Opinion

Local access channels getting tuned out

Media

Local access channels getting tuned out

Cable companies keep programming in standard def, off channel guides

By , , , , 0 Comments

WE ARE IN a new age of news and media. It started with the 24 hour news cycle, it changed again with the advent of social media, and most recently our media landscape changed with the introduction of the term “fake news” into our vernacular. For the first time, perhaps ever, we have foreign countries(...)

Read More »

Three pieces of ‘employability’ advice for college seniors

Economy/ Education

Three pieces of ‘employability’ advice for college seniors

A little planning will go a long way in finding a good career match

By , , 0 Comments

START GETTING INTERNSHIPS your first year of college. Always keep an open mind about what kind of career could work for you. And refuse to think you have to squelch your personality—or fit in a cookie cutter—to be an attractive job candidate. From my two years as a career services counselor at Bentley University, those(...)

Read More »

Harbor barrier study undermined by assumptions

Environment

Harbor barrier study undermined by assumptions

Starting point of UMass Boston research dictated conclusions

By 0 Comments

A PUBLIC UNIVERSITY releases a report advising on the course of action that a major urban center should pursue to prepare for predicted sea-level rise and increased frequency and severity of storm events.  What is the public reaction?  How is the report evaluated?  Does a single study based on numerous unexamined assumptions set the course(...)

Read More »

How to solve homelessness

Economy/ Housing

How to solve homelessness

Solutions abound; they just need money

By and , , , , , 0 Comments

TONIGHT, 6,300 MEN and women across the Commonwealth will sleep on the streets or in shelter. Although that statistic may be disheartening, this does not have to be the case. Homeless services providers across the state do not lack for solutions to end homelessness – we lack the necessary resources. Additional funding would allow providers(...)

Read More »

Acknowledging the everyday trauma in students’ lives

Education

Acknowledging the everyday trauma in students’ lives

We focus on high-profile events but ignore daily reality in low-income neighborhoods

By and , 0 Comments

HIGH-PROFILE ACTS of violence in schools have, rightly, received our attention – and the headlines. However, there is a deeper story: pervasive trauma experienced by too many inner-city youth, often deemed routine, which is ultimately ignored. There is a disproportionate response by the media, policymakers, and the public after a school shooting. While Parkland and(...)

Read More »

House bill plays Robin Hood on health care

Health Care

House bill plays Robin Hood on health care

Introduces concept of ‘unwarranted factors’ of price variation

By , 0 Comments

THE HOUSE HEALTH CARE BILL breathes new life into an approach taken in the 2012 cost containment bill—using some Robin Hood-like assessments as a means to improve the financial plight facing some of our have-not health care providers. Essentially, the House bill attempts to raise some $450 million in assessments over three years to finance(...)

Read More »

Regulatory reset needed on Uber, self-driving cars

Modernizing Mobility/ Tracking Transportation/ Transportation

Regulatory reset needed on Uber, self-driving cars

Impose a series of fees and use the funds for public transit

By , 0 Comments

Second of two parts (First part can be found here.)  MASSACHUSETTS STATE AND MUNICIPAL DECISION MAKERS must push a reset button and develop a template for a more comprehensive and robust regulatory framework that will guide the operation of Transportation Network Company and autonomous vehicle business models. It’s a necessary first step in the process(...)

Read More »

Clouds over Mass. solar industry

Plugging In/ Energy/ Environment

Clouds over Mass. solar industry

Clear, bold leadership needed from Beacon Hill

By , 0 Comments

IT’S HARD TO BELIEVE THAT, just a decade ago, seeing solar panels was a novelty in neighborhoods across Massachusetts. Today, that’s all changed.  Solar projects are ubiquitous across the Commonwealth – from the rooftops of homes, schools, and office buildings to solar canopies in parking lots and community solar farms. What’s been dubbed a “solar revolution”(...)

Read More »

TNCs existential threat to public transportation

Modernizing Mobility/ Tracking Transportation/ Transportation

TNCs existential threat to public transportation

Ride-hailing apps are a disruptive auto-centric technology

By , 0 Comments

First of two parts ADVOCACY IS WHAT LIKE-MINDED people do, usually in an organized fashion, to effect change in the way government or public policy impacts their lives. Advocacy can take many forms and approaches, from energizing and activating people at the grassroots, to persuading decision makers at the grasstops, to knocking on doors in(...)

Read More »

No 7th inning stretch needed, just clean energy home runs

Plugging In/ Energy/ Environment

No 7th inning stretch needed, just clean energy home runs

National Grid baseball analogy provokes strong response

By , and 0 Comments

This commentary was written by Joel Wool. I’VE NEVER BEEN A FAN of baseball metaphors. If we’re talking efficient use of energy rather than exercise or entertainment, it’s hard to see the utility of hitting a ball and running in circles. But since opponents of clean energy reforms have called for a “7th-inning stretch” to(...)

Read More »

< 1 2 3 4 5 >>|