Oh, now they’re sounding the alarm on Drake Maye after another disastrous performance. … Remember: Hub Blog was boldly against Drake before I was for him and then back to against Drake after I was for him. … OK, the Mac Jones comparisons are too easy. But there’s something else gnawing at me whenever I see Maye drop back for a pass: the late-era Drew Bledsoe. Not the cannon-arm Drew. I’m talking about the dread you felt whenever the lumbering Drew dropped back — and you just knew a sack was coming. Today, it’s the dread you feel when Maye drops back – and you just know a ridiculously misdirected lob pass is coming. … So maybe it’s a mix of Mac Jones II and late Drew?

A new UNH poll shows Republican Mike Minogue gaining some ground on Gov. Maura Healey, the Herald reports.  The only problem: He’s still 16 points behind the incumbent Democrat with just over a month to go before the November election. The new UNH survey shows Healey leading Minogue 54 percent to 38 percent, which is a slight improvement for Minogue over the 54-32 numbers in August.

I assume Minogue’s somewhat appealing gas-tax-suspension idea had something to do with his small poll gain, combined with his plunking down millions of his own money on the race. But what fascinates me is how Healey’s numbers seem stuck. No movement. And that’s probably because she’s been running to the left on many issues – from abortion to immigration — and that’s not where the new votes are located. She’s clearly committed to a shore-up-the-base strategy, not an expand-the-base strategy. Which isn’t necessarily a bad idea. It’s a deep blue state, after all. Still, it makes for a dull run-out-the-clock strategy.

Re the ‘moves the needle’ headline above: it comes from my most recent Substack newsletter. And while I’m at it, feel free to sign up for the newsletter. It’s indeed free.

An old Hub Blog friend writes in about the Globe’s Last Ditch Bar-KN-95 Mask story that’s taken the Internet by storm:

I’ve been paying very little attention to this issue in Western Mass with the lesbian bar actually trying to remove its mask mandate one day a week, but it seems to have hit absurdist levels. … Now the Communist Party of Western Massachusetts (which is a real thing) is calling the Globe coverage the product of ‘corporate lobbies.’ And seemingly blaming the whole thing on the “’fascist Trump administration.’ If you ignore the fact that this ‘debate’ probably involves a handful of unhappy patrons and the Communist Party of Western Mass likely has two members, it’s actually pretty funny.

Btw, here’s a handy-dandy explainer piece about the ‘Last Ditch Bar Mask-Optional Drama,’ so you can catch up on all the viral absurdities… Btw II, I thought the Globe’s Annalisa Quinn handled the original Globe story just right, sticking to the facts, letting the ideological terminology flow as if that’s how all such conversations flow, etc. Ultimately, it’s the post-Covid mask mandate and astonishing dialogue that made the story, right? … And, oh, the Last Ditch Bar incident already has a Wikipedia entry. 

Some slightly off-the-beaten-path stories you may have missed this past week:

— Doesn’t this make him a non-socialist/progressive  Democrat? It’s not that complicated: “He praises Mamdani, says he’s not a socialist, and wants a ‘big tent’ for Democrats. Where does Dan Koh fit in?” (Globe)

— Of course we’re talking about for-profit youth sports, not ‘school-based’ sports: “New survey find parents feeling strain of keeping kids in sports as costs rise” (GBH)

— Guess which state is the least affordable. One guess: “This is the salary needed to afford childcare across the country” (BBJ)

— In other words, it took this long for them to realize one-third were riding free? “Fare gates at South Station boost MBTA commuter rail ticket activations by 33%” (MassLive)

— It’s not over: “Wells Fargo Forecloses on Boston’s 100 Summer St. Office Tower” (B&T)

— As they auction off office towers in Boston (see above item), I’m not so sure this is a good idea: “Historic Filene’s building pitched as 200,000-sq.-ft. headquarters office” (BBJ)

— They aren’t libertarians. They’re sick: “N.H. Libertarian Party endorses ‘assassination’ of elected Democrats” (WBUR)

— Whining or legitimate concern? A little of both, actually: “Top mathematicians are outraged by OpenAI’s methods” (Economist)

— Academia seems to be going through the motions with all these confessional reports that go nowhere: “In 200-Page Report, Cornell Confronts the Crisis in American Higher Education” (WSJ)

— The fifth season of the hit show brilliantly portrays the harrowing Israeli experience, not the entire harrowing experience: “Can ‘Fauda’ capture the truth of Israel, Gaza and October 7th?” (The Economist)

This wasn’t supposed to happen. Mike Minogue, the Republican candidate for governor, was supposed to be a boring walkover for Gov. Maura Healey. But his gas-tax-holiday proposal, plastered all over TV and the Internet (and see above), was obviously hitting home, for Healey has now proposed her own gas-tax-suspension proposal. … Impressive. There’s a sign of life in this election after all. … What other easy affordability layups are out there for Minogue to mine? Suspending the sales tax on home-heating oil, gas and electricity this winter? Suspending roadway tolls? Doesn’t matter if it’s fiscally irresponsible or not. It’s all about affordability this election cycle, as Dems have been fond of saying of late.

Update — 9.23.26 — The Herald’s front page (see below) makes it look like this is a setback for Minogue – and he’s certainly acting like it based on his whiny quotes in the accompanying Herald article. But the Herald’s Tim Dunn get is right: 

Healey’s announcement, as well as her legislation, is a complete turnaround from previous statements against suspending the state gas tax, where she has called it a “gimmick” and instead called on Massachusetts to decrease its reliance on fossil fuels.

She’s a shameless flip-flopper. That’s what he should be gleefully emphasizing.

Update — 9.25.26 – From MassLive: “Can Republican Mike Minogue turn the politics of frustration into a coalition?” … Answer: Not big enough to win.

In its latest episode, WGBH’s NOVA follows the decades-long search for a cure for cystic fibrosis, highlighting Boston-based Vertex Pharmaceutical’s role in developing the groundbreaking CF drug Trikafta. It’s an incredibly inspiring story. Makes you feel proud of the Boston connection. Definitely watch NOVA’s ‘The Battle to Breathe’ (full video) when you can. … Above teaser via WLRN.

Some slightly off-the-beaten-path stories you may have missed over the past week:

— Some things never change: “Boston City Council president goes off on college ‘brats’ raising ‘hell’ in Allston-Brighton” (Herald)

— Speaking of college brats, this is an interesting idea: “New England could become a college graveyard. Schools should join forces to avoid that fate” (Globe)

— Really? Mayor Wu, take note: “Developers are learning to love Zohran Mamdani” (The Economist)

— By my count, this is now the Globe’s third variation of the same we-want-our-own-socialists story: “AOC to Mamdani, democratic socialists are so hot right now — except in Massachusetts” (Globe)

— It’s a mega-Alewife project: “Healthpeak gets permits for massive $4.5B Cambridge project” (BBJ)

— Another mega-project, but it will have to wait till Trump leaves office: “Eversource, Maine utility planning $2-billion project to bring new wind power down to Massachusetts” (Universal Hub)

— We certainly seem headed in that direction: “Is Massachusetts going back to the ‘Taxachusetts’ era?” (Herald)

— It’s like Lucy with the football: “Driscoll’s Gave China Its Blueberries—Then China Swiped the Secret to Growing Them” (WSJ)

— It’s become sad: “Bill Belichick Is Back at UNC—and He Wants to Clear the Air About His Girlfriend” (WSJ)

— Meanwhile, we keep churning out overly engineered and expensive weapon systems: “Russia Is Churning Out Smart, Cheap New Weapons Faster Than Ukraine or the U.S.” (WSJ)

— My favorite column of the week: “The surprising joy of making new old friends” (Globe)

George Orwell isn’t around anymore. So we’ll have to rely on the WSJ’s Peggy Noonan to dissect the AI-speak of tech bros:

We must take a moment here to discuss the language of AI, which those who cover it are increasingly, inevitably using. It is uniquely dishonest and misleading. AI companies should be pressed on this point and greater clarity demanded. When you’re talking life-and-death issues you shouldn’t need a translator. …

When AI agents escape containment, they say it left “the sandbox.” Oh those frolicking bots tripping through the local playground. Sometimes they say it “slipped the leash” like a puppy. “Recursive self-improvement” sounds like what a nun teaching handwriting taught her fourth-grade pupils in 1958.

Read till the end for ex-Google CEO Eric Schmidt’s simple solution for dealing with AI agents talking to each other in languages we humans don’t understand.

A Hub Blog reader sent in a Maine-based warning about how “this winter could cost you more than ever.” … In Massachusetts, home heating oil prices alone are up 23 percent over the past six weeks – with prices averaging $5.70 a gallon and hitting as high as $6.30 a gallon in Essex County, according to HomeHeat. … In all, heating prices in general are expected to rise about 8.7 percent this winter, according to the National Energy Assistance Directors Association. …. The main driver of the spikes: the Iran War. And bad regional energy policies have contributed to high prices in general, the Maine author rightly notes.

Update — 9.18.26 – The NYT is chasing Hub Blog again. From the Times: “Iran War Will Make Winter More Expensive for Some Americans”