In what universe do Trump Republicans reside? The world embraced by their national convention is the kind of horror show I'd never pay to see, and couldn't sit through if it were free. Cue threatening music: the Democrats will bring carnage. They will kill the suburbs. They are the radical left and will create anarchy. …
DNC delivers optimism, hard work ahead
It's all right to exhale. The Democrats delivered four well-produced creative and nearly seamless nights, and Joe Biden did extremely well. The four days were a huge success, from Michelle and Barack Obama to Kamala Harris to unknowns like Kristin Urquiza, whose late father died of COVID-19. He was, she said, a Trump supporter whose …
Reps and Dems know it: mail voting works
I voted Saturday. I responded to a universal mailing from the Secretary of State's office, indicating I wanted a mail-in ballot. The pandemic has blunted my decades-long pleasure of going to the local polling place and participating with others in my community in one of the greatest gifts of living in a democracy. I filled …
Markey, Kennedy fight nasty with 20 days left
Two genuinely decent men and upstanding elected officials got really unpleasant in Tuesday night's U.S. Senate debate. Four-term Congressman Joe Kennedy III had a more polished and coherent presentation than in previous debates. Four decade former Congressman, now Senator Ed Markey, after a slow start, finished strong. But the whole event just made me want …
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Biden chooses Harris, an unexpectedly pleasing choice
I was never a big fan of Kamala Harris when she was running for President. Yet I am surprisingly pleased by her selection to be Joe Biden's rnning mate. The former California Attorney General and San Francisco district attorney, she was a tough-on-crime prosecutor (too tough, say some), and is a seasoned campaigner. As US …
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“Women’s issues” front and center with Mermell, Grossman in 4th CD race
Two women stand out in the crowded race to fill Joe Kennedy's 4th district seat in Congess- Jesse Mermell and Becky Grossman. Mermell, from Brookline, has paid her dues in politics and public affairs for 20 years. Grossman, from Newton, is a relative newcomer to elected office. Mermell headed the Massachusetts Women’s Political Caucus and …
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The Greek Connection is available – finally!!!!
What do Doris Kearns Goodwin, Sy Hersh, Mitch Zuckoff, and Steve Kinzer and other illustrious authors have in common? They're all high on "The Greek Connection: the Life of Elias Demetracopoulos and the Untold Story of Watergate." Goodwin calls it "a magnificent work..... "a sweeping biography of an absolutely captivating figure who captures our attention …
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Baseball’s return hints at normalcy
Tonight the Boston Red Sox return, in diminished form but a return nonetheless. And, I confess, I'm happy about that. The game against the Baltimore Orioles offers more than a departure from news about COVID-19, corrupt politics and Terrible Trump. Even without fans and with recorded cheering, even with strong hitters undermined by mediocre pitching, …
Donald Trump Deepens Descent into Darkness
Throwing around the word fascist should be as heavy a lift as heaving a manhole cover like a discus. It can't be done lightly. But Donald Trump's love of authoritarian dictators, modeling their behavior, becomes more deeply troubling every day. His sending unrequested federal military personnel into crowds of protesters in Portland, Oregon, evokes images …
Statues of limitations: which stay, which go
When the statue of Iraqi despot Saddam Hussein was toppled in 2003, it was easy to join the chorus of cheers. He was a repressive tyrant who killed an estimated 250,000 of his own people. Easy, too, was the destruction of statues of Communist dictator Joseph Stalin, responsible for the deaths of millions of Russians …
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Marjorie Arons-Barron 