Sun columnist
Mariano: Half-truths and alternative facts about PCBs
at Burncoat and Doherty

Ray Mariano
“And now that everyone knows the truth, the mayor and School Committee still refuse to admit that there is a potentially very serious health risk in these two buildings. They refuse to cooperate with their own teachers and involve the EPA in testing so that everyone knows exactly what they are facing. They hide behind language like there is ‘no conclusive proof’.”
Complete Sun coverage:
- Worcester schools flunking PCBs test, union says
- 7 things to know about PCBs and Worcester schools
- Mariano: Shame on the mayor, superintendent and School Committee!
- Mariano: PCB problem could be worse than I thought
- Editorial: Time for turnaround on PCBs
- Where Worcester delayed, Princeton was decisive
- Sun Spots with Hitch [Vol. 102]: PCB pop quiz
- Editorial: In addressing PCBs, offer to test comes with a catch
Sun columnist

Chris Sinacola
Sina-cism: On guns, what professors ‘know’ just ain’t so | “District of Columbia v. Heller was a landmark case. Justice Antonin Scalia’s majority opinion struck down portions of D.C.’s ban on handgun ownership, and was the first time the Court had made clear the Second Amendment supports an individual right to firearms. But the ruling had nothing to do with any rural/urban split, and pretending it does can only exacerbate any such split that does exist.” Sinacola takes issue with a Clark forum’s liberal interpretations of the truth about gun rights.

Courtesy East Side Babe Ruth
East Side Babe Ruth is looking for fundraising help.
Youth baseball official frustrated by city’s tag days stance | “They keep kicking that can down the road,” said Nick D’Andrea, secretary/treasurer for East Side Babe Ruth. The city’s previous tag day guidelines included a permitting process and police support. But after former City Manager Mike O’Brien’s controversial panhandling ordinances were struck down in 2015 in federal court, city officials find their hands tied in regulating the lucrative, and for some leagues crucial, fundraising practice.
Sun Spots with Hitch [Vol. 148]: The Holy Cross Fighting Crusader Debate Team | OK, so by now you know students and faculty at the “most beautiful college campus in Massachusetts” are busy trying to figure out how much trouble they’ll be in with the P.C. Police if they keep The Crusader name atop the student newspaper’s front page. You’re also likely aware that Holy Cross + controversy = gold mine for Worcester-centric pontificators of all stripes. So, y’know, Hitch wasn’t gonna be left out.
Bonus Sina-cism: HC should continue its Crusade

Wikimedia Commons/sdokaf
WPI’s got some serious innovation going on involving … well, spinach.
Editorial: Naturally, WPI researchers pump hope into biomedical advancement | Spinach made Popeye’s muscles grow. Now researchers at WPI are using it to grow an eye-popping idea. They are using vein-rich spinach leaves to grow beating human heart cells, hoping someday this early breakthrough will allow doctors to implant tissue in patients that is complete with a vascular system.

Sam Doran / State House News Service
Gov. Charlie Baker
On Beacon Hill: As the Congress turns … state lawmakers dither | With or without the American Health Care Act, the governor and legislative Democrats are probably going to have to come to some type of agreement on how to address surging MassHealth costs. But Beacon Hill heads into the second quarter of 2017 seeming fully distracted by President Trump and the Republican-controlled Congress. Lawmakers are operating with both eyes on Washington and it’s showing.
The unbelievably true story of Augustine Kanjia continues …

Courtesy Augustine Kanjia
Pa Kanjia, Augustine’s father, with his second wife Mama Abbie, and Augustine’s half-brother Joseph Hanson.
Part 35: My Family Disintegrates After Pa Dies | “It was in 1963, a couple months before I was born. My dad died in the hospital, shocking the whole community. His first son, Richard, was quick to decide to return home and take over our dad’s riches. That was the expectation of many of dad’s wives, who thought Richard would bring everyone together. They all respected him, but he soon started wasting money and sold the diamonds dad left.” The challenges mount for Augustine, even before his mother brings him into the world.

Photo courtesy mass.historicbuildingsct.com
Mechanics Hall
Worcester Weekly: Holy Cross women’s lax + a duel at Mechanics Hall as March turns to April | The most fun you’ll have with a calendar of events all week. And you might just learn something, too. Here are six of the best things to do, places to go — and reasons why — the next few days.
Inbox [March 26]: 3rd annual ThinkWoo set, Worcester joins Make Music Day, Moore receives top nature grade, Hanover tops J.D. Power survey | Interesting and worthwhile things happen every day in our community. Alas, we can’t cover them all. That’s where Inbox comes in, to offer readers an easily digestible compilation of interesting and noteworthy items you and your neighbors keep telling us about. Have news you or your group would like to share? Let us know by emailing it to info@worcester.ma. Be sure to include a link to the full release on your site or Facebook page so we can include it and send Sun members your way.