THE MASSACHUSETTS SENATE has passed its bill for short-term-rentals, a stripped-down version of the House measure that simplifies the tax on hosts and eliminates any tiered structure so that people […]
Boston
Posted inOpinion
He brought Boston back from the brink
FOR THOSE WHO REMEMBER Boston television news in the pre-cable days, Jack Hynes was a powerful media presence for decades. He anchored the news with a gravitas that made you […]
Posted inEconomy
Amazon, come to Boston
Dear Jeff Bezos, Build it in Boston. Your second corporate headquarters, which you intend to be a “full equal” to Amazon’s home in Seattle, belongs in the Athens of America. I know there’s competition […]
Posted inPolitics, The Back Story
Tito Jackson’s address? It’s complicated
TITO JACKSON, the Boston city councilor who is challenging Mayor Marty Walsh this fall, is not generally one to shrink from a tough question or dodge and weave around a […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Jackson shakes up the map
THAT BOSTON CONVERSATION about race is about to get super interesting, but perhaps not in the way Mayor Marty Walsh intended. Walsh, who announced the conversations late last year, will […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Boston’s presidential election numbers
NATIONWIDE, THE STORY over the past couple of weeks has been how Donald Trump outmaneuvered Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Back here in Boston the converse was true: […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
What I told my students after the election
ONE OF THE biggest things that kept me awake on Tuesday night was how I would help my eighth grade civics class process this election, especially since I spent Tuesday’s […]
Posted inEducation, Opinion
Boston’s ‘A team’ of charter school leaders
ANYONE LISTENING TO the pricey TV ad duels over whether to lift the cap on charter schools in Massachusetts knows there’s plenty to disagree about. But only the careful listeners […]
Posted inPolitics, State House News Service, The Download
The Codcast: Walsh’s woes
These are not the happy days of summer for Boston’s mayor Marty Walsh. The city’s first-term mayor is reeling from one crisis to another, whether it’s the botched IndyCar race […]
Posted inThe Download
The Codcast: What makes for a world-class city?
Is hosting big events like the IndyCar race or Olympics the mark of a world-class city, or more of a distraction from the things that give Boston a global edge […]
Posted inPolitics, The Download
Math and spine test for Boston City Council
Boston’s city charter provides for a strong-mayor system of government. It may, in fact, be one of the strongest city executive structures in the country. That’s why the City Council […]
Posted inThe Download
GE coming because of our brains, not brilliant pols
With all the excitement and high-fiving among state and city and leaders starting to wind down, now comes the annoying reality check on the General Electric news that ruins all […]
Posted inPolitics
To be Frank
BARNEY FRANK IS passing time with a newspaper crossword puzzle before our interview. When I arrive at the West Newton video studio where he does live shots for CNBC, Frank […]
Posted inCriminal Justice, The Download
Bloody night in Greater Boston
Gun violence has become the Muzak soundtrack to life in urban America: It’s always there, it’s bothersome, and it’s barely noticed after a while. At least by those outside its […]
Posted inOpinion, Politics
Instant runoff voting could improve Boston elections
ACROSS THE COUNTRY, voter turnout in local elections has steadily dropped. Electorates for local elections are a shell of what they once were — and of what they could be, […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
No complaints must mean no problems!
It’s become an institution in New York City and Somerville, but Boston has no plans to add a 311 hotline to handle residents’ non-emergency complaints and questions. The Boston Globe’s […]
Posted inThe Download, Uncategorized
Which Washington Street?
The Boston Globe’s Maria Cramer reports that police responded to a homicide call by going to the wrong Washington Street. The mistake underscores the confusing nature of Boston’s road patterns, […]
