CALL IT A textbook case of serendipity. A few years ago, Frank Ferguson, then in his early 80s, reluctantly began considering the fact that he would not be able to […]
Doing well and good
Posted inEconomy, Politics
DOR web problems force deadline change
State officials have extended the filing deadline for income tax filers because of problems with the Department of Revenue’s website, the latest technology glitch that is causing issues for state […]
Posted inEconomy, Education, Opinion
To fill our talent pool, fix remedial education
jonathan was trying. But his professor, Mike Williamson of Middlesex Community College in Lowell, could see the student’s frustration mounting as he worked, once again, to conquer Algebra 1. He’d […]
Posted inGambling, Opinion
Spring 2014 Editor’s note
the massachusetts gaming Commission has a tough choice to make in awarding the Greater Boston casino license. The two finalists, Mohegan Sun and Wynn Resorts, are both strong companies, pledging […]
Posted inOpinion
Spring 2014 correspondence and updates
South Coast Rail good for environment Your article in the winter issue of the normally balanced CommonWealth magazine (“South Coast Rail worries environmentalists”) misses the mark badly. It relies solely […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Politics
Veterans court
What makes specialty courts for drugs, housing, and now veterans so effective? Well, for the veterans treatment court, which is relatively new, they realized that there were things about veterans […]
Posted inEnvironment
We’re a better player (Full Transcript)
What follows is the complete transcript of a discussion with Mitchell Etess, the chief executive officer of Mohegan Sun, on March 11, 2014. CommonWealth: Steve Wynn says you have a […]
Posted inEnvironment
We’re a better player
commonwealth: Steve Wynn says you have an inherent conflict of interest owning a casino in Massachusetts that would be 111 miles away from your casino in Connecticut, in part because […]
Posted inGambling
Don’t bet against me (Full Transcript)
What follows is a transcript of an unedited interview with Steve Wynn of Wynn Enterprises on March 5 at his villa in Las Vegas. For the edited version, click here. […]
Posted inGambling
Don’t bet against me
Steve Wynn, in his Las Vegas villa, in front of Picasso’s The Sailor and a Giacometti sculpture. steve wynn is giving an art tour inside his villa, which is located […]
Posted inEducation
Back to school on the American Dream
Degrees of Inequality: How the Politics of Higher Education Sabotaged the American Dream By Suzanne Mettler New York: Basic Books 261 pages the american dream is in trouble. As our […]
Posted inTransportation
A can-do attitude
The Race Underground: Boston, New York, and the Incredible Rivalry that Built America’s First Subway By Doug Most New York: St. Martin’s Press 404 pages once upon a time, before […]
Posted inPolitics
The guiding hand
mindy myers has never called New England home, but she’s nevertheless left her political mark on the region. The 37-year-old Washington insider has run the successful election campaigns of three […]
Posted inPolitics
Boston’s challenge for the GOP
The partisan divide between cities and less urbanized areas is growing into one of the defining characteristics of Massachusetts politics. The suburbs are often held up as the place where […]
Posted inEducation, State House News Service
School chief offers online testing advice
When the Burlington schools were randomly selected to administer a paper and pencil version of the state’s new online standardized test, Superintendent Eric Conti had a better idea. He suggested […]
Posted inOpinion, Transportation
Silver Line service needs to expand
The Silver Line has become one of the most important elements of the MBTA’s service platform, meeting the needs of a highly diverse population and providing an alternative mass transit […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Obama’s weak “movement” coattails
The front-page of this morning’s New York Times takes readers inside the campaign of Eric Lesser, a bright-eyed 29-year-old running for an open state Senate seat in Western Massachusetts. The […]
Posted inBy The Numbers, Politics
New poll contradicts earlier casino survey
Two recent Massachusetts polls on casino gambling produced very different results, but the difference may have more to do with the population being surveyed than any actual change in attitude. […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Rhode Island has better data on overdose problem
Like Massachusetts, Rhode Island is struggling to cope with a sharp increase in overdose deaths. But, unlike Massachusetts, Rhode Island appears to know far more about what it’s up against […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Outsider act of Warren, Patrick hard to follow
To outsiders looking to make a splash in Massachusetts politics, Deval Patrick and Elizabeth Warren are guiding lights. Each ascended as political novices from relative unknown to statewide officeholders, winning […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
A power struggle over tax credit
With support for an economic stimulus package gaining steam on Beacon Hill, an interesting power struggle is developing over one of the state’s most popular tax credits. The historic rehabilitation […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Health care blame game or shell game?
The numbers in the rawest form are jaw-dropping. A relative handful of doctors – about 2 percent – account for one-quarter of the $77 billion Medicare paid out in services […]
Posted inEnvironment, Opinion
Outdated Cape Wind financial boondoggle
There are good reasons why Cape Wind has struggled to get off the ground for the past 13 years. Not only is the project outdated, but its location in the […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
Another approach to college readiness gap
On a visit to Massachusetts last month, US Education Secretary Arne Duncan cautioned against resting on our laurels. Despite the Bay State’s nation-leading test scores, he chided, “Four in ten […]