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Boston News Edition
of Continental Newstime newsmagazine
VOLUME XII NUMBER 1 JUNE 1, 2025
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This is not the whole newspaper, but a special complimentary, on-line edition of the general-interest newsmagazine, Continental Newstime. The rest of the newspaper includes national and world news, newsmaker profiles, commentary/analysis, periodic interviews, travel and entertainment features, a science column, humor, sports, cartoons, comic strips, and puzzles, and averages 26 pages per month. Continental Features/Continental News Service publishes, on a monthly rotational basis, special, complimentary on-line newspapers: Washington DC News Edition, Chicago News Edition, Honolulu News Edition, Atlanta News Edition, Anchorage News Edition, Boston News Edition, Seattle News Edition, Miami News Edition, San Diego News Edition, Rochester (N.Y.) News Edition, Minneapolis News Edition, and Houston News Edition.
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* Congressional News Briefs … Boston Congressman Stephen F. Lynch, in response to a doubling of emergency calls in the South Boston Waterfront during the past 10 years, noted groundbreaking for a new $16-million Boston Emergency Medical Services station that is due to be completed in 2026, and he observed, “We’ve seen millions of square feet of new development in this area and a huge increase in residential, retail, and manufacturing activity over the last decade. So, in order to keep pace, we desperately needed this expansion of public-safety capacity for our EMS professionals.” Then, too, Congressman Lynch reports that he and the late Congressman Gerald E. Connolly, Ranking Member of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, had sought an accounting from the Acting General Counsel at the Department of Defense on Special Government Employee Elon Musk’s compliance with ethics laws barring participation in any matter that might affect his personal finances. They attributed to Mr. Musk and his companies at least $38 billion, over time, in contracts, loans, subsidies, and tax credits from the federal and state governments, including $9.5 billion in defense contracts, and they had asserted, “Mr. Musk’s businesses have been more reliant on government funds than many of his competitors.” However, Congressman Lynch has not indicated whether the documents and information requested have been provided, and, before his death on May 21, Congressman Connolly reported filing 1,000-plus requests for documentation on a variety of different issues and following up with the White House Counsel on the issue of possible Musk conflict-of-interest, but he did not reveal the outcome of these inquiries. Neither has Representative Lynch commented on concerns he expressed to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) since he established an April 8th deadline for a response. Together with House colleagues, he warned that “experimenting with crypto at HUD threatens triggering a repeat of the 2008 foreclosure crisis, which was fueled by risky financial products. It is unclear how these technologies [including blockchain], which have not been widely adopted even by the real-estate industry, would help HUD meet its mission. Applying this technology to critical operations raises serious concerns about accountability, transparency, and harm to those relying on these housing programs.” In turn, Senator Edward J. Markey, denouncing Republican efforts to revoke the California Clean Air Act waivers and repeal clean-energy tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act, asserts, “The Trump Administration has made one thing painfully clear: They are putting Oil Above All—above the law, above the economy, and above the health and wallets of working families.” He adds that the GOP tax bill means “more asthma. More heart disease. More early deaths. More cancer.” Joined by Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer and Oregon Senator Ron Wyden, Ranking Member of the Finance Committee, he called Republican actions an “all-out assault on efforts to combat the climate crisis.” The Senator continued, “Republicans are seeking to destroy the tools and programs which are creating hundreds of thousands of jobs, easing costs for working families, and addressing air pollution in our communities … and have far-reaching consequences for all.” Besides, Senator Markey and North Dakota Senator Kevin Cramer have joined efforts to improve an almost-20-year-old program, the Safe Routes To Schools (SRTS) program, by directing state transportation departments to designate a Safe Routes to School Coordinator to help school districts and local governments through the grant process, to share best practices, and to improve safety for schoolchildren walking or biking to school. Senator Markey says, “By ensuring every state has a Safe Routes to School Coordinator, we’re helping communities design safer streets and healthier futures.” The existing program in all 50 states and the District of Columbia already furnishes safety education to children and caregivers, while funding such infrastructure improvements as sidewalks, crosswalks, and bicycle lanes. In addition, on record urging the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) to emphasize public safety and upgrade community engagement in the process for decommissioning such nuclear-power facilities as those in Plymouth, Massachusetts, Senator Markey finds inattention to nonproliferation and nuclear-waste concerns. Now, he charges, the Trump Administration “wants to speed up license reviews and rulemakings, ignore community engagement, and prioritize one of the most-expensive sources of energy while eviscerating the cheapest—wind and solar. It will be impossible for NRC to maintain a commitment to safety and oversight with staffing levels slashed and expertise gone.” Markey warns further that the law does not authorize the NRC to promote nuclear activity. Senator Elizabeth Warren, Ranking Member of the Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs Committee, together with Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal—Ranking Member of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations—have pressed Attorney-General Pam Bondi to reconsider the Administration plan to drop
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criminal charges against Boeing and to hold company executives accountable for their role in the 2018 Lion Air and the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines crashes, which killed a combined 346 passengers. Arguing against the Administration signing of a non-prosecution agreement with Boeing, the Senators emphasize that the company was reneging on its agreement to plead guilty to criminal fraud in connection with the plane crashes and has conceded criminally conspiring to defraud the U.S. government about the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System flight-control software during certification of the 737 MAX. This system pushed the aircraft’s nose down prior to the crashes. Similarly, despite Boeing pledges to improve safety, the Senators cite a Federal Aviation Administration audit that found “systemic” safety issues in Boeing 737 MAX production; namely, failures in 33 of 89 safety tests conducted. Senator Warren references the reports of whistleblowers, as well, that the company stresses speed on the production line and near-term profit over quality and safety. Plus, the Senators deplore the fact that Boeing executives have received in excess of $377 million in pay and bonuses since the 737 MAX crashes mentioned. In other developments, Senator Warren has taken Social Security Commissioner Frank Bisignano to task for failing to honor his Senate confirmation-hearing pledge to maintain staffing levels, so claims-processing is not adversely affected and public service is not disrupted. As evidence of that failure, she finds: “Just two weeks into Bisignano’s tenure as head of Social Security, SSA has a massive backlog of benefit claims. A recent email from SSA leadership to all operations department employees noted that there are nearly 575,000 pending claims, with a growing backlog. Roughly 140,000 of those claims are over 60 days old, and recently-obtained internal documents reported that DOGE had slowed benefit-claim processing by 25%. Responsible for establishment of Senate Democrats’ Social Security War Room, Senator Warren underscores, “Since the start of his Administration, Donald Trump, Elon Musk, and DOGE have worked to dismantle the Social Security Administration [SSA]—including closing offices, reducing phone services, and making website changes that have led to recurring service outages. In February, SSA announced plans to cut roughly 7,000 employees—nearly 12% of SSA’s total workforce.” She attributes claims backlogs and delays in awarding claims to these staffing shortages. Then, as Ranking Member of the Armed Services Subcommittee on Personnel, the Senator warned Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert Kennedy’s efforts to remove fluoride from drinking water and “reversal of CDC’s recommendations on fluoridated water will exacerbate … [military] readiness concerns,” when earlier Defense Department testimony revealed that “dental-health issues are often the largest cause of non-deployability within a military unit.”
* State Government News Briefs … Governor Maura Healey has announced that the state’s Department of Environmental Protection is giving car manufacturers a two-year extension to meet minimum sales requirements under the Advanced Clean Cars II program and that manufacturers can not only invest in their supply chains to bring down the cost of electric vehicles, but earn and carry forward credits for future compliance; also, the Healey-Driscoll Administration will make available additional grant money for the purchase or lease of electric vehicles for publicly-owned fleets, electric school buses, and waste-collection vehicles, and, in coordination with the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Coordinating Council, the Administration will offer grant money to support medium- and heavy-duty vehicle charging, charging at multi-unit dwellings and educational campuses, charging at workplaces and for commercial fleets, and publicly-accessible charging stations through the MassEVIP program, the state’s Electric Vehicle Incentive Program. Also, the Governor has announced that, since she launched her Massachusetts Means Business initiative to eliminate obsolete requirements, burdensome regulations hindering business growth, anti-competitive rules, and measures harming consumers and businesses alike, the Office of Consumer Affairs and Business Regulation has conducted a review that resulted in cutting or amending one quarter of all regulations under its oversight and its agencies, thereby making it easier to do business in the state and improve Massachusetts economic competitiveness.
* City Government News Briefs … Tomorrow, the City Council Committee on Ways and Means, with City Councilor Brian J. Worrell presiding, will conduct one of a series of working sessions to discuss the 2026 fiscal-year Budget. Specifically, this working session will consider annual appropriations for Departmental operations, the School Department, and other post-employment benefits, beside Orders for capital-fund transfer appropriations and Orders for the Capital Budget, including loan orders and lease-purchase agreements. On June 3, the Committee will continue discussion of these matters. Then, on June 4 at 12 Noon, the City Council as a whole will meet in the Christopher A. Iannella Chamber of City Hall. In other developments, Mayor Michelle Wu has announced that the Mayor’s Community Safety Team is transitioning into the Boston Public Health Commission’s Office of Violence Prevention, to ensure collaboration across City agencies and community partners in advancing the City of Boston’s multi-faceted Plan for a Safe, Healthy and Active Summer 2025. In support of the City’s ambition to be the nation’s safest major city, the Cummings Foundation is furnishing an initial $1 million in seed money for such summer-activation projects as block parties, Boston After Dark, summer job opportunities for Boston youth, plus services that operate beyond Summer. The Foundation views this financial support as nurturing the City’s Plan to End Violence. Speaking of the Mayor’s Community Safety Team developing into the Office of Violence Prevention at the Boston Public Health Commission, Isaac Yablo, Senior Advisor to the Mayor, will serve that Office as Director. Meantime, Boston Police Department Commissioner Michael Cox assures that the Department’s partnerships and goodwill with the community are essential in “addressing crime and fear of crime,” along with illegal street racing and unsafe operation of mopeds and scooters in large assemblies of residents. To be sure, the City prides itself on its all-hands-on-deck preventive approach, with faith-based groups also engaged through continuation of the neighborhood Unity Walks. Also, the Mayor and the Boston Parks and Recreation Department announce that registration is now open for the 28th Annual Mayor’s Cup Softball Tournament, with the tournament start date Thursday, June 19. Teams across the City will compete in four divisions for the distinction of being “Boston’s Best.” The Mayor’s Cup Kick-Off Festival runs from 10 AM to 2 PM at Clemente Field (100 Park Drive, Fenway), with family-type fun activities planned, and tournament games will continue in neighborhood parks on Thursday and Friday nights. The final championship games return to the Back Bay Fens.
* School District News Briefs … When the School Committee of the Boston Public Schools District last met on May 28, it held an in-person Retreat in which Chair Jeri Robinson presided and introduced the materials for the Session. These related to effective School Committee Governance, including the Role of School Boards and Eight Characteristics of Effective School Boards. The Committee considered that Effective School Boards commit to high expectations for student achievement and quality instruction; have shared beliefs about what is possible for students and their ability to learn within a system that can teach all children at high levels; are accountability-driven and focused on policies to improve student achievement; collaborate with staff and the community to set and achieve district objectives; are data-savvy and use data to promote continuous improvement; align professional development and other resources to meet district objectives; team with the superintendent—in this case, Mary Skipper—for strong collaboration in an atmosphere of mutual trust; and build shared knowledge, values and commitments for improvement. Before a Public Comment period and adjournment, the Committee discussed aligning effective governance and key priorities and addressed next steps and commitments. The School Committee meets next for a hybrid, in-person meeting on June 17 at 6 PM in the Bruce C. Bolling Municipal Building (Second Floor, School Committee Chamber). Previously, Mayor Wu signed an agreement with the Greater Boston Building Trades Unions and the North Atlantic States Regional Council of Carpenters for a new and expanded direct pathway for graduates of Madison Park Technical Vocational High School to well-paying, stable union jobs in the construction trades, as part of a Project Labor Agreement that ensures a continuing supply of skilled labor for the school district’s capital projects.
* Weather … The National Weather Service reports that current conditions at Boston Logan International Airport, as of 12:54 AM on May 29, are mostly cloudy, with a temperature of 61 degrees Fahrenheit, relative humidity of 63 percent, wind out of the southwest at 12 miles per hour, barometric pressure of 30.19 inches, a dewpoint of 48 degrees, and visibility of 10 miles. The over-night forecast calls for a 40-percent chance of precipitation, cloudy skies, a low temperature of about 57 degrees, and southwest wind of 5 to 9 miles per hour. From Thursday, May 29 through Sunday, June 1, look for daily high temperatures ranging between 63 degrees and about 75 degrees, with a temperature of 70 degrees on May 31 and 68 degrees on June 1, while over-night low temperatures are expected to range between 52 and 58 degrees, with about 56 degrees on May 29. The greatest chance of showers is 80 percent on May 31, with 50 percent that night. Otherwise, there will be a 30 percent chance of showers on May 30, following partly-sunny skies; a 30-percent to 60-percent chance of showers that night; and a 30-percent chance of showers on June 1, followed by mostly-sunny skies. Anticipate partly-cloudy skies and an over-night low temperature of 51 degrees that night. The forecast for June 2 calls for mostly-sunny skies, a daily high temperature of about 70 degrees, and west wind of 6 to 8 miles per hour, the temperature dropping to about 52 degrees that night, with partly-cloudy skies and west wind of 3 to 5 miles per hour.
* Sports … This afternoon, the Red Sox visit the Braves for an inter-league game.
*Movie Talk: By Leslie Rigoulot
Windtalkers and Enigma: The War of Codes (Reprinted and Condensed)
Looking for an old-fashioned mystery? Enigma is it. Looking for a World War II drama that may bring Nick Cage renown? That would be Windtalkers. In Enigma, the good guys are trying to break the recently-changed Nazi code, just as a supply convoy leaves the U.S. In Windtalkers, the Navajos are providing a code that the Japanese can’t break. Starring Dougray Scott looking like warmed-over K-rations, Enigma‘s hero is a man not just on the verge of a breakdown, but recovering from one. The stress of code-breaking and a lost love have pushed the war hero over the edge. But the super-secret Bletchley Park lot need him, so he is recalled to put his “thinking machine” and resources to work.
Now, here is the real enigma that you will only see if you watch the credits and if you watch the crowd scenes very closely. Mick Jagger is one of Enigma‘s Executive Producers. And Lorne Michaels, of “Saturday Night Live,” is the other. And how strange is it that Hong Kong director John Woo would be directing a war movie starring Canadian native (can’t really say native American, can I?) Adam Beach and Italian-American Nicolas Cage. Weird worlds collide.
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One of the questions Ralph Nader is yet to answer about his book, “Let’s Start the Revolution”:
“Can that ‘left/right coalition’ you mention hang together once formed on certain issues when one side fails to rein in its desire to initiate new spending programs and the other side objects that it’s their money that is to be spent?”
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* Proverbs (chapter 28/verse 22): “He that hastes to be rich has an evil eye, and considers not that poverty shall come upon him.” hastes=hurries.
[A timely warning against get-rich-quick schemes]
A free copy of the Etna, California News Edition of Continental Newstime [dated August 14, 2020] containing the newspaper feature of outdoor writer Lee Snyder is also available by
E-mail request to info@continentalnewsservice.com
*Free
Marion, Montana News Edition
of Continental Newstime newsmagazine
VOLUME I NUMBER 1 AUGUST 17, 2022
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This is not the whole newspaper, but a special complimentary, on-line edition of the general-interest, periodic newsmagazine, Continental Newstime. The rest of the newspaper includes national and world news, newsmaker profiles, commentary/analysis, periodic interviews, travel and entertainment features, an intermittent science column, humor, sports, cartoons, comic strips, and puzzles, and averages 26 pages per month. Continental Features/Continental News Service publishes, on a monthly rotational basis, special, complimentary on-line newspapers: Washington DC News Edition, Chicago News Edition, Honolulu News Edition, Atlanta News Edition, Anchorage News Edition, Boston News Edition, Seattle News Edition, Miami News Edition, San Diego News Edition, Rochester (N.Y.) News Edition, Minneapolis News Edition, and Houston News Edition.
Marion, Montana News Edition of Continental Newstime
Editor-in-Chief: Gary P. Salamone
Continental Features/Continental News Service
501 W. Broadway, Plaza A, PMB# 265
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* Congressional News Briefs … Marion’s agent in the U.S. House of Representatives, Matt Rosendale, decided he was not going to sugar-coat House Bill 5376. While House Democrats said they were acting to pass the “Inflation Reduction Act,” the Congressman contended that legislation increasing the size of government, raising taxes on hard-working Americans and spending billions of taxpayer dollars on the Left’s Green New Deal was actually an “Inflation Acceleration Act” and he cast a vote against the bill. Warning that the spending would “cripple our nation’s budget,” he noted that the legislation “will also raise an army of 87,000 IRS agents to squeeze more taxes out of already-hurting American families. With frivolous spending and an enlarged, aggressive IRS, the only climate that will be changing over the next year will be the economic climate, and it will get worse.” He offered this solution: “To reduce inflation, Congress must freeze spending, a concept the Left does not understand. Reining in federal spending and reducing taxes to lower inflation will reaffirm confidence in those investing in our economy.” On his part, Senator Steve Daines, commenting on the $739-billion, so-called Inflation Reduction Act of President Joseph Biden and Senate Democrats that he opposed, asserted that Senate Democrats voted against Daines’ amendment to eliminate policies that would increase costs on Made in Montana energy and other amendments that would render the bill “less painful for Montanans.” He characterized, as “supersizing the IRS,’ the plan to hire more than 80,000 Internal Revenue Service agents “to audit small and medium-size businesses and assert control over the lives and finances of Montanans.” He termed a subsidy for “rich people” the provision to offer $7,500 tax credits to individuals making up to $150,000, so they can purchase expensive electric vehicles. Considering the bill “a slap in the face of Montana families,” the Senator added, “The Democrats’ reckless tax-and-spend bill is bad for Montana families, bad for Montana energy jobs and bad for Montanans’ pocketbooks.” Working with Illinois Senator Tammy Duckworth and Hawaii Senator Mazie Hirono, Senator Daines has introduced bipartisan legislation, known as the BABES (Bottles and Breastfeeding Equipment Screening) Enhancement Act, to require the Transportation Security Administration to clarify and update guidance, every five years, on handling breast milk, baby formula, and other related nutrition products based on consultation with leading maternal-health experts. Calling the legislation a “Bill to Support Montana Moms,” Daines informs that companion legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives, and the measure is endorsed by such organizations as the March of Dimes and the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Senator Jon Tester, in turn, as the Chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense, announces that the $792.1-billion Defense Appropriations Bill earmarks almost $182 million for Montana priorities, saying, “This legislation will keep America safe by investing in Malmstrom Air Force Base, giving our troops a well-deserved pay raise [4.6 percent], ensuring our servicemen and women are well-equipped with the most up-to-date technology, and shifting resources towards programs that’ll maintain our fighting edge over adversaries like China and Russia.” For example, over in Columbia Falls, uAvionix is due to receive $7 million to develop Future Tactical Unmanned Aerial System communications. In addition, he reports that, for Montana, the American Rescue Plan Act means $266 million to deliver high-speed Internet to rural areas of the state, something that is “one of the biggest keys to success for Montana’s students, families, and small businesses.”
* State Government News Briefs … Governor Greg Gianforte has expressed the view that the Montana Supreme Court, after upholding a district-court order temporarily blocking three pro-life bills he signed into law—the Court should not delay bringing into line its 1999 ruling in Armstrong v. State with the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 decision finding that there is no constitutional right to abortion and that the states are entitled to restrict abortion. In other developments, the state legislature has highlighted a recent report by the Montana Bureau of Mines and Geology that acknowledges findings of the Department of Environmental Quality that the ingestion of too much manganese through drinking water may be harmful, at the same time the Bureau notes that the mineral, naturally present in many common foods, is essential for proper nutrition and that too little may be harmful, as well. Some research shows that adults and children drinking water with high manganese concentrations for sustained periods may suffer from memory and attention problems and motor-skill deficits. But, since most Montanans tap groundwater supplies for their drinking water, they mainly avoid high levels of manganese. Those that do not? The Bureau’s Ground Water Assessment Program reports that 7 percent of the water samples it tested exceeded the recommended health-standard limit for
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adults and children older than 6 years of age. Checking 3,858 water samples from across the state, the Bureau gives assurance that manganese concentrations were low and safe for 85 percent of the well samples it analyzed and that lower concentrations were recorded in samples from western Montana aquifers; higher concentrations, in the eastern part of the state. Specifically, certain aquifers near Flathead Lake, north and west of Great Falls, and in the Missouri River Valley yielded more samples with elevated manganese concentrations. The Safe Drinking Water Act categorizes manganese as a secondary water contaminant, like iron, pH and sulfate, meaning it is safe to drink, but may damage water equipment and transmit an unpleasant odor and taste. The state legislature reports that 380 Montana schools, to date, have tested water fixtures for the primary water contaminant, lead and are implementing remedies for contaminated fixtures.
* County Government News Briefs … The Flathead County Board of Commissioners [Brad W. Abell, Pamela Holmquist, and Randy Brodehl], at its last meeting on August 11, considered six different lakeshore permits, including one at McGregor Lake, one at Flathead Lake, and another at Whitefish Lake; conferred with Erik Mack, of the Planning & Zoning Office, who reported an uptick in zoning violations; discussed giving authorization to publish a Notice of Public Hearing on Road Abandonment concerning an unnamed portion of road off Highway 93 West; took up the matter of authorization to publish a Call for Bids for the estimated $120,000 Fall, 2022 Pavement Striping Project; was due to hear from Liz Wood, of Mountain Climber Transit, on ridership increases, and from Ashley Cummins, Director of the County Library, who reported approximately 1,000 daily patron visits system-wide and who provided an update on the Library Board vacancy; planned to meet with Sheriff Brian Heino; and, among other County business, was tasked to sign a Behavioral Health Hospital Provider Agreement with Logan Health.
* School District News Briefs … The Marion Elementary School District, with the library closed during the summer due to remodeling, plans a Back to School Kick Off Event on September 1, with school starting on September 6. Earlier this month, the District posted a notice that it was hiring for full-time teaching positions in physical education and in the sixth-grade classroom. The School Board is scheduled to meet again on September 12. Meantime, in the Kalispell Public Schools District, Flathead High School announces that classes resume either on August 31 or September 1, depending on the grade level.
* Sports … The Flathead High School Boys Varsity Football Team is set to play Skyview on August 27 at 7 PM and is due to visit Gallatin on September 2 for a 7 PM kickoff.
* Weather … The National Weather Service reports that current conditions 17 miles west-southwest of Kalispell, as of 3:15 PM on August 17, are sunny, with a temperature of 90 degrees Fahrenheit, relative humidity of 15 percent, barometric pressure of 29.95 inches, visibility of 10 miles, wind out of the south-southeast at 3 miles per hour, and a dewpoint of 36 degrees. The over-night forecast calls for clear skies, northeast wind of 3 to 5 miles per hour and a low temperature of about 55 degrees. Tomorrow, look for sunny skies, with a daily high temperature of about 91 degrees, calm wind becoming east-northeast wind of about 6 miles per hour in the morning. Thursday night, expect mostly-clear skies, with a low temperature of about 56 degrees and northeast wind of 3 to 6 miles per hour.
* Community Calendar … August 19—Pachyderm Meeting of Flathead County Republicans (12 Noon-1 PM) at the Eagles (37 First Street W, Kalispell); August 27—Pheasants Forever Chapter #138 Banquet (5 PM-9 PM), at the Fairgrounds; September 16/17—Quilt Show, at the Fairgrounds; September 17—Glacier Rabbit Show, at the Fairgrounds; September 30—Kalispell Ski Swap, at the Fairgrounds.
Dry Tortugas [Reprinted and Updated] by Lee Snyder
Named “Las Tortugas” (the turtles) by 16th-century Spanish explorers who found the harmless reptiles nesting on its shores, the Dry Tortugas is a collection of several sandy spits and tree-dotted islands. Fort Jefferson, once famous as a 19th-century “American Devil’s Island,” remains one of the world’s largest brick structures. The red brick fort is most famous as the jail where Dr. Mudd was held after treating Lincoln’s assassin for a broken leg.
Fort Jeff, past National Monument, is now part of Dry Tortugas National Park, which, together with the water and island reefs, is one of this nation’s most remote and unique units of our National Park system. While sharks are still occasionally found swimming in the moat, tourists are more likely seen snorkeling around the fort’s outer boundary viewing a dazzling array of fish, coral and sponges. Today, the Coast Guard’s close scrutiny of increasing public pressure allows visitors to see what underwater Florida is supposed to be. Divers claim the park waters are the liveliest anywhere in the state. “Little Africa,” an unspoiled section of coral reef near Loggerhead Key, the largest island in the chain, boasts expanses of staghorn and elkhorn coral more like those found in Caribbean than in Florida waters.
Nearly 27,000 people—mostly fishermen, yachtsmen, and divers—visit the park by boat each year.
But, for a six-week period, the bulk of the visitors attend for another reason. Spring in the Tortugas is definitely a birdwatcher’s delight. Florida’s peninsular shape is like an appendage reaching out into the ocean. Its islands are the first safety offered travelers crossing the Gulf of Mexico…. The “funneling effect” allows for close inspections of the birds in their most colorful breeding plumage—an opportunity that draws enthusiastic birders from all over the world….On any given spring day in the Tortugas, birders with four, five and six hundred birds on their lists are found. Listers with seven and eight hundred on their lists are usually there as guides, having visited the islands years before. But, even so, an errant species from South America, the Bahamas or Cuba could fly by adding to all lists.
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