| ☀️ Sunny, with a high near 26. |
It's Friday! You may want to leave early if you're one of the few Boston workers headed into the office today. Shuttle buses are replacing the Orange Line between Forest Hills and Back Bay all day today and tomorrow due to work on that old signal system. (You can also ride the commuter rail for free between Forest Hills and South Station.) Bad beats: As online sports betting continues to grow in Massachusetts, so is the number of young adults struggling with gambling problems. As WBUR's Patrick Madden reports , addiction specialists and treatment programs across the state say they've seen a rise in young adults — ranging from their 20s to early 30s — seeking help for serious gambling problems tied to sports betting apps. The people in recovery who talked to Patrick described being "trapped" in their phone, damaging their relationship with family members and, in one case, even literally gambling away their life savings. As one recovery group leader put it: "Take one of the most addictive behaviors in mankind and then combine it with one of the most addicting devices of all time. It's obviously going to be a disaster." You can read Patrick's full investigation on our website. Here are three key takeaways: - State data show a clear pattern: In the first full fiscal year after Massachusetts legalized sports betting in 2023, data from the state’s addiction hotline (you know, the phone number you see listed on sports betting apps and commercials) showed the number of Bay Staters in their 20s and 30s referred for treatment for gambling problems more than doubled. That data includes all types of gambling, but addiction treatment clinicians said online sports betting was the cause of most cases involving young adults.
- Some question the effectiveness of the apps' safety tools: Sports betting apps, like Boston-based DraftKings, stress that most users bet "responsibly." And they offer tools intended to protect people from developing problems, like deposit limits, “cooling-off” periods and self-exclusion programs. However, research from New Jersey suggests very few young bettors use those safety features.
- Sports betting has trickled down to teens: Some researchers compared the state of the sports gambling industry to cigarettes in the 1940s, due to the wave of advertising featuring popular celebrities. But that's not the only similarity to cigarettes in the mid-20th century. There's also evidence of sports betting becoming more popular among those not old enough to legally wager. A researcher in Springfield found that almost 30% of eighth graders in 2024 said they'd participated in some form of sports gambling in the past year. While that included fantasy sports and bets with no money, it was a notable increase since before Massachusetts legalized sports betting. "What we know from all of our years of research is: the earlier you're introduced to gambling, the more frequently you gamble, the more activities you gamble on, the higher your risk," Lia Nower, a gambling researcher at Rutgers University, told Patrick.
Heating up: New England is among the fastest warming areas on the planet, according to a new report out of Salem State University. Researchers found the region warmed 4.5 degrees Fahrenheit over the last century. And since the year 2000, the region has lost more than 30% of its measurable snow days. Salem State geography professor and study co-author Stephen Young told WBUR's John Bender that New England's proximity to warming oceans is a big part of the reason for the changes. - The lack of snow cover has also become something of warming feedback loop, said Young. "As the snow declines, we get warmer and warmer, and as we get warmer, more snow declines and we seem to be in that pattern," he said.
New gig: Dr. Ashish Jha, one of the country's most recognizable figures in public health, is leaving his post at Brown University. Jha announced yesterday that he will step down as dean of Brown's School of Public Health at the end of the month to lead an initiative focused on bolstering the country's defenses against emerging pandemics and biological threats. According to Brown, it will build on his work as White House COVID-19 response coordinator during the Biden administration. P.S. — How much does Mayor Michelle Wu say Boston homeowners will see their property taxes increase next year? Take our Boston News Quiz and test your knowledge of the stories we covered this week. |
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| | | Nik DeCosta-Klipa Senior Editor, Newsletters | | |
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Michael Leavitt denies his family called ICE on his ex. Court records and police reports reveal a bitter custody battle, years-old allegations of threats to call immigration authorities and concerns for the child when his mother stayed in a vacant mansion. Read more. |
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FIFA is about to determine which teams all 48 participating countries in the FIFA World Cup 2026 will face in the group phase of the tournament, which the U.S., Canada and Mexico are co-hosting. Read more. |
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The Supreme Court has cleared the way for a Texas congressional map that may help the GOP win five more U.S. House seats in the 2026 midterms. A lower court found the map is likely unconstitutional. Read more. |
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Before being read his rights, the suspect in the UnitedHealthcare CEO killing talked. Now his lawyers say those words could reshape the case. Read more. |
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I've done lots of VOTER CANVASSING over the years and one of the most striking things is "R" VOTERS! They are BLINDLY COMMITTED to VOTING "R" - ask them about a candidate, they can't provide positions, information, BACKGROUND or comments on the candidates performance....
The MBTA is working to complete ANTI-COLLISION Equipment recommended...how long ago?
FROM COMMONWEALTH BEACON:
The T will soon have enough equipment in place to roll out the first Green Line trolleys featuring on-board alerts about stalled vehicles or other obstacles on the tracks, more than 16 years after a fatal crash prompted federal regulators to recommend the system. |
SLOW ZONE BRIAN SHORTSLEEVE brags about his accomplishments on the MBTA...
what about the DISASTERS that were left for newly elected MAURA HEALY to address?
SCRUTINIZE ALL CANDIDATES for their histories & failures!
When in office, what did those candidates accomplish? NOTHING!
ALL 3 MASS GOP CANDIDATES are TRUMPERS....what has TRUMP accomplished to destroy the ECONOMY? How about IRRATIONAL TARIFFS you're paying that make FOOD unaffordable?
The BIG BEAUTIFUL DISASTER passed by MAGA GOP destroyed HEALTH CARE, exploded the DEBT and DEFICIT with TAX CUTS & 'incentized expenses' for PROFITABLE CORPORATIONS.... your grandchildren won't live long enough to pay for those DEBTS.
Why would anyone continue to follow a LOSER like TRUMP?
The three Republicans vying to challenge Gov. Maura Healey are jockeying for endorsements, a year ahead of the election. Read more. excerpt: A University of Massachusetts/WCVB poll in October found more than half of the 183 Republicans or "pure independents" surveyed who planned to vote in the Republican primary were either “not too familiar” with or did not know the candidates. Another 48% of those respondents said they were “very” or “somewhat” familiar with Minogue, Kennealy or Shortsleeve.
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- Two chefs who worked at O Ya and Sarma have recently opened Holdfast, a fast-casual seafood restaurant making waves in Allston. As culture writer Nathan Tavares explains in this excerpt of our ARTery newsletter, it's like an elevated clam shack.
- One of the more unique experiences in our holiday arts event guide opens today: Mount Auburn Cemetery's "SOLSTICE: Reflections on Winter Light." As WBUR's Amy Sokolow reports, the installation takes visitors on a mile loop through the garden cemetery's landscape and chapels, featuring illuminations and sounds meant to make people stop and reflect on the end of the year. The ticketed event runs over 13 nights through Dec. 21
- At least four countries have pulled out of next year's Eurovision Song Contest after organizers decided to allow Israel to compete amid tensions over the country's handling of the war in Gaza.
- Alysia Abbott was 18 when the first World AIDS Day was observed on Dec. 1, 1988. As Abbott writes in this Cognoscenti commentary, she was aware of the disease — and terrified her gay father would get it. But she didn’t tell anyone about that fear. "Now, I'm teaching AIDS literature and AIDS history to students who are the same age I was when my dad first got sick," she writes.
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- ICE Arrests HLS Visiting Professor After October Shooting Incident (The Harvard Crimson)
- Top admiral briefs lawmakers on boat strike as watchdog faults Hegseth for Signal use (NPR)
- Why Trump and Harvard Have Not Reached a Deal (The New York Times)
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Santa, The Pointer Sisters and many others visited Boston Common on Thursday night for Holiday Lights, performing for a crowd and celebrating the lighting of Boston's official Christmas tree. Hundreds of people braved the cold and wind to see the spectacle. Read more. |
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