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A Patriots’ Day wouldn’t be a Patriots’ Day without someone, somewhere trying to debunk some aspect of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s famous poem about Paul Revere’s midnight ride into history. On the 250^th anniversary of the Battle of Lexington & Concord, this year’s Paul Revere debunking honors go to the staff at the Paul Revere House in Boston, as reported at WBUR. … J. Bell isn’t going down the old Paul Revere debunking road. Instead, he’s asking a cool question:  What would have happened if Revere and Billy Dawes had never made their midnight ride? He’s riffing off of Kostya Kennedy’s new book ‘The Ride: Paul Revere and the Night That Saved America.’

I haven’t read Kennedy’s book. But for my money, David Hackett Fischer’s Paul Revere’s Ride still reigns supreme as the best book on all things Revere, Lexington & Concord, and Longfellow.

Suffering from TDS? Need a fix? You’ve come to the right place. Here’s all things Trump in one handy-dandy post. … The Globe’s Catherine Carlock asks a good question about the president going after Harvard’s tax-exempt status: What does it mean for Harvard’s massive real estate holdings? It means some pretty hefty local property tax bills if Harvard doesn’t prevail. … Speaking of Harvard, from WBUR: “Abrupt visa terminations leave Mass. international students with uncertain future in the U.S.” … The NYT’s Tom Friedman is afraid, very afraid, and he’s right to be so in terms of America losing its political and economic standing in the world. … Karl Rove at the WSJ: “America Gets Trump Fatigue.’ (Yes, that Karl Rove.) … The Globe’s Larry Edelman warns local businesses that they may yet end up on the Trump administration’s enemies list. Think: fed contracts. … U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren sounds shellshocked by the White House’s 24/7 assault on the senses. (“This is so bad, so much worse than we thought.”) …  

… And last but not least: I stumbled upon The Economist’s somewhat new (I assume) ‘Trump Tracker.’ The president’s poll numbers aren’t shifting as much as thought or hoped. Note to Dems: the Trump Tracker’s top five issues of concern for Americans are inflation, jobs/economy, health care, immigration, and taxes and government spending – and NOT identity-politics issues. 

I’m surprised this story isn’t getting a bit more play, i.e. the move by Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts to stop covering popular weight-loss drugs for non-diabetics, as the Globe reports. … BCBS says it’s responding to widespread complaints from employers about the high cost of GLP-1 meds like Ozempic and WeGovy. But I think it’s safe to say Blue Cross’s recent $400 million operating loss also had something to do with the decision. The Globe piece makes clear other insurers and providers are struggling under the financial weight of GLP-1 meds (pun not intended — originally). 

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If you can, try to catch a screening of ‘Eephus,’ a “quintessentially Massachusetts baseball film” that’s playing later this month at the Center for the Arts in Natick. WGBH had a nice piece the other day on the independent flick that was shot in Douglas, Mass. and directed by New England native Carson Lund. Bill “Spaceman” Lee makes a cameo appearance in the film, as does Joe Castiglione. … I saw ‘Eephus’ last month at the Dedham Community Theater – and it’s definitely worth a viewing. Eephus is not a gooey, baseball-is-a-metaphor-for-life movie, though it does get sentimental at times. …. The real star of the film? The banter between middle-aged men playing one last recreational baseball game on an old town ballfield destined for redevelopment. The back-and-forth chatter between the characters, many of them played by local actors, is quintessentially New England. They pretty much nail down the local accents as well as the constant ribbing and wisecracks we’re known for around the country.

For those wondering: Here’s a definition of Eephus, a type of baseball pitch.

And it’s only going to get worse. From the BBJ: “200 laid off or furloughed at UMass Medical due to NIH cuts.” … From the Globe: “Harvard urges researchers to limit spending, cease hiring if projects are affected by Trump funding freeze.” … The BBJ reports that the Wyss Institute is taking a $20 million hit due to Trump’s freeze, but its founder says the impacted employees are staying – at least for now.

Update — 4.17.25 – From the Harvard Crimson (via CB): “At Grim Town Hall, Harvard Medical School Leaders Tell Staff to Expect Layoffs and Far-Reaching Cuts.”

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Here’s a photo of the Sudbury Minutemen reenactors marching through Concord center 50 years ago, as part of the 200^th anniversary celebrations of the Battle of Lexington & Concord. What a special day. And what a special photo. That’s my father, Maurice J. Fitzgerald, second row, center, with the white tricorn hat. He was a former honorary colonel of the Sudbury Companies of Militia & Minute, so he got to march at the front of the militia with other past and present colonels. Along with other youths, I marched at the way back of the Sudbury contingent that day. I vividly remember the huge crowds in Concord, sometimes four or five people deep, and the constant roar of cheers and applause as we and other area militia groups marched through the town center. As I said, what a special day.

And here’s a schedule of events for this weekend’s 250th anniversary celebrations across the region. If you have kids, definitely bring them to one of the reenactments. They’ll love it.

The NYT reports that many opioid addicts in Portland, Maine and elsewhere are shifting to untreatable methamphetamine, i.e. meth. From the Times:  “This pretty foodie mecca has become yet another American city to be overwhelmed by meth — not the home-cooked biker party drug from the ’90s, but a far more  dangerous concoction, mass-produced in Mexican cartel labs.”

Hairdressers report clients are requesting less expensive services and stretching out the time in between appointments, Bloomberg News reports. Just pointing it out. …. More on the Beauty Salon Recession Indicator here. … 

Update – Here’s some decent business news for a change, via Inno-BBJ: VC funding in Massachusetts was slightly up year-over-year in Q1, led by AI investments. But all of that was before “Liberation Day.”

Globe reporter Kara Miller’s story on the potential long-term decline of Boston’s biotech industry is looking more prescient by the minute. Banker & Tradesman is reporting that the Boston area’s lab vacancy rate hit 25 percent in the first quarter. From B&T’s Steve Adams: “The prospect of trade wars and federal cuts to National Institutes of Health funding add new risk factors to an industry that’s been retrenching since 2022.”

Update — 4.16.25 – More space coming on the market. From the BBJ: “Mural Oncology cuts 90% of staff, pulls plug on cancer drug.”

Update II — 4.16.25 – I assume Blackstone and Biomed Realty know what they’re doing. From the BBJ: “Cambridge office building marked for lab conversion.”

Harvard had to do it. It had to stand up to the Trump administration if it was going to retain its position as the world’s preeminent higher-ed institution. It had to stand up to the blatant government intrusion into how a private institution operates. It had to stand up to the blatant lie that these proposed funding cuts are all about fighting antisemitism. …Keep in mind: I’m a long-time critic of academia and all its infuriating politically correct/CRE/woke ways. But this isn’t the way to achieve change. This is an autocratic power grab. …

… The Globe, NYT and WSJ  have more on the dramatic showdown between Harvard and Trump. 

Update – In other news from the academic battlefront, via the BBJ: “MIT joins lawsuit against Department of Energy cuts.”

Update II — 4.16.25 – From a WSJ editorial: “The Trump Administration on Monday froze $2.2 billion in funds to Harvard after the university refused to surrender to its sweeping demands. Few Americans will shed tears for the Cambridge crowd, but there are good reasons to oppose this unprecedented attempt by government to micromanage a private university.”

Update III — 4.16.25 – From David Ignatius at the Post: “By saying ‘no’ to Trump, Harvard saves its soul.”