-- It's official. Bostonist reported back in April that the Longfellow Bridge is falling apart, which is clear to anyone who walks across it. As of Friday the sidewalk facing Back Bay was closed to pedestrians to repair a support beam. And no spectators will be allowed on the bridge to watch the fireworks on the Fourth of July. [Boston Globe] -- Ed O’Reilly, an attorney and former lobsterman from Gloucester, is going to......

--Only five percent of the commonwealth's taxpayers went uninsured after the new law requiring health insurance went into effect. [WBZ] --William Bulger, former UMass president and brother of Whitey, is back in the news. Bulger's former law partner has been disbarred for encouraging clients to lie about Whitey's whereabouts. William Bulger was investigated but was not charged for the same offense. [Boston Globe] --Surviving Grady has another reason to freak out with the news......

Presidential candidate Barack Obama used lines that Massachusetts governor Deval Patrick used during his campaign for governor while Obama campaigned in Wisconsin over the weekend. Here's what Obama told Clinton: “Don’t tell me words don’t matter,” Mr. Obama said, to applause. “ ‘I have a dream’ — just words? ‘We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal’ — just words? ‘We have nothing to fear but fear itself’ — just......

Politicians will squeeze the juice out of pretty much anything, including the World Series and the Super Bowl. Only recently, former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani made a legendary blunder when he said on a Boston trip that he was rooting for the Red Sox. Yankees fans were appalled, and Sox fans felt a little scuzzy. But former president and First Campaigner Bill Clinton was smooth 'n' silky when asked about his favorite for the......

Hot on the heels of Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg's endorsement of Barack Obama, Senator Edward M. Kennedy has also endorsed Barack Obama for president. Voters likely saw it coming when Kennedy told ex-president and First Campaigner Bill Clinton to stifle himself and let Hillary Clinton do her own campaigning. The Globe's Political Intelligence analyzes Kennedy's decision as a big "up yours" to the Clintons: The coveted endorsement is a huge blow to New York Senator Hillary......

Hillary Clinton has a strong chance of becoming president, if it weren't for the continued momentum of Barack Obama. However, no matter how much hope and Oprah Obama ladles on the land, Clinton will always have one strong advantage--former president Bill Clinton. Is that entirely fair? Massachusetts senator Ted Kennedy, who knows a thing or two about political dynasties, says no. Kennedy hasn't bestowed his endorsement on anyone, but he has, according to Jonathan Alter......

It seems that Bostonist's call for submissions inspired you. Say hello to Gerard Sloan, who is already working the political beat! And we hope you'll meet more writers in the next week. Interested in joining the team? Read our call for columnists and e-mail jobs@bostonist.com. Despite polls showing large leads for Barack Obama in the Democratic primary, the Granite State used its moment in the national spotlight yesterday to give Hillary Clinton a narrow victory......

It's getting wild in New Hampshire! The primaries are tomorrow, and already some trippy stories are streaming from up north. Here's a few: --Dennis Kucinich proved that Mike Huckabee isn't the only one who has an action hero. Viggo Mortensen is part of the Kucinich "entourage." [Union Leader] --Who knew that John Sununu was a hero? [AP] --Team Weekly Dig is up in New Hampshire, and Chris Faraone enjoys a Bill Clinton Epiphany: "[His words]......

The United States has a lot to be afraid of: the war in Iraq, the mortgage crisis, wildfires, the gulf between the haves and have nots, and Dick Cheney. But former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney thinks that the nation should really be afraid of Hillary Clinton. In an attempt to celebrate Halloween and trash an opponent at the same time, Mitt Romney told an audience in Iowa, "What do you think about Hillary's House of......

The special election to replace Rep. Marty Meehan in the Fifth Congressional District will be tomorrow. The candidates are Democrat Niki Tsongas and Republican Jim Ogonowski. Tsongas is the widow of former Senator Paul Tsongas, and she has been able to bring in the big-time Democrat starpower. Ogonowski, a former member of the Air Force and National Guard, has been taking the door-to-door approach. The Globe said he planned "more than two dozen appearances" today.......

It was bound to happen that someone was going to comment on the looks of former First Lady of Massachusetts and aspiring First Lady for the United States Ann Romney. Mitt and Ann Romney are good-looking in that ever-so-wholesome, corn-fed kind of way. It's also not surprising that Playboy tackles the subject of First Lady Hotness by asking which one is sexiest. But it is surprising that they included Bill Clinton in the poll......

Former Massachusetts governor and current presidential aspirant Mitt Romney is probably off somewhere kicking himself right now. One of his biggest supporters, Senator Larry Craig, a Republican from Idaho, allegedly engaged in "lewd conduct in a men's room" at the Minneapolis airport. We'll let you use your own imagination - just see our past post about individuals who are "Lewd at Logan." On paper, Craig was an ideal match for Romney in the nonsexual sense.......

This week ended with the launch of the seventh and final Harry Potter installation. But while the world was consumed with Pottermania, it's important to remember that there were more serious things going on in the world, too - two of them in -Ist cities. Sampaist was shocked when a passenger jet crashed into the center of Sao Paulo, killing at least 200 people. The airplane, an Airbus A320, skidded off the runway at the......

On Tuesday, the American -ists will be celebrating democracy and hitting the polls, letting politicians know what they really think. It just made us wonder: if it were up to the -ist-a-verse, what would we be voting for? Londonist votes for better skincare, alternative spaces for art, cute little birds and the men who keep them, and concrete. Lots of concrete. Shanghaiist votes for one of the Bee Gees and Air Supply (it's a double-ticket),......

Last night's Massachusetts gubernatorial debate was almost as much fun as a pro-wrestling cage match. Right from the start, the debate promised to be a good one. The moderator was none other than the pugnacious and cadaverous Chris Wallace, who recently got his comeuppance from Bill Clinton during an interview for Fox News. The opening credits also made it sound like each candidate was a prizefighter. All the audience needed was for the candidates to......

In a world where there's nothing to do but watch movies. In a city full of theaters, museums, and libraries. One moviegoer who can be in three places at once. Thursday 6/29 Wordplay Patrick Creadon's debut feature-length documentary follows the career of puzzling luminary Will Shortz and the national crossword tournament he founded. Celebrity interviews include Daily Show host Jon Stewart and celebrated Daily Show guests Bob Dole and Bill Clinton. Kendall Square Cinema See......

Dirty pictures on the ceilings. Who knew? Bostonist knows that we can't always have top-notch gourmet fare when we lunch downtown with coworkers. In fact, we almost never do, settling in most cases for convenience. So it was that, despite having expressed apprehension about the Kinsale in the past, we found ourselves dining there on Wednesday: The weather was cold and the Kinsale was close. On prior visits to this pseudo-Irish establishment, we've aimed for......