She listened, she learned, and took a big step forward. For weeks, many sympathetic to Elizabeth Warren’s US Senate candidacy have expressed exasperation at her campaign and her candidate skills. In this, the important first debate against her often affable opponent, incumbent Scott Brown, she more than held her own. Brown, in an overbearing (television …
“Innocence of Muslims” film tests First Amendment beliefs
Set aside such unacceptable (and criminal) "clear and present" dangers such as shouting Fire in a crowded theater, as a journalist I have always thought of myself as something of a First Amendment absolutist. That's being tested these days. The cornerstone of democracy is having a vigorous marketplace of ideas, where all ideas, regardless of merit, are tested, …
Continue reading “Innocence of Muslims” film tests First Amendment beliefs
“Meet the Press” jumps the shark
Over the summer it was rumored that NBC was going to drop David Gregory from the Meet the Press moderator's chair because of dramatically declining ratings. Would that they had. Except for FOX appearances, Mitt Romney has been AWOL from network news interview programs. On Sunday, host David Gregory missed opportunity after opportunity to quiz Romney …
Tax dollars for murderer’s sex change operation!
Should a murderer in prison for life be entitled to an elective surgical procedure at taxpayers' expense? Fifty state legislators have asked the state Department of Corrections to appeal Judge Mark Wolf's decision that the Commonwealth should have to pay for incarcerated murderer Michelle (formerly Robert) Kosilek's sex change operation. $50,000 or more for a procedure that no …
Continue reading Tax dollars for murderer’s sex change operation!
Will Obama’s different world view win him another term?
They say a candidate campaigns with poetry but, if elected, governs with prose. Last night's speech by Barack Obama, despite some soaring moments, reflected the gravitas he has developed in nearly four years in office. The idea that our path "may be harder, but it leads to a better place" is a sober reminder that, …
Continue reading Will Obama’s different world view win him another term?
Loosen up, Lizzie
When Elizabeth Warren walked out on the convention stage last night, smiling and waving, ebullient, she seemed to radiate personality and warmth. That sparkle dissipated when she got into her stump speech, slightly expanded for the occasion. Except for some references to small business owners in Malden, Franklin and Worcester, it was nevertheless a perfect …
Patrick fires the crowd, auditions well
Governor Deval Patrick has always been a great campaigner. (Remember how he dramatically he came to life to run successfully for a second term against popular and accomplished Republican candidate Charlie Baker?) Last night's speech to the Democratic National Convention showed Patrick in his very best campaign mode. His role was to remind Americans that …
Romney’s Norman Rockwell moment
Mitt Romney's vision of America is right out of Norman Rockwell and the 1950's. It's out of step with the complexity of today's world. His best line last night was, "You know there's something wrong with the kind of job he's done as president when the best feeling you had was the day you voted for …
Ann Romney pitch to women: polished and poll-driven
Mitt Romney quoted Popeye Sunday on Fox News, saying, "I am what I am, and that's all what I am." (As hinted at by Scott Lehigh in today's Globe, we don't know if that's Mitt 1.0, 2.0 or 5.0.) Ann Romney's job at the convention was to make of him something more than what the public now …
Continue reading Ann Romney pitch to women: polished and poll-driven
Looking ahead to Red Sox 2013
Trudging up to Yawkey Way from the Kenmore Square T stop last Friday, I tasted bile in contemplating the horrors of the 2012 team, a performance that defies description by all but the Globe's Dan Shaughnessey. I consoled myself that it was a picture perfect summer night for a ballgame and, besides, I hadn't been to Fenway yet this season. A …
Marjorie Arons-Barron 