Cities and towns were just handed some fiscal relief by the state Supreme Judicial Court but don’t expect a lot of high-fiving among local officials to follow. If past is […]
The Thin Blue Line’s thinner wallets
Posted inEconomy, Politics, State House News Service, The Download
Where the Pentagon sees guns, Mass. sees butter
With Gov. Deval Patrick gone AWOL more and more, Lt. Gov. Tim Murray has been tapped to lead the fight to forestall cutbacks at Bay State military facilities. So far, […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Worries about Warren
A new Western New England University poll has Sen. Scott Brown rocketing past Elizabeth Warren, and that has some Democrats sizing up the distance between the window ledge and the […]
Posted inEnvironment, Transportation
Gas price crackdown has no legal authority
Patrick administration officials are pledging to crack down on gas stations engaging in price gouging, but under current state regulations they have no legal authority to take any action.With gasoline […]
Posted inEducation, Politics, The Download
On higher ed, Santorum flunks out
It certainly didn’t match the coarseness of Rush Limbaugh’s characterization of an articulate Georgetown University law student as “slut.” But when Rick Santorum called President Obama a “snob” for encouraging […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
DCR not talking
Over the past couple months, Ed Lambert has been talking tough about the Department of Conservation and Recreation’s deadbeat renters, but now he’s not talking at all. The DCR commissioner […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
FinCom calls for Swan Boats audit
The Boston Finance Commission is calling for an audit of Swan Boats Inc., the family-run ferry service in the Public Garden that says it earned $1.4 million between 2008 and […]
Posted inEconomy
Watchdog calls for Swan Boat audit
The following is the text of a letter sent to Boston Mayor Tom Menino from Matthew Cahill, the executive director of the Boston Finance Commission. February 23, 2012 The Honorable […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
HR department key to reform
In December, the Supreme Judicial Court Task Force on Judicial Hiring issued its sixth and final report, completing an exhaustive year-long review of hiring and promotion practices in all of the judicial branch. These reports mark a […]
Posted inOpinion, Uncategorized
Psychotherapist-patient sex is crime in New York
As an attorney who represents victims of sexual exploitation by psychotherapists, I have witnessed the devastating effects that such abuse has on the victims. I have interviewed hundreds of victims […]
Posted inEducation, The Download
A cause to go Gaga over
Anyone who’s ever been the target of bullying or taunting back in the day and later achieves some measure of success relishes that opportunity to go to the high school […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Opinion
CommonWealth urged to rethink use of name
By Janet W. Wohlberg I am writing in response to a recent CommonWealth story about the sexual and emotional abuse of a patient by a renowned Boston-area psychoanalyst. In the […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Snowe storm
If Americans needed yet more evidence that Congress has been taken over the political equivalent of the walking dead, there is now the case of US Sen. Olympia Snowe. The […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
OneUnited’s “cardinal sin”
OneUnited Bank has a complicated relationship with bills. Specifically: It isn’t fond of paying its own. The Boston-based bank was saved in 2008 with a $12 million cash infusion from […]
Posted inHealth Care, Politics, The Download
The cause endures
With the entry of Joe Kennedy III into the race for an open US House seat, the political chatter has returned for the umpteenth time to the question of whether […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, Education, The Download
Is Lynn overreacting?
City and school officials in Lynn say they plan to prosecute two freshman girls who fought each other at Cook Street Park and discipline at least 27 other children who […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
The underbelly of Beacon Hill
Richard Vitale, the friend and financial advisor to former House speaker Sal DiMasi, admitted last October that he illegally lobbied on Beacon Hill without registering as a lobbyist. He was […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
In sports, boys need to be men
The Boston University men’s hockey team, among the most successful college sports programs in the country, is reeling after the dismissal of two stars who were arrested and charged with […]
Posted inEconomy, Opinion
The lessons of the failed Columbus Center project
After a dozen years, 125 public meetings, and $100 million in sunk costs, the saga of the failed Columbus Center project, a mixed-use development slated to straddle the Massachusetts Turnpike […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Newt Gingrich declares war on reVolting electric cars
The next stop in the culture wars is the electric car. Newt Gingrich has declared that President Obama now threatens Americans’ right to choose the type of car that they […]
Posted inEconomy
Shire top recipient of state tax credits
The Massachusetts Life Sciences Center handed out $21.2 million in tax credits to 28 companies, with high-flying Shire HGT of Lexington garnering the top award of $3 million, bringing its […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Romney: A Michigander or Michi-gamer?
Mitt Romney wants to be president, so he needs to win next week’s Michigan primary. A big part of the game plan for pulling that feat off involves reinforcing Romney’s […]
Posted inPolitics
IG questions legality of Red Sox deals
Inspector General Gregory Sullivan is questioning the legality and fairness of a 2003 deal between the Boston Redevelopment Authority and the Boston Red Sox that allowed the ball club to […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
How corrupt is Massachusetts?
We tend to think of Massachusetts as a pretty corrupt place. Let’s see, three House speakers in a row have been convicted of crimes. Sal DiMasi, the most recent speaker […]