The Somerville News Blog

How to thrive in the 'real economy'

By Joseph A. Curtatone

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

In many Republican circles, it's an article of faith that government polices, programs and investments only get in the way of prosperity (what conservatives call “wealth creation”), and that public sector managers don't do anything important.  Here's a case in point: shortly before the wheels came off his presidential campaign, Mitt Romney started emphasizing that he (unlike, say, Hillary Clinton or John McCain) had spent his career in the “real economy,” and that his business expertise was just what the nation needed as it teetered on the brink of recession.

From Somerville to the Bowery

Off The Shelf by Doug Holder

No matter where you go Somerville is not far behind. I found on my recent literary related trip to New York City all kinds of Somerville connections. I had planned to visit my mother in New York the first weekend in February, and it just so happened that poet Charles Ries from Wisconsin was reading at the KGB bar in the Bowery and he invited me and other folks to attend. Charles was attending the Association of Writer's and Writing Programs conference in NYC. It was held on 52nd St. at the Sheraton so I figured I would make a pit stop there. Unfortunately you have to register to get in, and they were booked, so I was unable to attend the book fair segment. You figure they would let the general public in for the book tables. As a publisher and poet I would want as many folks as possible to be exposed to my books, not just our arcane world of small press people. But being the small press guerilla that I am to the bone, I left “Ibbetson Street” magazines strategically appointed around the lobby. Hopefully they got a receptive audience… a literary minded bellboy, or perhaps a luminary like Sue Miller picked it up in an afterthought.

East Somerville dancer strives for definition

By Keith Howard

Somerville is home to many budding artists that pepper the city with a fresh flavor, but only one performer is the director of the short film with EgoArt, a Boston-based dance and theater company, entitled “Peckers Restaurant.”

East Somerville artist Nicole Pierce was the guest at the Feb. 1 Somerville News contributor's meeting and spoke of her unique work and the meaning of her dance company's name.

That's what grandpa's do

On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

My grandpa was a proud Italian-American citizen and a World War I veteran. He was also a custodian at the old Bingham School. His name was Giuseppe, and he was my dad's father. A lot of people just called him Joe. He started a long tradition of “Joes” in my family. There's my Uncle Joe, the fireman and glass guy, and his son Joe. There's also my brother Joe, the Harvard grad, and my son Joe - oh, and my cousin's son Joe (my uncle Joe's grandson).

The View From Prospect Hill

We were looking forward to an open discussion from the School Committee on the issue of charter change. Instead we got comments like “my blood pressure is ready to burst,” no discussion of any merit and a resounding “Shut up!” from elected officials who should know better.

The resolution put forth was a gentle one encouraging elected officials to examine changes to a 108-year-old set of laws and regulations that mandates city government positions for a fence viewer, wood and bark measurer and grain weigher. And six of our ever so wise School Committee members shot it down in a burst of anger that seemed to have little relation to reality.

Vandalism, drugs, fake names and weapons after hours at Winter Hill School playground

By George P. Hassett

Five males, three from Somerville, one from Everett and one from Dorchester, all between the ages of 15 and 21, were spray painting on the ground at the Winter Hill Community School while carrying knives and marijuana on Tuesday, Feb. 5, according to police.

Police were first called to the neighborhood by a citizen reporting a group of eight to nine black males fighting in front of his residence. Police could not locate them but, knowing the playground at the Winter Hill Community School is a local hangout, went there to check it out.

Mayor pushes charter reform

School Committee rejected first measure to explore changes

By George P. Hassett

What is a fence viewer? Wood and bark measurer? A grain weigher? For some, these leftover jobs from Somerville's 1899 city charter are proof that the city's political culture needs reform.

In his inaugural address last month Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone promised to convene a charter reform commission this year to examine possible changes to the structure of city departments, elected bodies and government procedures.

It's tax season for illegal immigrants too

By George P. Hassett

One is from Egypt, the other Brazil. Neither has the proper documentation to be in the country but both, like millions of Americans, will be filing their income taxes with the IRS in the next few weeks.

The two illegal immigrants pay their taxes with Tax ID numbers instead of social security numbers and get them prepared at Carminati Tax on lower Broadway, where Charles Carminati said about 70 percent of his more than 1,000 clients pay their taxes despite being in the country illegally. 

The question Carminati has is, since illegal immigrants can not get refunds for the social security or Medicare taxes they pay, where is that money going?

Newstalk for Wednesday February 13th 2008

This evening (Wednesday Feb. 13), Alderman Walter Pero is holding a meeting at the Mystic Activity Center at 5:30 p.m to discuss the updates on Assembly Sq. traffic planning, the wetlands along Shore Drive and the Winter Hill Market closing - as well as other issues concerning Ward 4, along with Alderman Pero will be the new Police Chief - Anthony Holloway – they will both be there to answer any questions.

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The same evening (from 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.) at the Cross Street Senior Center, Alderman Bill Roche will be hosting a “Community Meeting” to discuss the proposed new designs for lower Broadway in East Somerville – again, all residents are invited.

Coyote ugly in West Somerville

In New England's densest city a coyote ran loose in the streets today. The prairie wolf eluded police and animal control officers as he ran through the Max Pak site, Highland Road and Boston Avenue. Their pursuit was fruitless as the coyote escaped capture and disappeared at the top of Powder House Park.

Photos by Donald F. Norton

School bullies found online now too

By Keith Howard

Schoolyard bullies have graduated-to the internet. And unlike most playground scuffles, these rotten-apples can inflict permanent scars.

“Some kids carry weapons to school after being victimized online because they're scared or worried. It's a tough issue and everyone is grappling with it,” said Brian Cavanaugh, deputy director of Middlesex Partnerships for Youth Inc.

Sex and art mix it up

Washington Street Art Center opens ‘Inappropriate Touching’

By Kimberly Geronimo

Artistic renderings of the most private of body parts and other sexual tidbits were strewn across the walls of the Washington Street Art Center on Friday as the gallery opened its newest exhibit “Inappropriate Touching.”

What's in a name?

By William C. Shelton

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

I've been writing about Somerville's place on the bleeding edge of a growing societal trend. We increasingly substitute name calling for listening to each other, identifying what we have in common, and understanding our legitimate differences.

Among the names that we call each other are “liberal” and “conservative.” No longer terms that accurately describe any consistent or mutually understood political philosophy, these words are increasingly insults used by one group to dismiss the concerns of another.

‘Living In Storms. Contemporary Poetry and the Moods of Manic Depression’

Off The Shelf by Doug Holder

Edited by Thom Schramm. (Eastern Washington University Press Spokane, Washington 2008) $24.

The “black dogs” of depression are never far outside our gate, as Winston Churchill once wrote. The euphoria of mania and the freefall of depression are known in the field as manic depression. This rapid cycling tornado of mental illness has affected (according to recent studies) poets and writers to a greater degree than the general population. In fact in the New York Times awhile back it was reported that poets and writers, but particularly poets, have a shorter lifespan than the rest of the masses. Could it be we are more prone to suicide or have we just forgotten to take our daily dose of statins?

The chocolatier of Somerville

By Jennifer Hirsch

“You stop liking candy, but you never stop liking chocolate," says Brendan Gannon, 28, owner, founder and sole employee of La Tène Chocolatier. Gannon, who grew up in Maine and now calls Somerville home, creates hand-crafted artisan chocolates with a contemporary touch.

He is self-taught in the art of chocolate. Trained as a stage actor, he spent a brief stint as a DJ and music writer before beginning to experiment with chocolate in his kitchen about five years ago. He worked as an assistant manager at the award-winning chocolate maker L.A. Burdick in Harvard Square for several years. During his tenure at Burdicks he said he was able to garner much chocolate knowledge and even spend a weekend at the New Hampshire location where the chocolates are made.

Let's talk local

On The Silly Side by Jimmy Del Ponte

(The opinions and views expressed in the commentaries of The Somerville News belong solely to the authors of those commentaries and do not reflect the views or opinions of The Somerville News, its staff or publishers.)

The groundhog saw his shadow, so it's six more weeks of winter. For many years we had our own Groundhog Day tradition down at Barnaby's, before it became Redbones - I'd stick my head out the front door - and if I didn't see my girlfriend's angry face heading toward the bar, it meant that I had time for six more ounces of draft beer.

The View From Prospect Hill

Gentrification is a touchy subject in this city - from a number of different perspectives. One generalized view is that gentrification in this type of socio-economic environment is an inevitability and that we as a community have to take the good with the bad when it comes to urban renewal. Another is that the displacement of lower-middle class residents who haven't owned their home for 20 to 30 years tears apart a community like ours.

At the center of this heated battle of ideologies lies a certain group of people in our community - predominately made up of elected officials and developers. All too often, elected officials are accused of being in collusion with developers to push their project through the system with backroom deals and white envelopes - the fact of the matter is that in 2008, you can't get a parking ticket fixed without someone blowing the whistle to the Ethics Commission. People really need to get the 1960s mentality out of their heads.

Seven new officers join police department

By George P. Hassett

When Anthony Holloway took over as chief of the Somerville Police Department last month he said the most common complaint he heard from patrol officers was a lack of manpower on the streets. This week city officials took one step toward addressing that problem by bringing seven new officers onto the force.

Christopher Gomes, Oswaldo Martinez, Yvon Jean Jacques, Fernando Cicerone, Henry Diaz, James Radochia and Guerdy Legros will enter the police academy in February and will hit the streets as Somerville police upon successful completion of the twenty week training program.

Residents discuss what the Green Line may bring

By Keith Howard

After almost two decades of delays the Green Line is coming to Somerville, but pedestrians, patrons and business people have yet to reach a consensus on where it may stop.

Engineering consultants and delegates from the city's transportation department met at the Somerville High School library last week to hear feedback from roughly 100 residents and commuters about potential MBTA stops in the city.

Command change ceremony ushers in new leadership for police

By George P. Hassett

The leadership of the Somerville Police Department was handed over to Anthony Holloway Monday night  in a ceremony that honored outgoing Acting Chief Robert R. Bradley and ushered in a new era for the department.

Bradley, on the force since Aug. 3, 1969, said it was the first time he had seen a formal ceremony celebrating a change in leadership for the SPD. With an honor guard at his side and the United States flag behind him Bradley praised Holloway, Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone and the direction the force is going in.