Voters need to begin to make the connection between the people they elect and the policies that those officials implement.
Paul DeBole
Posted inOpinion
Is it time to rethink municipal financing?
Newton and communities like it need to look at the way they finance municipal government operations and at least look at some possible alternatives.
Posted inOpinion
Keep your eye on Twin River Casino in RI
WHEN YOU THINK of casinos in New England, what comes to mind are Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun, which continue to dominate the region and account for between 42 percent and […]
Posted inOpinion
Witnessing history at the Sirhan parole hearing
THE 1960s marked a profound change in the American psyche. Gone was the optimism of the post-World War II era as Americans began to embrace a profound distrust of their […]
Posted inOpinion
Mass. casinos returning to pre-pandemic revenue levels
THE STATE’S THREE gaming facilities reported strong revenues in July, with the numbers at Encore and MGM Springfield returning to pre-pandemic levels and the Plainridge Park slots facility trending in […]
Posted inOpinion
2-month sales tax holiday makes sense to me
THINKING OUTSIDE the box is always difficult. We are pre-programmed to look at things in certain ways and seldom venture outside of our comfort zones. I confess, I am one […]
Posted inOpinion
Mass. casinos may need Legislature’s help
I GET IT! Massachusetts is slowly beginning to emerge from the cocoon of the COVID-related shutdown of a significant portion of the Commonwealth’s economy. The effects of that shutdown have been […]
Posted inOpinion
Legislative oversight hearing on COVID was shameful
THOMAS PAYNE wrote, in The American Crisis (1776), that “These are the times that try men’s souls.” Although he wrote those words during the American Revolution, he may have been talking about […]
Posted inGambling
Slot revenues rise, but fall on per-machine basis
OVERALL GAMING revenue numbers for the most part were up in February over the previous month, but there was a surprising decrease in daily per machine revenues. In February, Encore Boston Harbor […]
Posted inOpinion
Gaming numbers improved in January
THE MASSACHUSETTS GAMING Commission released the casino revenue figures for the month of January 2021 this week and those revenue numbers look encouraging. All three gaming venues, Encore Boston Harbor, […]
Posted inOpinion
December gaming revenues show promise
LAST WEEK’S REVENUE REPORT from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission suggested the state’s casinos are doing pretty well, given the many restrictions imposed by COVID-19. Monthly slot revenues for the Commonwealth’s […]
Posted inOpinion
Questions, options in wake of insurrection
LIKE MOST AMERICANS, I sat in front of my television last week transfixed by what was happening in Washington, DC. I frantically switched from CNN to MSNBC to Fox News […]
Posted inOpinion
A refreshing non-party-line vote
I AM NOT one for hyperbole, but this is the most contentious election year that I have seen. Republicans versus Democrats. Ideologues on both sides trying to outdo each other […]
Posted inOpinion
N.E. gaming market is not saturated yet
A YEAR AGO I would have said the gaming market in New England was saturated, with a relatively fixed number of customers bouncing between casinos based on promotions or geographical […]
Posted inOpinion
Mohegan slots tops in New England
SLOT MACHINES at the Mohegan Sun casino in Connecticut are going gang-busters. In August, the casino’s slot revenue was nearly $45.6 million, just $2 million shy of the $47.5 million […]
Posted inOpinion
My bet is Vineyard gaming is coming
THE PURSUIT of a casino by the Aquinnah Wampanoag Tribe on Martha’s Vineyard may be one of the most under-covered stories in Massachusetts. The tribe is trying to open a […]
Posted inOpinion
Casino slot revenues off to a strong start
GAMING IS BACK in Massachusetts and the casinos are open and ready for business and patrons appear to be ready, willing, and able to play. Plainridge Park reopened on July […]
Posted inOpinion
Why help only the Mashpee Wampanoag?
IT HAS BEEN A GREAT WEEK for the Mashpee Wampanoag in their quest to open a tribal casino in Taunton. The US House of Representative passed the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribal […]
Posted inOpinion
How do you license a fortune teller?
IT’S ONLY NATURAL this time of year that we turn our attention to ghouls and ghosts and things that go bump in the night. Jack-o-lanterns, trick or treaters, funny costumes, […]
Posted inOpinion
Nonprofits deserve a lot more scrutiny
THE ISSUE ARISES every so often, like a phoenix from the flames, especially around budget time. This year was no different. How do we, and how should we, tax nonprofit […]
Posted inOpinion
It’s time for some spring cleaning
I DON’T KNOW WHEN IT HAPPENED, but I have become a real neatness freak in my old age and I have a clean garage to prove it. Gone are old […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Eminent domain reform needed in Massachusetts
UNDER OUR SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT, there are various powers that are absolute and from which there are no appeal. One example of such a power would be the president’s pardon […]
Posted inGambling, Opinion
Don’t award third casino license
THE MASSACHUSETTS GAMING COMMISSION (MGC) has already awarded the state’s sole category 2 (slot parlor) license; and, two of the three category 1 (resort-style casino) licenses, with one remaining to […]