--The Greater Boston Food Bank needs your help. [Boston Globe, Greater Boston Food Bank] --Welcome back members of the 181st infantry regiment! [WCVB] --The JFK library received $2 million dollars to expand from the Irish government, as part of Bertie Ahern's visit. [Boston Herald] --Gas service in the North End and Financial District has been restored after the water main mess. [Boston Globe] --Some Harvard students decorated Dunster House with dead meat. Aren't Harvard......

--Are too many activities hurting the condition of the Common? The folks at Parks and Recreation think so. But what's the point of having a Common if people can't go there? [WBZ] --The fifth anniversary of the war in Iraq caused a local contrast. Local National Guard soldiers came home. [WHDH] --Meanwhile, five people in Boston and eight people in Chicopee were arrested for protesting the war, and about 100 people were at the......

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.......

Are random bag searches on the T back? The Crimson reports that the MBTA has embarked upon its first random bag searches at the Harvard Square T stop last Thursday. Security didn't rummage through any bags, but "the handles and zippers are swabbed with a special test strip which is then fed through an explosives detection machine." Lt. Salvatore Venturelli also told the Crimson that the T is using a "random mathematical permutation" to make......

The death of Ciara Durkin, Quincy resident and member of the National Guard in Afghanistan, is gaining widespread attention because of questions surrounding her death. After saying that Durkin died in combat, the Pentagon has said that she did not die in combat, but she was actually shot in the head while on a secure base. Her family announced yesterday that Army investigators met with them for four hours on Wednesday to reassure them that......

A Quincy resident was killed in action in Afghanistan on Thursday. Specialist Ciara Durkin was in the National Guard and part of a finance unit. She was 30. Via the Patriot-Ledger, RTE of Ireland is reporting that she was shot in the head inside Bagram Air Base. Her sister told the Globe, "She was in a secure area of the compound, which, even though the investigation is not complete, leads the family to believe it......

--Police might be getting closer to tracking down the individual who attacked two women on the Esplanade on June 16 and July 29. The DA and the State Police put out a release saying they want to talk to five people who may have seen the man before the attacks happened. On June 16, one of the victims spotted a man by an Esplanade footbridge at 11:15. On July 29, the other victim saw two......

--Why toss a bucket of paint on a richie's fur coat when you can stop furs at the source? In Hinsdale on Monday, someone set about 400 to 500 mink who were destined to become pricey furs free from a farm. That's a lot of mink to let loose! The owner of Berkshire Furs is naturally blaming the "antifur people." No one's been caught yet, and the owner said the animals wouldn't be able to......

--The shootings of five people, including a 9-year-old girl, that took place in two different places in Mattapan on Saturday night may be related. Commish Ed Davis, who has been especially busy lately, referenced possible gang activity. The 9-year-old got shot in the back. In sheer coincidence, one of the shootings interrupted yet another birthday party. We're not sure why birthday parties have gotten so dangerous, but some gun-toting, allegedly birthday-hating thug(s) popped off and......

The documentary Have You Seen Andy? will air on Cinemax tomorrow, Tuesday, June 12, at 7:00 pm. In an age of Amber Alerts, JonBenet Ramsey, and images of missing children on all the 24-hour news channels, it's difficult to imagine a disappearance that wasn't resolved. But 10-year-old Andy Puglisi, who vanished in 1976 from a Lawrence swimming pool, has never been found. One of his childhood friends, Melanie Perkins, grew up to be a......

Globe Columnist Brian McGrory is often critical of Romney and his administration. That is, critical when he’s not waxing poetic about his childhood summer cottage or praising to Francona. Today’s column by McGrory applauds Mitt for cutting through the red tape and offering to host 2,500 Katrina-displaced persons. Romney acted much quicker than Menino who was still drafting plans to host evacuees at the Boston Convention Center. Today’s column had an obligatory dig on......