Without getting into the Boston neighborhood redistricting minutiae, suffice to say the Boston City Council erred when it went about changing voter lines and city council districts in what appears to have been a highly questionable manner. It was so questionable that Mayor Thomas Menino vetoed the measure. As a result, the redistricting bill...
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Editorials
The Jewish New Year
Boston’s Jewish community has ushered in the New Year with synagogue services, prayer and with traditional family gatherings. Now comes the ten days of penitence for Jews all over the world, during which time they must atone for their misdeeds during the past year in order to clear the slate for the coming year....
Remembering September 11, 2001
The more that time passes, the more we tend to forget the stark terror and horrible outcome of the terrorists attacks which killed so many, while at the same time awakened the nation to the worldwide terrorist threat. The passing of time, however, doesn’t dim the memory of just how bad this attack was,...
Fighting Cancer with a Walk
The neighborhoods in and around downtown Boston, including our own, were crowded Sunday with walkers and many, many observers and silent participants doing their thing to raise money for the Boston Marathon Jimmy Fund Walk. According to the Jimmy Fund, approximately $7.5 million was raised for the Dana Farber Cancer Institute and 8500 men...
The Red Sox in Last Place
You do not have to be a Boston Red Sox baseball fan to take notice of the Red Sox who sank into last place at the expense of a team that came to Boston this weekend that was in last place when they arrived but are no longer in last place upon leaving. The...
The Labor Day Weekend
The symbolic end of summer – the Labor Day weekend - has come and gone, again. The holiday has its origins in the 1880’s and was intended at first to celebrate the contributions and achievements of American workers. Celebrating the achievements of American workers is a bit dated these days – and what’s more...
The Summer of 2012
For those of us who regret the end of summer, who refuse to believe that it is nearly done, well, it is that time of the year again when summer is breathing its last breath, when each day at the beach is one of the last days at the beach this season, and when...
The Changing Times
Among public officials who are dealing with increasingly tricky density issues in cities across the land, there is the trend in belief about the future of our neighborhood shopping areas that automobiles are going to become a thing of the past. In most older American cities like Boston, where density has been an issue...
Thesis and Anti-Thesis
Our neighborhoods, thankfully, are among the safest in the city. Beacon Hill and the Back Bay are examples of wonderful places to live, to shop, to own businesses or to tour. And best of all, our neighborhoods are virtually absent of violent crime and of the pervasive gun play occurring in other neighborhoods with...
The Long Hot Summer
The scorching heat of the past weekend and of the week before has left the neighborhood very, very hot. In fact, as all of us are completely aware, this has been a long hot summer – perhaps the hottest in recent memory. In other parts of the nation, states are experiencing drought conditions this...