All three Democratic Presidential contenders were at the top of their games on Saturday night, but, given the time slot the Democratic National Committee had agreed to, relatively few people saw them. Early ratings indicate that only around eight million viewers watched the debate in real time, far fewer than the 18 million who tuned in …
Category: Politics
Take-aways from GOP Presidential debate
Sometimes the answer to who wins a debate lies in what sticks with you two days after the event. In the case of Tuesday's CNN GOP Presidential debate out of Las Vegas, there were several sparks that still glow. After a bumbling start, in which Jeb Bush flubbed his opening remark (hasn't he found a …
Cellphones and cars: a lethal mix?
Not long ago, I was exiting Route 128 for Route 30 on the Newton/Weston line. Cars merging into Route 128 are supposed to yield (note to Massachusetts drivers: that means give the other driver the right of way). My path was about to cross that of a paneled truck belonging to a Portugese bakery. Not surprisingly, …
Seeking sanity on Syrian refugees
ISIS boasts that it's embedding its fighters in the flood of refugees escaping war-torn Syria. Frontline Greece says it doesn't have the resources to properly screen the tsunami of humanity. Brussels, after years of looking the other way, is on lockdown looking for terrorists involved in planning the Paris attacks and more, who travel freely in a borderless …
Paris horror: sad, angry and seeking solutions
Our friends in Paris are safe: "shocked, sad, anxious, but safe." But also angry, en colère. A lot of their children's friends and school mates were injured; a university friend, 21 years old, is dead. Here at home, we remember the Marathon bombing and try to multiply it thirtyfold. And, as we were Boston Strong, so …
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It’s the future, stupid
The future lies ahead, but which candidate will embrace it? I want to share some analysis laid out this week at The New England Council. That venerable business organization has, with bipartisan support, lobbied for years for practical solutions to bedrock issues like energy, transportation and infrastructure. Its year-long relationship with consulting firm Purple Strategies is a logical one. …
Charlie Baker: color him purple
Charlie Baker couldn't be elected dog catcher as a Republican in wide red swaths of our country. For evidence, look at just the last 24 hours. Our Republican governor is expanding diversity in businesses contracting with the state, widening opportunities for people with disabilities and LGBT orientations to share in the $4 billion a year in contracts for …
Can public schools be saved?
It takes a strong woman, a person of standing, experience, intellect and courage to change her mind in the public arena. No, I'm not talking about Hillary Clinton. I'm talking about another Wellesley College graduate, Diane Silvers Ravitch. A former assistant secretary of education under President George Herbert Walker Bush, she also served under President …
It’s Hillary: get over it
With Joe Biden announcing it was too late for him to get into the Presidential campaign, her effective performances at last week's debate and yesterday's Benghazi hearing, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton seems the inevitable nominee of the Democratic Party---unless the ongoing FBI investigation leads to an indictment. Given the sour public mood and upside-down …
She’s ba-ack
Hillary Clinton is back, in large part because debate preparation matters. And she does it well. The woman who has been dogged by questions about her failure to use separate servers for official and personal purposes and then waiting for two years to turn over her emails to appropriate government authorities was given leave …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 