Politics
Politics
Reporter's Notebook: Baker seeks three elected slots on school committee
Jan. 16, 2013
The city’s School Committee would be converted into a hybrid group of elected and appointed officials, under a bill District 3 Councillor Frank Baker filed this week.
The home rule petition splits the panel into a group of four mayorally appointed members and three members elected by a citywide vote. The petition would need the approval of the City Council and the mayor, a most unlikely event, before being sent to the Legislature. Read more
Former City Hall aide from Charlestown considering at-large run
By
A former City Hall aide is mulling a run for one of the City Council’s four at-large seats. “I am considering all of my options but I haven’t made any sort of concrete decision yet,” said Jack Kelly, who served as Mayor Thomas Menino’s neighborhood liaison in Charlestown.
Kelly said there is a need for more people at the state and city level talking about comprehensive substance abuse programs.
Kelly, who currently works at Massachusetts General Hospital as a community relations manager, is a member of the Charlestown Neighborhood Watch and the Charlestown Substance Abuse Coalition. He has also written for Patch.com and, according to his LinkedIn profile, served as an extra in the Ben Affleck movie, “The Town.” Read more
The sixth term question
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It's the Question that crops up at nearly every press conference as Mayor Thomas Menino eases back into his regular schedule: Is he running for a sixth term?
On Tuesday, after the mayor stood with shoe company executives who plan to move into Lovejoy Wharf in 2015, a reporter asked The Question. It prompted Menino spokeswoman, standing next to him, to quip "Bingo," perhaps for those playing along back at City Hall. Read more
Let’s all get the Greenway back on track
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One of the big unresolved news stories of the last year has been the Neponset Greenway and the state’s so-far unsuccessful efforts to get funding to extend the multi-use trail into Mattapan and to make enhancements along Dorchester Bay. Last year saw a second bid for federal grant money fall short— outcomes that were disappointing but also predictable, given the odds. Read more
Reporter's Notebook: No groundswell yet in wake of bigfoot push for Markey
Jan. 10, 2013
If the primary goal of supportive statements from US Sen. John Kerry and other top Democrats was to clear the field for Congressman Ed Markey in a special election to replace Kerry after he takes the oath as President Obama’s secretary of state, the moves have yet to publicly bear any fruit. Other Democrats continue to consider a run for the Senate seat, including Congressmen Stephen Lynch and Michael Capuano and state Sen. Ben Downing (D-Pittsfield). Read more
Council president once more, Murphy looks ahead
Jan. 9, 2013
Stephen Murphy on Monday cruised through another election for City Council president, with his colleagues on the 13-member body voting unanimously to hand him the title a third time.
District 4 Councillor Charles Yancey initially voted for himself during the roll call, and then asked for the vote for Murphy to be unanimous.
The vote came at the council’s first meeting of the year. Members also unanimously voted to retain Maureen Feeney, the former District 3 councillor who represented Dorchester between 1993 and 2011, as city clerk. Read more
Think about children everywhere when talking about mass violence
Jan. 9, 2013
In the aftermath of the horror of the Newtown massacre and the nation’s reaction to it, one notices the contrast between the grief and resolve evident after this unspeakable crime and the apathy that prevails when “collateral damage” includes the unintended death of innocent children.
How many thousands of children have been killed by our forces in the wars of the last half century, from Vietnam to Afghanistan? That they were unintended consequences may assuage the conscience of those responsible, but it does not diminish the loss or ease the pain and sorrow of loved ones. Read more
Why shouldn’t we just eliminate guns?
Jan. 9, 2013
To the Editor:
The primary function of a firearm is to kill people. Killing people is what most guns are specifically designed to do. This fact begs the following questions:
Since the 30,000 gun deaths per year in the United States are nearly all murders, suicides and accidents, and few deaths are prevented by armed self-defense, why are guns valued for self-defense?
Since many children are killed by guns, why would a parent want to possess one? Read more
Moving forward in the 5th Suffolk
Jan. 9, 2013
Dear Neighbor,
As we enter a new year and a new legislative session I am honored to represent the most diverse district and neighborhoods not just in Boston or Massachusetts but nation-wide.
Entering my second term, my commitment remains the same with education, public safety, employment and youth being the focus. We have long faced tough issues as individuals, families, and as a community. It is time we increase our knowledge, organization, and activism for the purpose of increasing our collective gains. Read more
Patrick poised to sign state work diversity bill
Jan. 9, 2013
Gov. Deval Patrick is expected this week to sign a bill requiring the state to post on a quarterly basis the workforce diversity of contractors working on public projects. Supporters say the bill aims to hold contractors on state-funded construction efforts accountable. Read more
