Public Opinion Polls

What would you say are your chances of being polled? Very likely. Somewhat likely. Slim to none. No opinion. The fact is, if you have a telephone and the poll […]

We could call it the $11,000 lesson: Always make political candidates pay up front. Richard Berberian, who owns a North Shore multi-media company, learned it over the last few years […]

To the casual observer, the 1998 race for governor may have looked like a two-man face-off back in the middle of May. That’s when Acting Governor Paul Cellucci and Attorney […]

Kevin Sowyrda calls from his car phone to say he’s giving up. He’s tired of being “stalked.” He’ll do the interview. He’ll be right over.Sowyrda, who is probably the most-quoted […]

Robert J. Haynes, the new president of the Massachusetts AFL-CIO, is in his Beacon Street office in Boston, expounding on one of his favorite themes–the changing face and expanding role […]

It is the middle of the school day and Somerville High is strangely quiet. The only sound of youth in the huge building comes from the score of teenagers who […]

This is the nightmare scenario: Massachusetts Republicans wake up on Nov. 4, the day after Election Day, and find themselves with nothing. After a hard campaign, the Democrats have retaken […]

One Nation, After All: What Middle-Class Americans Really Think About: God, Country, Family, Racism, Welfare, Immigration, Homosexuality, Work, the Right, the Left, and Each Other By Alan Wolfe Viking, New […]

Judy Roberts thought it was about time someone asked for her opinion. At 36, the Quincy insurance agent had long ago grown tired of politicians who ignore what matters to […]

Of course it’s true that the system of getting elected to public office in this country, if you step back and think about it, is insane. For a candidate to […]

Mackerel by Moonlight By William F. Weld Simon & Schuster, New York, 1998, 238 pages William Floyd Weld, as we all know, has led a charmed upper-crust life. He likes […]

Kevin Sowyrda calls from his car phone to say he’s giving up. He’s tired of being “stalked.” He’ll do the interview. He’ll be right over. Sowyrda, who is probably the […]

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts JOURNAL OF THE HOUSE Thursday, April 31, 1998 Met according to adjournment, at eleven o’clock A.M. in a Full Formal Session. Prayer was offered by the […]

There is little about John W. Sears that suggests a thoroughly modern man. From the Gilbert & Sullivan references dropped into conversation, to the books aligned on the top of […]

A group of investors is clamoring to lower the taxes they pay. There’s nothing new here; wealthy people and businesses are always trying to shift the tax burden onto working […]

Is it fair that Massachusetts penalizes you for saving? At 12 percent, the tax on investment income is double the rate on wages and salaries, and is the highest tax […]

When Acting Gov. Paul Cellucci sent his budget proposal to the Legislature earlier this year, it represented a politician’s picture of paradise. The economic boom has lifted state revenues to […]

What do Bob Vila, Paul Theroux, and David Magnani have in common? No, they have not appeared together in “This Old House,” on the cover of The Mosquito Coast, or […]

He may be remembered best for his bill requiring dogs to wear diapers. But Rosaire Rajotte has pitched 685 other legislative proposals to clean up the Commonwealth. The retired maintenance […]