The Boston Globe

The Boston Globe

Former Harvard University president and Treasury Secretary Larry Summers at his home in Brookline.

Larry Summers is here to tell you what’s wrong with Harvard

Nearly 20 years after he was forced to step down as Harvard University president, Larry Summers has plenty of advice to offer his successors. Some at Harvard are shocked by the way he has been offering it publicly.

ben volin | on football

Patriots are in a tricky spot at No. 3: Draft an imperfect quarterback or trade down?
Some expert NFL analysts weighed in on the decision the Patriots will face in next month's draft.

Shohei Ohtani talks with his interpreter Ippei Mizuhara during Wednesday's MLB opener in South Korea.

Shohei Ohtani’s interpreter, whose first job in MLB was with the Red Sox, fired by Dodgers amid allegations of ‘massive theft’

After college, Mizuhara was hired by the Red Sox as an interpreter for Japanese pitcher Hideki Okajima.

At left: Turf-roofed buildings are common in the Faroe Islands. There’s even a prison with a roof made of grass. At right: A broken ankle is a lousy souvenir.

The worst kind of sightseeing — inside a hospital. What happens if you get hurt overseas?

Worst. Souvenir. Ever: A boot cast, a pair of crutches, and a hospital bill. That’s what I brought home after a recent trip to the Faroe Islands. Here's how it all went down after I went down.

What to do if you get hurt or become sick while traveling

Plenty of complaints about St. Patrick’s Day parade, but some South Boston residents say it’s just a good time
On social media and through 311 complaints, South Boston residents decried the displays of excessive public drunkenness, littering, public urination, and property destruction.

An inflation uptick could delay Fed rate cuts, a problem for the economy and Biden’s reelection

Fed officials on Wednesday kept interest rates steady and continued to forecast three cuts this year. But the timing of those cuts remains uncertain.

Congressional leaders sell $1.2 trillion spending package to members before shutdown deadline

Forecast | Dave Epstein

Morning wind chills in the teens as we look ahead to a rain-snow mix this weekend
There may be some damage to early flowering trees overnight as temperatures fall back down into the 20s.

Venezuelan woman wanted in David Ortiz shooting case arrested in Dominican Republic, officials say

María Fernanda Villasmil Manzanilla, 25, was arrested Tuesday in the Dominican capital of Santo Domingo “for being linked to the shooting incident” of the Red Sox legend in June 2019, according to Dominican Republic National Police.

Lawyers for Karen Read cite phone calls mentioned in federal grand jury probe as evidence of law enforcement coverup

Acting US Attorney Joshua S. Levy’s office has convened a grand jury to investigate law enforcement’s handling of the case, and on Wednesday, defense attorney David Yannetti cited information from the probe.

Here’s how a 1982 armed robbery and grand jury ‘integrity’ could affect the outcome of Karen Read’s case How blogger Aidan Kearney — a.k.a. ‘Turtleboy’ — turned the Karen Read case into a true crime spectacle

Brockton High School announces school building security assessment, other safety measures

An independent site assessment of physical security is already underway at the high school by a private firm led by former Boston Police Commissioner Ed Davis, Brockton High officials said Wednesday.

Mass. man pleads guilty to harassing an interracial couple online

‘I nearly took my own life.’ Mass. poised to become 49th state to outlaw ‘revenge porn.’

Mr. Knight once said, “I do have a basic philosophy that the only thing you have left when you die is what you gave away."

Norman Knight, philanthropist who preferred anonymity, dies at 99

“He had a tremendous impact. And I would tell you, he liked anonymity,” said Joe Finn, a former Boston fire commissioner.

Kristaps Porzingis (No. 8) was a central figure in helping the Celtics navigate the Bucks' suffocating zone defense.

Gary Washburn | CELTICS 122, BUCKS 119

The Celtics averted zoning out against the Bucks, but it exposed trouble with the zone (defense)

The Bucks rallied from a 21-point deficit as the Celtics offense went into neutral in key moments, allowing shorthanded Milwaukee to turn a blowout into a nail-biter.

Why in the world can’t I get people to RSVP?

Plus, I can’t afford children’s books for a baby shower on top of gifts from the registry.

Opinion

Milton, which is served by the T's Mattapan trolley, is defying a new state law that requires it to allow more housing.

Wanted: a clear ruling from the SJC on new housing law

Does Milton have to allow more housing? The state’s highest court will decide whether the MBTA Communities act means what it says, a ruling that will have statewide implications.

Banning TikTok is a terrible idea

Jake Auchincloss

The US should ban TikTok

Another reason to end capital punishment

IDEAS | DAVID SCHARFENBERG

Nevertheless, Trumpism persisted

More recent News

MGM Resorts considers sale of Springfield casino
The Springfield casino, which opened in 2018, has been something of a disappointment, MGM's CEO has said.

Former Medford mayor among WWII veterans of ‘Ghost Army’ to be awarded Congressional Gold Medal
John J. “Jack” McGlynn, a former Medford mayor and state legislator who died in 2016 at 94, is among those who will be bestowed the nation’s oldest and highest civilian honor.

Steel beam falls from South Station construction site, no injuries reported, officials say
An eyewitness who works on the eleventh floor of a nearby building said she looked out the window around 1:45 p.m. to see “something large” fall from the tower atop South Station.

PFAS contamination found in Simpson Spring water from Easton, officials say

Testing on water samples collected on Feb. 21 and March 11 showed higher than acceptable levels of the toxic chemicals, state public health officials said Wednesday.

Boston University graduate workers vote to strike starting Monday

The union of nearly 3,000 graduate students is calling for improved health care coverage and better pay.

Boston to seek state funding for long-awaited BCLA-McCormack campus buildout

The district had initially planned to have renovations for the school completed by 2022.

Recommended reads

Illustration for Hanna Krueger story on Harvard Medical School morgue scandal in magazine on March 24, 2024.

For years, no one noticed body parts disappearing from Harvard’s morgue. Then came a phone call.

A tip would blow open the doors to a dark but not-so-secret nationwide network, leading investigators into the Harvard morgue and a gruesome American market.

Were parts of my father’s body sold from the Harvard morgue? The question haunts me.

For locals, ‘Camberville’ can be divisive. This store puts it on the map.
The name for Cambridge and Somerville has never sat well with some locals. But it’s right at home at WardMaps, the Massachusetts Avenue emporium where they celebrate the “history of place.”

Then: a homeless encampment near the BU Bridge. Now: hundreds and hundreds of jagged rocks.
State officials say it’s to fight erosion. Advocates aren't so sure.

More Boston high schoolers are feeling sad and hopeless, data show
A new collection of survey data shows that women, Black, Latinx, and LGBQ+ students as well as those in low-income neighborhoods are especially vulnerable.

Culture & Lifestyle

Jess Hong in "3 Body Problem."

Even if sci-fi isn’t your thing, ‘3 Body Problem’ might be

Singer-guitarist Bill Janovitz and drummer Tom Maginnis perform with Buffalo Tom at the Paradise in December. The band plans to release its 10th album, "Jump Rope," on May 31, followed by dates in Amherst and Lowell.

Introducing Sound Check, the Globe’s weekly go-to guide for music lovers

(L-R) Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm in 1971; Regina King as Shirley Chisholm in "Shirley."

Regina King has ‘no doubt’ Shirley Chisholm would be elected president if she were running today

Taylor Swift performs at Gillette Stadium on May 19, 2023. A new planetarium featuring music from Swift's album “1989 – Taylor’s Version" will open at the Springfield Museums this weekend.

Taylor Swift-themed planetarium show opens at the Springfield Museums this weekend

Special Projects

Ashfield, MA 06/13//2023, At Sanderson Academy, books in a fourth-grade classroom.

Suzanne Kreiter\Globe staff

Lost in a World of Words

Learning to read is the greatest gift a school can give a child. And yet, in Massachusetts, outmoded teaching methods leave thousands of students struggling to gain this critical skill.

Beyond the Gilded Gate

People in and around Boston are being challenged, in ways never before, to address the region's unprecedented housing crisis.

stuart landing page illustration

Nightmare in Mission Hill

The story of how a murder in Mission Hill — the Carol Stuart shooting — terrorized and wounded a community of innocent people.

Boston, MA—12/14/2022 - Commuters wait for the T to arrive at Ruggles Station. (Jessica Rinaldi/Globe Staff)

Boston doesn’t work if the T doesn’t work

With the MBTA engulfed by issues, everyday riders are feeling the pain.

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Opinion, ideas, and commentary

Haitian immigrant Rose Juliane, center, held her daughter Rosie Sarah as she spoke with Immigrant Family Services Institute executive director Geralde Gabeau, left, while waiting at the agency in Mattapan for transportation to a shelter, Nov. 16, 2023.

Avik Chatterjee

Time limits, caps on family shelter will not solve the problem of homelessness in Mass.

Rest time at the Lakeview nursery school for children of working mothers in Buffalo, N.Y.,1943.

IDEAS | LISA SELIN DAVIS

Subsidizing families is one thing the two parties can agree on

A 2022 survey by the Massachusetts Health and Hospital Association estimated that there were 5,100 vacant nursing positions in Massachusetts.

Massachusetts needs more nurses and should ease path for out-of-state workers

Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen Breyer held up a copy of the US Constitution as he announced his retirement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., Jan. 27, 2022.

KIMBERLY ATKINS STOHR

Conservative Supreme Court justices should listen to their mentors

Governor Maura Healey, pictured with partner Joanna Lydgate, wants to be the one to draw the line between her public and private lives, and so far, she’s getting what she wants.

Maura Healey’s fuzzy line between her public life and private life

Heather Hopp-Bruce/Globe staff; Adobe

Blueprints for a new downtown Boston

Metro

R.I. sees high interest in its new soccer team, but high interest rates for the new soccer stadium

On the Rhode Island Report podcast, the Globe’s Brian Amaral reports on the crowd that turned out for Rhode Island FC’s first match, and the stadium financing that one professor called “pure insanity”.

Forecast | Dave Epstein

Morning wind chills in the teens as we look ahead to a rain-snow mix this weekend

There may be some damage to early flowering trees overnight as temperatures fall back down into the 20s.

Larry Summers is here to tell you what’s wrong with Harvard

Nearly 20 years after he was forced to step down as Harvard University president, Larry Summers has plenty of advice to offer his successors. Some at Harvard are shocked by the way he has been offering it publicly.

Richard C. ‘Dick’ Higgins, one of the few remaining survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor, has died

Richard C. "Dick" Higgins, one of the few remaining survivors of the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, has died, a family member said Wednesday. He was 102.

Sports

North Carolina quarterback Drake Maye checks a lot of boxes, but it is no slam-dunk that the Patriots will draft him.

ben volin | on football

Patriots are in a tricky spot at No. 3: Draft an imperfect quarterback or trade down?

Some expert NFL analysts weighed in on the decision the Patriots will face in next month's draft.

Kristaps Porzingis (No. 8) was a central figure in helping the Celtics navigate the Bucks' suffocating zone defense.

Gary Washburn | On basketball

The Celtics averted zoning out against the Bucks, but it exposed trouble with the zone (defense)

The Bucks rallied from a 21-point deficit as the Celtics offense went into neutral in key moments, allowing shorthanded Milwaukee to turn a blowout into a nail-biter.

Jayson Tatum shoots over Milwaukee's Bobby Portis (left) for two of his team-high 31 points as Boston held on to beat the Bucks and win its seventh straight.

CELTICS 122, BUCKS 119

Giannis-less Bucks make huge push late, but Celtics get job done for seventh straight win

Milwaukee clawed back within a point in the final minute, but Boston hit big free throws and did what they needed to secure a 122-119 victory at TD Garden.

Venezuelan woman wanted in David Ortiz shooting case arrested in Dominican Republic, officials say

Former Timberwolves staffer arrested after allegedly stealing hard drive from his ex-boss

PWHL: TORONTO 2, BOSTON 1

PWHL Boston can’t capitalize on strong 40 minutes as Toronto rallies in third period for 11th straight win

Business

Federal officials want to know how airlines handle — and share — passengers’ personal information

“Airline passengers should have confidence that their personal information is not being shared improperly with third parties or mishandled by employees,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said.

Last 2 Mississippi ex-officers to be sentenced for torturing 2 Black men in racist assault

Sentencing continues for two more of the former deputies in Mississippi who pleaded guilty last year to breaking into a home without a warrant and torturing two Black men with a stun gun, a sex toy, and other objects.

Biden administration announces rule aimed at expanding electric vehicles

Reddit, the self-anointed the ‘front page of the internet,’ set to make its stock market debut

magazine

Is it possible to approach someone you’re connected to online without creeping them out?

Portugal Gif

Off Portugal’s beaten path, I found culture, family — and belonging

On Wednesday, celebrate the arrival of spring at Easter Bunny’s Spring Bash at Bierman Autism Centers in Needham.

Your Week Ahead

Five things to do around Boston, March 18-24

The best sandwich in Philadelphia might not be a cheesesteak

metro

The Boston School Committee voted Wednesday to seek state funds for the BCLA-McCormack school.

Boston to seek state funding for long-awaited BCLA-McCormack campus buildout

Brockton High School announces school building security assessment, other safety measures

Former Medford mayor among WWII veterans of ‘Ghost Army’ to be awarded Congressional Gold Medal

sports

J.B. Bickerstaff didn't mince words when talking about how sports gambling has affected the NBA.

Cavaliers coach J.B. Bickerstaff says sports betting has ‘gone too far’ after receiving threats from gambler last season

ACC, Clemson locked in dueling lawsuits over league’s exit fees

No matter where he goes, Doc Rivers will always call Boston ‘another home’

business

Fidelity cuts staff

Boston University graduate workers vote to strike starting Monday

IBM eyes first record since 2013 as AI optimism fuels 19 percent rally

politics

Protesters dressed as Abraham Lincoln chant during a Planned Parenthood rally in support of abortion access outside the US Supreme Court, April 15, 2023, in Washington.

Nearly 8 in 10 AAPI adults in US think abortion should be legal, new poll shows

Biden administration announces rule aimed at expanding electric vehicles

Biden is using the ‘are you better off today’ question to contrast himself with Trump

Nation

A police vehicle is parked outside Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise, Idaho, on March 20.

Escaped white supremacist inmate and accomplice still at large after Idaho hospital ambush

Mega Millions jackpot soars to nearly $1 billion. Here’s what to know.

Last 2 Mississippi ex-officers to be sentenced for torturing 2 Black men in racist assault

World

A general view of a roundtable meeting of the EU-Ukraine Association Council at the European Council building in Brussels, on March 20.

EU leaders gather with Ukraine ammunition production and Gaza aid at the top of their agenda

Russia fires 31 missiles at Kyiv in the first attack in 44 days, and 13 people are hurt

Weeping, weak, and soaked, dozens of Rohingya refugees rescued after night on hull of capsized boat

opinion

President Biden spoke during a campaign event at the Washoe Democratic Party Office in Reno, Nevada, March 19, 2024.

Biden’s coalition is in trouble. This guy thinks he can help.

Maura Healey’s fuzzy line between her public life and private life

Time limits, caps on family shelter will not solve the problem of homelessness in Mass.

lifestyle

Glass vases from Charged Glassworks by Sarah Michalik and Noah Weinert at the South End pop-up Trove on Tremont.

Nine creative women open Trove on Tremont, a collective pop-up shop in the South End

Send your relationship questions to Meredith and get Love Letters updates via text

Governor Maura Healey and her partner, Joanna Lydgate, sit down with the Love Letters podcast

food & dining

Self-checkout lines at a New Jersey supermarket

The backlash against self-checkout is nothing personal. Or is it?

Why self-checkout is terrible

The great Harvard Square pizza war: Who’s getting a bigger piece of the pie?

travel

Travel insurance plans with medical expense coverage will cover accidental injuries and illnesses.

Hurt? Sick? What would you do?

The worst kind of sightseeing — inside a hospital. What happens if you get hurt overseas?

As summer nears, judge’s ruling could spell trouble for Nantucket short-term rentals

Arts

"Framing Freedom: The Harriet Hayden Albums" opens March 20 at the Boston Athenaeum. Shown here is a replica of one of Harriet Hayden's albums pieced together by researchers.

Harriet Hayden carte-de-visite photo albums showcase community, solidarity at Boston Athenaeum

A new Banksy mural sprouts beside a cropped tree in London. Many see an environmental message.

A timeline of the Gardner Museum art heist

Books

"The Women" by Kristin Hannah and "Reading Genesis" by Marilynne Robinson are among the past week's local bestsellers.

Local bestsellers for the week ended March 17

Candida Royalle, cofounder of adult film company Femme, tried to bridge the divide between feminist and feminist

Elijah Wald shows us how the world used to sound in ‘Jelly Roll Blues,’ a rollicking history of forbidden early jazz

Movies

Mr. Walsh brought his unmistakable face and unsettling presence to films including “Blood Simple” and “Blade Runner.”

M. Emmet Walsh, actor who shined in seedy, menacing roles, dies at 88

David Seidler, Oscar-winning writer of ‘The King’s Speech,’ dies at 86

‘Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire’ serves nostalgia, lukewarm

Television

Jess Hong in "3 Body Problem."

Even if sci-fi isn’t your thing, ‘3 Body Problem’ might be

A hit and a miss for ‘Masterpiece’

R.I. House to recognize actress Kali Reis with hero award

music

Madison Curbelo of Wesfield during her blind audition for "The Voice" season 25.

Three years after getting eliminated on ‘The Voice,’ a Westfield singer makes a perfect-score comeback

With ‘1972,’ Chadwick Stokes sets a rock opera in the days before Roe

Introducing Sound Check, the Globe’s weekly go-to guide for music lovers

Theater/Dance

Lewis Black brings his “Goodbye Yeller Brick Road, The Final Tour” to the Wilbur on Friday. He'll be back in September.

Lewis Black has no complaints about getting off the road

The struggles, spiritual and otherwise, of August Wilson’s ‘King Hedley II’

The Huntington’s 2024-25 season includes ‘Leopoldstadt’ and a pair of plays from ‘The Ufot Cycle’

Health

Roger Williams Medical Center in Providence, R.I.

Centurion Foundation was the ‘only viable’ buyer for Roger Williams, Fatima hospitals, CEO says

Agent Orange exposure damages the brain in ways similar to Alzheimer’s disease, new study says

R.I.’s largest hospital system may no longer take Cigna health insurance

Obituaries

Pearl Harbor survivor Dick Higgins listens to a speaker during a ceremony at Bend High School in Bend, Ore., on Dec. 7, 2023, to honor him as well as those who died in the Dec. 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor.

Richard C. ‘Dick’ Higgins, one of the few remaining survivors of the attack on Pearl Harbor, has died

M. Emmet Walsh, actor who shined in seedy, menacing roles, dies at 88

Norman Knight, philanthropist who preferred anonymity, dies at 99