Nightside With Dan Rea

The Lululemon store on Newbury Street in Boston was hit twice in one week by shoplifters. The thieves made off with over $6K in the first hit and reportedly $700 in the second hit. Police are still looking for the suspects. Retail theft has been on the rise nationwide with Lululemon being a popular target. The 2024 Retail Theft & Violence report by the National Retail Federation shows a 93% increase in the average number of shoplifting incidents per year in 2023 compared to 2019. This trend is accompanied by a 90% increase in dollar loss due to shoplifting over the same period. We talked about how Boston is tackling shoplifting crimes as Dan has some ideas of his own for how to tackle it.

The Lululemon store on Newbury Street in Boston was hit twice in one week by shoplifters. The thieves made off with over $6K in the first hit and reportedly $700 in the second hit. Police are still looking for the suspects. Retail theft has been on the rise nationwide with Lululemon being a popular target. The 2024 Retail Theft & Violence report by the National Retail Federation shows a 93% increase in the average number of shoplifting incidents per year in 2023 compared to 2019. This trend is accompanied by a 90% increase in dollar loss due to shoplifting over the same period. We talked about how Boston is tackling shoplifting crimes as Dan has some ideas of his own for how to tackle it.

The Lululemon store on Newbury Street in Boston was hit twice in one week by shoplifters. The thieves made off with over $6K in the first hit and reportedly $700 in the second hit. Police are still looking for the suspects. Retail theft has been on the rise nationwide with Lululemon being a popular target. The 2024 Retail Theft & Violence report by the National Retail Federation shows a 93% increase in the average number of shoplifting incidents per year in 2023 compared to 2019. This trend is accompanied by a 90% increase in dollar loss due to shoplifting over the same period. Boston City Council member Ed Flynn talked about how Boston is tackling shoplifting crimes as Dan has some ideas of his own for how to tackle it.

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!The Orionids meteor shower visible tonight & tomorrow in New England. Guest: Jim J. Zebrowski - President Aldrich Astronomical Society, Inc.   Halloween spending scares Americans as inflation forces many to skip the holiday… Guest: Bill Dendy - CPA and money manager with Raymond James   With a storm blowing through the area, it was a rough day for traffic. Guest: Dan Mazella - Operations Director for the Boston Hub of Total Traffic and Weather Network & traffic reporter   The buy-rent gap is widening – should you buy now or keep renting forever? Modern America's housing history is being rewritten: Renting is now cheaper than buying a house in all major metropolitan areas. Guest: Sam Bourgi - researcher and financial analyst at Investors Observer

For NightSide’s last hour of the week we like to keep it light and have fun. This week is a simple question: Are you an optimist, or a pessimist? 

The U.S. has conducted multiple military strikes against boats accused of drug trafficking off the coast of Venezuela, raising legal and political concerns. Does the strike violate U.S. & international law? We discussed the details of what's going on with the Trump Administration's targeted attack against Venezuelan boats suspected of carrying drugs.

Electricity bills are expected to go up this Winter. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts an average electricity bill rise of approximately 4% from November until March 2026, reaching about $1,130 nationally. What are you doing, if anything, to mitigate the impact of those increased energy rates? 

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!House of Possibilities is a nonprofit that provides programs for children & adults with developmental disabilities. Located on the Stonehill College Campus, they frequently partner with the Best Buddies chapter there, one of the largest chapters in the state. They will be at Saturday’s Best Buddies Friendship Walk in Charlestown. Guest: Katie Terino, President & CEO of House of Possibilities Some very rare baseball cards are now up for auction after they were found in an unlikely place… Guest: Logan Hall – WBZ-TV Reporter Greater Boston Weekend Forecast for the Head of the Charles Regatta.Guest: Matt Benz - AccuWeather Meteorologist The 2025 Head of the Charles Regatta. Guest: John Powers – Boston Globe reporter

The Young Republicans, an organized political youth organization in the U.S. is under fire for a leaked Telegram chat group that contained antisemitic, racist, and homophobic text messages. Among the group chat are leaders of the organization who some prominent Republican leaders and others are calling on to resign or step down from their positions. Dan discussed the serious nature of these remarks and how there is no place in politics, whether the Republican Party or other, for such hateful and offensive speech.

The Young Republicans, an organized political youth organization in the U.S. is under fire for a leaked Telegram chat group that contained antisemitic, racist, and homophobic text messages. Among the group chat are leaders of the organization who some prominent Republican leaders and others are calling on to resign or step down from their positions. Dan discussed the serious nature of these remarks and how there is no place in politics, whether the Republican Party or other, for such hateful and offensive speech.

After Applegreen, the company originally awarded the contract to redevelop and operate 18 Massachusetts highway service plazas, backed out, MassDOT decided to start the bidding process all over again instead of awarding the contract to Global Partners, the second runner up. In addition, Thursday MassDOT Secretary Monica Tibbits-Nutt resigned. President and CEO of Global Partners, Eric Slifka commented on the latest and Boston Globe business reporter Jon Chesto checked in to discuss.

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!A New MA Real Estate Law that prevents home sellers from accepting an offer based on a buyer waiving a home inspection. Guest: Mark Triglione - President of the 2025 Greater Boston Association of Realtors & Broker/Owner of Premiere Realty Group in Reading EVERY DAY IS SUNDAY: How Jerry Jones, Robert Kraft, and Roger Goodell Turned the NFL into a Cultural & Economic Juggernaut. Guest: Ken Belson - New York Times Business & NFL reporter & author of new book Boston skyline’s iconic CITGO sign is moving… on up.Guest: Gayla Cawley – Boston Herald ReporterA facelift at 28? Why young people are turning to plastic surgery… Guest: Dr. Bruce Hermann – Plastic Surgeon

U.S. Representative Seth Moulton made the announcement that he is challenging Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey for his Senate seat in the 2026 primary. In Moulton’s announcement video, he addressed Sen. Markey’s age saying, “it’s time for a new generation of leadership for Democrats and for America.” Do you agree with Moulton and think it’s time for new ideas and new leadership? What are you looking for in a candidate?

U.S. Representative Seth Moulton made the announcement that he is challenging Massachusetts Senator Ed Markey for his Senate seat in the 2026 primary. In Moulton’s announcement video, he addressed Sen. Markey’s age saying, “it’s time for a new generation of leadership for Democrats and for America.” Do you agree with Moulton and think it’s time for new ideas and new leadership? What are you looking for in a candidate?

With the recent closure of roughly 20 Starbucks locations throughout Boston, how does that impact coffee culture in Boston? Will the chain’s closures help boost local coffee companies and coffee shops? What is your coffee routine and has it been disrupted at all by these closures? George Howell, the founder of the local coffee company George Howell Coffee joined us to discuss coffee culture locally here in Boston and the industry in general as it relates to consumers.

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!The Nova Exhibition, honoring the Tribe of Nova massacre with relics and survivor stories, runs in South Boston through Oct. 21. Guest: Tal Mazor – Nova Festival Survivor What motorists need to be aware of with seeing more moose and deer on the roadways this Fall.  Guest: Martin Feehan - Deer & Moose Biologist, Wildlife Health Specialist at Massachusetts Division of Fisheries & Wildlife With the release of the Israeli hostages, we discuss the neuroscience of trauma and survival. Guest: Dr. Nicholas Wright - leading neuroscientist and adviser to the Pentagon, author of book: WARHEAD: How the Brain Shapes War and War Shapes the Brain With Halloween coming up, we discuss how watching scary movies or engaging in spooky activities like going to a haunted house, impacts your heart. Should certain people forgo getting “scared”? Guest: Dr. James Udelson - Chief of Cardiology at Tufts Medical Ce

The ongoing government shutdown hits day 14 as the U.S. Senate plans their 8th vote to reopen the government. While it appears there’s no resolution in sight, do you have hope that the shutdown will soon end? Has the shutdown disrupted any part of life for you? How so? We discussed the latest congressional efforts made towards ending the shutdown.

The ongoing government shutdown hits day 14 as the U.S. Senate plans their 8th vote to reopen the government. While it appears there’s no resolution in sight, do you have hope that the shutdown will soon end? Has the shutdown disrupted any part of life for you? How so? We discussed the latest congressional efforts made towards ending the shutdown.

A holiday weekend Nor’easter dumped heavy rain and brought damaging winds across coastal Massachusetts, with some of the hardest hit communities along the South Shore, Cape, and the Islands. The National Weather Service reported that some communities received upwards of as much as 6-7 inches of rain. How have the dreary, wet, and windy weather conditions over the last couple of days affected you and your surrounding community?

We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!Zoo New England Celebrates Success of Gorillas on the Line Campaign.Guest: Caitlin McCartan – Campaign Coordinator for Zoo New England – has run the Gorillas on the Line campaign for the last couple of years – also their webmaster. 5 cyber travel scams and how to avoid them. Guest: Andrea Sachs – WaPo Travel Reporter New kind of traffic signal is confusing Massachusetts drivers as 25% run red light, study finds. Guest: Michael Knodler, one of the researchers on the paper and head of the UMass Transportation Center Microscopic worms are attacking trees in the Northeast. Experts say Beech Leaf Disease could be devastating. Guest: Jacob Wycoff – Meteorologist at WBZ-TV