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The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons-Barron’s own blog. For lovers of non-fiction, two deep dives into the fragility of democracy, here and in the land in the land of its birth. These Truths: A History of the United States by Jill Lepore is a mammoth tome, published…

It’s a new year. There’s a new Lowell City Council. And I’m trying a new thing, a weekly newsletter on Lowell politics. Some background: The richardhowe.com blog was born 15 years ago. Its mission was to cover “Lowell politics and history” which we did with thoroughness and regularity. But by…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons-Barron’s own blog. The galaxy lost a stellar jewel last night with the passing of WCVB-TV’s bright and talented Mary Richardson. Sadly, her star had gradually lost its sparkle over the seven years in which her dark disease – Alzheimer’s –…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron’s own blog. I like to think of myself as a glass-half-full sort, looking for reasons to be optimistic even when events in this country seem to be circling the drain and democracy seems more fragile than ever. Realism does…

A Lowell-centric view of the year just completed: Pandemic The Covid-19 pandemic was the biggest story of 2021, both globally and locally. In March, the number of Americans who had died of Covid topped 500,000. By December, more than 800,000, including one of every 100 people over the age of…

 From nine years ago: Fifty-six folks from Lowell, Massachusetts combine to recite “A Visit From St. Nicholas” by Clement Clarke Moore. Produced by Richard Howe of www.richardhowe.com, December 2012.

What was Christmas like in Lowell one hundred years ago? Here are some stories that appeared in the local newspapers in the days leading up to Christmas as well as some ads for local merchants: First Day of Winter: Warmer tomorrow! The weather man promises to repent and make full…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons Barron This is Happiness by Niall Williams is not a book to be read in a hurry.  Set in the remote village of Faha in County Clare, Ireland, the story is set in the 1950’s before electricity came to dirt-poor Faha. …

A Perfect Day By Malcolm Sharps Malcolm Sharps recalls a day in London in the seemingly much safer world of forty years ago: My girlfriend was from Brazil.  Or rather, to me, she wasn’t just from Brazil, she was Brazil, the embodiment of the country, she was bossa nova, she…

The entry below is being cross posted from Marjorie Arons-Barron’s own blog. GOP Governor Charlie Baker’s decision to opt out of a third-term election he’d probably have won is part of his appeal to the Massachusetts electorate. His disdain for the all-too-familiar despicable aspects of today’s political discourse has been…