Spare Change News

Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.

  • PATRICK PLANS CAP ON HOUSING AUTHORITY EXECUTIVE PAY, OTHER REFORMS

    By Matt Murphy STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE STATE HOUSE, BOSTON, JAN. 21, 2012. On the heels of revelations that the former Chelsea Housing Authority executive director concealed hundreds of thousands of dollars in salary from the state, Gov. Deval Patrick will propose in his budget next week to impose new reporting and auditing requirements on…

  • Desmond Tutu writes a letter to his younger self

    If you could write a letter to your 16 year old self, what would you say and what advice would you give? South Africa’s beloved Archbishop Desmond Tutu picked up his pen and took a trip down memory lane. Desmond Tutu The Big Issue UK As a teenager I looked like my mother – stumpy…

  • If You Don't Demand Change then It Never Will Be

    Beatrice Bell Spare Change News Many people today don’t stand up for human rights or civil rights because they don’t feel that they will be heard. The truth of the matter is that if you don’t vote for a candidate or a particular issue and if you don’t demand change, then it never will be,…

  • An Appreciation Deferred

    Anthony Thames Spare Change News On April 4, 1968, the day Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was murdered in Memphis, Tennessee, I was a five-year-old boy, unable to fully grasp the enormity of the situation. I do remember the somber mood both in school as well as at my home. I distinctly recall my mom…

  • ‘Unarmed truth … will have the final word’

    Chris Mesfin Spare Change News Let us mark the birthday of Martin Luther King Jr., one of the greatest Americans who ever lived. The 1960s saw a few great men hard at work in America, trying to end the injustices that infected America. Martin Luther King Jr., Robert F. Kennedy, and John F. Kennedy knew…

  • The Death of a Homeless Man

    Peter Osgood Spare Change News About 13 years ago I had reason to go to Boston’s Back Bay on a regular basis in the morning. For one thing, I could find good coffee and a bagel to start my day. I have done that pretty much daily ever since. Then about 10 years ago I…

  • Love, Lies, and Broken Dreams (Conclusion)

    By Marc D. Goldfinger Jeanie nods her head as the tears spill down her cheeks. We huddle together on the mattress, both of us crying, until we fall asleep. We sleep for 30 hours. When we wake up I go over to the office of the trailer park and they offer to buy the trailer…

  • Healthy Eating Habits and Locally Grown Foods

    Robert Sondak Spare Change News In an effort to promote healthy eating habits and Massachusetts-grown produce, Governor Deval Patrick launched a free online monthly newsletter called “ChopChop”. This newsletter was created in partnership with “ChopChop” magazine, a national quarterly publication that focuses on bringing parents and children together to prepare meals. “We are committed to…

  • Editorial: From MLK to Occupy

    “True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.” — The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Looking back on the speeches of Martin Luther King Jr. (http://www.kinginstitute.info/), we see that many of his primary…

  • Helping the Homeless Weather The Cold

    By Jim Greene Emergency Shelter Commission, Boston Public Health Commission In this season of extreme cold weather and wind chills in the single digits, it is more important than ever that everyone remains vigilant to help the most vulnerable among us. Hypothermia and frost-bite set in extremely quickly at sub-freezing temperatures, and homeless people are…

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