The
Merrimack County Stamp Collectors will hold its monthly meeting at
the Bow Mills United Methodist Church, 505 South St., Bow, on
January 15, 2019 beginning at 1 pm. We invite all who
are interested in stamp collecting to attend, share their interest,
buy, sell and trade. Meet other collectors and learn more
about their hobby and enjoy the fellowship of others with varied
interests in Philatelic resources and issues. Gain new insight
and knowledge, sharing news articles and stories about stamp
collecting. For more information call Dan Day at
603-228-1154.
Letter To The Editor
To the
inhabitants of said towns of Epsom and Pittsfield,
Thank
you for two terms you voted me as your State Representative.
My very
first bill was for property tax relief, using the remaining money
from the Tobacco Tax, not used for education. That failed. My second
bill, to remind the State to upgrade Main St., Pittsfield.
Another
bill required excess funds from State Agencies to be deposited in
the "Rainy Day Account." When the funds reach one hundred million
dollars, the remaining monies are to be dispersed to municipalities
equally. That failed.
Surprise, Chris Sununu, starting his budget with zero monies. All
monies remaining from the Hassan governorship would be deposited in
the Rainy Day Account, Every municipality got equal shares.
Pittsfield got road repairs and sidewalks around the schools.
Dan's
Pumpking Bill, to legalize pot. I was the first to introduce a Pot
Tax, requiring pot taxes to be used ONLY for property tax reduction,
dispersed equally with municipalities.
A
troubling bill for me, the court assessment fee, was to be used for
"Victim of Crime Funds." The Police Standards and Training Council
was receiving 66% of that court fee, over three million dollars
yearly. The remaining fee divided between the courts and the
Attorney General's Office.
Still
no money to the victims.
When
the dust settled, the Police Standards and Training Council receives
their funds now from the General Fund. Also a kicker, twenty-two new
police cruisers.
No
money to the victims.
Those
funds must be over six million dollars.
Still
not a penny for the Victims of Crimes.
May the
new year bring on better governance.
Michael
Brewster
Raccoons And Rabies
Submitted By Carole Soule
It was
8 p.m. and dark and later than usual when I returned from doing
errands. The chickens were hungry. Rushing, without looking, I
reached into a 30-gallon metal trash can to scoop out some organic,
soy-free chicken grain. Startled by an unexpected pinch, I jerked my
hand back. A raccoon, who had been happily chowing down on the
chicken feed, leaped out of the can and ran off. He was surprised,
but I was shocked. As he ran off, I stared at my thumb where blood
was starting to appear from two tiny tooth marks. I thought, “#@*&!
Rabies!”
A
family of raccoons had been hanging around the farm for a few weeks.
Sometimes when I drove into the barnyard after dark, I'd see them
hurrying from the tractor shed (where we keep the chicken feed)
across the barnyard. Raccoons are wildly cute with thick fur and
adorable masks, but their charm is no protection against rabies.
Rabid animals will randomly attack other animals and people. They
foam at the mouth and stagger around. My raccoon bite was clearly a
defensive measure; he didn't mean anything by it. He just wanted to
get away.
Later
that night a Google search told me that 25 percent of raccoons carry
the rabies virus. This virus can incubate without symptoms for up to
a year, which means even if the raccoon that bit me wasn't rabid at
the time, he still could be a carrier.
There
is no test for rabies except by observation of the animal or by
autopsy. My raccoon had made himself unavailable for either method.
My other option was to get post-bite immunization shots. But if
farmers rushed off to the doctor for every injury, we'd scarcely
have time for the back-breaking labor we're so fond of. Besides, it
seemed like a minor bite, not worthy of medical attention.
Nevertheless, my disinclination to get treatment was soon set
straight by sobering information.
Dining
at a friend's house, I met Ann, a health professional who
communicates with the Center for Disease Control (CDC). She told me
that people are still dying painful deaths from rabies. In one
recent case, a man who had a live-and-let-live attitude toward the
hundreds of bats in his attic must have been bitten without knowing
it. Or maybe he knew but didn't realize that bats generally carry
the rabies virus. In any case, he contracted rabies and endured two
weeks of agony before he expired.
Ann,
who regularly processes rabies claims, also told me that treatment
can cost up to $8,000! You can imagine how an uninsured person might
choose thrift over caution. But I have Medicare, which would be sure
to pay some of it. So rather than playing Russian roulette with my
life, I decided, no matter what the cost, to get the post-bite
shots.
Twenty
years ago a bite victim would receive a series of 10 shots painful
shots to the stomach, but now only six shots to the arm are required
– three on the first visit and the rest staggered over 10 days. None
of them were painful.
Of
course, the best protection is immunization before the bite. That's
what I do for my livestock; each animal receives one $10 shot that
is good for a year. But humans require more than one shot. The nurse
at Walk-In Care told me that because humans are more delicate than
livestock, a full dose given at one time would stress our systems.
So the necessary amount of vaccine must be spread over several days.
The
farm and I are rabies-free. The family of raccoons is gone. Maybe
after chomping on my hand, they decided there was tastier food
elsewhere.
Carole
Soule is co-owner of Miles Smith Farm. She can be reached at
[email protected].
Pittsfield Soldier Serving In Kuwait
Captain Cynthia Thompson of Pittsfield is currently
deployed to the middle east along with other members of the New
Hampshire National Guard’s 1986th Contingency Contracting Team.
She is stationed at Camp Buehring near Udairi, Kuwait. Camp
Buehring is located about 25 miles from Iraq. It is the
headquarters of U.S. forces in the area and serves as the staging
post for these forces. The deployment is in support of
Operation Enduring Freedom (Spartan Shield).
Cindy
serves as the Contract Administrator Officer in Charge of Camp
Buehring’s 408th Contacting team, Combat Sustainment Brigade.
The mission includes contract oversight as well as daily operations
of the unit. She has been with the New Hampshire National
Guard for 12 years and is on her second deployment.
Understanding Bullying
Submitted By John Freeman, Pittsfield Superintendent of Schools
Pittsfield School Board Policy JICK (http://www.pittsfieldnhschools.org/sau/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/JICK.Pupil_.Safety.and_.Violence.Prevention.Bullying1.pdf)
defines bullying consistently with state law (http://www.gencourt.state.nh.us/rsa/html/xv/193-f/193-f-3.htm)
as follows:
Bullying is hereby defined as a single significant incident or a
pattern of incidents involving a written, verbal, or electronic
communication, or a physical act or gesture, or any combination
thereof, directed at another pupil which:
1)
Physically harms a pupil or damages the pupil’s property,
2)
Causes emotional distress to a pupil,
3)
Interferes with a pupil’s educational opportunities,
4)
Creates a hostile educational environment, or
5)
Substantially disrupts the orderly operation of the school.
Bullying shall also include actions motivated by an imbalance of
power based on a pupil’s actual or perceived personal
characteristics, behaviors, or beliefs, or motivated by the pupil’s
association with another person and based on the other person’s
characteristics, behaviors, or beliefs.
The
University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension’s Understanding
Bullying (https://extension.unh.edu/resources/files/Resource001364_Rep1823.pdf)
provides us with very helpful information and suggestions on
addressing bullying among our children.
According to this report, 30% of school-age children report having
been victims of bullying, and 30% of school-age children report that
they have bullied another person. (These figures closely
mirror Pittsfield’s data, according to our most recent Health Risk
Behavior Survey in 2017.) It has been reported that more than
seven million cases of bullying are reported in public schools
nationwide each year.
The
federal Stop Bullying website (https://www.stopbullying.gov/)
provides four actions that we adults can take to prevent bullying:
• Help
kids understand bullying. Talk about what bullying is and how to
stand up to it safely. Tell kids bullying is unacceptable. Make sure
kids know how to get help.
• Keep
the lines of communication open. Check in with kids often. Listen to
them. Know their friends, ask about school, and understand their
concerns.
•
Encourage kids to do what they love. Special activities, interests,
and hobbies can boost confidence, help kids make friends, and
protect them from bullying behavior.
• Model
how to treat others with kindness and respect.
Bullying is often underreported. Despite the fact that about
30% of our students have confidentially reported that they have been
bullied, our schools receive only a handful of reports each year.
Students, parents, and families are encouraged to report suspected
incidents of bullying, either by using the district’s reporting form
(http://www.pittsfieldnhschools.org/sau/wp-content/uploads/2016/04/JICK-R.Pupil_.Safety.and_.Violence.Prevention.Bullying.Reporting.Form_1.pdf)
or by speaking directly to an advisor, teacher, administrator, or
any trusted adult.
Do’s
when addressing bullying from this source include:
• Do
intervene immediately. It is ok to get another adult to help.
• Do
separate the kids involved.
• Do
make sure everyone is safe.
• Do
meet any immediate medical or mental health needs.
• Do
stay calm. Reassure the kids involved, including bystanders.
• Do
model respectful behavior when you intervene.
And
Don't...
• Don’t
ignore it. Don’t think kids can work it out without adult help.
• Don’t
immediately try to sort out the facts.
• Don’t
force other kids to say publicly what they saw.
• Don’t
question the children involved in front of other kids.
• Don’t
talk to the kids involved together, only separately.
• Don’t
make the kids involved apologize or patch up relations on the spot.
While
we may or may not agree with the African proverb it takes a village
to raise a child, I believe that it takes a community to eliminate
bullying among our children and youth. If we all do our parts,
we can support our children and eradicate bullying from our
community.
BCEP
Reminders About The Safety Upgrades At The Facility
Please
do not remove the yellow safety chains in front of the construction
and metal boxes. The insurance company has mandated a barrier
between pedestrians/vehicles and the access to the containers. Also,
the first construction area has been re-designed as a bunker to
allow for dump trailers to empty directly into the space thus
eliminating dumping debris all over the concrete pad.
The
speed bumps have been temporarily removed for the winter months to
allow for snow plowing. Caution should still be exercised
while traveling around the facility and remember the speed limit
posted has always been 5MPH.
Additionally, it is not SAFE to back out of the drive thru lanes
into oncoming traffic. Four communities with an approximate
population of 16,000 utilize the facility. High volume times will
mean longer wait time, please be patient with your friends and
neighbors, just think of the supermarket before a snowstorm!
Learn
Why School District Property Taxes Are So High
January
17 at Belmont High
If you
missed the Education Funding 101 forum held in Pittsfield in June
2018. You can join four Lakes Region school districts that
will co-host the next community discussion about how New Hampshire
pays for public education. The forum will be at held 6:00 pm
on Thursday, January 17 in the Belmont High School auditorium, 255
Seavey Road in Belmont.
If you
haven’t gone to a previous forum, this is a great chance to
understand one of the most important issues in New Hampshire.
Both the NH House of Representatives and Senate have multiple drafts
of proposed legislation that could reform the current funding
formula. If you would like to talk to your elected representatives
at the NH State House about the changes you would prefer, then the
Belmont forum will provide the information you need.
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