Planning For School This Fall. As we inch closer and closer to the beginning of the new school year, schools and universities are still scrambling to come up with a concrete plan for returning to close. Today the Massachusetts Teacher’s Association held an “emergency meeting” with the intention of letting college leaders and state legislators know how faculty and students are feeling. Vice President Max Page of the MTA joins Jordan Rich to discuss. Additionally, the President of the American Federation of Teachers- Massachusetts, Beth Kontos, talks to Jordan about the call for a remote start to school this Fall.
Thin Blue Line Flag Flies No More. It started in Hingham, MA where local firefighters hung a Thin Blue Line flag from their fire truck to honor the fallen Weymouth officer Michael Chesna and faced backlash over it. Now, Somerville is facing the same type of backlash after flying a Thin Blue Line flag from a fire truck. Both examples are in support of officer Chesna, but local officials in both towns claim it’s political, not authorized, and in Somerville’s case, Mayor Curtatone said the flag was “hurtful” to the community. Is it? Is the Thin Blue Line flag a political statement and if so, is it a “hurtful” statement?
Overturning The Death Penalty. Last Friday, a federal appeals court overturned the death penalty for Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev. As a result, a new penalty phase trial will begin to determine the best punishment for Tsarnaev. President Trump is now even weighing in on the overturned sentence and says he deserves the death penalty. Do you agree? Would you like to see Tsarnaev sentenced to death or spend the rest of his life in prison? Criminal defense attorney Peter Elikann joins Jordan to discuss this case.