U. S. Senator Scott Brown was one of five Republicans to break ranks and side with Democrats on a $15 billion jobs measure that passed the Senate today 62-30. The goal of the bill is jobs creation. In fact, Brown was the first Republican to join support of the bill, and then he was followed …
Tiger Woods still in the rough
The trick to effective presentation is to prepare, prepare, prepare and then look as if you’re speaking off the cuff, effortlessly and authentically. Tiger Woods’ highly anticipated mea culpa looked well prepared, intermittently sincere, but not altogether authentic. That said, from the view of the American public, and viewing the event from the perspective of …
Charlie Baker: You can do better than this! An open letter to the Republican candidate for Governor
Dear Charlie,Thanks for your recent letter, sent by The Baker Committee to my home. But, Charlie, how could you let this missive go out over your name? You’re better than that!Was it done by a robo-writer? Every cliché in the book! “restore integrity” “demand accountability” “restore confidence in state government” “cut government spending” “streamline government” …
Bye, Bayh: “Things fall apart: the center cannot hold”*
Two-term Democratic Senator Evan Bayh of Indiana is quitting. He won’t run for re-election and says the main reason is that there’s too much partisanship in Washington today. As Captain Renault said in Casablanca, “I'm shocked, shocked to find that gambling is going on in here!” So Bayh is walking away from Washington, and his …
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Kindling my passion on Valentine’s Day
On Valentine’s Day, I must confess a new love in my life. I have fallen head over heels for my Kindle. So I read with more than passing interest a piece in the New York Times about a developing controversy over plans by Amazon and others under pressure from publishers to raise the price on …
Making Dollars and Sense out of Salaries and Perks
Joe Dwinell’s coverage in today’s Boston Herald of public workers cashing in unused vacation days and sick time makes the blood boil. The perk cost the city of Boston $17 million last year. And at the state level, the paper has documented how workers cashed in over $1 million in unused vacation days at Massport …
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The Governor Hits a Home Run
Governor Deval Patrick’s speech this morning to the Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce was a home run, not a grand slam perhaps, but a home run nonetheless. He made a compelling presentation of his administration’s accomplishments in “the worse economy in living memory” and laid out a six-point plan for boosting the state’s economy, with …
Wedding Bells are Ca-chings for City Clerks
Boston City Clerk Rosaria Salerno is earning$68,000 in cash, over and above her roughly $100,000 salary, by performing as a Justice of the Peace at City Hall during her normal working hours. As the Boston Herald points out, that may be legal, but what she earns could hire a teacher or a firefighter for the …
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Reflections from Afar
The thing about viewing the world from between your toes, seeing naught but silky white sand and turquoise water, is that it clears your mind. Re-entry is problematic. I note, for example, that save for the child abduction story, Haiti has disappeared from the headlines here. Is the ongoing human misery no longer a concern? …
Anti-Bullying Proposals No Laughing Matter
The rules of the game have changed, and technology once again is ahead of policy. Take the case of new legislative proposals to confront bullying. My first reaction is to mock them. Waaaah! Toughen up. Learn to take it. How are you going to get along in the grown-up world if you don’t learn to …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 