Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Brazil’s pigs help people produce clean energy
Pigs, already the main source of income in this small municipality in south-western Brazil, now have even more value as a source of electricity. The mini-thermal power plant of Entre Rios do Oeste, inaugurated on 24 July, uses the biogas provided by 18 farms, in a pioneering technical-commercial agreement in Brazil involving pig farmers, the…
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Violence on the Mile
Last week was quite a busy week on what has become known as Methadone Mile, a line of city blocks that goes down Melina Cass Blvd., where Southampton Shelter and many other shelters for the homeless are located. For quite some time now, there have been complaints about people openly using drugs on the mile,…
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Hospitals give $3 million to Boston homeless organizations
Three major Boston hospitals are working together to tackle housing insecurity over the next three years. Boston Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Boston Children’s Hospital will provide $3 million in funds over the next three years to organizations that are aiding those struggling to afford rent or are facing eviction. All three hospitals…
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Police action sends homeless people running
The assault of a corrections officer in the South End has led to what Boston Police are calling “Operation Clean Sweep,” and what activists are characterizing as a bare-knuckled attack on the entirety of Boston’s Homeless population. Fifty-one-year-old Sean Stuart has been arrested in connection with an assault on Aug. 1, caught on video, that…
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Prison industry can’t hide from human rights violations
Roughly 500 protesters — led by 19 different organizations — gathered in downtown Boston on Sunday, August 4, to take a stand against the American Correctional Association. The ACA, an accreditation agency for prisons and detention centers in the United States, held its annual Congress of Correction at Hynes Convention Center from Thursday, August 1,…
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Criminal justice system failing young women on multiple fronts
Boston College Professor Francine Sherman testifies before law enforcement and legislators on how trauma leads younger women to commit crimes. photo by Sarah Betancourt A group of legislators, advocates, and law enforcement officials met at the Massachusetts State House Tuesday, July 30 for a monthly meeting during which they discussed raising the age of entry…
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Cop accused of rape released on personal recognizance
A former Lowell police officer is expected back in court at the end of August for allegedly raping a homeless teenager back in 2016. Kevin Garneau, 49, of Pelham, New Hampshire is facing two counts of rape in connection with an alleged series of sexual assaults of a homeless female while on duty, according to…
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Can’t go home-but why would I?
But why would I want to return to what was never a home in the first place? Today I have a home. I live with a family, my wife Mary Esther and her mother, and they love and nurture me in ways I can depend on. My birth parents brought me into the world, took…
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Elder Tenants Fight for Their Rights
On July 27, women facing eviction from Our Lady’s Guild House (OLGH) and volunteers with housing justice non-profit City Life / Vida Urbana, embarked on a journey from Symphony Community Park to New Britain, Connecticut, where they held rallies in front of New Britain City Hall and the headquarters of Daughters of Mary of the…
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Are the Homeless Trump’s Next Target?
President Trump has been in the news once again for all the wrong reasons. He’s been attacking people of color and saying that they should all go back to where they came from, among other things, but there is one story that people and the media seem to have forgotten about. “It’s a phenomena that…
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