Campaign 2012

Mitt Romney’s plan for improving schools

Romney unveiled a series of changes primarily intended to give low-income families more choices in education and improve schools

CAMPAIGN 2012 | Political notebook

Romney says that if he is elected Congress should wait until he takes office to block automatic spending cuts and to keep tax cuts from expiring.

CAMPAIGN 2012

What a 5-year-old’s request says about Obama’s race role

By Jackie Calmes

An enduring White House photo shows a black boy touching the president’s hair to see if it feels like his.

Syria’s oil minister declares sanctions have cost $4 billion

By Albert Aji and Ben Hubbard

Syria’s oil minister blamed international sanctions Wednesday for shortages of cooking gas and other basic goods, saying the measures have bled the nation’s ailing economy.

By Andrew E. Kramer

Russia’s military reported a successful test of a new type of intercontinental ballistic missile that generals said was designed to overpower the US missile defense system.

By Steven Erlanger

Six world powers presented Iran with detailed proposals Wednesday to address international concerns about its nuclear program, in return for modest benefits.

Joan Vennochi

Have Mass. casinos become a risky bet?

By Joan Vennochi

The troubles facing the nation’s largest casino — Foxwoods in Connecticut — are a cautionary lesson for any casino in Massachusetts.

letters

“During the 2001 anthrax letter attacks, Postal Service workers put their lives on the line to make sure this important economic activity would proceed without disruption.” — Jeanne Guillemin

opinion | Juliette Kayyem

The ‘Joplin effect’

By Juliette Kayyem

What makes Joplin, Mo., a truly American story is that its transformation is a triumph of local ingenuity, starting with that most democratic of events: a public meeting.

By Patricia Wen

Officials overseeing a $10 billion program failed to follow up on 400,000 beneficiaries, allowing families to receive cash for years, a draft report said.

By Jeffrey Gantz

The Pops salute the only American city to boast 21st-century champions in professional baseball, football, basketball, and ice hockey.

Yvonne Abraham

By Yvonne Abraham

Lenient sentences for apologetic offenders feed the wrong-headed perception that drunken driving is more a common human failing than a crime.

tech lab

By Hiawatha Bray

Tools that can make you more anonymous online include browser plug-ins and a subscription service that helps conceal your possibly embarrassing past.

Nordstrom eyes old Filene’s site on Boylston Street

By Jenn Abelson

The luxury retailer plans to open its first store in Boston with its discount brand, Nordstrom Rack.

H-P to lay off 27,000 after earnings plummet

By Quentin Hardy

Hewlett-Packard reported sharply lower net income and announced that it would lay off almost a tenth of its workers in order to cut costs.

Frederick J. Brown; painted jazz artists

By Bruce Weber

Frederick J. Brown, an American artist who explored the relationship between music and painting, died May 5.

Eddie Blazonczyk, 70, award-winning ‘Polka King’

By Caryn Rousseau

The Grammy Award-winning polka great began playing in the 1950s and earned the nickname ‘‘Polka King’’ after starting his own band and label.

Brookins, a bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Church for 30 years and a longtime civil rights activist, died in Los Angeles.

76ers 82, Celtics 75

Celtics can’t finish off Sixers

By Frank Dell’Apa

The Celtics shot poorly but somehow stayed in contention until the final minutes. Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals is Saturday.

Bob Ryan

Celtics have been old unreliables

By Bob Ryan

It was a Game 6 close-out road game following a home victory in Game 5. The Big Four core group is now 2-5 in such games.

On basketball

No Celtics stepped up in Game 6 loss

By Gary Washburn

The Celtics were putrid with the ball, and their All-Star-caliber players were plain awful or waited too long to find a rhythm.

events

Upcoming arts events around Boston

Globe reviewers offer a guide to area shows worth seeing.

Book Review

‘Dan Gets A Minivan’ by Dan Zevin

By Steve Almond

The story tracks the life of humorist Dan Zevin’s life as a young father.

EVENTS

Upcoming nightlife events around Boston

Critics’ picks for nightlife around the Boston area.

Globe north

Billerica’s Whiteway following in footsteps of siblings

By Ryan MacInnis

Lindsay Whiteway has netted six-plus goals in four games this season.

Danvers

By Kathy McCabe

The Satch Kerans Band will headline Rays of Hope, a benefit concert to help send homeless children living in hotels and motels in Danvers to summer camp.

Love of baseball marks opening of new Morelli Field in Melrose

By Maureen Mullen

It was 28 years ago, in May 1984, that Melrose christened its baseball field, named for its benefactor, Dr. Richard Morelli.

Globe South

Thayer Academy nabs ISL girls lacrosse title

By Andrew MacDougall

The Tigers entered their season final with a 14-0 record and their second Independent Schools League girls’ lacrosse crown in the last three seasons.

Duxbury celebrates Rachel Carson’s ‘Silent Spring’

By Robert Knox

A celebration honoring Duxbury’s Olga Owens Huckins and Carson will be held from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday.

By Robert Knox

“Duxbury Honors Olga Owens Huckins and Rachel Carson” will draw together important voices in the environmental community, including Roger Payne, the man who discovered that whales can sing, and birding authority and author Peter Alden. The free event, which will feature tours, and a speakers’ program beginning with a reading from Carson’s “Silent Spring,” takes place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday at 281 Powder Point Ave. in Duxbury.

Natick

Oral history project records veterans’ stories

By Bill Porter

Participants in the Natick Veterans Oral History Project add intimacy to chapters of military history that span from World War II to the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Globe West

Like coach, team is ‘wicked lacrosse smart’

Tory Waldstein is the go-to leader for a 19-1 Rocket squad that has its eye on a Division 1 state title.

By Deirdre Fernandes

The Lions Club is displaying its Field of Flags at Town Hill, where 1,000 American flags have been placed in memory or support of veterans.