The unintended consequences of militarized police in Massachusetts homes At 5 a.m. on a hot August night in 2015, a van carrying the Worcester SWAT team pulled up outside a triple-decker on Hillside Street. The officers were wearing body armor, ballistic helmets and camouflage clothing. They came bearing shotguns, handguns and at least one .45-caliber […]
TOWNIE: MASS REGIONAL TRANSIT AUTHORITIES FACE MAJOR BUDGET CRISIS
Gov. Baker’s proposed cuts throw gasoline on raging policy fire February 21, 2018 BY JASON PRAMAS @JASONPRAMAS A quarter-century ago, I lived in Lawrence for a few months. Because it was the closest place to Boston that I could find a cheap apartment on short notice. Unfortunately, I had a low-paying job […]
CRISIS AVERTED
MBTA bus mechanics beat back privatization… at a cost February 14, 2018 BY JASON PRAMAS @JASONPRAMAS Unionized bus mechanics represented by the International Association of Machinists Local 264 won an important victory last week when they agreed to a four-year contract with the MBTA—effectively ending a two-year effort by the transportation authority’s […]
CAPE FEAR
Sheriff sides with Trump and ICE, against constituents and immigrants “It’s essentially an end run around the bail process,” said Laura Rótolo, a staff counsel and community advocate with the Massachusetts branch of the American Civil Liberties Union. Rótolo was referring to plans by Barnstable County Sheriff James Cummings to use cooperation with the Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency […]
THE HURRICANE CONTINUES
Naval Aircrewman (Helicopter) 2nd Class Nicholas Glass of Helicopter Sea Combat Squadron 22 (HSC 22) leads residents to an MH-60s Sea Hawk helicopter for evacuation following the landfall of Hurricane Maria. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 3rd Class Sean Galbreath/Released) The perils of being ‘foreign in a domestic sense’ All the instruments and […]