Friday, November 13, 2015

Boston Globe Water Park

"Owner chains himself to slide, hopes to save N.H. water park" by Felicia Gans Globe Correspondent  November 10, 2015

Kevin Dumont chained himself to the top of a tower connected to a water slide on Monday and said he won’t come down until he finds an investor to save the family-owned Liquid Planet Water Park.

“I know this is a little bit of a publicity stunt, but if the end result is I can save the company, it’s worth being chained in the cold,” Dumont said on Tuesday afternoon between television interviews as he approached hour 25 chained to the tower.

Dumont, 46, launched the water park with his family in Candia, N.H., eight years ago, and he lives in a home on the park’s land. But for several years, the enterprise has been beset by financial troubles.

Dumont said he owes more than $1.5 million to a Salem, N.H., bank, that plans to auction the water park Dec. 2.

“If this goes, I’m going to lose my house, my business, everything,” he said.

He acknowledged the park was underperforming, but said he hopes somebody will see it as a business opportunity and help him pay off what he owes. He cited Liquid Planet’s down-home appeal in the face of corporate-owned amusement parks.

Can always panhandle.

“We’re not looking for charity,” he said. “We’re looking for someone to make a genuine investment in a company that will be debt-free.”

Because the park operates only from the third Saturday in June through Labor Day, Dumont struggles to pay bills in the off-months using just 2½ months of revenue, he said.

Dumont said he has faced roadblocks in getting the park back on its feet. First, his parents died just a couple of months apart. Then the park shut down its popular Shooting Stars Speed Slides in August after a state inspector detected abnormally high chloride levels in the water.

Chained to the tower Tuesday, Dumont said that he plans to stay on the tower until he gets a deal or is “hauled” down.

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I'm sure the Globe will check in on him later. 

Maybe you kids could find something else to do:

"Men accused of Pokémon attack plot plead not guilty" by Andy Rosen Globe Staff  November 10, 2015

Two Iowa men were ordered held on $150,000 bail Tuesday on allegations that they arrived in Boston armed with an assault rifle and shotgun after making threats against a gathering of Pokémon players from around the world in August, prosecutors said.

See: Pathetic Pokemon Psyop

It's worse than pathetic, it is downright silly!

James Stumbo and Kevin Norton pleaded not guilty in Suffolk Superior Court at their arraignment on indictments, charging them with unlawful possession of a large capacity weapon and other crimes.

The two men have been held on firearms charges since August, when authorities allege they found an AR-15 rifle, 12-gauge Remington shotgun, hundreds of rounds of ammunition, and a hunting knife in the 2002 Chevrolet Prizm the men had driven to Boston.

Prosecutors have said Norton, 18, of Ames, Iowa, and Stumbo, 27, of Boone, Iowa, had posted online messages threatening the competition at the Hynes Convention Center.

In one of those postings in a Facebook page called “Mayhem Pokemon Crew,” Stumbo allegedly shared a photo of a white sedan with two long guns crossed over the trunk. “Kevin Norton and I are ready for worlds Boston here we come!!!” the post said.

Boston Police were notified of the concerning online statements and threats allegedly made against the event and an individual attendee, prosecutors said.

At a previous appearance in district court, defense lawyers for the men said there was no evidence that Stumbo and Norton planned to carry out the attacks. The charges they face are related to the guns, the lawyers said, not the threats.

Neither man is licensed to carry a firearm in Massachusetts or Iowa, prosecutors said.

Authorities say they believe the men were prepared to commit a “mass casualty situation” at the contest. Norton and Stumbo are scheduled to return to court Nov. 19.

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That's it for the fun

Game over.