Then Again...What Do I Know?

Providence

 

Diocese of Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin tried to address the debate surrounding illegal immigration in a diocesan newspaper article last week. Instead, he came out on both sides of issue which made the article pointless. Does the Church promote and support illegal immigration? His answer: No, the Catholic Church does not support or encourage illegal immigration because it is contrary to federal law and not good for society because of the presence of a large population living outside the legal structures.

What about the illegal immigrants already here, the article asks?  Here Bishop Tobin quotes Pope Benedict who recently said “I want to encourage you and your communities to continue to welcome the immigrants who join your community today.” The Pope was referring to immigrants not illegal immigrants, but Bishop Tobin conveniently ignored that adjective (illegal) to prop up his weak argument. Maybe next week, Bishop Tobin will make the distinction between legal and illegal if he chooses to write the topic again!

 

Woonsocket

 

CVS Caremark is digging in its heels here. The Woonsocket based Company purchased two buildings next to its headquarters to provide more room for its employees. The real estate taxes will go to Cumberland, however, as the buildings are on the Cumberland side of Highland Park. CVS will renovate the buildings and begin moving workers from its main building this summer.  CVS employs about 2,500 people here in Woonsocket and nearly 200,000 nationwide.

 

Woonsocket

 

The man who founded WNRI in November of 1954 died last week.  Joseph Britt of 758 Diamond Hill Road established the broadcast company as “the voice of the Blackstone Valley.” Britt hired both Dick Bouchard in 1957 and Roger Bouchard in 1961 and launched their respective broadcasting careers. Britt, a broadcast engineer by profession, was responsible for the planning of the station and the engineering of the equipment during his tenure. His company was known as Friendly Broadcasting Company and he operated the business until 1972. He lived next door to the WNRI studios and was a faithful listener and frequent visitor to the station. He leaves behind his wife, Lillian.

 

Providence

 

Health Care benefits are an expensive item these days. The full family coverage package carries a price tag of $16,233. For state senators and representatives, it is somewhat of political football. Besides a $13,508 a year salary to serve, they get free healthcare. Some taxpayers believe that in these hard financial times, they too should offer a financial concession to help balance the budget. So how do our legislators line up on health care?

Representative Lisa Baldelli Hunt, who gets health benefits from another source, gets a waiver payment $2002.00 saving taxpayers over $14,000. Representative Jon Brien accepts the benefits because he uses the insurance to protect his family.

Newly elected Senator Roger Picard has chosen to voluntarily make a co-pay of ten percent to his health benefit program. Also voluntarily paying 10 percent of the cost of their health-care premiums include Senators Marc Cote and John Tassoni.  The overall taxpayer cost this year of the legislators’ health benefit program: $1,344,861. The annualized savings would be a projected $142,739 if every legislator paid a 10% co-pay.

 

Bellingham/Blackstone

 

Do voters forgive the wrongdoings of their elected officials? Recent election returns in Blackstone and Bellingham say yes providing a period of penance is served.  Michael J. Buckley who ran a foul with an arrest by Woonsocket Police several ago was not only elected to the Blackstone Millville Regional Schools Committee but was the high voter getter besides. Former Bellingham selectman Jerald A. Mayhew was returned to office by Bellingham voters this week. In 2007, Mayhew saying it was his error was arrested for an alcohol violation. Mayhew paid his debt to society and returned to the political area this election cycle. Voters in Bellingham soundly elected him to his former post as the high vote getter.

 

Woonsocket

 

Neighborhood under siege?  Woonsocket’s Fairmount district somewhat isolated from the rest of the city is in need of some extra police attention. One big distraction to the distinct was the establishment of the Bourdon Boulevard housing project in 1952. The “project” as it is unaffectionately called does not add any stability to the neighborhood. In recent years, the housing stock in the rest of the neighborhood has decayed and the many absentee landlords have permitted an undesirable element to infiltrate the neighborhood. Then there’s a proud and stable group of homeowners who trying to hold their neighborhood together. When council member Bill Schneck reported a drive by shooting on First Avenue recently, Fairmount again surfaced as a district that needs attention before it is too late. We urge the Mayor, the Council and the acting chief to use their resources to protect the hundreds of responsible people who call Fairmount home.

 

Woonsocket

 

Mayor Susan Menard in her weekly WNRI interview says the 2008-2009 city budget is taking shape. The mayor announced that 12 city jobs will eliminated saving about $500,000 in the next year but she has not announced which ones. Other cuts include elimination of seasonal workers, no capital expenditures, road fix-ups and repair to buildings. She also referenced “the slowdown of services.”  This includes attention to city parks which may not happen as fast as people are used to. Teams which use the city parks may have to do some of their game preparation duties such as lining the fields. On another matter, the Mayor ruled out a supplemental tax bill this year to balance the budget before June 30th.