As much of America is fixated on a wedding in the royal family — except, believe it or not, viewers of Fox 25 — that harkens back to the time when we were colonists, yet another vestige of long ago is making its voice heard in our own backyard. The Executive Council (aka the Governor’s […]
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Posted inEconomy, Environment, State House News Service, The Download
The Download: Payback
Maybe it’s the defensiveness engendered by the decades-long moniker of Taxachusetts or the relentless hammering by Republicans and corporations about the inhospitable business atmosphere in the state, old perceptions that officials have worked to overcome. Massachusetts has always had a “thank you sir, may I have another” approach to rejection by those who have received […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, The Download
The Download: Breaking news—important people consort and talk to each other
“No matter how cynical you get, it’s impossible to keep up,” Lily Tomlin famously said. That’s especially so if your news consumption consists of a steady diet of Boston Herald coverage. Boston’s tabloid daily can stir outrage and deliver a welcome populist punch with the best of them. But nuance and perspective have never been […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, The Download
The Download: First and goal
Union matters seem to dominate the 24-hour news cycle these days. From Wisconsin’s governor looking to eviscerate his state’s public sector unions; to Ohio being on the verge of doing the same thing; to conservative New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie unexpectedly holding out an olive branch to his unionized workers; to Gov. Deval Patrick showing […]
Posted inEconomy, Politics, The Download, Transportation
The Download: Mass. rail projects to cash in again?
Florida Gov. Rick Scott decided on Wednesday that he couldn’t be bothered to use the $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail stimulus funds to build a link from Orlando to Tampa. His explanation: anemic ridership projections and the potential for cost overruns made the project too much of a risk. But Tampa officials say the […]
Posted inEconomy, Health Care, Politics, The Download
The Download: Seeking middle ground on public workers
Gov. Deval Patrick is struggling with how to rein in municipal health care costs. Those costs are eating up city and town budgets, and most voters think public sector union workers are living high on the hog. Many mayors are pressing for the authority to unilaterally cut the benefits of their workers. But Patrick has […]
Posted inEconomy, Education, The Download
The Download: Where the grads are
Well-educated people tend to congregate together, and sometimes so do high school dropouts. Portfolio.com scoured Census data for information on educational attainment and then ranked the 200 largest metropolitan statistical areas. The accompanying story – “Brain bounty or brain busted?” – doesn’t add much, but the list itself is something you just can’t help checking […]
Posted inEconomy, Education, Environment, Politics, The Download
The Download: House proud
Real estate helped sink the American economy, but real estate can bring it back. However, only if policymakers and developers keep two of the country’s largest demographic groups in mind. In their article, “The Next Real Estate Boom,” two Washington Monthly contributors, Patrick Doherty and Christopher Leinberger, believe that housing policies that cater to aging […]