Maine Currents 7/11/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne

Segment 1: The public comment period has closed and now those who care about Maine’s new National Monument are waiting to hear its’ fate. Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke visited Katahdin Woods and Waters recently as part of a federal review. While his comments after touring the area seemed to indicate that he was favorably impressed, they are open to interpretation at this point. Governor LePage has been a vocal opponent of the monument, downplaying the beauty and historical significance of the area, and any potential economic benefits for the region.
On Friday the Natural Resources Council of Maine held a press conference in Bangor to release the results of their analysis of the public comments that had been submitted so far, and to highlight the thoughts of some residents of the Katahdin Woods and Waters region. In our first segement today we’re going to listen in.

FMI:
Natural Resources Council of Maine

Segment 2: Coming up on Wednesday, July 26th, WERU, in conjunction with Bucksport’s Wednesdays on Main will hold our third annual storytelling event at the Alamo Theatre. We hope to see you all there, and to give you a sample of what you can expect, today we’re bringing you an encore presentation of 3 of the storytellers from last year’s show who will be returning this year.

FMI about the 7/26th event: My Maine: The State as Experienced by Local Storytellers


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

Maine Currents 7/4/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne
Contributor: Matt Murphy

Yankee Magazine Editor Mel Allen on “The Power of Community”

Longtime Yankee magazine editor Mel Allen spoke at the Alamo Theatre in Bucksport, Maine on June 21st in conjunction with that town’s “Wednesday on Main” summer series. His topic was “The Power of Community” and he commented on how that is at play in Bucksport and other towns in the region.

FMI:
Yankee Magazine
Wednesday on Main


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

Maine Currents 6/27/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne
Engineer: John Greenman
Contributor: Matt Murphy

Segment 1: Katahdin Woods & Waters National Monument
Our guests in the studio are recent visitors to Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument: Christina Perkins, an Orland resident who has hiked in KWW with friends and her dog Rye- and plans to return several times this summer; Don Duncan, a photographer from Southern/Midcoast Maine who is just returning from a trip to KWW and has visited and photographed the area in the past; and Roger Merchant, also a photographer, has been exploring, fishing, canoeing, hiking and taking photos in the area since the 60s when he was working as a forester. They talk about their experiences in KWW. Joining us by phone: Lucas St Clair, a member of the family that donated the land for the National Monument and an endowment to support it, gives an overview of the KWW National Monument and the current status of the designation, and Cathy Johnson, Senior Staff Attorney & Forests and Wildlife Project Director for the Natural Resources Council of Maine talks about the call to action they have issued to their members to protect the national monument’s designation. We also hear from Katie, a local resident who is part of a group that will be traveling to KWW in a few days.
FMI:
Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters
Federal Review of National Monuments, Public Comment Opportunity
Natural Resources Council of Maine

Segment 2: Nonviolent Communication
Matt Murphy talks with local non-violent communication trainer Peggy Smith, and gets some tips for communicating with people with whom you seriously disagree
FMI:
www.opencommunication.org/about.html


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

Maine Currents 6/13/17

Guest Producer/Host: John Greenman
Engineer: Amy Browne

Avoiding and Mitigating Watershed pollution

-What is “clean” water?
-what’s the Section 319 grant?
-Who can apply and get help?

Guests:
Zack Steele, Exec. Dir. Hancock Cty. S.W.C.District
Chip Stubbs, Alamoosook Lake resident, past president of the Alamoosook Lake Association
John Wedin, Watershed Stewart for the Ellsworth, ME Water District
Art Grindle, Kennebec County Soil and Water Conservation District


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

Maine Currents 6/6/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne

Will Maine’s New Ranked Choice Voting Law Survive the State Legislature?

The Ranked Choice Voting law passed by Maine voters in November may soon be repealed by the legislature, based on a word that was changed in the state constitution back in the 1800s. The word “plurality” was substituted for “majority” after a contentious gubernatorial race in 1880. As a result, some races in the state can be (and often are) won by candidates who have the support of far less than a majority of the voters. The court’s opinion pertains to only some of the races that would be covered by the new ranked choice voting law. The remaining races could also be conducted via ranked choice voting if the state constitution were amended to read “majority” again rather than plurality. But some in the state legislature are taking the opportunity to throw out the new law entirely – and according to an analysis by Michael Shepard in today’s Bangor Daily News (bangordailynews.com/2017/06/06/the-point/maine-lawmakers-have-five-options-on-ranked-choice-voting-signs-point-to-repeal/), they may succeed, as some Democrats are considering voting with the Republicans.

On Friday a public hearing was held on 2 competing bills- LD1624 which proposes to amend the state constitution to allow implementation of ranked choice voting, and LD1625 which would repeal the new ranked choice voting law altogether. The hearing drew an overflow crowd to the Veterans and Legal Affairs Committee and testimony lasted more than 4 hours. Not a single member of the public spoke in support of overturning ranked choice voting. We’re going to listen in on some of the testimony today- as much as we can squeeze into an hour.

UPDATE: As we went to air work sessions for these bills were posted. They will take place on Thursday, June 8th at 1pm. FMI: legislature.maine.gov/bills/phwksched.html?CODE=VLA&snum=128


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

Maine Currents 5/31/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne
Engineer: John Greenman

Conspiracy theory or healthy distrust of a corrupt system? How do you decide?

A call-in show discussion of this issue and of Richard Otto’s book The Paradox of Our National Security Complex: How secrecy and security diminish our liberty and threaten our democratic republic
with author Richard Otto and veteran journalist Peter Taber.


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Tuesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

NOTE: Maine Currents will be moving to Tuesdays (4-5pm) starting in June 2017

Maine Currents 5/24/17

Producer/Host: Amy Browne
2nd segment audio recorded by John Greenman

Minimum Wage Increase: Did Mainers Know What They Were Doing?

Last November Mainers voted to gradually increase the state’s minimum wage from the (then) current rate of $7.50 an hour up to $12 an hour by 2020. After 2020 increases would be tied to inflation. Despite the fact that the measure drew strong support, several bills have been introduced in the state legislature that roll back the increases in various ways. In some cases the rate of increase is reduced. Other measures would tweak the formula for tipped staff or for younger workers or those in training.
9 such bills were presented in the legislature back in April, and yesterday the Labor, Commerce, Research and Economic Development Committee held a public hearing on yet another, LD1609 (“An Act To Support Maine’s Employers and Encourage Employers To Hire Young Workers”) and arguments on each side were reiterated.

Some of those who advocate overturning the will of the voters have said Mainers didn’t understand the consequences of their vote. They argue that small businesses will be forced to lay off workers or limit hiring and will pass along costs to consumers.

Supporters of the minimum wage increase say that even the slight increase makes a difference for low wage workers who are often forced into making tough choices with their limited pay. Matt Schlobohm, Executive Director of the Maine AFL-CIO told the committee that the $30 extra per week in one 70-year-old woman’s pocket had allowed her to purchase windshield wiper blades. She had lost her home and was forced to return to work when her husband became disabled, and before the first incremental increase in the minimum wage went into effect in January her budget was so tight that needing new wiper blades would have been a crisis.

On this week’s Maine Currents we listen in as the debate continues

Area Resident Weighs in on Bar Harbor Cruise Ship Pier Proposal
An event in Bucksport last week brought together several environmental groups for a discussion of local issues. “The Future of Our Forests, Rivers, Lakes, Fields and Ocean” was hosted by Maine Common Good Coalition Renata Moise expressed concerns about a new cruise ship pier being proposed in Bar Harbor:


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Wednesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org

NOTE: Maine Currents will be moving to Tuesdays (4-5pm) starting in June 2017

Maine Currents 5/17/17

Producer/Host: John Greenman
Studio Engineer: Joel Matt & Matt Murphy

Update on Maine’s Cuban Connections

Program Topics: Embargo/Blockade and Guantanamo

Key Discussion Points:
Update on the effects of the decades-old embargo
The latest on the US presence in Guantanamo Bay

Guests:
Judy Robbins, “Let Cuba Live”
Dud Hendrick, Maine Veterans for Peace (just returned from Cuban conference on foreign military bases)


Maine Currents- independent local news, views and culture, every Wednesday at 4pm on WERU-FM and weru.org