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Raymond Hearn of Springfield installed as new Wilbraham postmaster

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Prior to his current assignment, Hearn was supervisor of customer services in Springfield.

Raymond Hearn 51112.jpgRaymond H. Hearn

WILBRAHAM - Raymond H. Hearn of Springfield was installed Friday as the new Wilbraham postmaster at a ceremony at Post Office Park.

District Manager Kimberly J. Peters administered the oath of office, while Hearn’s close friend, Elizabeth Ruetsch, who traveled from San Francisco to attend the ceremony, held the bible.

The Rev. Joseph Sorrano, pastor of St. Cecilia’s Church in Wilbraham, said the benediction.

Hearn said he is very happy with his new assignment.

“I like the Wilbraham community and hope to have a strong presence here,” Hearn said. He added, “I have many family ties here in Wilbraham and hope to serve this community to the best of my ability.”

Hearn began his postal career in 1993 as a mail handler and was promoted to supervisor of delivery operations in 2000 and then to supervisor of customer services in 2001.

He has served as officer in charge of several offices, and prior to his current assignment, was supervisor of customer services in Springfield.

As postmaster, Hearn will oversea approximately 50 employees who sort and deliver more than 16.5 million pieces of mail each year.

Hearn is the 27th postmaster to be named in Wilbraham.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.


Stock market decline is muted despite bank slump

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JPMorgan's surprise $2 billion trading loss prompted a sell-off in financial stocks.

By JOSHUA FREED | AP Business Writer

051012 jp morgan chase.JPGAutomobiles pass a JP Morgan Chase building Thursday, May 10, 2012, in New York. JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, said Thursday that it lost $2 billion in the past six weeks in a trading portfolio designed to hedge against risks the company takes with its own money. The company's stock plunged almost 7 percent in after-hours trading after the loss was announced. Other bank stocks, including Citigroup and Bank of America, suffered heavy losses as well. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)

JPMorgan's surprise $2 billion trading loss prompted a sell-off in financial stocks Friday, with smaller declines across the broader market as investors decided this was more of a problem for investment banks than for other industries.

Most of the 10 industries in the Standard & Poor's 500 index were flat or posted modest declines; financial stocks fell 1.1 percent.

For that, the other investment banks could thank JPMorgan, America's biggest bank. The stock plunged 9.3 percent, dragging other banks with big Wall Street operations down with it. Morgan Stanley fell 4.2 percent and Goldman Sachs fell 3.9 percent. Citigroup fell 4.2 percent.

Retail-focused banks fared better. Wells Fargo edged up 0.4 percent.

JPMorgan's blunder comes in the midst of a political battle over how closely to regulate banks, though JP Morgan's CEO Jamie Dimon said the trades would not have been affected by the so-called Volcker rule, expected to take effect this summer. Still, the $2 billion loss is sure to be used as ammunition by those pushing for tighter regulation of investment banks.

"It'll definitely have a political impact," said Randy Warren, chief investment officer for Warren Financial Service.

The Dow Jones industrial average fell 34.44 points to close at 12,920.60. It had waffled around with small gains and losses throughout most of the day before settling into the red in the afternoon.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index fell 4.60 points to close at 1,353.39. The Nasdaq composite index, which is heavily weighted with technology stocks, was up 0.18 points to 2,933.82.

Microsoft and Intel both rose 1.4 percent after Intel told analysts that it is on track to meet sales expectations. Tech investors were relieved to hear that one day after Cisco Systems prompted selling in tech shares by being pessimistic about sales. Semiconductor maker Nvidia jumped 6.4 percent after reporting revenue that was higher than analysts were expecting.

Some consumer discretionary stocks did well, with retailer Bed Bath & Beyond jumping 4.1 percent, one of the biggest gains in the S&P 500 index, and video streaming and DVD-by-mail company Netflix rose 6.9 percent.

Pharmacy benefits manger Express Scripts rose 1.4 percent after it reported prescription growth in its first quarter since splitting with drugstore chain Walgreen.

Verizon and AT&T each rose about 1.5 percent after Credit Suisse analyst Jonathan Chaplin raised his earnings estimates for this year and next. They're making phone upgrades more expensive for customers, which should help the phone companies' bottom lines, Chaplin wrote.

Also Friday, the Labor Department said that the producer price index, which measures price changes before they reach the consumer, dropped 0.2 percent last month. It was the first decline since December and the biggest drop since October. Declines were driven by gas and energy prices. That's good news for consumer spending.

Separately, a closely watched measure of consumer confidence from the University of Michigan released Friday morning was better than analysts had expected. The index was at its highest level since January 2008.

Oil prices fell 95 cents to $96.13 per barrel. Gold fell $11.50 to $1,584 per ounce.

In Europe, France's CAC 40 index recovered from a slump and closed with a minuscule loss. Other markets also rallied into the close. Britain's FTSE 100 ended up 0.6 percent and Germany's DAX rose 1 percent; both were lower earlier in the day. Borrowing costs for Germany and France fell, while costs for Italy and Spain rose as investors remain focused on Greece, where another general election is expected for next month following the failure of attempts to form a government.

Oscar Hill, 47, charged with stealing copper pipes from vacant home in East Springfield

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Hill was arrested after neighbors on Davis Street called the police to report an unknown man had just broken into an empty house and emerged carrying some copper pipes.

oscar hillOscar Hill

SPRINGFIELD - Police arrested a 47-year-old city man Thursday, charging him in connection with the theft of metal pipes from an vacant house on Davis Street in East Springfield.

Oscar D. Hill of 108 Lawton St. was charged with breaking and entering with intent to commit a felony, destruction of property and larceny in excess of $250.

Hill was arrested after neighbors on Davis Street called the police to report an unknown man had just broken into an empty house and emerged carrying some copper pipes, said Sgt. John Delaney, aide to Police Commissioner William Fitchet.

The neighbors gave police a detailed description of the man and his Volvo station wagon.

Officers Mark Kenney and Thomas Douglas of the ordinance squad drove to R&R Industries on Rocus Street to see if someone matching that description had gone there to sell the pipes. When the arrived, Hill was still there, having just sold a batch of copper pipes for $201.

He was taken into custody, and police confiscated the metal, his payment from R&R Industries, and his car.

At his arraignment Friday in Springfield District Court, Hill denied the charges. He was ordered held in lieu of $2,500 cash bail. He is due back in court on June 7.

Delaney gave credit to the neighbors who called the police after noticing suspicious activity. “It was a great job by the public and police.”


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State rejects insurance rate increase for home, condominium and renters in high-risk pool

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Under the proposal, Springfield would have received a 9-percent rate increase, Chicopee and Holyoke a 1.6 percent increase and the rest of Hampden County 1.5 percent.

jmurphy2011.jpgJoseph G. Murphy

Massachusetts residents who have to buy their homeowners, condominium or renter’s insurance through the state’s high-risk pool won’t see a price hike at least for now.

The state Division of Insurance rejected Friday a proposal from the Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriters Association , which runs the FAIR Plan, for an average 7.2-percent premium hike across the state.

The previous rates, an average of $1,615 for homeowners, renter’s and condominium policies, will remain in place until the comes back with another rate plan that meets with the state’s approval, said Joseph G. Murphy, state commissioner of insurance.

He said FAIR rates are figured by location. Springfield , New Bedford and Worcester were in for a 9-percent rate hike. Rates would have gone up 1.6 percent in Chicopee and Holyoke and 1.5 percent in Hampden County communities that are not Chicopee, Holyoke or Springfield.

High-risk property insurance pools like FAIR started in the late 1960s after regular insurers stopped writing coverage in urban areas for fear of riots and arson, Murphy said. In Massachusetts, FAIR is often the only option available to people living in coastal areas, including Cape Cod and the islands, where insurers fear floods and wind damage.

With about 200,150 policies with the FAIR plan, Murphy said. It’s about 13 or 14 percent of the market making it the state’s largest issuer of home insurance.

Executives at Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriters Association didn’t return calls for comment Friday afternoon.

According to documents provided by Murphy, the Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriters Association based its argument for higher rates in part on meteorological models that show an increased risk of damage from hurricanes. But Murphy said that Massachusetts Property Insurance Underwriters Association didn’t include enough information to back up its contention.

David M. Hess, an agent with Southwick Insurance, said some people end up turning to FAIR because they have a dog that might be considered a high risk.

Murphy said risks also extend to in-ground swimming pools or trampolines.

Insurance rates for everyone, auto property and homeowners, are inching upwards due to the high number of claims field here last year. But Murphy said it should take years to feel the impact of the tornadoes, Hurricane Irene and the October snow storm and the snowstorms in February 2011. It shouldn’t happen all at once.

Hess said reinsurance is also driving up costs. Reinsurance is the process of insurance companies paying to insure themselves against excessive loss, is getting more expensive due to the financial markets.

Ted Koppel at UMass graduation: Seek more substance than what's in a tweet

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"At this critical juncture in your lives, then, let me urge you – no, let me implore you – to want more," Koppel told the UMass-Amherst Class of 2012.

Television journalist Ted Koppel was the keynote speaker and received a honorary degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst during the 2012 commencement on Friday afternoon.

AMHERST — Newsman Ted Koppel implored University of Massachusetts Class of 2012 graduates Friday to want more substance about important issues, more substantial than the information provided from the fleeting and brief Twitter.

“At this critical juncture in your lives, then, let me urge you — no, let me implore you — to want more,” he told the 5,000 graduates at the 142nd UMass commencement. Koppel, the keynote speaker, received an honorary doctorate, his 25th honorary degree.

Koppel, the longtime host of ABC's "Nightline" who works as a special correspondent for the NBC News program "Rock Center" with Brian Williams, urged the graduates to want "more objectivity; more tolerance for views that differ from your own. More time to reflect and consider.

"And above all, a greater understanding that these extraordinary instruments of communication are still just that – nothing more than that – merely tools. Like the paint brush, the quill pen, the typewriter, they depend entirely on those who use them," he said.

"If we are going to deal intelligently with the problems we confront, we need time to pause, to consider and reflect. But our media, news and social, are intolerant of anything but an instant response," he said. "We are making and receiving endless observations about the trivial, and believe that we are communicating. I am left with a feeling of not just great opportunities missed, but with a sense of actual danger to our republic."

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“Much of our journalism is a catalog of what just happened, without any regard to its impact or importance," Koppel said. But he said rather than “using information to illuminate the world, though, we consume it like fuel.” He said “the faster we go, the less we see and understand.”

The 72-year-old, who is also a contributor to National Public Radio’s "Talk of the Nation" and a contributing columnist for the New York Times and Washington Post, raised concerns about the corrosiveness of the political debate.

He said debate is a “wonderful thing, but partisan shrieking is corrosive and destructive. If we are to find solutions to to the challenges we face, we have to relearn the virtues of compromise.”

Students applauded several times during his speech and gave him a standing ovation at the end.

UMass Chancellor Robert C. Holub praised Koppel.

“He refined a type of investigative journalism that uses dialogue to piece together a multidimensional truth that is complex and not always easy, but always honors the intelligence of its viewer. You, as graduates of this great institution, are an audience worthy of his address," Holub said.

This was Holub’s final undergraduate ceremony. Holub is leaving June 30 after four years at UMass.

“Your fortunes in our modern economy may rise and fall. Over the course of your life, they probably will rise and fall," Holub said. "I know it is not customary to say that in a commencement speech, but I also know that your generation has no illusions about the stability of the world.

“You may go through tough times when is difficult to make ends meet; you may be on top one day and struggling the next. This happens as a part of life. Still, your education is your own,” he said.

In ceremonies in the Mullins Center on Friday morning, 1,300 students received graduate degrees.

Ted Koppel Remarks at UMass commencement

U.S. taxpayers would get cut of 'The Passion of the Christ' prequel

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In a real-life case of drugs and extortion that could itself make a pretty good screenplay, federal prosecutors have forced a Mexican drug trafficker to turn over his stake in "Mary, Mother of Christ."

By CHRISTOPHER SHERMAN and PAUL J. WEBER

051012 jorge vazquez sanchez.jpgJorge Vazquez Sanchez is led out of the federal courthouse Thursday in San Antonio. A stake in a yet-to-be-made movie about the life of Jesus Christ's mother with mega-preacher Joel Osteen of the Lakewood Church as executive producer could soon be held by the U.S. government. Jorge Vazquez Sanchez, accused laundering Mexican drug profits, allegedly got the screenplay for "Mary, Mother of Christ" in the first place by extorting a Mexican businessman and kidnapping his brother. That businessman had gotten it after foreclosing on a business loan to the co-writer of the blockbuster “The Passion of the Christ.” (AP Photo/San Antonio Express-News, Tom Reel)

SAN ANTONIO — The American taxpayer may be getting into the movie business.

In a real-life case of drugs and extortion that could itself make a pretty good screenplay, federal prosecutors have forced a Mexican drug trafficker to turn over his stake in a planned prequel to Mel Gibson's 2004 blockbuster "The Passion of the Christ."

If the movie gets made, the U.S. government will receive a cut of the profits.

Some of the big names behind the Hollywood project include megachurch pastor Joel Osteen, who had no idea about the script's unsavory backstory.

"When you get a script, you just don't think to say 'Hey, was this script ever tied to a Mexican cartel?'" said Donald Iloff, a spokesman for Osteen's Lakewood Church in Houston. The script was already being handled by a legitimate production company when Osteen got involved.

Jorge Vazquez Sanchez pleaded guilty this week in federal court to extortion and money laundering in a deal that required him to give up a 10 percent stake in future profits of "Mary, Mother of Christ," which is scheduled to begin production this year and includes Osteen as an executive producer.

The script was written by the same person behind "The Passion of the Christ," which became a worldwide smash and earned more than $611 million.

Aloe Entertainment, the Los Angeles-based production company that paid more than $900,000 for the script, said it knew nothing about Vazquez, who was sentenced to seven years in prison.

Had Vazquez kept his stake, "we don't know what would have happened," the company said in a statement. "We have assembled an amazing team to bring it to the big screen. Now the American taxpayers can be part of this incredible project."

The screenwriter, Benedict Fitzgerald, had to give control of the script to a company called Macri Inc. after it foreclosed on a loan to Fitzgerald, said Richard Rosenthal, attorney for Aloe.

Then Vazquez and one of his co-defendants extorted Macri's owner, a San Antonio businessman named Arturo Madrigal, to wrest the script away. At one point, the conspirators even kidnapped Madrigal's brother in Guadalajara, Mexico, according to court documents.

Vazquez, a Mexican citizen identified in court documents as a drug trafficker who laundered money, acquired the screenplay in 2008.

Aloe, known at the time as Proud Mary Entertainment, then paid one of Vazquez's co-defendants $925,000 for the script, believing it was held by a San Antonio real estate mogul.

Before the company issued a payment, Aloe executives hired an entertainment copyright attorney who spent more than three months researching the screenplay's origins. Federal prosecutors contacted them last year seeking documents for the transaction.

When prosecutors moved to seize Vazquez's assets, the stake he had retained in the film's profits was included. Vazquez's lawyer, Donald Flanary, said his client did not contest the forfeiture.

If the movie becomes a reality, it will probably be "the first time that a major motion picture was made in which 10 percent of the profits went to the American taxpayers," Rosenthal said. "It would be an incredibly unique story."

The case was first reported by the San Antonio Express-News.

Prosecutors alleged that Vazquez and others laundered millions of dollars in drug proceeds by funneling the money through various currency exchanges, bank accounts and real estate ventures in the U.S. and Mexico.

Vazquez was arrested in late 2010 in Chicago.

Osteen's Lakewood Church signed onto the project last year.

"It's a beautiful script," Iloff said. "I'm so saddened that it was tainted this way. I hope that it doesn't slow it down."

Calls to toughen banking regulation follow JPMorgan $2 billion loss

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More than 3 years after the financial industry almost collapsed, the colossal misfire was cited as proof that big banks still do not understand the threats posed by their own speculation.

By DANIEL WAGNER | AP Business Writer

102709 james dimon.jpg10.27.2009 | NEW YORK — James Dimon, chairman and CEO of JP Morgan Chase & Co., speaks in New York. JPMorgan Chase, the largest bank in the United States, on Thursday, May 10, 2012 said that it lost $2 billion in the past six weeks in a trading portfolio designed to hedge against risks the company takes with its own money. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File)

WASHINGTON — JPMorgan Chase faced intense criticism Friday for claiming that a surprise $2 billion loss by one of its trading groups was the result of a sloppy but well-intentioned strategy to manage financial risk.

More than three years after the financial industry almost collapsed, the colossal misfire was cited as proof that big banks still do not understand the threats posed by their own speculation.

"It just shows they can't manage risk — and if JPMorgan can't, no one can," said Simon Johnson, the former chief economist for the International Monetary Fund.

JPMorgan is the largest bank in the United States and was the only major bank to remain profitable during the 2008 financial crisis. That lent credibility to its tough-talking CEO, Jamie Dimon, as he opposed stricter regulation in the aftermath.

But Dimon's contention that the $2 billion loss came from a hedging strategy that backfired, not an opportunistic bet with the bank's own money, faced doubt on Friday, if not outright ridicule.

"This is not a hedge," said Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., chair of a subcommittee that investigated the crisis. He said the trades were instead a "major bet" on the direction of the economy, as published reports suggested.

On Friday, Dimon told NBC News, for an interview airing Sunday on "Meet the Press," that he did not know whether JPMorgan had broken any laws or regulatory rules. He said the bank was "totally open" to regulators.

The head of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Mary Schapiro, told reporters that the agency was focused on the JPMorgan loss but declined to comment further.

JPMorgan's disclosure Thursday recharged a debate about how to ensure that banks are strong and competitive without allowing them to become so big and complex that they threaten the financial system when they falter.

The JPMorgan loss did not cause anything close to the panic that followed the September 2008 failure of the Lehman Brothers investment bank. But it shook the confidence of the financial industry.

Within minutes after trading began on Wall Street, JPMorgan stock had lost almost 10 percent, wiping out about $15 billion in market value. It closed down 9.3 percent.

Fitch Ratings downgraded the bank's credit rating by one notch, while Standard & Poor's cut its outlook JPMorgan to "negative," indicating a credit-rating downgrade could follow.

Morgan Stanley and Citigroup closed down more than 4 percent, and Goldman Sachs closed down almost 4 percent. The broader stock market was down only slightly for the day.

Dimon gave few details about the trades Thursday beyond saying they involved "synthetic credit positions," a type of the complex financial instruments known as derivatives.

Enhanced oversight of derivatives was a pillar of the 2010 financial overhaul law, known as Dodd-Frank, but the implementation has been delayed repeatedly and will not take effect until the end of this year at the earliest.

JPMorgan's trades show that the derivatives market remains too opaque for regulators to oversee effectively, said Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., one of the law's namesakes.

"When a supposedly responsible, well-run organization could make such an enormous mistake with derivatives, that really blows up the argument, 'Oh, leave us alone, we don't need you to regulate us,'" he said.

Criticism of the bank did not stop with its traditional chorus of detractors. It also came from Sen. Bob Corker, R-Tenn., a prominent member of the Senate Banking Committee who has received $10,000 since January 2011 from JPMorgan's political action committee, the most any candidate has received.

Corker, a leader of a failed effort last year to block a Federal Reserve rule that slashed bank profits from debit cards, called for a hearing "as expeditiously as possible" into the events surrounding JPMorgan's loss.

Tim Ryan, president of the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, a trade group, said it was impossible to legislate or regulate risk out of the financial system.

"My hope is that this is viewed as bona fide hedging, but it went wrong," he said in an interview. "A mistake was made. Money is going to be lost. It's not customer money. It's not government money. It's JPMorgan's money, the shareholders of JPMorgan."

No one seemed to suggest Friday that JPMorgan had broken a law. But the mistake added a wrinkle to the still-unsettled discussion about how the financial industry should be regulated in the aftermath of 2008.

"This just tells you that we are a long, long way from getting our arms around this whole 'too big to fail' issue," said Cliff Rossi, a former top risk executive for Citigroup, Countrywide and other big financial companies.

Immediately after the crisis, a time of popular outrage over bailouts and investment losses, there was broad public support for an overhaul of bank regulations.

The changes promoted by the Obama administration were in many cases similar to what the financial industry had sought before the crisis: Consolidation of regulators and oversight of the multi-trillion-dollar marketplace for derivatives.

Regulators are still drafting hundreds of rules under the 2010 law. As Wall Street has returned to record profits, and executives to million-dollar bonuses, banks have fought to soften those rules.

In particular, the industry has fought hard against a few provisions that might have prevented the problems at JPMorgan.

One is the so-called Volcker rule, which will prohibit banks from trading for their own profit. The rule is still being written, and the Federal Reserve has said it will begin enforcement in 2014.

JPMorgan said that its bets were made only to hedge against financial risk. Dimon conceded that the strategy was "egregious" and poorly monitored. But analysts, former bank executives and many lawmakers disagreed.

"This is an exact description of proprietary trading-style activity," Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., told reporters Friday. "This really is a textbook illustration of why we need a strong Volcker rule firewall."

Nancy Bush, a longtime bank analyst at NAB Research and a contributing editor at SNL Financial, said the trades probably crossed that line because they were making money for JPMorgan.

"So they made money on hedges and then they hedged some more," she said. "At some point it goes from being a hedge to being a moneymaker."

JPMorgan was seen as a savior of weaker banks during the financial crisis and the only big bank to escape relatively unscathed. His reputation enhanced, Dimon, 56, has been emboldened to challenge efforts to toughen regulation.

In an interview with the Fox Business Network earlier this year, Dimon said that Paul Volcker, the former Federal Reserve chairman for whom the rule is named "doesn't understand capital markets."

Last year, he questioned the current Fed chair, Ben Bernanke, about the rules and said they might be delaying the recovering of the financial system and the broader economy.

"Has anyone bothered to study the cumulative effect of all these things?" he asked.

Dimon, who grew up in the Queens borough of New York and was groomed by the former Citigroup chief executive Sanford Weill, has also chafed against Occupy Wall Street protesters.

"Acting like everyone who's been successful is bad and that everyone who is rich is bad — I just don't get it," he said at a conference earlier this year.

On Thursday, at about the same time he was breaking news of the $2 billion loss to Wall Street, Dimon sent an email to JPMorgan's 270,000 worldwide employees assuring them that the company was "very strong."

AP Business Writer Marcy Gordon, AP Business Writer Pallavi Gogoi and Associated Press writer Jack Gillum contributed to this report.

Deval Patrick vetoes mandated background checks for future Massachusetts gaming employees

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A day after it arrived on his desk, Patrick signed a $72 million mid-year spending bill that included additional funding for public assistance for low-income disabled residents, family shelters and legal aid.

112211 deval patrick signs gambiling bill.JPGGov. Deval Patrick on Friday vetoed portions of a spending bill sent to him this week by the House and Senate requiring the Gaming Commission to conduct full criminal background checks and drug screenings on future employees. (AP Photo/Josh Reynolds)

By MATT MURPHY

BOSTON — Gov. Deval Patrick on Friday vetoed portions of a spending bill sent to him this week by the House and Senate requiring the Gaming Commission to conduct full criminal background checks and drug screenings on future employees.

A day after it arrived on his desk, Patrick signed a $72 million mid-year spending bill that included additional funding for public assistance for low-income disabled residents, family shelters, legal aid and youth jobs accounts that were in danger of running out of money before the fiscal year ends on June 30.

The governor, however, rejected amendments to the bill that were added during floor debate in the House and Senate this week in response to an outcry over the attempted hiring of C. Stanley McGee as the interim executive director of the Gaming Commission.

McGee, who works as an assistant economic development secretary in the Patrick administration, turned down the job after some lawmakers, child advocates and Treasurer Steven Grossman raised questions about his suitability for the post due to previously disclosed allegations that he sexually abused a teenaged boy in Florida in 2007. McGee was never charged, and settled a civil lawsuit with the boy’s family out of court.

Patrick struck the two sections of the bill that would have made criminal history checks, urine screenings and state police approved fingerprints and photographs a prerequisite for employment at the Gaming Commission. The bill also would have required background and credit checks.

“While the importance of thorough background investigations is unquestioned and already provided for the by the recently enacted legislation establishing the Gaming Commission, the highest levels of background checks and screening may not be necessary nor appropriate for every employee,” Patrick wrote in his veto letter to the House and Senate.

“Under the current law, the Gaming Commission has the discretion to make those decisions,” Patrick continued.

House Minority Leader Brad Jones, who offered the amendment in the House to require the background checks, said by vetoing provisions in the bill that had broad support among Democrats and Republicans, the governor was taking full responsibility for the commission’s future hires.

“I think it’s disappointing. Even the governor has acknowledged the commission suffers from a lack of focus and I think that’s why we put this forth. Now he says they have all the tools they need, but they haven’t done the job even though they have the tools. Any missteps going forward fall on the doorstep of the governor,” Jones said.

Rep. Daniel Winslow, a Norfolk Republican, went further warning that the governor’s veto could open the door to corruption. Winslow announced this week that he had hired a private investigator with his own campaign funds to look into the McGee case, but dropped that pursuit when McGee stepped down from the director’s position.

“Given the recent history of corruption on Beacon Hill, the House and Senate were clearly concerned that we need to have the highest degree of integrity for all employees of the Gaming Commission. Leaving weak links in the chain is an invitation for criminal interests to take advantage of every opportunity,” Winslow said Friday, citing the past hiring of reputed mobster James “Whitey” Bulger as a custodian in Suffolk Superior Court as an example of what could go wrong.

Patrick on Thursday lamented what he described as distractions that have taken the focus of the Gaming Commission off the main task of implementing expanded casino gambling in Massachusetts. He urged the commission to refocus itself “promptly.”

The governor’s communications director Brendan Ryan, however, said requiring all employees, even secretaries, to undergo drug and police background checks was unnecessary.

“The administration agrees that every hire needs to be of the highest integrity, but mandating urine test for every potential receptionist seems like an overreach. The commission has the tools it needs to do the job it needs to do,” Ryan said.

Asked whether receptionist should be put through the same screening process as high-level employees, Jones said, “Conceivably no, but it doesn’t seem to this point that their high level employees had gone through that either. We want to create a scenario that’s above reproach, and so far they haven’t acted above reproach so that’s why we have to act.”

According to the Gaming Commission, McGee was already undergoing a State Police background check as a condition of his employment before he formally withdrew from the position on Wednesday.

“The commission appreciates that the governor recognized that provisions of this law as passed by the Legislature are already both comprehensive and effective,” said Karen Schwartzman, a spokeswoman for the Gaming Commission.


3 Boston University students killed in New Zealand minivan crash

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Another 5 students from the university were injured in the accident, including 1 who was in critical condition.

WELLINGTON, New Zealand — Three Boston University students who were studying in New Zealand were killed Saturday when their minivan crashed. Another five students from the university were injured in the accident, including one who was in critical condition.

The students were traveling in a minivan at about 7:30 a.m. Saturday near the North Island town of Taupo when the vehicle drifted to the side of the road and then rolled when the driver tried to correct course, New Zealand police said.

Two men and a woman died at the scene. Another woman was in critical condition at an area hospital, while four other students suffered moderate injuries, police said.

Boston University posted a statement on its website confirming the accident, but did not immediately release the names of the victims because the families had not yet been notified.

"This is a horrible tragedy," Boston University President Robert Brown said in the statement. "Our prayers go out to the students and their families. We will do all we can to provide comfort and assistance to those who have been injured, and to the families and friends of the victims. The university is mobilizing all of our resources to help our students and families deal with this tragedy."

Police and university officials said the BU students were in New Zealand on a study abroad program, and were on a trip to the countryside when the accident happened.

Sixteen students were traveling in two minivans, on their way to hike the Tongariro Crossing, a famous trek rated as one of the most spectacular in New Zealand. The hike crosses a volcanic crater in the central part of North Island.

None of the eight students in the second van was injured.

Kevin Taylor, a police official, said it was not clear why the van drifted to the side of the road. He said some of the students were thrown from the vehicle, indicating that they may not have been wearing seat belts.

Dean of Students Kenneth Elmore said this was a terrible end to the school year.

"This is an unusual time on our campus," Elmore said in a statement on the school website. "We have a lot of people who are traveling and some people who are celebrating the end of final exams. I'd like everyone to please take a moment to pay our respects to the families of those who have been killed."

Elmore said the school will provide counseling for those who need it.


View Taupo, New Zealand in a larger map

Springfield Casino Site Committee hopes to have input on gambling pact

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Mayor Domenic Sarno wouldn’t talk, however, about how the committee will figure into his plans to woo a casino to the city of homes.

se jimmy.jpgPaula Meara, retired Springfield Police Chief, is seen at a press conference with James Ferrera, president of the City Council. Meara is chairwoman of the Springfield Casino Citing Committee.

SPRINGFIELD – The new 15-member Casino Site Committee appointed here may have no legal power or authority over whether Springfield becomes home to a resort casino, but its creator, City Council President James J. Ferrera III, believes it should be part of a team effort.

Mayor Domenic J. Sarno won’t talk about Ferrera’s decision to appoint the committee or how it will figure into his work to woo a casino to Springfield. But the mayor did make clear last week that he’s the one who will “lead the charge” on negotiating plans and agreements with a casino developer.

“The legislation is very clear,” Sarno said. “The mayor and my designees will lead this fight (for a casino in Springfield), by law, by the legislation. I’m going to lead the charge on it.”

Under the state legislation, according to Sarno, the mayor and his designees would negotiate a agreement with a casino company, dealing with issues such as job guarantees, business for local vendors and road improvements.

Karen Schwartzman, a spokeswoman for the state Gaming Commission, said she doubts the commission would designate exactly who in a city would be responsible for negotiating an agreement with a proposed casino operator. She said that might be left to municipal officials to decide.

Sarno, when asked if he would consider the findings and recommendations of Ferrera’s casino committee, said, “I will look for the input from all the citizens across the city. Obviously, this is going to be the people’s choice. Obviously, there has to be a referendum vote.”

On his own initiative and without consulting with the mayor, Ferrera named the committee he wants to review casino proposals and solicit public input on the council’s behalf. He appointed retired police chief Paula Meara to head the panel, and it will have an organizational meeting on Tuesday at 5 p.m. The council president said his move is not intended to challenge the mayor’s authority.

“I would envision that we would work as a team on this entire issue,” Ferrera said. “We would work in conjunction with whatever the mayor sets up – a committee or an assignment of city officials (and) consultants.”

Sarno has stated he will “fight tooth and nail” for a casino to be located in Springfield. By law, any casino development must involve a minimum capital investment of at least $500 million, and would bring thousands of construction jobs and permanent jobs.

Sarno said he will be hiring a consultant with expertise in gaming issues to consider casino proposals and advance planning. When asked if he had intended to appoint a citizens committee or blue-ribbon committee, the mayor said he will confer with whoever is hired as the consultant and his economic development advisors on “how to move forward in a professional, thoughtful manner.”

Any casino supported by the mayor and voters would be forwarded for consideration by the state Gaming Commission, under the legislation. The commission has final say over where a casino would be allowed in a specific location in Western Massachusetts, with no more than one site chosen.

Ferrera said he wants his committee to meet in public with casino developers who are interested in Springfield and to solicit input from the public. The committee would then issue findings and recommendations to the City Council, he said.

Ferrera and Sarno agree that the council has authority over land-use issues, such as zone changes and special permits. In addition, the council would decide if there is a citywide referendum vote or a ward vote on any specific casino proposal, Ferrera said.

“Obviously, this is going to be a significant land-use issue, and one of the chief responsibilities of the City Council is over land use,” Ferrera said. “That is why it is crucially important to engage the community in this full process.”

Ferrara said he believes his committee helps fulfill the council’s responsibility to residents and taxpayers to gather information on potential casino sites.

Under state law, up to three casinos will be located in the state including one that is designated for somewhere in the four-county region of Western Massachusetts. Thus far, one developer has proposed a casino in Springfield. Ameristar Casinos of Las Vegas hopes to locate a casino at the former Westinghouse property, a 41-acre parcel on Page Boulevard.

Ferrera acknowledged he did not consult with Sarno before selecting members for his committee. He said, though, that he made known his plan for the committee in January when he was sworn in as council president.

Meara said she hopes the committee will be transparent in its work, with public meetings, findings and recommendations. It will consider issues such as public safety and traffic and hear from the public, she said.

Other casinos proposed in Western Massachusetts include a Mohegan Sun plan on 152 acres of leased land in Palmer just off Exit 8 of the Massachusetts Turnpike and a Penn National Gaming plan for a 280-acre plot in Westfield near the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Hard Rock International, of Florida, proposed a casino in Holyoke, but the plan was opposed by Mayor Alex Morse. MGM Resorts International, of Las Vegas, dropped plans for a casino in Brimfield, but has said it is looking elsewhere in Western Massachusetts.

Amherst showcases the words of Emily Dickinson in environmental art project

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The installation will be on display throughout Amherst through June.

EM1.JPGThese are two of the houses Deerfield Academy student Peter Krasznekewicz created as part of his environmental installation celebrating the poetry of Emily Dickinson. The houses are displayed throughout downtown Amherst.

AMHERST - About 18 months ago, Deerfield Academy student Peter Krasznekewicz came to the executive director of the Emily Dickinson Museum with an idea.

“He came in with concepts and illustrations of a prototype,” Jane Wald remembered. The concept was to build white houses bearing the words of the famous poet. He asked Wald what she thought about his school project.

But Wald said, “there was something about the imagination and creativity of this idea that was immediately captivating.”

Now the houses that had been on the grounds of the Deerfield Academy are laced throughout the downtown - including the Homestead, at 280 Main St., The Evergreens and Sweetser Park among other locations. The houses will be on display through June and an opening reception is being held at 1 p.m. Saturday in conjunction with the annual poetry walk.


Krasznekewicz,
now a senior, will speak about the work he calls “Dwell in Possibility.”

What spoke to Wald about the project was “the creative imagining of Emily Dickinson’s poetry and the use of words, words that are building blocks of expression that touch an enormous range of emotions and themes and personal experiences. Having the words wrapped around each of the white houses makes it captivating and an observer becomes a participant in the art.”

Looking “at all sides of the structure teases out the thought and message of a particular line of poetry. It slows us down so individuals can consider, contemplate each individual word with how it fits in with the next,” she said.

In a statement about the work, Krasznekewicz said he was inspired by Christo, the environmental installation artist who created The Gates in New York City. He wanted to come up with is own environmental installation.

He came up with this idea after brainstorming with friends. “At a young age, I was exposed to the works of Emily Dickinson by my older sister who loved her poetry, and we actually made a slide show about a little white house named Emily. By taking the words of Emily Dickinson and painting them on the white surfaces of the houses, I was able to take a simple building form and turn it into a profound object of thought that related to the surrounding community.”

Wald said she was impressed by how he laid out the houses on the downtown landscape. “While the houses are uniform, he examines planes and he plots (the location) of every single house.” He wants the houses to fit into the landscape and yet remain connected to the next.

The houses are about seven feet long, four feet wide, and eight feet tall, made from Forest Stewardship Council certified and formaldehyde-free plywood panels.
In keeping with the environmental theme, Krasznekewicz wrote that the materials will be donated to the Pioneer Valley Habitat for Humanity when the exhibit is taken apart.

Flash mob and flapjacks a hit at World's Largest Pancake Breakfast

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Spirit of Springfield President Judith A. Matt estimated up to 15,000 local residents would turn out for the event.

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SPRINGFIELD - Flash mob: (noun) a group of people who assemble suddenly in a public place, perform an unusual and random act for a brief time, then disperse, often for the purposes of entertainment and artistic expression.

Flash mob and flapjacks: apparently an unbeatable combination on a sunny Saturday morning in downtown Springfield.

A flash mob was one of the "World's Largest Pancake Breakfasts" premier draws, second only to the pancakes and syrup that drew hordes of people to Main Street to wait in long lines for a short stack. The massive breakfast's history in Springfield dates back to 1976 as the city celebrated its bicentennial and has perennially drawn thousands of people together from Greater Springfield.

Judith A. Matt, president of the Spirit of Springfield and the undisputed belle of the pancake ball, estimated as many as 15,000 would attend this year's breakfast given the glorious weather.

"She is the ringmaster of ceremonies of this circus we call the big pancake breakfast," Mayor Domenic J. Sarno said from a podium, addressing the crowd as it began to swell around 9:30 a.m.

Organizers say the recipe for the event is pretty simple: 3,450 pounds of buttermilk flour; 800 pounds of eggs; 350 pounds of butter; 450 gallons of water; and topped with an additional 4,700 pounds of butter and 450 gallons of maple syrup. Made to order.

"My strategy is to find the shortest line," West Springfield resident Pamela Mathison-Morales said, while pushing her sons Alexander and Christoper, 5 and 2, in a stroller through the crowd. "This is a big event for Springfield and it's events like this that make Springfield a great place to live and work."

The pancake-fest also inevitably brings elected officials and political candidates hoping to fraternize with pliable voters with full stomachs.

"They were expertly done," City Councilor and candidate for Hampden County Clerk of Courts Thomas M. Ashe said of the pancakes. "Kudos to the mayor and Judy Matt. This was expertly done."

Westfield School Committee under gun to cut $1 million from proposed $56.8 million budget

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The mayor plans to submit a total Fiscal 2013 municipal budget to the City Council May 17.

WESTFIELD – The School Committee plans to focus on a need to cut $1 million in school spending when it meets Monday to finalize its budget request for for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

The committee has already trimmed about $1.7 million from its original request of $56.8 million for the new year beginning July 1.

But, Mayor Daniel M. Knapik said Friday the city cannot make up the nearly $2 million the School Department expects to lose in federal funding next year.

Cynthia Sullivan mug 2009.jpgCyntjhia A. Sullivan

Knapik’s recommended school budget for next year is $54.3 million which includes an anticipated $357,000 increase in state school spending.

“I cannot make up the loss,” Knapik said of the federal jobs and Title I, remedial programs, funding.

School Committee finance chairman Cynthia A. Sullivan said “it is understandable but unfortunate” that additional cuts are needed in spending.

“We will work in the best interest of the students and that will require a collaborative effort,” she said.

Originally, the School Department needed to cut nearly $4.5 million from the proposed budget to meet current funding levels. That was offset last week by a plan to use School Choice and Early Childhood tuition and to pre-pay some out of district special education and other tuition payments of Westfield pupils in the new year. That amounts to about $1.7 million leaving a balance deficit of just over $2.5 million before Knapik released his recommended school figures.

The current school budget totals $52.2 million. State chapter 70 education funding this year amounts to $32.5 million.

School Finance Officer John E. Kane said Friday officials are working to “prioritize spending requirements” and will present a package to the School Committee’s Finance Committee Monday.

Superintendent of Schools Suzanne Scallion has said the department has nearly a $1 million “list of what our students need. But, we are not putting that on the table at this time because of the budget gap.”

The new budget currently does not call for any staff changes, but Scallion acknowledged last week the department “may need some restructuring of staff and programs with the final budget.”

Salary step and longevity increases for the 1,000 school employees will cost the department $388,000 next year. Also, contract settlements for teachers and other school personnel are expected to cost another $840,000.

The Finance Committee will meet Monday at 6:30 p.m. to consider recommendations.

The School Committee is scheduled to finalize its new budget proposal that will be presented to the City Council for consideration May 17.

Springfield Central High School students debate legal issues during Law Day event

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Teacher Matthew Dowd told students lawyers need to argue points with which they may not agree.

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SPRINGFIELD – A group of 21 Central High School seniors, most from Matthew Dowd’s law class, were divided into two groups at Law Day event Thursday there.

All were given a fictitious set of facts, in which a man accused of armed robbery is denied a publicly-paid lawyer because his family’s income and assets were above those set by his state.

Half the students had to argue it was unconstitutional for the state to deny representation to the man, whose family income was still very minimal. The other half had to argue the state was legally correct in setting the higher number for qualification for representation.

Leading one side was Westfield District Court Judge Philip A. Contant, and leading the other was Christopher D. Reavey, clerk of Franklin-Hampshire Juvenile Court.

Dowd said he knew some of the students would be on a side not reflective of their own opinion.

“That’s tough luck,” he said, noting lawyers have to be able to argue effectively even if they are not reflecting their own opinions.

“This is a very timely topic,” Contant said. He said there have been a lot of cutbacks in the court and providing lawyers is very expensive.

Reavey said, “There’s usually not much sympathy in the public for spending tax dollars for people they consider criminals.”

As a member of the group arguing against providing representation in the fictional case, Enrique Rosario said giving the man a publicly-paid lawyer doesn’t benefit the people paying taxes, but benefits only the person being charged.

He said taxpayer dollars would better be spent on schools and hospitals.

Nyishyari Marrero said, “What if you know you’re not guilty. You don’t need a lawyer.”

“Why should the taxpayers be paying for criminals,” Ashley Brown said.

Over on the other side of the room, the arguments for giving the man a lawyer were forming.

“The family doesn’t make enough money to afford a lawyer,” said Aimee Castro, noting that just because the family had some money, it didn’t mean they could afford a lawyer without harming the two children.

The two sides presented their arguments to three student judges.

The judges decided in favor of having the man get a publicly-paid lawyer.

“A lot of people get falsely accused,” said student judge Deon Bledsoe.

Reavey told the students so many people convicted and serving sentences have been exonerated by DNA testing advances.

“One wonders about people who don’t have DNA evidence,” he said.

South Hadley water rates due to increase

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“We haven’t raised our rates in three years, but due to the aging infrastructure, we have to keep making repairs.”

SOUTH HADLEY – Residents of both water districts in South Hadley will be paying more next time the water bills come around.

In District 1, the price will increase from $3.17 to $3.33 per 100 cubic feet of water, according to District 1 Superintendent Jeffrey Cyr. In District 2, the price will go up from $3.45 cents per 100 cubic feet of water to $3.86, according to District 2 Superintendent Mark Aiken.

That amounts to about $27 a year for the average consumer in District 1, and about $25 a year in District 2, according to the superintendents.

In District 2, Aiken said water commissioners at the annual district meeting on May 7 voted to raise the price by 16 cents per 100 cubic feet.

“Also, we used to charge 25 cents for every 100 cubic feet to go into the Water System Improvement Fund. That was changed to 50 cents at the district meeting,” said Aiken.

He attributed the rate hike to the need for capital improvements.

“People think the infrastructure that was put in the ground 100 years ago will last forever, but it just reaches the end of its useful life,” he said.

Last year it cost $530,000 for one of the two water tanks in District 2 to be painted, he said. Tanks have to be painted inside and outside “every 20 years or so” to maintain the quality of the water.

Painting the second tank is on the horizon, he said, and the rate hike will help pay for it. “Before we get that bill, we need to put money aside.”

District 1 Superintendent Jeffrey Cyr said commissioners voted for a 7 percent rate hike at his district’s annual meeting on May 3.

“We’ve got a $40,000 deficit for FY¤’12 because of all the rain,” he said, referring to the excess of rain last summer, which made it unnecessary for people to sprinkle lawns, for example. “Nobody used the water, so we didn’t collect as much.”

District 1 also has two water tanks, and both were recently painted, said Cyr.

“Plus we’re constantly upgrading pipes throughout the year. We spend $100,000 a year in infrastructure replacement,” he said.

“We haven’t raised our rates in three years,” said Cyr, “but due to the aging infrastructure, we have to keep making repairs.”

Water commissioners for District 1 are John Mikuszewski, William Schenker and David Daly. Water commissioners for District 2 are Frank DeToma, Kate Bedard and Donna Russell.


Ware to decide debate concerning selectmen's request to remove police, fire chief posts from Civil Service

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Some are worried because it is not clear what evaluation system might replace the civil service examination.

WARE – There is opposition and concerns about a controversial selectmen-endorsed proposal to eliminate the state-administered testing system used for decades in Ware to field candidates for police chief and fire chief.

Articles on Monday’s annual town meeting warrant ask residents to repeal the requirement that candidates for police and fire chief pass the state civil service test to gain eligibility for either job.

The May 14 annual meeting begins at 7 p.m. at Ware High School auditorium. It is preceded by a 6:30 p.m. special Town Meeting.

John Carroll mug 2011.jpgJohn Carroll

“My concern is what it does is make the police and fire chiefs political appointments, rather than based on qualifications,” Fire Chief Thomas Coulombe said in an interview. “I am vigorously opposing this at town meeting.”

The two articles that aim to abolish civil service for the town’s top two public safety jobs were the idea of Ware selectman John Carroll. He said the change would allow the town to select from a wider pool of candidates.

“Instead of getting one or two candidates, if we go non-civil service we can have potentially hundreds of qualified candidates. If we choose someone within the department from this pool, that is fine,” he said.

Carroll said he supports hiring a private company to administer the testing.

But neither article includes language requiring the alternative testing Carroll proposes, nor do the articles mention what it would cost to administer private testing and evaluations for the police chief or fire chief.

In an interview, Carroll was asked why provisions requiring an alternative testing regimen were not written into the articles.

He said, “The proper way to do it is to set up a testing procedure and look for the best candidates. We are not trying to preclude anyone in the departments from being eligible.”

Carroll also said he spoke with Fire Chief Thomas Coulombe, who resides in town, and with Police Chief Dennis Healey, of Warren, about the proposal to abolish civil service testing.

“They did not have an issue with it as long as the proper testing is in place,” Carroll said.

The chiefs say they have mixed feelings because no merit testing system has been adopted to replace civil service in Ware.

Coulombe said civil service is financially advantageous because the applicant pays for taking the test instead of the town. He has been chief the past 12 years.

He said private companies charge a lot of money to administer an evaluation regimen. The chief said the price is typically between $10,000 and $20,000.

Coulombe questioned where the town would get that money. Salaries for nearly all municipal employees are being slashed thousands of dollars to balance the operating budget for the fiscal year that begins July 1.

Selectmen, the finance committee and the town manager have recommended spending $12.05 million for the fiscal year that begins July 1 to cover the town side of the budget ledger – a cut of nearly 3 percent.

“If there was open public discussion about this ahead of time, the opposition would not be there. They haven’t offered up what the process is to hire someone. I have concerns with that,” Coulombe said.

“There are different systems besides civil service. But if you are going to have a testing procedure, that all should be known ahead of time and vetted through the employees so they know it’s fair.”

Healey said, “I have mixed feelings. I am concerned how the position will be filled down the road. It is not as simple as doing away with civil service.” He has been chief the past 16 years.

Asparagus season gets off to early start in Western Massachusetts

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Despite its reputation, the local crop faces tough competition from the Midwest in the spring and summer.

ae asparagus 1.jpgMichael A. Wissemann, owner of the Warner Farm in Sunderland, shows with some asparagus stalks in one of his fields last week.

SUNDERLAND — The rain is pittering on the plastic roof of the greenhouse at Warner Farm. Inside, two workers are taking asparagus from wooden baskets, fitting them into three-sided holders and slicing off the ends. Slipping rubber bands over each bunch, they fit them in a crate. It’s about a pound of asparagus per bunch, they say.

Outside, the rain is pocking the puddles, making them bigger and muddier. You can’t exactly see your breath, but there’s a nip in the air. It’s cool. Too cool for asparagus.

“We’re not getting much,” says farmer Michael Wissemann. “It’s too cold out.”

Wissemann owns and operates Warner Farm in Sunderland, where he grows eight acres of asparagus, two of them organic. The family farm harks back to 1720, and though Wissemann married into it, he knows what asparagus like and don’t like.

The season started promisingly for the splendid shoot, with 80-degree days in March. Wissemann didn’t buy it.

“I think we all knew we were getting set up for a fall,” he says.

Sure enough, spring turned cold, with late frosts and chilly days. Normally, Wissemann says, he starts cutting his asparagus around May 1 and keeps it up until late June. This year he was harvesting in April. How much longer the crop will last is anybody’s guess.

“In warm weather, asparagus will grow eight or nine inches in a day,” he says. “You’ve got to cut what’s coming up or it will start to feather on top.”

So it always is with farmers. Too hot. Too cold. Too wet. Too dry. What’s good for potatoes isn’t necessarily good for asparagus or corn. What will the weather bring? All we can really know is now, and now is asparagus time.

Of all the crops in the valley, asparagus is arguably the most prestigious. The area has been long famous for the slender green shoot and asparagus lovers await the season like kids await Christmas.

Despite its reputation, the local crop faces tough competition from the Midwest in the spring and summer. Southern countries, among them Peru and Chile, keep the supermarket shelves stocked in the colder months.

Last year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture made $15 million available to asparagus growers across the country to take the sting away from losses to importers. Pioneer Valley farmers saw a little bit of that money.

“It didn’t really make much of a difference to any of us,” says Wissemann, who sells to local vendors and at farmers markets.

On the plus side, people hereabouts know their asparagus and are willing to pay for the good stuff.

“Fortunately for us, there’s a good local market,” Wissemann says.

Across Route 47 from Warner Farm, Millstone Farm Market sells Wissemann’s asparagus for $4.50 a bunch, advertising it as “Mike’s Grass.”

“As much as we ask for we sell,” says Sheri Rosenblum, part of the family that owns the market. “It seems to be one of those vegetables that people who know better are willing to wait for as local produce. It’s so much better fresh.”

Jeff Rosenblum, her brother, then issues what could be a battle cry in the Great Asparagus War, declaring that Sunderland asparagus is the cream of the crop.

“I don’t believe Hadley’s the best,” he says.

Down the road, Karen Smiarowski seconds that, maintaining that the soil in Sunderland is richer and heavier than the Hadley soil and, thus, creates sweeter asparagus.

“It’s more like a fruit than a vegetable,” she says.

At $3.50 a bunch, Smiarowski claims to have the cheapest asparagus in the area. Her regulars come to the farm stand on Route 47 for asparagus, well, regularly.

“You have your regulars who come every other day and the ones who come every weekend,” she says.

Lest there be any doubt how important asparagus is to neighboring Hadley, you can drive a few miles down to the road and read the sign in front of the North Hadley Congregational Church: “Asparagus supper,” it says. “May 12.” Further down the road the unmanned Boisvert Farm Stand is selling asparagus for $4 a bunch on the honor system. Customers take their shoots and put their money in a metal box.

At Wanczyk’s Farm Stand on Route 9, the price is $5 a bunch. Not to worry, says Karen Costa. The six trays of asparagus, some 100 bunches, will be gone by day’s end.

“We sell out every day,” she says.

Wanczyk, which has been in business for nearly 30 years, buys its asparagus from five local farms, and Costa is not about to cede the gold ribbon to Sunderland lightly.

“I’ve never tried Sunderland’s,” she says. “I just know Hadley’s asparagus is awesome.”

Obituaries today: Joseph Kelly worked for Friendly's

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East Longmeadow selectmen approve $10,000 raise for town accountant Thomas Caliento

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The contract was approved 2-1 with Board of Selectmen Chairman Enrico Villamaino voting against it and members Paul Federici and James Driscoll voting in favor of it.

Thomas Caliento mug 2004.jpgThomas A. Caliento

EAST LONGMEADOW-Selectmen recently approved a three-year contract totaling $77,207 for town accountant Thomas A. Caliento.

The contract was approved 2-1 with Board of Selectmen Chairman Enrico Villamaino voting against it and members Paul Federici and James Driscoll voting in favor of it.

The contract which is retroactive through July of 2011 includes an annual salary of $72,207 with an additional $5,000 increase through 2014 once Caliento becomes a certified government accountant. With the $5,000 increase Caliento's salary will total $77,207. Currently he makes $66,953 annually.

"When we initially hired him the certification was a suggestion, but if we are going to compensate him at a competitive rate then the certification will be necessary before 2014," Federici said.

Villamaino said it is not fiscally responsible to give a department head such a large increase.

"He is going from $67,000 to $77,000, that's a $10,000 increase, and I just can't justify that in the current economic climate," he said. "I don't think we should pay an employee based on what other towns pay them. We have to do what's best for East Longmeadow."

Caliento was officially hired in 2008, however he served as interim accountant for the town in 2007. Before working for the town Caliento had experience as a commercial loan officer, a regional school business manager, a senior financial analyst, and a deputy city auditor in Springfield. He also served as the interim school business manager in Longmeadow. He has a master's degree in business administration from Western New England College.

"In the past few years our audits have been good, our bond rating is great," Federici said. "He was selected before I was on the board, but I know he came on during a tough time and has managed to get us back on track."

Northampton Gay Pride march highlights progress

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Gay pride supporters in Northampton said President Obama offered a boost to gay rights when he expressed support for gay marriage. Watch video

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NORTHAMPTON - Coming out has come a long way.

Bryan Price, 36, one of thousands who lined Main Street in Northampton to watch the Gay Pride March with his high school pal Jennifer McGrath, of Palmer, said although he was a fairly progressive gay man in the spectrum, he could not bear to come out in high school.

"Oh no, I couldn't do it in high school. I did it when I was 18," said Price, of South Deerfield, who sported glitter in his hair and said he schooled McGrath, who is straight, on the appropriate attire to watch the parade, which kicked off at noon in colorful, musical fashion.

"She was sending me pictures and I was like: no, no, no, yes!"

The longtime friends landed on a pink, striped sequined top (for McGrath) for the event, which unfolded under cloudless blue skies and amid a political backdrop that's more promising for gays than ever. President Barack H. Obama this week announced that he is in favor of gay marriage, shifting from his previous position of opposing it. Price and McGrath were not entirely convinced it was purely a political maneuver to gain votes in an uncertain election cycle.

"We were just talking about that. We're not sure. But no other president has come out in favor of it, so it's a positive thing," McGrath said, adding that it was her first time at the parade.

Obama received resounding applause in the progressive seat of western Massachusetts, where the gay pride march has grown in numbers and support over the years. Young, old, gay and straight supporters cheered the members of the procession as they made their way to the Tri-County Fair Grounds off Route 9 for a rally.

"I love Barack Obama!" Andrew Denney, 28, a six-foot-six-inch (in heels) drag queen from Chicopee enthused as the procession mustered on Hampton Avenue. "I feel proud to live in this community at this time in history."

Denney, a server at the Olive Garden in West Springfield, has performed in drag twice a week for 10 years at Diva's, a gay bar on Pleasant Street in Northampton, and managed to pull together a glamorous, laborious look in under two hours with practice. On Saturday, he wore a short teal, one-shouldered number with bombastic hair and make-up to match before readying to board the Diva's float.

Her drag persona: "C*ntessa Yolanda Velvet."

Denney, of Chicopee, came out painlessly when he was a 16-year-old student at a performing arts high school in Hadley 12 years ago. It was a sympathetic stage, he admits, and his family and friends were supportive.

"A non-issue," he said.

He has marched in the parade for a decade.

However, first-time participant Jonathan Leary, 17, a junior at Springfield Central High School, was a first-time marcher with the Lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender contingent at that school. He said coming out last October was an anxious moment for him, but he was pleasantly surprised by the solidarity it generated from his mother and friends of all sexual orientations.

"I'm sure it would have been harder 10 or 15 years ago. But my friends said they would support me - gay or straight," Leary said.

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