Cut taxes or add services? Debate rages in states

By Michael Cooper

As state governments begin to emerge from the long economic downturn, many are grappling with the difficult choice.

By Kelli Kennedy

Firms that are paid tens of millions of dollars to root out Medicare fraud are bidding on contracts to investigate companies they are doing business with, according to a report.

By Malcolm Ritter

Scientists can’t tie any single weather event to climate change, but they can assess how it has altered the odds of such events happening, according to NOAA.

Congolese warlord sentenced to 14 years in prison

By Michelle Faul

The International Criminal Court sentenced Thomas Lubanga for using child soldiers in a move meant to be a landmark in the struggle to protect children entangled in wars.

By Stefan Nicola

European rabbis met after a German court said circumcising children for religious reasons amounts to bodily harm even if parents agree to it.

Court clears Olmert of 2 of 3 charges

By ARON HELLER

An Israeli court cleared former prime minister Ehud Olmert of the central charges in a corruption trial that forced him from power but convicted him of a lesser charge of breach of trust.

Rose Moss

Obama should invite members of Congress to a baseball game

By Rose Moss

Socializing together would go a long way toward mending the mutual distrust that is endemic in Washington.

Scot Lehigh

By Scot Lehigh

President Obama and Mitt Romney have different ideas for tax cuts, but both are guilty of engaging in fiscal fantasy.

Jeff Jacoby

By Jeff Jacoby

A minimum wage that is set too high makes it too expensive for employers to hire people with few skills — the very people who need work experience.

Boston school chief hit with new criticism

By Andrew Ryan, Andrea Estes, and Adam Sege

Several city councilors questioned the leadership of Superintendent Carol Johnson for her actions after one of her headmasters was arrested, but Mayor Menino is steadfast in his support.

Teens confront sexualization of girls in media

By Joseph P. Kahn

The group of girls and young women behind SPARK — which stands for Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge — are not afraid to speak up and take action.

Transcript reflects jury tension in Mattapan murder trial

By Peter Schworm

The 77-page transcript yields fresh insight into tense deliberations that ended in mistrial, and confirms earlier reports of the panel’s abiding frustration with the lone holdout.

By Dan Adams

While 2012 is proving to be a banner year for hotels in the Boston area, next year will be mixed, with more modest growth expected, according to a lodging industry analysis.

38 Studios sought investors up until its filing

By Todd Wallack

Curt Schilling’s video game company was speaking with potential investors until just hours before the company filed for bankruptcy, former executives testified at a hearing.

Software company wants all workers to know code

By Katie Johnston

Hoping to narrow the tech divide between workers, FreeCause is requiring all of their employees to learn the programming language JavaScript.

By Kathleen McKenna

Dr. Bindman was chief of psychological services for the Boston region of the state Department of Mental Health.

By Andrew Meacham

Guy Sanders Jr., was president and a passionate supporter of the Gideons, best known for their placement of King James Bibles in hotels and motels.

Robert de La Rochefoucauld, 88; aristocrat fought Nazis as saboteur

By Richard Goldstein

Mr. de La Rochefoucauld’s exploits as a saboteur and secret agent with the British during World War II earned him legendary status in France.

All-Star Game | NL 8, AL 0

NL rocks AL Stars

By Peter Abraham

The National League had a five-run lead before David Ortiz even batted.

All-Star notebook

Trout, Harper both Middlebrooks fans

By Nick Cafardo and Peter Abraham

Before they were All-Stars, Bryce Harper and Mike Trout played with Middlebrooks.

ON BASEBALL

MLB must still address gap in HGH testing

By Nick Cafardo

The league had made progress cleaning up the stain of the steroids era. But creating year-round, random testing for HGH is the best step.

Cicchetti have become popular little plates

By Matt Barber

Some of the trendiest new restaurants have menus favoring small plates. While everyone knows about Spanish tapas, cicchetti are less universal. They’re found in only one place: Venice, Italy.

Teens confront sexualization of girls in media

By Joseph P. Kahn

The group of girls and young women behind SPARK — which stands for Sexualization Protest: Action, Resistance, Knowledge — are not afraid to speak up and take action.

Recipe for Polpette