a teenager will out do me with a ..."check this out!". I'm always amazed at the maturity of some of the subject matter, but honestly, it's usually pretty funny...

If courses in school do nothing more than raise awareness of internet safety and security, they have done a great deal. It's amazing how many people are oblivious to any level of protection beyond what came on their computer out of the box. By keeping trends and issues at the front of an educational program, it would help insulate our real world lives from the net world by adding a layer of education to protect us all.

Industrial Hemp Bill Moves To The Vermont Senate

On Thursday, February 7th, the Vermont House of Representatives passed the Hemp for Vermont bill, with overwhelming support. The vote was 127 to 9! The bill will now pass on to the Vermont Senate where one would expect it will pass. If you would like to read the bill in its present iteration, you can read it at the Hemp Saves the World blog.

I'm glad to see some common sense eminating from Montpelier. This bill paves the way for another business opportunity other than tourism. Our climate is excellent for the production of industrial hemp. Look at how good the non-industrial variety has been grown here...(lol).
The more diversity in agribusiness we have, the better off our economy will be. Once again, Vermonters have the gumption to directly thumb their collective noses at ridiculous Federal regulations. Three cheers for the legislature! I wonder what the opinion of our Congressional delegation in Washington is? Will they support the legislature? Where does the Chamber of Commerce stand on this?
It should be an interesting State vs The Feds battle. My guess is that the Bush DOJ will take the fight to the Federal courts and other Federal agencies will threaten to cut funding. They'll do anything they can get away with to bolster their support of the so-called "war on drugs". George washington and Thomas Jefferson (both hemp farmers) will be rolling in their graves....

Statewide VT Broadband Closer to Reality

Using Burlington Telecom's municipal broadband network as a model, 22 rural Vermont towns are poised to pool their resources and launch a fiber-optic project that could go online by the end of 2009. Steve Willbanks, chairman of the Strafford Selectboard and a key player in the emerging network, said commercial broadband providers could not meet the needs of rural Vermonters.

"These fiber-optic connections are absolute necessities; not luxuries," he said. "We need them for our economical and cultural development. We've had seasonal residents tell us they'd move here in a heartbeat; they'd telecommute if they had access to broadband.

Read the original article at Burlington Free Press.com

I love it when things I've been saying for years come closer to reality. The telecos and cable companies have been screwing us rural Vermonters for years now. There are many areas of Vermont that still don't have cable television, never mind broadband internet. Any number of utility companies could have invested some of the millions they've made by providing crappy service over the years. Instead they relied on bogus arguments and empty promises to shun people who simply want access to services that so called "third world countries" already provide at a much cheaper cost. The infrastructure is already, for the most part, in place. Verizon could have upgraded their central offices around the state to provide statewide DSL, Green Mountain Power could have rolled out BPL service and the cable companies could have been far more agressive in running the cable to provide broadband service. Instead they've complained about the costs of doing this in the same breath they ask for rate increases.
I think the Public Service Board has dropped the ball in a major way in this regard. It would have been easy for them to freeze rate increases until these companies show some real progress in adressing the issues. Instead, they chose to approve rate increases with conditional empty promisies from theses crooks. Now, we have Verizon pulling out of the land line business in Northern New England altogether, when for years they have been promising to provide statewide broadband services as well as statewide cell phone services. What's their excuse for not investing? "It's no longer profitable" is the answer they give. Sure, now that they've milked every last penny they can out of us and broken every promise made to regulators, they want to get out. As they pass off their crappy, ancient network to Fairpoint, they are delivering fiber optic FIOS service to the rest of New England. I have yet to hear them complain about the cost of doing this. Go figure.
The cable companies haven't faired much better. At the rate they are rolling out service to rural communities, I'll be dead and so will you. Again, they've made broken promise after broken promise. The end result is that there is no competition for them and they like it that way. They continue to fight any stipulation that would require them to lease, at a reasonable rate, their network to competitors. This stipulation has been hung around the neck of Verizon since the break-up of the baby Bells. The end result has been lower prices and competition for our telephone services. Fairpiont has had to follow these rules as well, and they still believe they can be profitable and competitive in the phone service arena, but if deep-pocketed Verizon and the cable companies have been unable or unwilling to make this investment, one has to seriously question the ability of a much smaller company like Fairpoint to make good on the promises to provide statewide broadband. I wish them luck, tempered with a healthy dose of pessimism.
The naysayers that are against municipal broadband always have the same arguments. "This is socialism" and "Let the market dictate who gets broadband". The reality is that we are left without any viable commercial solution. This is not an opinion, it's a fact. The commercial intrests are just not interested in being the savior of half a million rural customers. The state of Vermont needs to be competitive in attracting jobs and agressive in promoting the quality of life we have here. That is an impossible task if we are stuck without a level playing field. If you're looking to relocate your company, are you going to choose a state where the basic infrastructre to run your business is non-existent or are you going to choose the state where your employees can have fiber run to their home. The rural beauty of Vermont is very attractive to corporations who would like to offer this as an alternative to grid-lock and urban sprawl, but moving here is simply impossible to sustain their business. The fact that, in this day and age, we don't have the basics has got to be a major concern as they look to future growth.
I would encourage everyone to support the current program being proposed by the East Central Vermont Community Fiber Network and tell your local lawmakers that you would support a similar statewide program. As usual, we are left to solve our problems ourselves. Perhaps some day the corporate bean-counters will realize that there are a half a million customers in Vermont who simply want the same services that are available to people in the more populated regions of the country. What's more, we don't expect it to be free, we're willing to pay for it!

Here is an interesting link that explains some of the technical details as well as some of the costs involved. It also discusses some other places with similar programs already in place.

http://www.dailywireless.org/2007/11/14/city-fiber-networks/

Cheney/Bush Impeachers May Be On To Something...

In a story reminiscent of Watergate, a new report shows that emails are missing from the Vice-President's office. The emails in question relate to the Valerie Plame CIA outing case. In total there are 16 days where email correspondence from Cheney's office are "missing" despite an order from Attorney General Alberto Gonzalez to preserve all materials that may relate to the Plame case. The first day of email missing is in fact the day after Cheney learned of the DOJ investigation.

The White House said in a court filing last week that backup tapes, which contained archived copies of the e-mails, were recycled as part of a policy the White House had in place until October 2003. Ironically, Cheney's office is missing emails from the very day President Bush told reporters he'd "take care of" whatever staff member had actually leaked the CIA agent's name.

"If there is a leak out of my administration, I want to know who it is," Bush said Sept. 30, 2003. "And if the person has violated the law, the person will be taken care of." As you may recall, Scooter Libby was convicted of obstruction charges and lying to investigators.

All in all, some 473 days of emails are missing from various Administration departments, according to a House Democrat who saw a White House presentation on the files.

Read More : The Raw Story Email missing from Cheney's office

Originally, I was eager to dismiss the folks in Brattleboro, VT who wanted to have Bush and Cheney arrested if they stood foot in their town as "wacko fringies". But, as this story takes on more Watergate-esque proportions, one has to take pause and consider whether or not this cover-up involves the entire senior White House staff including Cheney and Bush. I mean come on, the "oops I erased the tapes by accident" didn't work for Nixon. What makes the White House think were going to believe the same bullshit story some 35 years later? The severity of the Plame case's ramifications are questionable, but the extent of the cover-up seems to be growing more legs everyday.

If Clinton gets brought up on impeachment charges for getting a hummer in the White House, surely this cover-up warrants a much closer look and yes...perhaps impeachment.

Get to Know Barak Obama...

I've been looking to gain insight into the candidates on both sides of the aisle. I started with Barak Obama because he seemed to the most compelling candidate for real change. He also seems to be gaining Howard Dean-like momentum with the younger age groups and grass roots internet types. Unlike Dean, Obama seems to be more well accepted by Democrats as a whole. Even many hard-line party old timers will concede that Obama is a "real" and viable candidate. Many of them will hold off a whole scale endorsement until they see what he can do in the primaries.

Obama has not only succeeded in reaching the well-entrenched folks in his own party, but he also has proven his ability to reach out "accross the aisle" in a way that siphons some moderate Republicans over to his side. This fact was yet again demonstrated in Iowa where he beat Hillary by getting the young vote and the crossover voted. It's these two categories that put him over the top.

The real question now is, "Can Barak Obama Sustain the Momentum?". Obviously time will tell. As we wind through the political season and approach the Vermont Primaries, this blogger (and many others) will be watching them all to see who can close the gap that has been widening between us, fueled by stupid crap like Monicagate and The Contract with America.

I hope that this election cycle brings us a closing of the chasm that has divided us for so long....



Read More at Newsweek.com

Enviro-Friendly Floor Coatings From Vermont

As a Vermonter I recently discovered this unique product, and now it is garnering more media attention. Kudos to this great VT company! This is yankee ingenuity at it's finest. It never ceases to amaze me the ideas Vermonters come up with. It must be the long winters....

Read More Here at Treehugger.com

Students at Vermont Law School should join this fight...

A small university legal clinic in Maine is about to cause a revolution in the P2P filesharing war launched by Warner Music, EMI, Vivendi Universal and Sony BMG.

“In what’s probably a world’s first, not lawyers, but student attorneys at the University of Maine School of Law’s Cumberland Legal Aid Clinic have themselves taken up the fight on behalf of fellow students.

Maine law students vs the RIAA

This a great idea that may well thwart the draconian tactics of the RIAA folks. It would be great to see similar programs take root in other states as well. Like Vermont, many states have a multitude of programs with young, eager, net-savy law students looking to get their feet wet in real world cases. A program like this would tap into the youthful energy of a generation of kids who have grown up on the web. I would venture a bet that more kids have participated in file sharing than have smoked marijuana. This generation views the web as theirs, and they will be loathe to let outsiders ruin the free wheeling nature of the net as we now know it.

Of course in the end, the reality is that this rush to claim this fight as theirs, will end in a resolution somewhat short of what they might envision. But hey...that's all part of growing up.....

Vermont town seeks Bush, Cheney arrests

"Vermont town seeks Bush, Cheney arrests"
By Dave Gram / Associated Press

MONTPELIER, Vt. - President Bush may soon have a new reason to avoid left-leaning Vermont: In one town, activists want him subject to arrest for war crimes.
A group in Brattleboro is petitioning to put an item on a town meeting agenda in March that would make Bush and Vice President Cheney subject to arrest and indictment if they visit the southeastern Vermont community."

http://www.michaelmoore.com/words/latestnews/index.php?id=10614


While I'm generally suspect of anything I read on Michael Moore's website, I had also heard this on the local news as well. Once I was able to contain my gleeful giggling, I found myself amused, yet a bit disturbed. Then I realized that I was more pissed off that Bush has never been here in 8 years than I was about the concept of this ballot initiative.

Ok, I get why he isn't chomping at the bit to visit us, but if I were Republican Governor Jim Douglas, I would be fairly well insulted by this. Is Bush afraid that Howard Dean will jump out of the bushes and give him a "shout"? Granted most people in Vermont don't care for Bush, but there are folks that support his administration. I'm just not sure where they are...

If they want to issue a warrant for their arrest in Brattleboro, I say go for it....I don't think they'll get too far!

The Night Before Christmas

Unhappy customer strikes back at Comcast

A NEW AMERICAN HERO

"Hammer time! That's what it was when 75 year old Mona Shaw returned to her local Comcast office a few days after she spent two hours waiting outside for a manager and then was told he had left for the day..."



I can feel this woman's pain. I was in a KeyBank in Barre, VT and needed to make change for two fifty dollar bills. The lady asked me if I had an account with them. When I told her I didn't, she informed me that she couldn't make change! It was then it dawned on me that the last time I had been here, they wanted to charge me $5 to cash a check that was drawn on their bank! I'm dumbfounded by the logic here. There is a Community Bank accross the street (that gladly made change for me) and a Northfield Savings Bank next door...it's a good thing I don't own a hammer!

Unhappy customer strikes back at Comcast

Disabled woman wants seeing-eye horse

A Warren, VT woman is fighting to have her landlord accomodate her service animal which just happens to be a horse. Patty Cooper's service animal is a horse of a different color: a black and white miniature horse, to be exact. She thinks she should be allowed to have this animal under the laws regarding persons with disabilities....an interesting premise, but hardly practical.

Disabled woman wants service animal of a different color: Times Argus Online

Wave power device gets in water in Oregon

Finavera Renewables, the Canadian company that wants to harness wind and wave power, has successfully deployed a prototype of its AquaBuoy 2.0 two and a half miles off the coast of Oregon.
Waves push the AquaBuoy up and down in the water. The motion puts pressure on a hydraulic fluid. The pressurized fluid then turns a turbine, which creates electricity.

This looks to be a new, promising alternative energy technology...

Wave power device gets in water in Oregon

Ex-VP Mondale accuses Cheney of power grab

Vice President Dick Cheney has presided over an unprecedented power grab during his six years in the White House, former Vice President Walter Mondale wrote in a rare, scathing critique Sunday.

"The real question is why the president allows this to happen," Mondale writes.

I think its about time somebody calls it like it is...I just never thought it would be Walter Mondale! He must have been inspired by Gerald Ford's parting shots...

Ex-VP Mondale accuses Cheney of power grab

Pillowfights Are Breaking Out Across Vermont!

I saw this post from Cathy Resmer at Seven Days. A pillow fight broke out in Brattleboro and another is apparently scheduled for July 28th in Montpelier. ...I can hardly wait!

I got on the Adam Schein video mailbag!

I had recently emailed Fox Sports NFL writer Adam Schein about the QB situation in Minnesota. Toward the end of the segment he responds to my question and gives a shout out for Vermont fans.

See the Segment Here!

Camera Trap Captures Three-legged Sumatran Tiger

Just in case the kid that killed the peacock wasn't enough to make you question the actions of humans, you can sink your teeth into this gem...

Camera trap captures three-legged Sumatran tiger

Pea-brained teen is sought in S.I. fowl play

A wild peacock wandering Staten Island was brutally stomped by a deranged teenager and had to be euthanized, authorities said yesterday.
"I'm killing a vampire!" the suspect bragged maniacally as witnesses tried to stop him from attacking the beautiful bird .....

This is just a reminder for us all what a wonderful world we live in....

Pea-brained teen is sought in S.I. fowl play