Gambling is increasingly being viewed as the answer to all the Bay State’s problems. Cities and towns are addicted to the revenue raised by the Massachusetts Lottery, and now casino gambling is being viewed as a means of funding everything from biotech research to an extension of commuter rail to the South Coast. So why [...]
Are school committees across Massachusetts truly powerless? Are they simply a leftover anachronism from that simpler, less expensive time before Education Reform? According to Lawrence School Committee member James Vittorioso, they are. Vittorioso, who has no opposition going into this fall’s election, tells Eagle-Tribune reporter Mark Vogler that there are “at least 1,000″ people in [...]
Posted in Ken Johnson, Pension Tidal Wave on Aug 6th, 2007 View Comments
Thanks to all those who commented on posts related to our Pension Tidal Wave series. Here are some responses to those who raised questions in a previous post… Scott questions the fairness of denying Social Security to those who worked in the private sector before taking a public job. It seems to me this is [...]
You might be surprised at what’s uppermost on North Shore teenagers’ minds when they get to interrogate their local congressman. According to John Tierney, D-Salem, it’s not the presidential election or even the war in Iraq. It’s the genocide taking place in the Darfur region of the Sudan. I’ve seen a couple of lawn signs [...]
The state Department of Environmental Protection is finally moving to take over the odoriferous Crow Lane landfill in Newburyport, which has been torturing its neighbors for the past several years, thanks to its owner, New Ventures LLC of Everett, ignoring environmental laws, ignoring agreements it has made, and ignoring orders from both local and state [...]
Legend has it that columnist Walter Winchell once advised his readers that if they wanted to learn the art of politics they should visit Peabody, Mass. I’ve never been able to find the exact quote, but the truth is that politics has long ranked behind only football as the North of Boston community’s favorite sport. [...]
For years the joke was a staple whenever politicians gathered, whether at the old Commodore in Beverly for St. Patrick’s Day or at one of those “times” held to raise money for an influential member of the House or Senate. So-and-so was leaving his state or city job to enter “the dreaded private sector.” Now [...]
Posted in Ken Johnson, Pension Tidal Wave on Aug 2nd, 2007 View Comments
There’s so much information in the Pension Tidal Wave series that it’s difficult to take in all at once. So let’s look at just one little piece from today’s installment. According to the Public Employee Retirement Administration, the median pension for state police officers who retired in 2006 is $62,943. Their median retirement age is [...]
Nothing better confirms a candidate’s front-runner status than when he or she becomes the target of everyone else in the race. Various polls have shown Niki Tsongas, who has the best name given there are no Kennedys running for the 5th District congressional seat, leading the Democratic field. And her opponents seemed to confirm that [...]
With the passage of yesterday’s deadline to file nomination papers, there is only one Carlos Matos running for City Council in Lawrence. Carlos R. Matos, the political newcomer, withdrew from the race for an at-large seat on the council. Carlos D. Matos, the former city councilor and 2005 mayoral candidate, remains in the race. Carlos [...]
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