LOCAL NEWS

Mass. gov seeks chances to hit rival

The Patrick administration is holding three days of hearings this week focused on controlling rising health care costs, a matter of vital state policy - and political importance to a governor seeking re-election. More »

Mass. tribes seek separate voice

A group of Wampanoag tribes who say they?ve been cast aside on issues from the Nantucket Sound wind farm to the future of gaming are breaking away to create a new council to deal with state government. More »

Republicans are easy targets at Southie breakfast

Two Republicans - newly elected Sen. Scott Brown and gubernatorial candidate Charles Baker - were easy targets Sunday as the heavily Democratic Massachusetts political establishment gathered in South Boston for its annual St. Patrick's Day roast. More »

Jewish, Latino leaders form ties in more cities

When six teens allegedly beat a Guatemalan immigrant into a coma last July in a Boston suburb, a Jewish and Latino coalition called the attack "hateful." More »

Art meets activism at Dot foreclosure protest

Braving rain, wind and cold, more than 80 people marched and rallied in Dorchester's Four Corners neighborhood to bring attention to the large number of foreclosed and vacant housing units in the area and to voice anger at the banks that control the properties. More »

Mass. Senate bill prohibits sale of junk food in schools

On the heels of first lady Michelle Obama's recent launch of a White House anti-obesity campaign, the Massachusetts Senate approved in a unanimous vote last Thursday a bill that will prohibit the sale of junk food in schools. More »

Harvard prof leads medical trip to Haiti

S. Allen Counter, a Harvard University neuroscience professor, was uniquely qualified to lead an aid mission to Haiti after the earthquake struck on Jan. 12. "There is not much difference between preparing for one of my explorations and planning a special aid tour to Haiti," explained Counter. More »

Somali official to residents: Flee battle zones

MOGADISHU, Somalia - Fighting erupted in Somalia's capital for the third straight day Friday in some of the worst violence in nearly a year, as government-backed troops shelled the front lines of rebels trying to advance into government-held territory. More »

Mass. Senate approves anti-bullying legislation

The Massachusetts Senate unanimously backed an anti-bullying bill last Thursday, spurred on by the recent suicides of two students whose family and friends said had been tormented by their classmates. More »

'Paradigm shift' urged at domestic violence panel

Nationally, on average, three women are murdered every day by their husbands or boyfriends. More »

NATIONAL NEWS

Minority births in US to outnumber white births

WASHINGTON - Minorities make up nearly half the children born in the U.S., part of a historic trend in which minorities are expected to become the U.S. majority over the next 40 years. More »

WORLD NEWS

Lost in the ruins: Haiti's best and brightest

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - They kept the books, had the training and fixed the computers. They were the educated few of Haiti, an up-and-coming generation of nurses, technicians, office managers and college students. More »


HEALTH

Experts say U.S. doctors overtesting, overtreating

CHICAGO - Too much cancer screening, too many heart tests, too many cesarean sections. A spate of recent reports suggest that too many Americans - maybe even President Barack Obama - are being overtreated. More »