Jimmy Carter won the Democratic presidential nomination in 1976 with great help from early victories in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire primary, but what clinched things for him was […]
“Giuliani’s dead zone advantage,” or “Son of Jimmy Carter”
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The view on the 5th from Washington
The Washington Post’s E.J. Dionne weighs in on the 5th District race narrowly won by Niki Tsongas: Her victory on Tuesday speaks to the continuing unpopularity of President Bush and […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Hastert brings a special touch to congressional elections
The Associated Press is reporting yesterday that former US House Speaker Dennis Hastert will resign from his congressional seat in Illinois this year, setting up a special election for his […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The permanent campaign
The Washington Post’s Dan Balz takes a look at the efforts by Iowa and New Hampshire to preserve their spots at the head of the line in the presidential nomination […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Fun with presidential campaign contributions
The Federal Election Commission has released data on contributions to presidential campaigns as of the last day of September, so it’s time for some geographic data-crunching. (But if you go […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The lowdown on the 5th
The results from the 5th District congressional race are in, and as our map above shows, Democrat Niki Tsongas won by holding the Democratic cities of Lawrence and Lowell, plus […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Worcester isn’t west!
As if gambling isn’t controversial enough on its own, Gov. Patrick’s proposed "casino zones" — three regions that would each host one Vegas-style complex — are also stirring up trouble. […]
Posted inEducation, The Download, Transportation
Why Johnny Can’t Walk to School
"Less than 15 percent of all schoolchildren walk or ride bicycles to school," notes Charles Euchner (a frequent contributor to CommonWealth) in a fascinating Hartford Courant column. The main reason […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Libertarian nation, from New Hampshire to Nevada
Third-quarter presidential fundraising statistics are out, and places like the New York Times have rather unhelpful maps that show where candidates are getting their money but are not adjusted for […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Electric fence keeps presidential candidates in line
At least that’s the effect of their pledges not to campaign in any state that dares to defy Iowa and New Hampshire by holding their primary too early. The St. […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Election eve maps: 5th Congressional District
The above map shows what a Republican victory looks like in the 5th District of Massachusetts, where voters will be choosing between Democrat Niki Tsongas and Republican Jim Ogonowski in […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Sunday quickie: Independent voters in Massachusetts
For some reason, my Bloglines feed for today’s Boston Globe sent me a chart listing the percentage of voters in each Massachusetts town who are "unenrolled" (i.e., not affiliated with […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Land sharks: Keep walking or get arrested
The New York Times reports on the case of a pedestrian arrested for — well, not being enough of a pedestrian: According to court documents, a man named Matthew Jones […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Dems diss Michigan
Yesterday five Democratic candidates (Obama, Edwards, Richardson, Biden, Kucinich) pulled their name off the ballot for the January 15 presidential primary in Michigan, leaving Christopher Dodd as the only obstacle […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Indefensible political statement of the week
"Voters have a very strange way of not listening to the pundits." — Gary Hart, to the Boston Globe’s Scot Lehigh in an October 5 column titled "Clinton is far […]
Posted inThe Download, Transportation
Transit stats: MBTA ridership is southbound
Public transit fans (not to be confused with foamers) should head over to the American Public Transportation Association to get ridership stats for the first six months of 2007. The […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Neighborhood anchors face extinction
Entrepreneur.com has an interesting list of the 10 Businesses Facing Extinction in 10 Years. No surprise that newspapers and pay phones are on there, but a few may be worrisome […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The solidifying South
Over the next few months, I’ll be posting maps to set up the geographical context of the 2008 presidential election, and to explain how I came up with the 10 […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Megabucks
The Sunday New York Times has a story and interactive map on state lotteries. Massachusetts is singled out as having "the highest lottery spending per resident, at $699, and the […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
History of the Wal-Mart Empire
I offer no opinion on the merits of shopping at Wal-Mart, but I feel compelled to point out this cool video from the Wall Street Journal. "The Diffusion of Wal-Mart" […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
The unbearable oddness of the Iowa caucuses
Friday, October 5, 2007 Blue Mass. Group has a great post (and subsequent discussion) about the Iowa caucuses and how different they are from any kind of election most of […]
Posted inHealth Care, The Download
Expensive shrinks cost Massachusetts billions in lost productivity
The Milken Institute reported on Tuesday that the US economy took a hit of more than $1 trillion in 2003, all from lost workdays and lower productivity due to chronic […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
Wonder condos in Natick
Last week the New York Times reported on the 215 luxury condos going up next to a Natick mall, on the site of an old Wonder Bread factory:Applying the lifestyle-center […]
Posted inEconomy, The Download
More heads need more roofs
Housing has become scarcer in the dark-colored states on the above map, with new residents moving in (or being born) faster than contractors can put up houses. (Click […]