The Watershed Post is reporting that Opus 40, a massive bluestone sculpture built by Harvey Fite over 37 years on an abandoned quarry, is for sale for $3.5 million. The Saugerties property includes a house with 4 beds, 3 baths, 2,860 square feet of living space, and that world-renowned earthwork. From the story:

Since Fite's accidental death in 1976, Opus 40 has been maintained and kept open to the public by his family. The current owner, Fite's stepson Tad Richards, wants to sell the property so he can retire. Susan Barnett of WAMC reported today that the town of Saugerties is looking into buying Opus 40. Special projects coordinator Vernon Benjamin hinted that it might qualify for federal stimulus funds: Opus 40 is shovel ready, so to speak, for cultural and arts organization type use. That's a bit of a shift from last week's Daily Freeman story, which reported that the town was looking for a nonprofit to take over the site. What seems clear is that Saugerties has a stake in the future of Fite's masterpiece--and that Opus 40 becoming a private playground would be a great loss, both for the town and for the cultural heritage of the region.

From Lynn Sloneker's excellent Unmuffled blog about the Hudson school system:

Superintendent John F. Howe chose to speak [at last night's school budget meeting] in general terms, emphasizing that the list of potential [staff] cuts (currently in circulation), can and will change, as he distributed an amended "draft" of that same list to members of the board, minutes before the matter formally came up on the agenda. While Howe said his plan will eliminate 52.5 jobs, he offered little of substance beyond the number. He did admit his plan was still $50,000 short of the $3.8 million mark. At the same time, Howe told the board it must be ready to "move to a resolution of this list" soon, because the district had to be administratively prepared for layoffs. In addition to the elimination of all modified sports and fields trips, Howe's proposal calls for the elimination of the New Employee Mentoring Opportunity (NEMO) Program, as well as the Alternative Learning Program. Howe acknowledged the plan will have an impact on class size. "It is bound to go up," he said. Howe said classes that now contain 18 to 19 students will increase to 23 or 24 students. Classes of 22 or 23 students will grow to 25 or 26.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Democratic Congressman Scott Murphy, who represents Greene and Columbia counties as part of NY-20, is turning out to be one of the key swing votes on the health care reform bill. Murphy voted no against the early version of the bill that passed the U.S. House of Representatives. Now, as the Senate and the House attempt to reconcile two bills, his vote is being sought by protesters and other groups buying ad time.

Four-time Dutchess County Legislator Joel Tyner (Rhinebeck/Clinton) has organized a Brown Bag Lunch Vigil for Healthcare Not Warfare to bring our troops home from Afghanistan and Iraq tomorrow, Mar. 17, from noon to 1 p.m. in front of Rep. Scott Murphy's offices in Hudson at 623 Warren St.

The Albany Times-Union uploaded this ad that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is running on Albany TV stations, urging Murphy to vote against the bill:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YkuTNNJCUZ4&hl=en_US&fs=1&]

The Times-Union has also spotted this ad from MoveOn.org, urging Murphy to vote for the bill:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yv8LYdrFPOQ&color1=0xb1b1b1&color2=0xcfcfcf&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&fs=1]
Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

From Nate Silver in FiveThirtyEight:

Unions, activist groups and Democratic thought leaders are all starting to urge primary challenges against Democrats who vote against the health care bill. In many cases, it's an idle threat. Want to primary Dennis Kucinich, for instance? It's too late: Ohio's filing deadline passed in February.

I identified 10 Democrats, however, for whom all of the following criteria are true:

1. In a state in which the filing deadline for primary candidates is April 1st or later. I assume that at least some lead time is required to launch a primary challenge. This eliminates a number of important states, including California, Illinois, Ohio, and Pennsylvania.
2. Not yet committed yes votes on health care. According to David Dayen's whip count.
3. In districts with a PVI of R+4 or bluer. This is a critical threshold because Nancy Pelosi could permit all non-retiring Democratic members in districts with PVI's of R+5 or redder to vote against the bill and still have (barely) enough votes for passage. Everyone in a district of R+4 or bluer would have to vote for the bill, however.
4. Been in office for less than 10 years. It's very hard to primary incumbents who have a decade or more of service time in their districts, except in the case of gross misconduct, etc.
5. Are not retiring.

Here is that list:

[Number seven Silver lists as Scott Murphy, the Democratic Congressman who represents Greene and Columbia counties as well as the rest of NY-20. Murphy voted against the first version of the health care bill that passed the U.S. House in December. Silver reports that Murphy is leaning towards voting yes on the new health care bill, and only has $700,000 in the bank to ward off a possible Democratic primary challenger if he votes against the bill, and the same amount to fight one of four Republicans who are vying to get the chance to roll with a possible large Republican tide in the fall.]

Six of the ten vulnerable Democrats are in New York State, which offers a number of advantages to primary challengers: it has a very late filing deadline, and it has a lot of mobilizing infrastructure between strong unionization, the presence of the Working Families Party [The Working Families party says it will decline their line to anyone who votes against health care. Murphy was presented on Sunday with 7,000 signatures gathered by the WFP urging him to support the bill.], and the number of activist groups working in and around New York City. It's hard to imagine that the threat of a primary challenge wouldn't be at least a little bit persuasive to NY-24's Mike Arcuri, for instance, who has just $400,000 in cash on hand and voted for the health care bill originally. The unions have also explicitly threatened a primary challenge against NY-13's Mike McMahon, although he hasn't moved off his no vote so far....

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Dear WGXC community members,

Over the last few months, we’ve been working tirelessly producing benefit events and preparing for the launch of WGXC’s FM signal on 90.7-FM later this year. Please see below for an exciting announcement regarding Prometheus Radio Project (a Philadelphia-based group that helps community stations like ours) who will help get WGXC on the air this September.

Urgently, however, we now need to ask you directly for your financial help.

PLEASE HELP WGXC RAISE 5,000 IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS.

As publicized, WGXC received a large matching grant from the US Department of Commerce to purchase the equipment (transmitter, antenna, etc) needed to get the WGXC-FM signal on the air. We must match this grant. Fundraising at the community level will demonstrate that we have local support for this effort that will sustain WGXC into the future. We’ve secured the means to extend our fundraising efforts towards the match into the summer, but WE MUST RAISE 5,000 IN THE NEXT TWO WEEKS.

We are asking you to dig as deeply as you can to ensure that WGXC stays on track and can meet our matching deadline. If you are not yet a member, please consider becoming one at the highest level possible. If you are already a member, thank you, and we hope you’ll consider increasing your membership to the next level.

Founding member levels:

· ELECTRODES = 1 watt ($25 - 49)
· CAPACITORS = 2-4 watts ($50 - 124)
· CIRCUITS = 5-9 watts ($125 - 249)
· TRANSISTORS = 10 - 20 watts ($250 - 524)
· TOWERS = 21 - 40 watts ($525 - 1,024)
· ANTENNAE = 41 - 100 watts ($1,025 - 2,524)
· TRANSMISSIONS = 101 - 200 watts ($2,525 - 5,000)
Become a member by making your donation online at www.wgxc.org

Or send a check payable to

WGXC
5662 Route 23
Acra, NY 12405

Donations are tax-deductible to the full extent of the law.

You can become a Founding Member of WGXC by making a donation with a credit card through Paypal below:


PROMETHEUS BARNRAISING NEWS

As part of our launch preparation efforts, Station Manager, Kaya Weidman, and Program Manager, Tom Roe, put forth an application for WGXC to be considered a candidate by Prometheus Radio Project for one of their renowned radio station barnraising events.

We are delighted to report that WGXC has been selected! What this means is that in late September, radio experts from Prometheus will descend on WGXC for a weekend of events, workshops, studio perfecting, and engineering. Events will take place across Columbia and Greene Counties. Stay tuned for further details regarding the date and schedule, and we hope to see you then. Thank you Prometheus!

Thank you for your time and attention,
Galen Joseph-Hunter, Executive Director (galen@wgxc.org)
Tom Roe, Program Director (tom@wgxc.org)
Kaya Weidman, Station Manager (kaya@wgxc.org)

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Athens's Stewart House restaurant is being sold, Dick May is reporting. "Owner Owen Lipstein has entered into a sales contract with Reggie Young of Athens, a food industry veteran who leads a small syndicate of investors," May wrote in his Seeing Greene blog earlier today. May reports the 100-seat restaurant would attempt, “a small market focusing on local products,” next door, and..."the upstairs rooms would be renovated,

'with soundproofing and modern amenities,' shaping a 12-room 'comfortable hip hotel environment.' Also, 'Further development of the facility’s garden, dock and waterside features,' would be undertaken, the centerpiece being a 60-seat, 'outdoor wood-fired pizza shack."

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Listen to a recording of Rep. Scott Murphy's Tele-Town Hall from 6:30 p.m. March 10, 2009 on WGXC Online Radio by clicking here. Rep. Murphy represents NY-20, which includes Columbia and Greene counties.

That link should open an mp3 recording in Quicktime Player on your computer. Note: This does not work in Internet Explorer, use a different browser. If you have Quicktime Player Pro, you can download the recording.

You can also paste this in to your iTunes, or whatever media player you use, under "Open URL":
http://data.wavefarm.org/2010/03/ScottMurphy_TeleTownHall_WGXC_031010.mp3

WGXC volunteers are working hard to launch a 3,300-watt community radio station. More than 78,000 people throughout Greene and Columbia counties will be able to receive the signal on 90.7-FM. WGXC received its license from the FCC and a grant from the US Commerce Dept that will cover 50 percent of our equipment needs. We now need to raise matching funds in order to get on the air. So far, WGXC is 33 percent of the way towards our goal.

You can become a Founding Member of WGXC by making a donation with a credit card through Paypal below:


Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

1-5 p.m. Sunday, March 14 workshop at The Sanctuary for Independent Media in Troy.

Independent media creation is flourishing with the proliferation of affordable cameras and recorders. The ability to digitally shoot and store more material than was feasible in an analog model has been a boon, but it has also produced greater amounts of material to organize and manage, as well as engendering new sets of concerns regarding the persistence of media collections.

David Rice, a consultant on a wide range of preservation topics, has years of experience as an archivist with media organizations and in developing recommendations for metadata standards. He will be giving practical training on the management and maintenance of digital media through best practices and the nuts-and-bolts uses of metadata that will help you better organize, access, re-use, and preserve your materials.

This workshop covers four key areas:

Creating Digital Materials: Whether you’re digitizing audio or video from tapes or migrating born-digital media, the settings, software, hardware, and other options available as part of the process have a definite effect on the long-term quality and ability to access your work. Luckily there are a number of best practice standards for creating digital media that can be applied whether you’re using a high-end editing bay or the many open source and affordable solutions out there.

Asset Management: Systems for digital asset management offer lots of promise but not always adequate results for the many specific needs of production and maintenance of audiovisual materials. Learn what you need to be aware of when deciding how to manage your files and what kind of cost-effective options are available.

Metadata Matters: In the midst of a project we’ve all had the experience of saving and documenting files in whatever seems like the quickest, most convenient manner at the moment, only to try and return to them 6 months later and spend too much frustrated time searching for them on the hard drive or trying to determine which file is the correct version. Find out how consistent application of metadata practices can help you manage your files as well as better re-use, share, distribute, and monitor them for quality.

"Digital formats and materials are inherently fragile and any strategy that can help you access and preserve them for future use is essential. Media management is a basic necessity for anyone working in a digital environment," says Jeanne M. Keefe, who took last season's digital archiving workshop. Keefe is Media & Digital Assets Librarian at RPI.

You can find out more about workshop leader David Rice and his work at www.avPreserve.com.

Workshop details

$40. Advance registration required. Contact workshop - at - mediasanctuary.org or call (518) 272-2390 for more information.

More about our Spring 2010 "Be The Media" Workshop Series:

Our "Be The Media" workshop series provides local artists, producers, and citizen journalists with opportunities to acquire and improve the skills necessary for successful and powerful independent media-making. We offer an interdisciplinary approach to diverse media arts practices with new technologies, with core focus on creative practice and artistry.

Scholarships are available. We recognize that while this is a pretty good deal for a media workshop, not everyone can afford it. We highly value having a diverse group of workshop participants, and we encourage anyone who is interested in attending, but unable to pay the fee, to apply for a scholarship. Do you know someone who could use a scholarship?

The Be The Media! workshop series is presented with the Hudson Mohawk Independent Media Center and funded in part by the New York State Council on the Arts.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

The New York Environmental Protection Fund’s Local Waterfront Revitalization Program will provide $38,542 for the city of Hudson to construct a canoe/kayak launch at the southern end of Henry Hudson Riverfront Park with a secure storage rack for canoes/kayaks will be provided and $22,500 for the village of Athens to construct a dockage system for non-motorized boaters to complete its Fourth Street boat launch, The Business Review (Albany) reports.

WGXC and the Mid Hudson League of Women Voters will host a "Meet the Candidates" forum at 10:30 a.m. Sat. March 20 at the Catskill Community Center for politicians running in Village of Catskill elections.

WGXC will air the forum live on an internet web stream at www.wgxc.org, and is inviting all members of the local media to cover the event. Recordings of the events will be posted as quickly as possible here and at www.wgxc.org.

For more information:
Fawn Potash/League of Women Voters, 518-929-5764, fawnpotash@yahoo.com

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.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Congressman Scott Murphy (NY-20) will host a tele-town hall Wednesday, March 10, at 6:30 p.m. to discuss the economy and job creation. Residents of the 20th District (which includes Greene and Columbia counties) can participate in the call by registering with Congressman Murphy’s office at 202-225-5614 or email NY20.townhall@mail.house.gov with your name, address, and home phone number by 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 9. Those who have signed up will receive a phone call Wednesday evening inviting them to join the call. WGXC Online Radio will also air the tele-town hall, so if you do not register in time you can listen to the WGXC web stream online at www.WGXC.org. When you click on the link there, the stream will play in your computer's default media player.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZlwHO9N5YGo&hl=en_US&fs=1&]
Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Kinderhook's Chris Gibson is the latest Republican announced to challenge Democrat Congressman Scott Murphy in New York’s 20th Congressional District election later this year. Gibson, a Colonel in the U.S. Army who served in the first Iraq war and Kosovo, made his announcement Saturday afternoon at the Winding Brook Country Club in Valatie, hosted by former Republican candidate for governor and personal friend John Faso. Burnt Hills' Patrick Ziegler, Saratoga Springs lawyer David Harper, and Queensbury Supervisor Dan Stec have also announced their desire to be the Republican nominee.

A co-fundraiser for the Catskill Community Center and WGXC.
Fri. March 12, 6:30-9:30 p.m.

At the Catskill Community Center, 344 Main St., Catskill, NY 12414
518-719-8244

Admission: $10 individual; $15 couple; $20 family

Performing during the Contra Dance is The Russet Trio with caller Eric Hollman. No Solutions (from Athens), Loud Youth (from Copake), and Jonathin Woodin (son of Catskill Community Orchestra Director David Woodin), all youth bands, will perform in the front room (Annex). With food and beverages, and child care also being offered. A contra dance, sometimes called a New England folk dance, is a partnered dance in which couples dance in two facing lines of indefinite length. Eric Hollman has over 20 years'
dance experience, and is a popular swing and Cajun teacher and contra dance caller in the Hudson Valley and beyond. For more information about Eric Hollman and contra dancing in the Hudson Valley see:
http://www.cdny.org/hollman.html

ABOUT THE CATSKILL COMMUNITY CENTER
http://www.catskillcommunitycenter.org/
The Catskill Community Center is committed to providing fun, creative
and challenging programs to the youth of our community. Our goal is to
develop programs in the arts, athletics, education and recreation, as
an opportunity for all of our youth. Engaging the entire community to
contribute their ideas, talents and resources is integral to our
efforts. What benefits our youth benefits our entire community.

ABOUT WGXC
http://www.WGXC.org
WGXC is a community radio station that will go on the air at 90.7-FM
throughout Greene and Columbia counties later this year. WGXC is a
community-run media project, re-envisioning radio as an innovative
platform for local participation. Our inclusive programming connects
diverse voices, and distributes information across the public spectrum
in New York's Greene and Columbia counties.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Leigh Hornbeck of Capitol Confidential is reporting that Patrick Ziegler, 37, of Burnt Hills, will launch a campaign to unseat Democratic Congressman Scott Murphy in the 20th Congressional District at 4 p.m. today at Good Times restaurant in Ballston Lake. Ziegler becomes the third declared Republican candidate, the others are Saratoga Springs lawyer David Harper and Queensbury Supervisor Dan Stec. "Ziegler is a member of the Ballston town Republican Committee, a volunteer state coordinator for former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee’s political action committee, HuckPac, and a founder of the NY Liberty Council, 'a coalition of grassroots organizations committed to Constitutionally-limited government, fiscal conservatism and local control over issues,'" writes Hornbeck.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

The Cairo Library is attempting to move out of Cairo Town Hall and into a larger, more modern facility behind its current space. Presentations for a proposed new library in Cairo will be on: Thursday, March 4, 2010 at 7 p.m. and on Saturday, March 13, 2010 at 1 p.m. All meetings are at the Cairo Town Hall and open to the public. The public presentation for this project will be on March 17, 2010 at 6 p.m. before the regular Cairo Town Board Meeting.

Full disclosure: Cairo Library Executive Director Debra Kamecke is on the WGXC Radio Council, the community radio station's governing board.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

Tomorrow's New York Times includes an op-ed from former Tennessee representative Harold Ford Jr. in which he says he will not challenge New York Senator Kirsten Gillibrand this year in a Democratic primary. "If I run, the likely result would be a brutal and highly negative Democratic primary — a primary where the winner emerges weakened and the Republican strengthened," Ford writes.

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.

The National Journal Magazine released its annual 'Vote Ratings' issue and named Democratic Congressman Scott Murphy (NY-20) one of the most centrist members of Congress. In a press release, Congressman Murphy’s staff touted him "as a strong supporter of the 2nd Amendment and his votes to cut more than $24 billion in spending have stood out as key departures from many of his Democratic colleagues." The Times-Union blog Capitol Confidential breaks down the magazine's ratings this way: "Freshman Scott Murphy lands plumb in the center. His liberal composite score is 49.0; his conservative score is 51.0. By comparison, Rep. Paul Tonko’s liberal score was 83.7 and his conservative score was 16.3. Sens. Gillibrand and Schumer are also more liberal with scores of 84.3 and 83.8, respectively."

Click on WGXC or WGXC Newsroom for more information. Send news, tips, etc. to news@wgxc.org.