Military sees big decline in black enlistees

WASHINGTON - African-Americans, whose longstanding relationship with the US military helped them prove their abilities and offered a way to get ahead, have turned away from the armed forces in record numbers since 2000, a period covering the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and the start of the Iraq war.

Mass. tracks children on psychiatric drugs

Following the death of a 4-year-old Hull girl from an overdose of psychiatric drugs last December, state officials have set up a unique early-warning system to spot preschoolers who may be getting excessive medication for mental illness. In just the first three months, the system has flagged the cases of at least 35 children for further investigation, and the number ...

Jane Swift remakes herself, juggles her passions

WILLIAMSTOWN - Imagine being Jane Swift, longtime overachiever in the far-flung Berkshires, whose bruising experience on Beacon Hill is now the stuff of legend. Alternately viewed as the victim of the merciless Boston media, a symbol of the failed promise of feminism, or an accidental leader who stumbled bullheadedly to her political demise, she is, nonetheless, an alumna of the ...

As foreclosures widen, a neighborhood erodes

LAWRENCE — Mario DeJesus struggled under crushing mortgage payments for two years. Now, about to lose his home to foreclosure, he has no money left to move his family into an apartment.