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Lawmakers pushing for MBTA Commuter Rail electrification by 2035

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

State lawmakers are pushing new legislation that would finally set deadlines for electrifying the Commuter Rail, four years after the MBTA committed to the project.Much of the testimony at a roughly four-hour Joint Committee on Transportation hearing Monday focused on the proposed bill, which would require electrification of the entire Commuter Rail system by Dec. 31, 2035.Electrification of three lines that serve “environmental justice populations” — Fairmount from South Station to Readville, Newburyport/Rockport from North Station to Beverly and the entire Providence/Stoughton Line — would occur first, by Dec. 31, 2024, the bill states.“From our end, there is no policy in place right now that sets deadlines for this; there’s nothing in the statute,” state Sen. Brendan Crighton, who filed the Senate version of the bill and co-chairs the joint committee, told the Herald.“I think that this administration has put a lot more focus on electrifying rail so I’m confident they’re doing a l...

Boston-area COVID wastewater rises ahead of Thanksgiving, free at-home test kits available

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

As the Boston-area COVID wastewater data ticks up ahead of Thanksgiving gatherings, residents can get more free at-home test kits while some local health experts are pushing for a return to masks in healthcare settings.After a recent decline in the COVID wastewater data, the south-of-Boston and north-of-Boston virus wastewater levels have been climbing in the last week.The south-of-Boston weekly average is now up to 596 copies per milliliter, which is a 65% jump from 360 copies a week ago. Meanwhile, the north-of-Boston weekly average is up to 433 copies, also a 65% increase from 263 copies last week.Ahead of the holidays as virus cases are expected to rise, every U.S. household can again place an order to receive four more free COVID-19 rapid tests. If residents did not already order tests this fall, they may place two orders for a total of eight tests at www.covid.gov/tests.Also, the Boston Public Health Commission is distributing 10,000 free rapid COVID-19 testing kits at several...

Hate Crimes task force announced amid rise in bias-based violence

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

A new state police task force aimed at identifying and preventing hate crimes was announced by the governor and law enforcement leaders on Monday, which they say comes in response to an uptick in bigotry-based violence.Interim State Police Col. John Mawn Jr. joined Gov. Maura Healey, Attorney General Andrea Campbell, and Public Safety and Security Secretary Terrence Reidy for a morning press conference to announce the formation of the Hate Crimes Awareness and Response Team, or HART.“Recent events at home and abroad provide a tragic and urgent reminder that no community is immune from the unpredictable and devastating impact of bias-motivated events,” Mawn said.According to Mawn, a recent report released by the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security showing 440 reported hate crime incidents in Massachusetts in 2022 — up from 406 the year before — demonstrates the need to be proactive in solving the problem.“As our nation continues to grapple with a concerning increase in unl...

Federal appeals court deals a blow to Voting Rights Act, ruling that private plaintiffs can’t sue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

By CHRISTINA A. CASSIDY and AYANNA ALEXANDER (Associated Press)WASHINGTON (AP) — A divided federal appeals court on Monday ruled that private individuals and groups such as the NAACP do not have the ability to sue under a key section of the federal Voting Rights Act, a decision that contradicts decades of precedent and could further erode protections under the landmark 1965 law.The 2-1 decision by a panel of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals based in St. Louis found that only the U.S. attorney general can enforce Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which requires political maps to include districts where minority populations’ preferred candidates can win elections.The majority said other federal laws, including the 1964 Civil Rights Act, make it clear when private groups can sue but said similar wording is not found in the voting law.“When those details are missing, it is not our place to fill in the gaps, except when ‘text and structure’ require it,R...

Musk’s X sues liberal advocacy group Media Matters over its report on ads next to hate groups’ posts

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

Elon Musk’s social media company formerly known as Twitter filed a lawsuit against liberal advocacy group Media Matters for America on Monday, saying it manufactured a report to show advertisers’ posts alongside neo-Nazi and white nationalist posts in order to “drive advertisers from the platform and destroy X Corp.” Advertisers have been fleeing X over concerns about their ads showing up next to pro-Nazi content — and hate speech on the site in general — while billionaire owner Musk has inflamed tensions with his own posts endorsing an antisemitic conspiracy theory.IBM, NBCUniversal and its parent company Comcast said last week that they stopped advertising on X after the Media Matters report said their ads were appearing alongside material praising Nazis. It was a fresh setback as the platform tries to win back big brands and their ad dollars, X’s main source of revenue.The Media Matters report pointed to ads from Apple and Oracle that also were placed next to antisemitic material...

Gold mine collapse in Suriname leaves at least 10 dead, authorities say

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

PARAMARIBO, Suriname (AP) — At least 10 people died after an illegal gold mine collapsed Monday in the South American country of Suriname, authorities said.Police, military officials and rescue crews were dispatched to the mine, which is located in the country’s rural southern region. The miners are believed to have built their own tunnels to search for gold, a common occurrence in Suriname, officials said.It wasn’t immediately clear what caused the collapse.“There’s still a lot of uncertainty,” said President Chan Santokhi. “It’s important that we now get the situation under control.” Santokhi was attending a government budget meeting when the incident occurred, forcing him to interrupt those speaking saying, “Something terrible is going on.”Suriname is known for its gold mines, with U.S. and Canadian companies heavily invested in such operations. Informal gold mining also has increased in recent years.The Associated Press

Trump, on Biden’s 81st birthday, releases doctor’s note that says he’s in ‘excellent’ health

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — GOP front-runner Donald Trump marked President Joe Biden ‘s 81st birthday on Monday by releasing a letter from his physician that reports the former president is in “excellent” physical and mental health.The letter posted on Trump’s social media platform contained no details to support its claims — measures like weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels, or the results of any test. Dr. Bruce A. Aronwald, a New Jersey physician who says he has been Trump’s doctor since 2021 and most recently examined him in September, reported that Trump’s “physical exams were well within the normal range and his cognitive exams were exceptional.”He added that Trump’s most recent lab results were “even more favorable than prior testing on some of the most significant parameters” thanks to recent weight loss he credited to “improved diet and continued daily physical exercise, while maintaining a rigorous schedule.”The doctor concluded the 77-year old i...

Movie Review: Emerald Fennell chronicles a promising young man in audacious, shock-filled ‘Saltburn’

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

Two years ago Emerald Fennell stood on the Oscars stage hoisting her writing trophy for “Promising Young Woman,” a scathing look at rape culture and a balancing act of wit, style, shock value, audacity, great acting and pitch-black humor — plus a timely #MeToo message.That’s a lot for a debut film, and we didn’t even mention the best director nomination. Not surprisingly, anticipation has been hot for the writer-director’s next effort (as an actor, she’s already graced a little film this year called “Barbie,” in the suitably dark role of pregnant, discontinued Midge).Now “Saltburn” is here, and the results are enticing but decidedly mixed — perhaps because Fennell seems to be trying to one-up herself by leaning on the shock value, at the eventual expense of other storytelling elements.Make no mistake, the clever writing is here, as is the style, the sleek technique, and some terrific performances (Rosamund Pike is especially delicious in a supporting role). What’s missing, or ...

Court upholds pretrial jailing of man charged in shooting over Spanish conquistador statue

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — An appeals court Monday upheld a judge’s decision to deny bail to a New Mexico man charged with attempted murder in the September shooting of a Native American activist during confrontations about canceled plans to reinstall a statue of a Spanish conquistador.The New Mexico Court of Appeals affirmed a pretrial detention order against 23-year-old Ryan David Martinez as he awaits trial on charges that also include assault with a deadly weapon and additional hate-crime and weapons violations. Martinez has pleaded not guilty to the charges.At a protest on Sept. 28 in Española, confrontations ignited over canceled plans to install a bronze likeness of conquistador Juan de Oñate, who is both revered and reviled for his role in establishing early settlements along the Upper Rio Grande starting in 1598. Chaos erupted at the gathering as a single shot was fired in events recorded by bystanders’ cell phones and a surveillance camera.Multiple videos show Martinez at...

Black voters file federal lawsuit challenging North Carolina Senate map

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:43:11 GMT

RALEIGH, N.C. (AP) — A lawsuit filed Monday in North Carolina alleges newly adopted district boundaries for the state Senate divide a cluster of predominantly Black counties in the northeast corner of the state in a way that unfairly dilutes the voting power of Black residents.Two Black voters drawn into a majority-white district are asking a federal judge to block state officials from conducting future elections under a new map they argue unlawfully deprives them the opportunity to elect their preferred candidates. Plaintiffs Rodney Pierce, a social studies teacher from Halifax County, and Moses Matthews, a retired chemist from Martin County, are requesting the court order a redrawn map including an eastern North Carolina district where minority voters would have an equal opportunity to elect candidates of their choice. Attorneys for the eastern North Carolina residents also filed a motion to expedite proceedings, asking the court to finish arguments and decide on a motion for a pr...