The funniest guy at Lowell City Manager Bernie Lynch’s St. Patrick’s Day Breakfast this morning is dead -but God rest his soul never forgotten – the Ultimate Toastmaster and Emcee – the late Kenny Harkins. By opening with a wonderful video* tribute to two greats from past Manager breakfasts – the…
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MassMoments reminds us that on this day – March 17, 1901 – the Mayor Thomas N. Hart – declared a new holiday for the city of Boston – Evacuation Day. It was the 125th anniversary of the day in 1776 that General George Washington and the fledgling Continental Army forced the British to…
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The first meeting of the Joint Committee on Redistricting was held today. From the website of the 187th General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts – a statement from the Redistricting Committee cochairs and the first scheduled meetings on the Redistricting Calendar: The Special Joint Committee on Redistricting will study…
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Presentation of the traditonal “Shamrock Bowl’” President Obama – 2010 Since the Eisenhower Administration – the St. Patrick’s Day presentation of shamrocks to the President of the United States has become an important tradition. In 1952 what was then a ceremonial “box of shamrocks” became a custom-made Waterford crystal vase – now…
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In this week when we celebrate St. Patrick and all things Irish, it’s natural to think back on the history of the Irish in Massachusetts – the firsts, the lasting contributions and then the prejudice. In his Boston Globe column today, Kevin Cullen tells the story of Barney McGinniskin – “the first Irish cop,…
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MassMoments advises us today that on this day – March 15, 1820 – Massachusetts lost the over 30,000 square of the “province” of Maine. The relationship between Massachusetts and Maine was always rocky from the 1650s to the separation – with Maine feeling discontented by the political control, the great distance…
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Erica Noonan writes from the Globe MetroDesk of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s initiative with five women’s liberal arts colleges – Barnard, Bryn Mawr and the Massachusetts colleges – Mt. Holyoke, Smith and Wellesley – now known as “The Sisters.” The focus of this partnership is “to increase the participation of…
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On this day – March 12, 1933 – just a week after his inauguration, President Franklin D. Roosevelt gave his first national radio address or “fireside chat” broadcast directly from the White House thus launching a series talks with nation. FDR relied on simple language and folksy anecdotes or analogies to explain the often…
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David Brooks in today’s NYTimes wonders out loud if the contemporary American behavioral trend of heightened self-approval may be weakening the national civic culture. He often asks such “community” questions as he tries to puzzle out the workings of our democratic-republic system. He makes a comment on the connection to toxic partisanship in…
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On today’s “Political Intelligence” page of the Boston Globe, senior political writer Glen Johnson tell us of his meetings and inaction of the recently deceased writer and columnist David Broder. The site posts the actual note from Broder to Johnson – a longtime admirer – who was seeking a position with him at…
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