MONDAY'S BOSTON HERALD

"And they cut off his head, and stripped off his armour, and sent into the
land of the Philistines round about, to publish it in the house of their idols,
and among the people." (I Samuel 31:9)

I'm a subscriber to the MetroWest Daily News (Framingham, MA) but at least
two mornings a week, I buy a Boston Herald. I know the Herald is a struggling
tabloid, looked down upon by the Boston Globe and by the "literati" of the
metropolitan Boston area, but I learned some stuff in the Monday, July 9 Boston
Herald!

First, I was fascinated by the front page story, "FEATHERS FLY IN DUCK WAR".
I learned that there is now a copycat duck boat tour company in Boston. I've
taken the "real" duck tour with Boston Duck Tours and really enjoyed it. The
upstart company is "Super Duck Tours" of Charlestown, MA. Many tourists are
confused, assuming Super Duck Tours IS Boston Duck Tours, and even some locals
have been confused. Many of those who have taken the "Super Duck Tour" were
upset to learn that it was not the real thing. Boston Duck Tours is taking
the matter to court on Wednesday. I think the upstart company should have to
clearly say in it's advertising and promotional material something to the effect
of: "Not affiliated with the original Boston Duck Tour company".

Second, I learned from page 3 that Times Square Church (an independent
Pentecostal church in New York City's Times Square which is associated with the Rev.
David Wilkerson) is very upset because of billboards affixed to their
building featuring naked buttocks with smiling faces on them. That matter is also
going to court.

Third, I learned that people should really think carefully before switching
to Verizon FiOS. Now, please don't misunderstand. I'm a Verizon stockholder,
and it's very much in my interest for as many people as possible to sign up
for Verizon FiOS. Even so, the article on page 23 states that FiOS is much
more expensive than Verizon DSL and that when homeowners sign up for Verizon FiOS
their traditional copper phone lines are essentially cut forever. Some have
regretted their decision to sign up with Verizon FiOS.

Fourth, I learned from page 22 that a number of "expectant fathers" are
wearing "pregnancy empathy" suits to find out what their pregnant wives are going
through. I think that's a bit much, and although my wife and I attended
natural childbirth classes back in the 1980s, and I was present at the births of all
of my kids, I'd never have worn a "pregnancy empathy" suit.

The Herald also had stories about the fake cop who raped a woman in Randolph,
and about the number of babies who were born on 7/7/07. The "Inside Track"
has a piece about John Krasinski who is one of the stars of "The Office" and of
the film "License to Wed". I knew he was originally from Massachusetts, but
I did not know he'd actually been a camp counselor in Wayland, MA. I also got
the latest news about Clay Aiken's incident on a recent Continental Airlines
flight and about Avril Lavigne being sued for (supposedly) stealing the
lyrics to one of her latest songs.

I'd say all of the above information was worth the 50 cents I spent for
Monday's Boston Herald!