Free Republic

For a city with a reputation as being a bastion of liberal values, Boston has an equally rich history of censorship. In the latest crackdown, Boston mayor Thomas Menino has called for city Inspectional Services Division officials to seize all t-shirts bearing the message "Stop Snitchin'." "It’s wrong," Menino said. "We are going into every retail store that sells the shirts and remove them." The mayor's patience was apparently pushed beyond its limit when the mother of gang member wore one of the shirts to her sons trial for the death of 10-year-old Trina Persad. It is unknown on what...

There'll be no last-minute shopping for turkeys or trimmings on Thanksgiving Day in Massachusetts. The state has warned the upscale Whole Foods supermarket chain that it will risk criminal charges under the state's centuries-old "blue laws" if it goes ahead with plans to open on the holiday. The office of Attorney General Thomas Reilly issued a legal opinion after officials at a Whole Foods competitor, Shaw's Supermarkets, wrote him a letter asking him to block the opening, The Boston Globe reported.

Today's lesson: Don't cross Christian broadcasting. Maynard (Mass.) High School's radio frequency, 91.7 FM, is being seized by a network of Christian broadcasting stations that the Federal Communications Commission has ruled is a better use of the public airwaves. ``People are furious,'' said faculty adviser Joe Magno. Maynard High's WAVM, which has been broadcasting from the school for 35 years, found itself in this David vs. Goliath battle when it applied to increase its transmitter signal from 10 to 250 watts. According to Magno, that ``opens the floodgates for any other station to challenge the station's license and take its...

Path Clear for Same-Sex Marriages in Mass. 04:04 AM EST - May 15, 2004 The Associated Press BOSTON With the U.S. Supreme Court refusing to step in and block gay marriages in Massachusetts, same-sex couples planning to marry could be confident that, beginning Monday, they could tie the knot.Couples have been "nervous wrecks about whether they could marry starting Monday," said Arline Isaacson, co-chair of the Massachusetts Gay and Lesbian Political Caucus. "Now they can all breathe a sigh of relief."Without comment, the justices declined Friday to block municipal clerks from issuing marriage licenses to gay couples, clearing the way...

Talk about a home run. Last night, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band kicked off a historic two-night stand at Fenway Park and Red Sox nation gave as good as they got during an ecstatic three-hour performance that found the Boss sprinting around like a wild man and pulling out some terrific setlist surprises just for Boston. The fact that we trounced the Yankees earlier in the day only helped to heighten the jubilant mood. After a raucous sing-along of ``Take Me Out to the Ballgame'' with Springsteen conducting, the local love began with the next number as the...

<p>Listening to pundits on the left, it's hard to know who is more evil--George W. Bush or Rupert Murdoch. The president, some passionately believe, tricked us into war, which is of course bad. But Mr. Murdoch gave us the Fox News Channel. You decide.</p>

 SHORENSTEIN CENTERFELLOWSHIP PROGRAMWHAT IS THE FELLOWSHIP?             The Joan Shorenstein Fellowship on the Press, Politics and Public Policy is a one-semester research fellowship at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. Fellows are domestic or international journalists, scholars, and/or policymakers who are interested in the influence of the press on public policy and politics.            The fellowship offers a unique opportunity for scholars and practitioners to share their knowledge and expertise in a collegial and intellectually stimulating environment. Fellows participate in weekly seminars with scholars, a luncheon speakers series with invited journalists or policymakers, and in other organized programs of the...