Beware callers who ask for money

Scammers abound! The Catskill Chronicle warns that Sullivan Countyites are getting taken in by telephone con artists, in schemes involving faux cable guys and overseas operators offering "stimulus funds."

The first scam involves a telephone caller posing as a Direct TV salesman offering an upgrade in the satellite service. The caller offers a "special deal" for $9.95 to upgrade the number of channels the person receives. The caller then asks the victim for an ATM card number and the security code on the back, to complete the transaction.

Earlier: Beware cheerleaders bearing potpourri.

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NYT finally publishes rumored story about the governor

The story questions Paterson's role in a possible coverup of domestic violence accusations against aide David Johnson.

Many details of the governor’s role in this episode are unclear, but the accounts presented in court and police records and interviews with the woman’s lawyer and others portray a brutal encounter, a frightened woman and an effort to make a potential political embarrassment go away.

In response to the story, Paterson has announced an inquiry and ordered Johnson suspended without pay.

Farm to table: Ducks from Modena

Liza de Guia, the one-woman force of nature behind NYC-based video blog Food Curated, wrapped up a three-part series today on locally raised ducks. In the series, she follows them from John Fazio's farm in Ulster County to Savoy, a New York restaurant whose menu focuses on locally-sourced ingredients.

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Indie pharmacist opens doors in Kingston

Kingston Happenings profiles Sri Talla of the Kingston Pharmacy, a brand-new venture located in the former home of the Muddy Cup.

Talla, who was born and raised in India and immigrated to the U.S. for his pharmaceutical training, said if a customer without insurance needed to purchase medication costing $100 but only had $95, the store would provide it. (An employee at a chain couldn’t do this without losing his or her job, he said.) “I can be more flexible, and we also have charge accounts.” Talla said his prices are also competitive. “I don’t need a fancy building like the Walgreen’s,” he said. “They pay a premium for the building.” And even though the chains get volume discounts, “they don’t pass on the savings.”

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Gasland on Democracy Now

 Amy Goodman's progressive radio show ran a segment yesterday on natural-gas drilling, featuring documentary filmmaker Josh Fox (Gasland) and Damascus Citizens for Sustainability's Joe Levine. Here's Fox on his film:

I got on the road and went to about thirty different states—the film focuses on about ten of them; it’s a road movie—and, you know, went from place to place and discovered the same story, that the gas drilling companies were saying one thing and that the people were getting something quite different, and uncovered this Orwellian nightmare of, you know, people being promised a great deal of money and then, you know, ending up with towns that were ruined.

Ulster Red Cross opens warming shelters

February's not going to go out without a fight. There's more snow on the way--and the Ulster County Red Cross is reporting that as many as 31% of homes in the county are without power. From Twitter:

@ulsterredcross We've opened a shelter at the Kerhonkson Fire House 333 Main Street. We will be opening in Kingston by nightfall.

From the Northeast NY Red Cross in Albany:

@RedCrossNENY Our vols are ready to open shelters if local officials request them. If you need help, call us at (518) 458-8111 or your local police dept.

Are there other emergency resources out there for Catskills residents? Let us know by leaving a comment below (register for a username to post right away without moderator approval).

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H.R. 4003: Hudson River Valley Special Resource Study Act

Congressman Maurice Hinchey's bill would fund a study on whether the Hudson Valley should be made part of the national parks system. Here's the OpenCongress page for the bill.

The House Natural Resources Committee is voting today on whether to advance H.R. 4003, says the Times-Union.

Bill widget from OpenCongress:

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