NightSide With Dan Rea

A recently discovered interstellar object being likened to a comet by some scientists is on an “extremely unusual course” that will take it close to three different planets: Venus, Mars and Jupiter, says Harvard astrophysicist Avi Loeb. Loeb believes the unidentified object is an alien craft saying, “The chance of a natural space rock randomly flying along that path is less than 0.005%.” Do you believe in alien life form? Tulsi Gabbard, the Director of National Intelligence says she believes aliens could “possibly be real”.

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Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey is currently facing two challenging local issues. The first being, in no particular order, the ongoing Republic Services trash collectors’ strike that is now heading towards its seventh week. Healey sent a letter to the leadership at Republic Services calling them out for not answering or returning her calls and went on to say, “Your company’s failure to resolve or even meaningfully address this prolonged strike is unacceptable”. The second pressing matter is the indictment of Suffolk County Sheriff Steven Tompkins. Some lawmakers are pushing Healey to remove him from his position but she has yet to make a move, saying these are “serious” allegations in which she wants to know more. We discussed these pressing local issues.

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We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!

Market Basket board’s lawyer sends warning to Arthur T. Demoulas’s side over ‘public vitriol’. The latest on the Market Basket drama.
Guest: Jon Chesto – Boston Globe Business Reporter


Webster Deputy Chief of Police Gordon Wentworth tells us the tale of Goose the water monitor lizard who gained widespread fame!
Guest: Gordon Wentworth – Webster Deputy Chief of Police   Astronomer Says Unidentified


Space Object Could Be Alien Spacecraft!
Guest: Prof. Avi Loab - Frank B. Baird Jr. Professor of Science Director of the Institute for Theory & Computation at Harvard University


MA woman attacked by bat when it flew into her open mouth while stargazing in Arizona! GoFundMe created for her medical expenses.
Guest: Erica Kahn – Victim of bat attack

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President Trump held a press conference announcing what he calls, “liberation day in DC” where he announced his plan to crackdown on violent crime in the nation’s capital. Despite preliminary year-to-date crime comparisons from Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department that show overall crime in D.C. has decreased by 7% since last year, with violent crime down 26% and property crime reduced by 5%, Trump placed DC Police under federal control and activated the National Guard to combat what he said was a wave of lawlessness. Do you think the federal government needs to get involved with local DC crime? 

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President Trump held a press conference announcing what he calls, “liberation day in DC” where he announced his plan to crackdown on violent crime in the nation’s capital. Despite preliminary year-to-date crime comparisons from Washington’s Metropolitan Police Department that show overall crime in D.C. has decreased by 7% since last year, with violent crime down 26% and property crime reduced by 5%, Trump placed DC Police under federal control and activated the National Guard to combat what he said was a wave of lawlessness. Do you think the federal government needs to get involved with local DC crime? 

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After a series of scandals at the Massachusetts State Police including the overtime scandal, the firing of Trooper Michael Proctor, and the death of a trainee at the MA State Police Academy, the State Police and Colonel Geoffrey Noble take on the challenge of trying to change the public perception of the State Police. What does the department need to do to restore public trust and a good reputation?
 

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We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!

The ethics of creating deepfakes or AI generated avatars of the dead! How technology is being used by some in end of life planning…
Guest: Paul Fried – owner of I Made Arrangements – an end of life planning website & service


Tanglewood Music Center to present an evening of silent film at the Coolidge Corner Theatre. Tanglewood composers, conductors, and instrumentalists will perform live on Tuesday, August 12.
Guest: Kathy Tallman, CEO and Executive Director at the Coolidge Corner Theatre


What to know about Powassan virus, a rare but serious tick-borne disease. Virus suspected of infecting newborn on Martha's Vineyard…
Guest: Dr. Shira Doron - Tufts Medical Center Chief Infection Control Officer


The Boston Triathlon returns to South Boston August 16-17, 2025 -Also an annual kids day at the Boston Triathlon on Saturday the 16th – free for all kids.
Guest: Mike O’Neil – Event Director of the Boston Triathlon  

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NightSide’s last hour of the week we like to keep it light and fun. In this 20th hour Dan asked listeners to call in and tell him about their hobbies.

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High-profile celebrity attorney Alan Dershowitz got into a feud at a Martha’s Vineyard farmer’s market when a local vender would not sell him pierogis over his legal representation of convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Good Pierogi co-owner Krem Miskevich said they were “legally justified” in turning Dershowitz away. The owner said they believed selling to him was equivalent to supporting his decisions and statements. We discussed more details about “Pierogi-gate” and welcomed listeners’ thoughts! Alan Dershowitz joined us to discuss!

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There is an ongoing effort to restore rent control in Massachusetts. Homes For All, a housing justice coalition in MA is pushing for a ballot initiative that would create a statewide “rent stabilization” program that would tie annual increases for most apartments to inflation, with a hard annual cap at 5 percent, but also include some exemptions. Are you for or against rent control? Why or why not? Greg Vasil,  CEO of the Greater Boston Real Estate Board joined us to discuss.



*The Homes For All Massachusetts Coalition is not available to join this evening’s discussion*

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