I agree with those who say that the few thousand bucks area school districts spent last November sending their superintendents and some school committee members to a conference on Cape Cod (read about it here) was no big deal - at least when it comes to breaking budgets. The top outlay of $4,500, which Methuen [...]
Archive for the 'Local politics' Category
The money is in contracts, not ‘efficiencies’
Posted in Local politics, Municipal meltdown, Taylor Armerding on Jan 5th, 2009 Comments
Yes you can - vote them out
Posted in Local politics, State issues, Taylor Armerding on Oct 31st, 2008 Comments
I’m voting for Question 1, to eliminate the state income tax, which shouldn’t surprise anybody. Every time I hear from its opponents that it would be “reckless” or “irresponsible,” I wonder, “Do these people ever stop to look in the mirror?” Reckless and irresponsible is the way they have been spending, demanding spending or enabling [...]
A coincidental coincidence
Posted in Local politics, State issues, Taylor Armerding on May 2nd, 2008 Comments
Haven’t we hear this song before? Bills get passed, or killed, at the Statehouse that directly benefit good friends of those in power, and it’s all a complete coincidence. Nobody influenced anybody.
So it’s a familiar melody coming from the lips of the surrogate subordinates of House Speaker Sal DiMasi. Among the scandals currently distracting the [...]
War on charters = war on ‘the children’
Posted in Local politics, State issues, Taylor Armerding on Mar 13th, 2008 Comments
Supposedly, there are systems in place to make sure that when state or local government provides a service, it hires the best contractor to do the job. You know, if they find one who can build roads and bridges that last twice as long as the average for the same price as everybody else, they [...]
Divide the people and raise taxes
Posted in Local politics, Massachusetts politics, Municipal meltdown, Taylor Armerding on Feb 6th, 2008 Comments
Newton state Rep. Ruth Balser’s bill to exempt senior citizens from the impact of Proposition 2 1/2 overrides (something she has tried before) is not only a very bad idea. It is transparently disingenuous. It’s not about helping seniors, who already have more than enough help available to them if they really can’t pay their [...]
Come to a complete stop - union crossing
Posted in Local politics, Taylor Armerding on Jan 16th, 2008 Comments
If there were any doubts about Andover teachers having a sense of entitlement on the scale of some of the McMansions in town, science teacher Tim Van Wey has removed them. Read his letter to the editor here.
Van Wey objects to a news story here that said the teachers blocked traffic off of Main Street [...]
Of course the unions in Andover want to settle their contracts sooner than later. Who wouldn’t want that?
But there’s a difference between them and those in the private sector who have to pay for those contracts. It’s not like union members have to worry about losing their jobs if they don’t have a signed contract, [...]
Yeah, it’s shocking and appalling that James F. Stokes of Lawrence would fake a military discharge record. Read all about it here. It’s shocking and appalling that he’d go so far as to put his claim to be a veteran of the U.S. Marines on the ballot when he ran for School Committee. It’s shocking [...]
It’s a spending problem
Posted in Local politics, Nelson Benton, Pension Tidal Wave, Uncategorized on Nov 25th, 2007 Comments
The latest issue of MassINC’s CommonWealth magazine has a good article on the fiscal perils facing Bay State communities. Residents of Salem, Gloucester and Lawrence, all of which are dealing with significant deficits these days, might want to take note.
Unfortunately author Gabrielle Gurley devotes too much space to municipal leaders’ whining about how they need [...]
Salem (Mass.) Mayor Kim Driscoll has become something of a role model for women like Gloucester’s mayor-elect, Carolyn Kirk, who are seeking to advance in the municipal arena.
But after a fairly tumulturous couple of years, Driscoll faces what is perhaps her biggest test yet.
In what might be described as a fiscal perfect storm, Salem was [...]
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