House OK’s fiscal deal as GOP resistance wanes

Attempts within the Republican caucus to defeat or change a Senate bill that would lower taxes on virtually all Americans fizzled as the day wore on.

GOP members led by Eric Cantor of Virginia and John Boehner of Ohio headed toameeting to discuss the fiscal cliff deal.

J. SCOTT APPLEWHITE/AP

Limited deal does little to ease deficit pressures, analysts say

The net effect of the fiscal bill would be to add nearly $4 trillion to the deficit over the next decade.

JEFF JACOBY

People are truly good at heart? Sadly, no

Human nature has an inherently cruel component, and it’s by controlling ourselves that we can create a better world.

Therese Murray planning an ambitious agenda

The state Senate president will offer an agenda that includes an expansion of early voting, welfare changes, and help for the transportation system.

Municipal flags line the Great Hall at the State House, but not all Massachusetts towns are represented.

John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

More towns designing flags to join State House display

Once flagless towns in the Commonwealth are adopting municipal flags, after a bit of coaxing from constituents and state lawmakers.

Mass. to end placing of homeless in motels

The state government plans to eliminate an emergency shelter program that places about 1,700 homeless families in motels and hotels paid by taxpayers.

Myra Ameigh and her daughter, Marijke, 16, who had pioneering artery surgery at Boston Children’s Hospital.

Novel artery stretching offers way to repair vessel

The surgical procedure being pioneered at Children’s Hospital stretches a child’s blood vessels to provide new material to make repairs elsewhere in the body.

Chinese investment in the US hits record level

Wanxiang Group’s deal with a Cambridge alternative energy firm helped Chinese investment in American businesses hit a record $6.5 billion in 2012.

Cubby Oil’s John Alefantis on a recent delivery. Less than one-third of Massachusetts homes heat with fuel oil, according to census figures.

Fuel oil industry feeling the heat

As more Mass. households convert to cheaper natural gas, many dealers are expanding their services or merging businesses to survive.

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See the film and participate in a talk with cast members, moderated by Boston Globe movie editor Janice Page.

Globe exclusives

At The Farm School in Athol, student farmer Sarah Habeck of Middletown, N.J., fed hay to Patience, a Jersey cow, during a morning milking in October.

G Cover

Letter from Farm School
From the documentary “Hitler’s Children”: Monika Goeth, whose father ran Plaszow Concentration Camp.

Movie Review

‘Hitler’s Children’ documents Nazi descendants
Janice Crean (left) and Lorraine Thomson, founders of WunderSmoothies with a display at Roche Brothers.

This natural fruit juice is really all fruit
A classic banh mi at West Roxbury’s Banh Mi Ngon.

Cheap Eats

Banh mi crawl leads to some great sandwiches
Top row: Kevin White, Helen Gurley Brown, Phyllis Diller, George McGovern. Middle: Mike Wallace, Nora Ephron, Rodney King, Dave Brubeck. Bottom: Chuck Colson, Whitney Houston, John Silber, Don Cornelius.

Remembering those lost in 2012
Jimmy Craig (left) and Justin Parker. The duo behind Fatawesome, who have been friends since high school, had a viral hit with the video “Cat-Friend vs. Dog-Friend,” which spurred some national attention.

G Cover

Trying to ride viral videos to wider fame
Brenda Van Der Merwe, a real estate agent, says she is not making any resolutions. “You should already be doing it,” she said.

Many not making New Year’s resolutions
Jane Greer and Robert Mitchum in a scene from the 1947 film noir ‘’Out of the Past,’’ directed by Jacques Tourneur.

Critic’s Notebook

Let us now praise (not quite) famous men

Books

The year in books

Hometown Heroes: the best local albums of 2012
Irving Berlin is one of a large group of Jewish composers who made it big on Broadway.

Television Review

Jews amid the culture of the Broadway musical

G Cover

Practical tips for a healthier 2013

Sports

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ON FOOTBALL | Midweek Report

Brandon Lloyd beat Miami’s Bryan McCann here, but his route-running has been sloppy.

Patriots offense still has work to do

The Patriots had two terrific second-quarter drives against the Dolphins, but outside of that, New England’s offense was fairly blah.

Metro

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L Street Brownies

Braving frigid waters a New Year’s rite

Over a century of tradition was honored, as roughly 600 hardy souls rang in 2013 with a plunge into the waters off South Boston.

Columnists

Boston Capital

Economy to grow if politics abate

JEFF JACOBY

People are truly good at heart? Sadly, no
Peyton Manning and Tom Brady could face each other again in the AFC Championship game.

Dan Shaughnessy

Get ready for Brady vs. Manning for AFC title
A dancer performs in a New Year’s Eve celebration in Bali Monday.

James Carroll

A new year of pluralism
Bobo’s device measures heart rate.

Innovation Economy

A heart rate sensor that’s easy to wear

Tech Lab Plus

Meet the scale that talks to your phone
Rob Gronkowski scored a touchdown for the Patriots in the fourth quarter against the Dolphins.

Christopher L. Gasper

Worth the risk to play Rob Gronkowski
President Barack Obama greets Chief Justice John Roberts before delivering his State of the Union Address on Capitol Hill in Washington in 2012.

Joan Vennochi

Bipartisan bright spots, met with derision
Congressman Ed Markey won’t be facing the name power of Ben Affleck—who announced he won’t be running—but he still has the chance to act like a star.

Joanna Weiss

Ed Markey needs to find his inner celebrity
In recent years, Boston has reveled in championships by the Bruins, Red Sox, Patriots, and Celtics — but it certainly appears that this widespread “golden era” is over.

Bob Ryan

State of Boston’s sports teams in 2013
The Super Bowl is exactly 11 years after the Pats won their first title.

Christopher L. Gasper

Patriots tough enough to make it back to Super Bowl

JEFF JACOBY

Kerry’s ‘realist’ approach slips into callousness

Nation & World

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Twenty-six stars were installed on the roof of the Sandy Hook fire station to commemorate the shooting victims.

Sandy Hook students set to head back to school

Classes resume Thursday for pupils of Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Conn., nearly three weeks after the shooting rampage.

Politics

Hillary Rodham Clinton was also treated for a blood clot in 1998, while her husband was still president.

Hillary Clinton still hospitalized for blood clot

The secretary of state continues to recover in a New York hospital where she is being treated for a blood clot in her head.

Business

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A bad year for car recalls due to defects did not slow down sales during 2012.

Sales of vehicles helped save US economy in 2012

Vehicle purchases by consumers alone accounted for roughly 30 percent of all economic growth in the first half of the year.

Arts

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Music Review

Lee Fields and the Expressions covered a broad spectrum of soul Monday night that stretched from the pain of loss to playful joy.

Soulful master marvelously runs the emotional gamut

Lee Fields and the Expressions covered a broad spectrum of soul Monday that stretched from the pain of loss to playful joy.

Food & dining

Culinary chef Jesse LaMontagne, left, with his mom, Michele Holbrook, right, posed for a picture in the 'Poparazzi' popcorn bucket set up for customers to take fun pictures, inside her business, Michele's Sweet Shoppe in Epsom, N.H.

Kernels of gourmet goodness are popping up all over

At least five specialty popcorn stores opened this year in Massachusetts and more are sprouting around the country.

Magazine

The cover for the December 23 2012 issue

Bostonians of the Year: Raisman and Harrison

The cover for the December 16 2012 issue

Best of the New: Diversions
The cover for the December 9 2012 issue

The drug lab scandal: Who’s cleaning it up?
The cover for the December 2 2012 issue

5 inspired rooms

Opinion

“All of us are tugged by conflicting moral impulses, and whether we do the right thing or the wrong thing is up to each of us.”

Jeff Jacoby 

Ideas

“An ending has more life in it, more story in it, and is far more instructive than a beginning.”

James Parker, on the things, phenomena, and ideas that ended in 2012 

“Hopefully in the new year, we can put a package like this together with a little less brinksmanship, a little less drama, not scare the heck out of folks quite as much.”

President Obama