The Secretary of State is being treated with blood thinners to help dissolve the clot, and she will be released once the medication dose has been established.

By JOSH LEDERMAN
and MATTHEW LEE

WASHINGTON – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton developed a blood clot in her head but did not suffer a stroke or neurological damage, her doctors said Monday. They say they are confident that she will make a full recovery.

In a statement that revealed the location of the clot, Clinton’s doctors said it is in the vein in the space between the brain and the skull behind the right ear. She is being treated with blood thinners to help dissolve the clot, the doctors said, and she will be released once the medication dose has been established.

Hillary Rodham Clinton  

Clinton, 65, is making excellent progress and is in good spirits, Dr. Lisa Bardack of the Mount Kisco Medical Group and Dr. Gigi El-Bayoumi of George Washington University said in a statement.

Clinton, who was spending a second day at a New York hospital, developed the clot after suffering a concussion earlier in December. She had fainted, fallen and struck her head at home while battling a stomach virus, her spokesman said. She has not been seen publicly since Dec. 7.

Phillipe Reines, her spokesman, said her doctors discovered the clot Sunday while performing a follow-up exam on the concussion. She was admitted to New York-Presbyterian Hospital.

Clinton’s complication “certainly isn’t the most common thing to happen after a concussion” and is one of the few types of blood clots in the skull or head that are treated with blood thinners, said Dr. Larry Goldstein, a neurologist who is director of Duke University’s stroke center. He is not involved in Clinton’s care.

The area where Clinton’s clot developed is “a drainage channel, the equivalent of a big vein inside the skull – it’s how the blood gets back to the heart,” Goldstein said.

Blood thinners usually are enough to treat the clot and it should have no long-term consequences if her doctors are saying she has suffered no neurological damage from it, Goldstein said.

Clinton had planned to step down as secretary of state at the beginning of President Barack Obama’s second term. Whether she will return to work before she resigns remained a question.

Democrats are privately if not publicly speculating: How might her illness affect a decision about running for president in 2016?

After decades in politics, Clinton says she plans to spend the next year resting. She has long insisted she had no intention of mounting a second campaign for the White House four years from now. But the door is not entirely closed, and she would almost certainly emerge as the Democrat to beat if she decided to give in to calls by Democratic fans and run again.

Her age – and thereby health – would likely be a factor under consideration, given that Clinton would be 69 when sworn in, if she were elected in 2016. That might become even more of an issue in the early jockeying for 2016 if what started as a bad stomach bug becomes a prolonged, public bout with more serious infirmity.

Not that Democrats are willing to talk openly about the political implications of a long illness, choosing to keep any discussions about her condition behind closed doors. Publicly, Democrats reject the notion that a blood clot could hinder her political prospects.

“Some of those concerns could be borderline sexist,” said Basil Smikle, a Democratic strategist who worked for Clinton when she was a senator. “Dick Cheney had significant heart problems when he was vice president, and people joked about it. He took the time he needed to get better, and it wasn’t a problem.”

It isn’t uncommon for presidential candidates’ health – and age – to be an issue. Both in 2000 and 2008, Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., had to rebut concerns he was too old to be commander in chief or that his skin cancer could resurface.

Two decades after Clinton became the first lady, signs of her popularity – and her political strength – are ubiquitous.

Obama had barely declared victory in November when Democrats started zealously plugging Clinton as their strongest White House contender four years from now, should she choose to take that leap.

“Wouldn’t that be exciting,” House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi declared in December. “I hope she goes – why wouldn’t she?”

Even Republicans concede that were she to run, Clinton would be a force to be reckoned with.

“Trying to win that will be truly the Super Bowl,” former House Speaker and 2012 GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich said in December. “The Republican Party today is incapable of competing at that level.”

Americans admire Clinton more than any other woman in the world, according to a Gallup poll released Monday – the 17th time in 20 years that Clinton has claimed that title. And a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll found that 57 percent of Americans would support Clinton as a candidate for president in 2016, with just 37 percent opposed. Meanwhile, websites have already cropped up hawking “Clinton 2016” mugs and tote bags.

Clinton returned to the U.S. from a trip to Europe, then fell ill with a stomach virus in early December that left her severely dehydrated and forced her to cancel a trip to North Africa and the Middle East. Until then, she had cancelled only two scheduled overseas trips, one to Europe after breaking her elbow in June 2009 and one to Asia after the February 2010 earthquake in Haiti.

Her condition worsened when she fainted, fell and suffered a concussion while at home alone in mid-December as she recovered from the virus. It was announced on Dec. 13.

This isn’t the first time Clinton has suffered a blood clot. In 1998, midway through her husband’s second term as president, Clinton was in New York fundraising for the midterm elections when a swollen right foot led her doctor to diagnose a clot in her knee requiring immediate treatment.

Beyond talk of future politics, Clinton’s three-week absence from the State Department has raised eyebrows among some conservative commentators who questioned the seriousness of Clinton’s ailment after she cancelled planned Dec. 20 testimony before Congress on the deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya.

Clinton had been due to discuss with lawmakers a scathing report on the attack she had commissioned that found serious failures of leadership and management in two State Department bureaus were to blame for insufficient security at the facility. Clinton took responsibility for the incident before the report was released, but she was not blamed. Four officials cited in the report have either resigned or been reassigned.

Associated Press writer Ken Thomas in Washington and AP chief medical writer Marilynn Marchione in Milwaukee contributed to this report.

A worker returning to the building smelled smoke and called the fire department.

Holyoke firefighters respond to a mill fire at the corner of Appleton and Race streets Monday evening. The Republican | Don Treeger  

HOLYOKE - An abandoned mill building at Appleton and Race streets caught fire Monday afternoon, but firefighters were able to put out the flames before they had a chance to spread, a fire official said.

Lt. Thomas Paquin, public information officer for the Holyoke Fire Department, said the fire at the building, the former Zydex plant, could have been much worse if the fire had not been detected as early as it was.

A worker told firefighters he was inside the building cutting pipes with a power tool, which was shooting sparks all over, Paquin said. The worker checked to see if the sparks caused any fire, and finding none, he left the building at about 1:30 p.m. But when he returned about four hours later, he could smell smoke and called the fire department.

Firefighters quickly found the fire and put it out, Paquin said. They remained on scene as of 7 p.m. looking for any lingering hot spots, he said.

The factory building is located on the second level canal across from the scene of the new Massachusetts Green High-performance Computing Center.

It is owned by Spartan Trust of Fitchburg, he said.

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The Sox have a large hole to fill at first, but does Abreu fit?

Bobby Abreu played 92 games for the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2012. AP file  

Bobby Abreu has never played first base in his 17-year Major League Baseball career.

But that didn't stop the Red Sox from recently watching the 38-year-old conduct a workout in Venezuela that included drills at first base, according to multiple media reports. While it's hard to imagine the 38-year-old Abreu playing significant time - if any time at all - at first base, he could serve a role as a backup outfielder or left-handed bat off the bench. He is a lifetime .292 hitter with 287 home runs, although he hit just .242 last season with 3 home runs and 24 RBI in 257 plate appearances for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Angels.

The Sox, however, do have a large hole in their lineup at first base. They reached a contract agreement with Nike Napoli nearly a month ago, but the 3-year, $39 million deal has stalled over apparent health concerns.

The Sox also have been linked to free agent first baseman Adam LaRoche.

The legislation would set aside $17 million for the repair or removal of unsafe, abandoned or useless dams while also helping strengthen the state’s coastal infrastructure.

061406 - Palmer - Bondsville section on the Swift River at the Bondsville dam teenage party stop where Palmer police are cracking down on the use by teengers.

CUTLINE: 06/15/05 - The Bondsville dam on the Swift River in Palmer is used as a party spot by many area teenagers. Palmer police have announced a crackdown on underage drinking and illegal drug use at the site.

 

By STEVE LeBLANC

BOSTON – Massachusetts lawmakers have given final approval to a bill designed to make it easier for cities and towns to repair or remove crumbling dams and seawalls.

The legislation approved Monday would set aside $17 million for the repair or removal of unsafe, abandoned or useless dams while also helping strengthen the state’s coastal infrastructure.

The bill would require the commissioner of conservation and recreation to issue a report on all dams in the state and require that emergency plans be drawn up for all dams deemed to be at a high or significant hazard.

There are about 3,000 dams in Massachusetts.

The bill would also create a Dam Repair and Removal Revolving Loan Fund to provide low-interest long-term loans to private dam owners and cities and towns to inspect, repair and remove dams.

A portion of the money will also go toward coastal infrastructure improvements, including improving jetties, retaining walls, and levies.

One of the bill’s top sponsors, state Sen. Marc Pacheco, D-Taunton, said one of the top concerns for lawmakers was public safety.

In 2005, floodwaters pummeled the then-173-year-old Whittenton Pond Dam in Taunton, threatening the downtown area and closing businesses, highways and schools. Two thousand people were temporarily evacuated.

The threats posed by extreme storms haven’t gone away, Pacheco said.

“In the aftermath of the devastation caused by Hurricane Sandy, it is clear that we cannot afford to have an underdeveloped or out-of-date flood-prevention infrastructure,” Pacheco said in a written statement.

Environmental and engineering groups have been pushing for final passage of the bill, which supporters say will also improve the health of rivers and aquatic wildlife by restoring the natural flow of waterways that have been blocked by dams that have outlived their function.

“It’s a fantastic way to provide a set of tools for the commonwealth to address climate change impacts,” said Steve Long, director of government relations with The Nature Conservancy.

The bill sets up an inspection schedule to ensure that all “high hazard dams” are inspected at least every two years and all “significant hazard dams” are inspected at least every 5 years to ensure the accuracy of the dam classification.

Abbie Goodman, executive director of the American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts, also hailed passage of the bill.

“We are deeply concerned about maintaining the safety of infrastructure to protect the public,” Goodman said. “This bill is a great step forward.”

The legislation now heads to Gov. Deval Patrick’s desk. An aide said the governor hasn’t taken a position on the bill and will review it before deciding whether to sign it.

Dam removal isn’t a new concern for the state.

In 2011, Massachusetts led the Northeast in an annual listing of states removing dams to benefit rivers and promote healthy ecosystems.

The conservation group American Rivers said Massachusetts oversaw the safe removal of five dams, nearly a third of the total of 16 dams removed in the six New England states and New York State during that year.

The largest was the Briggsville Dam on the North Hoosic River in Clarksburg, adjacent to the city of North Adams.

Removing the 15-foot-high, 200-foot-long dam restored continuity to more than 30 miles of headwater streams and trout habitat.

All residents in Chicopee are are required to recycle and the amount of recycling has increased 40 percent.

Children from James C. Selser School stand near recycling bins when students and staff began recycling in 2009. Now all schools will be required to recycle. File photo / The Republican  

CHICOPEE — All test and homework papers, plastic water bottles and metal will start to be recycled when all students return to school this week.

Helped by a state Department of Environmental Protection grant and the city’s Department of Public Works, the 15 schools in the city will start a formal program to recycle more.

Schools have done some recycling in the past and some high school students have spearheaded efforts, but a new policy passed by the School Committee will formally require school to recycle paper, cardboard, bottles and cans.

“I think it will be positive. Anything that cuts our trash tipping fees down is a good thing,” said Superintendent Richard W. Rege Jr.

Currently, the city can dump its refuse at the landfill on New Lombard Road owned by Connecticut Valley Sanitary Waste Disposal Inc. at a reduced rate, but the life of the landfill is limited and the city will have to pay much higher fees to dispose of its trash once it closes, said Mayor Michael D. Bissonnette, who also serves as School Committee chairman.

One of the ways to prolong the life of the landfill is to increase recycling so less waste has to be buried. Already the landfill has remained open five years longer than expected, he said.

The city also sells items collected by recycling instead of having to pay a fee to discard trash.

“We managed to get five years at $3 million a year (savings),” he said.

Residential recycling has also increased 40 percent since the city stopped requiring people to separate plastics, metal, glass and paper and provided a large barrel on wheels where they could throw all their recycling, he said.

Other School Committee members said it is contradictory to require residents to recycle but allow schools to throw away the large amount of paper used every day.

Committee member Mary-Elizabeth Pniak-Costello said some attempts have been made to create recycling programs in the schools. In one example City Councilor Gerry Roy has started a program to recycle batteries and has placed a receptacle in all schools.

Students and staff at James C. Selser School have run multiple recycling programs for several years and won a state award in 2010 after students in the Green Team began a school-wide effort to recycle paper, plastic and glass. That program is continuing.

Comprehensive High School students also ran a small recycling program for paper in the past.

An estimated 1 million people were expected to cram into the neon-lit district to see the crystal ball drop and countdown to 2013.

As 2012 winds down with New Year's Eve celebrations, hundreds of thousands of people have gathered in Times Square in New York to ring in the new year – 2013.

It's been an annual gathering since the first ball drop in Times Square in 1907 (the drop was omitted in 1942 and 1943 because of blackouts during World War II). New Year's Eve parties in Times Square date to 1904.

According to the Times Square District Management Association website, about 1 million people were expected to jam into the area to say goodbye to 2012 and watch the 12-foot-wide, 11,875-pound Waterford crystal ball drop and herald the start of 2013.

» Times Square New Year's Eve Ball Fact Sheet [pdf]

When midnight strikes, square-inch pieces of paper with tributes to Dick Clark, the longtime TV host of New Year's Eve parties from Times Square who died this year, will be part of the confetti that will shower Times Square.

New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly predicted that Times Square would be the "safest place in the world on New Year's Eve."

For those who can't make it to Times Square and want to watch the run-up to the ball drop, the Times Square website offers this live webcast of the revelry:

Material from The Associated Press was included in this article

O’Brien is accused of getting a job for his wife at the state lottery by organizing a fundraiser for former state Treasurer Timothy Cahill.

Formers Massachusetts Probation Commissioner John O'Brien, left, and former Treasury assistant Scott Campbell, will be tried together in the state probation department hiring case, a judge has ruled.  

BOSTON – A judge has refused to order separate trials for former state probation Commissioner John O’Brien and his codefendant, ex-Treasury aide Scott Campbell, over objections from their lawyers.

O’Brien is accused of getting a job for his wife at the state lottery by organizing a 2005 fundraiser for former state Treasurer Timothy Cahill. Campbell, Cahill’s chief of staff, is accused of conspiring to hire Laurie O’Brien and violating campaign finance laws.

Lawyers for O’Brien and Campbell tell The Boston Globe their clients will each argue that they did not know there was a connection between the fundraiser and the job offer for Laurie O’Brien. They intend on pointing the finger at each other.

They are scheduled to go to trial and April although the judge said she may reconsider.

Western Massachusetts Electric Co. was fined $2 million for its response to the October snowstorm.

BOSTON – Massachusetts Attorney General Martha M. Coakley says her office will defend the more than $24 million in fines issued by state regulators against appeals that have since been filed by three electric utilities.

Martha M. Coakley  

The Department of Public Utilities fined the companies in early December for their responses to Hurricane Irene and an October snowstorm last year. Hundreds of thousands of customers lost electricity and many waited longer than a week for restoration after each storm.

Coakley said Monday the companies have filed appeals as expected.

National Grid was fined a total of $18.7 million for the two events. It had said it was considering an appeal.

NStar was fined a total of $4.1 million for the two storms. Western Massachusetts Electric Co. was fined $2 million for its response to the snowstorm. Both had announced they would appeal.

Vice President Joe Biden was set to sell the agreement to Senate Democrats at a meeting at the Capitol on Monday night.

The dome of the U.S. Capitol in Washington, D.C. File photo | Associated Press  

By DAVID ESPO

WASHINGTON – A Democratic aide says the White House and congressional Republicans have reached an agreement to avert the so-called fiscal cliff.

The measure would extend Bush-era tax cuts for family incomes below $450,000 and briefly avert across-the-board spending cuts set to strike the Pentagon and domestic agencies this week.

Vice President Joe Biden was set to sell the agreement to Senate Democrats at a meeting at the Capitol on Monday night.

The aide required anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly.

More details coming on MassLive and in The Republican.

Vice President Joseph Biden headed for the Capitol to brief the Democratic rank and file.

This is an updated version of a story posted at 9:21 this evening.

Vice President Joe Biden, center, with Majority Leader Harry Reid, left, of Nevada, arrive for a Senate Democratic caucus meeting about the fiscal cliff, on Capitol Hill Monday in Washington. Associated Press / Alex Brandon  

By DAVID ESPO

WASHINGTON — Racing the clock, the White House reached a New Year's Eve accord with Senate Republicans late Monday to block across-the-board tax increases and spending cuts in government programs due to take effect at midnight, according to administration and Senate Democratic officials.

Under the deal, taxes would remain steady for the middle class and rise at incomes over $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for couples — levels higher than President Barack Obama had campaigned for in his successful drive for a second term in office.

Spending cuts aimed at the Pentagon and domestic programs would be deferred for two months. That would allow the White House and lawmakers time to regroup before plunging very quickly into a new round of budget brinkmanship certain to revolve around Republican calls to rein in the cost of Medicare and other government benefit programs.

Democratic officials said that barring opposition from majority Democrats, a late-night Senate vote was possible on the deal, which was brokered by Vice President Joseph Biden and Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell.

Passage would send the measure to the House, where Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, refrained from endorsing a package as yet unseen by his famously rebellious rank-and-file.

The House Democratic leader, Rep. Nancy Pelosi of California, issued a statement saying that when legislation clears the Senate, "I will present it to the House Democratic caucus."

Without legislation, economists in and out of government warned of a possible recession if the economy were allowed to fall over a fiscal cliff of tax increases and spending cuts.

And while the deadline to act was technically midnight, Obama's signature on legislation by the time a new Congress takes office at noon on Jan. 3, 2013 — the likely timetable — would eliminate or minimize any inconvenience for taxpayers.

Even by the dysfunctional standards of government-by-gridlock, the activity at both ends of historic Pennsylvania Avenue was remarkable as the administration and lawmakers spent the final hours of 2012 haggling over long-festering differences.

"One thing we can count on with respect to this Congress is that if there's even one second left before you have to do what you're supposed to do, they will use that last second," the president said in a mid-afternoon status update on the talks.

As darkness fell on the last day of the year, Obama, Biden and their aides were at work in the White House, and lights burned in the House and Senate. Democrats complained that Obama had given away too much in agreeing to limit tax increases to incomes over $450,000, far above the $250,000 level he campaigned on. Yet some Republicans recoiled at the prospect of raising taxes at all.

A late dispute over the estate tax produced allegations of bad faith from all sides.

After hours of haggling, Biden headed for the Capitol to brief the Democratic rank and file.

Earlier, McConnell had agreed with Obama that an overall deal was near. In remarks on the Senate floor, he suggested Congress move quickly to pass tax legislation and "continue to work on finding smarter ways to cut spending" next year.

The White House and Democrats initially declined the offer, preferring to prevent the cuts from kicking in at the Pentagon and domestic agencies alike. A two-month compromise resulted.

Officials in both parties said the agreement would prevent tax increases at incomes below $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for couples.

At higher levels, the rate would rise to a maximum of 39.6 percent from the current 35 percent.

The deal also would also raise taxes on the portion of estates exceeding $5 million to 40 percent. At the

insistence of Republicans, the $5 million threshold would rise each year with inflation.

Much or all of the revenue to be raised through higher taxes on the wealthy would help hold down the amount paid to the Internal Revenue Service by the middle class.

In addition to preventing higher rates for most, any agreement would retain existing breaks for families with children, for low-earning taxpayers and for those with a child in college.

The legislation leaves untouched a scheduled 2 percentage point increase in the payroll tax, ending a temporary reduction enacted two years ago to help revive the economy.

Officials said the White House had succeeded in gaining a one-year extension of long-term unemployment benefits about to expire on an estimated two million jobless.

It was unclear whether the legislation would prevent a 27 percent cut in fees for doctors who treat Medicare patients was unknown. Nor did officials immediately say if it would include a provision to block a near-doubling of milk prices.

Even as time was running out, partisan agendas were evident.

Obama used his appearance not only to chastise Congress, but also to lay down a marker for the next round of negotiations early in 2013, when Republicans intend to seek spending cuts in exchange for letting the Treasury to borrow above the current debt limit of $16.4 trillion.

"Now, if Republicans think that I will finish the job of deficit reduction through spending cuts alone — and you hear that sometimes coming from them ... then they've got another think coming. ... That's not how it's going to work at least as long as I'm president," he said.

"And I'm going to be president for the next four years, I think," he added.

Obama's remarks irritated some Republicans.

Sen. John McCain of Arizona they would "clearly antagonize members of the House."

Associated Press writers Julie Pace, Andrew Taylor, Alan Fram and Ben Feller contributed to this report.

The reading was intended as a kick-off of a two-year project to bring Civil War history to Springfield schools to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the final three years the war, which ended in 1865.

SPRINGFIELD - Asked what the celebration of the Emancipation Proclamation meant to him, Jay Griffin took a deep breath.

“Phew!” he said.

What it means, he said, is everything.

“We’re here to be thankful for the Emancipation Proclamation in 2013,” he said. “But back in the 1860s, they had the hard part.”

While many Americans today take their freedom as an example of their unalienable right, black 150 years ago had no such luxury. “They had faith to say that someday ‘we will overcome.’”

While other New Year’s Eve celebrations toasted the promise of the future, the celebration in downtown Springfield paid tribute to a milestone moment in the county’s history, the Jan. 1, 1863 issuance of the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln.

Lincoln’s proclamation, issued during the Civil War, laid the groundwork for the repeal of slavery under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in December, 1865.

In Springfield, people gathered in the Sovereign Bank Building in downtown Springfield for a midnight reading of the Emancipation Proclamation by Springfield state Rep. Benjamin Swan. The celebration also featured as members of the Stone Soul Peter Brace Brigade, a Springfield-based Civil War reenactor troupe, and music by Evenus Thompson and Rev. Will Naylor.

Amherst is scheduled to have a similar observance at 2 p.m. Tuesday on the town common to coincide with the exact moment when the proclamation was issued.

“One hundred and fifty years ago tonight, about 400 feet from here at the Springfield Free Baptist Church, there was a quiet celebration,” said Wayne E. Phaneuf, Executive Editor for The Springfield Republican. The church was located about where the MassMutual Center is now.

As word spread of Lincoln’s proclamation and what the ramifications were, he said, “within two weeks, there were two pretty big parties to celebrate.”

Phaneuf, also a noted historian of Springfield and Western Massachusetts, said 150 years after Lincoln’s proclamation was issued “we recognize what an important, what a holy document that is.”

City Councilor Bud Williams said the Emancipation Proclamation “is the start of a dream that ended up with Barack Obama being president of the United States.”

Rick Hurst, publisher of Point of View newspaper in Springfield, attended the celebration with his wife, Marjorie Hurst, who is also on the planning committee.

Hurst, who said he is a fan of American history, said he was recently reading Doris Kearns Goodwin’s book “A Team of Rivals” which documents the Lincoln administration and was struck in particular by the parts leading up to Lincoln’s drafting of the proclamation.

“It was a brilliant move,” he said. I’ve always appreciated Lincoln, but I didn’t fully understand the way he thought it through.”

The reading was intended as a kick-off of a two-year project to bring Civil War history to Springfield schools to coincide with the 150th anniversary of the final three years the war, which ended in 1865.

Griffin, wore a costume from the 1860s to represent Scallywag Hawkins, who he said was a “camp follower,” or someone who would follow the army units from place to place and provide whatever comforts to the soldiers that he could find. He said it would be comparable to an independent contractor today.

The bigger idea behind the event is to present Civil War history in the schools in such a way where the history becomes alive in a tangible way.

“The Emancipation Proclamation is not a black event; it’s a white and black event,” he said. “We all shed blood, the Polish, the Italian, the Irish all shed blood to keep the union together and bring about the Emancipation Proclamation.”

As Phaneuf put it, “We want to reach out to young people, as a way to show them how far they have come and how far left to go.”

The vote was an overwhelming 89-8 and came well after midnight on New Year's Day.

The Senate has passed legislation to block the impact of across-the-board tax increases and spending cuts that make up the fiscal cliff. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite  

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate has passed legislation to block the impact of across-the-board tax increases and spending cuts that make up the fiscal cliff.

The vote was an overwhelming 89-8 and came well after midnight on New Year's Day.

A House vote is expected before Wednesday.

The White House-backed legislation would prevent middle-class taxes from rising, and raise rates on incomes over $400,000 for individuals and $450,000 for couples.

It also blocks spending cuts for two months, extends unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless, prevents a 27 percent cut in fees for doctors who treat Medicare patients and prevents a spike in milk prices.

A last-minute addition would also prevent a $900 pay raise for members of Congress from taking effect in March.

Letter writer: Every parent will be proud to know that “gender identity” is now finally recognized as a protected class in all of (West Springfield's) schools.

Birds count on us for daily sustenance

A male wild turkey is seen walking in the area of Southampton Road in Holyoke earlier this year. The Republican file / John Suchocki  

I recently learned that failed seed crops from Canada are sending many species of hungry birds to our area. And I also read there are very few acorns this year. (Many animals, and even some birds, eat acorns.)

Deer and turkey count on us for continuous feeding. (Remember, corn has no nutritional value, but a wildlife grain mix is outstanding.)

Climate change, violent storms, loss of hundreds of trees, toxic air, water and soil all affect our animals and birds, too. So please, more than ever, put out peanuts, suet, wildlife grain, seed (especially high calorie black oil sunflower seed.)

– MARGIE MATUCK, Westfield

Springfield casino will hurt locals

I hear that drum beating the same old tune about how much we need a casino.

I hear the song of prosperity just around the corner in the voice of the same old singers with lyrics tired and sad in its deceit and with half their wits about them think that a casino in downtown Springfield will be a boon to anybody other than those who own the casino.

What intellectual would invite more crime and decay to a city that was proud to reinvent itself whenever things became hard? Does anyone think that the highway system is adequate to handle the upsurge in traffic that comes with a den of inequity.

The questions I heard in the course of this holiday, as I celebrated the birth of Christ, have been almost universal. Who else shall profit from the casino? How many white envelopes filled with untraceable bills will find there way into the system?

I know this is just speculation over the holiday table and we all are guilty of this kind of speculation. However, they are in the conversation and need to be thought about. Why is the religious community silent? Where are the voices and the people who defeated the casino in the past?

The voice of reason cannot be silenced no matter how much money is spread like manure on fresh fields in spring. The truth will be spoken from person to person, and the action will be felt in the voting booth of the future. Casinos don’t help anyone other than casinos and their cronies. The casinos take from you and I without any regard to our morality or our health or well-being; they just want our hard earned money. The hardest hit will be small business. Do you think that the out-of-state gambler is coming to eat in your restaurant? The casino is a self-contained juggernaut where all your needs are going to be met. There will be no local eateries or bars within a five-mile radius; of course now they will sing another tune.

Wake up, come to your senses. Work hard to stop this folly while you still can.

– BRUCE A GUINDON, West Springfield

West Side schools get priorities wrong

Congratulations West Springfield School Committee.

Every parent will be proud to know that “gender identity” is now finally recognized as a protected class in all of our district’s schools. The committee’s historic decision was arguably one of the swiftest responses in support of transgender reform in the commonwealth of Massachusetts.

It’s too bad that there will be narrow-minded people who will say that our high school and Memorial School are performing at the lowest 20 percent of schools in our great state. They will also raise questions about why five out of seven of our district schools with MCAS data have not met their state-mandated goals. These people might even say the school committee’s priority should be to spend time confronting the deplorable academic ratings of our schools.

But how truly narrow-minded they would be! Just ignore those kinds of people because, remember, what’s truly important to our town is that we are on the cutting edge of political correctness.

And after all, there’s only so much time in a school committee meeting. First things first, you know.

– RICHARD SORCINELLI, West Springfield

Questions remain in Benghazi attack

Your editorial on Benghazi was very interesting as far as it went. The most interesting part of the Benghazi story is what has not been told.

First, there has to be a clarification of what Benghazi was. It was not and is not an Embassy. It has been classified as “a mission.”

The Embassy where Ambassador Chris Stevens was headquartered is at Tripoli. The interesting part of the story, which is generally ignored, is that Stevens and three CIA agents (some of whom may have been contractors) left Tripoli and went to Benghazi to meet Syrian rebels at a CIA “outpost” a few miles from Benghazi. (I read these details shortly after the Benghazi Mission was attacked.) It is also interesting that the press and “talking heads” (including Sen. McCain and his sidekick Sen. Graham) do not refer to any other casualties except the four from Tripoli.

Some day the full story will be told answering the questions:

Was Stevens and his group targeted from the time they left Tripoli? Who was responsible for their deaths? And was Stevens’ mission accomplished, so we can say “they did not die in vain?”

– JOHN F. WAGNER, Chicopee

Those of us who've not been professionally trained in the culinary arts can get a glimpse at this numeric code of cooking thanks to "Ratio", a book by Michael Ruhlman.

A chef serves up a culinary delight. AP  

Though home cooks typically find them essential, written recipes are mostly absent from restaurant kitchens.

Chefs and line cooks prepare the same dishes hundreds of times in a week. The need to refer to written instructions is thus made superfluous by repetition.

Most professional cooks do have a carefully guarded notebook into which they've copied formulas and concepts for dishes that are part of their professional repertoire, but those jottings would be practically unintelligible to a layperson. Ingredient measures are not fully specified, and instructions are often distilled down to a few words or phrases.

A chef may have a library of cookbooks at home or in his office, but they serve as occasional sources of inspiration rather than everyday references.

Professional training and years of experience have instead taught chefs to rely on two forms of culinary savvy.

The first of those is flavor affinities. Certain foods work together, balancing each other out in a way that's pleasing to the palate, such as pork with apples or tomatoes with cheese.

Those flavor affinities serve as a framework from which most recipes derive their appeal.

Another area of knowledge upon which kitchen professionals rely are basic ingredient ratios. Pasta dough, for instance, needs to be three parts flour to two parts egg, while a three-to-one proportion of meat to fat gives sausages of any sort the right texture and flavor.

Those of us who've not been professionally trained in the culinary arts can get a glimpse at this numeric code of cooking thanks to "Ratio", a book by Michael Ruhlman.

A chef-turned-writer, Ruhlman details 33 core ratios that govern nearly everything that goes on in the professional kitchen and bakeshop.

Published by Simon and Schuster, "Ratio" is available at booksellers everywhere.

The father of the gunman who killed 26 people in a Connecticut elementary school, including 20 first-graders, has claimed his son's body, a spokesman for the family said.

These were the most read stories on MassLive.com yesterday. If you missed any of them, click on the links below to read them now.

1) New Year's Eve 2012: Live video from Times Square in New York as ball drops on 2013 Photo gallery at right. [The Republican Newsroom]

2) Boston Red Sox rumors 2012: Miami Marlins listening on Giancarlo Stanton? Red Sox have to be talking [Ben Shapiro]

3) Father of Newtown school gunman Adam Lanza claims son's body [Associated Press]

4) Kanye West: Kim Kardashian having my baby [Ray Kelly]

5) Springfield police investigating armed robbery of convenience store [Jeanette DeForge]

Richard Brunswick based his book on his work with his patients.

Richard Brunswick, a retired Northampton doctor, has written a book to help people quit smoking. Diane Lederman, The Republican  

NORTHAMPTON — The Centers for Disease Control says that committing to quit smoking is the most important New Year’s resolution that anyone could make.

Richard Brunswick, a retired doctor here, has just written a book to help.

It’s a slim volume that fits in one’s back pocket with a title that can’t quite be printed here. But he said “Can’t Quit? Bull**** You Can Stop Smoking” is meant to be a quitter’s friend.
Brunswick never smoked but he treated many patients who did.

And he treated many related illnesses and diseases – and not the ones that people typically associate with the habit – such as bladder cancer or erectile dysfunction.

“I integrated what I saw in my practice and developed it over time,” he said. The book came out in November and was highlighted in a Jane Brody column in the New York Times.

He offers five sections, 10 steps to quitting and tips for people after they quit. He also looks at the drugs that help people quit and nicotine-related alternatives to help keep people from smoking again. Cigarette smoking causes the most harm with its 3,000 chemicals including carcinogens and poison, he said.

To quit successfully, smokers have to be ready. The first step is to commit to quit. He suggests that smokers write a “Dear John” letter to their habit.

Smokers also need a plan. Part of that plan is looking at triggers and the habit and writing down where and when people smoke and then with that information to shake up the routine. It could mean – instead of waking up, turning on the coffee pot and having a cigarette to waking up, taking a shower and taking coffee in a travel mug in a non-smoking car.

He looks at they myths of smoking as well. For example, people think of a cigarette as a reward. “Cigarette is a poison,” he said.

He said people worry about weight gain – he said people might gain five or 10 pounds, but they can lose it again. He said a person would have to gain 60 pounds to equal the harmful health issues related to smoking.

And he looks at withdrawal and offers suggestions. For a cough, sip water or suck on cough drops, he suggests. If a smoker is feeling tired, he suggests exercise or cutting back on tasks, as well as relaxing.

He said he reframes the notion of smoking – “there’s not a word of criticism. It’s very friendly,” he said. He said people will fail, but rather than look at it as a failure, they should consider it as part of the process – for example, If someone quits for three days, maybe the next time he or she will quit fort two weeks or two months.

He offers some alternatives to smoking for people who need nicotine. There are the patches, lozenges and other medications and there is also a small teabag-like pouch that people put under their lips and near their gums. It slowly releases nicotine into the system. Unlike chewing tobacco, there are no juices to spit. He suggest products from Sweden called snus.

There are also electronic cigarettes – which release a fine mist of nicotine without burning it. He writes that anyone using a substance should try to cut down or stop using it if they can. And if they can’t, using them is healthier than smoking.

The women upset previously undefeated Swarthmore while the men cruised past Colby to earn berths in Wednesday's finals.

SPRINGFIELD – The records were nearly flip-flopped. Swarthmore was 7-0, Springfield College 1-7.

And after a difficult early slate coach Naomi Graves says might have been too tough for her young basketball team, the Springfield women were not expected to fare well in Tuesday's opening round of the Hampton Inn-Naismith Classic at Blake Arena.

But Swarthmore's trouble was Tribble.

A spectacular effort by forward Tamara Tribble, who scored 16 points and pulled down 13 rebounds, led the Pride to a 55-48 win and a berth in Wednesday’s 3 p.m. final against Bridgewater State.

Bridgewater outlasted Eastern Connecticut 56-53 in the second semifinal.

In the men’s bracket, Jordan Rote scored 16 points and Cathedral High School graduate Alex Berthiaume added 14 as Springfield coasted past Colby 75-57.

The Pride (9-3) will face SUNY Purchase in Wednesday night’s championship game at 7:30. Purchase defeated Roger Williams 58-51.

The Springfield women carry only three seniors and one junior, with six freshmen and four sophomores logging most of the playing time. Tribble is the only junior, but she played behind a couple of veterans last year and may be coming into her own.

“This is the first game this year that we played through our mistakes,” she said.

Tribble’s high school coach in White Plains, N.Y., was former SC standout Lauren O’Connor, who graduated in 2009 with 1,156 points and 967 rebounds.

Graves has been encouraging Tribble to be more consistent as opposed to putting up 16 points one night and two the next. She told her she’d like to see her score eight points each game. Tribble’s answer: “Is that all?”

The Pride rushed out to a 32-22 halftime lead, but had to hang on as rusty Swarthmore found its legs. A 3-pointer by Jessica Jowdy with 10:59 remaining gave the Garnet their only lead at 37-36.

Swarthmore likes to shoot the 3, and Graves decided to pack in her defense and let them try. The Garnet converted only 6 of 34, just over 50 percent of their 67 field-goal attempts coming from behind the arc.

Pride freshman guard Heather Lewis, a potential star of the future, tied Tribble with a game-high 16 points. She was 6 for 10 from the field in the first half, then missed her first six tries in the second. But those were from the outside, so she decided to go inside for the game's key basket. With the score tied at 48 with less than four minutes to play, Lewis drove the lane and converted a layup to give the Pride the lead for good.

“This is a big win. We’ve been practicing three hours a day – we needed a bone,” Graves said.

Springfield won the tournament last year with then-junior Meghan Biondolillo earning MVP honors. She had seven points and four rebounds Tuesday.

The Springfield men are looking to win their first Classic since 2010, and they played like champions Tuesday.

“Our defense in the first half was outstanding,” coach Charlie Brock said after his team held Colby to 35 percent shooting before the break, and just under 30 percent overall.

Brock also liked the way Springfield moved the ball inside and out to make its shooters more effective. The Pride were 7 of 12 on 3-pointers while the Mules were only 5 of 24.

Brock said winning the Naismith's 26th title meant less to him than his team playing well and making things work before conference play begins in earnest.

Rote, however, pointed out that by winning the Bridgewater tournament early in the season, the Pride bonded, so he'd like them to be hoisting the championship trophy Wednesday, too.

UMass heads to Oxford, Ohio, seeking its sixth consecutive victory.

Chaz Williams and the Minutemen struggled against East Carolina's press late in the game Dec. 22, but coach Derek Kellogg says that won't be an issue against Miami (Ohio). J. Anthony Roberts  

OXFORD, Ohio – Regardless of its next opponent, the University of Massachusetts basketball team needs to clean up the sloppy play that ailed it in a closer-than-it-should-have-been win at Northern Illinois on Saturday.

UMass tied its season high with 20 turnovers, and its mistakes allowed the Huskies a chance to tie or win with less than a minute remaining.

Perhaps when the Minutemen take the court at Miami (Ohio) Wednesday night at 7 in search of their sixth consecutive victory, playing against a team that thrives off of pressure, chaos and turnovers will give them extra motivation to correct their weekend mistakes.

The RedHawks (5-6) play three or even four guards at a time, using a diamond press and halfcourt trap to harass opponents as they try to bring the ball up the floor.

UMass (8-3) has struggled against the press at times, most notably in the final minutes of a Dec. 22 win over East Carolina, but coach Derek Kellogg says his team is better prepared to combat pressure.

“We’ll attack it now. I thought against ECU we had four or five more opportunities to go and try to score and we brought the ball out,” Kellogg said. “If we get pressed in the regular flow of the game, I think we’ll attack it and try to score.”

Miami started four players 6-foot-3 or shorter in its two most recent games, and the Minutemen believe that will allow them more flexibility to switch off of screens and picks on defense.

“It gives us more latitude to play freely on the defensive end,” point guard Chaz Williams said. “They’re very guard oriented.”

Forward Raphiael Putney, one of the players who could stand to benefit most from the Minutemen’s size advantage, agreed.

“It creates mismatches all over the floor for our team,” he said. “Just having the height advantage, the athleticism we can use – I think that will give us a good advantage.”

Kellogg, though, downplayed the importance of what his team would do against the RedHawks in halfcourt defense.

“We can’t let their defensive stuff affect us as much as what they do offensively, because they’re a little bit like us,” Kellogg said. “They need some defense to really create for them offensively.”

Kellogg cited decision-making and defensive rebounding as reasons the Minutemen failed to put 2-10 Northern Illinois away, but it also didn’t help that a few of the Minutemen – including Williams, who vomited on the sideline during the second half – have been suffering from flu-like symptoms.

Kellogg said illness is a common occurrence across college basketball programs in late December and early January.

“We’re doing a lot of traveling. Guys went home for the holidays. More often than not, guys get sick this time of year,” Kellogg said. “Although we’ve had a few bumps and bruises along the way, we’ve been fortunate that no one has gotten really, really sick.”

Williams said he is feeling better and Kellogg said the team is healthier as a whole than it was Saturday.

Flu or no flu, though, Kellogg said energy and taking care of the ball will be the keys to taking care of business against Miami.

“It’s going to be interesting. It has the potential to be an up-and-down, high-scoring game,” he said. “Really, we just need to make sure that we’re here with high energy and ready to play.”

While needy children got their toys, news that the drive missed its goal this season was a psychological blow.

 

 

This season the Grinch almost stole Christmas in Western Massachusetts.

On Christmas Eve, the annual Toy for Joy campaign, sponsored by The Republican and the Salvation Army, fell short of its $150,000 goal for the first time in its 90-year history.

While the funding shortfall didn’t mean needy children were shortchanged of toys, books and games on Christmas morning, news that the drive failed to meet its goal was a psychological blow to the thousands of people who opened their hearts and wallets to make the season brighter for children across the region. In true Dr. Seusssian fashion, however, a hometown hero emerged to save the day and warm our hearts.

Big Y Foods came through with a donation of nearly $4,000 to put the holiday campaign over the top. “It seemed a shame to see Toy for Joy’s long stream of success broken,” said Donald D’Amour, Big Y chairman and CEO.

The final shortfall, after the processing of the mail on Friday morning, was $3,970.

Big Y made up the difference and added another $26 in honor of the 20 children and six educators who lost their lives in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Conn., bringing this year’s tally to $150,026.

Western Massachusetts is fortunate to have a such a generous corporate citizen. Big Y, which is also working to establish a scholarship at Newtown High School for the victims of the Dec. 14 tragedy, gives to the community all year long.

“The generosity demonstrated by the D’Amours and the Big Y family is truly touching this holiday season,” said Cynthia G. Simison, managing editor of The Republican. “They answer the call often, whether it be in time of natural disaster, from hurricane to tornado, or to support education and the arts.”

We give thanks to Big Y and the hundreds of other donors who helped make Christmas memorable for children in Greater Springfield. God bless us, everyone.

The fund-raiser will help the family stay with him until he is well enough to be transferred back to Massachusetts.

 

WILBRAHAM - A benefit to help the Reccord family is scheduled for Jan. 12 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Polish American Citizens Club at 355 East Street, Ludlow.

The event will include a pasta dinner with an acoustic event by John and Tim of Pridefalls.

The meal will be catered by Carol’s catering. Tickets are $25 and may be purchased by email at friendsofthe reccords@yahoo.com or at the bar at the club in advance.

Brett Reccord, of Wilbraham, was critically hurt on Nov. 30 near Dallas, Texas, when the vehicle he was riding in rolled several times, ejecting him from the vehicle. He underwent surgery for a head injury.

His mother, Kathy Reccord of Wilbraham has been with him in Texas since the injury. The fund-raiser will help the family stay with him until he can be transferred back to Massachusetts.