Published July 26, 2010

Natural accumulation? (caribb/Flickr)

I know this feels really, really far away, but I need you to think about shoveling snow for a minute.

If you don’t shovel your sidewalk after a snowfall and someone slips and gets hurt, you’re liable. Until today, property owners could argue the white stuff was “natural accumulation,” thanks to an 1883 ruling that made the hair-splitting distinction.

The Supreme Judicial Court on Monday threw out that logic in Papadopoulos v. Target Corporation. (Read the ruling on Scribd.)

Emanuel Papadopoulos sued Target for negligence after he slipped and fell in front of a store in Danvers. Here’s how the story goes: It was a cold day in 2002 — below freezing — and the snow had stopped falling. Target did its duty and plowed the parking lot. The plow deposited a small mountain of snow on a median in the parking lot. Some of that snow melted onto the pavement, then refroze. And that’s where Papadopoulos took his unfortunate step, while trying to get back in his car, and fell.

Papadopoulos sued Target and lost. A lower court said the store was not liable, because that patch of ice was “natural accumulation.” An appeals court affirmed.

But the high court has ruled in favor of Papadopoulos, noting cleverly:

We do not accept this rationale where a property owner knows or has reason to know that a banana peel has been left on a floor by a careless customer; we have long held that the property owner has a duty to keep the property reasonably safe for lawful visitors regardless of the source of the danger.

Can’t wait to sue half of Brookline this winter.

Kudos to Universal Hub’s Adam Gaffin for turning me onto this story. Ever slipped on an icy patch? Do you have to shovel snow every winter? @Mainesailor grovels: “court doesn’t have plows shoveling snow onto walk!” Shout out in the comments.

Published July 26, 2010

The New York Times is a traditional news organization that broke a non-traditional organization's story.

They’re calling it this generation’s Pentagon Papers. WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) releases 90,000 classified documents that don’t reflect well on the American campaign in Afghanistan. The White House, stunned and embarrassed, rushes to defend the war effort.

Unlike in Vietnam, however, Boston University Professor Andrew Bacevich says the documents don’t tell us much about Afghanistan that we don’t already know. And the documents are unlikely to change operations on the ground.

Bacevich says the WikiLeaks story is more interesting in what says about the evolution of “information warfare” (emphasis mine):

Rather than being defined as actions undertaken by a government to influence the perception of reality, information warfare now includes actions taken by disaffected functionaries within government to discredit the officially approved view of reality. This action is the handiwork of subversives, perhaps soldiers, perhaps civilians. Within our own national security apparatus, a second insurgent campaign may well have begun. Its purpose: bring America’s longest war to an end. Given the realities of the digital age, this second insurgency may well prove at least as difficult to suppress as the one that preoccupies General Petraeus in Kabul.

Bacevich writes for The New Republic as part of a news partnership with NPR and WBUR.

Dan Kennedy, the Northeastern journalism professor, says it was wise for WikiLeaks to release the documents to traditional news organizations well in advance. It lets WikiLeaks get out of the way so “real journalists” own the story.

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Published July 26, 2010

Here are the most important stories to watch this week in the Hub:

1. Casinos. Gov. Deval Patrick is back from the Middle East and ready to tackle this last, big hurdle of the legislative session. He may well make or break the negotiations. House Speaker Robert DeLeo is the most vocal supporter of legalizing resort-style casinos in Massachusetts, including two within his district. The governor supports it, too, with one major exception: Patrick doesn’t want slots. Some people on Beacon Hill are calling for state lawmakers to table issue for the next session.
2. The Probation Department. This story won’t go away. After reporting on a culture of patronage at the state’s Probation Department, the Globe followed up Sunday and Monday with more reporting. Expect more fallout on Beacon Hill. Radio Boston will talk with Globe reporter Marcella Bombardieri today at 3.
3. The governor’s race. We’re expecting the results of a new Rasmussen poll on Guberfest 2010 today at 5 p.m. Rasmussen is a polling organization that WBUR trusts. The last poll showed Republican Charlie Baker making gains on Patrick, the Democratic incumbent. Watch this week for an in-depth profile of Baker from reporter David Boeri. And we’re waiting to hear from Massachusetts Citizens for Life, an anti-abortion PAC, to see if they still support independent candidate Tim Cahill, who is an abortion rights supporter.
4. The John Odgren case. An autistic teenager — convicted of murdering a classmate when he was 16 — goes to court Monday to ask for a reduced sentence. He was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility for parole. Today Radio Boston asks, Should the state be trying juveniles as adults? Many advocates argue the brains of adolescents are not as developed as adults, that they are more prone to act impulsively and should not be judged the same way as adults.

What stories are you following this week?

Published July 26, 2010

Where's my bus? (photoholic1/Flickr)

The data nerd in me likes this news — the T rider in me loves it. NextBus, which provides real-time transit data to the MBTA,  just dumped a boatload of new bus routes (including the Silver Line) into its database. It appears almost complete.

If you’re in Brighton, waiting… and waiting… for the 64 to take you to Central, you can find the exact location of your ride on a Google Map and even get a prediction of its arrival time.

The data is open, which means developers can hack up cool applications. One real-life example is the LED sign at JP Licks that shows when the next 39 bus is expected.

I’m still waiting on real-time data for trains, to see if the Green Line is delayed-delayed or just regular-delayed.

What apps or websites do you use to track the T? Share in the comments.

• NextBus MBTA
• The last expansion was in June
• The state started offering real-time data in November 2009

Published July 23, 2010

(Rainer Ebert/Flickr)

What do you call a Catholic who stops going to church for a few years? What about someone who disposes of the faith altogether?

The Catholic church calls them “lapsed Catholics,” a term that Radio Boston host Meghna Chakrabarti used Thursday when talking with representatives of the Boston Archdiocese. The church’s new ad campaign, “Catholics Come Home,” is designed to lure strays back to flock.

On wbur.org, Lynn Annen commented:

I find the term insulting. The Catholic Church might want to refer to me as a “lapsed Catholic”, but I am very happy to call myself an Episcopalian!

And Meghna responded:

I did not intend to use the term ‘lapsed’ in the same way that some officials might (i.e. to indicate any personal failing in the person that’s chosen to leave the church). I simply used it interchangably with other phrases as a form of conversational shorthand. However, you make a strong case that it might be best to stick with the clear and simple ‘former Catholic.’ However, now that I think about it, I’ve heard other Catholics take offense to using the term ‘former,’ because to them, their faith remains resolute. It’s the institution of the church that departed from them.

See why this is so interesting?

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Published July 23, 2010

Pancakes play the leading role at the International Pancake Film Fest this weekend. (Olya/Flickr)

If you’ve never been to the Harbor Islands, you’ve been missing a real gem (or rather, 17 gems, all just a 45-minute or so ferry ride away from the city). There is plenty going on to get you out there this weekend, including a Food Network-worthy face-off and the masterful sounds of pianist Carmen Spada. Or just pack a picnic, hike a trail or play in the sand. You’ll feel like you’re hundreds of miles away from the city — if it weren’t for the stellar views of the Beantown skyline.

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Published July 23, 2010

Chief Justice Margaret Marshall in 2004 (AP)

When a Supreme Court justice retires, a window opens for the sitting president to solidify his legacy. For Clinton, it was Breyer and Ginsburg. For Bush, it was Alito and Roberts. For Obama, it’s Sotomayor and, it would appear, Kagan.

But what about Gov. Deval Patrick? In just one term as governor, Patrick has already appointed two justices to Massachusetts’ Supreme Judicial Court. And with the retirement of Chief Justice Margaret Marshall in October, Patrick will appoint a third.

State judges aren’t usually famous, and most people probably don’t remember that Republican Gov. Bill Weld appointed Marshall in 1996.

But she will surely be remembered as the judge who changed gay marriage in America. She ruled with the majority in the landmark decision of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, 2003. Marshall was also the Bay State’s first female chief justice.

If recent history is a guide, it’s unlikely Patrick will appoint someone outside of the high court to serve as its leader. That turns attention to Associate Justice Roderick Ireland, who is black, said former Justice John Greaney today on Morning Edition. Greaney said to also watch out for Justices Ralph Gants (his successor) and Margot Botsford. The Globe floated Justice Robert Cordy as another possible candidate.

Patrick said he wants to appoint someone with Marshall’s legal “touch.” Whoever it is, it will surely emerge as an issue in the final days of the 2010 gubernatorial campaign.

Published July 23, 2010

A Citgo sunset (Tyson Cecka/Flickr)

Boston’s favorite landmark, which you can see from anywhere and which has withstood five hurricanes, is going dark for a few months. And then really, really bright. The Venezuelan oil company Citgo is replacing 218,000 LED lights with more modern, environmentally friendly, weather-resistant ones.

The 45-year-old sign went dark for four years during the energy crisis. In 1982, when Citgo announced plans to dismantle it, the Fenway faithful staged an uproar. It stayed on until 2005, when the sign briefly went dark to replace neon tubes with LEDs.

It’s certainly one of the most photographed signs. Flickr has a group dedicated to the landmark. BU Today, Boston University’s in-house news staff, produced a great visual retrospective when Citgo announced the renovation plans earlier this year. It even showed up in my 30-second Boston fireworks video. And WBUR Web developer Will Smith once wondered, would we love it as much if it were a BP sign?

The company says the sign will be restored by Sept. 2, just in time for baseball playoffs.

Published July 22, 2010

Hi, sports fans. No doubt you heard about or saw the “am I dreaming this?” soccer game at Fenway Park last night. Reporter Curt Nickisch and photographer-intern Jeremy Bernfeld went and had a ball. Here’s what they brought back. –AP

I promise to talk about Scott Brown, soccer and Fenway Park in this post, and it’s all going to make sense. Mostly.

More than 32,000 fans attended the first “Fenway Football Challenge” Wednesday night at America’s most beloved ballpark. I am a soccer fan and I’ve been to a bunch of Red Sox games at Fenway, so I have to tell you, it was really weird, in a really good way.

Starting with the crowd outside before the game: There was a bagpiper playing jigs for tips. The usual Sox caps were out in force, but they were worn by folks in the green-and-white striped jerseys of Celtic Football Club. The Scottish club’s opponent, Sporting Clube de Portugal, drew a lot of fans from New Bedford and Fall River.

This uncanny rendezvous of the global sport and America’s favorite pastime had Garrett Quinn smiling big. The hardcore soccer fan used to work in Fenway concessions in high school.

“I just can’t get over it,” he said. “The way they’ve set it up. I never thought I’d see a soccer game at Fenway.”

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