Universal Hub - West of 495

Worcester makes the international press, but not for its record snowfall

adamg — Sat, 23 Mar 2013 04:09:07 +0000

Court: You can't be convicted of driving in violation of a license restriction if your license has already been revoked

adamg — Wed, 06 Mar 2013 15:47:42 +0000

So this guy out in the Berkshires gets his license taken away after his second OUI conviction, appeals 10 years later to get it reinstated, to which the state agrees on condition he install one of those in-dash breath-tester gizmos, which he installs, only then he takes it out and gets caught and has his license taken away.

And then, two years later, he's stopped again and charged with violating the "ignition interlock device" condition and is convicted on that charge.

The Massachusetts Appeals Court today threw out that conviction, agreeing with Sean Pettit that he should never have gone to trial for violating a license restriction when he no longer had a license. Yeah, that kind of violates the intent of Melanie's Law to try to reduce the number of drunks on the roads, but it's up to the legislature to fix the inconsistency if it wants to crack down on repeat drunk drivers this way, the court writes:

GLAD Summer Party

gladevents — Fri, 01 Mar 2013 18:54:53 +0000

Join Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders at our annual Summer Party held outside in the heart of Provincetown, MA on Saturday, July 27 from 4:00-7:00PM. Enjoy the view of the harbor, mingle with other GLAD supporters and learn more about our ground-breaking cases.

Tickets are $75 online | $85 on site | $30 student
Purchase at www.glad.org/events.

Don't miss our amazing auction and celebrity auctioneer Kate Clinton. You don't have to be present to win. Travel packages, restaurants, massages, and much more - something for everyone!

Children are welcome to attend (at no charge) and will enjoy a range of fun activities.

Delicious summer fare and refreshing cocktails provided.

More information, tickets and sponsorships are available at www.glad.org/events.

See: The Green Line isn't always slow

adamg — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 12:49:00 +0000

Armando Sajous captured a trolley speeding down the turnpike near Springfield, on its way to a New York facility for an overhaul.

Earlier:
Bet you didn't know Green Line trolleys can do 65.

Via Boston Reddit.

Another state chemist arrested on evidence-tampering charges; guess the Herald headline

adamg — Sun, 20 Jan 2013 16:45:00 +0000

WBZ provides the basics - this time the chemist is out in Amherst, not JP.

Michael Ratty:

Guessing Herald hed: "DEUX-KHAN"

Steve Annear:

That, or "ANOTHER LAB RAT"

Chipmaker charges former managers were busy in last two weeks at work - copying thousands of confidential files

adamg — Tue, 15 Jan 2013 12:30:01 +0000

In a lawsuit filed yesterday, AMD charged that a former vice president and three managers at its Boxborough plant left for jobs at rival NVidia only after copying more than 100,000 confidential documents to take with them to their new jobs.

The suit, filed in US District Court in Worcester against Robert Feldstein and three managers, seeks the return of the files and, naturally, large sums of money, under the federal Computer Fraud and Abuse Act and a Massachusetts trade-secrets law. AMD says the files cover everything from details of upcoming AMD technology to contracts with large customers.

Home games 100 miles from home not working out so well for UMass Amherst

adamg — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 12:17:02 +0000

Maureen Rogers reviews the dismal attendance at Gillette Stadium for UMass football games - and the $5 million the state school is paying in rent:

What's wrong with having a nice little local program? Play the other New England state universities, and schools like Holy Cross? Why not keep it on campus, where students can attend more easily? What's wrong with 13,000 people watching a football game on a nice Indian Summer day? Does it have to be 90,000 diehards screaming for blood?

Personally, I'd rather see that taxpayer money go for scholarships, or labs, or a few more professors.

Forget putting medical marijuana on the ballot. Can't we vote on this?

The Fitchburg Line: Where locomotives go to die

adamg — Wed, 14 Nov 2012 12:43:53 +0000

You know it's bad, Lee Ann Hooley tweets this morning, when the conductor announces "If you do need to get into town quickly, I suggest you drive."

Hooley and AsianKerr were among the hostages this morning on the Fitchburg Line, where yet another choo-choo went bye-bye, forcing commuters to wait for another train to come up and get hitched to their train for the long, even slower ride into Boston.

AsianKerr was onboard the 6:30 train when she tweeted at 6:50:

20 min later still waiting for my Fitchburg train to leave and a guy comes out of the engine holding a hose #notagoodsign

At 7:30, she adds, the train still hadn't moved.

Hooley adds her ride was not improved by her seatmate:

Oh awesome. The guy next to me is on the phone telling his girlfriend he wants to "suck on her neck and shit."

Bet you didn't know Green Line trolleys can do 65

adamg — Sat, 29 Sep 2012 13:38:20 +0000

Roving UHub photographer Will Bussiere was roving all the way out in Charlton yesterday when he spotted a Green Line trolley on the back of a flatbed on the turnpike. No clue why.

Earlier:

Destructive, boring insect shows up in Massachusetts

adamg — Thu, 13 Sep 2012 00:21:47 +0000

Massachusetts officials say an emerald ash borer was found in Dalton in the western part of the state on Aug. 31, the first time the destructive pest has been detected in the state.

The bug, named for its color and the way it bores into ash trees, is a potential threat to the vast numbers of ash trees in both western and eastern Massachusetts. State officials say any area where the bug shows up will be subject to the same sort of quarantine familiar to Jamaica Plain residents confronted by the sudden menace of Asian longhorned beetles in 2010.