lori fortin of Athol thought the joys and stresses of raising kids were behind her, but when her daughter got caught in the undertow of opiate addiction, Fortin found herself […]
More grandparents raising their grandchildren
Posted inPolitics
Probation verdicts to end pensions
When former Probation commissioner John J. O’Brien and two of his top deputies return to court on November 12 for sentencing, they’re not just facing the potential loss of their […]
Posted inHealth Care
Life savers
The diagnosis was a shock to Waxman, in part because she didn’t know much about the disease. Its name conjured up images of needles, drug use, and unprotected sex, but […]
Posted inTransportation
Laying it down, testing it later
TRANSPORTATION AND ENGINEERING officials from across New England gathered at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth in June for what was being called an emergency “pavement summit.” The officials had learned a […]
Posted inPolitics
Battling for the urban vote
robert lewis jr. stood on a stage in Dorchester, gripping a podium and firing up the crowd in front of him, hollering, “Isn’t it so great to be with a […]
Posted inEconomy
The man who lied to Worcester
SHORTLY AFTER BUYING the Boston Globe last year, John Henry wrote a 3,000-word essay for the newspaper explaining why he bought it. The purchase wasn’t about profits, Henry explained, it […]
Posted inPolitics
President-in-waiting
IF LIFE HAD taken a different turn, Stan Rosenberg might be an Orthodox Jewish rabbi today. That was his ambition while studying for his bar mitzvah in the early 1960s […]
Posted inPolitics
Guest workers
most of the attention on the immigration bill that is now foundering in Congress is on the 11 million or so immigrants who live in this country without the government’s […]
Posted inEducation
Tracking student migration
a program set up to provide more educational opportunity for New England college students is proving to be a brain gain for some states and a brain drain for others. […]
Posted inPolitics
Boston’s grass roots
A People’s History of the New Boston By Jim Vrabel Amherst, University of Massachusetts Press 288 pages history is replete with the stories of the mighty and powerful. Jim Vrabel’s […]
Posted inPolitics
What the light Probation sentences mean
The light sentences handed down on Thursday in the Probation Department patronage scandal sent a clear signal to Beacon Hill that federal prosecutors proved only half their case. Federal judge […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Polling expert analyzes midterm GOP gains
Mark Blumenthal has been working in the political polling industry for 20 years, but his historical perspective goes back much further. “The party of the president has lost legislative seats […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
15% rule promotes insiders, has to go
Last week, Charlie Baker won a relatively close race to become the next governor of the Commonwealth. The outcome was surprising to many people, though for different reasons. A volunteer […]
Posted inEducation
Evaluations score most teachers highly
The second year of a new state educator evaluation system has produced results that largely mirror those of the first year, with nearly all teachers and school administrators in Massachusetts […]
Posted inPolitics
Tearful Tavares admits rigged hiring system
Former deputy Probation commissioner Elizabeth Tavares, in a sobbing plea for leniency on her conviction for racketeering and mail fraud, publicly acknowledged for the first time that a rigged hiring […]
Posted inPolitics
Judge goes very easy on O’Brien, aides
A federal judge on Thursday ignored sentencing guidelines and the recommendations of prosecutors – as well as his own history – before handing out much lighter-than-expected sentences to former Probation […]
Posted inPolitics
Fall River follies
Since 2010, Massachusetts voters statewide have marched to the polling booth eight times for primary, general, and special elections and there have been at least 13 other special elections with […]
Posted inPolitics
Judge signals stiff terms for O’Brien, aides
Prosecutors in the federal trial of former Probation commissioner John O’Brien and his two top deputies said on Wednesday they will not pursue bribery charges after the judge indicated he […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Don’t treat natural gas addiction with new pipelines
Massachusetts and New England are dangerously addicted to natural gas. We got addicted because gas burns cleaner than oil and coal and is cheap most of the year. But our […]
Posted inEducation
With a six-hour-long court hearing on the settlement agreement between Partners HealthCare System and the Attorney General’s office coming to a close, Martha Coakley rose from her seat in the […]
Posted inEnvironment
Crafting an energy bill
Rep. Patricia Haddad of Somerset blocked the Patrick administration’s energy bill during the last legislative session because it failed to give a nod to the offshore wind industry her region […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
A time for beginnings, endings, opportunities
It’s a time for beginnings. The election of a new governor brings an end to eight years of Democratic hegemony on Beacon Hill. For Charlie Baker, it is both a […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics
Coakley v Sanders
With a six-hour-long court hearing on the settlement agreement between Partners HealthCare System and the Attorney General’s office coming to a close, Martha Coakley rose from her seat in the […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
NStar says power bills will rise 27 percent
NStar Corp. said on Friday that the price of the electricity it is buying for many of its customers this winter will rise 27 percent, or about $28 a month […]