Living in Greater Boston has presented us with a unique opportunity: We can use public transport to cross state lines. Specifically, it is possible, and surprisingly simple, to travel to Providence, R.I. using the commuter rail. If you’re like me, that’s a reason to go in and of itself. If you need ...
The act of drawing electoral districts prioritizes rural interests. For example, in the United States, the Democratic Party has a built-in disadvantage in legislative elections because most of their support is inefficiently concentrated in urban areas. There are many lopsided districts where Democratic ...
In a symbolic sense, how much of a difference is there between Team LeBron of the All-Star Game and Team LeBron of the Western Conference (for history’s sake, let’s call them the Lakers)? The All-Star iteration featured a hand-picked team of King James’ cronies who have earned LeBron’s admiration ...
As your resident gentrifying townie, Tim, there's something I consider one of the most important aspects of being a "SomerVillain": the refusal to leave "the Ville" for any social reason. I like to call this my “Never Cross the River” rule. Here in Somerville, there is ...
The Movie: Come and See The Year: 1985The People: Aleksey Kravchenko as Flyora, the decaying childbearing witness to the evilest of evils, Elem Klimov as the film's director and Ales Adamovich as the screenwriter, relaying the horrors he lived through in his youth. The Non-Revealing Plot: In 1943, ...
On Friday afternoon, it was reported that the ongoing collusion case between former 49ers quarterback and prominent social activist Colin Kaepernick, his former teammate Eric Reid and the NFL had finally reached a conclusion. Kaepernick and Reid's lawyers decided to settle with the NFL before the ...
The world became astronomically bigger in the 18th century. In preceding centuries, the Americas had begun to be colonized by the Europeans, and by the middle of the 18th century, European colonialism had made its way onto nearly every continent. This desire for grandeur in regards to extending one’s ...
If you have ever spent some time around leftists, maybe you have heard the phrase, “there is no such thing as ethical consumption under capitalism.” This idea originates primarily from the fact that those who produce goodsdo not receive their fair share, as their employer takes a significant cut ...
The World Bank’s mission includes the laudable aims of ending extreme poverty and promoting shared global prosperity. Yet no international institution, despite the rhetoric of being globally representative, is insulated from geopolitics. Both the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) ...
Great teams can often have that aura of invincibility — the feeling that no matter what, they will come out in front. They give their fans a sense of inevitability. It’s the feeling you get when Steph Curry starts to hit a couple of 3-pointers in quick succession to light up the crowd in Oakland. ...
Democracy is not just about people. Knowing the etymology of the word, this may seem a bizarre statement. Democracy literally means “rule of people.” But democracy, in its most common form — the representative republic — is also spatial. Geography matters. And since many of the world’s richest ...
As Tufts students, the Red Line is our best friend for when we want to get into the city. There are various other ways to travel to Cambridge or Boston, but they aren’t nearly as quick or reliable as our dearly beloved subway cars. However, the convenience of the Red Line comes at a cost: it discourages ...
Nostalgia is a powerful weapon. It can elicit memories ranging from a championship match to watching an early-2000s cartoon on a small, standard-definition television. If one were to solely define nostalgia by these two elements, then boy, were they in for a treat last Thursday evening.Warning: this ...
The Movie: “Badlands”The Year: 1973The People: Martin Sheen as the charismatic yet subdued murderer Kit Carruthers, Sissy Spacek as the doe-eyed, chronically unsure and unaware Holly Sargis and Terrence Malick as the visionary first-time director.The Non-Revealing Plot: Kit Carruthers starts a relationship ...
The NFL season wrapped up with the Patriots on top once again, and as each team heads into the offseason, fans and analysts take a step back to look at the season as a whole. Scorching hot offensive play and record-high scoring characterized the 2018 NFL season, along with an uptick in ratings and ...
One of the most interesting things about music is that it is a vein of history that, when followed closely, can tell the story of human progress. Different centuries are characterized by different ideals such as nationalism, sanctity and progressivism, and in the same way these values are represented ...
Any NBA fan can attest to the evolution that the league has undergone in recent years. Basketball has transformed into a game centered around 3-point shooting and pace-and-space offense. Gone are the days of grind-it-out post play, as the defensive battles of the mid 2000s seem like a faraway memory. ...
Why create art? As an artist, it was something I always knew was important, but I didn’t understand why. While at the SMFA, I've realized how complicated it is — not everyone makes art, and those who do create it for different reasons. Furthermore, many do not care at all to answer why they ...
How does gerrymandering hurt Nigerian yam farmers? Why does Danish foreign aid weaken Bangladeshi industry? Why don’t democracies always do what their people want? These are just a few of the questions, big and small, that I’ll explore in this column.I want to delve into contemporary political ...
Saints head coach Sean Payton said he’ll “probably never get over” the blown pass interference call by the referees in this year's NFC Championship game that costed his team's place in Super Bowl LIII. The Saints will most likely be back again next year with another chance to make a run ...
