BOSTON – A Republican won the only competitive special legislative election held in Massachusetts Tuesday as Weymouth's Patrick O'Connor defeated Hull's Joan Mechino for an open Senate seat. But the pair are likely to face off again in November, when the Plymouth and Norfolk district will be in play for the second time this year.
O'Connor, the president of the Weymouth town council, was a top aide to Weymouth Mayor Robert Hedlund when he held the seat. Hedlund resigned the post in January after winning the mayor's office. Mechino is a former Hull selectman.
Diversity is among the most abused words in the English language, and in today's hyper-politicized society, it is fashionable to talk about it endlessly.
To many, it is an obsession. Universities are infatuated with it (see Missouri, Columbia, and Princeton). Corporations race to be the most diverse and "inclusive" in their industry (see Target). Politicians do everything in their power to give the impression they are extending their privileged hands to the historically underprivileged (see Kennedy and Clinton families). Meanwhile, the sophisticated denizens of America's coasts preach the merits of diversity and multiculturalism from the safety of exclusive doorman buildings and wealthy suburbs. You see the point.
