THE BOSTON POLICE DEPARTMENT last week evicted from the Boston Common a fairly large group of people who had been sleeping and hanging out for many weeks on the grass […]
‘Encampment’ moved off Boston Common
Posted inPolitics
Bernie’s Bay State army mobilizes
FOR ANYONE WHO THINKS the Bernie-or-Bust movement is dead, think again, at least if you live in Massachusetts. Our Revolution, US Sen. Bernie Sanders’ new initiative to inspire and promote […]
Posted inThe Download
A sorry state of affairs
Since he rose to unforeseen fame when he won “the People’s Seat” long held by the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, Scott Brown has been as much celebrity as politician, which […]
Posted inGambling, State House News Service
Feds: Reconsider Mashpee Wampanoag ruling
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION on Wednesday sought reconsideration of a federal court ruling that would strip the Mashpee Wampanoag of its tribal land in southeastern Massachusetts, according […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Gas pipeline firm says it’s full-speed ahead
What follows is a letter from the three top officials of Access Northeast to New England policymakers on the need for new natural gas pipeline infrastructure in the region. […]
Posted inThe Download
Fear and loathing at Smith
Is racism infecting the operations of the graduate social work program at Smith College, or has the leafy campus in left-leaning Northampton become the latest flash point for overblown charges […]
Posted inPolitics
Milton board backs Joyce
THE THREE MEMBERS of the Milton Board of Assessors said on Tuesday that they will review and probably reassess state Sen. Brian Joyce’s home, but they indicated the lawmaker had […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
No transforming option for president
IN JANUARY 2015, the two of us took pen in hand and collaborated on an article for CommonWealth titled “Looking for the Man or Woman on a Horse: Can the 2016 presidential […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Opinion
Healey’s assault weapon directive on target
ONE OF THE main rallying cries of the NRA and the gun lobby is that we don’t need any new gun laws to reduce gun violence. The gun lobbyists assert […]
Posted inThe Download
Paying teachers who don’t teach
The Boston Public Schools will be spending an estimated $8 million this year paying teachers who won’t be teaching. Is that a colossal waste of money, or simply a cost […]
Posted inPolitics
Questions raised over Globe’s Joyce story
MILTON TOWN RECORDS and interviews with local officials are calling into question the accuracy of a Boston Globe story suggesting embattled state Sen. Brian Joyce shortchanged the municipality on property […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Senate chamber to undergo renovations
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE AFTER THE NEW LEGISLATIVE TERM begins in January, the state Senate plans to abandon its historic chamber and begin meeting in two temporary workspaces elsewhere in […]
Posted inTransportation
Get Mass. transponder or face higher Turnpike charges
This story was updated at 5:30 p.m. At 3 p.m., because of incorrect information supplied by state officials, it was corrected to say that drivers without transponders will be charged […]
Posted inThe Download
Run, Tito, run!
Tito Jackson, at this point, may only be dipping his toe in the waters for a mayoral run. The Boston Herald, however, is all in. The tabloid runs out a […]
Posted inGambling
Curtatone making up with Wynn
SOMERVILLE MAYOR JOSEPH CURTATONE is making up with Wynn Resorts. The mayor, who delayed by several months the construction of the Wynn Resorts hotel and casino in Everett by challenging […]
Posted inThe Codcast
Episode 15: Baker’s curious VMT decision
Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision last week to veto a legislative provision directing the state to seek federal funds for an all-volunteer study of vehicle-miles-traveled, or VMT, turned some heads. The […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
More time in school key to charter success
FOR MOST FAMILIES, August represents the dog days of summer. Temperatures are at their hottest. Camp is winding down. And the beginning of the school year is still weeks away. […]
Posted inThe Download, Transportation
The Codcast: Baker’s curious VMT decision
Gov. Charlie Baker’s decision last week to veto a legislative provision directing the state to seek federal funds for an all-volunteer study of vehicle-miles-traveled, or VMT, turned some heads. The […]
Posted inHealth Care
Baker pushes health care competition
THE BAKER ADMINISTRATION is showing signs that it wants to get more aggressive about encouraging greater competition between health care providers. Monica Bharel, the commissioner of the Department of Public […]
Posted inState House News Service, The Download
Family feud
Democrats in Massachusetts don’t have many Republicans to fight and the one they do – Gov. Charlie Baker – has charmed them into passivity. But in the ballot question to […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service
Pence pep talk doesn’t sway Baker
STATE HOUSE NEWS SERVICE GOP VICE PRESIDENTIAL NOMINEE Mike Pence pitched a gathering of Republican governors in Colorado on Tuesday, but even a “terrific” speech by a fellow governor wasn’t enough […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
Punishing opt-outs
THE AMOUNT OF energy, time, and money that is being put into curbing students from “opting out” of state- and federal-mandated standardized tests tests makes one wonder what these tests […]
Posted inBallot Questions, Education
State Dems say no to charter ballot question
STATE HOUSE NEWS THE MASSACHUSETTS DEMOCRATIC PARTY on Tuesday night voted to oppose a ballot question that would expand charter schools in Massachusetts, putting the party at odds with some […]
Posted inEnvironment
SJC nixes ‘pipeline tax’
THE SUPREME JUDICIAL COURT ruled on Wednesday that the Baker administration can not authorize the state’s electric utilities to tap their ratepayers for the money to finance a new natural […]