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Massachusetts lawmaker wants to divert control of commuter rail from MBTA

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

A top transportation-focused lawmaker wants to hand control of the state’s commuter rail services to the Department of Transportation, a move he says would allow the MBTA to focus on subway and bus service.Rep. William Straus, a Bristol County Democrat, said it is “fanciful to think” that high-level decisions for the commuter rail are being made by top MBTA officials when Department of Transportation officials have often led the charge for the transit service.“So why don’t we just end the fiction that the MBTA operates, or makes the key decisions regarding commuter rail? The other policy reason is commuter rail, and daily subway and bus service are very different kinds of operations in terms of how you deploy equipment, and schedule,” said Straus, the co-chair of the Legislature’s Transportation Committee.The proposal is part of legislation scheduled for a Monday Transportation Committee hearing, where advocates are expected to weigh in on Straus’ bill and others dealing with ...

Volleyball notebook: Natick all set with Branch Barnes, Harrison Landry

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

The concept isn’t exactly flashy, but Natick sophomore Branch Barnes is pretty hyped up over it.In the second set of a Bay State Conference bout April 27, a talented Brookline squad was hammering spikes. It attacked the area around Harrison Landry perhaps the most within the frame’s first eight points, and the junior RedHawks setter needed to make four digs within the stretch.Normally, putting a setter into that spot forces a team out of system. Most programs run a 5-1 rotation with just the one setter. But Natick, which went on an 8-0 run before eventually winning the match 3-0, is different.“I set four balls from right-side, which is huge,” Barnes said. “When the setter (Landry) gets taken out like that, four times in eight points? We converted on all of them. … The big thing is (we have) two setters at all times. It’s very hard for us to get put out of system, we can usually get a good swing down.”It’s common for teams to run a situational 6-2 rotation, or at least experiment wit...

Lacrosse notebook: Franklin’s three-headed monster devouring opponents

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

FRANKLIN — If you have taken a journey to Beaver Pond in recent years, chances are you have witnessed the excitement lacrosse brings the Franklin High School community.Over the last decade in particular, countless athletes with winning pedigree have passed through its decorated boys program. However, something historic has been brewing this season for the Panthers, and it’s largely due to the three-headed monster of Jayden Consigli, Luke Davis and Tyler Sacchetti.“We’ve had some great attackmen over the years,” said Franklin lacrosse coach Lou Verrochi. “Eric Civetti is at Rutgers. Matt Lazzaro is at Penn State. But we have never had a trio like (this).”Just how impressive are we talking? To this point on the young campaign, Davis already has registered 84 points, sniping a whopping 51 goals to go with 33 assists. Meanwhile, Consigli (44 goals, 16 assists) and Sacchetti (36 goals, 24 assists) have tallied 60 points apiece. The Panthers (10-1) have averaged an incredible 17.64 goals ...

Baseball/softball notebook: Waltham (8-2) sparkling on the diamond

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

While some may be surprised by the play of the Waltham baseball team, do not put head coach Mike Peterson in that category.Courtesy of a pitching staff with a combined earned run average below 1.00 per game, and a trio of hitters batting over .350, Waltham boasts an 8-2 overall record and has the makings of a sleeper in the Div. 1 state tournament.The leaders of the rotation — Drew Anderson, Mike Cobb, and Ben Hamilton — have combined for six shutouts over nine games.“Our three starters have pitched extremely well,” Peterson said. “Drew, Mike, and Ben have stepped up at a high level. If we field and pitch well, we’ve been really hard to beat,”While Anderson and Cobb have spotless ERAs, Hamilton is not far behind. Hamilton has allowed just one earned run in 17.2 innings while scattering 10 hits. Offensively, meanwhile, the Hawks are paced by Ian LaForest, who is slashing .424/.457/.515. Around him are Ty Connolly and Will Curley. The tandem is each hitti...

Headed to the Jimmy Buffett concert? Beat the crowd with these tips

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

SAN DIEGO -- The time has finally come -- Snapdragon Stadium will host its first-ever concert on Saturday with Jimmy Buffett transforming San Diego into "Margaritaville."The icon will be joined by his Coral Reefer Band, plus special guests like GRAMMY Award-winner Jason Mraz and country music singer-songwriter Mac McAnally.The much anticipated show comes after the original concert date was postponed due to health issues experienced by Buffet. The iconic singer took time off to recuperate, but is now ready to take the stage in America's Finest City. 3 artists added to San Diego County Fair Concert Series lineup Snapdragon Stadium said fans with tickets to the original October 22, 2022 date should have received an email from Ticketmaster with information on how to get those passes honored at the rescheduled show. For those still looking to snag a ticket to watch the "Trip Around the Sun" singer live, there are still seats available for purchase. As it turns out, the San Diego Padres...

Ex-FCC chief, public TV advocate Newton Minow dead at 97

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

CHICAGO (AP) — Newton N. Minow, who as Federal Communications Commission chief in the early 1960s famously proclaimed that network television was a “vast wasteland,” died Saturday. He was 97.Minow, who received a Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2016, died Saturday at home, surrounded by loved ones, said his daughter, Nell Minow.“He wanted to be at home,” she told The Associated Press. “He had a good life.”Though Minow remained in the FCC post just two years, he left a permanent stamp on the broadcasting industry through government steps to foster satellite communications, the passage of a law mandating UHF reception on TV sets and his outspoken advocacy for quality in television.“My faith is in the belief that this country needs and can support many voices of television — and that the more voices we hear, the better, the richer, the freer we shall be,” Minow once said. “After all, the airways belong to the people.”Minow was appointed as FCC chief...

Government still investigating why threats against Chong not passed up to cabinet

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

OTTAWA — Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino says the government is still investigating why warnings that a Conservative MP was being threatened by the Chinese government never made it to the desk of any cabinet minister.Mendicino says Canada’s priority is holding China accountable for any threatening or harassing behaviour to Michael Chong and his family in Hong Kong and discussions about whether to expel diplomats from China are ongoing.The diplomat Chong was told oversaw an effort to target him and his family continues to work as a consular official for China in Toronto.But Mendicino says it’s also important to get to the bottom of why the information was never provided to his predecessor Bill Blair, to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau or to Chong himself.Trudeau has said CSIS did not tell anyone outside the spy agency about information it had about the threats, but Chong was told the national security adviser was told about it two years ago.Mendicino and Trudeau say ...

Air conditioning collapse injures 6 at Colorado resort pool

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

AURORA, Colo. (AP) — Six people were hurt — two with life-threatening injuries — when part of a heating and ventilation system collapsed at a resort pool in Colorado on Saturday, fire officials said.Aurora Fire Rescue said there were 50 to 100 guests in the pool when the collapse occurred Saturday morning at the Gaylord Rockies resort near Denver International Airport.Fire Chief Alec Oughton said crews were already at the resort for training when the collapse happened.The Associated Press

Prince Harry an odd man out at father’s coronation spectacle

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

LONDON (AP) — In the fairy-tale ending to the ancient pageantry in which King Charles Ill was crowned monarch, he stepped into a gilded horse-drawn carriage with his queen and rode off to his palace.Following closely behind was Prince William, his eldest son and heir, along with his family, including 9-year-old Prince George who is second in line to the throne. The king’s youngest son was nowhere to be seen. On his father’s biggest day, Prince Harry arrived at Westminster Abbey alone and he left alone. The disgruntled Duke of Sussex was assigned to sit two rows behind his brother.His isolation was likely the result of him quitting his royal duties and, thus, no longer ranking as a senior family member — as well as alienating himself from his father and brother by airing grievances and telling palace secrets in his explosive best-selling memoir, “Spare.”After months of speculation about whether he would attend, it was announced about three weeks ago that Harry would come ...

Chris Strachwitz, founded Arhoolie label, dies age 91

Published Sat, 22 Feb 2025 14:00:00 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Chris Strachwitz, a producer, musicologist and one-man preservation society whose Arhoolie Records released thousands of songs by regional performers and comprised an extraordinary American archive that became known and loved worldwide, has died. He was 91.Strachwitz, recipient in 2016 of a Grammy Trustee Award, passed away Friday from complications with congestive heart failure at an assisted living facility in the San Francisco Bay Area’s Marin County, the Arhoolie Foundation said Saturday.Admired by Bob Dylan, Bonnie Raitt and many others, Strachwitz was an unlikely champion of the American vernacular — a native German born into privilege who fell deeply for his adopted country’s music and was among the most intrepid field recorders to emerge after Alan Lomax. He founded Arhoolie in 1960 and over the following decades traveled to Mississippi, Texas and Louisiana among other states on a mission that rarely relented: taping little-known artists in their home e...