Massachusetts

BOSTON (WBZ) ― Tens of thousands of college students are now wondering how they’ll pay for their tuition bills due next month after a popular state lending authority said it has no funds.

The Massachusetts Educational Financing Authority, MEFA, announced it would not be able to provide private loans to students this semester. This comes after MEFA’s announcement in April, saying it could not provide federal loans.

About 40,000 students will be affected.

MEFA Executive Director Thomas Graf told WBZ MEFA is still trying to secure financing. He said the agency has been in frequent e-mail contact with customers and financial aid directors, warning that funding was not yet available. (Read the full post about ‘College Loan Funds Dry Up For 40,000 Students’…)

BOSTON (WBZ) ― The Red Sox are in negotiations with the L.A. Dodgers about possibly sending Manny Ramirez to them in a trade, WBZ’s Dan Roche learned.

In return, the Red Sox would get one of the Dodgers’ top young players such as Andre Ethier, Matt Kemp or James Loney.

The trade would be a big splash for Dodgers owner Frank McCourt, should the team pick up Ramirez.

In a short interview before Sunday night’s game against the Yankees, Ramirez said he is “tired” of the Boston Red Sox and would agree to a trade that would make both him and the team happy.

But he said he doesn’t think it will happen and Boston, battling for a playoff spot, needs the production of its cleanup hitter despite its oft-contentious relationship with him. (Read the full post about ‘Red Sox Negotiate Trading Manny To Dodgers’…)

FRAMINGHAM (WBZ) ― Framingham police are searching for a man who tried to kidnap a 16-year-old girl at a gas station on Conchituate Road Friday night.

Police said the man grabbed the screaming girl around 10:10 p.m. in the parking lot of the Speen Street Mobil and tried to drag her to his running car. A Good Samaritan stepped in and yelled at the man when he saw him grabbing the girl. The suspect then jumped in his car and drove off, police said.

Police said the girl didn’t report the attempted abduction until the next day, which officers said she should have done sooner.

The suspect is described as a Hispanic man, 5 feet 5 inches tall, weighing 200 pounds with short black hair. (Read the full post about ‘Police: Man Tries To Abduct Teen At Gas Station’…)

BOSTON (AP) ― The Massachusetts House voted Tuesday to repeal a 1913 law that had been used to block gay marriages involving out-of-state couples, all but assuring that the state will allow same-sex couples to wed regardless of where they live.

The 118-35 vote came after the state Senate approved the repeal earlier this month, and Gov. Deval Patrick has said he will sign the bill. The measure requires one more procedural vote in each chamber before it is to the governor.
“Sometimes what you hope and pray for actually happens, which is kind of overwhelming,” Michael Thorne, 55, of Cape Elizabeth, Maine, said after telling his 6-year-old son his parents could soon get married. (Read the full post about ‘Mass. House Votes To Let Out-Of-State Gays Marry’…)

SAUGUS (WBZ) ― The orange dinosaur that stands along Route 1 in Saugus is turning 50.

The massive T-Rex has stood guard of the Route 1 Miniature Golf and Batting Cages in Saugus since 1958.

The orange dino has survived blizzards, hurricanes and most recently vandals, who tipped him over more than one year ago.

But the T-Rex is not the only one turning 50 today, the golf course itself is celebrating a birthday. And to mark the event, the mini-golf court has been offering special prices and prizes all day long, and there’s a raffle running through the night to celebrate five decades of business.

(© MMVIII, CBS Broadcasting Inc.

(Read the full post about ‘Saugus Mini-Golf Dino Turns 50′…)

(Bloggers helping bloggers: an angel o:) - promoted by Bob)

http://www.lowellfolkfestival….

Discussion from one of our BMG buddies from her blog
http://www.leftinlowell.com/20…

In Newburyport
http://www.yankeehomecoming.co…

She doesnt have a post on Yankeehomecoming now. I am plugging it though. A great artist runs the Newburyport blog and it a fun town to hang out this week
http://www.marybakerart.com/ne…

(Open forums, debates, whatever — O’Reilly got his signatures and his delegates, so Kerry should debate him! - promoted by David)

If you want to see People Powered Forums this August rather than just old style debates, here’s your chance!

With less than 8 weeks to go till the September 16th vote between John Kerry and Ed O’Reilly there really needs to be some discussion and dates set now.

Yesterday, July 24th, O’Reilly called on John Kerry to set up such forums and debates:

With the September 16th Primary less than eight weeks away, I believe it is time for us to schedule debates and other forums so that the voters of Massachusetts will have the ability to participate in democracy to its fullest extent.

You can read the full letter here.

(Read the full post about ‘People Powered Forums: Senate Edition (Let’s make it happen!; Questions you’ll ask?)’…)

(We truly live in a golden age of political satire.  It does not get any better than Stewart and Colbert. - promoted by David)

All week long we’ve been following ‘Barry Magicseed’s Summer Abroad’.

That’s how Jon Stewart introduced a brilliant Daily Show Thursday night, which was followed by a hilarious mashup of our heroic Senator slaying seven-headed dragons and a cyclops from that old-school Sinbad movie that used to constantly play on UHF TV.  

Below the flip is part two of Stewart’s opening segment.

(Read the full post about ‘Obama Quest - Why The Daily Show skewers the left better than right wing attempts at “comedy”’…)

This nugget from Obama’s recent Rolling Stone cover story, which I just got to today, caught my eye. It is quite a statement. Question: “Is there a marker you would lay down at the end of your first term where you say, ‘If this has happened or not happened, I would consider it a negative mark on my governance’?”

If I haven’t gotten combat troops out of Iraq, passed universal health care and created a new energy policy that speaks to our dependence on foreign oil and deals seriously with global warming, then we’ve missed the boat.

(Read the full post about ‘Obama Sets a High Marker For First-Term Goals’…)

(Bumped. - promoted by Bob) Jimmy Tingle kicks off his campaign for President tonight.Didn't you feel that the race for President was getting a little, well, underpopulated? And doesn't it seem a little dull without a local favorite son? Campaigning coast-to-coast (Charles River to Fresh Pond), Jimmy Tingle has jumped in the race, running on the slogan of “Humor for Humanity.” (Well, with the Humanity part, he may have lost the misanthrope vote, which we know is huge.) We talked with him last week — here's Tingle on the issues. Immigration: “I've got problems with 700-mile fence at the border – the border is 1900 miles long. (Read the full post about ‘Tingle for President?’…)