Massachusetts legislators are big givers with other people’s money. Campaign finance reports for 2008 indicate lawmakers took about $1 million of the $9.8 million they raised from supporters and donated […]
Beacon Hill pols share their bounty
Posted inEconomy
Banks balk at short sales of underwater homes
with banks bleeding red ink under the weight of massive losses on home loans, you would think lenders would be scrambling for every dollar they can squeeze out of the […]
Posted inEnvironment, Politics, State House News Service
The shape of watts to come
Leonard Bicknell confesses that he’s a nut about consuming less energy, even if it costs him more to do so. Over the years, the South Shore heating oil dealer has […]
Posted inPolitics
Strings attached
Illustration by Travis Foster It had been a rough year for Speaker Sal DiMasi, but you never would have known it when members of the Massachusetts House of Representatives gathered […]
Posted inPolitics
Back in the sunshine
during his eight years in office, President Bush alienated few groups more than scientists, who complained that he ignored them and impeded their work. So when President Barack Obama took […]
Posted inCriminal Justice
Statistically significant
Illustrations by Travis Foster bay state farms get fruitful and multiplyAre “buy local” campaigns helping to preserve the state’s small farming sector? New data from the US Department of Agriculture […]
Posted inUncategorized
End of an exodus
Only a couple of years ago, many of us fretted about the Bay State’s declining population. (See “A Fading Dream?”, Civic Sense, CW, Fall ’06.) We didn’t realize that something […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics
Patrick vs. Cahill
UPDATE: State Treasurer Tim Cahill is running for governor as an independent, not as a challenger to incumbent Gov. Deval Patrick in the Democratic primary. Still, this CW map from […]
Posted inEconomy
Making an impact
every time our magazine comes out, I wonder what kind of impact it will have. I know I’m interested in the issues we’re covering, but will others find them compelling? […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Sox score monster deal in Florida
UPDATE: A probe by the FBI may put a hold on the deal.The Boston Red Sox are showing they have lots of power off the field, negotiating a monster deal […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
CW in the news
Colman M. Herman’s CW story “Term Paper Trafficking” was reprinted in the Boston Phoenix (as “Inside the term-paper machine”) on November 5, 2009. Herman’s investigation has also been the subject […]
Posted inEducation, The Download
Online forum: Special education in Massachusetts
We welcome your comments on the cover story of the Spring 2009 issue of CommonWealth magazine.Commenters below include James Major, executive director of the Massachusetts Association of 766 Approved Private […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment, Politics, The Download
In Chicago, “green jobs” are nothing new
Since President Obama’s campaign-trail promise to create 5 million new “green jobs,” there’s been a scramble among employers, job training programs, and whole business sectors to declare themselves “green,” and, […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Blue Cross says GIC is not the only way for towns to cut insurance costs
One of Gov. Deval Patrick’s proposals to ease financial pressure on Bay State cities and towns is to move municipal employees into the Group Insurance Commission (GIC), which negotiates health […]
Posted inThe Download, Transportation
MBTA puts the squeeze on suburban legislators, the MFA, and the BSO
The MBTA has released a detailed list of service cuts it's threatening to make if it doesn't get any help in reducing its $160 million deficit — presumably in the […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Big auto insurance rate changes for some drivers
The small average changes in auto insurance rates taking effect right now mask very large increases — and decreases — for some drivers. On April 1, the one-year anniversary of the […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Starbucks hunkers down in Massachusetts
The Boston Business Journal reports that Massachusetts will be unaffected by the shuttering of about 200 Starbucks locations across the US. Perhaps we're not cutting back on pricey coffee to […]
Posted inEconomy, Environment, The Download
When green is not “green”
"Green" may be the most elastic word of the new century. Once signifying a color midway between blue and yellow, “green” has morphed to refer to anything that could possibly […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Auto insurers raising, lowering their rates
One year after the launch of auto insurance competition in Massachusetts, companies are starting to tinker with their rates. Progressive Insurance of Ohio, which has been losing money in Massachusetts, […]
Posted inEducation, The Download
Most teachers in Mass. are old enough to be grandparents
USA Today reports (with map!) that Massachusetts ranks ninth in the percentage of teachers who are over 50. Its source is the National Commission on Teaching and America's Future, which […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
In Boston, a mayoral race to the bottom?
We're getting an early taste of the Boston mayor's race, and it has a decidedly bitter flavor. Boston should be rolling out the red carpet for candidates who are serious about presenting […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download, Transportation
Massachusetts is dead last in seat-belt use
Seat belts were used in a record 83 percent of car trips last year, according to estimates by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. But seat-belt use actually declined in […]
Posted inState House News Service, The Download, Transportation
Is someone talking about transportation reform?
Rep. Joseph Wagner, the House transportation committee chairman, competed with chattering colleagues as work began on the transportation reform bill in the House chamber Tuesday afternoon. Wagner opened the session […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Newest brainstorm: A public market atop Filene’s ex-Basement
Will there be automatic markdowns on dented apples and not-so-fresh lettuce? Hair-pulling fights over heirloom tomatoes? Boston mayoral candidate Michael Flaherty suggests that the huge pit in the middle of Downtown Crossing […]