Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Voices from the Streets: Great Writers But You Never Know Their Names
I just finished a great book called “The Night People” by Michael Reaves. I then moved on to “Voodoo Child” by the same author. How many of you out there know this name? Michael Reaves was born on September 14, 1950, which makes him about five years younger than me. At this time, he’s dealing…
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Mayor Walsh Unveils Affordable Senior Rental Housing Development in Mission Hill
City officials, neighborhood advocates, and residents gathered to celebrate the opening of a new senior rental housing development in the heart of Mission Hill earlier this month, Mayor Marty Walsh’s Office said. Mayor Walsh, the Mission Hill Neighborhood Housing Services, and other local officials unveiled the newly constructed Maria Sánchez House, a $15.6 million, 40-unit…
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Arlington Woman Arrested for Scamming Elderly Man out of $100,000
An Arlington woman was arrested for allegedly scamming an elderly man out of $100,000 earlier this month, Arlington Police said. Anisa Llega, 24, was arrested Dec. 2, after she conned an 84-year-old man into giving her more than $100,000 for school loans, auto payments, and surgery by claiming she was suffering from a terminal brain…
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Supreme Court Protects Homeless Rights
As this article will explain, numerous important issues involving the rights of the homeless have been addressed recently by our legal system, including a major victory for the homeless through the Supreme Court’s June 29 ruling in Thayer v. City of Worcester, in which the Homeless Empowerment Project was involved. As most of our regular…
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Massachusetts Advocates Consider Call for Homeless Emergency
Activists and housing advocates in Massachusetts are looking at the possibility of declaring a state of emergency on homelessness statewide after several West Coast cities and the state of Hawaii announced emergency situations in the last few months. Representatives from about 20 Massachusetts organizations that deal with homelessness met on Dec. 4 to discuss, for…
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Bunker Hill Community College receives grant to increase Latino enrollment
Bunker Hill Community College and the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education are teaming up to provide better access to college for Latino students. Bunker Hill Community College (BHCC) received a $200,000 Vision Project Performance Incentive Fund grant from the Massachusetts Department of Higher Education on Dec. 3. The grant is designed to help BHCC increase…
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Out of the Wood: Transitioning out of homelessness, board by board
Idle hands are the devil’s workshop, as the saying goes. And while the phrase was probably crafted as commentary about the proclivity for young children to stick things into electrical sockets or come up with fresh ways to torment a sibling, on the northwest outskirts of Franklin Park, along a stretch of Washington Street peppered…
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“We need to fight for a world without poverty”: Pope Francis grants rare interview to street papers
By Stijn Fens and Jan-Willem Wits // Courtesy of INSP News Service www.INSP.ngo/Straatnieuws Photo credit: Frank Dries, Straatnieuws Pope Francis rarely grants interviews, but the opportunity to address international street papers was enough to persuade him that INSP was worth a spot in his busy diary. So, on Oct. 27, formerly homeless street-paper seller Marc…
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VOICES FROM THE STREETS: As We Age
When I was young, I traveled far and wide and never worried about finding a bathroom during the trip. Well, at least not to take care of my normal bodily functions, that is. But now a new horror has risen over the horizon. Last year, my wife Mary Esther and I were traveling to Vermont…
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Sliver of Hope: Marathon Brings People Together in Iraqi Kurdistan
Iraqi Kurdistan: There’s no denying that moving abroad expands your horizons and changes your perceptions of different cultures. But the best lessons occur when you attempt to bring your own cultural habits to a different cultural environment: like running a marathon in an Islamic country as a woman. A Boston resident for four years, I…
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