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TRENDING:

Mass. reports 4,613 new confirmed coronavirus cases, highest one-day total reported during pandemic

The state on Wednesday reported the highest one-day total of COVID-19 cases during the pandemic, a new, grim number that some medical experts saw as a potential sign of a feared post-Thanksgiving surge. Massachusetts also said the state death toll rose by 46 to 10,588.
US deaths have passed the spring peak; more than 2,760 people reported dead The latest COVID-19 numbers in Mass.

As public health experts advise keeping schools open, superintendents grapple with logistics, politics, and the second wave    
Many are facing pressure from frayed parents on both sides of the argument, and are choosing to take what they see as the safer path, limiting children?s time in school.

Some 2-week coronavirus quarantines can be cut to 10 or 7 days, CDC says UK grants first emergency-use approval of vaccine

Amid a tsunami of COVID-19 infections, strain on contact tracing grows. Should we keep trying?
Some infectious disease experts question the effectiveness and expense of contact tracing for COVID-19 in general.

46 new coronavirus cases in two days on Nantucket; schools going remote for remainder of week East Bridgewater coronavirus cluster connected to private club
THE LATEST ON COVID-19

Winter could be ?most difficult time in the public health history? of the US, CDC director says

Black trooper in Deval Patrick?s gubernatorial security detail was removed because of his race, state agency rules

The state agency did not blame Deval Patrick, Massachusetts? first Black governor, in its June decision, but concluded that State Police supervisors discriminated against Sergeant Cleveland Coats when they removed him, instead of less-experienced white officers, from the security detail.

Congress will press ahead on military bill, defying Trump?s veto threat

Leading Republicans and Democrats in Congress said Wednesday that they would press ahead in advancing an annual military policy bill without adding a repeal demanded by President Donald Trump of a legal shield for social media companies, defying his threat to veto the legislation over the unrelated issue.

Ivanka Trump deposed as part of inauguration fund lawsuit

Ivanka Trump has been deposed by attorneys alleging that President Donald Trump?s 2017 inauguration committee misused donor funds, a new court filing reveals. 1 hour ago

Trump?s attacks on Georgia Republicans roil GOP effort to keep control of Senate
President Trump assailed Republican leaders after his election loss in Georgia. The result has been chaos for the GOP ahead of twin runoff elections next month ? races that will determine which party controls the Senate.

Search persists for parents of 628 kids separated at border
A court-appointed committee has yet to find the parents of 628 children separated at the border early in the Trump administration, according to a court filing Wednesday that also said the government last week provided additional phone numbers to aid the long-running search.

Illinois teen has preliminary hearing on Wisconsin charges

A 17-year-old from Illinois accused of killing two men during an August protest in Wisconsin was due in court Thursday for a preliminary hearing in the case.
Jeneé Osterheldt

In Protest, there is community and joy rising

Headlines will have you believe that protest is violence and mutiny. Protest is many things. Love is at the foundation of most of them.
The Questions, featuring Paloma Valenzuela See more from ?A Beautiful Resistance? ? Follow on Instagram ?
Episode 3: Protest is a beautiful resistance
A Beautiful Resistance: Black joy and Black lives, as celebrated by culture columnist Jeneé Osterheldt. Join us on Instagram @abeautifulresistance. ( Video by Caitlin Healy/Globe Staff, Photo by Pat Greenhouse/Globe Staff, Commentary & concept by Jeneé Osterheldt/Globe Staff )

?We held onto them tight.? Mom, two children rescued from 2-alarm fire in South End
As flames and heavy smoke billowed from a South End brownstone Wednesday morning, Boston firefighters rescued a trapped hearing-impaired mother and her two small children.

?Do you actually want to get something done?? Obama criticizes use of ?snappy? slogans like ?defund the police?
Former president Barack Obama is urging young, progressive activists to rethink their use of ?snappy? slogans like ?defund the police,? which he says repel people that activists need to persuade in order to enact change.

Opinion

Patrick Kearney

Police reform bill is an example of why the public is distrustful of Beacon Hill

Having a single day to review and make a decision on major legislation makes a mockery of representative democracy.
Joan Vennochi

Will Charlie Baker back police reform or police unions?
EDITORIAL

Republicans learn the wrong lessons from the election
Michael Cohen

Biden leads by example
IDEAS | S.I. ROSENBAUM

How the monolith made the desert

Magazine

cooking
Recipes: Three ways to serve chicken cutlets for weeknight meals
For an ideal dinner, try crisp cutlets with five sauce options for serving, Bolognese-style cutlets, and Asian-influenced cutlets with ginger, garlic, and scallions.

Love Letters
Distant longing: Could my first college relationship be totally virtual?
A freshman worries about finding love in a pandemic.

Miss Conduct
Advice: How do I avoid political talk over the holidays?
Plus, giving gifts at a distance.

Can Trump do that? 5 things to know about presidential pardons
Is President Trump about to issue a host of pardons. Here's what you need to know.

TV | MATTHEW GILBERT
With its explosive new season, ?The Crown? has become a thing
Netflix's posh drama has transformed itself into must-binge TV. The most obvious reason: the arrival of ill-fated Diana.

?Never sold so many so fast?: Christmas tree farms around Massachusetts are being cleaned out
Whether people are looking to jump start the Christmas spirit or itching to spend time outside with their families after months of staying home amid the pandemic, farms report being wiped out of cut-your-own trees or being sold out altogether.

Will she stay or will she go? R.I. awaits word on Raimondo?s future
The democratic governor is reportedly being considered to run the Department of Health and Human Services.

Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo is reportedly being considered for Health and Human Services Secretary

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree turns on, with virus rules
Rockin? around the Christmas tree looks different for visitors at Rockefeller Center this year, starting with Wednesday?s tree lighting ceremony.

Matt O?Malley, environmental reform advocate, won?t seek reelection to Boston City Council

After 10 years on the Boston City Council, Matt O'Malley said he does not have a plan for his immediate next step, though the Jamaica Plain resident expects to continue working on public policy and serve out the rest of his term, which runs through January 2022.

Recommended Reads

Waltham police issue safety advisory in wake of random attacks and ask for public?s help

As police continue to seek the person or persons responsible for at least 10 random attacks on men in Waltham in recent weeks, authorities are urging residents to report anything suspicious.
String of attacks is keeping Waltham on edge Watch: Video shows suspect in Waltham attacks

?Your skin is so dark?: A WCVB producer on the challenges of being a Black journalist in New England
Nneka Nwosu Faison is the executive producer of ?Chronicle? on WCVB-TV.

Here?s a running list of Boston-area restaurants hibernating for the winter
These restaurants are taking a temporary hiatus. Look for them again come spring.

metro

?We held onto them tight.? Mom, two children rescued from 2-alarm fire in South End
As flames and heavy smoke billowed from a South End brownstone Wednesday morning, Boston firefighters rescued a trapped hearing-impaired mother and her two small children.

Community group rolls out ?FOR Newton? campaign to bring residents together

Will she stay or will she go? R.I. awaits word on Raimondo?s future

Sports

Sports Log
US Olympic icon Rafer Johnson, 1960 gold medalist in decathlon, dead at 86
Johnson, who won gold in the decathlon at the 1960 Rome Olympics where he was the flag bearer for the US delegation as its first Black captain, was remembered as one of the world's greatest athletes.

Commissioner Roger Goodell vows that NFL will finish the regular season

No surprises as no non-tenders for Red Sox at deadline

business

CVS to give out COVID-19 treatment in nursing homes
CVS has reached a deal with the federal government to give out a COVID-19 antibody treatment in patients? homes and long-term care facilities, the pharmacy chain announced Wednesday, providing a new way for certain high-risk patients to get a drug aimed at keeping them out of the hospital.

PNC opens another area branch

Wayfair will close its only standalone store

politics

Trump expected to flex pardon powers on way out door
Advocates and lawyers anticipate a flurry of clemency action from President Donald Trump in the coming weeks that could test the limits of presidential pardon power.

Congress will press ahead on military bill, defying Trump?s veto threat

Ivanka Trump deposed as part of inauguration fund lawsuit

lifestyle

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree turns on, with virus rules
Rockin? around the Christmas tree looks different for visitors at Rockefeller Center this year, starting with Wednesday?s tree lighting ceremony.

Is ?orbisculate? a word? The late Neil Krieger?s children want it to be.
COMFORT ZONE

Crafting all the way

arts

TELEVISION
In ?Your Honor,? Bryan Cranston and a mess of misjudgments
In the uneven Showtime drama, a judge covers up his son's guilt in a hit-and-run fatality.

Frugal Bookstore owners featured on ?The Drew Barrymore Show?
TELEVISION

New streaming service is the latest (from) Discovery

rhode island

Will she stay or will she go? R.I. awaits word on Raimondo?s future
The democratic governor is reportedly being considered to run the Department of Health and Human Services.

Rhode Island House Task Force details COVID-19 vaccine challenges
RI BUSINESS

After growing a global investing firm, Paul Salem is focusing locally

newton

Special Projects

A beautiful resistance | JENEÉ OSTERHELDT

If you?re willing to see, the walls have something to say

In Worcester, Che Anderson speaks the language of establishment and the streets. As deputy cultural development officer and founding director of the POW! WOW! Worcester mural festival, Anderson understands cans of spray paint are a revolution of representation. He, along with colleagues Erin Williams, Gloria Hall, and Tina Zlody, are among the many who?ve helped transform Worcester into a city of art.
See more from 'A Beautiful Resistance' Follow on Instagram

On the Street

In tackling the pandemic, Chelsea finds new strength

Brockton offers a gateway to a new generation

This time, Quincy Center?s revival looks legit

Revere was going through a revival before COVID-19. Can it stay on track?

See more from our business series ?On the Street?: The changing face of Greater Boston neighborhoods

More

I knew getting prostate cancer at 48 would change me. I had no idea how much
For the past year, Mark Shanahan has been working on Mr. 80 Percent, a six-episode podcast miniseries about his experience with prostate cancer. It?s a deeply personal, sometimes harrowing, often funny story about a disease that affects millions of men. The heroes are his doctors and family, who put up with some appalling behavior. You?ll hear from both.

The virus?s tale
Track the coronavirus pandemic in Massachusetts to its roots and you find a story driven by heroics, ingenuity, error, pain, and a hard question: How could a state famous for health care excellence have suffered such a vast loss of human life?

Last Words: Is death the great equalizer?
Quite the contrary, a Spotlight investigation shows. Death exposes in high relief the layers of inequities, in race and income, care and opportunity, that shape life down to its final hours. It is a truth the pandemic has only underscored ? one hard to see, because it is so much easier to look away.

Comfort Zone

Amid the anxiety, a Globe photographer finds scenes of kindness, patience, hope

These pre-Thanksgiving scenes, captured by a Globe photographer, show how Boston is carrying on.

Deck the storefronts with Boston?s favorite performing arts groups

Boston BID's "Stage Windows" initiative puts performing arts groups to work in Downtown Crossing.
COMFORT ZONE

3 Christmas tree farms just a snowball?s throw from Boston

Christmas trees are going fast this year, so plan your trip accordingly.
MAKING A SAFE GETAWAY

Not (quite) home for the holidays

Colorful lights, caroling, cookies, and Christmas trees ? all are featured attractions at New England inns this year, but presented with a creative, COVID-era twist.
COMFORT ZONE

All I want for Christmas is some front-row seats

Mendon Drive-In extends season with holiday classics and light shows.

Mural gets to the heart of warming sea waters

Felipe Ortiz's 150-square-foot piece is the seventh installment in the Sea Walls Boston project.

Opinion, ideas, and commentary

EDITORIAL

Republicans learn the wrong lessons from the election
Michael Cohen

Biden leads by example
IDEAS | S.I. ROSENBAUM

How the monolith made the desert
JEFF JACOBY

From the White House, one last push to impede immigrants
Scot Lehigh

A hopeful political day in deep, dark December
IDEAS | LINDA RODRIGUEZ MCROBBIE

Plants will save us ? if we help them do it

STAT

The Road Ahead: Charting the pandemic over the next 12 months ? and beyond
In this project, STAT describes 30 key moments, possible turning points that could steer the pandemic onto a different course or barometers for how the virus is reshaping our lives.

From a small N.C. town to big-city hospitals, how software infuses racism into U.S. health care
The racial bias can produce huge differences in assessing patients? need for special care to manage conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, or depression, a STAT investigation found.

Covid-19?s wintry mix: Dry indoor air helps the virus spread
The worry is not just that people might mingle more closely inside, but that the air they breathe will make the virus more dangerous.

In the Covid-19 death of a hospital food worker, a microcosm of the pandemic
The hospital's first employee to die of Covid-19 was a kitchen worker named Marie Deus ? and her illness sparked a question. Why weren't bedside clinicians getting sick at the highest rates?

magazine
Cover Story

Germany has lessons about containing the damage of COVID-19
Exclusive Excerpt

The origin story of the 2008 Boston Celtics? Big Three
Dinner With Cupid

Blind date: ?We touched on topics that people on a first date don?t typically discuss?
Love Letters

I found Viagra in my boyfriend?s truck - and he doesn?t use it with me

sports

Liam ?Fist Bump Kid? Fitzgerald cherishing new jersey, special friendship with Torey Krug

After several delays of game, Steelers hold off Ravens to improve to 11-0

Celtics to open season Dec. 23 against Milwaukee

metro

Winter could be ?most difficult time in the public health history? of the US, CDC director says

?We held onto them tight.? Mom, two children rescued from 2-alarm fire in South End

Community group rolls out ?FOR Newton? campaign to bring residents together

Nation

US deaths have passed the spring peak; more than 2,760 reported dead

Austin mayor went to Mexico while urging people to stay home

Winter could be ?most difficult time in the public health history? of the US, CDC director says

World

As Iran mourns nuclear scientist, officials vow to find his killers

4 officers in France are charged over beating of a Black man

?Trump is better?: In Asia, pro-democracy forces worry about Biden

politics

Congress will press ahead on military bill, defying Trump?s veto threat

Ivanka Trump deposed as part of inauguration fund lawsuit

Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo reportedly being considered for Health and Human Services Secretary

business

CVS to give out COVID-19 treatment in nursing homes

PNC opens another area branch

Wayfair will close its only standalone store

lifestyle

Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree turns on, with virus rules

Is ?orbisculate? a word? The late Neil Krieger?s children want it to be.

Crafting all the way

marijuana

Coming soon to a college in Rhode Island: Cannabis 101

Two sons of Boston were arrested for marijuana. Now they plan to open Hyde Park?s first legal cannabis shop

A local meal kit service is selling CBD-infused pies to pair with your Thanksgiving dinner

opinion

Republicans learn the wrong lessons from the election

Will Charlie Baker back police reform or police unions?

What?s next for the GOP?

food & dining

The best new cookbooks for holiday giving

For National Cookie Day: The best chocolate chip cookies we?ve found while traveling the country

Recipe: Serve baked apples with walnuts and raisins morning, afternoon, or night

travel

How to do a home swap

Acting lessons from home, East Coast biking adventures, and a smart helmet

Local online travel company sees big opportunity in tiny trips

Books

Reading books about the natural world

In search of Harriet the Spy?s creator in ?Sometimes You Have to Lie?

What to buy for the readers on your shopping list

Movies

Two accounts of the trials and turnings of transition

?Another Round?: the power, and pain, of positive drinking

?Love, Weddings, & Other Disasters?: when a ?rom-com? bombs

Television

In ?Your Honor,? Bryan Cranston and a mess of misjudgments

New streaming service is the latest (from) Discovery

With its explosive new season, ?The Crown? has become a thing

music

Fred Taylor gets the last word in his posthumous memoir ? and a jazzy all-star tribute

Aimee Mann on ?Bachelor No. 2,? her Berklee and Boston days, and why record labels are stupid

6 classical concerts streaming joy to your home

Theater/Dance

With its headliners and stand-up competition, a virtual Boston Comedy Festival will keep the laughs coming

?The Nutcracker? and 5 other dance performances on screen this season

For theater lovers this season, a ?Black Nativity? history and a Scrooge or two

globe local

Community group rolls out ?FOR Newton? campaign to bring residents together

Black trooper in Deval Patrick?s gubernatorial security detail was removed because of his race, state agency rules

Littleton tree hunt puts some holiday sparkle in the wildernesss

Obituaries

Rafer Johnson, 1960 Olympic gold medalist in the decathlon, dies at 86

Jinny Chalmers, school principal who championed diversity in the classroom and life, dies at 70

Tony Hsieh, retired Zappos CEO, dies at 46