By Gustaf Berger / Special to the Gazette After I interviewed 12 panhandlers for my article last month, I talked with JP residents, store managers, policemen, and others around the country to find out their perspectives on panhandling. I asked 200 people, “Do you give to panhandlers?” Over 60 percent said yes. Women gave...
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Opinion
JP Observer: Could someone please block cars from blocking our intersections?
How many minutes does it take you to drive off your street onto a bigger street in the morning and later, head home for the night? Do you get stuck there at that intersection and others along the way, blocked by cars stopped in front of you—after your red light turns green? These are...
Letters:
Shattuck Hospital closing The state’s announcement that it intends to close Shattuck Hospital raises two important questions. The first concerns the history. In the early 1950s, the late Rep. James Craven went to former Mayor James Michael Curley to ask his approval to locate a state hospital in the Emerald Necklace. Curley said go...
Op-eds:
Paid family and medical leave and minimum wage in Massachusetts By Local State Rep. Liz Malia Today in Massachusetts, 1.2 million workers risk losing employment if they take time off work to care for a new child or to address a family medical emergency. Too many people are working every hour they can but...
Here’s Looking at You, JP | Panhandlers: Who Are They?
By Gustaf Berger / Special to the Gazette As you stroll along Centre Street on a sunny day past City Feed, CVS, and Citizens Bank, how many panhandlers do you notice? Over the past couple of years, I’ve counted more than 20 different men and women asking for a handout. We’re not unique; panhandlers...
Letters:
Make America civil again After reading Michael L. Spitzer’s latest diatribe at President Trump, I just wonder why can’t we all just get along like North Korea and South Korea? Oh, that’s right, we are! I believe in debate and dialogue. Just because we disagree with each other doesn’t mean we have to insult...
JP Observer: We need to learn specifics about Russian propaganda
Everyone on Facebook can check to see if they unknowingly interacted with a post from a Russian agency trying to influence the presidential race and American politics in general during the 2016 campaign. Facebook (FB) estimated before Congress in the fall that 126 million users were exposed to those posts and ads. In addition,...
Op-eds:
Reducing airplane noise By Alan Wright Last month, the Massport Community Advisory Committee (MCAC) recommended to Massport, the state entity that runs Logan Airport, that the Block 1 proposals (see bit.ly/2yGDXFq under ‘Library’) on reducing noise from jets departing Logan Airport be implemented. Massport agreed and forwarded the proposals to the Federal Aviation Administration for...
Letters:
Community choice energy leads fossil fuel free future I am writing to piggyback on two informative letters in the February 9th issue, “It’s time to stop talking about more pipelines” and “Clean energy is the answer.” Both these letters address the urgency needed to get off fossil fuels, including gas sourced from “fracking fields”...
Here’s Looking at You, JP: Most hated foods
By Gustaf Berger / Special to the Gazette There are two kinds of taste in this world. Mine – and none. A woman who fancied herself a gourmet taught me that. What do you think? I conducted a survey of 315 adults, asking, “Are there any foods you refuse to eat because you don’t...