Today's Suffolk University/7 News poll shows Scott Brown ahead of Martha Coakley for the first time -by four points, essentially a margin-of-error difference. This dramatic news is somewhat understandable when you look at how the people of Massachusetts have shifted on the state's 3-year-old health care law (making this race more than ever a proxy …
Economic Development in Haiti: can you say Jatropha?
I keep thinking about what Boston, Lowell, Minneapolis or New York would look like after a 7.0 earthquake, the crumbling buildings, bodies pinned beneath, the unavailability of food, water and electricity, the difficulty of getting medical care. The anguish is unimaginable. But the reality is now in the poorest country in our hemisphere. One wonders …
Continue reading Economic Development in Haiti: can you say Jatropha?
The Last Senate Debate…..Mercifully
A vote for Republican state Senator Scott Brown is a vote against health reform legislation. A vote for Democratic Attorney General Martha Coakley is a vote against deficit reduction. Those are the main take-aways from last night's final debate among candidates seeking to fill Ted Kennedy's seat in the U.S. Senate. Conclusion: they may sit …
Huntington Theatre’s "All My Sons" a Home Run
This play has it all - powerful acting, taut story line, deft direction, exquisite set design, even top-notch sound. It's such a compelling production that you don't want to leave your seat at the end.The themes of Arthur Miller's 1947 drama All My Sons, which opened last night at the Huntington Theatre, are as relevant …
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Katrina victims still hanging out to dry
With all the riveting headline issues - Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, unemployment, terrorist bombing attempts - not to mention health care reform and the U.S. Senate race - it's easier to forget the continuing effects of hurricane Katrina on the least powerful residents of New Orleans. Levelled by winds, rain and flooding back in 2005, thousands …
Mass. politics yesterday and today
The Massachusetts political pipeline does seem to be opening up this year, uncorked at the top by the passing of Ted Kennedy, with a slight domino effect in lower level offices. David Bernstein predicts an unprecedented reshuffling in this year's upcoming political races in today's Boston Phoenix. Add to the mix the vacancy caused by …
Scott Brown, per diems and the big picture
Jessica Van Sack's article in today's Boston Herald questions Republican Senate candidate Scott Brown's consistency in holding himself up as the candidate of fiscal responsibility and taking over $3500 in per diems in 2009 in addition to his state Senate salary of $80,000. As I told her in the piece, it might not matter in …
Getting Smart
How do we get smart? We know about street smart, book smart, and the half dozen different kinds of intelligence identified by social scientists.But what is a well educated person? The questions are raised, though not definitively answered, in An Education, yet another coming-of-age movie out this season. It is a very enjoyable movie, written …
t’is the season to see movies!
Compared to Christmas Day movies in past years, - Syriana, Million Dollar Baby, Gran' Turino come to mind - Up in the Air pales by comparison. But it's better than it could have ended up. George Clooney is always a pleasure to watch, though in this film he seems much more like George Clooney playing …
Health Reform Surprise Benefit for Nurses
There’s a surprise benefit expected to come out of the pending health reform legislation, and it has received little if any attention in the public debate. Congress is seeing fit to do something about the nursing shortage. Both House and Senate versions understand that, when for the first time you’re insuring 30 million or more …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 