Maine Shipyard Finds Black Widows in Cargo

Groups plan to start fundraising campaign on Father's Day

(NEWSER) - Up to 200 churches in Maine plan to pass a collection plate on Father's Day to raise funds to fight gay marriage. The state is holding a referendum on legalizing same-sex marriage in November, and the Protect Marriage Maine political action committee is stepping up efforts to raise funds and get support from evangelical leaders around the country, reports AP . More»

Authorities say there was never a threat to safety

(NEWSER) - A US Airways flight from Paris to North Carolina was diverted to Maine after a woman claimed to have a device implanted in her body. Authorities have since determined that she posed "basically no threat," but the flight was halted "out of an abundance of caution," according to the TSA. The woman didn't threaten the flight, officials say; she simply gave the flight crew a note alerting them to the purported device. More»

Louisiana, Deep South bring up the rear in new survey

(NEWSER) - Apparently the moose-on-moose violence is next to nil, because Maine has scored the title of most peaceful state in the union, according to a new survey by the Institute for Economics & Peace. It finds the nation as a whole at its most peaceful point in two decades. Louisiana, meanwhile, grabs the dubious honor of least peaceful state for an 11th consecutive year, reports USA Today . The survey defines peaceful simply as "the absence of violence," and factors in homicide, violent crime, and incarceration rates, as well as number of police and the prevalence of small arms. Highlights: More»

Maine blueberries, New York bagels make ABC's odd-tax list

(NEWSER) - Federal taxes may provoke the loudest partisan bickering, but some states impose taxes that could leave you at a loss for words. Fur? Nudity? Bagels? You bet—not to mention blueberries and playing cards. ABC News rounds up a few of the weirdest:

• Blueberries: Maine, which produces 99% of all US blueberries, taxes them in lots of ways: buying, selling, processing, handling, growing... everything but eating them.

Christopher Schwartz: It was all an April Fools' joke

(NEWSER) - Maryland's Batman is a superhero—but Maine's caped crusader is a little different. A Bar Harbor man who has created a Batman alter-ego was arrested for threats he made on Facebook Sunday (that's April 1) that he says were satirical jokes. "I demand payment of 1 million dollars or I will blow up the hospital," wrote Christopher Schwartz on his character's Facebook page . "Once the funds are secured, private message me for further instruction." More»