Mindblown: a blog about philosophy.
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Editorial: The Feel-good Sales Tax Holiday
“We do it, frankly, not because it’s particularly fiscally prudent, but because it’s popular.” That’s Gov. Deval Patrick explaining what has become the annual sales tax holiday, this year’s scheduled for the weekend of Aug. 13-14. In other words: it makes no real sense, but a lot of people are fooled into thinking it’s a…
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Up In Smoke: Marijuana Prohibition Costs Billions
AARON JAMES Spare Change News The night’s air was frigid. He had been at college only a week. Even if it were a two-year junior college, it was in some respects a defeat to be there in and of itself for the young boy. He had fought through many battles with depression and drug abuse…
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Editorial: The Feel-good Sales Tax Holiday
“We do it, frankly, not because it’s particularly fiscally prudent, but because it’s popular.” That’s Gov. Deval Patrick explaining what has become the annual sales tax holiday, this year’s scheduled for the weekend of Aug. 13-14. In other words: it makes no real sense, but a lot of people are fooled into thinking it’s a…
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An exclusive interview with Lt. Gov. Tim Murray on the state's new Housing First policy
Third in a three-part series. Lt. Gov. Tim Murray chairs Governor Deval Patrick’s Interagency Council on Housing and Homelessness and once worked as a housing advocate at a non-profit agency in Framingham. Mr. Murray sat down with Spare Change News recently at his State House office to discuss HomeBase, the state’s new program that seeks…
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The Arts Maven: A selective guide to free arts happenings in Greater Boston
By David Fillingham EVENTS Monday Aug 8 8:15 PM Berklee School of Music Summer program presents 5-Week Vocal Night. This show features a number of Five-Week Summer Performance Program vocal groups, including the Five-Week Chorus directed by Lucy Holstedt; the Five-Week Musical Theater Workshop directed by Rene Pfister, Ana Guigui, and Jeri Sykes; the Five-Week…
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Panhandlers of Harvard Square
[img_assist|nid=551|title=|desc=|link=none|align=center|width=400|height=400] Adam Sennott Spare Change News When most people walk past panhandlers in Harvard Square, they don’t say anything. But for one local artist, a picture says a thousand words. Marc Clamage, an architectural illustrator and painter, drew his first portrait of a panhandler last year. Since then he has completed eight portraits and says…
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What’s A Few Years?
Ed Galing You wake up one morning and you are feeling good you are ninety years old live alone without a wife and take care of yourself and most of the time you are in a bad mood old age makes you that way today is different for you the sun is shining through your…
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James Shearer Column: For David
[img_assist|nid=547|title=|desc=|link=none|align=center|width=400|height=400] JAMES SHEARER Spare Change News For David Just a little over two years ago, this old bulldog of a newspaper seemed headed for the scrap heap. We had been through so much over the last few years and when the recession hit, it seemed as if Spare Change had fought its last battle. I…
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Back On My Feet
[img_assist|nid=545|title=|desc=|link=none|align=center|width=400|height=400] Robert Sondak Spare Change News Running Program Helps Homeless Build Skills A new nonprofit organization is promoting running as a means to building self-confidence, strength, endurance, and self-sufficiency amongst those experiencing homelessness. Back On My Feet (BOMF) is an organization creating running teams made up of primarily males (shelter residents) and non-resident members (volunteers)…
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Making Change With Real Change, Not Spare Change
Steve Smith Spare Change News Rather than tossing loose change into a panhandler’s empty cup, Boston’s mayor and City Council may want you instead to slide your spare quarters and nickels into a homeless meter. At a recent City Council meeting, City Councilor Ayanna Pressley presented a proposal to have these meters installed here in…
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