The New York State Public Service Commission (Commission) and the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) announced Mon., Oct. 17 a $5 million Agriculture Disaster Program to help farms replace systems and equipment damaged or lost due to Hurricane Irene and/or Tropical Storm Lee. The program provides funding for energy-efficient repair and replacement of damaged electric and natural gas systems and equipment, such as milk processing, cooling, heating, and other farm systems. Garry Brown, Chairman of the Public Service Commission, said: "The destruction caused by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee was unprecedented and the farming communities in the affected areas sustained significant damage. This authorization will provide a dual benefit of offering some relief to those communities in the face of tremendous need and avoiding lost opportunities for energy efficiency gains as those farms begin to repair and rebuild their operations." Francis J. Murray Jr., President and CEO of NYSERDA, said: "Farmers across New York State are still struggling from damage caused by Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee, and many of them need to replace critical equipment and systems. The Agriculture Disaster Program will help them rebuild during this challenging time using energy efficient equipment and systems while at the same time reducing their energy costs." Read more at newsroom.wgxc.org

Darrel J. Aubertine, Commissioner of the New York State Department of Agriculture & Markets, said: "The Agriculture Disaster Program will assist in the economic recovery of disaster impacted farms by providing funds necessary to enable agricultural operations to resume. It will also have the additional benefit of assisting these farms to rebuild with increased energy efficiency, thereby improving the long-term economic viability of impacted farms and increasing the state's ability to meet energy efficiency goals."

Dean Norton, President of New York Farm Bureau, said: "NYFB appreciates the strong partnership between the Public Service Commission, NYSERDA, the Department of Agriculture and Markets and our farm families. One of the biggest issues for our farm families who faced such devastating loss due to Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee is the cost of replacing lost or damaged equipment and systems. NYFB is highly appreciative of Governor Cuomo's leadership, and the assistance provided by these critical state agencies to our farm families as they start the difficult road back to rebuilding their farms."

Program eligibility will be limited to farms and on-farm producers located within counties identified by Executive Orders 17, 21 and/or 22. Eligibility is contingent upon demonstration that the loss was suffered as a result of Hurricane Irene and/or Tropical Storm Lee.

Applications are available at http://nyserda.ny.gov, and are for eligible farms or on-farm producers. The applications will be processed in the order in which they are received on a first-come, first served basis until December 15, 2011 or until the funding runs out. Funding will be provided at 100 percent of eligible costs minus other aid or insurance proceeds received with a maximum assistance amount of $100,000 per farm.

Farms seeking assistance will be required to provide supporting documentation for the equipment or systems for which they are seeking funding. Detailed invoices or estimates for the equipment or systems will be required for program application. Farms must also demonstrate that they contribute to the System Benefits Charge (SBC).

For more information, applicants can call 1-877-NY-SMART (877-697-6278).

-30-

Permalink: http://readme.readmedia.com/PSC-NYSERDA-Announce-Disaster-Assistance-For-Farmers/3064631

The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) announced Mon. Oct. 17 that it adopted a five-year deer management plan now available at www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7211.html. "White-tailed deer are an important and valued natural resource for New Yorkers," DEC Commissioner Joe Martens said in a press release. "DEC's new deer management plan provides strategic direction for our staff over the next five years and will help us focus our efforts where they can best meet the biological and social demands associated with deer. This plan emphasizes the importance of hunting for deer management, and we are particularly excited to create new opportunities for young deer hunters. Read the full plan at newsroom.wgxc.org.

The plan describes six primary goals that encompass the current priorities for deer management and the values and issues expressed by the public:

Manage deer populations at levels that are appropriate for human and ecological concerns;
Promote and enhance deer hunting as an important recreational activity, tradition, and population management tool in New York;
Reduce negative impacts caused by deer;
Foster public understanding and communication about deer ecology, deer management, economic aspects and recreational opportunities;
Manage deer to promote healthy and sustainable forests and enhance habitat conservation efforts to benefit deer and other species; and
Ensure that the necessary resources are available to support sound management of white-tailed deer in New York.

Public comment on the draft deer management plan was carefully reviewed by the Department, and several notable changes were made in the adopted plan, including:

Changing to a 5-year cycle for evaluating deer population objectives;
DEC removed the proposal to completely discontinue either-sex and antlerless-only tags;
DEC is committing to implementing a youth deer hunting opportunity. Details related to timing and structure of a youth hunt have been removed from the plan so as to allow continued discussion to identify the most appropriate option; and
DEC clarified that a special antlerless-only season for muzzleloader hunters will only occur as the 3rd phase of a multi-phase process, and only in WMUs where additional doe harvest is needed.

DEC intends to begin implementing strategies of the deer plan immediately. While many strategies will take several years to develop, DEC expects to begin rulemaking to implement a number of hunting-related aspects of this plan prior to the 2012-13 hunting seasons, including:

Establishing a youth deer hunt;
Starting the Southern Zone bow season October 1st;
Allowing DMPs to be used during the bow and early muzzleloader season in the Northern Zone; and
Expanding mandatory antler restrictions into 7 WMUs in southeastern New York.

DEC strives to provide a deer management program that balances diverse public interests and values with the biological needs and ecological relationships of deer, for the benefit of New York's white-tailed deer herd and the people of New York.

Permalink: http://readme.readmedia.com/DEC-Adopts-Deer-Management-Plan/3064513

A stretch of Route 67 in Freehold flooded by the Catskill Creek in the storms associated with Hurricane Irene in August are still recovering from the storms affects. Andrea Macko in the Greenville Mountain View Pioneer reports that the Freehold Country Pub hosts a fundraiser this Saturday, Oct. 22 for several businesses and homeowners along the Creek. The fundraiser goes to Story's Nursery, the Freehold Airport, and the Matthews Family in Freehold, and the VanVoorhis Family in Preston Hollow. The fundraiser starts at 6 p.m. and includes cocktails, a buffet diner and DJ Karaoke Craig.

Local weather forecast
The National Weather Service predicts Tuesday will be partly sunny, with a high near 63. Tuesday night clouds move in, with a low around 43. Wednesday rain begins, mainly after 2 p.m. High near 57. New rainfall amounts between three quarters and one inch possible.

Town meetings today
CAIRO The Planning Board of the Town of Cairo holds a Public Hearing on the planned Hannaford Supermarket in Cairo on Tuesday, Oct.18. It will be held at the Acra Community Center, 645 Old Rt 23, Acra, NY (behind St. Edmond's Church). Take Rt 23 West to Acra Manor, make a right and go to stop sign, make left onto Old Rt 23 and proceed to Acra Community Center. For more info call the Cairo Town Hall at 518-622-3120. 7 p.m. at Acra Community Center, 645 Old County Route 23, Cairo.
COLUMBIA COUNTY Health and Medical Services Committee meets at 4 p.m. at 401 State St. in Hudson.
DURHAM 7:30 p.m. The Durham Town Board opened a Public Hearing on August 2 for the following proposed Site Plan Reviews which will remain open until further notice: Property owned by Edward Armstrong, parcel 49.00-6-30 located at 1105 Hervey Sunside Road, Cornwallville consisting of approximately 54.80 +/- acres. Their wish is to place a 140’ wind tower on this parcel; And property owned by Robert Stefanko, parcel 63.00-3-8 located at 7591 Rt 23, East Windham consisting of approximately 17.10 +/- acres. Their wish is to place a 120’ wind tower on this parcel. The board meets the first and third Tuesday of each month at 7:30 p.m. Town Board meets at 7:30 p.m. at Town Building, 7309 State Rt. 81, East Durham (239-8260).
HILLSDALE Meeting at 7:30 p.m. at Town Hall on Main Street (325-5073).
HUDSON 5 p.m. Finance Committee meeting; 7 p.m. Regular Common Council meeting at City Hall, 520 Warren Street, Hudson (828-1030).
HUNTER Meeting at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 5748 Route 23A, Tannersville (589-6150).
LEXINGTON Town board meeting at 7 p.m., at Municipal Building, 3542 Route 42, Lexington, (986-6303).
TAGHKANIC Planning Board workshop meeting at 7 p.m. at Town Hall on Route 82 in West Taghkanic (851-7638).

The skies above
SUNRISE/SUNSET 7:09 a.m./6:13 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 10:49 p.m. / 1:01 p.m.

Birthdays
October 18 Chuck Berry, Mike Ditka, Laura Nyro, Terry McMillan, Martina Navratilova, and Rick Moody.

WGXC Program Notes
Special Programming on Mon. Oct. 17:
• 4-6 p.m.: On Tuesdays the WGXC Afternoon Show is hosted by Mariel Fiori and Antonio Flores-Lobos, who present news and features and interviews in English and Spanish.

Audio clips for WGXC programmers
This information is not meant to be read on-air.

New PSAs
A OFF PSA 20111030 Pledge Drive
A OFF PSA 20111029 North Chatham Rotary Halloween
A OFF PSA 20111029 Clermont Ghost Tours

Audio headlines for top of the hour
• 5 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 6 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 7 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 9 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 4 p.m.: International Network News (INN), through Audioport
• 5 p.m.: Free Speech Radio News headlines, through fsrn.org
• Midnight: International Network News (INN), through Audioport

Lissa Harris in The Watershed Post reports that Lissa Harris on Saturday, October 15, the Occupy Wall Street protesters staked out at the Chase Bank plaza in New Paltz. YouTube user kiew0101 took the video above of protestors marching through the streets of New Paltz on Saturday. ("Don't photograph, join us!" one woman exhorts the off-screen videographer around the 3:25 mark.) The Times Herald-Record estimates that about 125 people participated in the New Paltz demonstration.

Governor Andrew Cuomo directed flags on state government buildings be flown at half-staff on Monday, October 17 in honor of a Fort Drum soldier who died in Afghanistan on October 10. Sergeant Nathan L. Wyrick died in Kandahar province. He was assigned to the 1st Battalion, 32nd Infantry Regiment of the 10th Mountain Division's 3rd Brigade Combat Team stationed at Fort Drum. Sergeant Wyrick was from Enumclaw, Washington. "I join with all New Yorkers in mourning the loss of Sergeant Wyrick and I extend my deepest condolences to his family, friends, and fellow soldiers," Governor Cuomo said in a press release. "We will honor his service and his dedication to our country."

WGXC volunteer Tanya Blue interviewed Tim Smith, a stone mason, mentor and teacher, and also co-founder of the Agawamuck Project for the Fine and Practical Arts, which was formerly housed in Philmont and now has relocated to with Operation Unite. Smith talks about the restoration work on the the General Worth house at 211 Union St. in Hudson. The Project is also currently working on the Chatham clock tower. Click here to listen to an mp3 of Tanya Blue's interview with Tim Stone. Interview is 5:07.

Walter Severini in The Watershed Post reports that Small Business Administration officer Jim Elens has a temporary office in Windham, thanks to Graham Merk, chairman of the Windham Chamber of Commerce. Elens will be available through Friday, October 21 to help anyone with property damage from the recent floods. The Small Business Administration offers Home Disaster loans, Business Physical Disaster loans, Economic Injury Disaster loans, and working capital loans. Elens is available from 9:30 a.m. to 5 p.m., Mon-Fri at the IA Financial Building at 5419 Main St. Read the entire story in The Watershed Post.

"Mitigation experts" from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are in Catskill Fri. Oct. 14 to Wednesday Oct. 19 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Lowe’s at 60 Catskill Commons. The mitigation experts will provide information on:
• Cleaning mold and mildew;
• Elevating electrical services and appliances;
• Installing sewer back-flow valves;
• Removing and replacing drywall and insulation;
• Channeling water away from foundations;
• Repairing with water-resistant materials; and
• The permitting process required for rebuilding.
More information on ways to protect your home from future disasters is available at: www.fema.gov.

The Greene County League of Women Voters and WGXC are co-sponsoring Candidate Forums this election season in Cairo, Coxsackie, and Catskill. Turn out in person or tune in to 90.7-FM to hear local candidates discuss their views on the issues. Come out to the candidate forums to write down a question for the candidates, or listen at home live, or later to the archived recording at wgxc.org. The forums, administered by the League of Women Voters, will be:
• CAIRO Thu. Nov. 3, 8-9:30 p.m. at Cairo Town Hall.
• COXSACKIE, Sat., Nov. 5, 10 a.m.-noon at the Heermance Memorial Library.
• CATSKILL, Sat., Nov. 5, 1-3 p.m. at the Catskill Community Center.
Candidates should be receiving invitations in the mail or can contact info@wgxc.org. Thanks to the Greene County League of Women Voters. We hope many candidates can participate. Follow the link to read the League of Women Voters regulations for Candidate Forums.

WGXC will also record and attempt to broadcast the Hudson African-American Leadership Alliance (HAALA) Hudson mayoral debate at 6 p.m. Tue. Oct. 25 at the JLE School in Hudson with Republican mayoral candidate William Hallenbeck and Democrat Nick Haddad. WGXC is willing to participate in other candidate forums, and welcomes any candidate participation in said forums.











Basic Political Debate/Meet the Candidates Event Format



Event should be no more than 90 minutes long. Candidates need to arrive 15 minutes before start of event. Substitute speakers are not permitted. No campaign literature or materials will be allowed inside the room.



Lots will be drawn in advance to determine the order of speakers for opening remarks. Moderator will be introduced by the sponsoring organization’s spokesperson. Moderator will introduce panel members and go over the rules. Each candidate will have a 3-minute opening statement.



Audience members will be asked to silence all electronic devices. The audience will be provided with index cards/writing implements with which to write questions.


1. No statements

2. No personal remarks

3. All questions must be legible

4. The moderator will choose questions and paraphrase for clarity/appropriateness.



The candidates will have one minute (or two, depending on number of candidates and time available) to answer. The moderator will call on candidates in succeeding order to answer. The moderator has the right to rule on all questions. No one else will be permitted to see the questions before, during or after the event. [Candidates should be reminded that they may take notes and cover issues/comments they missed during the Q&A as part of their closing statement.]



Depending on time available, questions may be permitted from the floor. Questions will be limited to one minute and will be answered as above. The same rules apply as with written questions. Each candidate may have a 2 or 3-minute closing statement.



The moderator will close the event and invite members of the audience to remain in order to have personal conversations with the candidates (must be agreed upon in advance by candidates).



SPEAKING TIME WILL BE STRICTLY ENFORCED OUT OF RESPECT FOR THE OTHER CANDIDATES AND THE AUDIENCE’S RIGHT TO HEAR ALL CANDIDATES SPEAK.



Candidates are encouraged to bring campaign literature. A table should be set up outside the room for the purpose of distributing the literature. Each candidate will be permitted to display a packet of flyers, position papers, and letters of endorsement or other campaign material. However, each candidate will be allowed only ONE stack of information on the table unless the organizer permits more.

Please call 518-828-0290 to keep WGXC on the air.

Local weather forecast
The National Weather Service predicts Monday will be mostly sunny, with a high near 61. Monday night should be partly cloudy, with a low around 41. Tuesday should be much like Monday, partly sunny, with a high near 60.

Town meetings today
ATHENS Town meeting at 6:45 p.m. at Town Hall, 2 First Street, Athens (734-3636).
AUSTERLITZ Comprehensive plan meeting at 7 p.m., at 812 Route 203, Austerlitz (392-3260).
CAIRO The Town Board of the Town of Cairo will holds Meetings/Workshops/Public Hearing on the 2012 Budget for the purpose of reviewing the 2012 Budget and for any other business that may come before the Board. The Meetings/Workshops are as follows: Monday, October 17, 2011 at 7 p.m.; Tuesday, October 18, 2011 at 4:15 p.m.; Tuesday, October 25, 2011 at 4 p.m.; The Public Hearing on the 2012 Budget will be Wednesday, November 9, 2011 at 7 p.m. Meeting tonight at Cairo Town Hall, 512 Main St., Cairo.
CANAAN Planning board meeting at 7 p.m., at Town Hall, 1647 Route 5 South, Canaan (781-3144).
GALLATIN There will be a budget workshop concerning the 2012 Gallatin Town Budget. Any other business in front of the Town Board may be discussed. At 6 p.m. at Gallatin Town Hall, 1643 Jackson Corners Road at the intersection of the Taconic State Parkway, Gallatin.
GERMANTOWN The Germantown Town Board holds a Workshop on the Sewer District for its residents, followed by a Public Hearing for a Local Law to establish No Parking Zones within the town at 6 p.m., followed by regular town meeting at 7 p.m., at Town Hall, 50 Palatine Park Road, Germantown (537-6687).
GREENE COUNTY 6 p.m. meetings of Government Ops and Finance committees, plus party caucuses at County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
GREENVILLE Town Board meeting at 7:30 p.m. at Town Offices, corner of routes 32 and 81, Greenville (966-8276).
NEW BALTIMORE The New Baltimore Town Board holds a Special Meeting for the purpose of multi-year planning at 7:30 p.m. at New Baltimore Town Hall, 3809 County Route 51, Hannacoix.

The skies above
SUNRISE/SUNSET 7:08 a.m./6:14 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 9:51 p.m. / 12:15 p.m.

Birthdays
October 17 Nathanael West, Montgomery Clift, Evel Knievel, Michael McKean, and Eminem

WGXC Program Notes
Special Programming on Mon. Oct. 17:
• 3 p.m.: "Roots, Runners, Rhizomes" alternative health show.

Audio clips for WGXC programmers
This information is not meant to be read on-air.

• A Very Incomplete Calendar: 20111017 PLAY CLIP

New PSAs
A OFF PSA 20111030 Pledge Drive
A OFF PSA 20111029 North Chatham Rotary Halloween
A OFF PSA 20111029 Clermont Ghost Tours

Audio headlines for top of the hour
• 5 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP.
• 6 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP.
• 7 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP.
• 9 a.m.: WGXC News 9:58 PLAY CLIP.
• 4 p.m.: International Network News (INN), through Audioport
• 5 p.m.: Free Speech Radio News headlines, through fsrn.org
• Midnight: International Network News (INN), through Audioport

Today, October 17, marks one full month of the Occupy Wall Street protest in Manhattan. Dan Levy of WNYT television in Albany posts this about an "Occupy Albany" rally at the State Capitol this past Saturday, October 15. (3:12) Occupy Albany will begin a similar protest to Occupy Wall Street this Friday, October 21 at noon at Lafayette Academy Park. The park is across Washington Ave. from the state Capitol and across Eagle St from Albany City Hall.

The deadline to register to vote in time for this year's general elections is Friday, Oct. 14. Oct. 14 is also the deadline to change party registration in time for next year's primary elections. The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 8 this year, with many local town contests and countywide races. One can mail in an absentee ballot request by Nov. 1, or ask for one at an election office by Nov. 7. Absentee ballots need to be postmarked by Nov. 7 and received by Nov. 15.

[caption id="" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Joshua Shafer, with his first deer in Columbia County, 2010, from DEC website."][/caption]The 2011-2012 Southern Zone bowhunting season and Northern Zone muzzleloader season for deer and bear begin at sunrise this Saturday, October 15, marking the start of hunting season. The Southern Zone includes most of upstate New York outside of the Northern Zone, except for Westchester County. The Northern Zone, generally includes the Adirondacks, the Tug Hill Plateau, the eastern Lake Ontario plain, and the Champlain and St. Lawrence valleys. "The early seasons are a great time to be in the woods," said Commissioner Joe Martens. "With recent legislation now allowing 12-13 year olds to purchase a Junior Bowhunting license, we encourage adult hunters to share their passion, experience, and time with a junior hunter this year."

Other new regulations this year:

• Mandatory antler restrictions are in effect during bow and gun hunting seasons this year in a portion of Wildlife Management Unit (WMU) 3A in the Catskills (part of Delaware, Sullivan and Ulster counties). The new law, established by the New York State Legislature, covers the portion of WMU 3A that lies south and west of State Route 28 and requires that bucks taken in this part of WMU 3A have at least one antler with 3 or more points that are at least 1 inch long. The law applies to all public and private lands and all hunting seasons in the affected portion of WMU 3A. Only hunters under the age of 17 are exempt and they may take any antlered deer with at least one antler measuring three or more inches in length. See www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/27663.html for more information about antler restrictions in New York.
• Bear hunting has been expanded in eastern New York, from Westchester to Washington County, and is open during the same time periods as deer hunting. For specific bear hunting areas and season dates, visit www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/28605.html#Black.
• Crossbows may NOT be used during the early bowhunting or early muzzleloading seasons, but crossbows may be used during the regular firearms and late muzzleloader seasons. See Crossbow Hunting at www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/68802.html for more information and the Certificate of Qualification.
See more hunting regulations after link.
DEC encourages bowhunters to participate in the Bowhunter Sighting Log www.dec.ny.gov/animals/7193.html. The Bowhunter Sighting Log involves keeping a diary of your bowhunting activity and the number of animals seen. These data help DEC track deer and other wildlife populations. To participate, e-mail DEC at fwwildlf@gw.dec.state.ny.us (specify Bowhunter Sighting Log in the subject line) and provide name, address, hunter ID (back tag number), a list of the counties where you hunt, and whether or not you have participated in New York's bowhunter log in any previous year.

Additional information that may be of interest for hunters includes:

2011 Deer Hunting Season Forecasts by WMU www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/37304.html.
Hunting the Black Bear in New York (PDF booklet) www.dec.ny.gov/docs/wildlife_pdf/bbhunting10.PDF.
Deer and Bear Harvest Reports www.dec.ny.gov/outdoor/42232.html.
Subscribe to New York Big Game email list at http://lists.dec.state.ny.us/mailman/listinfo/nybiggame to periodically receive information about deer and bear management in New York, and/or sign up for Field Notes, an email newsletter of the DEC Division of Fish, Wildlife, and Marine Resources: www.dec.ny.gov/about/63801.html.

Local weather forecast
The National Weather Service predicts rain Friday, with a high near 69. Friday night showers are also likely, mainly before 2 a.m., with a low around 50. Saturday should be partly sunny, with a high near 64. Sunday, also partly sunny, with a high near 65.

Town meetings today
HUDSON Historic Preservation Commission at 10 a.m., 520 Warren Street, Hudson (828-1030).
TAGHKANIC The Town Board of the Town of Taghkanic holds a Budget Workshop for the 2012 budget on October 14, 2011 at 7 pm at the Taghkanic Town Hall, Route 82, Taghkanic New York. The Town Board will also address any other business that may come before the board at 7 p.m. at Taghkanic Town Hall, 909 Route 82, Taghkanic.

The skies above
SUNRISE/SUNSET 7:05 a.m./6:19 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 7:29 p.m. / 9:33 a.m.

Birthdays
October 14 Dwight D. Eisenhower, E. E. Cummings, Hannah Arendt, La Monte Young, and Katha Pollitt

WGXC Program Notes
Special Programming on Thu. Oct. 13:
• 9:15 a.m.: Cairo-Durham School Board meeting. WGXC volunteer Anne Horst recorded Thursday night's school board meeting with discussions about turning Durham Elementary into a charter school, and who will be the superintendent.
• 4:15 p.m.: Phil Myrick, a Hudson resident and a Vice President of Project for Public Spaces, calls in the WGXC Afternoon Show. The Project for Public Spaces (PPS) is a nonprofit planning, design and educational organization dedicated to helping people create and sustain public spaces that build stronger communities. Myrick is giving a workshop in Philmont Saturday morning called "Connecting the Dots on Main St."
• 5:30 p.m.: WGXC volunteer programmer Jack Ross-Pilkington rounds up area sports news and previews weekend football and baseball games.

Audio clips for WGXC programmers
This information is not meant to be read on-air.

Live coverage of Occupy Wall Street possible 6 a.m. confontation
Click Occupy Wall Street livestream. Or search for several other livestreams.

New Pledge Drive PSA
A OFF PSA 20111030 Pledge Drive

Audio headlines for top of the hour
• 5 a.m.: WGXC News 4:23 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 6 a.m.: WGXC News 4:23 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 7 a.m.: WGXC News 4:23 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 9 a.m.: WGXC News 4:23 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 4 p.m.: International Network News (INN), through Audioport
• 5 p.m.: Free Speech Radio News headlines, through fsrn.org
• Midnight: International Network News (INN), through Audioport

An unsigned story in the Register-Star says Hudson Mayor Rick Scalera endorses Republican Mayoral nominee William Hallenbeck to replace him in next month's election. “Why? Well if there is one thing I have learned as the most important duty of a mayor, it is to respect people of all walks of life," Scalera wrote in a press release. “Bill just didn’t arrive on the scene.... As a lifelong resident I have watched him work and retire from law enforcement in Hudson and the Columbia County Sheriff’s Office and he has always treated people fairly. He has worked in the [Hudson City] School District for some time now working closely with our kids." Scalera has been Mayor of Hudson off-and-on since the 1990s. Hallenbeck is current Third Ward Supervisor in Hudson. Scalera is running unopposed for Fifth Ward Supervisor. Another former Hudson Mayor, Dick Tracy, also endorsed Hallenbeck, the report says. Nick Haddad is Hallenbeck's Democrat opponent. Read the full story in the Register-Star.

[caption id="attachment_14573" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Image from Albany National Weather Service."][/caption]Copake Supervisor Reggie Crowley forwards this message, from Britt Westergard at the Albany National Weather Service, to local Emergency Managers:

"At this time, it appears that rain, heavy at times, beginning tomorrow afternoon (Wednesday) and will linger in the area through Saturday...mostly causing high within-bank rises on creeks, streams and rivers later in the week as well as poor drainage area issues, especially where fallen leaves are blocking storm drains. Portions of the Catskills could see a three-day total of 3-4 inches, which would cause some rises to minor flood stage. If any periods receive heavier rainfall than currently forecast, higher river crests are certainly possible. Please review attached graph."

Local weather forecast
The National Weather Service predicts rain Thursday, with thunderstorms also possible after noon and a high near 64. Thursday night there is a chance of showers and thunderstorms, then showers likely and possibly a thunderstorm after 5 a.m., with a low around 58. Friday more rain is likely, with a high near 70.

Town meetings today
AUSTERLITZ Town of Austerlitz holds a Public Hearing to consider Local Law #3-2011, to override the tax levy limit of general municipal law 3-C. A copy of proposed Local Law #3-2011 will be available with the Town Clerk at the Town Hall. Meeting at 6:45 p.m. at Austerlitz Town Hall, 812 Route 203, Spencertown.
CHATHAM Village meeting at 7:30 p.m. at Village Hall, 77 Main Street, Chatham (392-5821).
COPAKE There will be an open workshop for the 2012 budget at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 230 Mountainview Road, Copake (329-1234).
GALLATIN Town Board meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall, 667 Route 7, Ancram (398-7519).
GREENE COUNTY Finance & Audit committee meets at 5 p.m. at County Building, 411 Main St., Catskill (719-3270).
HUNTER The Town of Hunter Town Board conducts a Workshop to discuss the 2012 budget. At 6 p.m. at Hunter Town Hall, 5748 23A, Tannersville.
KINDERHOOK Planning Board Workshop meeting at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 4 Church St, Niverville (784-2233).
LIVINGSTON Town board meets at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 119 County Route 19.
STUYVESANT Town board meets at 7 p.m. at Town Hall, 5 Sunset Drive, Stuyvesant (758-6248).
TANNERSVILLE Village trustees meet at 7 p.m. in their Village Hall on Route 23A.
WINDHAM Town board meets at 8 p.m. at Town Hall, 371 State Rt. 296, Hensonville (734-4170).

The skies above
SUNRISE/SUNSET 7:04 a.m./6:21 p.m.
MOONRISE/MOONSET 6:53 p.m. / 8:35 a.m.

Birthdays
October 13 Lenny Bruce, Margaret Thatcher, Nana Mouskouri, Pharoah Sanders, and Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan

WGXC Program Notes
Special Programs for Thu. Oct. 13:
• 3 p.m.: Radio Theatre. Today's show features theme songs from classic radio shows such as "Lux Radio Theatre," "Philco Radio Time," "The Lone Ranger," and others. Also, a horror story for Halloween.

Audio clips for WGXC programmers
This information is not meant to be read on-air.

Audio headlines for top of the hour
• 5 a.m.: WGXC News 5:35 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 6 a.m.: WGXC News 5:35 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 7 a.m.: WGXC News 5:35 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 9 a.m.: WGXC News 5:35 PLAY CLIP and International Network News (INN), through Audioport.
• 4 p.m.: International Network News (INN), through Audioport
• 5 p.m.: Free Speech Radio News headlines, through fsrn.org
• Midnight: International Network News (INN), through Audioport

From the Prometheus Radio Project:

“Free software” is a term used to describe software which is free to use, free to share, and free to modify. In technical terms, this means everyone can access the part of the software that was written by humans, called the “source code”. For a computer programmer, that means being able to understand how the software works, fix things that are broken, and add new features. For a non-programmer, it means not being beholden to the whims of a single company that holds the license to the software. If you use free software, you can use it however you want, whenever you want, on as many computers as you want, and ask anyone you want for support if it isn't working. Read below for more about specific tools.

“Open source software” is a related term that describes software that typically has the same freedoms as free software, but is created for reasons that are less about freedom and more about producing good software. Because free software and open source software have similar implications for the people using them, we'll talk about them somewhat interchangeably in this article.

Free software is an excellent match for community radio not only because it is affordable (most free software is also free of cost, though we encourage you to donate to the software projects you care about!), but also because the principles of free software align well with the principles of community radio. If you are using radio to take back the airwaves from corporate control, why not use tools that are free from corporate control along the way? This article presents a survey of some of the free software tools community radio stations can take advantage of. Read below for more details about specific tools.

AUDIO EDITING

Audacity is a free and open source sound editor that runs on Mac OS, Windows, and Linux. Audacity includes many editing tools such as the ability to cut and paste sections from multiple tracks of audio, remove hisses and other background noises, and change the pitch without changing the tempo.

AUTOMATION

Airtime, along with its predecessor Campcaster, is open source radio automation software designed with decentralization in mind. It includes a scheduling calendar and the ability to drag and drop pre-recorded programs into the calendar. Airtime only runs on computers with Linux, but can be remotely controlled from any computer with a web browser.

Rivendell was the first large-scale open source automation program and is more suited to studio use than remote use. Rivendell offers more control from the studio but has a higher learning curve than Airtime, so we only recommend it for stations that have an enthusiastic engineer available to help with troubleshooting and training. Rivendell only runs in Linux.

INTERNET STREAMING

There are many free and open source tools available for internet radio, including the ices encoder and the icecast streaming server software. Additionally, Prometheus put together the Key to Internet Radio, a free and open source web-based tool to help stations that are new to streaming figure out what software is best for them! It includes an interactive survey to evaluate a particular station's resources and recommend a way forward, and documentation on all of the potential options.

WORKS IN PROGRESS

If you want to contribute to some of the up-and-coming free and open source tools for community radio, or to keep an eye on what's down the road, check out these newer projects!

Prometheus is supporting the development of RFree, free and open source radio frequency engineering software. RFree builds on existing software created by the FCC and WGXC engineer Al Davis. This software will allow engineers who don't have access to commercial engineering software to do engineering studies during the upcoming Low Power FM application window (and beyond!)

Al Davis, a long-time radio engineer who now works with WGXC, is spearheading an effort to create an open source Common Alerting Protocol (CAP) system that will allow station to transmit emergency alerts in the new CAP format. Al is looking for stations that will contribute money up-front to support this project – interested stations should contact him at ad328@freeelectron.net.

Todd Fisher Wallin and David Klann of WDRT are putting together a web portal for community radio at opensourceradio.org. The website will feature a wiki and forums to facilitate knowledge-sharing among community radio stations. Stations will be able to add content themselves, and the more content, the more useful it will be! To learn more or get involved, email info@opensourceradio.org.