Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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A Church Without a Building Meets the Homeless Right Where They Are
Robert Sondak Spare Change News Ecclesia Ministries, is an ecumenical urban church without a building that helps to transform the lives of Boston’s homeless and low-income people through a series of weekly church and social service programs. Its mission is to take the gifts of church out to people who cannot, for whatever reason, come…
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Local Music Scene: Some Sweet Sounds from Sweet Wednesday
Jacques Fleury Spare Change News I met the folk musical group Sweet Wednesday back in 2007. I invited them to perform live on my then television show, “Dream Weavers with Jacques,” at Cambridge Community Television (CCTV). They are a rare breed of individuals reminiscent of the best of the 1960s and ’70s peace and love…
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"Shantaram," by Gregory David Roberts: A Book Review
Marc D. Goldfinger Spare Change News My daughter gave me a softcover edition of this book. I held it in my hands and looked at the massive size of it. I flipped to the back and thought, “Good God, 936 pages. I’m never going to get through this.” I almost put it aside and then…
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The People Have Spoken … For Naught
James Shearer Spare Change News The other day while I was in Brookline I ran into two people with clipboards trying to get signatures against the MBTA’s fare hikes and service cuts. “It’s already too late,” I said to them. “No, it isn’t,” they protested. “Yes,” I said sadly, “it is.” And yes, boys and…
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Tattoos Are Art, Not Gang Symbols
Jeremy Parks Spare Change News People with tattoos are not always in gangs. It’s a form of art. People use this to express their feelings and how they live their lives. I have four tattoos, and three are religious tattoos. The tattoo on my back is for all the brothers I lost when I served…
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Beyond race in the Trayvon Martin case
Anthony Thames Spare Change News On April 11, 2012, George Zimmerman was arrested and formally charged with the murder of Trayvon Martin in Seminole County, Florida. Special Prosecutor Angela Corey gave a courageous and moving press conference in which she detailed the state of Florida’s intentions to prosecute Zimmerman for second degree murder. What was…
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Smoke-free or free to smoke? BHA moves to ban lighting up inside public housing units
Adam Sennott Spare Change News The Boston Housing Authority is taking steps toward protecting its residents from the dangers of second-hand smoke. However, some residents feel their rights are being violated. The Boston Housing Authority is moving forward with plans to implement a smoke-free housing policy in September 2012. This policy will prohibit residents and…
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Activists See Homeless Teens as Growing Problem in Massachusetts
By Colleen Quinn STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, APRIL 18, 2012…..Diamond McMillion vividly remembers constantly feeling cold when she became homeless at 16 years old. For the first two years she lived on the streets – sleeping in elevator shafts, under bridges, in parks – she could not shake the cold. “There was…
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Discovering Fiction: The Lost of Innocence in James Joyce’s “Araby” and Ernest Hemingway’s “Indian Camp”
Jacques Fleury Spare Change News Ah, Childhood, a time when our slates were clean and fresh like the morning dawn; a time when we saw life very much as we saw a new toy, something to be observed and explored. This innocence lasts up until that moment when, one day, everything changes; the tooth fairy’s…
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