March 24, 2003 – News at a glance

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Interview: Lt. Gov. Brian Dubie
Steve Delaney talks with Lieutenant Governor Brian Dubie about the three roles he’s currently managing: state officer, commercial pilot and air force reservist. (Listen to the interview online.) (VPR)

Sugaring season
Mild temperatures brought visitors by the thousands to Vermont’s sugarhouses this weekend for the second annual statewide maple open house. In colder areas, the sap that makes the syrup was running well-to-moderately. But in many parts of the state, sugar makers are worried that the warm weather, coupled with a late start, could cut the season short. (Listen to the story online or read the transcript.) (VPR)

Renewable energy bill
The House Commerce Committee recently approved a bill that promotes development of renewable energy. Mark Young from Orwell is the committee’s chairman. He says the bill would allow consumers to buy some of their power from renewable sources. (VPR)

War protest
War protesters gathered in cities across the world on Saturday, and they were in Burlington as well. Peace activists from across the state marched through downtown Burlington for more than two hours, intermittently stopping traffic at busy intersections. (VPR)

Media and war
A media expert says much of the coverage of Iraq is not really war news but war propaganda. Joshua Meyrowitz of the University of New Hampshire spoke at Saint Michael’s College over the weekend. He says news coverage from Iraq centers on what he says are distortions of the news. (AP)

Act 60 bills
Republicans in the Vermont are getting some surprises from their Republican leader, Governor James Douglas. The governor has annoyed some of his party members with his dramatic shifts on a number of issues, including education funding and the minimum wage. (AP)

Transportation money
Vermont could receive a 22% increase in the amount of federal money it receives for roads and bridges. Senator Jim Jeffords says an amendment recently passed by the U.S. Senate would give Vermont nearly $30 million more a year. (AP)

Brattleboro school budget
The town of Brattleboro has a new school budget for next year. Representatives at the town’s annual meeting yesterday approved the $12 million budget over the recommendation of the finance committee, which called for level-funding the budget. (AP)

Dean campaign
Former Governor Howard Dean’s presidential campaign is catching on in New Hampshire. A new poll finds that Dean has pulled even with Massachusetts Senator John Kerry. Twenty-three-percent of those polled said they support Kerry, with 22% for Dean. (AP)

Co-op employees unionize
Most of the employees at the Hunger Mountain Cooperative in Montpelier are unionizing. Fifty-four of the employees at Hunger Mountain have joined the same union as staff members of City Market, a food co-op in Burlington. (AP)

Marijuana bust
Two Texas men have been arrested on drug charges in southern Vermont. Twenty-nine-year-old Christopher Davis and 42-year-old Kevin Donnawell are charged with felony possession of marijuana. Authorities claim they found the men with 105 pounds of marijuana with a street value of more than $200,000. (AP)

Dorset housing
Town officials in Dorset are applying for state money to study the possibility of building affordable housing. Dorset’s planning and zoning administrator says the $40,000 to hire a consultant, who would study where the best place in town would be for affordable housing. (AP)

Antidote for muddy roads
Rutted roads are hard to avoid during northern New England’s mud season, but a civil engineer in Hanover, New Hampshire, is working on a possible solution. At the Army’s Cold Regions Research lab, Karen Henry has patented a geosynthetic barrier designed to soak water away from the roadbed and prevent damage from the freeze-thaw cycle. She’s testing it on a 100-foot stretch of road in Windsor, Vermont. (AP)

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