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https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/business/roxbury-chance-build-massports-model-inclusive-development/ | In the push to spread the wealth of Boston’s booming development industry far wider into disadvantaged communities, this could be a game changer.
All eyes should be on a city-owned 7.7-acre parcel in Roxbury known as P3. If fully developed, it has the potential to dwarf the benefits from the diversity effort at the new Omni hotel in the Seaport District. The massive hotel was built on land owned by the Massachusetts Port Authority, which used a novel approach to make sure work was awarded to a more diverse group of builders and subcontractors than has been the norm in Boston.
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On the Roxbury site, two teams — HYM Investment Group/My City at Peace, and Tishman Speyer/Ruggles Progressive Partners — recently submitted bids to develop the long-dormant site along Tremont Street. Each proposes to spend more than $1 billion to build a mix of labs, housing, and civic space. That’s more than twice the cost of the Omni hotel.
The so-called Massport model ― which makes diversity a major factor in determining development rights on the agency’s property holdings ― has created wealth and opportunities for people of color, many of whom have used the experience to win other contracts. Since 2018, the Boston Planning & Development Agency has followed Massport’s cue for projects on 16 city-owned parcels. But with P3, Boston has a chance to take the model a big step further and show that such inclusivity on building projects can help to transform lower-income neighborhoods by creating wealth and opportunities for residents, not just the executives of a few companies.
What both P3 teams are pitching is extraordinary. Beyond bringing lab space to Roxbury, they envision forming partnerships with nearby Roxbury Community College, Benjamin Franklin Institute of Technology, and Madison Park High School to train students for life science jobs. Both teams also plan a significant amount of affordable homes that can be purchased, as well as rental housing.
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“That is something we have pushed for,” said Norm Stembridge, cochair of the Roxbury Strategic Master Plan Oversight Committee. “People have seen this as an opportunity to move the community forward.”
Like some other large projects in Boston, this one has a public space component. But unlike most, the plans for P3 feel like they have been carefully thought out so they accomplish more than just meeting a requirement. The HYM/My City at Peace team wants to house King Boston, a nonprofit dedicated to honoring the formative time that Dr. Martin Luther King and Coretta Scott King spent in Boston. The “Embrace Center,” as they call it, would feature a museum, function space, and a home for King Boston’s economic justice research and policy work.
Tishman/Ruggles is partnering with the Museum of African American History to create a Roxbury Museum. The team also proposes to set aside space for pop-up businesses, as well as music and play areas for families.
The city has been trying to develop P3 for more than two decades, with plenty of false starts over the years. Everything from a BJ’s Wholesale Club to a soccer stadium for the New England Revolution to a state transportation headquarters has been considered.
At one point, the BPDA awarded the development rights to Feldco Development, but took them away in 2019 after the company struggled to secure financing. Meanwhile, the neighborhood had grown increasingly unhappy with the various proposals that came along over the years. They wanted a project that could produce a virtuous economic circle, one that creates good-paying jobs and careers, and puts people on the path to homeownership and generational wealth.
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The BPDA will hold a series of community meetings in the coming months to review the bids. A decision could come by the fall.
The P3 process has also shone a spotlight on how development in Boston doesn’t have to be so white.
A who’s who of the Black business community have lined up to participate. Some have been working on real estate projects for years (Richard Taylor, Kevin Bynoe, JocCole “JC” Burton, Greg Minott, Herby Duverné, Darryl Settles, Kai Grant), while others are relatively new to the game (the Rev. Jeffrey Brown, Manikka Bowman, Chanda Smart, Ricardo Pierre-Louis, Sheena Collier).
For many, it represents a watershed moment for their business.
Minott, managing principal at Boston architectural firm DREAM Collaborative, said he has worked on plenty of major projects as a subcontractor, but this is the first time his firm will take the lead on designing the master plan.
A member of the HYM/My City At Peace team, Minott said that if awarded the bid, his company would double in size by by adding two dozen jobs. That’s great, but why did it take so long for a firm that has been around for 14 years to be the lead on a massive project?
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“It’s always been a mystery to us,” Minott said. “We have the expertise and talented team. We are just as qualified and in some cases more qualified. Why not? We have not been invited to do it.”
Just as important is making sure that opportunities like these don’t always go to the same people of color. Doing so means the diverse pipeline can grow bigger.
Bowman launched her development firm, HarveyReed, in 2021, but Tishman managing director Jessica Hughes became familiar with Bowman when she was an executive at the Urban Land Institute.
“She knew I was competent and I was able to roll up my sleeves,” said Bowman. “She knew the value of investing in a woman and a Black woman launching a development firm.”
Bowman’s role is to oversee a fund that addresses displacement, which is one of the community’s biggest concerns, as new development usually drives up property values and pushes out longtime residents. Tishman/Ruggles proposes seeding the fund with $250,000 and growing it to $1 million to help low-to-moderate income Roxbury homeowners remain in their homes by offsetting tax increases and paying for maintenance.
For Ricardo Pierre-Louis, P3 represents a chance to realize a dream: owning a parking garage. As a college student, he worked as a valet parking cars on the weekends and then started his own company, Privé Parking. He met HYM managing partner Tom O’Brien a few years ago with the goal of getting into the development business.
The HYM/My City At Peace bid contains two garages with a total of 500 spaces. Privé would manage them and hold an equity stake in both properties.
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“When you own something, now you’re in a different position,” said Pierre-Louis.
For another member of the HYM/My City at Peace team, working on P3 is a kind of homecoming. Smart, chief executive of OnyxGroup Development & Brokerage, spent part of her childhood a couple of blocks from the site. Her great-grandmother lived in Roxse Homes public housing on Tremont Street.
“It’s extremely exciting for us . . . how many people can say I grew up across the street and I have a part in this development?” said Smart.
Her great-grandmother passed away close to three decades ago. But if Smart is part of the winning P3 bid, she knows what she would have said: “I knew you could do it.”
Shirley Leung is a Business columnist. She can be reached at shirley.leung@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/business/union-trails-amazon-vote-alabama-with-challenges-pending/ | Union supporters are narrowly trailing opponents in a union election at an Amazon warehouse in Alabama, the National Labor Relations Board said Thursday. But the vote was far closer than a vote at the same warehouse last year, when workers voted down the union by a more than 2-1 ratio.
The union had 875 yes votes versus 993 no votes, but the more than 400 challenged ballots are sufficient to potentially affect the outcome of the vote. The challenges will be resolved at a labor board hearing in the coming weeks.
Overall, roughly 2,300 ballots were cast in the election in Bessemer, Ala., out of more than 6,100 eligible employees.
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The labor board mandated the revote, which was conducted by mail from early February to late March, after concluding that Amazon violated the so-called laboratory conditions that are supposed to prevail during a union election.
The labor board is also counting votes in another high-profile election at an Amazon warehouse on Staten Island in New York. At the end of the first day of counting, 57 percent of the ballots supported being represented by Amazon Labor Union, and 43 percent were opposed. The NLRB said the count should be finished Friday.
Workers who supported the union cited frustrations over low pay, inadequate break,s and overly aggressive productivity targets. Amazon has said its pay — just under $16 per hour for full-time, entry-level workers — is competitive for the area. It has also pointed to a benefits package that it says is attractive, including complete health care benefits for full-time employees as soon as they join the company. The company has said its performance targets reflect safety considerations and individual employees’ experience.
Several employees who backed the union said coworkers were generally less afraid to question management or show their union support this year. “People are asking more questions,” Jennifer Bates, an employee who helped lead the organizing effort both last year and this year, said in March. “More employees are standing up and speaking out.”
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The union also cited key differences in its approach to the more recent election. Last year, the union curtailed in-person organizing efforts because of COVID-19 safety concerns, but this time its organizers visited workers at home. Other unions dispatched organizers to Alabama to aid in these efforts.
Workers also appeared to be more active in organizing within the plant. They wore union T-shirts to work twice each week to demonstrate support, and one group delivered a petition to managers with more than 100 signatures complaining of inadequate breaks and break room equipment.
Still, Amazon retained advantages, not least of which was its high rate of employee turnover, which made it difficult for organizers to sustain momentum as disaffected workers simply left their jobs.
The company also appeared to spend generously on its effort to dissuade employees from backing the union, hiring consultants and holding more than 20 anti-union meetings with employees per day before mail ballots went out in early February. Union supporters accused Amazon of excluding them from meetings to mute criticism and pushback, but Amazon denied the accusation.
The result was consistent with a broader trend in rerun elections, more than half of which unions have lost since 2010. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/bill-banning-hairstyle-bias-approved-by-massachusetts-senate/ | BOSTON (AP) — A bill aimed at banning discrimination based on natural and protective hairstyles in workplaces, school districts, and school-related organizations was unanimously approved Thursday by the Massachusetts Senate.
The vote comes two weeks after the Massachusetts House approved a similar bill.
Supporters say Black women in particular have faced pressure in school and the workplace to alter their hair to conform to policies biased against natural hairstyles.
The Senate added a provision to the House version of the bill that would include the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association to the list of school entities banned from adopting and implementing restrictions on natural hairstyles.
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Advocates say the change will ensure those participating in sports and extracurricular activities will not be asked to change their natural or protective hairstyles in order to participate.
The bill has its roots in the case of a Massachusetts charter school that came under fire in 2017 for a policy of banning hair braid extensions. After intense criticism, the school abandoned the policy.
The U.S. House also approved a bill earlier this month that would bar discrimination against Black people who wear hairstyles like Afros, cornrows or tightly coiled twists in society, school and the workplace. The federal bill would explicitly say that such discrimination is a violation of federal civil rights law.
President Joe Biden has said he would sign the bill into law. It now heads to the U.S. Senate.
Lawmakers in the Massachusetts House and Senate now have to come up with a single version of the bill before taking a final vote and shipping it to Republican Gov. Charlie Baker for his signature.
If signed into law, Massachusetts would become the fifteenth state to adopt the measure, known as the CROWN Act. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/das-favor-new-legislation-address-possible-felony-murder-injustices/ | Several district attorneys said Thursday that a new law would be the best way to address potential injustices in which people who never killed anyone are serving lifetime sentences under “felony murder” rules that have since been abolished.
“A legislative fix is the most appropriate step to addressing the matter of individuals convicted of felony murder,” Suffolk District Attorney Kevin R. Hayden said in response to a Boston Globe Spotlight Team report about the issue. “This would provide a statewide framework to equitably address these cases, where there is currently no legal avenue to provide relief.”
In the meantime, his office’s Integrity Review Bureau “is prepared to review requests from any individual who believes that they received a fundamentally unfair sentence” in Suffolk County, Hayden said in a statement, referring to the panel created in 2019 that investigates past convictions for miscarriages of justice.
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The Spotlight report published Sunday highlighted the stories of people sentenced to life in prison without hope for parole, even though they killed no one. They were convicted under the state common law of the time, which said that if someone died during the commission of certain serious felonies, everyone involved in the underlying crime could be on the hook for first-degree murder — even participants who inflicted no violence on the victim and may have never intended to hurt anyone. The penalty for first-degree murder is automatic life in prison without parole.
The Spotlight analysis identified nearly two dozen people who fell into this category, including Joseph Jabir Pope, 69, who last month argued before the state’s highest court that his felony murder conviction should be overturned and that he deserves a new trial, after serving 37 years in prison.
Reporters also found that, in some cases, the actual killer took a plea bargain and got a lighter sentence than the individual convicted of felony murder and given life without parole.
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In 2017, the Supreme Judicial Court, in the landmark case of Commonwealth vs. Timothy Brown, narrowed the felony murder rule, deciding that from that date forward, no one could be convicted of felony murder unless prosecutors proved the defendant had murderous intent.
The SJC ruling was not retroactive, however, and did not apply to people already convicted under the old felony murder rule. The court said in its decision that closed cases may have been handled differently if prosecutors knew they had to prove murderous intent to secure a murder conviction.
The organization of public defenders also endorsed legislative reforms, and offered their services to help those convicted under the old rules.
“Public defenders would support any legislation making the Supreme Judicial Court’s decision abolishing felony murder retroactive,” said Anthony Benedetti, chief counsel for the Committee for Public Counsel Services. “We also stand ready and willing to represent any person seeking to have a conviction under this draconian theory of murder overturned.”
Candidates running for the state’s top prosecutor spots are also weighing in on this issue.
A legislative fix “is the best remedy because it applies to everyone caught up in the injustice of not making the felony murder decision retroactive. But it’s not the only remedy,’’ said Boston City Councilor Ricardo Arroyo, who is challenging Hayden for Suffolk County district attorney. “While we wait for legislative action, district attorneys should not sit on their hands.”
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Arroyo said that if elected he would use the tools already made available through the Legislature, which includes resentencing. That requires an agreement with both the district attorney and the defense attorney, and an assent by a judge.
Plymouth District Attorney Timothy J. Cruz said in a statement that he “would certainly consider taking a look at any proposed bills that address parole eligibility.”
Rahsaan Hall, a civil rights lawyer running against Cruz for Plymouth DA, said, “There should be a legislative fix precisely because the criminal legal system has for too long paid far more attention to finality than with justice.”
State Representative Brandy Fluker Oakley, a Boston Democrat, proposed a bill that she said would give prosecutors the ability to address unjust felony murder convictions.
“Defendants who are sitting in prison today for actions that are no longer considered to be felony murder should have their sentences vacated or reduced,” Fluker Oakley said. “My bill . . . would empower our prosecutors to ask a court to reevaluate convictions like these after injustices in our law have been rectified.”
The bill has been assigned to the Judiciary Committee, which has set an April 15 deadline to either recommend the bill for passage or to squash it, said Fluker Oakley.
Bristol District Attorney Thomas M. Quinn III said there were “good reasons the court did not make the Brown decision retroactive,” but said lingering injustices are best addressed through new legislation.
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“If it appears that justice was not done in a prior felony murder conviction, a defendant should have the opportunity to have the case reviewed,” Quinn said in a statement. “This should be done on a case-by-case basis.”
Norfolk District Attorney Michael W. Morrissey agrees that any sweeping change will have to come from the Legislature.
“A case-by-case examination is the more difficult course, but is likely the wiser path,” Morrissey said.
Mark Arsenault can be reached at mark.arsenault@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @bostonglobemark. Meghan E. Irons can be reached at meghan.irons@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @meghanirons. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/former-mit-researcher-inspired-by-breaking-bad-buy-poison-is-spared-prison-term/ | A biomedical engineer told a judge Thursday that he was inspired by “Breaking Bad” when he bought castor beans and lily of the valley plants, which produce deadly toxins and were used by a character on the popular television show to poison people.
Ishtiaq Ali Saaem, 38, a former research director at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, said during his sentencing hearing in federal court in Boston that he was “guided by innocent curiosity” to learn more about ricin, a lethal agent that can be extracted from the beans.
“I never made the poison nor intended to harm anyone,” said Saaem, now of Allentown, Pa. He said he was “scared and overwhelmed” when FBI agents confronted him about his online purchases in 2015 “which led to my poor choice of not telling the truth.”
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US District Judge Richard G. Stearns sentenced Saaem to six months of home confinement and three years of probation for obstruction of justice.
While it’s not illegal to buy castor beans, Saaem pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice last year for making false statements to the FBI. He admitted he falsely claimed that he wanted to plant the beans and decorate his Cambridge apartment with their colorful blossoms.
The judge rejected the government’s request to sentence Saaem to a year in prison, in part because he is the primary caretaker for his 3-year-old son, who was born three months premature and has chronic medical conditions.
“I am persuaded that incarceration for the defendant, while deserved in this case, would pose an undue and extreme hardship on his family,” Stearns said after hearing testimony from Saaem’s wife, who is a doctor, and reviewing their son’s medical records.
The judge also said that after reviewing the evidence and 17 letters of support from Saaem’s relatives, friends, and former colleagues, he believed Saaem “is extremely remorseful for his conduct.”
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Assistant US Attorney Kriss Basil had urged the judge to send Saaem to prison for a year, arguing that his interest in ricin was frightening, especially given his biomedical engineering expertise.
“Ricin has only one purpose,” Basil said, and that’s “to kill people.”
In its sentencing memorandum, the government said Saaem’s inspiration was “Breaking Bad” character Walter White, a disaffected scientist who used convallatoxin, from lily of the valley, and ricin to poison people.
“Although the government cannot identify any specific intended victim and is aware of no specific threat made by Saaem to use ricin or convallatoxin against a person, his conduct was nevertheless threatening,” prosecutors wrote in the memorandum.
But, Saaem’s attorney, Derege Demissie, told the judge that Saaem never possessed ricin, which is extracted from castor beans, and his conduct can best be summed up as “misplaced curiosity.”
After watching “Breaking Bad,” Saaem ordered the plants and beans as “a good conversation piece” and thought he might experiment with them, Demissie said, adding,“There’s no evidence whatsoever that Mr. Saaem intended to use ricin to harm people.”
He said Saaem never took any steps to extract poison and lost his career as a scientist for making false statements to the FBI about his online purchases.
Saaem earned a PhD in biomedical engineering at Duke University and an MBA at Northwestern University. He came under scrutiny by the FBI in 2015 after ordering 800 castor beans and six lily of the valley plants, according to court filings.
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He told the FBI he was only interested in the castor beans for gardening and had accidentally purchased 100 packets instead of one. After that visit, Saaem amended his order and received only one packet of the beans, according to his lawyer.
But, he also began searching the Internet for tasteless poisons and rat poison and visited webpages with articles headlined, “What is the most lethal poison?” and “The five deadly poisons that can be cooked up in a kitchen,” according to court filings.
In 2019, the FBI renewed its focus on Saaem after discovering he had been accused of embezzling money from his employer a few years earlier by submitting false invoices for laboratory equipment, according to court filings. That case was resolved without criminal charges when Saaem paid the company $275,000.
Prosecutors charged Saaem with obstruction of justice last March for making false statements to the FBI about his interest in ricin.
In letters to the judge, Saaem’s supporters described him as a good man, father, and colleague and an accomplished scientist.
In one letter, Saaem’s older sister wrote that as a child growing up in Bangladesh he was very fond of several American television series, including “MacGyver,” “Bionic Woman,” and “ThunderCats,” and used to perform experiments learned from the show with material from old toys and other household items.
On Thursday, Saaem’s voice cracked with emotion and he struggled to hold back tears as he told the judge that he wanted to be a “hero” for his son, someone proud of his accomplishments “and not seen as a criminal.”
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Saaem, former associate director of the synthetic group at the MIT-Broad Foundry, said his curiosity had been an advantage in his work, including moon mission projects that “sound like science fiction.”
But, he said his curiosity proved to be a detriment in the criminal case and he doesn’t know if he will ever be allowed to work as a scientist again. He’s now a stay-at-home father.
After leaving the courtroom, Saaem said he was grateful that the judge had followed the defense’s recommendation and sentenced him to home confinement and probation.
“I never had any intent to harm anyone,” he said. “I’m moving on with my life.”
Shelley Murphy can be reached at shelley.murphy@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @shelleymurph. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/helping-ukrainian-refugees-is-easier-said-than-done/ | Mike Gilbert is a software consultant from Arlington, so it goes without saying he’s pretty good with computers.
Using his computer, he has become a voice of hope to a handful of Ukrainian refugees, some of the more than 4 million people, mostly women and children, who have fled Vladimir Putin’s unconscionable and needless war.
Just having someone take an interest in their plight is a morale boost for the Ukrainians. But Gilbert, like many other Americans, wants to be more than a shoulder to cry on. He and others hope that Ukrainians escaping the war can come, even if only temporarily, to the United States.
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But they are finding that while countries such as Poland and Romania have taken in millions of refugees, the US, the richest, most powerful nation in the world, can’t fulfill its modest offer of sanctuary.
“When I heard President Biden say we would take in 100,000 Ukrainians, I had to laugh, because the number is so low and our system is not even able to take that number in,” said Gilbert. “The existing US visa programs require months of paperwork, which is not useful to refugees who are being bombed every day and need to emigrate urgently as a matter of life and death.”
Under the Trump administration, the asylum system was decimated, a deliberate policy of sabotage. The Biden administration vowed to restore a functioning asylum and immigration system, but progress has been glacial. The government said it would take in 125,000 refugees in fiscal year 2022 but is on pace to take in 16,000.
Biden’s promise to take in Ukrainians consists of a pledge, not a plan.
Mike Gilbert is in constant contact with Kristina Bondarenko, who with her mother, two daughters, two dogs, and a cat, fled their home in Kharkiv, eventually getting to Warsaw.
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“They are exhausted,” Gilbert said. “They want to come to Boston.”
Gilbert travels a lot for work, and has a bunch of frequent flier miles he is willing to donate to the Bondarenko family. But they can’t get a US visa to board a plane in Warsaw.
Gilbert relates the story of Bondarenko’s friend, Diana Hlushko, who was in a hospital in Kharkiv with severe abdominal pain when the Russians started bombing. When the windows cracked, she fled the hospital at 5 in the morning, in desperate pain.
Hlushko spent days in a bomb shelter with her parents, who are deaf, before her parents and her 14-year-old brother made it out to Germany. Diana remains behind, in western Ukraine, trying to figure out if the call she got asking her to return to the morgue to claim the body of an uncle killed while defending Kharkiv was real or a prank by Russian soldiers who found her uncle’s phone.
Gilbert is in regular contact with a half-dozen Ukrainian families.
“None of them have said they want to make a life in the United States,” he said. “As soon as the war is over, they want to go back to Ukraine.”
He is also part of an ad hoc network of ordinary Americans who are willing to help Ukrainians get here, to give them jobs. Some have offered to take refugees into their own homes.
“Blaming bureaucracy for inaction in the face of a humanitarian disaster just doesn’t cut it,” Gilbert said. “There are people willing to help, if only our government could give visas to these refugees.”
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In 1999, as civilians in Kosovo were being slaughtered by Serb forces, the US allowed 20,000 Kosovars to take immediate sanctuary in the US while their asylum paperwork was being processed. There’s no reason the US government can’t push the paperwork aside again now.
Hanging a Ukrainian flag, or wearing a swatch of blue and yellow on your lapel, is a nice gesture. But Ukrainians need more than gestures. With more than 4 million refugees already after five weeks of war, the least the US can do is loosen the bureaucratic strings and allow Americans like Mike Gilbert to do what the government is proving incapable of doing.
Kevin Cullen is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at kevin.cullen@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/bruins-pay-homage-retired-goalie-tuukka-rask-pregame-puck-drop-ceremony/ | Tuukka Rask didn’t have to worry about nerves as he prepared to step on the ice at TD Garden for the first time since he officially announced his retirement in February and, in his mind, what might be the last time in a long while.
He was used to seeing the crowd.
“I’m kind of more uncomfortable wearing a suit and going on the ice than wearing my uniform,” he said. “It’s a little different.”
Rask was honored by the Bruins before their matchup Thursday against the Devils at TD Garden. He performed the ceremonial puck drop with his wife and three daughters on hand.
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“It’s nice to have my family here,” he said. “It’ll be fun. Fun memories for them, too.”
Rask’s 15-year career (all in Boston) came to an end two months ago after a failed comeback attempt. The 35-year-old goalie had offseason hip surgery last summer, but the Bruins left the door open if he wanted to return. He did in January, but it took just four games to realize his body couldn’t stand the rigors.
With his retirement decision behind him, Rask said his body feels fine, and was comfortable with the outcome.
“Most days, it feels like, ‘Yeah, I think I could do it,” he said. “But then you get a day or two where you’re like, ‘Oh, thank God I don’t have to put the gear on and go butterfly.’ So yeah, there’s days that I feel great and, hopefully, it continues that way. But I know that it just wouldn’t hold if I was playing. So I always keep that in the back of my mind.”
Rask said he wasn’t disappointed by the outcome of his comeback attempt even though he went through with the surgery last summer.
“I would have done the surgery anyways at some point because it was at the point that it affected my everyday life,” he said. “I just did it because I wanted to come back and play because I couldn’t play without the surgery. [I] knew that going into the surgery, that it’s going to go either way. Did the rehab, tried to come back. At least I tried, right?”
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Rask didn’t see a future for himself as a coach quite yet, but he will work with the organization on corporate sponsorships.
“I’ll be hanging out with sponsors, golfing and shaking hands in suites,” he said. “We’re going to have to figure out a better title for me, I guess. But that’s something I’ve always been intrigued about — the business side of things — anyways. I don’t know what the future holds. Maybe I’ll get into coaching, maybe not. But for now, I’ll be hanging out with sponsors.”
He’s seen the hugs that have become a ritual for Jeremy Swayman and Linus Ullmark after wins and he approves.
“It’s great to have that chemistry,” Rask said. “What I understand is that it just kind of happened by accident and they just kept doing it. So it’s good. Those are the fun stories that happen during the season. They stuck with it. Hopefully, they get to do it very often. That means they’re winning.”
Changes in the lines
Bruce Cassidy anticipated making changes after Tuesday’s loss to the Maple Leafs, but two of them were out of his control.
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Craig Smith was “under the weather” and Nick Foligno was dealing with a lower-body injury. With Smith day-to-day, Marc McLaughlin, a Billerica native and Boston College product, made his Bruins debut on the third line with Charlie Coyle and Trent Fredric. Anton Blidh slotted into Foligno’s spot on the fourth line.
The changes Cassidy planned to make were along the blue line. Reilly and trade deadline addition Josh Brown replaced Connor Clifton and Derek Forbort on the third defensive pairing.
Brown wasted no time making his presence felt when he engaged New Jersey’s Mason Geertsen in a first-period bout, which earned him a five-minute fighting major (Geertsen was also sent off for five minutes) and a stick salute from his Bruins teammates on the bench.
Reilly hadn’t played since March 21 against Montreal. Blidh’s last game was March 16 against Minnesota.
“We had discussed a while ago how to get all eight guys involved,” Cassidy said. “They had been practicing together. I think that helps a little bit. So keep them as a pair and then we’ll sort through as we go how it breaks out after that.”
Clifton and Forbort had been a steady third pair, but Clifton was on the ice for three goals in the 6-4 loss to Toronto on Tuesday night and Forbort was on for two.
“Cliffy had a tough night the other night, but they’d been good, him and Forbort, for a while,” Cassidy said. “Good stretch — good, solid, consistent, played within themselves hockey.”
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Cassidy said he expects Foligno to be available for Saturday night’s game against the Columbus Blue Jackets.
A family gathering
Making his NHL debut was one thing, but doing it in a Bruins jersey made it that much more special for McLaughlin, who grew up in Billerica and starred at Boston College.
Putting a ballpark figure on how many people he expected to show up at TD Garden for him Thursday was a challenge.
“A lot,” he said. “Too many to count.”
Pressed to pick a number, McLaughlin guessed about 50 family members and friends were at the Garden to see his debut.
He signed a two-year entry-level contract on March 15 and was given time to get acclimated before being tested Thursday against the Devils.
“It’s been really good,” McLaughlin said. “There’s a ton of leaders in that locker room. So just trying to absorb as much as I can and learn from them. They’re all such great professionals, so just trying to absorb it.”
McLaughlin, a center by nature but a right wing Thursday, was the Eagles’ captain his junior and senior seasons. He scored 21 goals and had 11 assists as a senior this past season. While only 22 years old, Cassidy said it was a good sign that McLaughlin showed the habits of a pro in practice.
“Very professional in his approach,” Cassidy said. “Does everything hard. Ready to go when it’s his turn. Alert, focused. So that part’s great. Shoot’s the puck very hard, he passes the puck very hard, so he’s got hard habits, for lack of a better term, which are going to be required at this level.”
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Julian Benbow can be reached at julian.benbow@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/how-red-sox-use-drills-spring-training-improve-their-infield-defense/ | FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox third base coach Carlos Febles and infielder Christian Arroyo were zeroed in on the art of turning a double play early Thursday morning.
The pair had a student and teacher bond with Febles, who works with the infielders, affirming or correcting Arroyo’s moves around the second base bag. Febles fed baseballs to Arroyo from a machine cranked up to moderate speed. This allowed Arroyo to work through double plays at a steady pace. Going too fast would, perhaps, disrupt Arroyo from hammering down the mechanics.
In this drill, Febles wanted Arroyo to work behind the bag, not making his move toward second until he was certain where the machine would deliver the ball.
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“The main thing is you have to see the flight of the baseball and use your legs,” an animated Febles explained. “To me, everything you do on the field, you have to use your legs. You cannot start your legs before seeing the baseball.”
With each rep it appeared Arroyo got the hang of it, staying behind the bag before pouncing. Febles clapped his hands emphatically once the round was over before reflecting with Arroyo on the session and what the infielder took from it. At that point, Febles walked back to the machine and started feeding baseballs through it again.
It’s been the routine for Red Sox infielders this spring. Each morning, just before batting practice and other infield work on the back fields at Fenway South, infielders plant themselves on a sliver of turf outside the clubhouse.
It’s divided into two sections. On one side, Febles delivers flies to the infielders. On the other, it’s all about grounders. The players start on their knees. Glove-side grounders; grounders in front of the player; backhand grounders; glove-side grounders with in-between hops; grounders in front of the player with in-between hops; backhand grounders with in-between hops. The infielders then stand up and repeat the movements in their usual ready positions, but at a slow pace, utilizing miniature baseballs, and sometimes a pancake glove. Both require intense focus and attention to detail. If you don’t look the ball in, you’re likely to boot it.
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“I like them a lot,” Arroyo said of the drills. “Because it allows me to focus on catching the ball in my pocket and getting it in a sweet spot and also with the transfer for the smaller ball. We’ll sometimes do double-play feeds with them. Then when you grab the regular ball it feels like a beach ball.”
Much of the goal, Febles said, is to isolate the hands from the rest of the body.
“Then when we get on the field, that’s when we work on angles and first-step quickness,” Febles said. “Here, it’s all about hand work.”
Entering the 2021 season, manager Alex Cora said he wanted the Red Sox to make more of a commitment to defense. Yet the Sox still struggled, committing the second-most errors in baseball (108) behind the Marlins (122).
That forced Cora and his staff to come up with another plan. They began these drills last season, but this year it’s been more consistent.
“It worked out well for us the last part of the season,” shortstop Xander Bogaerts said. “And also in the playoffs. It helped me, personally, and I’m going to continue to do it.”
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Bogaerts’s area of improvement was his backhand, Febles said. So, when it was his turn, Bogaerts took grounders to his backhand with miniature baseballs and a pancake glove.
On the other side was first baseman Bobby Dalbec. Febles shot baseballs through the machine with Dalbec mimicking receiving snap throws from the catcher. Febles said Dalbec has a tendency to reach for the ball instead of getting into his legs. This creates more of a distance between the tag and the runner. When Dalbec gets into an athletic and crouched stance and waits for the ball to come to him, that cuts the distance between the tag and the runner significantly.
“Now, it’s a straight-down, quick tag,” Febles said.
There’s no quick fix to some of the Sox’ defensive woes from 2021, but consistency in the proper movements builds fundamentally sound players who make routine plays routinely.
“I think the drills help get everyone kind of locked in with their hands and their eyes, just getting us moving,” Arroyo said. “The more you do it, when it happens in a game it’s natural.”
Julian McWilliams can be reached at julian.mcwilliams@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @byJulianMack. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/naomi-osaka-reaches-miami-open-tennis-final/ | Unseeded Naomi Osaka defeated No. 22 Belinda Bencic, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, in the Miami Open semifinals. She’s in a championship match for the first time since the 2021 Australian Open, and will meet either No. 16 Jessica Pegula or No. 2 Iga Swiatek on Saturday in Miami Gardens. Fla. It has been a long, trying and often emotional ride for former No. 1 Osaka since her win in the 2018 U.S. Open final over Serena Williams. She was rattled during a loss at Indian Wells on March 12 following a derogatory shout from a spectator, withdrew from last year’s French Open to address her mental state and left last year’s US Open in tears. But in South Florida, one of the places she considers home, it’s been all support from the fans. Osaka entered the tournament ranked No. 77 in the world, will leave Miami no worse than 36th and would be back in the top 30 if she wins the title … Hubert Hurkacz, seeded eighth, moved two wins away from defending his Miami Open title by wearing down the top-seeded Daniil Medvedev, 7-6 (7-5), 6-3, in a men’s quarterfinal. Had Medvedev prevailed, he would have overtaken Novak Djokovic on Monday and returned to No. 1 in the world rankings. Instead, the Russian will stay No. 2.
NBA
Hall of Fame inductees decided
Former San Antonio Spurs guard and two-time All-Star Manu Ginóbili will be inducted into the Hall of Fame in his first time on the ballot, according to The Athletic. Tim Hardaway, a five-time All-Star, and George Karl, the NBA’s sixth-winningest head coach, will also inducted. Others include WNBA legend Swin Cash, a four-time All-Star and two-time Olympic gold medalist and West Virginia coach Bob Huggins, who has coached for 45 years and earned NCAA Coach of the Year honors twice throughout his career.
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Chinese state TV airing games again
China Central Television, China’s state-run TV network, has begun to broadcast NBA games again, signaling that the rift between the league and the authoritarian government that has persisted since 2019 appears to be coming to an end. The first game this year on state TV was Tuesday’s matchup between the Los Angeles Clippers and the Utah Jazz. According to Global Times, the broadcast was the start of a full return of the NBA to China’s airwaves. The league has been almost entirely off the air on Chinese state television since 2019, except for a lone finals game in 2020. The dispute between China and the NBA began in the fall of 2019, when Daryl Morey, then an executive with the Houston Rockets, shared an image supportive of pro-democracy protesters in Hong Kong. The social media post angered the Chinese government, causing games to be pulled off the air and Chinese companies to pull sponsorships from the league … President Joe Biden has appointed Suns star Chris Paul to his board of advisors on historically Black college and universities. Biden along with Vice President Kamala Harris — a graduate of Howard University, an HBCU—have committed more than $5.8 million to support toward the financial commitment to these institutions.
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NHL
Capitals rest Ovechkin
Washington Capitals captain Alex Ovechkin missed practice, taking a maintenance day to rest, according to the team. That rest, though, comes at an unusual time - after two days off for the Capitals, following a loss to Carolina on Monday. Capitals Coach Peter Laviolette said he expects Ovechkin, who was at the Capitals’ practice facility Thursday, back on the ice for Friday’s practice. Ovechkin has shouldered a significant workload this season, averaging 21:04 per game. The last time Ovechkin averaged more than 21 minutes a night was during the 2010-11 season … Clayton Keller is out for the season after breaking his leg in the third period against the San Jose Sharks on Wednesday. The forward was injured with 5:15 remaining after falling and hitting the end boards legs first. The Coyotes said he had surgery and is expected to make a full recovery in 4-6 months … Goalie Petr Mrazek will be out at least six weeks for the Toronto Maple Leafs because of a groin injury, meaning the goalie would miss the start of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
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Auto racing
Vettel back after COVID
Aston Martin driver Sebastian Vettel is “fit to race” after recovering from COVID-19. The four-time world champion will make his season debut at the Australian Grand Prix on April 10. The 34-year-old German missed the first two races of the F1 season — in Bahrain and Saudi Arabia — because of his coronavirus infection. Reserve driver Nico Hulkenberg replaced Vettel for both races, finishing 17th in Bahrain and then 12th in Saudi Arabia. Aston Martin is still searching for its first points this season.
Miscellany
Tribe supports Conn. city
A small American Indian tribe is supporting a Connecticut city’s attempt to retain funding put in jeopardy by its continued use of a Native American mascot and imagery for its schools’ athletic teams. The Schaghticoke Tribal Nation, which has just over 100 members in Western Connecticut, passed a resolution this month supporting the city of Derby’s use of the nickname “Red Raiders” and logos that include an arrowhead and the profile of the head of an American Indian. The tribe says it supports the use of those images “as a public means of sustaining Native American culture and history of Connecticut’s first citizens,” according to the March 15 resolution from the tribal council. The state last year enacted a law that requires municipalities whose athletic teams use Native American names or mascots to receive written support from a state or federally recognized tribe in Connecticut or risk losing state grants derived from revenue at the state’s two tribal casinos, The Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino.
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https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/wires/are-russian-troops-using-sexual-violence-weapon-heres-what-we-know/ | Over the last month, Russian forces have assaulted the people of Ukraine. In addition to news of attacks on civilians and families displaced, there are now initial reports that Russian forces have committed sexual violence.
This month, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba claimed that Russian soldiers had committed "numerous" rapes against Ukrainian women. Last week, Ukrainian MPs charged that Russian forces were targeting women and girls specifically and that elderly women had been raped.
No hard evidence for these allegations has yet come to light. But evidence from recent conflicts along with certain aspects of the current invasion suggest cause for great concern.
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Russian armed forces have recently perpetrated sexual violence in other conflicts
First, Russia has a recent history of committing sexual violence in war. According to the Sexual Violence in Armed Conflict data set, sexual violence by Russian forces has been reported in three of seven years of conflict since 2014 in eastern Ukraine.
Most of the sexual violence took place while Russians held women and men in detention. Just in the past two years, Russian-led forces have been reported to have committed rape, sexual torture, forced prostitution and sexual mutilation against detained individuals in Ukraine.
The State Department's 2020 Country Report for Human Rights Practices in Ukraine notes, for example, that Russian-led forces reportedly carried out "beatings and electric shock in the genital area, rape, threats of rape, forced nudity, and threats of rape against family members" in 2020 as a "method of torture and mistreatment to punish, humiliate, or extract confessions" from detainees.
This is also nothing new for Russia. The Russian military is reported to have committed rape in Chechnya every year for seven consecutive years at the turn of the century, against people both in and outside detention.
For example, Amnesty International reported cases of gang rape by Russian forces of pregnant Chechen women in 2002 following military raids on their homes. The State Department wrote in a 2004 report that Russian forces had raped numerous detainees in Chechnya, including Chechen boys as young as 13.
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The Russian military’s lack of unity is a red flag
Second, Russian forces' apparent lack of internal unity is concerning. Research suggests that low levels of internal cohesion within armed groups - meaning that they lack social bonds with one another - correlate with wartime sexual violence. When members of the military don't trust and care for each other, they are more likely to rape. This is because when fighters rape together, it can strengthen loyalty and cohesion within armed groups.
There are strong signs that the Russian army suffers from low morale and a lack of unity. Early reports from Ukraine indicated that many soldiers were not motivated to fight. Many seem confused about the purpose of their mission in Ukraine. Videos on social media show hungry soldiers asking for food and looting Ukrainian stores. Gross inequalities within the military also undermines solidarity.
Researchers find that forced recruitment, especially by press ganging when men are taken with or without notice and forced into the military, may also cause cohesion to fray. The Russian military is conscription-based, so all service is mandatory. But reports suggest Russia is now relying on desperate measures. Men have even been snatched from their cars or the streets in broad daylight.
Sexualized and dehumanizing language has preceded mass rape elsewhere
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Third, dehumanizing and sexualized language may also portend conflict-related sexual violence. Such language has been a precursor of mass rape in other situations, such as the sexualized dehumanization of Tutsi women that preceded the genocide in Rwanda.
One example is Russian President Vladimir Putin's crude remark to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky last February, referring to an old joke about marital rape. When discussing the implementation of the 2015 Minsk agreements between Ukraine and Russia aimed at stopping the war in eastern Ukraine, Putin said, "like it or don't like it, it's your duty, my beauty." Experts have traced the Kremlin's gendered and sexualized rhetoric toward Ukraine and described Putin's abusive behavior as "characteristic of rape culture."
Putin has also denied the existence of Ukraine as a country and denied the existence of Ukrainian culture, while bizarrely claiming that the country has been taken over by Nazis (ignoring the fact that Ukraine has a Jewish president).
Syrian soldiers joining Russian forces in Ukraine is bad news
Fourth, Putin's recruitment of Syrian soldiers to fight in Ukraine raises alarms. Syrian forces are reported to have committed systematic rape and sexual torture against civilian populations and detainees every year from 2013 to 2017 in the Syrian civil war. They might bring that practice with them to Ukraine.
Research suggests that recruiting foreign fighters may increase the prevalence of conflict-related sexual violence, at least by rebel groups. This is in part because they may threaten the armed group's internal social cohesion.
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Population matters
Lastly, population size consistently correlates with state repression and human rights abuse, including wartime rape.
When war takes place in countries with larger populations, the people are more likely to endure government-perpetrated rape and other human rights violations than the people in smaller countries. Ukraine, with 44 million people, is a larger-than-average nation.
What to be prepared for in Ukraine
With all these factors in play, initial reports of sexual violence in Ukraine are alarming. In particular, Russia's recent history of conflict-related sexual violence in Ukraine and the lack of cohesion within the Russian armed forces are among the most worrying signs.
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Esther Hallsdóttir is a Master in Public Policy candidate at the Harvard Kennedy School, and a research assistant to the Sexual Violence in Armed Conflict data project. Previously, she was a project manager at UNICEF Iceland and served as Iceland’s Youth Delegate for Human Rights to the United Nations. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/world/prosecutor-seeks-end-khashoggi-murder-trial-turkey/ | ANKARA — The Turkish prosecutor in the case against 26 Saudi nationals charged in the slaying of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi made a surprise request Thursday that their trial in absentia be suspended and the case transferred to Saudi Arabia, raising fears of a possible coverup.
The panel of judges made no ruling on the prosecutor’s request but said a letter would be sent to Turkey’s Justice Ministry seeking its opinion on the possible transfer of the file to Saudi judicial authorities, the state-run Anadolu Agency reported. The trial was adjourned until April 7.
The development comes as Turkey has been trying to normalize its relationship with Saudi Arabia, which hit an all-time low following Khashoggi’s grisly October 2018 killing. Turkish Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said in an interview on Thursday that Saudi authorities were more cooperative on judicial issues with Turkey but did not elaborate.
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In arguing for the transfer, the prosecutor told the court that the Saudi chief public prosecutor’s office requested the Turkish proceedings be transferred to the kingdom in a letter dated March 13 and that international warrants issued by Ankara against the defendants be lifted, according to the private DHA news agency.
The prosecutor said that because the arrest warrants cannot be executed and defense statements cannot be taken, the case would remain inconclusive in Turkey.
Amnesty International urged Turkey to press ahead with the trial, saying if it is transferred to Saudi Arabia, Turkey will be “knowingly and willingly sending the case to a place where it will be covered up.”
Moving Khashoggi’s trial to Saudi Arabia would provide a diplomatic resolution to a dispute that represented the wider troubles between Ankara and the kingdom since the 2011 Arab Spring.
Turkey under Erdogan supported Islamists as the uprisings took hold, while Saudi Arabia and its ally the United Arab Emirates sought to suppress such movements for fear of facing challenges to their autocratic governments. Meanwhile, Turkey sided with Qatar in a diplomatic dispute that saw Doha boycotted by Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE.
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Since President Donald Trump lost the 2020 election, the Gulf Arab states have set aside — but not fully resolved — the Qatar dispute. Meanwhile, Turkey under Erdogan has faced a rapid devaluation of its lira currency over his refusal to hike interest rates. Bilateral trade to the kingdom and the UAE, a major transshipment point for the world economy, also collapsed.
Since the start of 2022, Erdogan has sought to improve those ties, including making his first visit to the UAE in nearly a decade. Saudi Arabia and the UAE, after fighting through the coronavirus pandemic’s economic effects, facing a grinding war in Yemen, and struggling with renewed tensions with Iran, also want to resolve the outstanding feud.
Khashoggi disappeared on Oct. 2, 2018, after entering the Saudi consulate in Istanbul, seeking documents that would allow him to marry Hatice Cengiz, a Turkish national who was waiting outside the building. He never emerged.
Turkish officials allege that the Saudi national, who was a United States resident, was killed and then dismembered with a bone saw inside the consulate. His body has not been found. Before his killing, Khashoggi had written critically of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince in columns for The Washington Post.
Turkish authorities said he was killed by a team of Saudi agents. Those on trial in absentia include two former aides of the prince.
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Saudi officials initially offered conflicting accounts concerning the killing, including claims that Khashoggi had left the consulate building unharmed. But amid mounting international pressure, they stated that Khashoggi’s death was a tragic accident, with the meeting unexpectedly turning violent.
Turkey decided to try the defendants in absentia after Saudi Arabia rejected Turkish demands for their extradition.
The slaying had sparked international condemnation and cast a cloud of suspicion over Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Western intelligence agencies, as well as the US Congress, have said that an operation of this magnitude could not have happened without his knowledge.
In urging Turkey to proceed with the trial, Amnesty International said Ankara would be complicit in a coverup if it grants the Saudi request for a transfer.
“If the prosecutor’s request is granted, then instead of prosecuting and shedding light on a murder that was committed on its territory ... Turkey will be knowingly and willingly sending the case to a place where it will be covered up,” said Tarik Beyhan, Amnesty’s campaign director for Turkey.
Beyhan said he didn’t want to “think about the possibility” that the prosecutor’s request may be related to the improving ties between Riyadh and Ankara.
“Basic human rights ... should not be made the subject of political negotiations,” he said. “A murder cannot be covered up to fix relations.”
Some of the men were put on trial in Riyadh behind closed doors. A Saudi court issued a final verdict in 2020 that sentenced five mid-level officials and operatives to 20-year jail terms. The court had originally ordered the death penalty but reduced the punishment after Khashoggi’s son Salah, who lives in Saudi Arabia, announced that he forgave the defendants. Three others were sentenced to lesser jail terms.
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On Thursday, Khashoggi's fiancee, Cengiz, appeared to criticize the prosecutor’s request in a tweet in English. “It is an exemplary situation in terms of showing the dilemma facing humanity in the modern era,” she wrote. “Which of the two will we choose? To want to live like a virtuous human being or to build a life by holding material interests above all kinds of values.”
She did not respond to a request for comment. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/arts/lights-camera-inaction/ | It’s hard to say why something is funny. The best humor eludes explanation. Brain waves hardly matter for belly laughs. It may be even harder to say why something isn’t funny. This makes reviewing “The Bubble” a challenge.
“The Bubble” starts streaming on Netflix April 1.
Judd Apatow directed and co-wrote (with Pam Brady). So that’s promising. Also promising is an intriguingly oddball cast that includes Leslie Mann (Apatow’s wife), Keegan-Michael Key, David Duchovny, Fred Armisen, Maria Bakalova, and Kate McKinnon. Playing a film-studio boss, McKinnon is the one reliable laugh-getter. The other actor who consistently holds his end up is Peter Serafinowicz, he of the blended-whiskey voice, playing a movie producer.
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Studio head? Movie producer? “The Bubble” is a movie about making a movie, but with a public-health twist.
The movie being made, or whose making is being attempted, is the sixth film in “the 23d-biggest action franchise of all time.” That would be “Cliff Beasts.” Cue the CGI. Apatow enjoys including scenes from that movie within this movie.
But we’re talking about the pre-vaccine days of the pandemic. So the “bubble” the title refers to encloses the film shoot. “The safest place in the world right now is a film set,” an agent tells a client. Oh, the places you’ll go? Oh, the things people will say to get their 10 percent.
Cast and crew assemble in a luxury hotel in the English countryside. Bakalova is among the increasingly bemused staff. The director (Armisen) is definitely out of his comfort zone. “I won Sundance with a movie I made on an iPhone!” he reminds people. One of the stars (Key) is less interested in the movie than in promoting something called Harmony Ignite. “It’s not a cult,” he explains. “It’s a lifestyle brand.”
To try to broaden the franchise’s appeal, a TikTok star (Iris Apatow, Mann and Apatow’s daughter), is making her movie debut. Two “Cliff Beasts” veterans (Mann and Duchovny) are a married couple — and seriously estranged. Another cast member (Karen Gillan) skipped “Cliff Beasts 5,″ and now that she’s back on board she’s not going to be allowed to forget that act of disloyalty. “It’s a hotel, not a war zone,” the producer says to the head of security. Yes and no.
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Stringing together a set of skits and calling it a movie isn’t the worst thing in the world. It had better not be, since that’s how an awful lot of American film comedy has functioned since the ‘80s. Call it the “SNL” effect. But at least some of the skits have to be funny. It helps, too, if the donnée, as Henry James, that master of matters mirthful, might say, is interesting. The targets here are depressingly easy: the narcissism of actors, the mindlessness of special-effects movies, the even greater mindlessness of TikTok videos.
In his last movie, “The King of Staten Island” (2020), Apatow was stretching, both emotionally and tonally, and it largely worked. Here he isn’t, and it doesn’t. The question isn’t whether he’s shooting fish in a barrel (shooting fish in a “Bubble”?). It’s how many bullet holes there were even before he began to fire.
There are compensations. It’s not every movie where you get to hear McKinnon intone the words “hakuna” and “matata.” The ending offers a nicely meta twist. Also, keep an eye out for cameos from Beck, John Cena, Benedict Cumberbatch, John Lithgow, James McAvoy, and Daisy Ridley. “Cliff Beasts” meets “Where’s Waldo?”
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★½
THE BUBBLE
Directed by Judd Apatow. Written by Apatow and Pam Brady. Starring Karen Gillan, Leslie Mann, David Duchovny, Iris Apatow, Keegan-Michael Key, Fred Armisen, Kate McKinnon, Maria Bakalova. Streaming on Netflix. 124 minutes. R (language throughout, sexual content, drug use, and some violence).
Mark Feeney can be reached at mark.feeney@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/boston-police-rescue-woman-pinned-under-car-dorchester/ | Boston police rescued a woman who was pinned under her car in Dorchester Monday night, the department said.
Police responded to a call for assistance at 11:05 p.m. on 17 Abbot St. and found the woman with her leg pinned under her car, police said in a statement.
Officers used a car jack from their cruiser to lift the car off the woman’s leg so she could be pulled from underneath, the statement said.
She was then transported to a local hospital to be treated, police said
The woman’s car had rolled forward and pinned her leg underneath after she had gotten out of the car, police said.
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No further information was available.
Madison Mercado can be reached at madison.mercado@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/paul-herman-mainstay-gangster-movies-is-dead-76/ | Paul Herman, who put in appearances as wiseguys and schlemiels in such movies as Martin Scorsese’s “Goodfellas” and “Casino” and three seasons of “The Sopranos,” died Tuesday, his 76th birthday.
His manager, T Keaton-Woods, confirmed the death in a statement but did not specify the cause or say where Mr. Herman died.
Over a four-decade career, Mr. Herman was perhaps best known for his role on “The Sopranos” as Peter Gaeta, known as Beansie, the owner of pizza parlors who gets in trouble with a mobster — his travails include being hit on the head with a pot of hot coffee — but who manages to reestablish himself.
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Mr. Herman also appeared for five seasons on another beloved HBO series, “Entourage,” as an accountant who pleads unsuccessfully with his celebrity client to be less of a wastrel.
He frequently played unnamed characters in the roughly half-dozen films by Scorsese in which he appeared, but in the director’s most recent feature, “The Irishman,” he had a more notable part: Whispers DiTullio, who, like Beansie, is a businessman involved with the Mafia who angers the wrong people and comes to grief.
Mr. Herman’s dozens of other film credits include such crime-themed movies as “The Cotton Club” (1984), “Once Upon a Time in America” (1984), “Heat” (1995), and “American Hustle” (2013), a screwball comedy about political corruption for which he and other members of the cast shared a Screen Actors Guild Award.
“The only one who ever gave me the chance to play a saint is Marty,” Mr. Herman told The New York Times in 1989, referring to his role as Philip the Apostle in Scorsese’s 1988 film, “The Last Temptation of Christ.”
Paul Herman was born March 29, 1946, in Brooklyn. His movie career got going with “Dear Mr. Wonderful,” a 1982 West German film about working-class life in Newark and New York City that featured Joe Pesci in his first starring role.
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From there, Mr. Herman made a specialty of using his haggard but trusting mug to play bit characters including a burglar (in Woody Allen’s “Radio Days”), a headwaiter (in another Allen film, “Bullets Over Broadway”), and a bartender (in Sondra Locke’s “Trading Favors”), along with a motley assortment of gangsters.
Information on survivors was not immediately available. Mr. Herman had homes in New York and Santa Monica, Calif.
Offscreen, he was known for being friendly and well connected. “If you visited NYC from LA, he was the entertainment director,” actor Tony Danza said on Twitter after his death.
Music executive Tommy Mottola posted an undated black-and-white photo on Instagram of Mr. Herman sitting at a restaurant between young versions of Robert De Niro and actress-director Penny Marshall, who died in 2018. Mottola said Mr. Herman had been on a “first name basis with every superstar actor and musician in the world.”
Mr. Herman was a part owner of the now closed but once buzzy Upper West Side restaurant Columbus, where one evening in 1989, sitting beside Al Pacino, he told the Times that he served as the nightly “social director.” The restaurant’s patrons included Scorsese, Allen, and Francis Ford Coppola — all friends who had cast him in their movies over the years.
Those three men had very different directing styles, Mr. Herman told the Times in 1989.
With Scorsese and Coppola, “you can give them your ideas on a scene,” he said. “But with Woody, well, you just don’t do that with him because he has ideas he’s working out. You really can’t say one style is better than another, though.”
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https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/nation/mccarthy-tries-navigate-splintering-divide-among-house-republicans/ | Rep. Madison Cawthorn, R-N.C., was called into a private meeting with House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., this week to discuss his outlandish accusation that prominent political players had invited him to orgies and done “a key bump of cocaine” as he watched.
McCarthy has hosted similar private meetings after other Republican members aligned with former president Donald Trump stole attention away from his agenda -- for example, when two members recently addressed a white nationalist event -- but this time, he did something different: He talked openly about it.
"I mean he's got to turn himself around," McCarthy told reporters on Wednesday, soon after the closed-door meeting. "This is unacceptable and there is no evidence to this, he changes what he tells and that's not becoming of a congressman. He did not tell the truth."
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McCarthy has made clear that he believes the pathway to regaining the majority requires Republicans to present a united front and keep the public focused on the Democrats' intraparty fights rather than those within his own party. He wants to focus on telling voters exactly how Republicans will introduce needed legislation and hold the Biden administration accountable, and he doesn't want that message overshadowed.
But there’s a splintering divide among House Republicans between staunch Trump allies who tend to offend more than legislate and members who have grown restless over McCarthy’s lack of an upper hand with the former group.
McCarthy listed other unbecoming behavior that Cawthorn has displayed: driving on a suspended license earlier this month, calling Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky a "thug" amid Russia's violent invasion and lying to a Capitol Police officer in an attempt to sneak a GOP candidate onto the House floor. But the Republican leader stopped short of punishing Cawthorn, allowing him to remain on committees.
Cawthorn has remained defiant and has not recanted his tale of a Washington filled with "sexual perversion" and drugs.
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"The radical left, the establishment and the media want to take me down," Cawthorn tweeted on Thursday, even though the challenges have been coming from within his own party. "Their attacks have been relentless. I won't stop fighting. I won't bow to the mob. They want to silence the America First movement. I'm not going anywhere."
McCarthy met privately with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., a Trump ally who is being investigated for potentially violating sex-trafficking laws, accusations he has denied.
"I've spoken to Mr. Gaetz about the accusations. He's told me he's innocent of the accusations," McCarthy told reporters last year after previously pledging to remove Gaetz from committees if the allegations proved true.
McCarthy has also met privately with Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., and Rep. Paul A. Gosar, R-Ariz., following their numerous offenses, most recently when both addressed attendees at a white nationalist event.
McCarthy called their attendance "unacceptable," stressing that the party does not embrace those values. But he has also promised to reassign both members to committees after Democrats stripped them from that right following numerous controversies.
He stayed notably silent when Gosar posted an anime video showing himself killing Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., and assaulting President Biden.
He did not publicly condemn Greene when she posted the office number of 13 Republican colleagues who voted for the infrastructure bill, which led to members receiving violent threats against them and their families. Instead, McCarthy told colleagues at a weekly conference meeting to stop attacking one another and drawing unwanted attention, according to numerous aides in the room. It struck some members as McCarthy needing to do more to discipline the group.
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It's not that he doesn't know how. For months, McCarthy has proudly punished those who voted to impeach Trump, particularly Reps. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., and Adam Kinzinger, R-Ill.
Some of his critics say that McCarthy's approach is based on his ambitions to be speaker if Republicans regain control of the House in the midterm election this fall and the need to appease a majority of his conference, including the most rambunctious members.
While the discipline may seem like a contradiction to many onlookers, fellow Republicans defend it.
Many Republican members have a similar mentality to McCarthy, saying that dealing with intraparty riffs behind closed doors diminishes the chances of giving even more oxygen to a colleague's bad behavior.
"As far as some of this goes -- which sometimes is nonsensical, sometimes it's personality conflict, sometimes it's just some folks that are a little weird, I don't know how else to say it -- I think it's best to try and deal with it internally and see if you can bridge those gaps," said Rep. Jeff Van Drew, R-N.J.
He continued, "You know what we don't need? We're going to get the majority. We don't need a circular firing squad. We don't need to beat each other up. We don't need to literally destroy the possibilities of really making some positive change."
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GOP members and aides, most of whom spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations, noted that McCarthy is publicly more vocal when a majority of his conference is united against the behavior of a particular colleague. When members began to complain that Cheney's constant criticism about Trump was becoming too much of a distraction about a year ago, McCarthy endorsed the movement to remove her as conference chair, as she no longer resonated with her colleagues.
A similar scenario played out with Cawthorn as members, including those who typically do not complain, expressed their outrage when they returned to Washington this week.
In an interview last week with the "Warrior Poet Society" podcast, Cawthorn was asked whether the hit television show "House of Cards" was an accurate reflection of life in the nation's capital. Cawthorn responded by talking about the "sexual perversion that goes on in Washington."
"I mean, being kind of a young guy in Washington, where the average age is probably 60 or 70 -- you know, I look at all these people, a lot of them that I've always looked up to through my life, always paid attention to politics, guys that, you know. Then all of a sudden you get invited to, like, 'Oh hey, we're going to have kind of a sexual get-together at one of our homes. You should come,'" Cawthorn, 26, said in the interview, which was reported Sunday by Business Insider. "And then you realize they're asking you to come to an orgy."
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Cawthorn also claimed that he had witnessed "people that are leading on the movement to try and remove addiction in our country" consume "a key bump of cocaine right in front of you."
Rep. Steve Womack, R-Ark., does not consider himself one to call out his own colleagues or cause much of a stir. He said Tuesday was only the third time during his decade-long career on Capitol Hill that he stood up during a weekly GOP conference to say something. This time it was about Cawthorn.
"I've not had anything really get to me quite like the remarks made by my colleague from North Carolina in the time that I've been here," he said. "It's not because there haven't been other things said, by him or anybody else, that would be judged as nonsensical or out of line. I mean, a lot of people say things up here that are just kind of crazy talk."
He told all his colleagues that they all better prioritize behaving from now to the midterms, noting their singular focus should be on "not bringing negative attention to ourselves."
A Republican in the room said that when Womack spoke up, members audibly groaned and grumbled, expressing that they, too, were upset by Cawthorn's remarks and how it implicated them.
"Those remarks were very unfortunate, a terrible exaggeration of the truth, and that if you're going to make an accusation like that, name names; just name names. And spare the people like me who kind of live boring lives, I'm in bed by 9 o'clock every night," Womack added.
Republicans also demurred that Cawthorn's remarks brought unwanted attention to the conference just days after a retreat in Florida, where members worked to finalize issue policies they said they believed would unite them.
"When you actually run on a platform, here's what we care about, here's what we're going to do because the American people care about that -- that will help keep the team together and accomplishing what we told the people we were going to do when we ran for the job and the reason why they're gonna put us in the majority and make Kevin speaker," Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, said last Friday in Ponte Vedra, Fla.
For Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., Cawthorn's latest comments were not the tipping point for him. He listed multiple reasons Cawthorn lost his trust, including the congressman's decision to declare he would compete in a neighboring district, only to jump back into his race weeks later. Fed up with the antics, Tillis on Thursday endorsed state senator Chuck Edwards over Cawthorn in primary race in North Carolina's 11th Congressional District.
"The fact that he would leave, move on to another district 11 months into his current tenure; and some of his comments, at the worst possible time on Ukraine, calling Zelensky a thug; they just speak to a lack of judgment that I expect more of a member in our congressional delegation," Tillis said.
McCarthy acknowledged the same, telling reporters that Cawthorn's repeated patterns and consistent lying to spin his way out of problems is not the way to behave on Capitol Hill. He said that during their meeting, Cawthorn denied knowing what cocaine is after suggesting he had seen a congressional staffer using the drug in a garage 100 yards away.
"It's just frustrating. There's no evidence behind his statements when I sat down with him of what's true," he said.
During the retreat in Florida last week, McCarthy often touted the need to not just win the majority next year, but to ensure that a "governing majority" is prioritized. Members and aides privately acknowledged that that also means electing candidates who prioritize legislating over publicity that could make a potential speakership difficult.
McCarthy previously said he still supported Cawthorn's reelection following his anti-Ukraine remarks. But when pressed on it Thursday, McCarthy dodged the question.
"We talked about Madison yesterday," McCarthy told reporters. "In the process, there was just no evidence that he provided to make me think that that story is right."
Asked again, McCarthy responded with silence.
- - -
The Washington Post’s Felicia Sonmez contributed to this report. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/nation/oscars-producer-says-police-offered-arrest-will-smith/ | LOS ANGELES (AP) — Oscars producer Will Packer said Los Angeles police were ready to arrest Will Smith after Smith slapped Chris Rock on the Academy Awards stage.
“They were saying, you know, this is battery, was a word they used in that moment," Packer said in a clip released by ABC News Thursday night of an interview he gave to “Good Morning America.” “They said we will go get him. We are prepared. We’re prepared to get him right now. You can press charges, we can arrest him. They were laying out the options.”
But Packer said Rock was “very dismissive” of the idea.
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“He was like, ‘No, no, no, I’m fine,” Packer said. "And even to the point where I said, ‘Rock, let them finish.’ The LAPD officers finished laying out what his options were and they said, ‘Would you like us to take any action?’ And he said no.”
The LAPD said in a statement after Sunday night's ceremony that they were aware of the incident, and that Rock had declined to file a police report. The department declined comment Thursday on Packer's interview, a longer version of which will air on Friday morning.
The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences met Wednesday to initiate disciplinary proceedings against Smith for violations against the group’s standards of conduct. Smith could be suspended, expelled or otherwise sanctioned.
The academy said in a statement that “Mr. Smith’s actions at the 94th Oscars were a deeply shocking, traumatic event to witness in-person and on television."
Without giving specifics, the academy said Smith was asked to leave the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre, but refused to do so.
Smith strode from his front row seat on to the stage and slapped Rock after a joke Rock made about Smith's wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, when he was on stage to present the Oscar for best documentary.
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On Monday, Smith issued an apology to Rock, the academy and to viewers, saying “I was out of line and I was wrong.”
The academy said Smith has the opportunity to defend himself in a written response before the board meets again on April 18.
Rock publicly addressed the incident for the first time, but only briefly, at the beginning of a standup show Wednesday night in Boston, where he was greeted by a thunderous standing ovation. He said “I’m still kind of processing what happened.”
___
Follow AP Entertainment Writer Andrew Dalton on Twitter: https://twitter.com/andyjamesdalton | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/after-distasteful-loss-maple-leafs-bruins-take-it-out-devils-rout/ | Getting blown out on home ice Tuesday night by the Toronto Maple Leafs left the Bruins with a nasty taste in their mouths. Handing the New Jersey Devils the kind of beating rarely seen on an NHL ice sheet was a palate cleanse for the Bruins Thursday night at TD Garden.
The Bruins paid the punishment forward, wiping out the Devils, 8-1, on a night they paid homage to their retired veteran puck stopper, Tuukka Rask, in a pregame ceremony. The victory wrapped up the Bruins’ three-game season sweep of the Devils by an aggregate tally of 18-6.
Boston scored seven unanswered goals — including six in a decisive second-period flurry — to turn a 1-1 first-period tie into an insurmountable seven-goal lead after 40 minutes.
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The Bruins poured in their season-high for goals in a game. Brad Marchand scored twice and thought he had a hat trick when he beat Devils reserve goaltender Jon Gillies in the second period only to have it waived off by the officials.
Jake DeBrusk (1-1—2) extended his goal-scoring streak to three games. With friends and family on hand for his NHL debut, Billerica native Marc McLaughlin scored his first career NHL goal at 12:04, highlighting a three-goal outburst that spanned 3 minutes 3 seconds. The three-goal flurry was triggered by Patrice Bergeron’s power-play tally at 9:01 and followed by Marchand’s second tally of the period at 10:34 that ended the night for Devils starting goaltender Nico Daws (15 saves).
Four minutes after McLaughlin’s memorable tally, Taylor Hall found the back of the net at 16:12 to give the Bruins a commanding 8-1 lead.
It was just the fourth time in the last 10 years the Bruins scored at least eight goals while giving up just one. They beat Montreal, 8-1, in 2019 (the last time they scored eight goals in a game), Toronto, 8-0, and Calgary, 9-0, in 2012.
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Tough losses may sting, but the Bruins don’t let them linger. The Bruins are 19-4-2 after losses this year. They are 15-3-1 over their last 19 games and haven’t lost back-to-back games since suffering consecutive setbacks to the Ranges and Islanders in mid-February.
Matt Grzelcyk, who was minus-2 in the Bruins’ loss to the Maple Leafs, but made up for it quickly against the Devils, scoring his fourth goal of the season just 57 seconds into the game.
Bruins coach Bruce Cassidy wanted to make room for Josh Brown and Mike Reilly on one of the three defensive pairings after the trade deadline created a numbers game along the blue line. The loss to the Leafs only accelerated the process.
Cassidy plugged Reilly and Brown into the third line for Connor Clifton and Derek Forbort, and they clearly understood the assignment. Not even five minutes into the game, both of them were in the penalty box.
Brown was more than transparent about his style of play when he arrived (he has no problems with letting his hands fly). Mason Geertsen took exception with a hit from Brown along the boards and challenged Brown as soon as he sprung up from the ice. Brown obliged and got the better of the tussle, landing a right hand that staggered Geertsen.
Both were sent off to serve five-minute fighting majors.
A couple minutes later, Reilly saw Miles Wood check Charlie McAvoy into the end boards and immediately rushed in to defend the Bruins’ top defenseman.
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Reilly came flying in and took a direct shot at Wood. The two combatants got into a quick tangle that ended quickly once they tumbled to the ice. Reilly earned a pair of roughing penalties put the Devils on the man advantage.
The Bruins were able to kill that penalty, but they gave up a goal as soon as they got back to full strength.
Jack Hughes evened the score at the 16:09 mark with his 25th goal of the season. But it proved the last time the Devils would get within striking distance as the Bruins went on to put the game out of reach by rattling off seven unanswered goals.
Julian Benbow can be reached at julian.benbow@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/arizona-governor-wont-say-transgender-people-exist/ | PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Gov. Doug Ducey refused to say Thursday if transgender people actually exist, twice dodging direct questions on the subject just a day after he signed legislation limiting transgender rights.
The Republican worked instead to defend his signatures on bills that bar transgender girls and women from playing on girls high school and women's college sports teams and barring gender affirming surgery for anyone under age 18.
When specifically asked if he believed that there “are really transgender people,” the governor paused for several seconds before answering.
“I’m going to ask you to read the legislation and to see that the legislation that we passed was in the spirit of fairness to protect girls sports in competitive situations,” Ducey said, referring to the new law that targets transgender girls who want to play on girls sports teams. “That’s what the legislation is intended to do, and that’s what it does.”
Asked again if he believed there are “actual transgender people,” he again answered slowly and carefully.
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“I ... am going to respect everyone, and I’m going to respect everyone’s rights. And I’m going to protect female sports. And that’s what the legislation does,” Ducey said.
Ducey's response was “appalling,” according to the Arizona director of the Human Rights Campaign, a national civil rights group that advocates for equality for LGBTQ people. The organization worked to ensure families and transgender young people came to the Capitol to testify against the bills as the Republican-led House and Senate considered them this session.
“It's quite shocking that he can't even address trans people or even say that he thinks they exist,” Bridget Sharpe said.
Wednesday's signing of the two transgender bills and a third that bars abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy and is currently unconstitutional put Ducey right in the middle of two top issues national Republicans are highlighting in the runup to November's midterm elections.
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Ducey also signed election legislation that minority Democrats said amounted to voter suppression by requiring longtime Arizonans to be thrown off the voter rolls if they did not prove their citizenship and residence location.
The governor leads the Republican Governors Association, which is charged with helping elect GOP chief executives in U.S. states. He in is the last year of his second term as Arizona governor and term limits bar him from seeking reelection.
The top Democrat in the state House, Rep. Reginald Bolding, called Wednesday “probably one of the darkest days we've seen in the history of Arizona."
“With the stroke of a pen, Gov. Ducey has hurled Arizona backwards to its ugliest past,” Bolding said Wednesday. “And today, he put in jeopardy pregnant people, transgender youth in danger and curtailed voting rights for people of color.”
Social conservative groups and the Arizona Republican Party praised Ducey's action. The Center for Arizona Policy, whose president shepherded the abortion and women's sports bills through the Legislature, called it a victory.
"Thank you, Governor Ducey, for taking a bold stand for women athletes, vulnerable children, and the unborn by putting your signature on (the bills) in the face of intense opposition from activists," Center for Arizona Policy president Cathi Herrod said in a news release she posted on Twitter.
She said the legislation protects the unborn, ensures a level playing field for female athletes and shows that “Arizona will do everything it can to protect vulnerable children struggling with gender confusion” by enacting the surgery ban.
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Ducey said the surgery ban protects children from irreversible decisions.
“These are permanent surgeries of reassignment that are irreversible, and those discussions can happen once adulthood is reached,” he said.
The American Civil Liberties Association has vowed to sue over the surgery ban. U.S. Supreme Court precedent currently says women have a constitutional right to abortion until about 24 weeks of pregnancy, although it is considering whether to uphold a 15-week ban enacted in Mississippi and may overturn Roe v. Wade, the 1973 decision enshrining a woman's right to choose.
Arizona joins 13 other states in enacting laws preventing transgender girls and women from playing on girls teams. Utah Gov. Spencer Cox vetoed a transgender sports ban in his state, saying it would harm transgender girls, but the Legislature overrode the veto. Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb also vetoed a sports bill, but lawmakers hope to override his action as well. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/jennifer-kupcho-minjee-lee-share-lead-last-major-mission-hills/ | RANCHO MIRAGE, Calif. — Jennifer Kupcho shared the lead Thursday in The Chevron Championship in her second — and last — start at Mission Hills, the tree-lined layout she has quickly fallen in love with.
“Honestly, I think it’s just being comfortable on this golf course,” Kupcho said. “I get here and I just, I feel comfortable. I love this place."
Kupcho shot a 6-under-par 66 in sunny and calm morning conditions to join fellow early starter Minjee Lee atop the leaderboard after the first round of the final edition of the major championship at Mission Hills.
“I really like the layout of this golf course, the beautiful shape that it’s in every year,” Kupcho said. “It always is so fun to be here, so just taking advantage of how much I like the course and the atmosphere.”
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Unable to find a sponsor willing to remain at Mission Hills, the tournament that started in 1972 as the Colgate-Dinah Shore Winner’s Circle and became a major in 1983 is shifting to Houston next year under a deal with Chevron.
“Definitely sad,” Carolina Masson said after a 68. “I understand why we’re doing it, but I’m just trying to soak in every second being out here. The golf course is playing as good as ever.”
Defending champion Patty Tavatanakit was a stroke back, finishing late in the afternoon in gusting wind.
“Really proud,” Tavatanakit said. “I feel like I really got my momentum going, was really present today.”
Kupcho birdied Nos. 11-14 to get to 8 under, then bogeyed the next two holes. She birdied four of the first five and finished with nine birdies and three bogeys.
“You really need to hit fairways on a major golf course, so that was like my biggest thing today, to hit a bunch of fairways,” Kupcho said. “That really set me up for all my birdies.”
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Winless on the LPGA Tour, Kupcho won the 2018 NCAA individual title for Wake Forest and took the inaugural Augusta National Women’s Amateur the following year after passing up a spot that week at Mission Hills.
The 24-year-old from Colorado arrived early in the desert after missing the cut Friday in Carlsbad. "I just used the two days that I did have on the weekend to come here and practice,” she said.
Lee birdied all four par 5s in a bogey-free round on the mountain-framed course.
“It was perfect,” Lee said. “Not like a breath of wind when we played. Maybe just a tiny bit. But conditions are great. Putting greens are rolling real nice. I don’t think you can get better than that.”
The 25-year-old Australian, ranked fourth in the world, won the Evian Championship last summer for her first major title and sixth LPGA Tour victory.
“I know I have one under my belt, but I do want a little bit more,” Lee said. “I just think I have a little bit more belief in myself and my game, so I can be a little bit more comfortable just hitting the shots."
Third-ranked Lydia Ko, the 2015 champion, was at 68 with Masson, Anna Nordqvist, Georgia Hall, Gabriela Ruffels, and Pajaree Anannarukarn. Lexi Thompson, the 2014 winner, was another stroke back with Sarah Schmelzel, Annie Park, Lauren Stephenson, Pauline Roussin-Bouchard and Hinako Shibuno.
Thompson marveled at course she first played as a 14-year-old amateur.
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“I’ve never seen it this good," Thompson said. “It always surprises me every year. It’s always better. The greens are amazing. I’m one to putt and usually aim at things along the way, and there is just not an imperfection on greens to aim at. It’s a good problem.”
Schmelzel is making her fourth appearance.
“This place is really special,” Schmelzel said. “I feel like growing up watching the LPGA Tour, these are holes that I remember. These are holes that I wanted to be on one day.”
Park played as a single in the first group in the afternoon off the first tee.
“It was kind of weird the first couple holes just playing by myself,” Park said. “It was really peaceful."
Top-ranked Jin Young Ko, the 2019 winner, shot a 74 to end her under-par streak at 34 rounds. Her run of at least one birdie ended at 53 rounds.
“I was hitting lots of great shots, but my putting wasn’t good,” she said. “I couldn’t see the break as much or speed. Everything was wrong."
Ally Ewing and Moriya Jutanugarn had an eventful finish on the par-5 18th when the sprinklers on the green turned on at about 6 p.m. as Ewing was preparing for a 4-foot birdie putt. After a short delay, she holed out for a 70. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/rain-slows-augusta-national-womens-amateur-no-one-left-under-par/ | AUGUSTA, Ga. — Anna Davis was little more than a silhouette from right of the ninth green as darkness fell quickly at the end of a long day at the Augusta National Women’s Amateur. The only light came from a video board and headlights from carts making their way in.
Not the least bit rattled, the 16-year-old from San Diego pitched with perfect pace to 2 feet to save par and post a 4-over-par 76 at Champions Retreat, one of only nine players to finish the second round.
What started as lingering thunderstorms turned into a heavy rain that delayed the start of the second round for for seven-and-a-half hours. That led to what should be a longer day, but far more fun on Friday.
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Fifty-one players will finish the second round in the morning — some with only one hole to play, others with nine holes — before heading over to Augusta National for a practice round.
It starts with an elite competition. It ends for so many of them with a dream come true.
Of the nine players who finished, Davis was at 2-over 146 and in a tie for eighth, virtually assured of being among the 30 players from a field of 60 who advance to the final round at the home of the Masters.
No one was under par.
Beatrice Wallin of Sweden was 1 under for the round through 16 holes and even par for the tournament, tied with Amari Avery, who also was 1 under for the day through 16.
Joining them at even par was Hailey Borjas, the Californian who plays at Michigan. Her day ended on a sour note with consecutive bogeys. Even so, she was excited for Friday.
She was at Augusta National earlier in the week, driving down Magnolia Lane and having a group dinner hosted by the club chairman.
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“Seeing Augusta for the first time, it was like a dream come true,” Borjas said.
She was more excited about her first chance to play it than her position in the Augusta National Women's Amateur, in its third year but already considered elite among amateur events because of where it's at.
“I don't really like to think about golf when I'm playing golf, if that makes any sense," Borjas said. “I like to talk about other things, like shoes. So to think about Augusta National tomorrow will keep me going.”
US Women’s Amateur champion Jensen Castle had the best round going at 2 under through 16 holes, leaving her one shot out of the lead.
The course was just as difficult as the opening round, when strong wind allowed only five players to break par. The wind subsided after the rain, though it left the course soggy and longer, even as the greens were slightly more receptive.
Rose Zhang, the No. 1 amateur in the world, made progress by not really going anywhere. She put together one bogey and 13 pars and improved from a tie for 39th to a tie for 26th.
Rachel Heck of Stanford, the No. 3 player in women's amateur golf who won six times in one semester last year as a freshman, was going the other direction. Heck had a pair of double bogeys in her opening four holes and was 5 over through 10 holes, leaving her outside the projected cut line at 6 over.
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The cut is a hard 30. Any ties lead to a sudden-death playoff to see who advances, although everyone gets to play a practice round at Augusta National on Friday. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/russell-knoxs-four-birdie-run-is-enough-one-stroke-lead-texas-open/ | SAN ANTONIO — Russell Knox recorded four straight birdies on the back nine and fired a 7-under-par 65 Thursday for a one-shot lead after the opening round of the Valero Texas Open.
Knox closed out his round with a seven-foot putt to save par at the par-5 18th at TPC San Antonio, and was one shot ahead of Rasmus Hojgaard.
Hojgaard fired a 66 despite a double bogey on his final hole. Matt Kuchar is another stroke back after an opening 5-under 67 and is among a group that includes Denny McCarthy, Aaron Rei and J.J. Spaun.
Defending champ Jordan Spieth and Rory McIlroy finished at even-par 72. They were outside the top 60 after one round and could flirt with the cut line Friday.
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Bryson DeChambeau had a 1-over 73. After holing a bunker shot for eagle on his 11th hole and following with a birdie on the next, he made bogey on four of his last six holes.
Knox, a 32-year-old Scotsman with two career PGA Tour wins, started his birdie streak at No. 12. All of his birdie putts were inside 10 feet. At the 15th, he was about 20 feet away from a back pin position following his approach and chipped in from the fringe. It was his second chip-in in the round.
“That was one of those kind of bonus birdies that you need when you’re going to have a good day,” Knox said. “Obviously thrilled with the round. It’s been more of the way I want to play.”
Hogjaard, a 21-year-old from Denmark and two-rime winner on the European Tour, had his sights on the first-round lead heading to his closing hole. But, his drive sailed well left of the fairway. It took him four shots to reach the green on the par-4 ninth.
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“I had to chip sideways back into the fairway,” he said. “Just was a little too aggressive after that. Yeah, short-sided myself and I didn’t get up and down and suddenly you walk away with double-bogey. Yeah, that was a bit annoying, but it happens.”
Kuchar was 5 under after 11 holes. Thirty feet away from the pin on the next hole, he failed to get up and down and missed a seven-foot putt for par. He got a shot back with a birdie on his 14th hole, and parred out, falling short in a bid to match his season-best round of 64 at the Sony Open, where he finished in the top 10.
“A lot of good and bad that can happen here on this course,” Kuchar said. “I was kind of managing early on in the round and then found a little something on about the fifth or sixth hole. I started having some birdie chances and converted on a few late in my first nine.”
Kuchar has won nine times on the PGA Tour. McCarthy, Rai and Spaun are looking for their first. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/watch-bruins-rookie-marc-mclaughlin-score-his-nhl-debut/ | Marc McLaughlin scored in his NHL debut with the Bruins Thursday night against the Devils.
With a little less than eight minutes left in the second period, McLaughlin took a pass from Trent Frederic on a two-on-one and beat goaltender Jon Gilles to make it 7-1, Boston.
McLaughlin’s family was in the stands, and the NESN cameras caught their wild celebration after the goal.
NHL Debut ✔️
— NESN (@NESN) April 1, 2022
First NHL goal ✔️
...Remember the name. pic.twitter.com/5IvlYVfSOs
Before the game, the Billerica native estimated he had more than 50 friends and family at the game.
The 22-year-old had 21 goals and 10 assists as Boston College’s captain this season, and is coming off a stint with the U.S. Olympic team in Beijing. He signed with the Bruins earlier this month at the end of his college campaign.
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Christopher Price can be reached at christopher.price@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter at cpriceglobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/world/un-seeks-record-44b-afghans-struggling-under-taliban/ | GENEVA — The head of the United Nations said Thursday that nearly all Afghans don’t have enough to eat and some have resorted to “selling their children and their body parts” to get money for food.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ statement was part of a dramatic appeal from the world body and several rich countries that want to help beleaguered Afghans, whose fate has worsened since the Taliban returned to power last year.
Guterres kicked off a virtual pledging conference backed by Britain, Germany, and Qatar, seeking to make progress toward the UN aid office’s biggest-ever funding drive for a single country: $4.4 billion.
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It is a decidedly ambitious goal when much of the world’s attention is on Russia’s war in Ukraine, and some wealthy nations have frozen nearly $9 billion in Afghan assets overseas so the Taliban can’t access them.
In recent weeks, senior UN officials have made visits to Afghanistan, even meeting top Taliban officials to say the country has not been forgotten. With Afghanistan buckling beneath a debilitating humanitarian crisis and an economy in free fall, some 23 million people face acute food insecurity, according to the UN.
Guterres called on the world to “spare” Afghans who have had their rights stripped — like many women and girls — after the Taliban’s ouster of the country’s internationally backed government last summer. Rich nations have tried to put a financial squeeze on the Taliban in hopes of spurring desired reforms.
“Wealthy, powerful countries cannot ignore the consequences of their decisions on the most vulnerable,” the UN chief said. “Some 95 percent of people do not have enough to eat, and 9 million people are at risk of famine,” he added, citing UNICEF estimates that more than a million severely malnourished children “are on the verge of death without immediate action.”
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“Without immediate action we face a starvation and malnutrition crisis in Afghanistan,” he said. “People are already selling their children and their body parts in order to feed their families.”
In many parts of rural Afghanistan and among the country’s poorest, girls are often married off at puberty, sometimes earlier, and their families receive a dowry. Aid groups have documented a few cases of children being sold by desperate parents, but such practices are not believed to be widespread.
As the UN worked to secure pledges, British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said Britain will renew this year its 286 million pounds ($380 million) of support from 2021. Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock of Germany said her country had stepped up with 200 million euros ($220 million). Qatar said it had contributed $50 million in recent months, and pledged another $25 million for 2022.
Linda Thomas-Greenfield, the US ambassador to the United Nations, said the United States announced nearly $204 million in new humanitarian assistance funding to help Afghans.
“This humanitarian aid, like all aid from the United States, will go directly to NGOs and the United Nations,” Thomas-Greenfield said, referring to nongovernmental organizations. “The Taliban will not control our humanitarian funding.”
In a final tally, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, or OCHA, said $2.4 billion was pledged Thursday from 41 countries. Because donors might elect to direct some of the money to help Afghan refugees in neighboring countries, not all the pledges count toward the $4.4 billion appeal for Afghanistan.
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Meanwhile, 11 US senators issued a joint statement urging the Biden administration to encourage international donors to step up to help fulfill the needs laid out by the UN. The senators, all Democrats, alluded to a number of humanitarian crises that are competing for funds and the world’s attention.
“Amid crises in Yemen, Ukraine, Ethiopia, Syria, and elsewhere, the international community must not lose focus on Afghanistan,” they wrote.
The complexities of helping Afghans while not rewarding the Taliban came into focus in Kabul on Thursday: Leaders of the militant group raised their largest white flag over Kabul’s historic Wazir Akbar Khan hill, with one leader all but taunting the US-led coalition’s forces that left the country for good last year.
“Because of the rule of this flag, because of the rule of the monotheistic word, thousands of brave sons of this nation placed the bombs in their chests (suicide vests) and drove the occupiers out of this homeland,” Abdul Salam Hanafi, deputy prime minister of the interim Taliban government, said.
Among the Taliban leadership, there are deep divisions, however, about the group's increasingly rigid rule. Pragmatists among them are seeking greater involvement with the international community and believe education and work for women and girls is a right in Islam.
Since a leadership meeting in the southern city of Kandahar in early March, Taliban hardliners have issued repressive edicts almost daily, harkening to their harsh rule of the late 1990s. The edicts have further alienated a wary international community and infuriated many Afghans.
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The decrees include a ban on women flying alone; a ban on women in parks on certain days; and a requirement that male workers wear a beard and the traditional turban. International media broadcasts like the BBC’s Persian and Pashto services have been banned, and foreign TV series have been taken off the air.
A surprising last-minute ban on girls returning to school after the sixth grade shocked the international community and many Afghans. In schools across the country, girls returned to classrooms on March 23 — the first day of the new Afghan school year — only to be sent home.
“It broke my -- I guess it broke everybody’s heart -- to see the images of these girls crying in front of their closed schools,” the Germany's Baerbock said. “The plight of girls is a dark illustration of the suffering of the Afghan people,” she added.
The situation for Afghans also has grown worse amid the worst drought in years, and skyrocketing prices for food caused by the fallout from Russia’s war in Ukraine, a key European breadbasket.
“Ukraine is of vital importance, but Afghanistan, you know, calls to our soul for commitment and loyalty,” Martin Griffiths, who heads OCHA, said ahead of Thursday’s pledge drive. “In simple terms, the humanitarian program that we are appealing for is to save lives.”
The amount of Thursday’s appeal for funds is three times what the UN aid agency sought for Afghanistan a year ago, a request that was exceeded once donors saw the needs that would have to be met after the Taliban takeover.
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Many donor countries are seeking to help beleaguered Afghans while largely shunning the Taliban — but the UN agency suggested that political and economic engagement from abroad should return one day, too.
“It’s very important for the international community to engage with the Taliban over time on issues beyond the humanitarian,” said Griffiths. “The humanitarian assistance is no replacement for other forms of engagement.” | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/metro/haverhill-high-student-arrested-after-fight-school/ | A female student at Haverhill High Schoolwas arrested Thursday after a fight broke out during lunchtime, police said.
School resource officers responded to a fight between two students at 11:30 a.m. and arrested a girl involved in the fight, Haverhill police said.
There were no injuries reported. Her name was not released because she is a juvenile.
“The situation is under control and students are safe,” Haverhill High School Principal Jason Meland said in a letter to parents posted on Facebook.
Classes continued as usual for the rest of the school day, but with restrictions in place, such as limited hall passes, Meland said.
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Any student found without a pass was brought to the school auditorium and their parent or guardian was called to take them home, the letter said.
No further information was available.
Madison Mercado can be reached at madison.mercado@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/sports/chelmsford-boys-lacrosse-comes-roaring-out-gate-takes-down-andover/ | After going undefeated en route to a Merrimack Valley Conference title last spring, the Chelmsford boys’ lacrosse team turned the page with a new cast of characters, and kept up their winning ways in the MVC by topping visiting Andover, 9-5, in Thursday’s season opener.
“We have a young team,” Chelmsford coach Sean Wright said. “We have three seniors. We have a lot of talented players, but you don’t know until you get on the field. We got over the nerves in the beginning, and we didn’t close the way we wanted to, but we got the win.”
Andover struck first in the first quarter, but Chelmsford responded swiftly with Manny Marshall (4 goals, assist) scoring two goals in a span of 20 seconds and three goals total in the opening frame. Will Walsh added a pair of goals and an assist in the second quarter to give the Lions a 6-1 advantage heading into the break.
With junior captain Dan Craig out sick, junior Ryan Lally stepped up in his first varsity start along with juniors Jack McCarthy, Ryan Blagg, and sophomore Austin Nigro. Joe Tays made his first varsity start in net, tallying eight saves in the victory.
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“We were kind of sporting a new look on defense today and I’m really proud of the way they played,” Wright said.
Florian Kiernan scored a pair of goals as Andover rallied with three goals in the waning minutes, but Chelmsford hung on.
The Lions went 13-0 during the regular season last year and earn their first win over North Andover since the latter joined the MVC. Chelmsford ran through Andover in the preseason, beat the Warriors twice in the regular season and earned a 14-4 win over Andover in the D1 North quarterfinals. They’ve now won 15 straight regular-season games against conference foes.
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“These kids have been chomping at the bit, and obviously they’ve been playing a lot in the offseason,” Wright said. “We’ve been focusing on development, and finding out who are varsity team is going to be. It’s been a little chaotic getting it together, but whenever anyone can get a lacrosse stick in their hands and play it’s a good day.”
Weston 13, Arlington 3 — Senior midfielder Liam Falvey led the Wildcats (1-0) with 3 goals and 2 assists in the nonleague win.
Whitman-Hanson 7, Hull 6 — Three minutes into overtime, Collin Murphy beat his opponent on a dodge from behind the net, finding the back of the net and winning the season opener for the Panthers (1-0).
Girls’ lacrosse
Gloucester 16, Revere 2 — Zoe Hedges scored three goals, and Ella Costa (2 assists) added two more in the season-opening win for the Fishermen (1-0).
Sandwich 9, Scituate 8 — A solid outing from Claire Moniz (4 goals, 2 assists) helped the Blue Knights (1-0) win the closely-contested nonleague matchup. Ryann Cobban and Riley Morrison each added two goals for the visitors.
St. John Paul II 7, Nauset 5 — Hadley Crosby netted three goals and Flynn Kayajan blocked seven shots to power the Lions (1-0) to the Cape & Islands win.
Boys’ tennis
Whitman-Hanson 5, Middleborough 0 — Aidan Hickey (6-3, 6-3), Will Mulligan (6-0, 6-1), and Dan McDevitt (6-0, 6-4) each started the season with singles victories in the sweep for the Panthers (1-0)
Girls’ tennis
Winchester 5, Burlington 0 — Nora Dunn and Catie Kotwicki swept first doubles, 6-0, 6-0, for the visiting Red and Black in the Middlesex League win.
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Boys’ track
West Bridgewater 114, South Shore Voc-Tech 22 — Ben Fuller led the Wildcats (1-0), placing first in the triple jump and 100 meters, and second in the long jump. Tommy Perna also contributed to the Mayflower win by placing first in the long jump, 110-meter hurdles and high jump.
Girls’ track
West Bridgewater 103, South Shore Voc-Tech 14 — Aly Basset paced the Wildcats (1-0), placing first in the triple jump, 100 hurdles, 400 hurdles and 4x100 relay. Ella Dunbury also contributed to the Mayflower Athletic Conference win, taking first place in the 2-mile, 800, and 4x400 relay.
Boys’ volleyball
Greater Lawrence 3, North Middlesex 1 — Eddy Herrera (12 kills), Euri Nunez (14 service points, 6 aces) and Oscar Valoy (4 blocks) propelled the Reggies to victory in their season opener.
St. John’s Prep 3, Haverhill 1 — Dan Schorr’s 35 assists helped power the Eagles to a season-opening win at home.
Correspondents Sarah Barber, Ethan Fuller, Ethan McDowell, Vitoria Poejo, and AJ Traub contributed to this story. To report scores, call 617-929-2860/3235 or email hssports@globe.com. Tweet scores @GlobeSchools. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/03/31/world/australia-send-armored-vehicles-ukraine-after-request/ | CANBERRA, Australia (AP) — Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison said Friday it will send armored Bushmaster vehicles to Ukraine after President Volodymyr Zelensky specifically asked for them during a video appeal to Australian lawmakers for more help in its war against Russia.
Zelenskyy addressed the Australian Parliament on Thursday and asked for the Australian-made, four-wheel-drive vehicles.
Morrison told reporters the vehicles will be flown over on Boeing C-17 Globemaster transport planes. He didn’t specify how many would be sent or when.
“We’re not just sending our prayers, we are sending our guns, we’re sending our munitions, we’re sending our humanitarian aid, we’re sending all of this, our body armor, all of these things and we’re going to be sending our armored vehicles, our Bushmasters, as well,” Morrison said.
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Zelenskyy has been tailoring his message to individual countries through video appeals like the one shown to legislators in the Australian Parliament. Lawmakers gave him standing ovation at the start and end of his 16-minute address.
Zelenskyy also called for tougher sanctions and for Russian vessels to be banned from international ports.
“We need more sanctions against Russia, powerful sanctions until they stop blackmailing other countries with their nuclear missiles,” Zelenskyy said through an interpreter.
Zelenskyy specifically asked for Bushmaster vehicles.
“You have very good armed personnel vehicles, Bushmasters, that could help Ukraine substantially, and other pieces of equipment,” Zelenskyy said.
While the Ukrainian capital Kyiv is 15,000 kilometers (9,300 miles) from the Australian capital Canberra, Zelenskyy said Australia was not safe from the conflict which threatened to escalate into a nuclear war.
He suggested that a Russian victory over Ukraine would embolden China to declare war on Taiwan.
“The most terrible thing is that if we don’t stop Russia now, if we don’t hold Russia accountable, then some other countries of the world who are looking forward to similar wars against their neighbors will decide that such things are possible for them as well,” Zelenskyy said.
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Zelenskyy also said Russia would not have invaded Ukraine if Moscow had been punished for the 2014 downing of a Malaysia Airlines plane in Ukraine.
Two weeks ago, the Australian and Dutch governments launched a legal case against Russia at the International Civil Aviation Organization to hold Moscow accountable for its alleged role in the missile strike that killed all 298 people on MH17. Of the victims, 196 were Dutch citizens and 38 were Australian residents.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison had earlier told the president that Australia would provide additional military assistance including tactical decoys, unmanned aerial and unmanned ground systems, rations and medical supplies. He later said the additional help would cost 25 million Australian dollars ($19 million).
“You have our prayers, but you also have our weapons, our humanitarian aid, our sanctions against those who seek to deny your freedom and you even have our coal,” Morrison said.
Australia has already promised or provided Ukraine with AU$91 million ($68 million) in military assistance, AU$65 million ($49 million) in humanitarian help and 70,000 metric tons (77,200 U.S. tons) of coal.
Earlier Thursday, the government announced Australia was imposing an additional 35% tariff on all imports from Russia and Belarus starting April 25.
Oil and energy imports from Russia will be banned from that date. Exports to Russia of Australian aluminum ore will also be banned.
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Sanctions have been imposed on more than 500 individuals and entities in Russia and Belarus. The sanctions cover 80% of the Russian banking sector and all government entities that handle Russian sovereign debt.
___
Associated Press journalist Nick Perry contributed to this report from Wellington, New Zealand. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/arts/could-this-be-paranormal-link-beatles-check-todays-date-then-decide/ | When Eddie Mason died at age 88, he left behind a real stumper. Back in the 1950s, Mason served as the maintenance man for a lakeside retreat in Vermont, home at the time to a communal group of people who claimed to have a sixth sense.
For years after his death, Mason’s granddaughter held onto a trove of recordings he’d made during his time on the commune. He also kept scrupulous notes, intending at one point to write a biography of the group’s spiritual leader, an eccentric mystery man named H.X. Newhaven.
Not long ago Beth Mason contacted the British journalist Solomon Davies to ask for some help: Would he be willing to come to Vermont to assess the validity of the music Newhaven’s followers had recorded? They were primitive folk-and-country-based songs that sounded awfully familiar, bearing beloved titles — “Please Please Me,” “In My Life,” “All You Need Is Love.”
Fact is, no one had yet heard of the Beatles in 1958, when the New England soothsayers made their recordings. Teenagers John Lennon and Paul McCartney had just met in Liverpool; calling themselves the Quarrymen, it would be five years before they introduced themselves to the world as the Beatles.
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Steered by Davies, a music critic whose father was a renowned parapsychologist, Beatles fanatics can now listen for themselves and decide what they’re hearing. Beginning Friday, “The Music of the Beatles as Channeled in 1958 by the Echo Lake Home for the Potentially Clairvoyant” will be available at ESPeatles.com. The release includes Davies’s extensive liner notes, which tell the improbable story of Newhaven and his exploration of psychic phenomena.
It just so happens that the release coincides with April Fools’ Day, says Ryan H. Walsh, the Boston musician and author who “edited” Davies’s liner notes. In truth, the whole thing is an elaborate joke, a figment of Walsh’s imagination with input from his friend Robert M. Johanson, an actor and composer in New York City.
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“The Music of the Beatles” brings together several of Walsh’s most abiding interests, he says, from cultural arcana and the cult of personality to paranormal hoaxes.
“I sometimes feel like both a Mulder and a Scully trapped in one body,” Walsh says. “I both want to believe in something and then rip it apart.”
Years ago, Walsh and Johanson (who was then part of Walsh’s band the Stairs) created a parody called “The Lost Recordings of Dust Johnson,” which was designed to sound like old-timey music of the 1920s. Walsh stuffed copies of it into mail orders for the Stairs’ records. When a fan reached out a year or so ago to ask what had become of Dust Johnson, Walsh — the author of the instant classic “Astral Weeks: A Secret History of 1968,” a countercultural history of Boston — was inspired to conjure a new musical fiction.
“The Beatles are not just a band, they’re a myth,” he explains. “And you can play with a myth.”
Over the course of a long weekend, members of Walsh’s long-running band Hallelujah the Hills and various friends gathered in Charlestown to record their “clairvoyant” versions of some of the most beloved songs in the English language. Johanson improvised the charismatic character of Newhaven as a kind of collision between Joseph Smith, Philip Seymour Hoffman’s title role in “The Master,” and William Shatner’s absurd spoken-word renditions of classic pop songs.
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“My grandfather always told me I would be a preacher,” says Johanson, a founding member of New York’s Nature Theater of Oklahoma. “For a minute he gets to be right.” He modeled Newhaven’s lugubrious version of “Help!” after Roy Orbison’s real-life, slowed-down rendition of Lennon’s song.
Josh Kantor, best known as the Fenway Park organist, chipped in on accordion, and Walsh’s high school media studies teacher, Edward Morneau, dropped by to sing on a couple songs. More than 20 years ago, he’d turned his young student into a lifelong Beatles fanatic when he gave Walsh a cassette of lesser-known songs by the group.
According to the tall tale of the Potentially Clairvoyant, much of the Echo Lake recordings were made by amateurs. This gave the musicians a built-in excuse to flounder as much as they wanted. Just as the Beatles themselves do, Walsh notes, throughout “Get Back,” the celebrated, recently reworked footage of the band’s late-period studio sessions.
Watching the long documentary was a revelation, Walsh says.
“They taught each other new songs the same dumb way we do,” he says. “Even the best start out clumsy and flailing.” And you don’t have to be psychic to see it.
E-mail James Sullivan at jamesgsullivan@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter @sullivanjames. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/friendship-falters-anti-vaxx-posts/ | Q. I met “Shari” through other friends. We got along well, and always had a great time. I thought we had an amazing bond. However, once the pandemic hit, I started to see a different side of her.
She is very anti-vaxx and has refused to acknowledge the seriousness of the pandemic. She has ramped up the anti-vaxx posts on social media.
I did send her a message about one post, stating that it wasn’t true, and she sent a tirade back at me, rehashing a number of points about COVID-19 and the vaccine that are all untrue.
I don’t make friends easily. I have serious trust issues, but I don’t see being able to maintain a friendship with someone who is so diametrically opposed to my values and views. I am willing to accept her being against vaccinations, but she is posting pure falsehoods, and is argumentative when called out with facts, stating that anyone who disagrees with her or counters her arguments is brainwashed by the government and media.
I keep thinking that once we get past the pandemic, maybe things will be better. I try not to bring it up, but when I see some of the posts, and when we are together with other friends, it comes up. I put my head down and keep quiet, but this is eating me up.
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My challenge is: How do I end the friendship? I am afraid to end it, as we are part of a group of friends, and if I need to pull my friendship away from her, I will lose those friends, who are my only friends right now.
But I wonder if being alone would be better than this.
STUCK
A. You see this as an “all or nothing” situation, where because of this person’s behavior, all of your other friendships are at risk, but she is not in charge of your other relationships. You are.
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You should completely disengage from her on social media. She is not reasonable and does not want to engage in an exchange of ideas, so remove your access to her on this platform. Quietly “hide,” “block,” or “unfriend.” Change the channel.
There is no need to abruptly end the friendship by declaring it to be over. You simply need to back away from the relationship. Detach from her.
Don’t gossip about her with others. If she asks you why you are distant, you can truthfully tell her that you’ve become exhausted by her declarations and tirades, which run counter to your own values.
Q. My mother-in-law is a smoker. Her own house is permeated with the smell of cigarettes. Even though I don’t like it, I can handle this when we’re visiting.
I know it is her house and she has the right to do what she wants when she’s at home, but I cannot stand it when she lights up at our place. We have a balcony, and I am fine with her smoking on the balcony if she wants to, but please, not in our townhouse.
My husband doesn’t want to say anything to her, but I do. Do you have any ideas?
PUFFED-OUT
A. Smoking anywhere indoors has become so rare that at this point it is almost taboo.
Many rental units and condo associations ban smoking, even inside units, because of the risks associated with secondhand smoke. You should check to see if there are any rules within your townhouse development, and if even smoking on a balcony is permitted (balconies are sometimes considered “common areas”).
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If smoking is banned inside units where you live, you should notify your mother-in-law. Otherwise, even if your husband won’t say anything to his mother, you should.
Keep your tone neutral, and simply say: “I hope you won’t mind standing outside to smoke.” If she says, “Why yes, I do mind,” you’ll have to say, “Well, smoke really bothers me, so I’d appreciate it if you could do that for me.”
Q. The writer signing her question “Just Say: Get Well Soon!” said she had shared the fact that she was getting surgery on Facebook, but she didn’t like the fact that one friend queried her about the details.
Thank you for pointing out the obvious: When you post personal news on social media, you don’t get to control how people respond!
AGGRAVATED
A. My own life without a personal Facebook presence (I maintain a professional page) has been a little less colorful, but a lot less aggravating.
Amy Dickinson can be reached at askamy@amydickinson.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/today-history/ | Today is Friday, April 1, the 91st day of 2022. There are 274 days left in the year. This is April Fool’s Day.
Birthdays: Actor Don Hastings is 88. Actor Ali MacGraw is 83. R&B singer Rudolph Isley is 83. Reggae singer Jimmy Cliff is 74. Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito is 72. Rock musician Billy Currie (Ultravox) is 72. Actor Annette O’Toole is 70. Movie director Barry Sonnenfeld is 69. Singer Susan Boyle is 61. Actor Jose Zuniga is 60. Country singer Woody Lee is 54. Actor Jessica Collins is 51. Rapper-actor Method Man is 51. Movie directors Albert and Allen Hughes are 50. Political commentator Rachel Maddow is 49. Former tennis player Magdalena Maleeva is 47. Actor David Oyelowo is 46. Singer Bijou Phillips is 42. Comedian-actor Taran Killam is 40. Country singer Hillary Scott (Lady A) is 36. Rock drummer Arejay Hale (Halestorm) is 35. Actor Asa Butterfield is 25.
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In 1865, during the Civil War, Union forces routed Confederate soldiers in the Battle of Five Forks in Virginia.
In 1891, the Wrigley Co. was founded in Chicago by William Wrigley, Jr.
In 1924, Adolf Hitler was sentenced to five years in prison for his role in the Beer Hall Putsch in Munich. (Hitler was released in December 1924; during his time behind bars, he wrote his autobiographical screed, “Mein Kampf.”)
In 1945, American forces launched the amphibious invasion of Okinawa during World War II. (US forces succeeded in capturing the Japanese island on June 22.)
In 1970, President Richard M. Nixon signed a measure banning cigarette advertising on radio and television, to take effect after Jan. 1, 1971.
In 1972, the first Major League Baseball players’ strike began; it lasted 12 days. Twenty years later, on April 1, 1992, the National Hockey League Players’ Association went on its first-ever strike, which lasted 10 days.
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In 1975, with Khmer Rouge guerrillas closing in, Cambodian President Lon Nol resigned and fled into exile, spending the rest of his life in the United States.
In 1976, Apple Computer was founded by Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak, and Ronald Wayne.
In 1977, the US Senate followed the example of the House of Representatives by adopting, 86-9, a stringent code of ethics requiring full financial disclosure and limits on outside income.
In 2003, American troops entered a hospital in Nasiriyah, Iraq, and rescued Army Private First Class Jessica Lynch, who had been held prisoner since her unit was ambushed on March 23.
In 2011, Afghans angry over the burning of a Quran at a small Florida church stormed a UN compound in northern Afghanistan, killing seven foreigners, including four Nepalese guards.
In 2012, a coalition of more than 70 partners, including the United States, pledged to send millions of dollars and communications equipment to Syria’s opposition groups. Myanmar’s democracy icon, Aung San Suu Kyi, was elected to her country’s parliament. Taylor Swift was named entertainer of the year for the second year in a row at the Academy of Country Music Awards.
In 2016, world leaders ended a nuclear security summit in Washington by declaring progress in safeguarding nuclear materials sought by terrorists and wayward nations, even as President Barack Obama acknowledged the task was far from finished.
In 2017, an avalanche of water from three overflowing rivers swept through a small city in Colombia, leaving more than 300 dead. Bob Dylan finally received his Nobel Literature diploma and medal during a small gathering in Stockholm, where he was performing a concert. Two-time NBA scoring champion Tracy McGrady, Kansas coach Bill Self, former Chicago Bulls executive Jerry Krause, and former UConn star Rebecca Lobo were among 11 people named to the Basketball Hall of Fame.
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In 2020, resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order, President Donald Trump said he wanted to give governors “flexibility” to respond to the coronavirus. Under growing pressure, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis joined his counterparts in more than 30 states in issuing a stay-at-home order.
Last year, in the opening day of the baseball season, the game between the Washington Nationals and the New York Mets was postponed after four Nationals players tested positive for COVID-19; the entire three-game series would be postponed a day later. Virginia’s highest court ruled that the city of Charlottesville could take down two statues of Confederate generals, including one of Robert E. Lee that became the focus of a violent white nationalist rally in 2017. Seven pro-democracy advocates in Hong Kong were convicted on charges of organizing and participating in massive anti-government protests. North Carolina said Hall of Fame basketball coach Roy Williams was retiring; the decision came two weeks after Williams closed his 18th season with the Tar Heels. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/world/russians-leave-chernobyl-ukraine-braces-renewed-attacks/ | KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Russian troops left the heavily contaminated Chernobyl nuclear site early Friday after returning control to the Ukrainians, authorities said, as eastern parts of the country braced for renewed attacks and Russians blocked another aid mission to the besieged port city of Mariupol.
Ukraine’s state power company, Energoatom, said the pullout at Chernobyl came after soldiers received “significant doses” of radiation from digging trenches in the forest in the exclusion zone around the closed plant. But there was no independent confirmation of that.
The exchange of control happened amid growing indications the Kremlin is using talk of de-escalation in Ukraine as cover to regroup, resupply its forces and redeploy them for a stepped-up offensive in the eastern part of the country.
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Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy warned that Russian withdrawals from the north and center of the country were just a military tactic to build up forces for new powerful attacks in the southeast. A new round of talks between the countries was scheduled Friday, five weeks into a conflict that has left thousands dead and driven 4 million Ukrainians from the country.
“We know their intentions,” Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address to the nation. “We know that they are moving away from those areas where we hit them in order to focus on other, very important ones where it may be difficult for us.”
“There will be battles ahead,” he added.
Meanwhile in Mariupol, Russian forces blocked a convoy of 45 buses attempting to evacuate people after the Russian military agreed to a limited cease-fire in the area. Only 631 people were able to get out of the city in private cars, according to the Ukrainian government.
Russian forces also seized 14 tons of food and medical supplies in a dozen buses that were trying to make it to Mariupol, Deputy Prime Minister Iryna Vereshchuk said.
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The city has been the scene of some of the worst suffering of the war. Tens of thousands have managed to get out in the past few weeks by way of humanitarian corridors, reducing the population from a prewar 430,000 to an estimated 100,000 by last week, but other relief efforts have been thwarted by continued Russian attacks.
The International Atomic Energy Agency said it had been informed by Ukraine that the Russian forces at the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster had transferred control of it in writing to the Ukrainians. The last Russian troops left early Friday, the Ukrainian government agency responsible for the exclusion zone said.
Energoatom gave no details on the condition of the soldiers it said were exposed to radiation and did not say how many were affected. There was no immediate comment from the Kremlin, and the IAEA said it had not been able to confirm the reports of Russian troops receiving high doses. It said it was seeking more information.
Russian forces seized the Chernobyl site in the opening stages of the Feb. 24 invasion, raising fears that they would cause damage or disruption that could spread radiation. The workforce at the site oversees the safe storage of spent fuel rods and the concrete-entombed ruins of the reactor that exploded in 1986.
Edwin Lyman, a nuclear expert with the U.S.-based Union of Concerned Scientists, said it “seems unlikely” a large number of troops would develop severe radiation illness, but it was impossible to know for sure without more details.
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He said contaminated material was probably buried or covered with new topsoil during the cleanup of Chernobyl, and some soldiers may have been exposed to a “hot spot” of radiation while digging. Others may have assumed they were at risk too, he said.
Early this week, the Russians said they would significantly scale back military operations in areas around Kyiv and the northern city of Chernihiv to increase trust between the two sides and help negotiations along.
But in the Kyiv suburbs, regional governor Oleksandr Palviuk said on social media Thursday that Russian forces shelled Irpin and Makariv and that there were battles around Hostomel. Ukrainian forces counterattacked and some Russian withdrawals around the suburb of Brovary to the east, Pavliuk said.
At a Ukrainian military checkpoint outside Kyiv, soldiers and officers said they don’t believe Russian forces have given up on the capital.
“What does it mean, significantly scaling down combat actions in the Kyiv and Chernihiv areas?” asked Brig. Gen. Valeriy Embakov. “Does it mean there will be 100 missiles instead of 200 missiles launched on Kyiv or something else?”
Chernihiv came under attack as well. At least one person was killed and four were wounded in the Russian shelling of a humanitarian convoy of buses sent to Chernihiv to evacuate residents cut off from food, water and other supplies, said Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Lyudmyla Denisova.
Elsewhere, Ukraine reported Russian artillery barrages in and around the northeastern city of Kharkiv.
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Ukraine’s emergency services also said the death toll had risen to 20 in a Russian missile strike Tuesday on a government administration building in the southern city of Mykolaiv.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg said intelligence indicates Russia is not scaling back its military operations in Ukraine but is instead trying to regroup, resupply its forces and reinforce its offensive in the Donbas.
“Russia has repeatedly lied about its intentions,” Stoltenberg said. At the same time, he said, pressure is being kept up on Kyiv and other cities, and “we can expect additional offensive actions bringing even more suffering.”
The Donbas is the predominantly Russian-speaking industrial region where Moscow-backed separatists have been battling Ukrainian forces since 2014. In the past few days, the Kremlin, in a seeming shift in its war aims, said that its “main goal” now is gaining control of the Donbas, which consists of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions, including Mariupol.
The top rebel leader in Donetsk, Denis Pushilin, issued an order to set up a rival city government for Mariupol, according to Russian state news agencies, in a sign of Russian intent to hold and administer the city.
With talks set to resume between Ukraine and Russia via video, there seemed little faith that the two sides would resolve the conflict any time soon.
Russian President Vladimir Putin said that conditions weren’t yet “ripe” for a cease-fire and that he wasn’t ready for a meeting with Zelenskyy until negotiators do more work, Italian Premier Mario Draghi said after a telephone conversation with the Russian leader.
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As Western officials search for clues about what Russia’s next move might be, a top British intelligence official said demoralized Russian soldiers in Ukraine are refusing to carry out orders and sabotaging their equipment and had accidentally shot down their own aircraft.
U.S. intelligence officials have concluded that Putin is being misinformed by his advisers about how badly the war is going because they are afraid to tell him the truth.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that the U.S. is wrong and that “neither the State Department nor the Pentagon possesses the real information about what is happening in the Kremlin.”
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Karmanau reported from Lviv, Ukraine. Associated Press journalists around the world contributed to this report. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/house-passes-35-a-month-insulin-cap-dems-seek-wider-bill/ | WASHINGTON (AP) — The House has passed a bill capping the monthly cost of insulin at $35 for insured patients, part of an election-year push by Democrats for price curbs on prescription drugs at a time of rising inflation.
Experts say the legislation, which passed 232-193 Thursday, would provide significant relief for privately insured patients with skimpier plans and for Medicare enrollees facing rising out-of-pocket costs for their insulin. Some could save hundreds of dollars annually, and all insured patients would get the benefit of predictable monthly costs for insulin. The bill would not help the uninsured.
But the Affordable Insulin Now Act will serve as a political vehicle to rally Democrats and force Republicans who oppose it into uncomfortable votes ahead of the midterms. For the legislation to pass Congress, 10 Republican senators would have to vote in favor. Democrats acknowledge they don't have an answer for how that's going to happen.
“If 10 Republicans stand between the American people being able to get access to affordable insulin, that's a good question for 10 Republicans to answer,” said Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., a cosponsor of the House bill. “Republicans get diabetes, too. Republicans die from diabetes.”
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Public opinion polls have consistently shown support across party lines for congressional action to limit drug costs.
But Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., complained the legislation is only “a small piece of a larger package around government price controls for prescription drugs." Critics say the bill would raise premiums and fails to target pharmaceutical middlemen seen as contributing to high list prices for insulin.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, said Democrats could have a deal on prescription drugs if they drop their bid to authorize Medicare to negotiate prices. “Do Democrats really want to help seniors, or would they rather have the campaign issue?" Grassley said.
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The insulin bill, which would take effect in 2023, represents just one provision of a much broader prescription drug package in President Joe Biden's social and climate legislation.
In addition to a similar $35 cap on insulin, the Biden bill would authorize Medicare to negotiate prices for a range of drugs, including insulin. It would penalize drugmakers who raise prices faster than inflation and overhaul the Medicare prescription drug benefit to limit out-of-pocket costs for enrollees.
Biden's agenda passed the House only to stall in the Senate because Democrats could not reach consensus. Party leaders haven't abandoned hope of getting the legislation moving again, and preserving its drug pricing curbs largely intact.
The idea of a $35 monthly cost cap for insulin actually has a bipartisan pedigree. The Trump administration had created a voluntary option for Medicare enrollees to get insulin for $35, and the Biden administration continued it.
In the Senate, Republican Susan Collins of Maine and Democrat Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire are working on a bipartisan insulin bill. Georgia Democratic Sen. Raphael Warnock has introduced legislation similar to the House bill, with the support of Sen. Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York.
Stung by criticism that Biden's economic policies spur inflation, Democrats are redoubling efforts to show how they'd help people cope with costs. On Thursday, the Commerce Department reported a key inflation gauge jumped 6.4% in February compared with a year ago, the largest year-over-year rise since January 1982.
But experts say the House bill would not help uninsured people, who face the highest out-of-pocket costs for insulin. Also, people with diabetes often take other medications as well as insulin. That's done to treat the diabetes itself, along with other serious health conditions often associated with the disease. The House legislation would not help with those costs, either. Collins says she's looking for a way to help uninsured people through her bill.
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About 37 million Americans have diabetes, and an estimated 6 million to 7 million use insulin to keep their blood sugars under control. It’s an old drug, refined and improved over the years, that has seen relentless price increases.
Steep list prices don't reflect the rates insurance plans negotiate with manufacturers. But those list prices are used to calculate cost-sharing amounts that patients owe. Patients who can’t afford their insulin reduce or skip doses, a strategy born of desperation, which can lead to serious complications and even death.
Economist Sherry Glied of New York University said the market for insulin is a “total disaster” for many patients, particularly those with skimpy insurance plans or no insurance.
“This will make private insurance for people with diabetes a much more attractive proposition,” said Glied. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/war-ukraine-fuels-fears-among-draft-age-russian-youths/ | As Moscow’s forces bog down in Ukraine, many young Russians of draft age are increasingly jittery about the prospect of being sent into combat. Making those fears particularly acute is an annual spring conscription that begins Friday and aims to round up 134,500 men for a one-year tour of military duty.
Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu pledged at a meeting of the military brass this week that the new recruits won't be sent to front lines or “hot spots.”
But the statement was met with skepticism by many in Russia who remember the separatist wars in the southern republic of Chechnya in the 1990s and early 2000s, when thousands of poorly trained young men were killed.
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“I don't trust them when they say they won't send conscripts into combat. They lie all the time,” said Vladislav, a 22-year-old who is completing his studies and fears he could face the draft immediately after graduation. He asked that his last name not be used, fearing reprisals.
All Russian men aged 18-27 must serve one year in the military, but a large share avoid the draft for health reasons or deferments granted to university students. The share of men who avoid the draft is particularly big in Moscow and other major cities.
Even as President Vladimir Putin and his officials say that conscripts aren’t involved in what Russian authorities call “the special military operation in Ukraine,” many appeared to have been taken prisoner during its initial days. Videos emerged from Ukraine of captured Russians, some being shown calling their parents, and were put on social media.
The mother of one of the prisoners said she recognized her 20-year-old draftee son in a video even though he was shown blindfolded.
“I recognized him by his lips, by his chin. You know, I would have recognized him by his fingers,” said the woman, who asked to be identified only by her first name, Lyubov, for security reasons. "I breastfed him. I raised him.”
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The Defense Ministry was forced to walk back its statements and acknowledge that some conscripts were sent to Ukraine “by mistake” and were taken prisoner while serving with a supply unit away from the front.
There have been allegations that before the invasion, some conscripts were forced to sign military contracts that allowed them to be sent into combat — duty that is normally reserved only for volunteers in the army. Some of the captured soldiers said they were told by their commanding officers that they were going to a military exercise but suddenly found themselves fighting in Ukraine.
Lyudmila Narusova, a member of the upper house of the Russian parliament, spoke in early March about an entire company of 100 men who were forced to sign such contracts and were sent into the combat zone — and only four survived. Military officials did not comment on her allegation.
Svetlana Agapitova, the human rights commissioner in St. Petersburg, said Wednesday that relatives of seven soldiers had written to her to complain the men had been forced to sign the contract and sent to Ukraine against their will. She said two of them already had been brought back to Russia.
In recent years, the Kremlin has emphasized increasing the share of volunteer contract soldiers as it sought to modernize the army and improve its readiness. The force of 1 million now has over 400,000 contract soldiers, including 147,000 in the infantry. If the war drags on, those numbers could be insufficient to sustain the operations.
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The Kremlin could eventually face a choice: Keep fighting with a limited number of troops and see the offensive stall, or try to replenish the ranks with a broader draft and risk public outrage that could fuel anti-draft sentiment and destabilize the political situation. Such a scenario occurred during the fighting in Chechnya.
Dmitry, a 25-year-old IT expert, has a deferment that should keep him out of the draft for medical reasons. But he's still nervous like many others, fearing authorities could abruptly waive some deferments to bolster the military.
“I hate the war. I think it's a total disaster,” said Dmitry, who also asked that he not be identified by has last name, fearing reprisals. “I fear that the government could change the rules and I could face the draft. They also were saying for months that they wouldn’t attack Ukraine, so why should I trust what they say about the draft now?”
Proposed legislation would facilitate the draft by allowing military recruiters to call up conscripts more easily, but the bill has been put on hold for now.
Still, it added to the public’s anxiety.
Alexei Tabalov, a lawyer who advises conscripts, said medical panels at recruitment offices often admit youths who should be exempt from service because of illness. Now, he added, their attitudes could grow even tougher.
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“It's quite probable that doctors may shut their eyes to conscripts' illnesses and declare them fit for military duty,” Tabalov said.
In addition to lowering the medical standard for draftees, there are fears that the government could try to impose some sort of martial law that would ban Russian men from leaving the country and, like Ukraine, force them to fight.
“We have received a lot of calls from people fearing mobilization,” Tabalov said. “People now are afraid of everything in this situation. No one even thought before about the need to analyze the law on mobilization.”
The Kremlin has strongly denied any such plans, and military officials insist the army has enough contract soldiers to serve in Ukraine. Still, many Russians remain skeptical of the officials' denials, given their track record.
“What kind of trust could there be if Putin says one day that conscripts will not be sent there ... and then the Defense Ministry recognizes that they were there?” Tabalov asked.
An existing law allows for a 21-month alternative civil service in hospitals, nursing homes and other facilities for those who view military duty as incompatible with their beliefs, but military conscription offices often broadly ignore requests for such service.
After the war began, Tabalov said his group saw a large increase in inquiries about the alternative service law, which is vaguely phrased and allows military officials to easily turn down applications.
“We are worried that in the current militarist mood, military conscription offices can take a tougher attitude and reject appeals for the alternative civil service,” he said.
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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/boston-students-need-therapeutic-response-not-police-presence/ | The article “School violence fuels debate about bringing police back” (Page A1, March 24) reveals that 795 incidents in schools this year led to a police response, as compared with 951 for the COVID-19-abbreviated 2019-20 school year. The article also reports that there were more than 4,000 incidents in schools, but then clarifies that they can range from cutting class to talking back, indiscretions police are not allowed to address under Massachusetts law.
The “emotional and mental health challenges causing teenagers to act out at school” have unfortunately inspired a call to bring back police, bringing punitive rather than therapeutic responses to trauma endured by students and communities most harmed by the pandemic. This, despite peer-reviewed research showing that police are an ineffective solution that does nothing to address the underlying needs of these youth.
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Boston Public Schools eliminated police as part of an attempt to roll back the criminalization of youth that erupted in the 1990s. That era of bad policy was fed by sensationalist headlines and selective truths that spoke to deep biases. Let’s not go back there.
Leon Smith
Executive director
Citizens for Juvenile Justice
Boston | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/her-daily-weather-outlook-brilliant/ | When I open my Globe every morning, I head immediately to Page One — not to get the latest news (I’ll read that later), but to find the tiny weather information feature at the bottom. I’m not particularly interested in the forecast; I just want to see the overline, that two- or three-word phrase that can make me laugh out loud or, at the very least, lift my spirit if I’m feeling grouchy. Kudos to the geniuses who come up with these wonderful puns and bits of wordplay. Reading them is a delightful way to start my day.
Lee Leffingwell
Hingham
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https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/imagine-health-care-system-made-simple/ | For cancer survivor, Medicare was not just good, it was a lifesaver
When I read the headline of Abdallah Fayyad’s March 21 op-ed — “Does anyone actually like their health care plan?” — I enthusiastically raised my hand to answer yes. I am a breast cancer survivor of more than 10 years, and the reason that I can write to you today is that I was on Medicare when my cancers were diagnosed.
Medicare had paid for my annual mammograms and MRIs, for my surgeon, and for the whole oncology staff who supported me and who continue to monitor my health. Had my cancers developed several years earlier, when I wouldn’t have been able to afford a mammogram or MRI, my cancers would have grown undetected and could eventually have killed me.
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I thank my congressman, Bill Keating, and lawmakers on the Cape for their support of both national and statewide versions of universal health care. Health insurance is not what is important. What matters is the “care” in Medicare for All, or universal health care.
I hope that Fayyad will investigate pending legislation in Congress and on Beacon Hill and write another op-ed informing us of the benefits of a health care system that covers us all.
Betsy Smith
Brewster
Clash over cost vs. access is a distraction — health benefits should focus on value
The fundamental question we need to ask is whether the benefit offering is aligned with and truly providing value to all stakeholders in the continuum — patients, providers, and employers.
Our health care policy conversations have continually zeroed in on a choice between cost and access. While this dichotomy has been propagated by insurers, employers have been forced to buy into it, and it has been easy for our government (either party) to embrace it. This flawed dichotomy has improved neither costs nor health outcomes, while creating a weak experience for the end consumer. We need to get past this dichotomy and drive a health care benefits conversation based on value.
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Consumer research over the years has given us a recipe for making it better: comprehensive coverage for core wellness and preventive care services; solid handling of catastrophic coverage needs, to ensure that health care doesn’t drive bankruptcy; and competent handling of everything in between.
We need to focus on simplifying the system. Employers, who pick up about 80 percent of the costs for commercial health insurance premiums in the country, need to be more vocal about this.
Karthik Ganesh
CEO
EmpiRx Health
Montvale, N.J.
EmpiRx Health specializes in pharmacy benefit management. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/jackson-hearings-whiteness-wail/ | If any language association offers an award for Sentence of the Year, I would like to nominate one that appeared in Renée Graham’s “As Republicans flailed, Ketanji Brown Jackson never flinched” (Ideas, March 27). Graham noted that “Jackson spent more than 24 hours over three days being roasted by mediocre people whose whiteness has been their greatest asset.” Here is a perfect and perfectly concise summation of the Republican senators and their interrogation of Judge Jackson.
How topsy-turvy is our world when the least qualified get to rate the best merely on the basis of skin color.
LeRoy Mottla
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Peaks Island, Maine | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/world/ukraine-top-agenda-china-eu-prepare-meet-summit/ | BEIJING (AP) — The European Union will seek China’s assurances that it won’t assist Russia in circumventing economic sanctions leveled over the invasion of Ukraine at an annual summit Friday.
EU officials say they will also look for signs Beijing is willing to cooperate on bringing an end to the war at the virtual meeting.
Other topics include China’s travel ban on members of the European Parliament, Beijing’s economic boycott of EU member Lithuania over its Taiwan relations, the fate of a stalled investment agreement and civil and political rights under China’s authoritarian Communist Party regime.
The summit takes place amid sharply rising negative sentiment toward China within the bloc, fueled by China's increasingly aggressive foreign policies and trade practices.
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Beijing has dismissed European criticisms as biased and driven by an anti-China agenda being pursued by its chief global rival, the United States.
The war in Ukraine has thrown those differences into stark relief, with the EU rallying to the Ukrainian cause and China refusing to condemn Russia, while repeating Russian disinformation about the war and criticizing punishing economic sanctions brought against Moscow.
“We are looking for assurances that China has no intention of providing an economic lifeline or other support to Russia during this war,” an EU official told reporters Thursday, speaking on customary condition of anonymity in line with government rules.
Underlying the EU's expectations for China is the possibility of penalties against Chinese companies that undermine measures taken against Russia. EU officials point out that 13.7% of China’s total trade is done with the 27-nation bloc, and 12% with the United States, compared to just 2.4% with Russia.
Officials said they also wish to emphasize the impact the war is having on the availability of fertilizer and global energy and food prices, which are hitting the poorest countries in Africa and the Middle East hardest.
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European Council President Charles Michel, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, and EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell will first meet with Chinese officials led by Premier Li Keqiang, then later with President and Communist Party leader Xi Jinping.
The EU also plans to raise China’s trade spat with Lithuania sparked by Baltic state’s decision to allow Taiwan to open an unofficial representative office in its capital, Vilnius, under the name “Taiwan." China considers the self-governing island republic part of its territory with no right to independent foreign relations and has frozen trade with Lithuania in retaliation.
Beijing also sanctioned some European Union lawmakers last year after the EU, Britain, Canada and the United States launched coordinated sanctions against officials in China over human rights abuses in the far western Xinjiang region.
The European Parliament responded by saying it will not ratify a long-awaited business investment deal as long as the sanctions remain in place.
Rights groups have also urged the EU to take a more assertive stand with China over repression in Xinjiang, Tibet, Hong Kong and elsewhere and the persecution of Chinese dissidents including Sakharov Prize winner Ilham Tohti and Chinese-Swedish publisher Gui Minhai.
“The EU's foreign policy chief has pointed with alarm to the Chinese government's ‘revisionist campaign' against universal human rights and institutions," Sophie Richardson, China director at Human Rights Watch said in a news release.
“Brussels should revise its approach to match the magnitude of that threat,” Richardson said.
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https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/12-aca-is-alive-well-getting-steadily-better/ | The Affordable Care Act has now turned 12 — and despite years of determined Republican opposition, the law they dubbed Obamacare is on increasingly firm ground. Designed to increase the number of Americans covered by health insurance and to improve the quality of that insurance, that’s just what the law has done. A record number of people, some 13.6 million, have signed up for health coverage for 2022 on the insurance exchanges set up under the 2010 law. About 92 percent of those purchasers will receive tax credits to help them afford their plans.
That success shows, in part, the importance of a concerted effort to make the complicated law work. The Biden administration has expanded public-information ads about the ACA, bolstered efforts to help people navigate the law, extended the regular open enrollment period, and offered a special pandemic enrollment opportunity. The administration has also reversed the Trump administration’s approval of state work requirements, which were a way of keeping otherwise qualified people from using the ACA’s expanded Medicaid coverage.
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Further, the Biden team is about to issue a rule that will increase the number of families who can acquire tax-credit-subsidized care by fixing what’s known as the “family glitch.” Under the ACA, if a person has access to affordable health coverage offered by his or her employer, he or she can’t decline that coverage in favor of using the ACA exchanges. The threshold for judging affordability is that an individual’s premiums for such a plan must not consume more than 9.6 percent of total household income.
The way the law has been interpreted, that’s so even if the would-be purchaser is trying to buy a family plan and the employer-offered family plans are excessively expensive.
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That counterintuitive interpretation emanated from the IRS during the Obama years. The administration is finalizing a new regulation more in keeping with the intent of the law. To wit, that if an employer-offered family plan is deemed too costly, an individual can qualify to buy one on the insurance exchanges, even if the workplace-offered individual plan meets the affordability ceiling.
That seemingly small change would open affordable coverage to millions more. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit with deep health care expertise, another 5.1 million individuals would receive affordable coverage, most of them children or women. Kaiser estimates that some 4.4 million, or about 85 percent, of that group are currently covered, but under plans that cost the purchaser more than 10 percent of his or her income. According to the foundation’s estimates, more than 100,000 Massachusetts residents fall into that gap.
There is, however, much more that could be done to bolster the ACA. One such action would be to make permanent, or pass a longer-term extension of, the enhanced ACA tax-credit subsidies provided on a temporary basis as part of the American Rescue Plan, the administration’s major pandemic relief effort. That extra help expires at the end of this year. Democrats had hoped to extend those subsidies through their Build Back Better legislation, but that bill is currently stalled in the Senate.
The cost there isn’t insignificant, but neither is it staggering. The nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office has estimated the expense of keeping the higher subsidies at $22 billion a year. For another $18 billion annually, we could close the coverage gap in the 12 states that haven’t chosen to offer expanded Medicaid, as authorized and largely paid for by the ACA.
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“There is no opposition among Democrats over the idea of extending the extra ACA premium help,” noted Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at Kaiser. “If there is a legislative train this year, the extended ACA subsidies will be on it.”
Those added subsidies have made a significant difference for consumers. Kaiser previously estimated the average savings at about $70 per month for those who buy coverage on the exchanges. The Biden administration’s more recent comparable estimate is $59.
Because that change is budget-reconciliation eligible, it can pass with 51 Senate votes, which means Democrats command the numbers to do it themselves.
The problem: If the fractious party can’t come together on some sort of domestic agenda, there won’t be a vehicle for those subsidies to pass. That’s all the more reason for the party’s moderate and progressive wings to come together around a domestic package that can pass.
Editorials represent the views of the Boston Globe Editorial Board. Follow us on Twitter at @GlobeOpinion. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/confessions-professional-clickbait-writer/ | If you’ve Googled anything related to the ketogenic diet, preparing your student for college, medical billing for health care providers, cloud computing for small businesses, or how the industrial Internet of things affects farming — among a dozen other topics — there’s a solid chance you’ve read my work.
I’d like to tell you it’s because I’m a fine writer with a wide array of interests. But the real reason I have hundreds of thousands of readers a month is search engine optimization. SEO is a series of strategies for ranking higher in all search engines, especially Google, which captures around 86 percent of all Internet searches. I spend my days writing optimized blog articles that feature short paragraphs and less sophisticated wording — proven SEO winners — to help my clients appear at the top of search results.
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I had no clue what SEO was when I was hired by a Silicon Valley health startup in 2018. But it wasn’t long before I understood the value of ranking higher in search engines.
Approximately 75 percent of clicks go to the top three results on search engines. To put that into context, I run a college-student tips website with one of the top-ranking articles for the question “How much do college students spend on food?” In 2019, my article was the number one search result for that query. That year, 35,339 people read it. In 2021, my article dropped to the bottom of page one, where it hovered between spots eight and 10. The page received only 8,470 views last year, a 76 percent decline.
If I sold a product or service through my website, dropping even eight spots on Google would have lost me 26,869 potential new customers. I’ve seen search engine updates affect a company’s search rankings so much that they effectively destroyed a five-figure monthly online business overnight.
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Today, more businesses than ever before rely heavily on SEO to get their products in front of new eyes. Because it’s viewed as a long-term growth strategy, companies are investing more resources than ever in SEO. Here’s why this is troubling: Companies that have access to expensive SEO artificial intelligence tools and the funds to pay freelance writers often outcompete true experts who lack such resources. It’s a numbers game: The more an entity is willing to spend, the greater the likelihood that its information — accurate or not — ends up at the top of search engines. Ask yourself: How often do you look for the answer you seek on the second page — or even the bottom of the first page — of search results?
Access to the top of page one on Google, like life in many of America’s cities, is becoming less affordable every day.
The artifice of SEO
Being an SEO writer is an exercise in imagination. I’m a city dweller who’s never owned a home, yet I pay my rent by writing home improvement articles. I once wrote a Christian book review right after writing about language hacks that men can use to pick up women. I’m a former physical education teacher with expired personal training credentials, yet from 2018 to 2021, I wrote hundreds of health articles.
When clients ask me to conduct research before writing an article, the instructions are usually pretty simple: “See what the top articles are doing, and do it better.”
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“Better,” I’ve come to understand, doesn’t mean more factual or presented with more compelling statistics. The client wants me to reiterate what the top-ranking websites have already said. By peppering in terms related to the topic that people might search for, it’s not hard to make poached words sound like my own.
I try in earnest to create original, well-sourced content. Yet I’d be silly not to cherry- pick ideas from pages that, according to Google, are winning the rankings game. I’m not paid to write beautiful prose; I’m paid to grab eyeballs.
But for freelancers working for SEO content farms who churn out a dozen or more articles per day, the research standards are far lower. It’s about a paycheck. A Google spokesperson told me that the search engine identifies and penalizes spam and scraped content, but I regularly spot reshuffled sentences, if not outright plagiarism, on the first page of Google search results.
Recently, I attended an SEO Lunch and Learn Zoom call for a marketing agency I write for. Showing us the back end of the agency’s Google Analytics page, the marketing director clicked on a company whose website was getting about 100,000 monthly views.
“This article receives about 20,000 clicks each month,” he boasted of a piece written by a freelancer but bearing the CEO’s byline.
“[He] doesn’t even know his company has a blog,” the marketing director said, referring to the CEO and laughing.
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This is another thing about SEO. Companies get a great return on their investment by paying an unknown freelancer to write a piece that the CEO’s name will go on.
“Author authority is good for SEO,” you’ll hear. But if that blog has 100,000 monthly readers and the CEO hasn’t written any of its content, is that really author authority? What if everyone did it that way?
The thing is, many companies do.
To sum up the game of SEO-upmanship: Freelance writers, cheaper than actual experts, get paid to write things that are way out of their wheelhouse. If they follow basic SEO principles, their articles — especially ones bearing the name of someone well known — can rank high in search engines.
The kicker is that the reason people invest in SEO in the first place — to get new visitors and potential customers to their website — may soon be gone. Consider Google’s content-snippet feature that previews answers and the FAQ accordion box that pops up before the first search result. With each of these tools, Google tries to answer your question before you even have to click on any of the search results.
If you find the answer to your question without ever leaving Google, the companies paying for SEO-optimized content lose money. Once the information middleman, Google is morphing into an information landing page. This is one reason you often have to scroll through so many ads before you get to the information you’re looking for. Google’s revenue from search-related advertising was $149 billion in 2021.
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A cog in the SEO machine
For some time I haven’t felt great about the work I’m doing. I may spend my workday writing, but I’m not writing for artistic expression. I’m marketing my words to a search engine. In that sense, I’m more of a literary salesman than a writer, using industry-standard sentence structure and similar tactics to sell Google’s algorithm on my product.
In addition to the spread of low-quality, zero-accountability information online, I wonder if SEO harms us in other, subtler ways. It’s entirely possible that the mental health crisis in America is being exacerbated by our efforts to fix complex life problems with “Seven Simple Steps” how-to articles. Even though a lot of us know these bullet-pointed formats are superficial, they’re great for SEO.
I used to think of Google as the information superhighway — an unbiased resource where you could go to find the best answers to your questions, ranked in terms of quality. This is not to say that Google turns a blind eye; the spokesperson said that the company believes it’s cut in half the number of “irrelevant results” on searches over the past seven years. Even so, I have come to believe that Google’s primacy as the default search engine comes at the expense of quality information.
Something happened recently that put a finer point on that concern.
While eating lunch, I found myself wondering about something. Like most of us do, I Googled it. I clicked the top result and read the majority of the article, only to be completely shocked when I reached the bottom of the page and saw the image in the author box.
It was a picture of my face. The article said “Written by Ben Kissam.”
I’ve written so many articles on topics I’m not qualified to write about that I accidentally learned something from an article I wrote.
Ben Kissam is a writer and stand-up comedian in Denver. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram @benkissam. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/doublespeak-awards-cant-return-soon-enough/ | It has not gone unnoticed that the National Council of Teachers of English decided to suspend its annual Doublespeak award earlier this year. Previous winners of this coveted condemnation of circumlocutional crudescence included Kellyanne Conway, for coining the term “alternative facts”; Rudy Giuliani, for his assertion that “truth isn’t truth”; and numerous other miscreants stretching back in time.
Doublespeak traces its roots to two of George Orwell’s coinages in the novel “1984″: “doublethink” (“to be conscious of complete truthfulness while telling carefully constructed lies”) and “Newspeak” (e.g., “prolefeed” for popular culture).
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Since the publication of “1984″ over 70 years ago, we have become inured to the fabric of lies and evasions embedded in everyday discourse. A tax increase is a “revenue enhancement,” a brutal invasion of a sovereign nation becomes a “special military operation,” and so on.
How sad that the NCTE awards are on hiatus, because so many worthy contenders are vying for attention:
▪ American corporations can be always relied on to provide excellent material for the Doublespeak bulletin board. IBM came up with a particularly strong entry this year, when the company used the word “dinobabies,” for unwanted older workers who they hoped would become “extinct” after “the company fired tens of thousands of workers over 40 years old,” according to Business Insider.
IBM’s unfortunate e-mails, revealed in the course of an age discrimination suit, also referred to Big Blue’s “dated maternal workforce” — apparently older women — who “really don’t understand social [media] or engagement. Not digital natives. A real threat for us.”
In official statements, the company said it “never engaged in systemic age discrimination,” while allowing that “[s]ome language in emails. . . that has been reported is not consistent with the respect IBM has for its employees.”
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▪ Doctors are no strangers to double-talk. Massachusetts General Hospital recently paid out its third multimillion-dollar settlement for allegedly double-booking orthopedic surgeries. While shelling out $14.6 million, the docs continue to insist that they’ve done nothing wrong: “While the MGH continues to believe it always has complied with legal requirements regarding overlapping surgery, we determined that it would be most prudent to resolve the matter fully by settlement at this time,” wrote MGH president Dr. David F.M. Brown and Dr. Marcela del Carmen, president of the hospital’s physician organization.
▪ Former New York governor Andrew Cuomo recently spent $369,000 to air a 30-second advertisement suggesting that most sexual harassment charges against him hadn’t panned out, and that he was the victim of “political attacks.”
Alas, according to The New York Times, “reality has been less kind to Mr. Cuomo than the advertisement suggests.” The newspaper notes that a “report by the State Assembly found “overwhelming evidence” that the former governor had committed misconduct.”
The Times story relates that much of Mr. Cuomo’s ire seems to be directed toward New York Attorney General Letitia James, whose long-running probe of Donald Trump’s business practices has prompted him to denounce her “racist attack.” James is Black.
She must be doing something right.
▪ Wait — here is a last-minute entry! While many multinational corporations have halted or suspended business in Russia following its invasion of Ukraine, Minnesota-based agricultural giant Cargill explained to The Wall Street Journal why it’s staying in Russia: “Food is a basic human right and should never be used as a weapon,” the company said.
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Really? If food is a “basic human right,” like, say, freedom of speech, then surely Cargill would be loath to profit from its sale? The privately held company doesn’t report profits, but its latest annual report notes that revenues rose 17 percent last year, to $134 billion.
Human rights pays better than I thought.
The Doublespeak awards can’t return soon enough.
Alex Beam’s column appears regularly in the Globe. Follow him on Twitter @imalexbeamyrnot. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/real-estate/home-week-roslindale-condo-serves-up-dining-room-with-built-in-bar/ | Year built 1920
Square feet 1,170
Bedrooms 2
Baths 2 full
Fee $275 per month (estimated)
Water/Sewer Public
Taxes $6,477 (2022, estimated)
Swap your golf shoes for sneakers before you walk the half mile from the city-owned George Wright Golf Course to this condo building.
A short walkway ends in a comfy farmer’s porch, one of two on this blue 102-year old Roslindale building, which is being converted from a two-family into two condo units.
Recessed lighting and a natural wood ceiling add to the charm of the porch, which offers plenty of room for a couch and chairs for an après-links rest.
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A bright yellow front door beckons into the first-floor unit where hardwood flooring with a walnut stain and tall, elaborate baseboards create cohesion.
The living room (156 square feet) is to the right of the foyer and features thin crown molding, a drum shade ceiling light, a light gray-blue paint, and a bank of three windows. The space connects to a sunroom (95 square feet) set up as a home office with a view of the front porch and street. The light green-gray walls offer a visual mood lift only a room awash in natural light can bring.
Back in the living room, a wide square archway opens into a welcoming dining area (157 square feet) with a highly-sought-after feature for people looking to entertain after two years of COVID-caused isolation: a stunning built-in bar with wood shelving, a wallpaper backsplash that looks like painted brick, and lighting to show off your most glamorous bottles.
A small cabinet next to it houses a beverage fridge that is topped with a granite counter under a recessed light. A companion counter, a long peninsula with seating for at least two, offers a spot to watch a big-screen TV under pendant lighting. The space currently hosts a table for four as well. The walls above the chair rails here are a light-grayish blue, while the lower sections are a darker shade. The dining area and the kitchen have Bluetooth-controlled speakers in the ceiling.
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The kitchen (209 square feet) is only steps away. The sink sits under a window overlooking the backyard. Nearly everything is gray and silver — the subway tile backsplash, the walls (with a hint of blue), and the stainless steel appliances — but the Shaker-style cabinets are white with long nickel pulls. The kitchen also features undermount and recessed lighting, as well as a coffee nook.
The adjoining full bath has a standalone shower with frameless glass doors, a rain shower head, a natural pebble mosaic floor, a gray glass tile surround, and a herringbone stone tile ceiling. The flooring outside the shower is porcelain with a wood grain, and the single vanity is a dark color. There is a Bluetooth-controlled speaker in the ceiling.
A short hallway off the kitchen passes a laundry closet with a stacked washer and dryer. The home’s owner suite is directly across from closet and offers a 112-square-foot bedroom space, two windows, thin crown molding, and a flush-mounted ceiling light with an opaque, round glass shade. All of the bedrooms are painted gray and have closets with custom shelving but no door.
The en-suite bath is a kicked-up version of the main bathroom. It features a single vanity with a long counter. The cabinetry is dark, and the flooring is the same porcelain tile with a wood-grain look. The shower is bigger, however, with a large-format gray glass tile surround, a mosaic pebble floor, a rain shower head, a herringbone stone tile ceiling, and a seat. There is a Bluetooth-controlled speaker in the ceiling.
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The second bedroom, located farther down the hallway in the front corner of the unit, offers a bigger bedroom area (131 square feet) than the primary suite. It has thin crown molding and three windows.
The unit comes with exclusive use of the back deck off the kitchen, but the owners will share the slate patio and fenced-in yard with the other unit.
The heating, air conditioning, roof, plumbing, and electrical have been updated in the past two years, according to the listing agents, Pat and Alana Scanlon of eXp Realty in Boston. The unit has a tankless on-demand hot water system, and the sale will include one off-street parking space.
Follow John R. Ellement on Twitter @JREbosglobe. Send listings to homeoftheweek@globe.com. Please note: We do not feature unfurnished homes and will not respond to submissions we won’t pursue. Subscribe to our newsletter at pages.email.bostonglobe.com/AddressSignUp. Follow us on Twitter @GlobeHomes.
John R. Ellement can be reached at john.ellement@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/arts/issa-rae-art-making-space/ | WASHINGTON — At the Kennedy Center, in the nation’s capital, Issa Rae celebrated Black folk as a fine art.
Over 6,000 people in all shades of black, brown, and gold poured through the halls and theaters of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts last weekend, where the scent of sandalwood and shea butter wafted gently in the air.
With faces masked and vaccination wristbands, the hugs and laughs were plentiful. It was more than one thing. It was a weekend of everything: A concert by Mereba, short films, The Read live comedy album by Kid Fury and Crissle, a conversation between Issa Rae and Keke Palmer, plus panels and parties.
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She could have done this in Los Angeles, where she does so many events, back home where her companies are headquartered. But Simone Eccleston, the inaugural director of hip-hop culture and contemporary music at the center, invited Rae and the world she is building.
“I have to say that the thing that’s most special about being here is that a Black person, a Black female who works here, reached out to us to bring us here. I feel like that is necessary, like that in some ways the only way that we get to be in these spaces is because someone is looking out,” Rae said in a roundtable interview.
For a lot of us, 2022 has been about re-emerging into life outside. Rae is like us that way. Except she’s doing it at The Kennedy Center.
“This year is to kind of just reintroduce what we do to the industry,” she said. “And to be able to do that in a place that celebrates culture and have them celebrate Black Culture and uplift it, this means the world to me and us.”
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A living memorial to John F. Kennedy, our most arts-driven president, the center is celebrating its 50th anniversary season. As they put their programming together, they kept Kennedy in mind.
“I see little of more importance to the future of our country and our civilization than full recognition of the place of the artist,” he said at Amherst College in 1963.
An artist’s place is everywhere. Too often, we’ve allowed institutions to dictate to us what constitutes high art, assigning elite values to a very exclusive club of creatives that has all too often left out Black people and folk of color.
So we made space. We have our Basquiat, Alvin Ailey, Ava DuVernay, and Kendrick Lamar. We have our Donald Glover, Queen Latifah, and Questlove. Our cup flows with creative genius.
And Issa Rae helps fill it. She may have started with “Awkward Black Girl” on YouTube and “Insecure” on HBO, but Rae is making more than art. She is creating space. The $40 million deal she signed with HBO last year is for both films and television. With every opportunity she gets, she brings rising voices to the table.
Her media company, HOORAE, houses film, TV, and digital ventures. It includes ColorCreative Management, a company specifically for women and creators of color. Plus her label, Raedio, is more than a music label. They do podcasts, concerts, and get music placed in campaigns, TV, and more.
“As a company, one of the things that’s an ethos is not just the scaling of the business but scaling our impact,” said Morgan Davis, director of brand partnerships, events, artists relations at Raedio/HOORAE.
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The takeover, with tickets intentionally priced between $25-$89 for accessibility, was about bringing the Black community in.
“Reimagining the notions of spaces where Black people attend, where we’re accepted, where we are seen — one of the biggest things is returning equity back to Black people,” she added.
And this is what Eccleston wanted to bring to the Kennedy Center. JFK cared about the freedom and space of an artist. Rae is furthering that vision by reclaiming space that was always ours to have, and making more where we thought we had none.
“As part of the Kennedy Center’s 50th anniversary, one of the core things for us was really looking at the individuals and the organizations that are not only creating work that is of the moment, of the day, but are doing things that will carry us forward,” Eccleston said. “I would say that I think that Issa Rae is one of the most important visionaries of our generation.”
The Kennedy Center has been working its way here. In 2014, the center teamed up with Nas and the National Symphony Orchestra. In 2016, Q-Tip was named the center’s first artistic director of hip-hop culture. In 2017, Eccleston became the inaugural director of hip-hop culture and contemporary music. By 2018, the center announced its Hip Hop Culture Council.
The door just widens and widens. Last weekend, Issa Rae screened her new HBO show, “Rap Sh*t.” As part of The Read’s comedy album, young rapper Flo Milli came to the Kennedy Center stage. Rae and the Kennedy Center are adding to the nuance of who and what can and will be celebrated.
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“I think about that moment, Issa Rae’s famous statement, ‘I am rooting for everyone Black,’ ” Eccleston said. “What you saw this weekend was the most divine manifestation of it. What HOORAE is doing is legacy work and helping turn the tide for generations of creatives as it relates to resources and opportunity.”
For musician Mereba, who opened the weekend with a soulful and jazzy concert, this type of community building is refreshing. Mereba performed as part of “pieces,” a live version of Rae’s Web series bringing the stories behind our favorite artist’s songs.
“I just admire how Issa spreads her light and she is not afraid to also spread other people’s light. It’s so incredible,” the songstress said after her performance. “It’s not exploitive, it’s not just for a quick look. It’s real support, from like a sister, and it’s super inspiring and it’s super empowering and I would love to see more of that.”
At the heart of everything Rae does is community and opportunity.
“We wanted to build something that had an ecosystem, so if you come through one door, you are not stuck in that one room,“ said Benoni Tagoe, Raedio president and Rae’s longtime friend. “Now that her career has grown and she’s in a position to be able to provide opportunities, Issa is reaching back and bringing people up.”
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New voices and collaboration, Rae believes, are key to how we grow as a people and as an industry.
“I know what it’s like to not have opportunities and to be seeking them and to feel like no one cares in the mainstream when I know the non-mainstream does,” she said. “To always be able to have my eye on what others are doing that I know appreciate, that I know, culturally, others would appreciate is important to me.”
She is always looking for talent, opening doors, and sitting in conversations with creatives she admires — be it Keke Palmer or Melina Matsoukas. This is part of how she builds and expands HOORAE.
“I also feed off of working with other hungry people and working with people who are passionate and want to be here because you can get disillusioned working in this industry,” she said.
“To work with people who are finding a new way in and are rich with new ideas only makes me more excited and makes me feel more empowered to make all the difference,” Rae added. “I think that we only get stronger working with and giving opportunities to people outside of the industry. I think that’s how the industry gets better.”
When “Insecure” aired its final episode last year, it was a bittersweet goodbye. That show, from the music to the fashion to the businesses they supported and, obviously, the storylines, was a love letter to us. So many stars who were told they would never beam were able to shine because of it. Closed doors began to open.
JFK believed the artist was the last champion of the individual mind and logic against “an intrusive society and an officious state.”
With Issa Rae — an artist faithful to the culture, driven by her purpose and her creativity — our champ is here.
Jeneé Osterheldt can be reached at jenee.osterheldt@globe.com and on Twitter @sincerelyjenee and on Instagram @abeautifulresistance. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/actor-bruce-willis-had-stop-working-because-aphasia-what-is-it-what-does-it-do/ | The announcement this week that actor Bruce Willis, known for his roles in such films as “Die Hard,” “The Sixth Sense,” and “Pulp Fiction,” is retiring after being diagnosed with aphasia has brought attention to a disorder that many people haven’t heard of, even though it affects an estimated 2 million Americans.
Aphasia is not an illness, but rather a condition that occurs when the brain’s language center suffers damage, which can happen for a variety of reasons.
People with aphasia have difficulty communicating with language, whether speech or the written word. Some people with aphasia can’t express their thoughts while others can’t understand what people are saying.
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By itself, aphasia doesn’t indicate cognitive loss. “It’s a loss of language, not intellect,” said Mary Ann Williams-Butler, supervisor of the speech pathology department at Emerson Hospital in Concord.
But one form of aphasia signals the start of a degenerative illness that leads inexorably to dementia, and experts suspect that, sadly, this is what Willis has.
Each year some 180,000 Americans acquire aphasia, according to the National Aphasia Association.
Most of them have suffered a stroke, brain tumor, hemorrhage, infection, or other trauma to the left frontal lobe, which processes language. People often recover, at least partially, from such injuries. Speech-language therapy can marshal unaffected parts of the brain to compensate for losses elsewhere, and the damaged brain tissue does heal, Williams-Butler said.
But another type of aphasia, known as primary progressive aphasia, or PPA, is a degenerative brain disease with no cure. PPA is a form of dementia in which loss of language is the “leading edge” of a process toward more pervasive cognitive decline over several years, said Dr. David E. Thaler, neurologist-in-chief at Tufts Medical Center. “That’s frankly what this seems like,” Thaler said, referring to what is known about Willis’s illness.
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In announcing his retirement Wednesday, the 67-year-old actor’s family made no mention of stroke or other brain injury, and said that aphasia was “impacting his cognitive abilities.” Additionally, people in the film industry have noticed a deterioration in Willis’s abilities for years, according to the Los Angeles Times. He needed his lines dictated through an earpiece, the Times reported.
Primary progressive aphasia can, rarely, be the first sign of Alzheimer’s disease. Alzheimer’s usually manifests as memory loss, but sometimes language loss happens first, said Deepti Putcha, a clinical neuropsychologist at Mass General Brigham.
More commonly, though, PPA is a form of frontotemporal dementia, which occurs when brain cells die in the lobes behind the forehead and behind the ears. Abnormal deposits of two types of proteins have been linked to this form of dementia.
Frontotemporal dementia accounts for 10 percent to 20 percent of all dementia cases, affecting an estimated 50,000 to 60,000 Americans, according to the Association for Frontotemporal Degeneration. It tends to first manifest when people are in their 50s or 60s.
PPA starts slowly, and at first can resemble the normal difficulty retrieving words that many people experience as they age, Putcha said. But when the forgetfulness gets worse and starts to affect day-to-day activities, she advises that people seek an evaluation at a specialized clinic such as Massachusetts General Hospital’s Frontotemporal Disorders Unit, where she works.
Speech-language therapists teach strategies that help the patient communicate and the caretaker understand, said Williams-Butler, of Emerson Hospital.
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“At any stage, we have the ability to help improve or support communication,” she said. But it’s best to start early, before there is too much cognitive decline.
In the early stages, patients can learn word-retrieval strategies that can lead to improvement, at least for a time, said Louise Kimura, a speech-language pathologist at Emerson Hospital. They can also learn how to use speech devices, such as electronic tablets that speak words out loud when the user clicks on an image.
It’s not all hopeless, Putcha said. “We don’t have treatments to stop or reverse it,” she said, “but there’s a lot we can do to optimize [the person’s abilities] and slow the decline.”
Felice J. Freyer can be reached at felice.freyer@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @felicejfreyer. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/mcconnell-says-views-senate-gop-candidates-trump-are-irrelevant-heading-into-midterms/ | Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell further distanced himself from Donald Trump while discussing the prospect of Republicans reclaiming the majority in the Senate, saying the views of potential candidates on the former president are “irrelevant” to him heading into the midterm elections.
The relationship between the two has grown more chilled since Trump left office, and speaking during an event with Punchbowl News on Thursday, McConnell seemed to indicate that the GOP will be able to ensure victory in primary races without his influence.
The seven-term senator from Kentucky stressed that the electability of nominees will be the determining factor in whether Republicans are able to take back the Senate — as opposed to where they stand ideologically on matters including how they “feel” about Trump.
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“We have to have electable nominees,” McConnell said. “How you feel about former president Trump is irrelevant. There are ways of measuring a credible candidate and that’s what I want. This is not an ideological litmus test or how you feel about the former president — it’s can you win in November?”
He added that he is optimistic both about Republicans having a “fully electable nominee in every one of the places that will determine our majority” — among them highly “competitive states” such as Georgia, North Carolina, and New Hampshire — and the overall chances of the party in regaining control of the Senate.
McConnell pointed to President Biden’s approval ratings — currently the lowest of his tenure based on recent polling — as being a driving force behind his level of confidence.
“I think what’s really going to be dominant in the fall is we know this is going to be a midterm report card on the performance of the president,” McConnell said.
His comments came amid the former president endorsing a slew of individuals in races nationwide that have expressed loyalty to him, several of which have attracted controversy. Candidates Trump has backed in some high-profile contests have failed to pull support, raising questions about his political strategy and his grip on the GOP.
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The pair have had contentious exchanges since Trump lost the presidential election to Biden — and since then, McConnell has increasingly tried to separate himself. Following a report from the Washington Post that he declined a call from Trump on Jan. 6, 2021 — the day of the attack on the Capitol — he emphasized that the last time he spoke to the former president was the day after the Electoral College declared Biden the winner in December 2020.
“I publicly congratulated President Biden on his victory and received a phone call after that from President Trump, and that’s the last time we’ve spoken,” he told reporters earlier this week.
When asked whether he would get involved or weigh in on any of the primary races himself, McConnell wavered from offering a definitive response.
“I might, and I might not,” he said. “Since we’re not fully into the primary season yet, I can’t fully answer ... but could I get involved? Yeah, I could.”
McConnell also disclosed that he intends on running for Senate Republican Leader again. He is already the longest-serving Senate Republican Leader.
Shannon Larson can be reached at shannon.larson@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @shannonlarson98. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/us-added-431000-jobs-march-sign-resilient-economy/ | WASHINGTON (AP) — US added 431,000 jobs in March in sign of a resilient economy and unemployment falls to pandemic low of 3.6%.
WASHINGTON (AP) — US added 431,000 jobs in March in sign of a resilient economy and unemployment falls to pandemic low of 3.6%. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/pandemic-has-taken-toll-our-self-esteem-that-feels-lousy-too/ | “I want to normalize Botox. Everyone does it but no one wants to talk about it,” a mom of two texted me last night.
I had put out a call on parenting message boards asking about how women felt about their self-image in this COVID Spring, when we’re reemerging into the world mask-less with the worst of the pandemic (hopefully, for now) behind us.
This woman, a high school guidance counselor north of Boston, wanted to share the importance of agency and confidence in every form — even if it comes from a med-spa. Then she texted me back early this morning.
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“I woke up, and I’m too anxious about using my name,” she said.
I get it. After two years of eating more, moving less, and staring at my every wrinkle on Zoom, I also feel self-conscious. Earlier this year, I made my first appointment for Botox and then canceled at the last second. Somehow, it didn’t feel like “me”: vain, unnatural, maybe even spoiled. Then I saw myself on a cooking webinar and noticed a vertical crease the size of the Grand Canyon. I rescheduled. Why shouldn’t I feel good about myself?
According to Joanna H. Ng-Glazier, a plastic surgeon at Emerson Plastic Surgery Associates in Concord, people are in two post-pandemic camps: liberated from the need to wear makeup and dress up, or vulnerable about their new debut.
“I feel that many people either made a change to improve the way they emerged from the pandemic, or they became comfortable with not having to commute and put makeup on, or get dressed daily, and decided no big changes were needed. Unfortunately, the societal pressure on women to be perfect at all times still exists,” she says.
It’s especially true for moms, who come to her office requesting “Mommy Makeovers.”
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“Those who’ve had pregnancies and have given birth are more interested in looking like a less-tired, more rejuvenated version of themselves,” she says. They ask for Botox, diastasis repairs or tummy tucks, labiaplasty, liposuction, even eyelifts for dark circles.
The American Society of Plastic Surgeons actually calls it the “Zoom Boom,” and it’s not just about vanity. It’s about self-respect.
“I feel [COVID] has made many women realize that they are worth it,” Ng-Glazier says.
But COVID has also made many women feel worthless, from gray hair to weight gain.
“The pressure to ‘bounce back’ makes me feel like I failed,” one such mom told me.
“I find that staring at myself all day creates all sorts of perversions in terms of how I see myself. I get overly fixated on everything from wrinkles to facial expressions. It’s like having my inner self critic staring back at me all day long,” another one said.
Roslindale’s Eileen Fairley got pregnant a year into the pandemic, and she’s uncomfortable with her body now.
“The little boy I was growing made me exhausted, starving, and repulsed by healthy food,” she said.
She began to obsess over her weight. Now six months postpartum, “I’m still disappointed in myself for the weight I’ve gained,” she said. “I find myself constantly comparing my body to that of my other friends who are postpartum. In my pre-pandemic life, I used to go to yoga and spin classes and rock climb all the time. Now, while trying to protect my yet-to-be vaccinated baby, the only exercise I do is the occasional walk outside. I still find myself agonizing over how I feed my body.”
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“I’m struggling with self-confidence, self-identity, self-worth, and what my path forward looks like,” agreed Arlington’s Courtney Zwirn. “The last two years show on me. I look exhausted all the time and have gained a ton of weight — menopause during a global pandemic, plus antidepressants that keep me afloat but cause weight gain.”
Alison Frazee, also in Roslindale, worries about her weight, too, and she feels disconnected from her previous form.
“I’m very insecure about the weight gain. I’ve never been this big before, and I don’t feel like myself,” she said.
Working from home has made exercise harder. For now, she keeps her old clothes in tubs as motivation to fit into them again.
“I don’t need to be skinny. I just want my normal body back. I don’t want this to be my new normal,” she said.
She didn’t want to remain anonymous for this story, hoping she can validate these feelings for other women.
“We should all be talking more openly about this stuff,” she said.
It’s hard, though, because COVID was a universally disastrous stretch. It feels downright ungrateful to relish its silver linings, which, for some of us, meant the ability to hide out at home. And worrying about silly things like weight gain and wrinkles seems like the epitome of a first-world problem these days. But self-image — and self-esteem — still matters, especially as we head back into the office.
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So where does this leave us?
Rachel Estepa, plus-size wellness expert and founder of More to Love Yoga in Somerville, wants women to reframe their stories as they step away from the ring light, a process they liken to the first day of high school. If your hair is gray? Own it. If you want Botox? Own that, too. It’s all about what they call “body acceptance.”
“Tell your own story around it. Talk about the struggle and how we’ve managed it and release that. Tell someone, write about it, talk about it,” they said. And most of all, remember: We’ve been through a massive collective trauma.
“We are allowed to change,” they said.
And we’re allowed to take matters into our own hands, even if it involves something seemingly frivolous like Botox. The friend who texted me last night said she suddenly felt “embarrassed” about the procedure — even though it boosted her confidence.
I understand. I felt embarrassed making the appointment, like I was auditioning for “Real Housewives of Suburban Boston.” I thought, if I were truly evolved, I’d flaunt every last wrinkle like a badge of honor. I was ashamed of myself for having wrinkles, and I was ashamed of myself for trying to fix it: a no-win scenario. Now, I’m coming to realize that actual confidence comes from doing whatever makes you feel good.
Kara Baskin can be reached at kara.baskin@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @kcbaskin. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/advice-i-muddled-through-pandemic-why-do-i-still-not-feel-like-myself/ | Need advice dealing with a difficult situation? Send your questions to Miss Conduct.
During the pandemic I took control of my finances, stayed home, and got used to being alone with my own company. I felt my world shrink but thought in the after times, things would be better. I haven’t got my pre-plague times capacity back yet. After work I’m exhausted, and trying to make life changes (career and dating) feels overwhelming. I exercise twice a week and eat well and my sleep schedule is OK. How am I supposed to go forward if I’m still low on capacity?
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A.T. / Somerville
“Dear Miss Conduct, I got run over by a truck. But the truck isn’t on top of me anymore, so why am I just lying here in the road, not improving my life?”
Because you got run over by a truck, that’s why. People aren’t Warner Bros. cartoon characters, springing back into full form and capabilities with a rubbery sound effect after falling off a cliff. That’s as true of our brains as of the rest of our bodies. We’ve been through two years of COVID-related disruption and strain, having to learn whole new sets of habits for nearly every aspect of daily life and then, sometimes, unlearn or modify said habits as the virus became better understood. While our lives are less restricted now, there’s still the constant burden of risk assessment and logistical planning. Life is more difficult than it was. And that’s only the cognitive burden that COVID has imposed; there’s been an emotional toll as well. Your brain is still sorting through all of that, figuring out what lessons and habits and memories to keep and which to discard. Don’t expect the computer to be running at top speed while the software is being updated, you know? And aside from all that learning and unlearning, you’re simply out of practice at socializing, and being out and about all day. Of course it wears you out now, it’s like the first week of school after summer vacation.
You survived intact, physically and mentally and financially. You did it! This fatigue you are feeling is not failure. Be gentle with your tired mind. If you had been run over by a truck, your body would need rest. It would need external supports like casts and crutches. It would need to be gently reconditioned and trained back into strength and wholeness. It would need time. Your brain needs the same.
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What this means in practice differs for everyone, but it boils down to how much you can streamline your life down to the absolute must-dos, and the activities and relationships that truly give you joy. What expectations and obligations can you jettison, what standards can you reasonably lower? Can you hire a cleaner, get grocery delivery, outsource any other labor? And what’s fun? Not what will get you to the next step in life, but what’s fun right now? The tired brain can get motivated by Must and Want, almost never by Should. I wish you the best.
Miss Conduct is Robin Abrahams, a writer with a PhD in psychology. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/blind-date-she-loves-boating-i-get-very-seasick/ | Go on an in-person or virtual blind date. We’ll pick up the tab. Fill out an application. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram @dinnerwithcupid.
LISA D.: 58 / office manager
HER PERFECT SATURDAY: Dinner and dancing
WHEN SHE IS HAPPIEST: By the water
JOHN G.: 65 / state worker
HIS PERFECT SATURDAY: Dinner and swing dancing
HIS HOBBIES: Big band jazz drumming
7 P.M. THE BLUE OX, LYNN
SHORE LEAVE
Lisa I worked all day, then I walked with my girlfriend and got my courage up. Of course, picking out my outfit, doing my hair, putting on makeup, and, most important, wearing the right bra!
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John I got a manicure. Dressed in a suit and tie.
Lisa I was 10 minutes late. The weather was raining and foggy and I had never been to Lynn before. I missed the turn and got lost. Then I couldn’t find parking. So when I arrived I was a bit frazzled.
John She was a half-hour late.
Lisa The host brought me to the table. Very classy guy. Dressed up nice with a suit, tie, and cuff links. Looking sharp.
John They brought her to the table. She was pretty and friendly. I like women with blond hair.
CASTAWAYS
Lisa We both work in the financial field. We both live on the North Shore. We are fun and positive people. Of course, we are both good-looking.
John We talked about my musical background. Her work history. The conversation was enjoyable.
Lisa I got rigatoni Bolognese. The service was great. The cheesecake was to die for. We were both very proper at dinner. My mom would be proud.
John [We talked about] our life histories, marriages, kids. Family history. [I knew it wasn’t going to work] when she started talking about her ex-husband.
Lisa He was very sweet and honest. The conversation flowed. I learned a lot about him in two hours. He isn’t a couch potato. I thought, This isn’t the type of guy I usually go out with but I am having a great time. So, time to change things up in my life and give him a whirl. He did mention ballroom dancing, which would be fun.
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John She loves boating. I get very seasick.
Lisa I did mention that I am a huge boater. I guess he gets motion sickness and is not a great swimmer. But they have medication and a life jacket for that. So, it’s all good.
John When she asked me if I could swim, I said no. . . . Then she said, “Well, we’ll put those little kid arm floaties on you.” There were a few other times during the evening where she made fun of me. It was all in humor, however, I do not like that.
CAPSIZING
Lisa We were the only two left in the restaurant. I suggested that it was time to go. He walked me to my car and stole my leftovers, so I had no lunch the next day. It was a very foggy night and we both had work in the morning, so we said good night and off we went.
John It was late. I walked her to her car.
Lisa There was no good night kiss (although he asked) but kissing in a parking lot really isn’t my style. He did text me a lovely text before he went to dreamland.
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John She seemed tired and was kind of upset about the long drive. [We had a] good night hug.
SECOND DATE?
Lisa He must make the move. A lady in my book waits for the man to call and plan the second date.
John No.
POST-MORTEM
Lisa / B
John / C
Go on an in-person or virtual blind date. We’ll pick up the tab. Fill out an application. Follow us on Twitter or Instagram @dinnerwithcupid. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/whats-mother-supposed-do-when-dads-fun-one/ | “If you and Dad get a divorce, I’ll live with Dad,” declared my then 5-year-old. She had just learned about a divorce in which the mom was granted sole custody.
Keep in mind, I hadn’t asked my daughter which parent she would choose. My husband and I had not discussed divorce or separation. My marriage wasn’t going through a rough patch — my daughter and I were.
Our little powerhouse child was a much better match for my husband’s personality. At just a few weeks old, she was joyful, loud, curious, and nearly vibrating with energy. I couldn’t always keep up.
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As a toddler, she would race up and down the street. Our kind neighbor, Jim, would say, “She’s going to sleep well tonight!” And we’d mutter, “That’s what you think, Jim.”
She could dribble a soccer ball at 18 months. At age 4, we entered her in a mile race. Most kids only lasted a lap or two. Our child ran all four laps, finishing in 11:49.
The Olivia children’s book helped me feel seen. After pages of shenanigans, the mama pig tucks Olivia in bed, saying, “You know, you really wear me out. But I love you anyway.”
I’d like to say that parenting isn’t a competition. The truth is that I was losing to my husband. He would take our daughter to the park at 6 a.m. He had the patience to stand for an hour as she jumped in cold puddles, and then carry her home as she shivered and screamed.
It didn’t help that I was always in charge of day care drop-offs, ever the jailer and never the liberator. “Let’s brush your hair and hurry up with that breakfast” is no match for “Let’s play ponies and have snacks.”
Although I had a flexible work schedule and spent more time with her than her dad, our daughter asked me why I worked so much. It was as if our playdates and many trips to the park and Museum of Play were forgotten. When her younger sister was born and my time was further divided, I worried that my eldest would feel even more resentment.
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In my worst times, I thought there was something wrong with me. It was as if this innocent child was looking at her mom and seeing something missing . . . or rotten.
I tried my hardest not to take it personally. It helped to ask myself: If we were kids at the same time, would my child and I be friends?
The resounding answer was yes. She didn’t need another kid to match her energy; they’d burn each other out. Some of the strongest relationships involve complementary, balancing personalities.
I knew from being a camp counselor and nanny that I connect well with elementary-age kids. As my daughter got older and wanted to do more complicated crafts, I was ready with lanyards, glue guns, and knitting needles. I introduced her to loads of fun books. We read the Harry Potter series as a family. When the volunteer work was less about sports mechanics and more about herding cats, I “coached” her basketball and softball teams.
We now have a joyful, loud, and curious preteen. Our breakfasts together are filled with plot summaries of Naruto and Olivia Rodrigo sing-alongs. My thoughtful child wants to craft gifts for the whole family.
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With this one question, I felt like a second-string quarterback promoted to starter: “Mom, can you help me make a schedule so I can get the presents done on time?” She sees my strengths clearly now.
Family relationships have seasons. Sometimes love bursts forth in riotous color; other times it’s stored tightly in the roots. I’ll remember that when I have moody teenagers, or headstrong twentysomethings. Just a few years in a long relationship can’t possibly sum up what we mean to one another.
You know, you still wear me out. But I love you . . . always.
Lisa Perks is a professor of communication and media at Merrimack College. Send comments to magazine@globe.com. Tell your story. Email your 650-word essay on a relationship to connections@globe.com. Please note: We do not respond to submissions we won’t pursue. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/you-can-make-difference-today/ | We’ve got a lot to look forward to over the next few days.
It’s Final Four weekend for both the NCAA men’s and women’s basketball tournaments (Go Kansas and UConn!). And WrestleMania is being held on Saturday and Sunday in Dallas (Go Roman Reigns and Ronda Rousey!).
But before you get all your sillies out, you might want to donate to your favorite nonprofit today because it’s 401Gives Day, the annual event hosted by the United Way of Rhode Island that supports hundreds of organizations all over the state.
The United Way has set a big goal: It’s seeking to raise $4 million today, and there are great ways to ensure your donation is matched.
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The Rhode Island Foundation already matched the first $25,000 donated between 6 and 7 a.m., and it will do the same during the noon hour. The Papitto Opportunity Connection is matching $20,000 in donations during the 4 p.m. hour.
More than 500 nonprofits are participating in this day of giving, and $357,000 had been raised as of 6:17 a.m. today.
The donation process is simple and tax deductible. Just go to 401gives.org and you can search for an organization to support. If you don’t have a group in mind, you can search by cause.
This story first appeared in Rhode Map, our free newsletter about Rhode Island that also contains information about local events, data about the coronavirus in the state, and more. If you’d like to receive it via e-mail Monday through Friday, you can sign up here.
Dan McGowan can be reached at dan.mcgowan@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter at @danmcgowan. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/delta-pilots-land-jet-safely-after-cockpit-windshield-cracks/ | SALT LAKE CITY, Utah (AP) — The pilots on a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Washington, D.C. decided to bring their jet down in Denver after the cockpit windshield shattered above 30,000 feet. The crew repeatedly told passengers to remain calm until they landed.
“They came on the loudspeaker saying that the windshield had shattered, and we were diverting to Denver in about 10 minutes," Rachel Wright, one of the 198 passengers on the plane, told KUTV.
A photo of the windshield taken by a passenger shows the glass, though lined with cracks, didn't fall from its frame. Commercial airline pilots said jetliner windshields can be two inches thick, with several layered panes of glass, the station reported.
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— Rachel Wright, M.A.T (K-6) (@UtahRach) March 31, 2022
The crew announced the diversion about 90 minutes into the flight, after the plane reached cruising altitude, which is above 30,000 feet, passengers said.
“They kept coming on saying for everyone to stay calm, to be calm, and we were calm so being told to stay calm while we were calm made us feel a little panicky,” Wright said.
Passengers were able to see the shattered glass once they landed in Denver.
“I’m really good at playing what-if? And so, my mind goes to kind of what could have happened, worst case scenario and I’m grateful,” Wright said. “It could have been really bad, it could have gone very differently."
Another passenger, Kirk Knowlton, snapped a picture and tweeted that the crew had announced that the windscreen appeared to crack spontaneously.
Delta gave a statement to KUTV calling it “a maintenance issue mid-flight.”
"Out of an abundance of caution, the flight crew diverted into Denver and the plane landed routinely. Our team worked quickly to accommodate customers on a new plane, and we sincerely apologize for the delay and inconvenience to their travel plans,” the airline statement said.
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Passengers boarded a new plane in Denver and continued on to Washington. Wright praised Delta for bringing the jet down safely, and said the airline was very accommodating.
“I’ve never been more grateful to spend an extra three hours in an airport,” Wright said. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/world/pope-asks-forgiveness-indigenous-peoples-canada-school-abuses/ | VATICAN CITY (AP) — Pope Francis apologized and begged forgiveness Friday for the “deplorable” abuses suffered by Indigenous Peoples in Canada’s church-run residential schools and said he hoped to visit Canada in late July to deliver the apology in person to all those who suffered from the Catholic Church’s misguided missionary zeal.
Francis made the apology during an audience with dozens of members of the Metis, Inuit and First Nations communities who came to Rome seeking a papal apology and a commitment for the Catholic Church to repair the damage. He said he hoped to visit Canada “in the days" around the Feast of St. Anna, which falls on July 26 and is dedicated to Christ's grandmother.
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More than 150,000 native children in Canada were forced to attend state-funded Christian schools from the 19th century until the 1970s in an effort to isolate them from the influence of their homes and culture. The aim was to Christianize and assimilate them into mainstream society, which previous Canadian governments considered superior.
“For the deplorable conduct of those members of the Catholic Church, I ask forgiveness of the Lord,” Francis said. “And I want to tell you from my heart, that I am greatly pained. And I unite myself with the Canadian bishops in apologizing.”
The trip to Rome by the Indigenous was years in the making but gained momentum last year after the discovery of hundreds of unmarked graves outside some of the residential schools. The three groups of Indigenous met separately with Francis over several hours this week, culminating with Friday's audience.
Francis spoke in Italian and it wasn’t immediately clear if the audience understood what he had said, though they stood and applauded after he finished.
And the audience continued on with joyous performances of Indigenous prayers, drum, dance and fiddlers that Francis watched, applauded and at one point gave a thumbs up to. The Indigenous then presented him with gifts, including snow shoes.
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The head of the Metis, Cassidy Caron, presented Francis with a bound book of their people's stories: Much of what the Indigenous sought to accomplish during their meetings this week was to tell Francis the individual stories of loss and abuse that they suffered.
The Canadian government has admitted that physical and sexual abuse was rampant at the schools, with students beaten for speaking their native languages. That legacy of that abuse and isolation from family has been cited by Indigenous leaders as a root cause of the epidemic rates of alcohol and drug addiction on Canadian reservations.
Nearly three-quarters of the 130 residential schools were run by Catholic missionary congregations.
Last May, the Tk’emlups te Secwepemc Nation announced the discovery of 215 gravesites near Kamloops, British Columbia, that were found using ground-penetrating radar. It was Canada’s largest Indigenous residential school and the discovery of the graves was the first of numerous, similar grim sites across the country. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/vermont-has-lost-over-100-country-stores-some-small-towns-there-is-hope-yet/ | NORWICH, Vt. — Before sunrise, a maroon Dodge pickup rumbles into the parking lot of Dan & Whit’s general store. Its driver, Mat Fraser, descends into the basement where embers glow in three wood stoves, barely staving off the worst of the winter cold. Fraser feeds the beasts with wood that he and his 80-year-old father, George, cut and split twice daily at the family lumber yard. And when the morning rush ambles in hours later, they find a warm oasis and Mat’s brother, Dan, the smiling face of the operation, in the office.
The two brothers are polar opposites. Mat, 48, spends most of his time tending to things in the basement, speaks in monosyllabic murmurs, and wears Keens and Carhartt. Dan, 53, could very well be an auctioneer. “Look for the guy in the flowery rainbow button-down and zebra loafers,” said a cashier. But they have one thing in common: ownership of this storied operation. Like their father, George, and his father, the namesake Dan, the brothers have helped maintain Dan & Whit’s status as a king among Vermont country stores.
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The multigenerational model has kept the stoves lit and lights on at 319 Main Street for over a century. Three generations of the Merrill family ran the general store before college buddies Dan Fraser and William Whitney Hicks took over in 1955.
Such a model is increasingly rare. Across the state, as longtime general store proprietors retire, they struggle to find anyone, even their children, willing to take on the debt, maintenance, and 12- to 16-hour days that come with ownership. That, combined with the competition of Amazon and Dollar Generals, has led to over a hundred stores shuttering in the last two decades.
Country stores are as quintessential to the Vermont countryside as bodegas are to the streets of Queens. To the passing tourist, they may appear as mere souvenir shops where you can stock up on maple syrup and a Bernie Sanders mug before heading south. But to the locals, they are as crucial as a watering hole in the African Sahara. Here gossip is exchanged, political campaigns waged and won, fundraisers launched, and eggs sold.
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These often ramshackle buildings are in many ways a metaphor for Vermont itself. Small, but mighty. Torn between the present and the past. For sale: hunting licenses, kombucha, fishing worms and arborio rice. Bulletin boards with advertisements for sheep shearers and handmade hemp oils. Coolers with $2 Bud Lights and $8 Heady Toppers. A rainbow LGBTQ flag billowing next to a wooden caricature of a Native American.
But their future in the changing landscape of Vermont is increasingly uncertain.
“The loss of general stores in the past 20 years does reflect the challenges facing rural communities in Vermont and beyond,” said Ben Doyle, president of Preservation Trust Vermont. “But along the way and throughout the loss, people also realized their value and developed really exciting models for their revitalization and endurance.”
Dan & Whit’s has been open 365 days a year for as long as Dan Fraser can remember. But that streak was almost broken last year when the pandemic emptied nearby Dartmouth College, a key source of customers and help. Dan & Whit’s staff evaporated overnight. In response, four dozen customers, most over the age of 70, picked up four- to six-hour shifts, often donating their wages to charity.
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The effort saved the Norwich institution from having to shutter for the first time since Dan and Whit’s takeover. But few Vermont towns have the means of Norwich, one of the state’s wealthiest zip codes, with a median household income on par with Brookline. An axiom that sums up the state’s wealth disparity: Vermonters either have three homes or three jobs. Most Norwich residents sit squarely in the first group. Country stores in less wealthy pockets of the state can’t operate on the same grand scale as Dan & Whit’s, where the motto reads, “If we don’t have it, you don’t need it.”
In other towns, where generational ownership of the local general store is no longer an option, another model has emerged in the form of the community trust. At least eight towns, from East Calais to Peacham to Gilford to Shrewsbury, have adopted this approach. A band of local citizens buys and renovates a sputtering general store. As landlords, they take care of the often overwhelming cost of maintaining a centuries-old building in the harsh winters of Vermont. And a proprietor oversees the management of the store.
“This is a model that exists to correct a market failure. In most iconic general stores, they are not generating enough income to rehabilitate the building, so there is a lot of deferred maintenance,” said Doyle. “And when it comes to transferring ownership, there is this insurmountable debt. And that’s the [source of] failure. The community trust model relieves it by finding philanthropic dollars to handle the real estate cost.”
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In Elmore, a tiny town in the state’s northeast corner, a community trust of nine citizens raised $400,000 to save their general store on the shores of Lake Elmore. A young couple living in Mississippi, Mike Stanley and Kate Gluckman, answered the trust’s job posting, packed up their things and biscuit recipe, and took over as proprietors at the start of the new year.
They were immediately met with hardship when the United States Postal Service announced the 160 vintage P.O. Boxes on the store’s back wall would be moved to another town. The post office traffic brought critical revenue to the store (“Come for mail and beer, leave with the beer,” said one customer).
“The USPS pretty much said there wasn’t going to be any discussion about it,” said Trevor Braun, a member of the trust.
But then the community blitzed USPS with a barrage of letters. The hundreds involved in the community campaign far outnumbered the mere 160 threatened P.O. Boxes. The Vermont congressional delegation — Sen. Bernie Sanders, Sen. Patrick Leahy, and Rep. Peter Welch — even appealed to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.
Finally, USPS just seemed to give up.
“I think they weren’t expecting so much outrage,” said Braun. “A little fight can go a long way.”
For 60 years, Box #15 has belonged to Nancy Allen, a soil conservationist with the USDA and local farmer. She’s lived across from the Elmore Store for nearly her entire life and knows the town’s quirks as well as anyone.
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“Elmorians do not like kale. They are spinach people through and through,” she declared on a recent Tuesday while delivering eggs courtesy of her 125 hens, or “beautiful girls.”
Stanley and Gluckman learned that change does not come easy to a town of just 866 residents. Right after they took over management, the store’s longtime cookie supplier shuttered. The couple found a new local baker to fill the void but changed the price to two cookies for $1, rather than the previous four for $2. Customers complained that the new cookie wasn’t as good. One person grilled Mike on why they had raised the price, which of course they had not.
“That’s when I knew there was no winning,” said Stanley, a Missouri native who previously served with the Merchant Marine in New Orleans and Mississippi.
Vermont has a reputation for being less than welcoming to outsiders. Locals often deride out-of-staters as “flatlanders.” Sometimes the mindset manifests through cookie criticism, but it can also materialize in more sinister ways.
Consider the saga of the country store in Putney, a southern town near Brattleboro, which burned down not once, but twice in the early 2000s. The first blaze, an electrical fire, scorched the roof of the historic building. The second, caused by an arsonist, incinerated the entire place to ash. Residents picked up the shovel to rebuild. Loggers donated lumber. And then the search for a new storekeeper began.
A proprietor of a store in Westminster, Mass. was instantly interested in the Putney gig when a local apple picker recommended it to him. It seemed like a great fit. But the man also happened to be a Taiwanese-American moving to a state that is 94 percent white. After a year and a half he quit, citing the racism he experienced from customers and the community. He now runs a grocery store in Connecticut.
“I mean, this is considered to be one the most liberal towns in Vermont, right? But that doesn’t tell the full story. The whole mentality behind ‘flatlanders’ is just code for racism,” said Lyssa Papazian, vice-chair of the Preservation Trust of Vermont board and a Putney resident.
Farther north, in the sleepy northeast town of Marshfield, a group of new Vermonters hopes their country store model will help increase diversity in the state. Earlier this year, Avani Pisapati, 26, Rachel Wilson, 39, and Michelle Eddleman McCormick, 44, raised $700,000 through anonymous donors to buy and rehab the Marshfield Village Store. The three friends restructured the store as a worker-owned cooperative.
“There are hardly any country stores, or even businesses for that matter, in the state whose ownership looks like ours,” said Wilson. “The hope is that our presence will mean something to BIPOC customers and make Vermont a more diverse place.”
The trio is new to country store ownership and has spent the first month learning the quirks of the trade, such as how to use the game weighing station in time for turkey season, or prepare for state approval of a Electronic Benefits Transfer system to accommodate SNAP participants. Ken Gokey, 72, who has lived in the area since a local foster family adopted him at three years old, held an impromptu workshop on operating the store’s coffee maker.
“You’re not going to sell much coffee with an empty pot,” he said to Wilson one afternoon while flashing a gentle, elf-like smile.
Country stores exist to provide the material essentials — eggs, toilet paper, bait and tackle, beer and Ben & Jerry’s — and the nonessentials — homemade mittens, carrot cake, cream soda and artisanal bread flour. But, their staunchest defenders agree that less tangible things make the stores worth saving.
Take Gokey and Wilson’s conversation. Or the group of volunteers that gathered last April to save an errant beaver that had slipped into a dam behind the Putney General Store. Or the toy corner at Dan & Whit’s where many a parent who left the store has hurriedly returned to find their child happily lingering.
Nancy Allen summed up the country store mystique on a recent Tuesday afternoon with the sun setting over an icy Lake Elmore.
“You wander into the Elmore Store, and Jimmy’s making pizza. He gets to talking, and so do you and eventually, you forget why you came,” she explained. “You get home and then realize you’ve forgotten the milk.”
Thankfully, her commute back to the store – about 200 yards – isn’t too bad. And to her, the store is almost an extension of her own home.
“With these country stores, yes, you do pay more. But you’re paying more to support local. There is nothing like being surrounded by a community. The country store is at the heart of all that,” Allen said.
“That, of course,” she said with a pause and a mischievous smile. “And the fact that you get to know everything about everybody when you visit.”
That week in early March, word was just about everyone had fled south to Florida. One Elmorian, tanned from a jaunt to Key West, popped into the Elmore Store to “check the mail and get some beer.” He left with a four-pack in hand and his P.O. Box unopened. In Norwich, tucked in one of Dan & Whit’s many dusty corners, a sign sat clipped to an old red shopping cart where a local resident collects knives for sharpening: “On vacation.”
Hanna Krueger can be reached at hanna.krueger@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter @hannaskrueger. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/college-gender-gap-has-transformed-dating-world/ | There are dating disasters, and there are dating disasters.
Most disasters are garden variety: You got stood up, you couldn’t get a word in during dinner, you got creeped out. But then there are disasters that have nothing to do with individual people or dates. Instead, they result from something completely out of our control: demographics.
Author and journalist Jon Birger started to sense that there was something horribly wrong with dating when he was a senior writer at Fortune Magazine in the early 2000s. Normally, he covered markets: oil, agriculture, stocks. But at his workplace, Birger says, “I couldn’t help but notice that all the guys were either married like myself, or in long-term relationships. Whereas the women at Fortune — who I think I can safely say had more going for them than we guys did — they were disproportionately single.”
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At first, he wondered if there was something strange about his workplace. But his wife, a lawyer, found her experience mirrored his. “Particularly if you live in a city like Boston or New York, you just know all these fabulous single women in their 30s and 40s who can’t seem to meet a half-decent guy,” he said.
So Birger, who knew a strange market when he saw one, went hunting for data. At first, he thought this was a big-city problem. But, as it turned out, this wasn’t about jobs or about big cities. It was about college.
As I noted in a recent column, women now outnumber men on college campuses. And not by a little. About 60 percent of US college students are now women; only 40 percent are men. The last time there was parity, Birger says, was back in the 1980s.
And the reality is that people who have college degrees tend to date other people with college degrees. But that tendency leads to a numerical mismatch, which, for both white-collar women and blue-collar men, can have profound consequences.
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Let me pause here for a few caveats: First, these ratios, of course, have no impact on people seeking same-sex relationships. Second, not everyone interested in a heterosexual relationship wants to get married. And third, this column will mostly focus on white-collar women, but there is an equally important story to be told from the perspective of blue-collar men.
So, back to the mismatch: If you look at 18-to-34-year-olds in Suffolk County, which includes Boston, the most recent census data reveals that there are almost 20 percent more college-educated women than men. And Boston has one of the more balanced ratios in the country.
Birger, who grew up in Brookline, says that when he was writing his book “Date-onomics,” he found places that were so lopsided, they knocked his socks off. West Virginia, for example, had approximately 60 percent more college-educated young women than men.
Boston, along with places like Santa Clara County — around Silicon Valley — are less skewed, Birger believes, because of the prominence of tech workers, who are more likely to be male.
But still. Dating in a place that has nearly 20 percent more college-educated women than men is tough.
A single friend of mine who’s in her mid-30s told me that all the men she knows are married. But, she notes, “I know tons of single women. They’re highly educated. Super successful. Multiple graduate degrees. Gorgeous.”
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My friend, who lives in Boston and has a graduate degree herself, says it’s hard to find people to date. “You wait it out. But the ‘waiting it out’ gets old. So what do you do?”
Birger makes the case that “waiting it out” is, ultimately, not a great strategy for women.
Think about the dating pool as a game of musical chairs, he says. You start off with 40 women and 30 men — very similar to the ratio faced by your average 30-year-old college grad. “Once 20 of the women and 20 of the men get married, the ratio among the remaining singles becomes 20 to 10. A two-to-one ratio. Once 5 more couples pair off, it becomes 15 to 5. A three-to-one ratio.”
“And this is why all of us know these incredible women in their 40s... who can’t seem to meet a decent guy. It’s not because they suck at dating, which is what their mothers and married friends have been telling them for the last 15 years. This is a demographic problem.”
That kind of imbalance also tends to coarsen dating culture, says Birger. Which you can see — in an exaggerated form — on college campuses, where there are often 40, 50, or 60 percent more women than men.
At Boston University, where there are close to 40 percent more women, the effects quickly become clear. Ellie Hamilton, a first-year student, says that “men think they’re a scarce resource on campus, because, honestly, they kind of are.”
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Hamilton says that the imbalance makes men more confident that if they break up with one woman, they can easily find another. And it makes her “super insecure. He has his choice of all these different girls. Why would he choose me?”
Women who get older but remain unmarried can “feel a little left out of society,” my 30-something friend told me. “Because at a certain point in life, people pair off, and do family things... Like even work functions and things, you’re expected to have a plus-one.”
And there are ripple effects that can alter lives forever: Many of us know women who have decided to have kids on their own, or to freeze their eggs, in hopes that they will be able to conceive, once they can find the right relationship.
Of course, there is a potential solution to this problem, which may have occurred to you by now.
Why don’t college-educated women date men without college degrees? The numbers of women and men in the US are about the same — the mismatch is simply their level of educational attainment.
That’s exactly what has to happen, argues Richard Reeves, a senior fellow in Economic Studies at Brookings.
“This is the new normal,” he says. “And I wonder if there’s some period of cultural adjustment, during which people have to get used to marrying differently.”
Both Reeves and Birger note that over the past few decades, just as the gap in college attendance has been widening, another social trend has become more pronounced: people seeking out partners with similar levels of education. In fact, men with college educations tend to be even pickier about marrying women with college educations than the other way around.
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Reeves points out that the speed at which women have zoomed ahead of men in higher education, since the passage of Title IX in 1972, has been shocking. He says that for some groups, this disparity is even more pronounced: More than two-thirds of the BA and MA degrees earned by Black Americans are now earned by Black women.
For women and men seeking life partners, these large-scale shifts have resulted in pain and dislocation. Pain for both college-educated women and non-college-educated men, who, if they seek to find mates with similar levels of education, will frequently find themselves alone.
Birger, who mostly concentrated on the female side of the equation, talked to many women who were advised to “prioritize career in their 20s, because there’s this idea that that’s what you’re supposed to do.” He says that the women “felt tricked, that nobody told them it would be so much harder at 29 than it was at 24, or certainly at 39 than it was at 24.”
Birger has sought solutions, which aren’t clear or easy, and details them in the book “Make Your Move”. Among other things, he recommends women abandon dating apps, consider dating younger men, let men know when they’re interested (instead of waiting to be asked out), and, of course, date men with various levels of education.
As college attendance numbers have shifted over the last few decades, a statistical tidal wave has begun to reshape society. But too many men and women — unaware of what’s happening — blame themselves. They doubt their attractiveness, their accomplishments, their awesomeness. They are not the problem.
Follow Kara Miller on Twitter @karaemiller. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/hard-get-much-better-what-you-need-know-about-march-jobs-report/ | At least the job market is in good shape.
The US Labor Department said on Friday that employers added a solid 431,000 jobs in March as the Omicron surge abated and more people went back to work.
The unemployment rate slipped to 3.6 percent, just 0.1 percentage point above its pre-pandemic low at the start of 2020.
And other key indicators also painted a robust employment picture: the labor force expanded, wages moved higher, and the number of people who said they couldn’t work or look for job because of COVID-19 disruptions fell.
“Hard to get much better than the March jobs report,” said Matthew Miskin, co-chief investment strategist at John Hancock Investment Management in Boston.
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The jobs report capped a week in which other economic data weren’t so upbeat. Inflation is continuing to run at a 40-year high, driven by necessities such as gasoline and food, 30-year fixed mortgage rates are approaching 5 percent, and employers continue to struggle to find enough workers.
On Thursday, the Labor Department said job openings at the end of February stood at 11.3 million, near the record set in December.
The combination of strong growth and surging consumer prices has put the Federal Reserve in a bind. The central bank last month boosted its benchmark interest rate by a quarter ofof a percentage point, the first increase in three years, in a bid to cool off inflation. The latest unemployment news has many Fed watchers saying policy makers could opt for a half-point increase at its next meeting in May and again throughout the year.
“This is an economy and labor markets overheating, the Fed has to accelerate” its tightening, Jeffrey Rosenberg, senior portfolio manager for systematic multi-strategy at BlackRock Inc., said on Bloomberg Television.
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US stocks were little changed following the Labor Department report, while the yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury rose 0.1 percentage point to 2.44 percent.
The increase in nonfarm payrolls last month fell short of economists’ forecasts, but totals for January and February were revised higher by a combined 95,000 jobs. Employers have added an average of 541,000 jobs in the past 12 months, compared with a pre-COVID rate of 164,000 a month in 2019. There were 1.6 million fewer jobs in March than in February 2020, a gap of 1 percent.
The labor force expanded as more people found work or started a job search. The labor force participation rate — the percentage of the adult population in the work force — inched up to 62.3 percent in March, but it remains below levels seen during the recovery from the Greater Recession, helping explain why employers can’t fill all their open positions.
Average hourly wages jumped 5.6 percent over a year ago. While in normal times that would be a phenomenal increase, it wasn’t enough to keep up with inflation, which rose 6.4 percent in February by the Fed’s preferred measure, the Personal Consumption Expenditures index.
Economic growth, which hit a 6.9 percent annualized rate in the fourth quarter, is expected to slow to a more sustainable 2.5 percent for the first three months of the year, according to Brian Bethune, an economist at Boston College.
“The Ukraine war and subsequent volatility in oil and other commodity prices. . . will inevitably throw not only considerable noise, but also some sand into the machinery of growth in the first half of 2022,” he said.
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But Bethune is optimistic that the Fed will be able to contain inflation without jacking up interests too high and triggering a recession.
The Fed “is on the right track in terms of normalizing interest rates and taming the inflation lion in a complex global economic environment dominated mainly by supply side and war shocks,” he said.
Larry Edelman can be reached at larry.edelman@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @GlobeNewsEd. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/skippy-peanut-butter-recalled-over-possible-metal-fragments/ | Hormel is recalling about 60,000 jars of Skippy peanut butter over concerns that a “limited number” could contain stainless steel fragments from an errant piece of manufacturing equipment, the food processing giant announced.
The affected products include Skippy's reduced fat creamy peanut butter, reduced fat chunky peanut butter and creamy peanut butter blended with plant protein. All products were marked best if used by May 2023, Hormel said.
Shipments that were possibly affected were sent to: California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, North Carolina, Nebraska, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oklahoma and Wisconsin.
No consumers have complained about the issue, Hormel told The Washington Post, and all retailers that received the products have been notified.
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The company said in a news release that the facility's internal detection systems flagged the problem, and that it is issuing the recall "out of an abundance of caution and with an emphasis on the quality of its products."
If you think you may have purchased one of these products, you can return it to store from which it was purchased or call Skippy Foods consumer engagement at 1-866-475-4779, or visit its website: www.peanutbutter.com, for a step-by-step guide.
Minnesota-based Hormel is more than 130 years old, developing the world's first canned ham and the iconic SPAM, a staple for troops in World War II. It now boasts more than 50 brands sold globally, from Planters to Herdez.
Hormel acquired Skippy in 2013 for about $700 million, in a bid to expand its business to protein that was not meat. More than 90 million jars of Skippy peanut butter are produced annually, according to Hormel’s website. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/best-things-do-ri-this-week-april-1-8/ | As all Ocean Staters know, Rhody is the coolest state — and we’ve got the events to prove it. From goat yoga to wine festivals, plant expos to comic expos, I’ve rounded up the vibes you need to soak up April 1 to 8. And I’m not foolin’.
EAT YOUR WAY THROUGH NEWPORT
Our gilded city by the sea celebrates its annual Restaurant Week April 1 to 10 and the menu is stacked. Deals at dozens of participating restaurants around Newport include $10 sandwiches and select entrees at The Safari Room at OceanCliff — think sirloin burger with bacon, cheddar and onion rings or gluten-free butternut squash risotto with butter and parmesan. Meanwhile, a $50 prix fixe menu at The White Horse Tavern includes options of French onion soup with caramelized onion, lobster ravioli, steak frites, and sticky toffee bread pudding with toasted pecans. Throughout town, you’ll find $20 prix fixe lunches, gift card deals, 50 percent-off wine, buy-one-get-one wine and beer flights, and the like. #FoodiesStartYourEngines. Details here.
BILLY GILMAN
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Westerly’s own two-time Grammy nominee Billy Gilman plays The Greenwich Odeum April 1. Gilman burst onto music scene in 2000 at age 11 with his hit single “One Voice.” (Fun fact: he made the Guinness Book of World Records for being the youngest singer to ever reach No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Album charts.) The Rhode Islander has since sold 10 million albums worldwide, and was featured on Season 11 of “The Voice” coached by Adam Levine of Maroon 5. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m. Tickets $35-$55. 59 Main St., East Greenwich. 401-885-4000. Details here.
COMIC EXPO IN TIVERTON
If you love Comic Con, take note: RetroXpo is rolling into Tiverton April 2. Billed as “a 20,000-square-foot multi-genre, one-day exposition of comics, movies, artwork, collectibles, cosplay, anime, games and more,” fans can browse some 100 exhibitors and meet special guests: Joe St. Pierre, a Spiderman comic book/graphic novel artist; Marvel comic creator Larry Stroman; and Tim Clarke, a former puppet builder for The Jim Henson Company whose credits include “The Dark Crystal” and “Fraggle Rock.” Oh, and wear your costumes: Cosplay Contest is at 4 p.m. #KeepCalmAndComicOn. Tickets $5-$20. Longplex Family & Sports Center, 300 Industrial Way, Tiverton. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. Details here and here.
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DAFFY DOGS ON PARADE
Each April, Newport invites the rest of Rhody over to see 1.2 million daffodils planted throughout the town. Newport’s Daffodil Days is an all-volunteer event supporting Newport In Bloom, a non-profit that encourages residents and businesses “to beautify their gardens and public spaces with flowers.”
The month-long celebration kicks off with a pup parade at Bannister Wharf April 2. The Annual Daffy Dog Paw-Rade starts, fittingly, from the Black Dog At Bannisters Wharf at 2 p.m. Meet up at 1:30 and make sure both you and Fido dress up: “The daffiest dressed dog and daffiest dressed human(s) will receive awards and prizes.” 33 Bannister’s Wharf. Details here.
HOME IMPROVEMENT
No, not the Tim Allen TV show. (Did we ever get to see Wilson’s face?) I’m talking about the Bloom Flower & Home Market at the WaterFire Arts Center April 2-3. Browse some 85 vendors for items including whipped hydrating body scrubs, Kokedamas, botanicals, terrariums, succulents, hand-made soaps and candles, crystals, local cheeses, apple butter made in Warwick. Tickets come with a free beer, cocktail or coffee. $5. 475 Valley St, Providence. Details here.
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GOAT YOGA
You know you’ve always wanted to try it. Now’s your chance. Downward dog with a four-legged friend at Simmons Farm in Middletown April 3. According to the event details, you’ll choose your goat and walk to the clover patch for a “contemplative stretch.” Note that the walk is a quarter-mile. Dress to get a bit dirty. Strolling the working farm, you’ll see wildflowers, pigs and grazing cattle. From $30. 10 a.m. 1942 West Main Road, Middletown. Details here. Weather permitting. Details here.
WINE, BEER AND LIVE MUSIC
Raise a glass and toast to spring at Newport Vineyard’s 19th Annual Springfest. Hop on it: There are still tickets left for both of the sessions on April 3; April 2 is sold-out. Admission gets you a choice of five tastes from wine and beer bars, plus live music to listen to. Food and additional beverages available for purchase. Plus — if you’ve only seen it in movies or “I Love Lucy” — check out the grape-stomping at 12:30 and 3:30 p.m. Want to stomp? You might be able to. Stompers will be randomly selected from the audience. #Stomp. Reserve online. $32. 909 East Main Road, Middletown. Details here.
WHISKEY A GO GO
If you’re more of a whiskey drinker, the Industrious Spirit Company in Providence takes fans on a behind-the-scenes tour of their distillery April 3 at 11:30 a.m.. Afterwards, sample goods and score a merch discount. $10. Masks required. Tours are twice monthly. 1 Sims Avenue, #103. Details here.
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“DEAR EVAN HANSEN”
If you cringed at the movie adaptation, try the critically acclaimed play. The tale of “the letter that was never meant to be seen, a lie that was never meant to be told” stole hearts on Broadway. Now the winner of six 2017 Tony Awards — and 2018 “Best Musical Theater Album” Grammy, to boot — makes its PPAC debut April 5-10. Tickets from $65. 220 Weybosset St. Providence. 401-421-2787. Details here.
LES FILLES DE ILLIGHADAD
Check out Les Filles De Illighadad at The Columbus Theater April 6, presented by PVD World Music. The music is a dreamscape, and the bio on their label website so compelling, I want to share it here:
“Les Filles de Illighadad come from a secluded commune in central Niger, far off in the scrubland deserts at the edge of the Sahara. The village is only accessible via a grueling drive through the open desert and there is little infrastructure, no electricity or running water.”
Tradiaitonally, the women of the nomad camps sing “tende” music. Guitar is a recent arrival, discovered in the 1970s by Tuareg menin exile in Libya and Algeria, and played mostly by men. This group brings the two sounds together.
“Fatou Seidi Ghali, lead vocalist and performer of Les Filles de Illighadad is one of the only Tuareg female guitarists in Niger. Sneaking away with her older brother’s guitar, she taught herself to play.”
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I love all of this. $15. Doors 7 p.m., show 8 p.m. 270 Broadway, Providence. (401) 621-9660. Details here and here.
RHODE ISLAND BLACK FILM FEST
Packed with shorts and feature-length films from around the U.S., the 5th Annual Rhode Island Black Film Festival kicks off April 6 at the Redwood Library and Anthenaeum in Newport, and hits the CIC Building and Johnson & Wales in Providence, according to their website. This year’s theme: “Environmental Justice In A Climate Of Change.” More details here and here.
SUENO TIME
Meanwhile at Trinity Rep, “Sueno” (Spanish for “Dream”) swings in April 7. The contemporary English-language play by José Rivera is translated and adapted from the 17th century Spanish play by Pedro Calderón de la Barca. According to the billing, “Sueno” is a “humorous and haunting metaphysical story peppered with intentional anachronisms…Years after a Spanish prince is imprisoned at birth based on astrological predictions, the young man is released to test the prophesies. Once freed, his actions could either earn him the throne or return him to a lifetime of isolation…” #Yikes. 201 Washington St., Providence. (401) 351-4242. Details here.
LOL TIME
Comedian Dan Soder, who stars on Showtime’s “Billions,” brings the funny to East Providence with three nights at the Comedy Connection April 7-9. You might also know him from “Inside Amy Schumer,” “CONAN” spots, or “The Standups” on Netflix. April 7 at 7:30, April 8 at 7:30 and 9:45, April 9 at 9:30. 39 Warren Ave. 401-438-8383. Details here.
“IRONBOUND”
Running now through April 10 at Game Theatre, “Ironbound,” from Pulitzer-Prize-winning playwright Martyna Marjok, tells the story of Darja, a Polish immigrant, and her struggles over 22 years and three relationships. From $50.25. 1245 Jefferson Blvd., Warwick. 401.723.4266.. Details here. Read review here
Until next week, Rhody: Keep rockin’.
Lauren Daley can be reached at ldaley33@gmail.com. Follow her on Twiiter @laurendaley1. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/new-fan-area-opening-behind-right-field-bleachers-fenway-park-this-season/ | Fenway Park is adding an area behind the right-field bleachers for fans this season, along with other amenities to enhance the game-day experience at the beloved ballyard, according to a Red Sox spokesperson and city documents.
Team spokesperson Zineb Curran confirmed via email Friday that additions are coming.
Curran said the Red Sox will “be providing information on the new area behind the bleachers and other new amenities for fans this season closer to our home opener on April 15. We’ll be resuming our traditional walkthrough with the Mayor a few days before that to preview all the new improvements.”
The team provides some details on its website, where tickets are currently available for the new Bleacher Overlook and 521 Overlook sections. The Bleacher Overlook spot includes “stool seating with drink rail” for your diet soda and is located “steps away from the NESN studio,” the site says.
The site says the 521 Overlook — likely named for the 521 career home runs smashed by legendary Red Sox slugger Ted Williams, who deposited many poorly located fastballs into the right-field stands — includes “a private deck overlooking Fenway Park,” a private entrance to the park, and “access to brand new convention space.”
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The Red Sox in 2018 filed proposed renovations to the bleacher section at Fenway with the city. The proposal included a new function room providing “sweeping views” of the field. Jonathan Gilula, the Sox executive vice president and chief operating officer, said in a 2018 letter to planning officials that the proposal also included a 5,000-seat Fenway Theater alongside Fenway.
Regarding the bleachers, Gilula wrote that the proposed upgrades include “a new area connected to the back of the ballpark’s bleachers that will feature concession stands, restrooms, and other elements designed to enhance the fan experience in the bleachers.”
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It wasn’t immediately clear Friday how much of the initial proposal made it into the final design. The theater is currently under construction, according to the city’s Planning & Development Agency.
The project description for the theater posted to the agency’s website describes it as “an approximately 91,500 square foot, approximately 5,400 person capacity performing arts center. The proposed project is located on a 64,700 square foot parcel at the corner of Ipswich and Lansdowne streets, adjacent to Fenway Park.”
The agency notes that the proposed project “also entails improvements to Fenway Park, including a new area connected to the back of the ballpark’s bleachers with concession stands, restrooms, and function space, and renovations to the existing Fenway Garage connecting the new venue to the ballpark.”
John Henry, principal owner of the Red Sox, also owns The Boston Globe.
Material from prior Globe stories was used in this report.
Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/mass-marine-killed-norway-crash-be-honored-with-procession-vigil/ | LEOMINSTER — A Massachusetts Marine killed last month in a training drill in Norway will be honored with a procession and a vigil this weekend as his body returns to his hometown.
The Leominster Department of Veterans’ Services said Friday the body of Marine Captain Ross Reynolds is expected to arrive in the city on Saturday afternoon between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. after being flown into Logan Airport in Boston. Residents are encouraged to line the streets along the route to honor the fallen solider.
A candlelight vigil will then be held at 7 p.m. Sunday at Leominster City Hall.
And a public wake will be held Monday afternoon at city hall. The funeral Mass will be held at St. Cecilia’s Church Tuesday morning and also be broadcast live at city hall.
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The burial at the Massachusetts Memorial Veterans’ Cemetery in Winchendon will be private.
Reynolds, a 27-year-old Osprey pilot joined the Marines in 2017, was one of four Marines killed when their aircraft crashed during a NATO drill on March 18 in a Norwegian town in the Arctic Circle.
The cause of the crash remains under investigation, but Norwegian police reported bad weather in the area. Officials in Norway said the MV-22B Osprey crashed in Graetaedalen in Beiarn, south of Bodoe.
The men were all assigned to Marine Medium Tiltrotor Squadron 261, Marine Aircraft Group 26, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing stationed at Marine Corps Air Station New River, North Carolina. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/polarized-over-time/ | Sage Stossel is an Atlantic contributing editor and author of the children’s book “On the Loose in Boston.’’ Follow her on Twitter @sagestossel.
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Sage Stossel is an Atlantic contributing editor and author of the children’s book “On the Loose in Boston.’’ Follow her on Twitter @sagestossel. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/unraveled/ | Christopher Weyant is a cartoonist and illustrator. Follow him at @ChristophWeyant. You can see his work at christopherweyant.com
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Christopher Weyant is a cartoonist and illustrator. Follow him at @ChristophWeyant. You can see his work at christopherweyant.com | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/all-over-map-husband-wife-team-runs-5ks-all-351-mass-cities-towns-year/ | HULL — On an ice-cold January afternoon, the windows of the silver Volkswagen Golf parked along Nantasket Beach are all fogged up. Inside, there’s no hanky-panky going on, just run recovery. Lisa and Thomas Mikkelsen are on a mission to run 5 kilometers in every city and town in Massachusetts. That’s 351 communities in 365 days.
The husband-and-wife team from Holliston started last April Fools Day.
“We chose that date specifically because it just seemed appropriate for something like this,” says Thomas, a software engineer.
Today they’ve already run Plympton, Pembroke, and Hingham. Now they’re taking a break, trying to keep warm before Run No. 287. Thomas sips Red Bull, looking for a jolt for the fourth run of the day. Lisa never needs caffeine.
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Neither one is native to the Commonwealth.
“We’re tourists here,” says Lisa, who was born in Hawaii and raised in California.
Thomas was born in Australia and grew up in New Zealand. The couple met at a running club in Framingham about 25 years ago.
They are humble about their racing accomplishments.
Thomas, 49, has run four 100-mile races, including a second-place finish in the first Mother Road 100 in Oklahoma on parts of the original Route 66.
Lisa, 56, holds the national indoor 400-meter record for women ages 50-54, which she set in 2017. She also has won the CrossFit Games as a masters athlete twice (2012, 2013) and became the USATF New England Ultramarathon Masters/Open champion.
Together they completed the 197-mile Green Mountain Relay in 2008, normally a 12-person race.
But when Thomas got a job in Davis Square, his running pretty much ground to a stop. Then one day while sitting around watching TV, the idea came to him. A 5K in every town would be easy, he thought. All of a sudden, he was reborn to run.
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“I was trying to get myself motivated to get out the door and have a routine,” he says. “I’m no athlete, just a guy that wants to get back into a sport I have loved.”
It took several margaritas to get Lisa, a project manager at Dell, to sign on.
They were excited but nervous.
“The running has been easy, but the commitment and the logistics have been really hard,” says Thomas.
Together they plot their weekend courses, usually loops of previous 5Ks. Six or seven a weekend.
Their quest is not speed. They usually take 26-33 minutes per run because they stop to pet dogs, or take pictures of local landmarks or funny signs like the one they saw in a Fairhaven liquor store. It read, “Done with the Pfizer, bring on the Budweiser.”
Not everything goes according to plan.
A planned five-town run on a Saturday in December in Western Massachusetts was a washout. They had planned to run Charlemont, Hawley, Buckland, Shelburne, and Greenfield. But torrential rain and sleet greeted them.
Lisa, the optimist, wanted to proceed.
“I fully embrace the Swedish notion that there’s no bad weather,” she says. “There’s just bad clothes.”
Thomas was willing, sort of.
“Somehow Lisa convinced me to get out of the van and actually start running,” he says. “And within the first quarter-mile, both of us had slipped on ice and finally decided this is just ridiculous. We’re going home.”
It was the only time they weren’t able to finish.
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Massachusetts drivers, not known for politeness, have given them a wide berth — except for one woman who ran them off the road in Chatham, turned the car around, slowed down, and gave them the evil eye.
In Hull, they run along windswept streets looking at the local architecture and talking about re-siding their house.
Twice Thomas has lost his car keys and had to retrace his steps. Twice they have been charged by aggressive dogs. Running in the forest in Cummington, a bird of prey, talons out, swooped down on them.
“All of a sudden I hear above me this flapping of booming wings and he’s right over me,” says Thomas, “so now I’m running, hill be damned.”
They couldn’t identify the bird.
“I was too terrified to take a picture,” he says.
Lisa laughs and says that even when they left the forest, the bird followed them to their car, squawking.
“He was not happy with us,” she says. “I tucked my ponytail in and we ran fast. That was probably the most uncomfortable I was.”
By Feb. 6, they were on to Runs Nos. 301-303. They ran part of the Boston Marathon course in Newton, around Brookline Reservoir, and through downtown Waltham. Ice and snow piles and 25-mile gusts made it difficult.
“It’s starting to feel like a bit of a chore,” confided a chilled Lisa after finishing. Then they changed again in their fogged-up car and stopped into a local brewery for a pint.
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The Bay State has surprised them with its beauty and diversity.
“What’s amazing to me is that it doesn’t matter where we go — whether it’s on the coast or on the western part of the state — the towns that are next to each other, they all have a different feel to them,” says Lisa. “They all have a different vibe.”
Thomas agreed.
“Massachusetts is beautiful,” he says. “It really opened our eyes to how much there is to see here.”
On March 13, they completed their last run in their hometown of Holliston, 19 days ahead of schedule.
They celebrated with bubbly.
“Champagne, yes, we violated the public drinking laws and had a toast with friends outside Town Hall,” Thomas wrote in an email. “We figured we could explain it away if the police arrived to check on us.
“For me it was a mix of relief, elation, and sadness all rolled into one on the day.”
It also gave him a new appreciation of ordinary chores.
“Having spent this past weekend working on the garden and a deck much in need of repair and staining, I’m super thrilled to have our weekends back.”
Lisa was happy to put the 351 Challenge in the rearview mirror.
“It’s been a fun distraction for me and something that I’ll look back on and shake my head,” she wrote in an email. “Another one of Thomas’s hair brained ideas!”
Stan Grossfeld can be reached at stanley.grossfeld@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/amazon-workers-staten-island-vote-unionize-overcoming-odds-become-companys-first-us-facility-organize/ | NEW YORK (AP) — Amazon workers in Staten Island, New York, voted to unionize on Friday, marking the first successful U.S. organizing effort in the retail giant’s history and handing an unexpected win to a nascent group that fueled the union drive.
Warehouse workers cast 2,654 votes in favor of a union, giving the fledgling Amazon Labor Union enough support to pull off a victory. According to the National Labor Relations Board, which is overseeing the process, 2,131 workers rejected the union bid.
The 67 ballots that were challenged by either Amazon or the ALU were not enough to sway the outcome. About 57% of the more than 8,300 workers on the voter list cast their ballots.
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Federal labor officials said the results of the count won’t be verified until they process any objections that both parties may file. Any objections are due by April 8.
The victory was an uphill battle for the independent group, made up of former and current workers who lacked official backing from an established union and were out-gunned by the deep-pocketed retail giant. Despite obstacles, organizers believed their grassroots approach was more relatable to workers and could help them overcome where established unions have failed in the past.
Tristan Dutchin, who began working for the online retailer about a year ago, is hopeful that the new union will improve working conditions at his workplace.
“I’m excited that we’re making history,” Dutchin said. “We’re about to unionize a multibillion, trillion-dollar company. This will be a fantastic time for workers to be surrounded in a better, safer working environment.”
Chris Smalls, a fired Amazon employee who has been leading the ALU in its fight on Staten Island, bounded out the NLRB building in Brooklyn on Friday with other union organizers, pumping their fists and jumping, chanting “ALU.” They uncorked a bottle if Champagne.
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Meanwhile, Amazon workers in Bessemer, Alabama, appear to have rejected a union bid but outstanding challenged ballots could change the outcome. The votes were 993-to-875 against the union. A hearing to review 416 challenged ballots is expected to begin in the next few days.
The union campaigns come at a time of widespread labor unrest at many corporations. Workers at more than 140 Starbucks locations around the country, for instance, have requested union elections and several of them have already been successful.
John Logan, director of labor and employment studies at San Francisco State University, said the early vote counts in New York have been “shocking.” The nascent Amazon Labor Union, which is leading the charge on Staten Island, has no backing from an established union and is powered by former and current warehouse workers.
“I don’t think that many people thought that the Amazon Labor Union had much of a chance of winning at all,” Logan said. “And I think we’re likely to see more of those (approaches) going forward.”
After a crushing defeat last year in Bessemer, when a majority of workers voted against forming a union, the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union got a second chance to organize another campaign when the NLRB ordered a do-over after determining that Amazon tainted the first election.
Though RWDSU is currently lagging in the latest election, Logan said the early results were still remarkable because the union has made a good effort narrowing its margin from last year.
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Amazon has pushed back hard in the lead-up to both elections. The retail giant held mandatory meetings, where workers were told unions are a bad idea. The company also launched an anti-union website targeting workers and placed English and Spanish posters across the Staten Island facility urging them to reject the union. In Bessemer, Amazon has made some changes to but still kept a controversial U.S. Postal Service mailbox that was key in the NLRB’s decision to invalidate last year’s vote.
In a filing released on Thursday, Amazon disclosed it spent about $4.2 million last year on labor consultants, which organizers say the retailer routinely solicits to persuade workers not to unionize. It’s unclear how much it spent on such services in 2022.
Both labor fights faced unique challenges. Alabama, for instance, is a right-to-work state that prohibits a company and a union from signing a contract that requires workers to pay dues to the union that represents them.
The union landscape in Alabama is also starkly different from New York. Last year, union members accounted for 22.2% of wage and salary workers in New York, ranked only behind Hawaii, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s more than double the national average of 10.3%. In Alabama, it’s 5.9%.
The mostly Black workforce at the Amazon facility, which opened in 2020, mirrors the Bessemer population of more than 70% Black residents, according to the latest U.S. Census data.
Pro-union workers say they want better working conditions, longer breaks and higher wages. Regular full-time employees at the Bessemer facility earn at least $15.80 an hour, higher than the estimated $14.55 per hour on average in the city. That figure is based on an analysis of the U.S. Census Bureau’s annual median household income for Bessemer of $30,284, which could include more than one worker.
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The ALU said they don’t have a demographic breakdown of the warehouse workers on Staten Island and Amazon declined to provide the information to The Associated Press, citing the union vote. Internal records leaked to The New York Times from 2019 showed more than 60% of the hourly associates at the facility were Black or Latino, while most of managers were white or Asian.
Amazon workers there are seeking longer breaks, paid time off for injured employees and an hourly wage of $30, up from a minimum of just over $18 per hour offered by the company. The estimated average wage for the borough is $41 per hour, according to a similar U.S. Census Bureau analysis of Staten Island’s $85,381 median household income.
A spokesperson for Amazon said the company invests in wages and benefits, such as health care, 401(k) plans and a prepaid college tuition program to help grow workers’ careers.
“As a company, we don’t think unions are the best answer for our employees,” the spokesperson said in an emailed statement. “Our focus remains on working directly with our team to continue making Amazon a great place to work.”
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Associated Press staff writers Tali Arbel and Bobby Caina Calvan in New York contributed to this report. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/new-vehicles-must-average-40-miles-per-gallon-by-2026-up-24/ | DETROIT (AP) — New vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026, up from about 28 mpg, under new federal rules unveiled Friday.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback of standards enacted under President Donald Trump. For the current model year, standards enacted under Trump require the fleet of new vehicles to get just under 28 miles per gallon in real-world driving. The new requirements increase gas mileage by 8% per year for model years 2024 and 2025 and 10% in the 2026 model year.
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Agency officials say the requirements are the maximum that the industry can achieve over the time period and will reduce gasoline consumption by more than 220 billion gallons over the life of vehicles, compared with the Trump standards.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose department includes the NHTSA, said the rules also will help strengthen national security by making the country less dependent on foreign oil and less vulnerable to volatile gasoline prices. Gasoline nationwide has spiked to an average of more than $4.22 per gallon, with much of the increase coming since Russia, a major oil producer, invaded Ukraine in late February. It cost $2.88 per gallon just a year ago, according to AAA.
Gas prices also have helped to fuel inflation to a 40-year high, eating up household budgets and hitting President Joe Biden’s approval ratings.
“Transportation is the second-largest cost for American families, only behind housing,” Buttigieg said. The new standards, he said, will help keep the U.S. more secure and preserve “the freedom of our country to chart its future without being subject to other countries and to the decisions that are being made in the boardrooms of energy companies.”
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But auto dealers say more stringent requirements drive up prices and push people out of an already expensive new-car market.
Trump’s administration rolled back fuel economy standards, allowing them to rise 1.5% per year, which environmental groups said was inadequate to limit planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions that fuel climate change. The standards had been rising about 5% per year previously.
But the new standards won’t immediately match those adopted through 2025 under President Barack Obama. NHTSA officials said they will equal the Obama standards by 2025 and slightly exceed them for the 2026 model year.
The Obama-era standards automatically adjusted for changes in the type of vehicles people are buying. When they were enacted in 2012, 51% of new vehicle sales were cars and 49% SUVs and trucks. Last year, 77% of new vehicle sales were SUVs and trucks, which generally are less efficient than cars.
Some environmental groups said the new requirements from NHTSA under Biden don’t go far enough to fight global warming. Others supported the new standards as a big step toward reducing emissions.
“Climate change has gotten much worse, but these rules only require automakers to reduce gas-guzzling slightly more than they agreed to cut nine years ago,” said Dan Becker, director of the Safe Climate Transport Center at the Center for Biological Diversity.
He said the final rule is about 2 mpg short of the strongest alternative that NHTSA considered.
Officials said that under the new standards, owners would save about $1,400 in gasoline costs during the lifetime of a 2029 model year vehicle. Carbon dioxide emissions would drop by 2.5 billion metric tons by 2050 under the standards, the NHTSA said.
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Automakers are investing billions of dollars to develop and build electric vehicles but say government support is needed to get people to buy them. The companies want government tax credits to reduce prices as well as more money for EV charging stations to ease anxiety over running out of juice.
Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, said Friday it’s investing $35 billion on electric and hybrid vehicles and to become carbon neutral by 2038. “These aims are critical to a sustainable future, and are more likely to be realized with government support for a widespread EV recharging network, point-of-sale EV purchase incentives, and inducements to expand electric-vehicle manufacturing in the U.S.,” the company said in a statement.
The NHTSA sets fuel economy requirements, while the Environmental Protection Agency develops limits on greenhouse gas emissions. NHTSA officials said their requirements nearly match rules adopted in December by the EPA, so automakers don’t have to comply with two rules.
___
This story has been corrected to show the current real-world mileage requirement under the Trump administration rules is 28 mpg, not 24 mpg. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/white-house-press-secretary-jen-psaki-is-talks-join-msnbc/ | Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, is in advanced talks with MSNBC to join the network after she leaves the Biden administration, according to two people familiar with the negotiations.
Psaki could leave the White House as soon as next month, one of the people said.
While the details of her role are still being discussed, the negotiations have centered on an arrangement in which she could host shows both for MSNBC and for Peacock, the streaming platform of MSNBC’s parent, NBCUniversal. Psaki could also make regular appearances on other MSNBC shows as well as on NBC News, the people said.
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Although a deal is not yet finalized and could still fall apart, Psaki is now only talking with NBCUniversal officials, the two people said. CNN had also been pursuing bringing Psaki aboard, one of them said.
Axios earlier reported the news of Psaki’s discussions with NBC.
In a statement, the White House said, “We don’t have anything to confirm about Jen’s length of planned service or any consideration about future plans. Jen is here and working hard every day on behalf of the president to get you the answers to the questions that you have, and that’s where her focus is.”
Psaki joined the Biden administration as the president’s first press secretary. She had previously worked as White House communications director during the Obama administration and had been the chief spokesperson for John Kerry when he was secretary of state.
Psaki revived the daily White House briefing, a tradition that mostly fell by the wayside in the Trump years, and has won praise for her adroit, if sometimes evasive, handling of reporters’ questions.
Her spiky exchanges with Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy are often shared widely on social media platforms. On TikTok, the phrase “Psaki Bomb” is invoked by liberals who enjoy seeing her rebukes to Doocy’s queries.
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Earlier this year, NBC also hired Vice President Kamala Harris’ former spokesperson, Symone D. Sanders, to host a show for MSNBC and Peacock. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/five-things-do-around-boston-april-4-10/ | Monday
Ethics, With a Laugh
Facing a moral dilemma? Visit the WBUR CitySpace event venue for a discussion with The Good Place creator Michael Schur. The writer and producer will discuss his new book, How to Be Perfect: The Correct Answer to Every Moral Question, and also sign copies. In-person tickets from $15, virtual and student tickets $5. 6:30 p.m. wbur.org/events
Thursday-Sunday
Jazz Hands
Dozens of musicians will converge for the 11th Annual Arlington Jazz Festival, with four days of events at various town venues. Headliner Mark Walker and Friends featuring Randy Brecker will perform at 7 p.m. Sunday at the Regent Theatre in Arlington. Tickets range from free to $50, depending on the act and venue. Find schedule, prices at arlingtonjazz.org.
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Friday and Saturday
Honoring Kerouac
Explore music and art at The Town and The City Festival in downtown Lowell. Named after Jack Kerouac’s first published novel, the event pays homage to the Lowell native and showcases artists and musicians at several locations. Ticket prices range from free to $25. Find schedule and prices at thetownandthecityfestival.com.
Saturday
Comics, Costumes, and Creatives
Legendary and local comic book artists. An art show. Cosplayers. Photo-ops. A costume contest with a $1,000 prize. Wicked Comic Con, at The Westin Boston Seaport District, will have it all. Festivities run from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., with a 21-plus after-party at Laugh Boston. Convention tickets are $22; free admission for kids 12 and younger. wickedcomiccon.com
Saturday and Sunday
Champs for a Cure
Head to the Bright-Landry Hockey Center in Allston to be awed by world-class skaters and support a good cause. Now in its 50th year, the Evening With Champions exhibition will be hosted by Olympians Emily Hughes and Paul Wylie and raise money for the Jimmy Fund. Tickets from $27, with discounts available. Shows at 7 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. aneveningwithchampions.org
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Share your event news. Send information on Boston-area happenings at least three weeks in advance to week@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/home-design-ideas-making-living-room-into-true-multifunctional-space/ | Georgia Zikas’ newlywed clients asked her to turn the living area of their West Hartford condo into a gorgeous, multipurpose space for entertaining, studying, and relaxing. Given the room’s small size, the design had to be efficient and eye-catching. “One of my superpowers is space planning,” Zikas says. “When I saw the nook, I thought: Banquette.” To create a collected feel, the designer started with a 1920s Heriz rug. One owner has several guitars, she says, “So I played off the notion of the traditional rugs you see scattered on the stage at a classic rock concert.”
1 The freestanding banquette with channel stitching does double duty as a dining table and a desk. “It can be repurposed in a foyer, a breakfast room, or at the foot of a bed if they move to a larger place,” Zikas says.
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2 A 48-inch, marble-topped table replaced a chunky wooden one that dominated the room. “The pedestal has a lovely glow and ties to the mirrors,” Zikas says.
3 To take advantage of the room’s only window, Zikas hung a large mirror over the banquette. The gilded frame infuses an Old World vibe. The drum shade keeps the gold-framed light fixture feeling casual.
4 Velvety performance fabric on the sofa stands up to the couple’s two cats, while the dark blue color adds visual weight. The leather storage ottoman from local maker Oak & Velvet holds throws, sheet music, and such.
5 Partial to using small-batch textiles to elevate a space, Zikas curated a mix of custom pillows then snuck one in from HomeGoods. “If you use feather-filled inserts, it’s hard to tell which are the expensive ones,” she says.
6 The designer brought the couple to J. Namnoun Rug Gallery in Hartford to find the antique rug that kicked off the feel of the space.
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Marni Elyse Katz is a regular contributor to the Globe Magazine. Send comments to magazine@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/letters-editor-globe-magazine/ | Airing Concerns
Interesting Perspective (“The Danger Coming From Inside the House,” February 13) about the indoor pollution we create. I am delighted to note that one of author Greg Harris’s means of addressing it is adding plants. “Cracking” the windows is also good. Another idea, which I do on all but the very coldest days: first thing in the morning, when the outside air is cleanest (presumably, and at least out in the wooded suburbs), go around the house, significantly open a window on each wall, then repeat the circuit to close them. It takes very little time, encourages some cross-ventilation, and the freshness of the air is delicious!
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Ann Somers
Brookline, New Hampshire
I think it’s important for homeowners to know that gas stoves can create air quality issues. Families with young children should be aware, as kids are more prone to developing respiratory issues. And, with a gas stove, you are still depending on fossil fuel; switching to electric — or induction! — and opting into renewable energy through your utility, and/or offsetting your electricity use with rooftop solar, would go a long way toward reducing that dependence.
hat19
posted on bostonglobe.com
This was a frightening article — more things to worry about in our environment! Fortunately, we have an electric stove, toaster oven, etc., but we heat with oil. We live in a house with a two-car garage underneath our two bedrooms, which has been terrific for keeping our cars warm in the winter. However, I
assume we have been breathing fossil fuel emissions that float up to the rooms above. If we were to stay in this house, it would probably be wise to invest in a couple of mini-splits for heat and air, and park the cars outside!
Linda Layman
Hamilton
Most people who live close to traffic and cook with gas stoves will not die of the things listed here — but we all will die of something. Live your life in moderation and stop looking around every nook and cranny for evils. Stress can kill too.
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edsox15
posted on bostonglobe.com
Every advance in improving our environment probably started with someone noticing some area of pollution and then finding ways to rectify it through legislation and through people no longer accepting casual pollution. Anyone else out there remember lead gasoline and the old cars spewing exhaust? We’ve come a long way, but have a long way to go.
liberal to a degree
posted on bostonglobe.com
Words to Live By
Wanted to write and say how much I enjoyed this Connections (“Love Note,” February 13). I read it three times over the course of two days. Beautiful! Reminded me how much my husband loved me.
Lucy Bramanti
Burlington
In 1965, two friends and I took a hiatus from our jobs and traveled throughout Europe for three months. At the time, I had met the man I was going to marry. He promised to write, as did I. He and others had our itinerary, so, as there were no cellphones then, one would use the American Express offices in major cities to receive mail from the States. And mail I got — lots of love letters and notes from my intended. I have them still in a box nearby. Over the years (we will celebrate 55 years together this year), I have used these love letters as a reaffirmation of our commitment to one another. I have tactile proof of his love for me. Pen and ink on paper! Lucky me!
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Mary Jane Quinn
Reading
Heartwarming and comforting to read on a cozy, snowy Sunday morning in this chaotic, too-much-technology, yet still beautiful, handwritten, world.
Jill Sylvester
Hanover
What a touching and lovely story.
Mary Anne Pozzo
Canton
I loved a man who lived 3,000 miles away. We had shared but one kiss, and then parted with so much left unsaid. I didn’t know if I would ever see him again; long-distance phone calls were expensive. We wrote. Carefully, I think, keeping it light, friendly. Months later, he dropped a remark that went deep into my heart: He had saved all my letters, and reread them. Of course, I had done the same. Last year we reread all them aloud in bed, sorted by date, one or two a night. It took almost eight weeks. We’ve been married almost 34 years. I wouldn’t change a thing.
Wendie A. Howland
Pocasset
Loved this piece! I even posted it on my Facebook page.
Abby Woodbury
Brookline
Put the note in a frame as a gift to [the couple] (with a copy of this column attached to the back, for future generations to put it in context), stains and all. It would be a lovely token of their relationship.
Tackjoan
posted on bostonglobe.com
Concerns on Campus
Great article by Wendy Fischman and Howard Gardner on the issues facing college students today (“No, College Students Aren’t Obsessed With Free Speech. Here’s What They Do Worry About,” February 20). I am the father of four college graduates, with master’s degrees, and eight grandchildren of whom four so far have graduated college. This article is right on and I am sending it to my children and grandchildren. The one thing I want to emphasize is that you don’t go to college to get a job — you go to college to learn how to learn.
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Bernie Cronin
Gloucester
I think the authors might wish to differentiate undergraduates from students in graduate programs. I am a site visitor for the Commission on Accreditation of the American Psychological Association, which accredits professional doctoral programs. These programs make it clear from the start that they expect all of their students to graduate and succeed, and view their role as helping students do just that. When our site visiting team interviewed nearly all the programs’ students in residence, they confirmed this. We found little anxiety over grades. They make it clear that the program’s faculty and other resources are present to help students who have problems. They also monitor student progress closely and actively intervene if they spot a problem. I wish more of this could take place at the undergraduate level.
Steve Schwartz
retired professor of psychology, University of Massachusetts Boston
I went to Texas A&M University in 1970. I was convinced you needed to make straight A’s. Well, more like coerced — to get into vet school you will need to make A’s because the competition is fierce. For a 17-year-old, that is powerful stuff. All I could think of was not making an A in one course. That’s all it would take to completely ruin my life. I would love to see this fixed so no one else will suffer.
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Mikel Parkhurst
Red Oak, Texas
Thinking that college should ONLY be about establishing a vocation, a résumé, building a career, that really shortchanges younger generations, and also continues to erode any curiosity about different ideas. Education should be a lifelong activity, cherished for what it is in and of itself, rather than just a means to a bigger paycheck. College has been, and still has the potential to be, a period of “pause and exploration” between being a child and being a full-fledged, working, contributing adult. A chance to try things, take courses, attend special events or talks that one might otherwise not have been exposed to. Fostering the development of thoughtful, attentive, open-minded, curious adults will only make our society better.
ModernMetta
posted on bostonglobe.com
CONTACT US: Write to magazine@globe.com or The Boston Globe Magazine/Comments, 1 Exchange Place, Suite 201, Boston, MA 02109-2132. Comments are subject to editing. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/magazine/sale-condos-with-two-porches-belmont-jamaica-plain/ | $485,000
14 MARION ROAD #2 / BELMONT
SQUARE FEET 955
CONDO FEE $179 a month
BEDROOMS 2 BATHS 1
LAST SOLD FOR $295,000 in 2007
PROS With an east-facing porch off the front stairwell, this unit — on the second floor of a 1911 three-family near the Cambridge line — offers a side of morning sunshine with your coffee. Enter through a good-sized mudroom to find bay windows and hardwood floors in the open living and dining rooms; the latter also features a built-in china cabinet. A walk-through closet offers hidden storage and a secret second passage to the main hallway, where two bedrooms share an updated bath. The sunny kitchen offers a full pantry, plus access to the west-facing porch in back. There’s storage and shared laundry in the basement. Unit includes one deeded parking space. CONS Kitchen is dated; condo trust has limited cash reserves.
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David Hurley, BHHS Commonwealth, 617-285-1522, David.Hurley@commonmoves.com
$599,000
6 LOURDES AVENUE #3 / JAMAICA PLAIN
SQUARE FEET 1,063
CONDO FEE $225 a month
BEDROOMS 3 BATHS 1
LAST SOLD FOR $495,000 in 2017
PROS This top-floor unit crowns a 1905 three-decker near Franklin Park, the Green Street MBTA station, and the Southwest Corridor Park bicycle path. The entry foyer leads to a dining room with chair rail and a built-in china cabinet. French doors off the adjacent living room open to a bright bedroom or office with access to the covered front deck. Two more bedrooms flank a newer bath, while the kitchen features granite counters, hardwood floors, and a deep pantry with full-size washer and dryer. Off the back hallway, find another spacious porch, this one facing south. There’s a private storage room in the recently repointed basement, and the unit includes deeded driveway parking and roof rights. CONS No yard; the third bedroom feels like an office.
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Eric Glassoff, Coldwell Banker, 617-233-6210, Eric.Glassoff@NEMoves.com
Jon Gorey is a regular contributor to the Globe Magazine. Send comments to magazine@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/landmark-status-wont-be-pursued-newton-senior-center-building/ | In a 5 to 2 vote, the Newton Historical Commission decided March 24 not to pursue landmark status for the Newton Senior Center building, allowing the Newton Center for Active Living project to move forward.
One of the commissioners to co-nominate the landmarking application, Mark Armstrong, was among those who voted against further studying the site for landmarking.
Before the commission voted, Josh Morse, head of the NewCAL project, said renovating and adding to the building rather than demolishing it would lengthen the construction schedule, displacing senior programming for longer.
Doug Cornelius, a historical commission member who voted against the landmark study, said there was no reason to delay the process.
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“The Americans with Disability Act is not a design law, it’s a civil rights law,” Cornelius said at the meeting. “I can’t think of a building more important to have full, universal accessibility than the senior center.”
Peter Dimond, who chairs the commission and voted in favor of a landmark study, said the NewCAL debate has been about either historical preservation or a new senior center, but they are two separate things.
“It was presented to everyone as an either-or proposition,” Dimond said in an interview. “It was reframed that you can’t support both.”
Amanda Park, the other commission member who voted in favor of further studying the site, said at the meeting the issue is becoming “politicized in a way that preservation is not inherently supposed to be.”
“We have no urban planning component to the commission,” Park said in an interview. “It’s like those angles have been put upon us.”
Demolishing the building, Morse said at the meeting, would have cost an estimated $5 million to $6 million more than renovating and adding to it.
However, Park, an architectural conservator, said in an interview it’s always cheaper to reuse than to build new.
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In order for the historical commission to accept the landmarking nomination, the building needed to meet at least one of four criteria related to architectural design, notable architects and designers, cultural significance and historical events, among other things.
Tonya Loveday Merrem, a project preservation planner from Epsilon Associates — a historical preservation planning consultant working with NewCAL — said at the meeting the building does not fit the four criteria in the landmark ordinance.
“The building is a typical example of the colonial revival style, the most common style in American architecture and the style used most frequently by its architects,” Merrem said. She also said alterations made to the building when the Newtonville branch library was converted into a senior center impacted its architectural integrity.
Julia Malakie, one of the city councilors who co-filed the landmarking application, said at the meeting she thinks the building meets all four criteria.
Tarik Lucas, another councilor on the application, pointed to how notable people were involved in the building’s creation and opening ceremony, including poet Robert Frost, stained-glass artisan Charles Connick, and architect E. Donald Robb.
“We have a world-famous poet, a world-famous artist and a nationally-known architect all coming together to create a building in one of our village centers, and this happened during the Great Depression,” Lucas said at the meeting. “Can we think of another example of this in Newton? How about Massachusetts?”
Lucas said Connick and Robb worked together on the original building and mentioned the importance of the two stained-glass windows, which were based on poems by Frost and Emily Dickinson.
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“I hope that the city and their consultants work closely with the Connick Foundation going forward on the relocation of Connick’s windows, and they are put in the best location,” Lucas said in an interview.
Malakie said the “pocket park” outside the senior center — which was built in 2004 — is the only public green space in the village center.
“Seventeen years ago, the landscape in front of the senior center was considered important enough to invest in improving,” Malakie said at the meeting.
Jayne Colino, who wrote the grant for the park and is director of the Newton Department of Senior Services, said in an interview any outdoor space for the new building will be respected more than the current “rundown” park.
Colino, also a member of the Newton Council on Aging, said while some feel NewCAL’s plans for a 3rd-floor roof deck will be less inviting than the existing park, they will try to create an inviting culture.
“Maybe we have to create some programming that deliberately invites people up,” Colino said. “But that’s exactly what we’ll do.”
Lucas said in an interview NewCAL should address how they will be building over the open space in front of the building because Massachusetts Constitution Article 97, he said, has strict protections for parkland.
“You need a two-thirds vote from the House and a two-thirds vote from the Senate in order to build on parkland,” Lucas said, referring to the Massachusetts state Legislature. “This needs to be addressed by the city.”
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Morse said it’s a difference of opinion — in some reports, the outdoor space is referenced as the front gardens and in other cases, it’s referenced as a park, he said.
“Simply calling something a park doesn’t make it a park, there’s a process that it has to go through,” Morse said in an interview.
Dimond said in an interview the result of the vote was just one example of larger problems around historic preservation in the city.
“The makeup and the values of the commission have changed drastically in the 2.5 years that I’ve been on it,” Park said in an interview. “It has shifted to one with a decided slant in favor of development and allowing rampant, unfettered demolition.”
Claire Law can be reached at newtonreport@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/newton-names-affordable-housing-trust-members/ | The seven members of a new Newton trust intended to help support more affordable housing in the city have been announced by Mayor Ruthanne Fuller in a statement.
The trust, which was established late last year, will help the city take steps such as setting aside funding to buy property or invest in the development of affordable housing in Newton.
“The Trust has the ability to create a streamlined process to provide funding to new affordable housing projects and to take advantage of development opportunities which might otherwise not be available to the City,” Fuller said.
In Newton, Fuller said in a statement that the city’s trust will include herself as mayor, along with six additional members.
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Those members include: Tamirirashe Gambiza, a certified public accountant and member of the Commonwealth Land Trust; Ann Houston, the former president of the Citizens’ Housing and Planning Association; Jason Korb, the principal of Newton-based developer Capstone Communities LLC; and Peter Sargent, the former director of capital development at the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corporation.
The trust also includes Ward 6 Councilor-at-large Alicia Bowman and Community Preservation Committee member Judy Weber, Fuller said in the statement.
The members are appointed by Fuller as mayor and confirmed by the City Council, she said.
“We believe that the new Trustees will be appointed in time to begin holding meetings in May. With the pandemic further highlighting the region’s housing crisis, the Trust is convening at a critical moment,” Fuller said.
The Newton trust’s mission is to preserve existing affordable housing units and create new ones that are affordable to low and moderate income households who earn less than 80 percent of the area median income, she said.
In Newton, the area median income for a family of four is $120,800 in fiscal 2021, according to the city.
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Funding for the trust will come from an initial $1.6 million from the Community Preservation Committee’s annual budget, Fuller said. Additional funds may also be included from the city’s Inclusionary Zoning Fund, she said.
John Hilliard can be reached at john.hilliard@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/sheepshearing-festival-indigenous-artifacts-painted-trees/ | The Danforth Art Museum of Framingham State University will be hosting a new exhibit titled “The Engaged Image” featuring works by painter and printmaker Suzanne Hodes. The art on display includes some of Hodes’s favorites as well as a few new pieces, and will run from March 26 to June 5. A reception will be hosted by Hodes and the Danforth staff on April 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. at the museum, located at 14 Vernon St. For more information and to register, visit danforth.framingham.edu.
The Halalisa Singers will perform “Journey Home: Songs of Celebration” on April 9 at First Parish Unitarian Universalist located at 630 Massachusetts Ave. in Arlington. This performance will be the world music ensemble’s first since January 2020. The singers will be led by Artistic Director Mary Cunningham, and accompanied by pianist Trevor Berens, guitarist A.J. Heidkamp, and percussionist Bertram Lehmann. Tickets are $25. Proof of vaccination and masks required. For more information visit halalisa.org.
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The Cape Ann Museum, Manchester Historical Museum, Sandy Bay Historical Society, and Annisquam Historical Society are collaborating to highlight the Indigenous history of Cape Ann through a series of installations and programs during the spring of 2022. Each institution will present a display of the Indigenous archaeological artifacts in their collections and will develop unique related educational programs to engage visitors. The Cape Ann Museum will start the series with an exhibit titled “Indigenous Artifacts from Cape Ann” on view starting April 16 at 161 Essex St. The following exhibits and talks will be held through July. For more information, visit capeannmuseum.org.
The Peabody Essex Museum of Salem presents two exhibitions and special April School Vacation Week programming that explore the climate crisis. The first exhibit, “Climate Action: Inspiring Change,” opens April 16 and brings together contemporary art, hands-on experiences and works by youth artists to explore climate change. The second, “Konstantin Dimopoulos: The Blue Trees,” begins April 20 with a selection of trees on PEM’s campus being painted to center efforts on deforestation. Then, “April School Vacation Week: Earth Week — Art in Action” will run from April 20 to 22. The Museum is located at 161 Essex St. For more information, visit pem.org.
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The Saint Rock Haiti Foundation will hold its 20th Anniversary Gala on April 21 at 6 p.m. at Granite Links located at 100 Quarry Hill Dr. in Quincy. The evening will be a new cocktail style format with a video program and silent auction. Over 400 guests from the South Shore and beyond will be in attendance to raise money to support SRHF’s work to provide health care, educational opportunities, and social services to the Saint Rock community of Haiti and surrounding areas. To register or donate to the event, visit saintrock.org.
The Sheepshearing Festival at Gore Place in Waltham will return in person on April 23 for its 35th year. The annual event, which began in 1987, will feature music, goods by crafters and fiber artists, demonstrations of traditional shearing and herding dogs and historic re-enactors on the grounds of the 50-acre estate located at 52 Gore St. The festival will feature hands-on activities for children and adults, and food vendors will be onsite. For details and festival updates, visit goreplace.org.
Concord Art presents “Becoming Trees,” a new exhibition curated by Fritz Horstman opening March 31. The exhibition brings together the work of 15 artists whose depictions of trees explore a wide variety of approaches to the subject with pieces that span a variety of material, technique, and scale. Artists featured in the exhibition include Alan Sonfist, Katrina Bello, Rachael Vaters-Carr, Jeff Slomba and Kathleen O’Hara. It will be on view through May 8 at 37 Lexington Road. For more information, visit concordart.org.
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Grace Gilson can be reached at grace.gilson@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/tell-us-students-staff-parents-how-has-your-mental-health-been-third-pandemic-school-year/ | Massachusetts schools are nearing the end of their third school year of the coronavirus pandemic. While school in some respects is back to normal, with full-time in-person instruction and no more mask mandates in many districts, the impact on mental health lingers.
The Globe wants to know whether school communities feel things are better and what the hardest parts of school are now for students, teachers, and staff.
If you’re a student, have you been happier being back in school every day? How have you felt since masks came off, if there is no longer a mandate at your school? Teachers, how have things been in your classrooms? How much support have your students needed, compared to last year? Parents, have you seen changes in your kids? What has been the hardest part of this school year?
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Tell us in the survey below.
Christopher Huffaker can be reached at christopher.huffaker@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @huffakingit. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/with-pop-up-markets-vendors-forge-friendships-community-newton/ | Self-described “serial entrepreneur” and owner of a Nonantum based catering company called Better Life Foods, Christopher Osborn saw firsthand how the pandemic impacted small businesses in Newton.
He promptly sprung into action, creating pop-up markets for local vendors to have another avenue to sell anything from homemade pet treats to baseball cards.
For Osborn, helping people create new memories and doing something good for the community brings him great joy.
“Creating something that people enjoy is what keeps me going every day, you know, I get to wake up and I get to feed people and I get to make them happy,” he said. “I help build memories.”
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Osborn’s pop-up initiative began when Seana Gaherin, owner of Dunn Gaherin’s Food and Spirits in Newton Upper Falls, offered her pub’s parking lot to hold these markets, including a spring-themed event March 20 where 20 vendors nestled outside the restaurant on Elliot Street.
“They’ve basically used the space now over the last two years, and it’s just turned out to be something that’s really special,” Gaherin said. “I really am hopeful that we will continue to do it, and that it’s one of those silver linings from the pandemic.”
Gaherin said local community members were especially drawn to the outdoor shopping event during the pandemic shutdowns.
“It was like gangbusters because there was nothing going on,” said Susan Fain, co-owner of Quicksilver Baking who attended the market.
However, sustaining the market has had its challenges, Osborn said. As the community began the transition back to pre-quarantine life, he found fewer people had the time to stop and browse with their busy schedules.
Spring forward two years, the market has bloomed into an event which attracts Newton community members around the holidays for themed markets such as Mother’s Day, which will focus on supporting women.
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The recent spring-themed market, held just after St. Patrick’s Day, featured a performance by Newton-based Sullivan School of Irish Dance.
Lael Yonker, a parent of one of the Irish step dancers, attended the market for the first time and said she appreciated what it meant for local businesses and the community.
“I think it’s a great way to promote a small business and to start to spread the word about these really great and unique products, and a nice way to get people out, too, after the pandemic and bring the community together,” Yonker said.
Osborn said he and many of the vendors have built personal relationships with each other as well.
“We are a community. We know our names,” said Juan Arroyave, owner of Kikos Coffee & Tea, who was at the spring market. “It’s like a family that we built.”
Several of the featured vendors work from Dorchester-based CommonWealth Kitchen, a local nonprofit organization housing community kitchens as a way to support small businesses lacking adequate funds and resources. Osborn’s Better Life Foods also got its start at CommonWealth Kitchen, before “graduating” to its own space in Nonantum.
Nanci Gelb and Terri Tsagaris, co-founders and owners of Off Our Rocker Cookies — a plant-based, gluten-free business focused on women empowerment — work together as one of the vendors from CommonWealth Kitchen.
“A lot of it’s just a collaboration, it makes us happy to see all these people that we know who are bringing their businesses and bringing their enthusiasm for different kinds of food to other people,” Tsagaris said.
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Rebecca Diamondstein, Newton resident and return customer to the pop-up market, brought her family to the spring market to support the local businesses they’ve grown to know.
“We like them a lot, and we’re coming back for some more,” she said. Diamondstein said she appreciates the diverse products at the market and said there is something for everyone — including her dog, Fenway.
One vendor, Nathalie Barege, co-founder of Maman Myrthe’s Pantry, said she uses her Haitian heritage and grandmother’s natural, medicinal recipes to inspire the low-sugar jam and jelly she sells at the market. A former combat veteran and working firefighter, she runs her small business from CommonWealth kitchen.
Another vendor at the market, Paulette Ngachoko, founder and chief executive officer of HAPI African Gourmet, used to live in Cameroon, Africa, and said she started her business to share different aspects of African culture with her food.
“When you have diversity, people come in for one thing, and leave with something else,” Osborn said about the variety of vendors.
Although he now lives in Lakeville, Osborn said he grew up in Newton Upper Falls and has been part of the community his whole life. He attributed much of the market’s success to longtime friend Gaherin for inspiring him to create the pop-ups.
“More importantly, I also love the new business model of a pop-up and the seasonality of it — being able to pivot and change and bring together businesses,” Gaherin said. “A lot of times our economic model was that we were competing against one another, so it’s really nice to work together and to provide a product that’s wide variety for our community.
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Taylor Coester and Clara Cahill-Rogers can be reached at newtonreport@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/covid-19-asylum-limits-us-mexico-border-end-may-23/ | WASHINGTON (AP) — The Centers for Disease Control announced Friday that it is ending a policy that limited asylum at the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
The use of public health powers had been widely criticized by Democrats and immigration advocates as an excuse for the United States to shirk its obligations to provide haven to people fleeing persecution. The policy went into effect under President Donald Trump in March 2020. Since then, migrants trying to enter the U.S. have been expelled more than 1.7 million times.
The policy, known as the Title 42 authority, named for a 1944 public health law to prevent communicable disease, will end on paper, but it will not take effect until May 23, to allow border officials time to prepare. The Associated Press first reported the change earlier this week.
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The policy was increasingly hard to justify scientifically as restrictions ended across the U.S.
The federal order says efforts by the Department of Homeland Security to provide vaccines to migrants at the border will step up in the next two months.
“After considering current public health conditions and an increased availability of tools to fight COVID-19 (such as highly effective vaccines and therapeutics), the CDC director has determined that an order suspending the right to introduce migrants into the United States is no longer necessary,” the CDC said in a statement.
The decision is expected to draw more migrants to the U.S.-Mexico border. Even before it was officially announced, more than a dozen migrants excitedly ran out of their dormitory at the Good Samaritan shelter in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico, asking about it.
DHS said this week that about 7,100 migrants were coming daily, compared with an average of about 5,900 a day in February — on pace to match or exceed highs from last year, 2019 and other peak periods. But border officials said they are planning for as many as 18,000 arrivals daily, and that seems certain to cause challenges for border-region Democrats in tight reelection races — with some warning that the Biden administration is unprepared to handle the situation.
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Homeland Security said it created a Southwest Border Coordinating Center to respond to any sharp increases, with MaryAnn Tierney, a regional director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, as interim leader and a Border Patrol official as deputy.
Officials also are working on additional ground and air transportation options and tents to house the expected influx, and the Border Patrol has already hired on civilians.
Instead of conducting patrols and uncovering smuggling activity, its agents spend about 40% of their time caring for people already in custody and administrative tasks that are unrelated to border security.
The agency hoped to free up agents to go back into the field by hiring civilians for jobs such as making sure that microwaved burritos are served properly, checking holding cells and the time-consuming work of collecting information for immigration court papers.
Still, administration officials acknowledged the fixes are only temporary measures.
“The Biden-Harris administration is committed to pursuing every avenue within our authority to secure our borders, enforce our laws, and stay true to our values," said Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas. "Yet a long-term solution can only come from comprehensive legislation that brings lasting reform to a fundamentally broken system.”
The limits went into place in March 2020 under the Trump administration as coronavirus cases soared. While officials said at the time that it was a way to keep COVID-19 out of the United States, there always has been criticism that the restrictions were used as an excuse to seal the border to migrants unwanted by then-President Donald Trump. It was perhaps the broadest of Trump’s actions to restrict crossings and crack down on migrants.
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CDC officials lifted part of the order last month, ending the limits for children traveling to the border alone. In August, U.S. border authorities began testing children traveling alone in their busiest areas: Positives fell to 6% in the first week of March from a high of nearly 20% in early February.
Asylum limits have been applied unevenly by nationality, depending largely on costs and diplomatic relations with home countries. Many migrants have been spared from Cuba, Venezuela, Nicaragua and, more recently, Ukraine. Homeland Security officials wrote border authorities this month that Ukrainians may be exempt, saying Russia’s invasion “created a humanitarian crisis.” | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/i-turned-my-talk-therapy-into-walk-therapy-i-may-never-go-back/ | Like everyone, I’ve learned to go without a lot of things these past two years — group workouts, restaurant meals, grandparent visits without testing beforehand. I’ve held fast, however, to my weekly therapy sessions. Though I’ve been working with Eli, my therapist, for eight years, we haven’t seen each other, either in person or on a screen, since March 5, 2020. That’s because we’ve moved from in-person talk therapy to a practice I call “walk therapy” — a phone call while I amble through the nearest park along the same packed-dirt riverbank in sun or deep snow or chilly rain.
I didn’t intend for walk therapy to become a permanent practice. In the first weeks of the pandemic, suddenly at home with my spouse and two children, I just sought an escape, a place to speak freely about my growing panic over this new, strange situation.
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Eli had guided me through a lot in our previous work together: postpartum rage and despair; the peaks and valleys of parenting, partnership, and career; depression and the right medication to help lift me out of it. She helped me rebuild a version of myself when I felt effaced by marriage and motherhood. Our weekly in-person sessions brought me clarity and strength. By early 2020, we were talking more about my successes than about my frustrations and perceived failures.
When COVID struck, relationships that she and I had carefully examined suffered under new strain. The sense of self and independence I’d gained slipped. The atmosphere in my house felt full to bursting with fear and worry. I cried stormily and often, as I had in the early days of motherhood.
I can’t remember what we discussed during my first walk therapy session, but I do recall the bliss of leaving the pressure cooker where my home and work and family lives simmered uncomfortably together.
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As I unburden myself to Eli each week, I also free myself from my surroundings — I leave behind my computer and the distracting chimes of new messages. I don’t think, however fleetingly, about the laundry or the unemptied dishwasher. These sessions have helped me navigate one of the most trying times in my life.
Before the pandemic, neither Eli nor I would have predicted that this could work. Which is not to say that we have not both wondered what, if anything, is being lost. Our pre-pandemic sessions relied on physical proximity. In the confines of Eli’s office, she could observe my set jaw or crossed arms and address what my body language was saying that I wasn’t.
I once asked Eli what she thought we were missing by not meeting face to face. “The power dynamic has changed,” she said bluntly. “In my office, you’re on my turf. Now, I’m along on your walk, and you can start and stop the conversation.”
It’s true. Now I choose when it is time to talk about something hard, rather than allowing it to emerge at will or with Eli’s coaxing. This is a key issue in teletherapy, says Dr. John Markowitz, a professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University and lead author of “Psychotherapy at a Distance,” which appeared in the American Journal of Psychiatry in September 2020. Without the intense one-on-one dynamic of in-person therapy, Markowitz says, it’s far easier for patients to avoid confronting what’s really bothering them.
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“People are uncomfortable with closeness and often with strong feelings. And one of the things that’s probably effective about psychotherapy in an office is that you can’t escape, right?” he says. “And in fact, you can tolerate the intensity that tends to come with good therapy. Some of that gets diffused with any kind of teletherapy, and if you are avoidant to begin with, [teletherapy] is a good way to avoid a little further.”
As for the topics I might be avoiding or the insights that Eli might gain by seeing my face, she is philosophical; she doesn’t believe we can know what we might have been missing until our walk therapy is a memory.
She takes the ambient distractions that can interrupt our conversations in stride, too. Eli has joked that she’s going to use our experience to create a line of outerwear specifically designed for walk therapy. Perhaps, she says, she will make a playlist of the background noises — hammering construction, playground laughter, helicopter blades chopping the air above nearby hospitals — that come through my earbuds and sometimes drown out my voice as we talk.
So now that my children are back in their classrooms and quiet at home is restored, why have I continued to walk and talk with Eli? I could consider a return to in-person sessions or carve out a quiet hour on the couch at home for my remote therapy sessions. But now, the walk and what it represents are as much a part of the therapy as our conversation is.
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So in January, I bundled up. In July, I will apply sunscreen. And for the foreseeable future, I will continue to push myself out into the world and the fresh air and to move my body and examine the path that I still, two years later, find myself walking.
Jessica Ullian is a Boston-based writer and editor. Follow her on Twitter at @jessicau. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/ncaa-mens-basketball-tournament-may-have-changed-over-years-its-still-great/ | Baseball’s long 162 returns next Thursday. In pro football, it’s quarterbacks, quarterbacks, quarterbacks, 24/7. Our Bruins are at the very least fringe Stanley Cup hopefuls.
But me? I’ve still got basketballs bouncing around in my brain. After all, it’s NCAA Tournament time.
I remember being vaguely aware that Indiana had won something called the NCAA basketball championships in 1953, but I assure you I was well aware when La Salle won the title the following year. After all, I had actually seen the La Salle Explorers, led by the great Tom Gola, play against Furman and the legendary Frank Selvy. In addition, we had a neighbor who attended La Salle.
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So the NCAA Tournament has always been part of my sports smorgasbord.
We were en route to a spring vacation in Florida when Duke played UCLA for the 1964 championship. We were staying somewhere in North Carolina and I asked the desk clerk what channel the game would be on. “Every channel,” he joked. UCLA prevailed, 98-83, for the first of John Wooden’s 10 championships, and let the record show his starting center was future sports agent Fred Slaughter, who was 6 feet 5 inches.
The name John Wooden is now forever linked with Mike Krzyzewski, and it is important to make a distinction between the eras in which each coached.
It was harder to enter the tournament in Wooden’s day, but substantially easier to win. Wooden’s tournament fields consisted of conference champions only and a few selected “at-large” choices, i.e. independents. There was no seeding, as such, and the early rounds were geographically oriented. UCLA would automatically be placed into the Western Regional, which often meant it didn’t have to leave town. Win two games and the Bruins were in the Final Four.
The tournament didn’t expand significantly until 1976, the year following Wooden’s retirement. Countless worthy teams had been denied a chance to compete for the title, which, among other things, meant that the NIT was loaded with quality teams. Among the worthy also-rans was the 1970-71 USC team that went 24-2, losing only to guess who?
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There was some kind of poetic justice in the air when, in the first year of a 40-team tournament in which teams that had not won the conference championship were allowed in, there was an all-Big Ten final in which Indiana won the first of Bob Knight’s three titles, trouncing Michigan. I wonder what those USC guys were thinking.
Coach K’s road to Duke’s five titles and 13 Final Four appearances has been very different. It’s now a 68-team tournament, you now must win six games in order to wear the crown, and you often must do it far, far from home. It’s a very different landscape.
My first direct exposure to the tournament came in 1967 when Boston College made its first appearance under coach Bob Cousy, and the second in its history. We drew Yankee Conference champion Connecticut in a first-round game at Keaney Gymnasium at the University of Rhode Island. We had beaten the Huskies easily in December, so UConn mentor Fred Shabel resorted to some classic stall-ball. It was 14-13, BC, at the half and a 48-42 final. The Cooz was not pleased. “We had a chance †o really do something for New England basketball with all this exposure,” he fumed, “and we get involved in a farce like this.”
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That win took us to College Park, Md., and Cole Field House (site of the historic Texas Western-Kentucky title game in 1966 and, sadly, no longer in use) and a date with St. John’s. We edged them, 63-62, making — are you ready? — 21 straight free throws down the stretch.
You know what else I remember? That was the first game of the doubleheader. I remember sitting back in comfort and satisfaction to watch the second game between Princeton and North Carolina. I won’t go so far as to say I was thinking, “Which one of these chumps are we going to play?” But it was so nice knowing we had advanced. I think about how many fans have enjoyed that same feeling after watching their team win a first game. And it was a tremendous game. Carolina won, 74-70, in OT.
Anyway, we’ll always have 12-3. That was our lead after Jim Kissane dunked a fast break follow-up. Dean Smith called time out. We were still hanging in there at the half (Carolina, 44-42) but the Tar Heels were too much for us in the second half. The final was 96-80 and Dean was off to his first Final Four.
I had to talk my way into actually covering the tournament, however. I was covering the Celtics in 1970, but I remained a devoted college basketball fan and the Final Four was in College Park, and I convinced Globe sports editor Ernie Roberts to send me by saying that I could drive with my friend Happy Fine and it wouldn’t cost him for lodging because I could stay at Happy’s house in D.C. Gotta please those bean counters, you know?
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That was the UCLA-Jacksonville final in which Sidney Wicks outplayed Jacksonville’s Artis Gilmore. My lasting memory of the trip was seeing Washington resident Red Auerbach striding into the lobby of the Shoreham Hotel with his two boxers on the leash. It was a vastly different world, in which all the principals — teams, media, and NCAA staff — were staying in the same hotel, something that would be unimaginable today.
That was the first of 29 Final Fours I was privileged to cover.
I can truthfully say that March became my favorite month, especially after I had the bright idea to start driving from the regional to the Final Four site. Now it can be told, this was pre-cellphone and for two or three days I was completely out of touch with the office. What writer can’t relate to that? Ever been to Fulton, Mo., and Westminster College, where Winston Churchill delivered his famous “Iron Curtain” speech? That was one of my stops on an NCAA journey from Point A to Point B.
I still love the NCAA Tournament, but I do have one complaint. It was better when the Final Four was actually played in, well, a gym, or at least an arena. That ended with Kentucky’s 1996 triumph in the Meadowlands. Since then it’s a massive domed edifice of some sort. Yeah, yeah, I get it. Dollars prevail. But the nosebleed seats are a joke and the atmosphere just isn’t right.
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OK, I’m down from the soapbox.
And we have a shot clock now. Nobody can hold the ball. I’m sure that pleases The Cooz. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/sports-museum-honors-winners-2022-will-mcdonough-writing-contest/ | The Sports Museum has named the winners of the 2022 Will McDonough Writing Contest.
The competition is held each year in memory of the late Boston Globe sportswriter.
Students in Grades 4 through 12 were invited to submit an original essay on a sports topic of their choosing, or about other topics like great moments in sports or sportsmanship.
The Young Leadership Council of the Sports Museum did preliminary judging. Reporters and editors from the Globe picked the winners.
Winners will be honored Friday night at the Sports Museum at TD Garden. They will hear from Globe journalists Chad Finn and Nicole Yang, and have an opportunity to attend the Celtics-Pacers game.
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Winning essays were submitted by:
Victoria Mitchell (4th grade), Lillian Singh (5th), Curran Healy (6th), Virginia Choe (7th), Oliver Henke (8th), Alexandria Johnson (9th), Christopher Boensel (10th), Mollie Nelson (11th), and Baeden Blackburn (12th).
The Sports Museum, located at TD Garden, has managed the contest for the last 18 years, and more than 22,000 students have participated.
Katie McInerney can be reached at katie.mcinerney@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter at @k8tmac. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/tom-brady-is-making-it-impossible-root-him-anymore-other-thoughts/ | Picked-up pieces while packing for Opening Day at Yankee Stadium …
▪ Nothing is ever enough for Tom Brady. It’s not sufficient to be the GOAT, the seven-time Super Bowl champ, the most handsome, most pliable, greatest 45-year-old starting quarterback anyone has ever seen.
He also has to be CEO, general manager, and head coach of his team.
Brady erased Bruce Arians from the Tampa landscape Wednesday, orchestrating the retirement of a coach who occasionally pushed back. Arians will be replaced by Todd Bowles, an estimable football mind who no doubt will let Tom run the Buccaneers for the foreseeable future. I expect Alex Guerrero to be named Tampa’s team doctor any minute.
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Tom wins again. Tom always wins.
Swell. But who roots for this anymore? Who loves a controlling, glory-hog coach-killer?
We embraced Tom when he played here. We wished him well when he felt it was time to go. He gave great service and put the New England Patriots on the football map. He made us Titletown. We liked watching him win a Super Bowl in his first season in Tampa.
But it’s all become too much. Who loves a crybaby footballer who begs for penalty yards every time he’s touched by a defensive player? Who loves a manipulative egomaniac who retires, only to un-retire 40 days later in the middle of the NCAA tourney draw announcement while Kevin Garnett’s number is being retired? Who loves a guy who pushes Crypto, a guy who excused and protected the nefarious Antonio Brown because Brown is a really good pass receiver?
How can you hate LeBron James and Alex Rodriguez and still love Tom Brady?
And why do so many folks cover for Tom? Watching the obtuse ESPN gang ignore Tom’s fingerprints on Arians’s cold body (I think I saw an Arians chalk outline on the pavement outside Raymond James Stadium) made my head explode.
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The great Tedy Bruschi actually said, “My sense is that Tom Brady had nothing to do with this.”
That whopper had polygraph machines exploding from Maine to Oregon. But Bruschi was far from alone, as a conga line of Brady sycophants dismissed or ignored the obvious.
“This whole Arians thing was Tom Brady-orchestrated,” said former Patriots GM Upton Bell. “I don’t particularly like it, but he’s running the show. Shula and Landry and those guys used to tell me, ‘A player is just a player, but I’m the coach.’ No more.
“The minute that the NFL took defense out of the game, Tom Brady went from being a great quarterback to a person that can dictate. The quarterback is bigger than the coach.”
Absolutely.
A revolting development.
▪ Quiz: The Celtics have had three players who played 1,000 regular-season games with them. The Knicks have had one player who played 1,000 with them. Name the players (answer below).
▪ Let the tanking begin.
Keep a close eye on the Celtics, Bucks, 76ers, and Heat atop the NBA’s Eastern Conference from now until the end of the season. Some of them would rather finish in the 3 or 4 slot because that guarantees you won’t see Brooklyn in the first round.
The Nets will be in the 7-8-9-10 (play-in) scrum for the seventh and eighth seeds. This means only the top seed and second seed have a shot at Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in the first round.
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Celtics coach Ime Udoka gave a surprisingly candid answer when asked about late-season chicanery last weekend.
“I think teams always, to some extent, try to control something if they can,” said the coach. “As far back as I’ve gone as a player and coach, teams have always tried to manipulate what they can.”
Patriots fans might remember the 2005 season, which ended with Matt Cassel throwing a 2-point conversion pass to the cheerleaders to assure that the Patriots lost their season finale to the Dolphins. The loss gave the Patriots the Jaguars instead of the Steelers in the first round of the playoffs.
Bill Belichick was right. New England crushed the Jags, 28-3, and the Steelers went on to win the Super Bowl.
▪ Another wild card in the NBA’s seeding scramble will be which team draws Toronto in the first round. Once again, it’s all about vaccines.
Like the Red Sox, the Celtics fear their own players on the issue and remain evasive — even though this has become a basketball issue. Jaylen Brown, Al Horford, and Jayson Tatum all skipped the recent trip to Toronto (the team’s first visit since strict Canadian vaccine rules went into effect). It’s pretty clear that the Celtics have at least one, probably two unvaccinated players and simply hope they don’t draw Toronto in the playoffs.
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Meanwhile, in Brooklyn, Kyrie confirmed that his choice to go unvaxed has nothing to do with science, medicine, or laughable “research.” According to Kyrie, “I don’t want anyone telling me what to do with my life and that’s just the way I am.”
Kyrie-the-liar also has pledged allegiance to Brooklyn, just as he did Boston. “There’s no way I leave my man No. 7 [Durant],” Irving said this week.
▪ Since the start of the 2008 season, the Rays have won more games than the Red Sox. Most importantly, they have done it at a fraction of the cost. No wonder the Sox want to be Tampa Bay — a franchise that routinely sheds players once they start earning serious money.
▪ All blue bloods in the NCAA Final Four. Duke, North Carolina, Kansas, and Villanova. No thanks. Give me the Mystery Guest every time.
Meanwhile, Villanova went into the weekend with a free throw percentage of 82.6 and a chance to beat the 1983-84 Harvard Crimson’s NCAA record of 82.2 percent. That Harvard team was coached by Frank McLaughlin and featured a 6-foot-5-inch forward named Arne Duncan who went on to become Secretary of Education for President Obama.
▪ When Robert K. Kraft says, “I know what I don’t know, and I try to stay out of the way of things I don’t know,” it makes me kind of miss the old Bob Kraft who tried to get involved with everything after he first bought the Patriots in the 1990s.
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The old Bob Kraft came to practice with a stopwatch, talked about “press corners,” and went behind the back of his Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells on the first day of the 1996 NFL draft.
Say this about the owners of the local football team: The Patriots are his main focus. He’s not distracted worrying about other teams in his portfolio.
“After my family, there’s nothing more important to me than the New England Patriots and winning football games,” said Kraft.
▪ A March 28 USA Today cover story on Simone Biles as “Woman of the Year” was headlined, “Olympian pushes health to forefront — gymnast message: It’s OK to put yourself first.”
All true. Great. But can we let the athlete have his/her privacy and introspection without celebrating standing down and not competing as the new model for athletic competitors?
Let’s be sensitive. Let’s be understanding when an athlete’s mental health supersedes all else. But is it OK if we still celebrate those who choose to compete without making “putting yourself first” the ultimate definition of hard-earned accomplishment? Just asking.
▪ Monday’s NCAA woman’s regional final at Bridgeport in which UConn beat North Carolina State in double overtime was the finest college game these eyes have seen in a while. One rarely sees better shot-making in crunch time at any level.
It was the first time the UConn women — who have rarely played close games over the years — ever won an overtime game in the tournament (1-5). It also gave Geno Auriemma’s Huskies their 14th consecutive Final Four appearance.
If you need someone to make two free throws with the safety of the planet hanging in the balance, you could do worse than put UConn sophomore Paige Bueckers at the line.
▪ Celtics TV voice Brian Scalabrine seems to be enjoying his victory lap.
▪ The Red Sox never miss an opportunity to hop on the David Ortiz express. The 2016 Sox season — which got John Farrell fired — ended with a nine-game stretch that included five Big Papi celebrations and eight losses, including a three-game sweep at the hands of Terry Francona’s Indians. This week, the Sox announced they will honor Ortiz yet again, July 26, two days after Ortiz is enshrined in Cooperstown.
▪ The late Frank Robinson hated hitting a lot of spring training homers. “Save ‘em for the season up North,” said the Hall of Famer.
▪ Quiz answer: Boston had John Havlicek, 1,270 games, Robert Parish, 1,106, and Paul Pierce, 1,102. Patrick Ewing played 1,039 regular-season games for the Knicks.
Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @dan_shaughnessy. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/harry-styles-lead-single-third-album-harrys-house-goes-new-direction/ | Harry Styles is going in one direction — up.
The onetime boy band member shot to the top of the iTunes charts after he released his lead single, “As It Was,” from his much-anticipated third solo album, “Harry’s House” on Thursday. The 13-track studio album is set for a May 20 release date, and is the first new music Styles has released since his 2019 sophomore album, “Fine Line.”
The track’s accompanying music video racked up more than 13.5 million YouTube views since its release Thursday night. The video, directed by Ukrainian-born Tanu Muino, is a surreal jaunt through a series of homey spaces, where Styles and a woman keep trying to connect — chasing each other on a spinning, playground-like platform, standing shirtless by the pool, rolling around in an art-filled room — as Styles sings, “You know it’s not the same as it was.”
The song, written by Styles and established collaborators Kid Harpoon and Tyler Johnson, earned critical praise upon its release. Rolling Stone dubbed the song “Eighties-style synth-pop,” calling it “unlike anything he’s done before musically.” NPR declared that the tune was “perfect for racing down Pacific Coast Highway with the top down,” and GQ called it a “cry-bop” that is “an anthem for the pandemic generation.”
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Hawk-eyed fans quickly noticed that there might be a lyrical nod to Styles’ rumored romantic partner, actor and director Olivia Wilde. In the bridge of the song, Styles sings, “Leave America, two kids follow her,” a possible reference to Wilde’s two children, Otis and Daisy, whom she shares with her ex, “Ted Lasso” star Jason Sudeikis. Rumors that Wilde and Styles had coupled up began in January 2021, when the pair was photographed holding hands at a California wedding (People reported that Sudeikis and Wilde were splitting in November of 2020).
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Styles announced “Harry’s House” on March 23 following a series of clues posted to a website, Twitter account, and Instagram account all called “You Are Home,” which fans linked to the Grammy-winning singer. When the 28-year-old British heartthrob officially announced the album last week, he also revealed its cover art, which shows Styles, donning a flowy white top and flared jeans, standing in a room where all the furniture is upside down.
The album may be called “Harry’s House,” but for the foreseeable future, Styles will be a world traveler. In June, he will kick off the international leg of “Love on Tour,” which played Boston’s TD Garden last October. He is also set to star opposite “Black Widow” actress Florence Pugh in the film “Don’t Worry Darling,” (directed by Wilde) coming out Sept. 23, as well as the film “My Policeman,” which wrapped up filming on June 16.
Dana Gerber can be reached at dana.gerber@globe.com | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/i-want-him-be-better-shape/ | We’re looking for letters! Send your relationship question to loveletters@globe.com or fill out this form.
Q. Weight has been a big issue in my marriage of almost 30 years, and I’d love your take on how to handle our current situation. We got together at 21 and were both somewhat overweight. He’s a big eater, and I ate along with him and gained a ton of weight. He gained weight as well, but not as drastically as I did. The weight caused fertility issues for me and so much unhappiness. I finally found the courage to have weight loss surgery 12 years ago, lost most of my excess weight, bounced up some after a while, and lost a lot again over the last few years with a better diet and exercise. I get 8,000 to 10,000 steps every day walking the dogs, go to a personal trainer, and try to watch what I eat. I have lost weight, but it’s more that I’m much more comfortable in my body and so much healthier.
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My husband, meanwhile, is now obese, does not exercise at all even though he has time (in our many years together, he has hardly ever exercised or expressed any interest in fitness), and does not seem to care at all about making healthy choices in his diet. He’s on multiple meds for blood pressure and cholesterol, a sleep apnea machine, and has erectile dysfunction. Just going up the stairs leaves him gasping for breath. We’re both in our mid-50s, and I’m so concerned about his health, frustrated about the sexual problems, and annoyed when he lectures the kids about their food choices. The kids worry about his health too. When I try to talk to him about taking care of his health, he gets defensive. I rarely talk to him about it because I’m embarrassed about my struggles and feel I’m being hypocritical.
During the 18 years before I became healthier, he always supported and loved me, told me I was attractive, was really fine about it, so I feel terrible that I am NOT fine with his obesity. I want him to make big diet changes and get exercise so he has a long and healthy life but also, selfishly, because I am turned off by his weight and am hoping the sexual problems will be resolved.
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I’ve worked so hard on my weight and health, and I find myself not respecting him when he sits down to a huge plate of unhealthy takeout and spends every weekend in front of the TV. Is there a way to get through to him? I thought that modeling healthy behavior might help but nothing has changed over the three-plus years that I’ve been really careful about diet and exercise. Should I resign myself to watching as his health continues to decline? Work on myself so I am more accepting and loving?
10,000 STEPS
A. You’ve been clear that you haven’t mastered the art of self-care. You’re still working on it and figuring out how to be good to your body. You can ask him for help with that, and tell him you want to live a long life with him. That means you’d like to seek professional help — for both of you. It’s time to see a specialist who deals with diet, nutrition, sex, and health. Someone who knows how partners can figure this out together.
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The thing is, most people do not want to feel like they’re being watched and judged while they eat. You can’t govern this or stand over him, replacing his takeout with an apple. A nutritionist, certain doctors, a therapist — someone who helps with the emotional side of dietary health — can talk about managing expectations and making small adjustments to routines, as opposed to a situation where one of you has to follow the other’s rules.
This starts with you telling him you’re worried about yourself. He’s not responding to your concerns about him, but he does seem to care about your feelings. The status quo makes you anxious. Frankly, it makes you sad. He seems more interested in loving you than taking better care of his own body, so lead with that. You’re scared and unhappy and want help. It’s not selfish to say it.
In the end, he has to want to make change, and he won’t necessarily do it on your timeline. Talking to a professional should help you both figure out what it means to modify habits without being on the same page about how and when.
This is not easy stuff. It’s about undoing decades of consistent behavior. That’s why it’s a good time to have these conversations in front of a third party. Call your insurance company and doctor and find out what’s possible.
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MEREDITH
READERS RESPOND:
Can you perhaps identify what part of your journey toward health felt the best to you, and try to get him on board for that aspect? You seem to love to go on walks and visit a personal trainer. Perhaps you can entice him along for dog walking, and make it a time for you both to have good conversations. Not just about the kids, but about life, and goals, and motivations. If he sees a bit of improvement in his overall health and obesity, he may be willing to go a little further with you.
HIKERGALNH128
While I totally understand your frustrations, you’ve got to really tread lightly. He probably needs a mental health professional to help him with his depression, self-destructive attitude, and low self-esteem. Even though you are correct, it will backfire coming from you as his wife. You can’t win. Does he have a special, tender relationship with one of his kids? Maybe one of them can ask him to see a doctor. This needs to be handled calmly, quietly, and respectfully. As Meredith pointed out, this is a sad situation. Any hint of judgment, shaming, or angry vibes will send him deeper into his padded cocoon.
WINDCHYME29
I hope you can get through to him. My wife and I aren’t perfect, but we do support each other when it comes to healthy eating and getting exercise. I want to be a “fit” grandparent someday. Watching out for your partner is tougher love than enabling. I wish you luck.
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VISIGOTH44
Send your own relationship and dating questions to loveletters@globe.com. Catch new episodes of Meredith Goldstein’s “Love Letters” podcast at loveletters.show or wherever you listen to podcasts. Column and comments are edited and reprinted from boston.com/loveletters. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/california-man-charged-with-making-threatening-calls-tufts-university-police/ | A California man is facing federal charges that he made threatening phone calls to the Tufts University Police Department in May 2021, federal law enforcement officials said Friday.
Sammy Sultan, 48, was arrested Thursday at his home in Hayward, California. He has been charged in a “criminal complaint with one count of making threatening communications in interstate commerce,” US Attorney Rachael S. Rollins and Special Agent in charge of the FBI’s Boston office Joseph R. Bonavolonta said in a statement.
Sultan allegedly made eight phone calls “on or about May 28, 2021,” to the Tufts University Police Department, or TUPD, six of which included “specific threats,” the statement said.
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“During the calls, which collectively lasted about an hour, Sultan allegedly claimed to have entered an unidentified female’s dorm room somewhere on the Tufts University campus, to be hiding beneath a bed, and to possess a taser and pistols,” the statement said. “On several occasions, Sultan stated that he intended to use the taser if the female returned to the dorm room and discovered him hiding beneath the bed.”
During the call, Sultan allegedly played the sounds of a taser activating and a pistol’s slide racking, officials said.
TUPD and local police conducted an hourslong, room-by-room search in numerous buildings on the university’s campus in Medford but could not locate the caller, according to the statement.
After electronic evidence was investigated, officials said, it was determined that Sultan made the calls from California. Sultan had a criminal history in California, and a law enforcement officer who was “familiar with Sultan’s voice from a prior investigation recognized Sultan’s voice on the TUPD call recordings.”
In December 2017, Sultan had pleaded guilty in federal court in California “to making hundreds of obscene and harassing phone calls to law enforcement agencies” and was sentenced to two years in prison, according to the statement.
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Officials said that Sultan’s charge in Boston could lead to a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release, and up to a $250,000 fine.
“Sentences are imposed by a federal district court judge based upon the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines and statutes which govern the determination of a sentence in a criminal case,” the statement said.
Assistant US Attorney Timothy H. Kistner of Rollins’ National Security Unit is the prosecutor, according to the statement.
Several parties assisted in the investigation, including TUPD, Massachusetts State Police, Illinois State Police, and police departments in Medford, Somerville, North Andover, Malden, and Peabody. Assistant US Attorney Benjamin Tolkoff of Rollins’ Major Crimes Unit also provided significant assistance during the investigation, officials said.
Sultan will appear in federal court in the Northern District of California Friday and will appear in federal court in Boston at a later date, officials said.
Matt Yan can be reached at matt.yan@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @matt_yan12. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/school-police-probe-disturbing-physical-altercation-inside-boys-restroom-wilmington-high-school/ | Wilmington Public Schools and police investigators are looking into a ”disturbing” physical altercation that bystanders recorded Tuesday in a Wilmington High School boys’ restroom, according to schools Superintendent Glenn Brand.
Brand confirmed the investigation in a letter sent Wednesday to the school community.
He wrote that with “tremendous disappointment,” he was alerting the community of “a serious and disturbing physical altercation that occurred in one of the boys’ bathrooms yesterday. Not only is the incident itself concerning, but also that some of our students recorded the altercation and posted this online.”
Brand said work is underway to identify those responsible and consequences will be significant.
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“All students who are found culpable will be held fully accountable and appropriate disciplinary action will be taken as well as the removal of appropriate privileges that are afforded to those students,” Brand wrote. “Additionally, the Wilmington Police Department has been notified and an investigation is underway.”
A call seeking comment was placed to Wilmington police Chief Joseph Desmond on Friday afternoon. He earlier told WHDH-TV that he thought the actions in the bathroom were criminal.
Desmond told the station that while police haven’t formally charged anyone yet, “I believe at this point, yeah, a crime has been committed.”
Brand said in his letter that school officials will cooperate with law enforcement.
“The high school administration will work collaboratively with the police, and I assure you that we will pursue relevant legal actions should such be deemed warranted following the investigation,” Brand wrote. “I am truly appalled by the actions of these students which are unacceptable and do not represent the core values of this educational community.”
The letter provided no details about what transpired in the bathroom.
“It is my expectation that each and every one of our students has the right to attend a school that is safe and supportive,” Brand wrote. “While I recognize that the vast number of our students consistently make appropriate choices to support such an environment, we will have zero tolerance for those that do not.”
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Brand alluded to prior troubles among students, though he didn’t elaborate in his letter. He did, however, pledge to address the “situation” head-on.
“This incident comes in the wake of a number of other concerns recently involving troubling student behavior,” Brand wrote. “Everyone has an obligation to help foster the type of school environments that our students deserve, including our staff, families and, most importantly, our students themselves. Accordingly, we plan to take additional steps to engage our stakeholders in addressing this situation, including implementing workshops to promote positive behavior, actively discussing the importance of speaking or acting in support of others, and emphasizing and ensuring safety for all.”
Brand’s office released a separate statement Friday in response to a Globe inquiry about the matter.
“Earlier this week there was a physical altercation that occurred in one of the boys’ bathrooms at the Wilmington High School,” Brand said in Friday’s statement. “As a parent, let alone an educator, I am appalled that some of our students decided to act the way that they did. But what is equally disturbing is the fact that other students were present and did nothing to stop the incident, and in fact recorded the altercation.”
Brand said a review of the case remains active.
“We are actively investigating the incident and have also notified the Wilmington police, who have launched their own investigation and have our full cooperation,” Brand said. “I assure you that all students who are found culpable will be held fully accountable and appropriate disciplinary and legal action will be taken. Meanwhile, conversations with the high school administration and student class officers are already underway, and we are in the process of scheduling bystander training that will be mandatory for all students.”
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He also said a series of “conversations” will be held to address the climate in the schools.
“We will also hold a series of community conversations for our students, staff, and parents/guardians to ensure that we all continue to work toward our shared goal of providing a safe and supportive environment in our schools,” Brand said.
Wilmington High Principal Linda Peters didn’t immediately return an e-mail seeking comment.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.
Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/opinion/remember-ladies-put-abigail-adams-back-where-she-belongs/ | Since the murder of George Floyd in May 2020, Confederate statues and those of other divisive historical figures have been taken down — a sign of this country’s need to confront the past and break ties with its sins and sinners. In Boston, the banished include a statue of Christopher Columbus, as well as one depicting a formerly enslaved man kneeling before Abraham Lincoln.
On the flip side of this national reckoning comes an opportunity to honor those who managed to make their mark on history, despite the restrictions of a society dominated by white men. It is in that spirit that the city of Quincy should revise its plans regarding a statue honoring Abigail Adams — the wife of one US president, the mother of another, and a trusted adviser to her husband during the American Revolution and birth of a nation, when it was hard for women to have any voice. A statue of Adams and her son that stood in a park in Quincy Center was removed nine years ago as the area underwent construction. When the new park — known as the Hancock-Adams Common — opened in 2018, it was not returned. The city plans to put it in a nearby park. Meanwhile, two statues — one of Abigail’s husband, John Adams, the nation’s second president, and one of John Hancock, president of the Continental Congress — stand over the north and south entrances of the renovated park.
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“She [Abigail Adams] was a spectacular woman and they just erased her,” said Emily Lebo, a Quincy resident who helped organize a recent rally to protest the city’s decision. The movement to bring the statue back was initially sparked by Claire Fitzmaurice, another Quincy resident, who was inspired by a Japanese tourist who, while visiting the Hancock-Adams Common, came up to her and said: “Can I ask you, where is Abigail?” During a previous visit, he had come upon the statue of the woman he described to Fitzmaurice as his “hero” and had returned to see it again. Fitzmaurice said she was embarrassed to have to tell him it was no longer there. The encounter, she said, made her realize, “This woman matters.”
Why does she matter? Besides keeping her family and farm going while John Adams was off leading the struggle for independence, Abigail Adams is known for the influence she wielded on her husband, much of it through letter-writing. According to the Massachusetts Historical Society, the two exchanged more than 1,100 letters, beginning during their courtship in 1762 and continuing throughout his political career, until 1801. Many were personal, about missing him, as he went off to lead a revolution. But her letters also showcase an independent spirit and strength of conviction that put her ahead of her time. For example, on September 22, 1774, she wrote, “I wish most sincerely there was not a Slave in the province.” And on March 31, 1776, she wrote in what is her most famous letter: “Remember the Ladies, and be more generous and favourable to them than your ancestors. Do not put such unlimited power into the hands of the Husbands. Remember, all Men would be tyrants if they could.” She also advised him to support equal education for women.
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On a recent podcast, Quincy Mayor Tom Koch said “There is no bigger fan of Abigail Adams than me,” and also expressed admiration for Louisa Catherine Johnson Adams, the wife of John Quincy Adams, the sixth president of the United States. But, added Koch on the podcast: “Let’s be honest, John Hancock and John Adams were the two originals ... If neither one of them were involved, the revolution probably wouldn’t have happened.” Maybe. But what is also true is that Abigail Adams is recognized by historians as one of the most “impressive” people from that period in history.
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Abigail Adams was the Adams with a bigger, bolder, more inclusive vision for America. That makes her worthy of more recognition, not less, for what she stood for more than 200 years ago. As Fitzmaurice notes, “Representation matters. You can’t be one, unless you see one ... If you don’t see yourself in American history, how are you going to grow up and think you can be part of it?”
That’s why returning the statue to the Hancock-Adams Common matters.
Editorials represent the views of the Boston Globe Editorial Board. Follow us on Twitter at @GlobeOpinion. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/nate-eovaldi-red-sox-2022/ | The entire point of baseball is to find your way home. For Nate Eovaldi, that has taken a decade.
There were three trades along the way, a second Tommy John surgery, and two trips through free agency. But finally, at the age of 32, his career has the definition and sense of belonging it once lacked.
“This is home,” said Eovaldi, patting the Red Sox logo on his T-shirt after pitching in a spring training game. “It’s been really nice to feel that way.”
Eovaldi is scheduled to face the Yankees when the season opens Thursday afternoon in the Bronx. It would be his third consecutive Opening Day start for the Sox. The last Red Sox pitcher to do that was Jon Lester, who started four in a row from 2011-14.
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It’s apt. Eovaldi, like Lester, is a quiet, hard worker who has earned the respect of his teammates and the confidence of his manager.
“He’s been great for us,” Alex Cora said. “What he brings to the equation — and I always say this in the clubhouse — is how consistent he is. His abilities keep evolving. He’s one of those guys you want. He’s a horse.”
This wasn’t necessarily what the Red Sox originally expected. Eovaldi was a trade-deadline acquisition in 2018 who patched a hole in a rotation dealing with injuries. But that led to one of the most memorable relief appearances in World Series history, a four-year contract extension, and a home in Weston for his family.
“We love it in Boston,” Eovaldi said. “A lot of good things have happened here. We go back to Texas after the season but my wife and my kids love Boston. It’s been comfortable for us.”
Eovaldi had the best season of his career in 2021. He was durable, throwing 182⅓ innings over 32 starts, and efficient, leading the majors with only 1.7 walks per nine innings.
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The Sox won 19 of Eovaldi’s starts and his earned run average of 3.75 was the best in his career over a full season. He finished fourth in the American League Cy Young Award voting.
Eovaldi also beat Gerrit Cole in the American League Wild Card Game and pitched well in three other postseason starts. Now he faces Cole again Thursday.
“I feel like part of the family here,” Eovaldi said. “It’s been a special thing. This organization made me feel welcome from the start and now I see young pitchers coming up and I want to be a good example to them.”
That has already happened, given how Eovaldi has transformed from a fireballer to a pitcher who has several ways, and several subtle tricks, to send a batter back to the dugout.
Lots of menu options
A story about a successful pitcher almost always includes a mention of a high spin rate, a measurable that is often an indicator of ability. But Eovaldi’s fastball registers only in the 29th percentile of spin, and his curveball (ninth percentile) even less.
For Red Sox pitching coach Dave Bush, the spin on spin is to look beyond it.
“Nate throws hard,” Bush said. “Spin rate or not, if he can locate his fastball with high velo, it sets up everything else. Sometimes guys get in trouble trying to create spin. What are you good at? Nate is good at throwing hard. He doesn’t spin the ball particularly well and it doesn’t matter.”
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Eovaldi averaged 96.8 m.p.h. with his fastball last season and threw it 42 percent of the time. He also has a curveball, slider, splitter, and cutter, dividing up his pie chart of secondary pitches into nearly equal slices.
Eovaldi also added an occasional hesitation to his delivery, along with an occasional quick pitch over the last two seasons.
“There are a lot of ways you can upset a hitter’s timing,” Bush said. “You can do a slide step, pitch out of the stretch, out of the windup. You can do a quick pitch or a pause. There’s a lot of different ways to play the game.
“I encourage the guys who can do it, who can control their deliveries, to be open to that and incorporate it when they think it’s right.”
If a quick pitch or hesitation causes a drop in velocity or less movement, it defeats the purpose. But if a pitcher can retain his command, it’s another way to throw off a hitter’s timing.
“You have to attack the hitters,” Eovaldi said. “They have leg kicks, toe taps, and other timing mechanisms. This is a way to disrupt that. That’s why Luis Tiant twisted around the way he did.
“I tried to learn how to create more spin. I just can’t do it. But I found what works for me.”
Efficiency helps, too. Eovaldi averaged 4.7 walks per nine innings in 2019. That has dropped to 1.6 in the two seasons since, the sixth-lowest mark in the majors among qualified pitchers.
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It’s more a product of experience than a physical adjustment.
“He’s gotten a lot better at knowing his own delivery,” Bush said. “So when it’s off he can make a correction within a pitch or two. That avoids those four-, five-, or six-pitch stretches where he just can’t find the zone. He doesn’t have many of those.”
Eovaldi also has enough confidence in his off-speed pitches to throw one for a strike when he’s behind in the count.
“With Nate, you have a lot of choices as a catcher, and they’re all good ones,” Kevin Plawecki said.
A different pitcher now
It goes back to when Eovaldi was drafted and developed by the Dodgers. He debuted in the majors in 2011, the year Clayton Kershaw won his first Cy Young Award.
Kershaw was only 23 months older than Eovaldi but became the pitcher he emulated.
“I learned a lot from just watching him and how he went about his business and his work ethic,” Eovaldi said. “I soaked it all in. He would visualize his start the day before it happened.”
Stints with the Marlins, Yankees, and Rays followed, along with numerous stints on the disabled list.
“You saw the talent, but there were a lot of red flags and question marks,” Cora said.
Eovaldi stepped into the spotlight in Game 3 of the 2018 World Series. He took the mound in the 12th inning of a 1-1 game and pitched into the 18th, throwing 97 pitches with the game on the line for every one of them.
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He lost the game when Max Muncy homered leading off the bottom of the 18th. But Eovaldi saving the bullpen helped lift the Red Sox to the championship two nights later.
“It was pretty amazing,” said Kiké Hernández, who faced Eovaldi three times that night as a Dodger and is now a teammate. “What he did changed the Series.”
Hernández, who also played with Eovaldi in Miami, sees a different pitcher now.
“The older he gets, the more he evolves and the better he gets,” said Hernández. “That’s really inspiring.
“He used to be way more comfortable pitching away to hitters. Now he has a five-pitch mix and can throw them all for the strike, and he’s adding the hesitation and the quick pitch.
“He can go to both sides of the plate against righties and lefties. When you have to worry about how he messes up your timing, it makes facing him a lot tougher.”
That sounds like a pitcher who can succeed well into his 30s.
“People are asking, ‘When do you think you’ll be done?’ But I feel so good and I’m finally able to stay healthy,” Eovaldi said. “I want to keep going. I like this division and this team and playing for a fan base that really understands the game.”
Eovaldi will be a free agent after the season, along with Hernández, J.D. Martinez, Christian Vazquez, and Xander Bogaerts (if he exercises his opt-out).
Whether or not Eovaldi is a fit won’t be clear until the fall. But he hopes that will be the case.
“Of course,” Eovaldi said quickly. “I love it here. I’d be open to anything here. Working with AC, Bushy, and the front office has been great. I’m at a point in my career where the biggest thing is to be part of a winning team and compete for championships.
“You want the opportunity to go out every year and have a legitimate chance to win the World Series, and we have that.”
Peter Abraham can be reached at peter.abraham@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @PeteAbe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/sports/usmnt-world-cup-2022-draw/ | DOHA, Qatar — The most controversial World Cup ever will feature in Qatar the most politically charged matchups.
Just like in 1998, the United States will play Iran with diplomatic relations yet to be restored between the nations. Throw into the mix in Group B England, whose government has endured tense relations with Tehran.
The group could yet be completed by Ukraine, whose ability to qualify for the World Cup has been postponed by being invaded by Russia. The Ukrainians will have to overcome Scotland and then Wales in the playoffs to make the tournament in November.
What is known is that Qatar will open its first World Cup against Ecuador on Nov. 18 after qualifying for the first time as host.
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The draw in Doha Friday delivered a thrilling matchup in Group E between Spain and Germany. Group C could see a meeting of the most recent FIFA Best winners with Lionel Messi’s Argentina drawn to play Robert Lewandowski’s Poland.
The world champion will be crowned in December for the first time due to the final being moved from its usual July slot to avoid Qatar's fierce summer heat.
Qatar has spent 12 years, since winning the World Cup bid, fighting to protect the hosting rights amid corruption investigations and regional disharmony.
The implausibility of Qatar staging such a mammoth event within the congested confines of Doha was clear in the desert imagery that flashed on the screens around the draw venue. Images of skyscrapers growing from the sand served as a reminder of the vast projects required to develop this gas-rich nation in recent decades.
“The world can see Qatar as promised,” the Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, told the audience.
The suffering of low-paid migrant workers went unmentioned.
There was an oblique reference before the draw by FIFA President Gianni Infantino to the war on Ukraine launched in February by 2018 host Russia.
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“Our world is divided, our world is aggressive,” Infantino said, “and we need occasions to bring people together.”
There was a plea for peace.
“To all the leaders and all the people of the world,” Infantino added. “Stop the conflicts and the wars. Please engage in dialogue. Please engage in peace. We want this to be a World Cup of unity and the World Cup of peace.”
The day began with a protest outside FIFA headquarters in Zurich. German artist Volker-Johannes Trieb used balls filled with sand to protest against the suffering of migrant workers in Qatar who have worked on the infrastructure related to the World Cup. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/world/humor-has-become-weapon-war-ukrainians/ | On this April Fools’ Day, a Russian dictator is waging war on a Ukrainian comedian. The incongruity of that European tragedy is hard to fathom. Even as Volodymyr Zelensky resists Vladimir Putin’s assault on the battlefield, Americans are watching his comedy, “Servant of the People,” on Netflix.
Several factors have thwarted Russia's plan for quick victory, but one of them is surely the witty spirit of the Ukrainian people. Amid the images of Putin's atrocities, we've all seen evidence of the Ukrainians' adamantine humor. Millions have watched YouTube videos of Ukrainian farmers taking joyrides on abandoned Russian military equipment. Valeria Shashenok attracted more than 1 million followers to her TikTok page where she laughed in the face of the deprivations of war. (Shashenok is now a refugee in Italy; on Thursday she reported that her brother had been killed in Ukraine.)
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King Lear appreciates his Fool, but in real life, dictators are notoriously allergic to comedy. Soviet comrades were routinely sent to the Gulag for telling political jokes. Even 65 years after the old mass murderer's demise, the Kremlin banned Armando Iannucci's film "The Death of Stalin." In 2013, the leader of one of Serbia's pro-democracy groups wrote in Foreign Policy, "Laughter and fun are no longer marginal to a movement's strategy; they now serve as a central part of the activist arsenal, imbuing the opposition with an aura of cool, helping to break the culture of fear instilled by the regime, and provoking the regime into reactions that undercut its legitimacy."
For instance, in 2017, Russia made it illegal to portray Putin as a gay clown. It takes a special kind of political fragility to think that's a wise legislative move.
Rob Sears is the British author of a funny parody called "Vladimir Putin: Life Coach." (Chapter 1: "How to Win Friends and Influence Elections.") Although George Orwell claimed that "every joke is a tiny revolution," Sears warns against overstating the tactical efficacy of wit. "It's hard to prove that political humor accomplishes much of anything," he tells me, "but a world without any would surely be a worse place. It would be that bit harder to puncture (even if temporarily) a tyrant's self-mythologizing, and that bit lonelier to be one of their opponents."
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Jill Twark, a professor of German at East Carolina University who studies humor and tyranny, agrees on the limited but essential value of satire. "It boosts the morale of people who are suffering from oppression," she says, but "it does not change the course of history."
Comedy, though, has a special place in Ukrainians' hearts. Ilya Kaminsky, the award-winning poet of "Deaf Republic" - one of The Washington Post's 10 best collections of 2019 - was born in Odessa. He has fond memories of Humorina, the city's immensely popular holiday of humor on April 1. Kaminsky, who now lives in the United States, explains that Humorina is adjacent to our April Fools' Day, but different. In Odessa "it is a day of kind humor," he tells me. "When I was growing up, the slogan for it used to be 'Humor and kindness will save the world.'"
Kaminsky was born just a few years before Leonid Brezhnev died, and he can remember his parents reciting funny stories to each other in the old Soviet Union. “There was a kind of resistance in that,” he says. “It was a step outside of the normative - a language two humans spoke to each other, a joke being the bit of free space, a gulp of air, a laugh.”
Advertisement | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/arts/dennis-lehane-bringing-black-bird-apple-tv/ | Dennis Lehane, the Boston-born author of “Mystic River” and “Shutter Island,” has a new limited series coming to Apple TV+. Called “Black Bird,” the six-episode show is based on the true crime memoir “In with the Devil: A Fallen Hero, a Serial Killer, and a Dangerous Bargain for Redemption” by James Keene and Hillel Levin. It will premiere on July 8.
Taron Egerton, Paul Walter Hauser, Sepideh Moafi, Greg Kinnear, and Ray Liotta are in the cast. Egerton plays a high school football star and policeman’s son who’s convicted of dealing drugs. He is sentenced to 10 years in a minimum security prison, but he is given another option: Enter a maximum-security prison for the criminally insane, befriend a suspected serial killer, get him to confess where he buried the bodies, and walk free.
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Matthew Gilbert can be reached at matthew.gilbert@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewGilbert. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/gm-recalls-nearly-682000-suvs-windshield-wipers-can-fail/ | DETROIT — Ford is issuing two recalls covering over 737,000 vehicles to fix oil leaks and trailer braking systems that won’t work.
The oil leak recall includes the 2020 through 2022 Ford Escape SUV and the 2021 and 2022 Bronco Sport SUV with 1.5-liter engines. A housing can crack and oil can leak onto engine parts, which can create a fire hazard.
Dealers will replace the housing if needed. Owners will be notified starting April 18.
The trailer braking recall includes F-150 pickups from 2021 and 2022, as well as the 2022 F-250, 350, 450, and 550. Also covered are the 2022 Maverick pickup, and Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs.
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A software error can stop trailers from braking, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will update brake control software. Owners will be notified starting April 18.
Meanwhile, General Motors is recalling nearly 682,000 compact SUVs because the windshield wipers can fail.
The recall covers the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC Terrain from the 2014 and 2015 model years.
Ball joints in the wiper module can rust, causing one or both wipers to fail, increasing the risk of a crash.
Dealers will inspect the module and repair or replace it if needed. Owners will be notified by letter starting May 2. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/remote-work-steadily-declines-us-some-resist-return-office/ | At the height of the pandemic lockdowns in May 2020, more than one-third of US workers were doing their jobs at least partly from home, shifting perceptions of workplace flexibility. Ever since, the share of workers telecommuting because of COVID-19 has steadily declined, falling to 22.7 percent of the workforce in February 2021 and 10 percent last month, according to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Now those numbers appear likely to dip lower. Many employers have heightened their calls for workers to come to the office in recent weeks, with companies including Goldman Sachs, Meta, Microsoft, and Chevron asking some employees back, even as COVID case counts begin to climb again in some areas and mask mandates drop.
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“You see now lots of companies, big and small, starting to put stakes in the ground saying we want our people back in the office,” said Mark Ein, chair of Kastle Systems, a building security firm whose tracker placed US office occupancy at 40 percent last month.
But return-to-office plans have been met with skepticism from people who say working from home improves productivity and mental health. Some workers of color said telecommuting enabled them to avoid insensitive comments they faced in the office. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/business/vw-snubs-deutsche-bank-lead-role-one-germanys-biggest-ever-ipos/ | The initial public offering of iconic sports-car maker Porsche, which is poised to be one of Germany’s biggest-ever IPOs, is missing the country’s biggest bank, Deutsche Bank.
Volkswagen picked an all-American lineup, snubbing European banks, to lead the planned share sale, which could value Porsche at as much as 90 billion euros ($100 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.
The choice of Goldman Sachs, Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co., and Citigroup as joint global coordinators is another reminder of just how strong Wall Street’s grip on European equity capital markets has become. US banks have taken the top five underwriting slots on equity offerings in the wider Europe, Middle East, and Africa region for the last two years, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
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VW’s decision in particular to omit Deutsche Bank, long a mainstay in the boardrooms of Germany’s blue-chip companies, surprised both the advisers that won the coveted top-line mandates and those that pitched and missed out, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing private matters.
Deutsche Bank made a big push for a lead role. Its Chief Executive Officer Christian Sewing, who’s credited with stabilizing the German lender over the past several years, got involved with a pre-recorded video message to VW, the people said.
Other CEOs including JPMorgan’s Jamie Dimon and Goldman’s David Solomon also filmed messages to go with their firms’ pitches, the people said. Goldman’s pitch included a video montage of bank employees waxing lyrical about how they love their Porsches, the people said. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/taste-iceland-festival-bring-nordic-culture-boston/ | The home of the Northern Lights is coming to the Northeast.
The Taste of Iceland festival is returning to Boston April 7-11, bringing with it the food, music, and literature of the Nordic nation. Local businesses like the Brattle Theatre and Cheeky Monkey Brewing Co. will join in the five-day Scandinavian shindig.
“What we are trying to achieve with this is to create and strengthen the overall awareness of Iceland and its products and its services,” said Daníel Oddsson, a project manager at Inspired by Iceland, the marketing organization that presents the festival.
One of the main features of the festival is the pop-up menu at Cheeky Monkey. From April 7-10, beginning at 5 p.m., the Fenway brewery will offer a spin on Icelandic fare, including a seafood taco flight, a grilled rack of lamb, and a smoked chocolate stout, made in house and inspired by last year’s eruption of the Fagradalsfjall volcano. All the ingredients will be flown in from Iceland then prepared by Icelandic chef Viktor Örn Andrésson and Cheeky Monkey head chef Wagner Sousa.
“There’s a huge culinary scene right now in Iceland that is starting to grow, and we’re really lucky to be part of that,” said Cheeky Monkey general manager Joe Spano. “It’s really one of those best-kept secrets.”
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Other events, which are free and first-come-first-serve, include an “elemental sound bath” at the Down Under School of Yoga in Cambridge, a screening of the 2021 Icelandic film “Cop Secret” at the Brattle in Harvard Square, and the Reykjavik Calling Concert at downtown entertainment venue Royale, featuring musicians Bríet and Axel Flóvent.
Alibi Bar & Lounge in the Liberty Hotel will host a cocktail-making class using Icelandic spirits on April 7, and the SoWa Power Station will present an exhibition of photographs by Chris Burkard from his dozens of trips to Iceland on April 10.
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On April 8, at Trident Booksellers & Cafe, the first lady of Iceland, Eliza Reid, will host an in-person reading of her book, “Secrets of the Sprakkar,” which focuses on gender equality in Iceland. There will also be a conversation between Reid and author Geraldine Brooks.
“I’m honored and excited to be taking part in the Taste of Iceland festival in Boston,” said Reid in a statement to the Globe. “You may not be able to breathe in our pristine air or actually hike on a glacier or a black sand beach while you’re in Boston, but during this festival you’ll meet memorable Icelandic people and learn so much about our country, our progressive values, and our culture.”
A full calendar and description of events can be found at inspiredbyiceland.com.
Dana Gerber can be reached at dana.gerber@globe.com | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/lifestyle/tiktok-famous-makeup-artist-mikayla-nogueira-make-stop-pru/ | What’s poppin’?
This Saturday, TikTok-viral makeup artist Mikayla Nogueira will make an appearance in Boston, stopping by the Sephora in the Prudential Center from 4 p.m.-6 p.m. to celebrate the launch of her collaboration with skin care company Glow Recipe.
“I want to meet my Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New Hampshire — whoever’s coming to Boston, I want to meet you this Saturday,” said Nogueira in a TikTok video promoting the event. “The people who support me from New England, I’m not trying to be biased, but you’re my [expletive] favorites.”
To meet Nogueira at Sephora, visitors must purchase $25 or more of beauty brand Glow Recipe products.
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@mikaylanogueira SEE YOU IN BOSTON THIS SATURDAY AT THE PRUDENTIAL CENTER SEPHORA! 4-6PM! 🙌🏻 #boston #makeup #beauty
♬ original sound - Mikayla Nogueira
The influencer also curated a $48 three-piece skin care kit, Glow Essentials by Mikayla, which was made available on Glow Recipe’s and Sephora’s websites in late March, and dropped Friday in Sephora stores.
Nogueira, a Massachusetts native, began posting to her TikTok account, @mikaylanogueira, in March 2020, quickly gaining a dedicated fanbase, in no small part due to love of her thick Boston accent. Even singer and Rare Beauty founder Selena Gomez admitted that Nogueira’s catchphrase, “what’s poppin’?,” didn’t have the same ring to it when she said it in a 2021 TikTok.
Nogueira has since racked up more than 11.3 million TikTok followers, who tune in to watch her product reviews, beauty tutorials, and — oh, yeah, her meeting Rihanna two weeks ago.
Dana Gerber can be reached at dana.gerber@globe.com | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/despite-overall-lower-participaton-mass-graduating-seniors-achieved-top-marks-ap-exams-2021/ | Massachusetts ranked No. 1 in the country for the percentage of graduating seniors who scored a three or higher on Advanced Placement exams in 2021, according to data from College Board.
Nearly one third of seniors, more than 20,000 students, who took AP exams last year scored at least a three on one of their tests, according to a statement from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education.
AP tests are graded on a five-point scale, and some colleges will accept the exams for credit if they are scored at a three or higher, including many of the state’s public schools.
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Massachusetts also had the highest percentage of graduating students score at least a three in 2020, 2018, and 2016.
“It’s wonderful to see students’ and teachers’ commitment to this challenging coursework,” Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeffrey C. Riley said in a statement. “I hope schools will continue to find ways to add engaging, rigorous classes that prepare students for life after high school.”
About 43 percent of graduating seniors in Massachusetts took AP exams last year, according to the DESE statement. This is down from almost 49 percent of graduating students who took AP tests in 2019, before the pandemic started. The statement did note that despite overall lower participation in the state for the class of 2021, the state saw more than 7,500 graduating seniors from low-income background participate in AP testing — the highest number from that group in the last 10 years.
AP exams are not free, though some students do qualify for waivers and subsidies through the College Board, which runs the testing, their school districts, or state funding.
The statement also noted that DESE has been working to increase these AP test subsidies. DESE also said it is trying to grow the number of schools that offer AP courses in STEM subjects and the number of students that take them through a $9 million grant program. The program allows students to take the AP classes for free online.
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“All students should have the opportunity to challenge themselves with advanced courses,” state Education Secretary James Peyser said. “Whether it’s AP courses, early college, or through an Innovation Pathway, advanced classes can help keep students engaged and put them on the path to college.”
Colleen Cronin can be reached at colleen.cronin@globe.com. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/mass-high-court-places-limits-police-access-cellphone-data/ | The state’s highest court on Friday for the first time extended privacy protections to “tower dumps” of cellphone data, requiring police to get a search warrant for the novel technique, which was used by Boston police to pinpoint two men out of 50,000 people as suspects in a 2018 Boston murder and several robberies.
The Supreme Judicial Court said in a unanimous opinion it was responding to 21st-century technology that has “resulted in a quantity and quality of surveillance that never could have been imagined, let alone realized, at the time of the founding.”
Writing for the court, Justice Frank M. Gaziano said cellphone technology used in the Boston area can allow police to track thousands of individuals “precisely, down to the specific floor of a particular building.” Like privacy rights for an individual inside their home, cellphone data must now be shielded from unfettered intrusion by law enforcement, the court concluded.
Gaziano noted that, using the tower dumps, “investigators were able to compile and catalogue the locations of more than 50,000 individuals at varying points over more than one month, without any one of them ever knowing that he or she was the target of police surveillance.”
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“Privacy in one’s associations, whether political, religious, or simply amicable, plays a crucial role in maintaining our democracy, and therefore is protected” under Article 14 of the state constitution, he wrote. “Providing law enforcement with such personal information is of particular concern because it risks chilling the associational and expressive freedoms that our State and Federal Constitutions strive to protect.”
The ruling stems from the pending Suffolk Superior Court prosecution of Jerron J. Perryfor the Oct. 6, 2018, slaying of 62-year-old Jose Luis Williams. Williams was working at the Fabian Gas Station on Washington Street in Dorchester when he was killed by a single shot from a .45-caliber handgun, records show.
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Perry is also charged with committing five armed robberies in Boston, Cambridge, and Canton in September and October 2018. A co-defendant, Gregory H. Williams III, is charged with being an accessory to Williams’s murder - and five counts of armed robbery, records show.
Both men have pleaded not guilty and are being held without bail, records show.
Victims of the robberies provided broadly similar descriptions of the robber, the gun used, and the getaway car sometimes used, according to the SJC. But the two men were not linked to the crimes - or each other - until the FBI and Boston police collected data through seven tower dumps around the dates and times of the crimes, the SJC said.
The tower dumps “provided investigators with highly personal and previously unknowable details” of Perry’s life,” Gaziano wrote. “An owner’s location and associations are tied to his or her telephone number and unique identifier, which, here, were used to discern the defendant’s identity and that of his suspected accomplice.”
The SJC said that some of the data seized by police cannot be used against Perry. “The Commonwealth’s use of the seven tower dumps intruded upon the defendant’s reasonable expectation of privacy,’' Gaziano wrote.
Perry’s defense attorney, Eric Tennen, said Friday that he was reviewing the 51-page ruling to determine the precise impact the court’s decision will have on the case.
In a statement, Suffolk District Attorney Kevin R. Hayden said the SJC ruling would not impact the prosecution of the two men.
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“Criminal investigations, as with all aspects of modern life, are affected by constant advancements in technology,” he said. The SJC decision “brings clarity to how law enforcement agencies can go about collecting technological evidence they deem important to an investigation. We welcome that clarity.”
In its decision, the SJC issued new, stricter rules police must follow before they can conduct tower dumps. Police must get a search warrant justifying their request for information on thousands of people who have no idea their data is being examined by police and have no tie to the crime being investigated.
Search warrants can be approved by a clerk magistrate or a judge - but not for tower dumps. For tower dumps, only a judge can approve the warrant. Moreover, the SJC said, police must also spell out how they will delete data collected from the thousands of people who weren’t involved in the crime.
The court said its ruling is not retroactive.
The American Civil Liberties Union and the ACLU of Massachusetts, the Electronic Frontier Foundation, Massachusetts Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, and the Committee for Public Counsel Services submitted a joint amicus brief to the SJC.
“This is a groundbreaking decision that provides crucial privacy protections for people in Massachusetts,” Jessie Rossman, managing attorney at the ACLU of Massachusetts, said in a statement. “The message is clear: If the police use tower dumps over multiple days to identify someone they believe to have committed crimes, they must first get a warrant, and they must promptly discard any data they acquire from those tower dumps about people other than the target.”
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John R. Ellement can be reached at john.ellement@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @JREbosglobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/metro/randolph-man-shot-by-boston-police-arraigned-hospital-bed-allegedly-firing-officers/ | A Randolph man shot by Boston police after he allegedly fired at them early Thursday was arraigned from his hospital bed Friday on charges stemming from the case.
Jeff Anilus, 31, appeared remotely in West Roxbury Municipal Court from his bed at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. A not guilty plea was entered for him on two counts each of assault to murder and assault with a dangerous weapon, as well as sole counts of possession of a firearm without an FID card, possession of ammunition without an FID card, operating a motor vehicle with a suspended license, and failing to stop for police.
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Anilus was ordered held without bail pending a dangerousness hearing April 6.
Judge John E. Garland noted during the brief arraignment Friday that Anilus has had difficulty communicating with his court-appointed lawyer, Francis X. Sacco.
“He’s in a medical condition that doesn’t allow him to communicate directly with you,” Garland said to Sacco from the bench, referring to Anilus. “However, I’ll note for the record that you did say that you were able to communicate with Mr. Anilus by him nodding his head or shaking his head.”
Sacco also addressed his client’s medical condition during the hearing.
“As I stated, he wasn’t able to talk,” Sacco said. “It does seem that he’s still heavily medicated as a result of his injuries.”
No details of the case were discussed during Friday’s hearing.
Officers shot Anilus following a foot pursuit into the wooded area around the Lemuel Shattuck Hospital in Jamaica Plain, according to Boston police Superintendent-in-Chief and acting Police Commissioner Gregory Long.
Shortly before 1 a.m. Thursday, police attempted to pull over a vehicle near the hospital on Morton Street, Long said previously.
Officers followed the car until it crashed near the hospital entrance, where Anilus got out and ran into the woods, officials have said. The officers then called for reinforcements, and began pursuing Anilus through the trees as additional officers flooded the area.
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During the chase, Anilus allegedly turned and fired a gun at the officers, Long said, at which point “several officers” fired back, “striking the suspect multiple times” and severely wounding him.
The confrontation is the first time a Boston police officer has shot a suspect this year, according to police spokesman Sergeant Detective John Boyle. None of the officers were struck by gunfire, he said.
Material from prior Globe stories was used in this report.
Travis Andersen can be reached at travis.andersen@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @TAGlobe. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/biden-just-gave-democrats-potential-self-imposed-quandary-that-could-haunt-them-over-midterms/ | Democrats were already staring into a deeply rough midterm election in six months. Then the Biden Administration decided to make a move that could result in huge negative political consequences it isn’t prepared to handle.
Indeed, with persistent inflation, rising gas prices, and Democratic voter enthusiasm at a new historic low, the Biden administration may have just decided to spark an immigration crisis at the border.
On Friday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced that in late May, the United States will no longer prevent migrants from seeking asylum along the nation’s southern border out of concerns of spreading COVID-19.
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The Trump-era policy was arguably the most controversial holdover that the Biden administration kept in place for well over a year. Progressive lawmakers, including many from the Massachusetts delegation, felt the policy lacked basic decency in the first place, and given that the pandemic has receded somewhat, it was definitely time to scrap the rule.
However, other Democrats, including those in swing states, have said that while they would also like to see the plan, known as Title 42, scrapped, they are deeply worried that the administration has not done enough to plan for what could be a chaotic surge of migrants at the border, especially in an election year.
For example, Axios is reporting that ahead of the announcement, the administration is scrambling to find enough staff to process the estimated 25,000 migrants waiting on the other side of the border. Further, the government estimates they have denied entry 1.7 million times over the past 24 months citing Title 42. As a result, there will be the need for surge capacity of facilities, food, water, all while ensuring public health during the pandemic. There has also been talk of offering COVID vaccines to those arriving.
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On Friday, New Hampshire Senator Maggie Hassan, for example, joined fellow Senate Democrats like Mark Warner of Virginia, Mark Kelly of Arizona, and Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Menendez in criticizing the decision by saying the administration doesn’t have a plan in place.
“Ending Title 42 prematurely will likely lead to a migrant surge that the administration does not appear to be ready for,” said Hassan in a tweet.
It could be politically perilous.
As the administration has been signaling over the past week that they will drop the Title 42 restriction, Republicans have been nearly giddy over the prospect.
In a speech on the Senate floor, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell declared that “Throwing the floodgates open for a historic spring and summer of illegal immigration would be an unforced error of historic proportions.” (Those seeking asylum would, by definition, apply to enter the country via a legal process.)
In addition, the Republican National Committee rolled out a new video series on Wednesday focusing on the southern border.
Following a bad withdrawal from Afghanistan over six months ago, Biden’s poll numbers have been strikingly low since. Immigration has been a topic that has especially animated conservative politicians and activists.
Indeed, many Republican candidates for Congress see a border visit as something like a rite of passage as a candidate, and certainly as a fundraising tool.
If, as some Democrats warn, there is a problem at the border after the policy is lifted, it could be a staple talking point for Republicans for which it is hard for Democrats to defend.
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To be clear, there are many Democrats who are very supportive of the move. They see it as morally necessary even if totally messy in how it plays out. But messy situations also undercut a central theme of Biden’s candidacy in 2020: that he would make the federal government competent.
With seven months before Election Day, a lot can happen. Indeed, it is possible that things aren’t so bad for Democrats right now, especially if Biden’s approval ratings jump just a little. But Democrats don’t have a lot of room for things to get worse.
Many Democrats fear that their party’s leader may have opened the door to just that.
James Pindell can be reached at james.pindell@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @jamespindell and on Instagram @jameswpindell. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/house-votes-decriminalize-marijuana-senate-fate-dim/ | WASHINGTON (AP) — Marijuana would be decriminalized at the federal level under legislation the House approved Friday as Democrats made the case for allowing states to set their own policies on pot.
The bill is unlikely to become law since it is expected to die in the Senate. That would mirror what happened when a similar House-passed measure removing marijuana from the list of federally-controlled substances went nowhere in the Senate two years ago.
Still, Friday's vote gave lawmakers the chance to state their view on a decriminalization push that appears to have broad support with voters across the country.
The 2020 election showed how broadly accepted marijuana has become, with measures to legalize recreational pot breezing to victory in progressive New Jersey, moderate Arizona and conservative Montana and South Dakota.
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The House approved the bill Friday with a mostly party-line vote of 220-204. All but two voting Democrats backed the measure, while only three Republicans did.
The measure would require federal courts to expunge prior marijuana convictions and conduct resentencing hearings for those completing their sentences. It also authorizes a 5% sales tax on marijuana and marijuana products that would be used for grant programs focused on job training, substance abuse treatment and loans to help disadvantaged small businesses get into the marijuana industry.
Democrats said the nation's federal prohibition on marijuana has had particularly devastating consequences for minority communities. House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., cited statistics that showed Black Americans were four times more likely than white Americans to be arrested for marijuana possession, even though they use it at similar rates.
“Those criminal records can haunt people of color and impact the trajectory of their lives indefinitely," Hoyer said. “I regret that there are some members of our Congress who apparently think that's not worthy of attention."
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“Make no mistake, yes, it is a racial justice bill," said Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif.
Republicans who opposed the measure said marijuana is a gateway drug that would lead to greater use of opioids and other dangerous substances. They also said the pot sold today is far more potent than what was sold decades ago, leading to greater impairment for those who use it. They said decriminalization is not the priority that lawmakers should be focused on now, with the war in Ukraine and inflation driving up the cost of gas, food and other essential items.
“Yet the priority of this Congress now turns to expanding access to addictive, behavior-altering recreational drugs at a time when our country is also experiencing increased addiction, depression and suicide," said Rep. Bob Good, R-Va.
Thirty-seven states and District of Columbia allow the medical use of cannabis products while 18 states and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.
“If states are the laboratories of democracy, it is long past time for the federal government to recognize that legalization has been a resounding success and that the conflict with federal law has become untenable," said the bill's sponsor, Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., chairman of the House Judiciary Committee.
In the Senate, Democrats including Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York asked colleagues in early February for their input on a marijuana decriminalization bill. He said after the House vote that they were still working on crafting the legislation, but he hoped it would be introduced “very soon."
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“Of course, we will need Republicans to pass a legalization bill in the Senate, and we will be working hard to try and get them,” Schumer said. | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/jan-6-panel-pressures-attorney-general-merrick-garland-charge-higher-ups/ | WASHINGTON (AP) — Lawmakers investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol are increasingly going public with critical statements, court filings and more to deliver a blunt message to Attorney General Merrick Garland and the Department of Justice.
President Donald Trump and his allies likely committed crimes, they say. And it’s up to you to do something about it.
“Attorney General Garland, do your job so we can do ours,” prodded Rep. Elaine Luria of Virginia.
“We are upholding our responsibility. The Department of Justice must do the same,” echoed Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.
Their rhetoric, focused this week on two contempt of Congress referrals approved by the committee, is just the latest example of the pressure campaign the lawmakers are waging. It reflects a stark reality: While they can investigate Jan. 6 and issue subpoenas to gather information, only the Justice Department can bring criminal charges.
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Committee members see the case they are building against Trump and his allies as a once-in-a-generation circumstance. If it's not fully prosecuted, they say, it could set a dangerous precedent that threatens the foundations of American democracy.
The lawmakers seem nearly certain to send a criminal referral to the Justice Department once their work is through.
It all puts Garland, who has spent his tenure trying to shield the Justice Department from political pressure, in a precarious spot. Any criminal charges related to Jan. 6 would trigger a firestorm, thrusting prosecutors back into the partisan crossfire that proved so damaging during the Trump-Russia influence investigation and an email probe of Hillary Clinton.
Garland has given no public indication about whether prosecutors might be considering a case against the former president. He has, though, vowed to hold accountable “all January 6th perpetrators, at any level” and has said that would include those who were “present that day or were otherwise criminally responsible for the assault on our democracy.”
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It's already the largest criminal prosecution in the department's history — for rioters who entered the Capitol building on Jan. 6 as well as members of extremist groups who are accused of planning the attack. More than 750 people have been charged with federal crimes. Over 220 riot defendants have pleaded guilty, more than 100 have been sentenced and at least 90 others have trial dates.
Parts of the department's investigation have overlapped with the committee's. One example is in late January when Justice announced it had opened a probe into a fake slate of electors who falsely tried to declare Trump the winner of the 2020 election in seven swing states that Joe Biden won. Three days later, lawmakers subpoenaed more than a dozen people involved in the effort.
But the Jan. 6 committee wants more. Their message was amplified this week when a federal judge in California — District Judge David Carter, a Bill Clinton appointee — wrote that it is “more likely than not” that Trump himself committed crimes in his attempt to stop the certification of the 2020 election.
The practical effect of that ruling was to order the release of more than 100 emails from Trump adviser John Eastman to the Jan. 6 Committee. But lawmakers zeroed in on a particular passage in the judge’s opinion that characterized Jan. 6 as a “coup.”
“Dr. Eastman and President Trump launched a campaign to overturn a democratic election, an action unprecedented in American history. Their campaign was not confined to the ivory tower—it was a coup in search of a legal theory,” Carter wrote.
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But experts caution that Carter's opinion was only in a civil case and does not meet the longstanding charging policy the Justice Department is required to meet. Justin Danilewitz, a Philadelphia-based attorney and former federal prosecutor, noted the department faces a higher burden of proof in court to show that presidential immunity should not apply. And he said the legal advice Trump received from Eastman “undermines an inference of corrupt or deceitful intent."
The department will be guided by the evidence and law, he said, "but the social and political ramifications of a decision of this kind will not be far from the minds of Attorney General Garland and his staff.”
“A decision to bring or not bring criminal charges will have significant ripple effects," he added.
Taylor Budowich, a Trump spokesperson, called the judge’s ruling an “absurd and baseless ruling by a Clinton-appointed Judge in California.” He called the House committee’s investigation a “circus of partisanship.”
Another point of friction with the Justice Department is the effort to enforce subpoenas through contempt of Congress charges.
The House approved a contempt referral against former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows in December after he ceased cooperating with the Jan. 6 panel. While an earlier contempt referral against former Trump adviser Steve Bannon resulted in an indictment, the Department of Justice has been slower to decide whether to prosecute Meadows.
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“The Department of Justice is entrusted with defending our Constitution,” Rep. Liz Cheney, the Republican committee chair, said at a hearing this week. “Department leadership should not apply any doctrine of immunity that might block Congress from fully uncovering and addressing the causes of the January 6 attack.”
A decision to pursue the contempt charges against Meadows would have to come from career prosecutors in the U.S. attorney’s office in Washington before senior Justice Department officials would weigh in and decide how to proceed.
Bringing a case against Meadows would be more challenging for prosecutors than the case against Bannon, in large part because Bannon wasn’t a White House official during the insurrection.
The Justice Department has long maintained that senior aides generally cannot be forced to testify if a president invokes executive privilege, as Trump has done. And bringing charges could risk undermining the longstanding principle that lets the executive branch of the government keep most discussions private.
While the majority of committee members have turned up the pressure on Garland, one member, Democratic Rep. Jamie Raskin of Maryland, has not gone as far.
“I feel strongly that we restore the tradition of respect for the independence of the law enforcement function,” Raskin told reporters this week. “That was one of the things that got trashed during the Trump period. And so I think that Congress and the president should let the Department of Justice and attorney general do their job.”
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“Attorney General Garland is my constituent,” Raskin added, “and I don’t beat up on my constituents.” | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/04/01/nation/trinity-college-student-killed-2-hurt-hit-and-run-crash/ | HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A hit-and-run driver struck three Trinity College students who were trying to cross a street in Hartford, killing one and wounding the two others, city police said Friday as they continued searching for the suspect.
Officers were called to New Britain Avenue near the liberal arts school shortly after 11:30 p.m. Thursday and found three injured young women including one who was unresponsive, Lt. Aaron Boisvert said. All three were taken to local hospitals.
Jillian Hegarty, 20, from St. Johnsbury, Vermont, was pronounced dead at a hospital, Boisvert said. A 19-year-old woman remained hospitalized Friday in critical but stable condition and a 20-year-old woman was treated and released, he said.
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Police said they found the sport utility involved in the accident in New Haven on Friday, but there was no sign of the driver.
Boisvert declined to say whether the three students were in a crosswalk.
The Trinity community was mourning Hegarty's death and planning a gathering in the school's chapel Friday afternoon to remember her, a school official said. All three students were members of the Class of 2024.
“This hit-and-run accident comes as a great shock to us all,” said Joe DiChristina, the school’s vice president for student success and enrollment management, in an email to students, faculty, staff and alumni. ”Nothing could have prepared us for this kind of news and the senseless loss of life. It is simply heartbreaking.” | true | true | both | www.bostonglobe | 20220401 |
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