Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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CAZWELL PRIDE: Worcester native and gay rapper talks pride and sexuality
With the attention-grabbing All Over Your Face and the viral smash Ice Cream Truck, rapper Cazwell dragged hip hop kicking and screaming into the LGBT community. Known for his steaming-hot videos and frank depiction of gay sexuality, Cazwell is also arguably the most famous gay rapper in the world. And yet, for all the sensational…
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BIZARRE BOSTON: Phantom airships over Boston
People have been seeing strange things in the skies for thousands of years. The Biblical prophets saw angels and mysterious wheels. In the Middle Ages, Europeans saw phantom armies and demons, and since the 1940s, people around the world have seen flying saucers and other strange machines. Strange phenomena have been seen hovering over Boston…
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LIGHT UP THE SKY: Old school gem dissects Broadway
A bantering, behind-the-scenes Broadway tale written in 1948, Moss Hart’s Light Up the Sky might seem to be an unlikely theatrical lure in 2015. Yet this comedy isn’t just beautifully staged, bang-up entertainment: it also has a depth that sneaks up and surprises. You know those shameless modern movie comedies by Judd Apatow and his…
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VOICES FROM THE STREET: Two dogs and a kitten (part three)
A man gets out of prison and comes home to the mother of his children and is blown away by the chaos they live in. He’s taking the kids out for ice cream. (Click here for Part One and Part Two) “Let’s go,” I said to the kids. “What about mommy?” Donald asked. “She’s not…
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VOICES FROM THE STREET: Voices of the homeless
A few years ago, as I was about to become president of the board at the Homeless Empowerment Project, I found myself walking through Boston’s Back Bay to clear my head and think about the huge responsibility I was about to take on. I was making my way through the T station there when I…
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LAST WORD: Michael Shorey
“You’re interviewing me now?” says Michael, with disbelief in his voice, when I corner him after the weekly vendor meeting at the Spare Change News headquarters. Michael is in the office to pick up his papers and the last thing on his mind is an interview with me. However, when we get started, he has…
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OLYMPIC DISPLACEMENT: Boston 2024 opponents discuss the games' history of displacement
If history does in fact repeat itself, Boston’s herculean efforts to host the Olympics in 2024 will result in pushing out the city’s “undesirables,” including a “not in our backyard” attitude toward the growing homeless population. Opponents of Boston’s Olympics bid hosted a panel to discuss the games’ history of displacement and whether Boston could…
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MISS CONGENIALITY: Katya's alter ego talks stardom, Olympics
When Boston won the bid for the 2024 Summer Olympics, Brian McCook’s now famous drag alter ego Katya planned an old-school Russian boycott. “I’m so torn about it,” says McCook, who was in the top five out of 14 performers featured on the current season of RuPaul’s Drag Race. “While I would love to physically…
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SEX TRADE: CEASE Boston combats local sex trafficking
A sex trafficker, a pimp, will go to the mall in search of a group of girls. When he finds one, he’ll scan the group to see which girl he perceives has the lowest self-esteem. For this, he’ll rely on analyzing their body language. He won’t go for the conventionally attractive one or the least…
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EDITOR’S NOTE: No place like home
When I first applied for affordable housing in Somerville three years ago, I had no idea the dream of having my own place would eventually become a reality. It was a long shot. I submitted forms for the AVA Somerville complex slotted for Assembly Square and I quickly dropped off the required paperwork. I crossed…
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