EaBo Clipper

RedMassGroup.com

2007-02-25T18:36:00.000-05:00

I've moved my posting to Red Mass Group the only publically collaborative conservative/libertarian blog in Massachusetts.

Welcome Commissioner Davis

2006-12-03T09:00:00.000-05:00

Welcome Commissioner Davis. For those of you who'd like to get to know the new Police Commissioner a little better, this pull out section from the Lowell Sun should give you an idea of the man who has become our new Police Commissioner.

Bring on the Barleywines

2006-11-23T12:55:00.000-05:00

This has to be my favorite(favourite for all you Canucks) time of the year in the local craft brewing scene. It's the time of the year in which Barleywine, that holy grail of beer, abounds. For thanksgiving weekend I purchased 2 growlers of the Harpoon 100 bbl series Barleywine. What a great choice, I just finished by first glass and can't wait to see how it goes with the Turkey in about a half hour.

I can't wait to try Cambridge Brewing Company's and Boston Beer Works barleywine offerings as the winter progresses.

It's not about Gay Marriage, It's about the Constitution

2006-11-19T22:00:00.000-05:00

The Constitution of the Soverign Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the oldest active constitution in the world, prescribes the way in one may change said Constitution. It doesn't matter what the hell the amendment is, this is not about Gay Marriage, the amendment could be to make kumquats available for sale only on the third Thursday of every month, and my argument would be the same.

The Constitution of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts states that if a certain number of signatures are gathered for an initiative to change the Constituion then the legislature, MUST go into Constitutional Convention and SHALL vote, not may vote, not can vote, but SHALL vote
on said amendment. Only a plurality of the constitutional convention votes is required in two consecutive constitutional conventions to put the vote to the people. The proponents of the gay marriage amendment have the necessary plurality. However the Speaker of the House has
used procedural tactics to delay a vote and now basically kill the vote. The legislature is done at 12 am on January 3, 2006. The constiutional convention voted by a slim majority to "recess" not adjourn, but "recess" until the January 2. By recessing and not adjourning the Governor, and the Supreme Judicial Court(who has ruled they must vote on the pending amendment), have no legal recourse to call the convention back into session. This is a clear violation of
the Constitution of the Commonwealth and how the government of the Commonwealth is supposed to run.

Why is Sal Dimasi so hell bent on destroying the Constitution of The Commonwealth of Massachusetts?

BC Outhustled, Outplayed

2006-11-14T07:47:00.000-05:00

Thanks to one of my friends, I scored late tickets to the BC/Vermont game last night. We got there as the second half was starting, and all I can say is ugh. I've not seen uninspired play like I saw out of that Boston College basketball team since my high school playing days for the St. Joseph's Regional High School Crusaders in Lowell. A team that went 0 for my first three seasons.
Watching Vermont play was a thing of beauty on the other hand. Solid defense, the Catamounts actually kept their hands out and up on D in the 2-1-2 zone defense and low and behold, it created significant turnover opportunities. I guess there is a place in Basketball for fundamentals. Vermont seemed to run well designed plays based on player movement throughout the night. It didn't seem as BC ran even one designed play, there was no conistency to their attack.

The worst part of the evening for a BC fan however was that there was no hustle by the BC team after say the 10th minute of play in the second half. Down by 12-16 points for much of the time in the final 10 minutes, there was no sense of urgency on the part of the BC point guard. He lacksidasically brought the ball up to half court and took an eternity looking for an open man.
The other part of BC's game that is unexcusable is their lack of success at the free throw line, gentlemen it's called a free throw for a reason, they are free points. At a Division 1 college level you should really be a little better at shooting free throws. There is no excuse for having a 50% free throw percentage, that's just awful.

My guess is there will be lots of suicide drills today at practice. Lots.

Where to from here?

2006-11-10T15:37:00.000-05:00

Where do Republican's in Massachusetts go from here. We are at a crossroads that the current power vacuum has brought us to. Do we go down the road of becoming a socially conservative party, dominated by the "values voters" or a more mainstream middle of the road party that has brought us victory after victory. The choice is clear and will play itself out over the next two years as we gear up to the town and state committee elections during the presidential primary in 2008.

I am of the wholehearted belief that voters in Massachusetts are libertarian and have been since 1775 when we told the Crown to go packing. We are a Commonwealth of "Leave me Alone", Deval' soundbite "Together We Can" wasn't why he won this election. MassDem chair Phil Johnston said it very succintly in an interview on Jim Braude's television show on Wednesday, "Democrats believe that government has a role in people's lives, Republican's do not." Amen Mr. Johnston, you could not have summed it up better, although you think people want government to have a role in their lives, I don't. Further evidence of this comes from Marty Meehan in 1992 right after he won his first of supposedly four terms (snicker snicker) in Congress, "Congress is the place where you can really make a difference. I think the federal government plays far and away the most important role in American life(11/8/02 Lowell Sun).

I happen to think that no level of Government should play the most important role in any person's life.

We as a party need to make up our mind where we want to go. My vote goes to our philosopy being:

LEAVE ME ALONE

Here's One, New Deval Tax, Expanded Meals Tax

2006-11-03T07:48:00.000-05:00

Well it's going to get a little more expensive under Deval Patrick to go out and eat but as LeVar Burton says, you don't have to take my word for it.......

Hubris

2006-11-03T07:33:00.000-05:00

Some define hubris as "excessive pride which usually leads to the downfall of the tragic hero in Greek drama."

Deval Patrick would be wise to study that definition. Because he is acting arrogant by not not.making appearances publicly for a whole day the last week of the election. What is the problem, are his handlers afraid that we'll see the real Patrick at a public event, and maybe a YouTube video will start ciruclating that has his true feelings in it? Nah, I just think its the same reason he won't debate Kerry Healey one on one, because he's a chicken. Bwaaak Bwaaak

Kerry in 1972 sounds a lot like Kerry in 2006

2006-11-02T11:46:00.000-05:00

"I am convinced a volunteer army would be an army of the poor and the black and the brown," Kerry wrote. "We must not repeat the travesty of the inequities present during Vietnam. I also fear having a professional army that views the perpetuation of war crimes as simply 'doing its job.'

Where's me job?

2006-11-02T07:42:00.000-05:00

The gravy train has started lining up at the station.

Lowell Sun Endorses Kerry Healey

2006-11-02T06:37:00.000-05:00

My original hometown newspaper The Lowell Sun has endorsed Kerry Healey for Governor. What is interesting is that a lot of the non-Boston newspapers are endorsing Kerry Healey, including The Sentinel and Enterprise of Fitchburg, The Eagle Tribune of Lawrence, The Springfield Republican, The Salem News, The Gloucester Daily Times, and The Daily News of Newburyport. Most of these are in what MassINC has described as Post Industria, that area that Kerry needs to win to take this election. It's a good sign. Here is the complete Lowell Sun editorial:

We have no doubt that Kerry Healey is the best candidate in the Massachusetts gubernatorial race. She is intelligent, articulate, thoughtful and exceptionally qualified to lead the Bay State toward a bright future.
Unfortunately, Healey's qualities have been blurred by a campaign that did well to expose Patrick's weaknesses on key issues but did not work hard enough to highlight Healey's many strengths. Healey the governor will be far superior to Healey the candidate.
Her 50-point plan is a detailed blueprint for how she will govern, while her Democratic opponent, Deval Patrick, has been evasive about what he will actually do and how he means to do it. He speaks generally of bringing "hope," but we can't help but wonder how expensive that hope will be to the taxpayers of Massachusetts.
On education, Healey supports merit pay for the best teachers, particularly for those working in underperforming schools and those teaching math and science. She wants to lift the cap on charter schools to give parents and students more options, raise the mandatory age of school attendance to 18 to keep kids from dropping out, and retain the MCAS as a graduation requirement.
Unlike other candidates, Healey won't water down public education in Massachusetts. She understands that a solid academic foundation will allow students to attend college, excel in their careers and boost the state's economic growth.
Healey supports rolling back the income tax to 5 percent, as approved by voters in 2000. She took a no-new-taxes pledge, will work to reform the state's pension system to eliminate fraud and abuse, will penalize businesses that hire illegal immigrants and will push to allow municipalities to purchase health-care insurance through the state, a move that would save struggling communities millions.
It is clear Healey understands the concerns and needs of Massachusetts taxpayers and municipalities. She knows residents need good schools, lower taxes and safe neighborhoods, and she will strive to provide those necessities.
Healey would fight for lifetime parole for Level 2 sex offenders, to reinstate the death penalty for felons convicted of killing law-enforcement personnel, provide loan forgiveness for students pursuing in-demand careers like engineering and forensic sciences, and to make housing more affordable for first-time home buyers. Unlike Patrick, Healey has concrete plans that, with the support of the Legislature, will allow such changes to occur without piling more taxes on overburdened residents.
There's a lot to be said for checks and balances in government. It's the reason the GOP has held a lock on the corner office for 16 years. The people of Massachusetts know that the Democrat-dominated Legislature is less inclined to bust open the piggy bank and reach for the taxpayers' wallets with a Republican governor standing guard.
Taking office amid a recession in 2002, Gov. Mitt Romney and Lt. Gov. Healey refused to tax their way out of a fiscal crisis, and for the past two years the state budget has included a $1 billion surplus.
Although Patrick claims that the state has lost 148,000 jobs under Romney-Healey, his numbers are just plain wrong. The state has 148,000 fewer jobs now than when the state reached its peak, but that peak was reached in February 2001 -- nearly two years before Romney and Healey took office. According to the Department of Workforce Development, the state's job market has rebounded by 61,000 jobs since it bottomed out in December 2003.
A moderate Republican, Healey will continue to halt some of the Legislature's financial extravagance while reaching out across party lines to get things done and unify our polarized political arena.
The Sun is pleased to endorse Kerry Healey to be Massachusetts' next governor.

Classless

2006-11-02T06:30:00.000-05:00

I had the honor of being at both Consortium debates, the one at Fanieul Hall and last nights at Jordan Hall. I brought one thing out of both of them, how utterly classless Deval Patrick's supporters are. For all the talk about hope, about having people check in that have checked out, his supporters at their core are all about shouting people down that don't agree with them. They are sanctimonious, believing that their ideas are the only ideas. It was on display last night when Kerry Healey was booed throughout her closing statement. It's classless and disgusting, and what we have to look forward to with one party, socialist oops I mean Democratic rule on Beacon Hill if Deval Patrick gets elected.

Damn thing video facts

2006-10-31T17:59:00.000-05:00

Man video archives can be damning, huh John. You fought for this war, you believed in this war, you are grandstanding and playing to your base. You are two faced you are disgusting, you sir are despicable.

Timely Reminder

2006-10-31T17:55:00.000-05:00

Here is timely reminder from the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Looks like nothing has changed.

Lowell Sun: "More Boom Than Deval's Gloom"

2006-10-31T17:04:00.000-05:00

In this right on editorial which hints at a Kerry Healey endorsement, The Lowell Sun takes Deval to task for distorting this state and shedding it in a bad light. Deval's words have hurt a lot more than Mitt Romney's joke about being a "cattle rancher at a vegetarian convention." On another lighter note, isn't that exactly what Don Imus is?

Deval Patrick likes to paint a picture of economic doom and gloom in Massachusetts -- blaming it on the present Republican administration -- but figures released by the U.S. Department of Commerce and the University of Massachusetts show a canvass of a different color.
For the second consecutive quarter, Massachusetts' economy has outpaced that of the United States. What's more noteworthy is that the Bay State's rate of growth is sizzling -- a sure sign that Massachusetts products and services are in demand.
Patrick, the Democrat gubernatorial candidate, has spread his message of hope to all corners of Massachusetts, using negative perceptions and old reports to downgrade the state's progress while promising to do better if elected. It begs the question: Do what better?
For the three-month period that just ended in September, the state's economy expanded 3.4 percent on an annual basis -- more than double the 1.6 percent national rate.
In the previous quarter, Massachusetts outpaced the national average 3.6 percent to 2.6 percent.
Also, recent state data reveal that Massachusetts has gained 33,000 net jobs since September 2005 -- 25,000 of them coming since Jan. 1. Shouldn't the Romney-Healey team get a little credit for steering the ship in the right direction after several years of recession-induced stagnation?
Patrick's been a bit misleading in recent television statements, asserting that the Republican administration has been responsible for shedding jobs -- not adding them. He uses employment numbers dating back to 2000, when nearly 78,000 Massachusetts jobs were lost during a deep recession. The Romney-Healey team didn't take office until 2002, and when it did, it put the state back on track with a tough fiscal policy that was approved by the Democrat-controlled Legislature.
That fiscal policy has resulted in two consecutive years of $1 billion budget surpluses. Can Patrick do better than that without raising taxes?
According to experts, the state's economy is largely dependent on innovation in health care, biotechnology, high-tech products and financial services. While recessionary dips are particularly hard, they don't last as long as peak-growth periods when the economy is humming.
Right now the state's economy is gaining steam and poised for what looks like another break-out endurance run.
The efforts of the Romney-Healey team certainly have something to do with the good news, whether Patrick wants to admit it or not.

6 days is a lifetime. Keep up the fight Kerry, we are going to be victorious.

Despicable

2006-10-31T11:00:00.000-05:00

First he talked to the enemy in Paris during Vietnam, to try and "negotiate a peace". Now he belittles active duty service members. He is despicable:

Patrick Team Member Admits, Published Polls Wrong

2006-10-29T14:42:00.000-05:00

Here is an interesting piece of news from The Lowell Sun's political gossip column, "The Column". It seems as Patrick's internal poll results also show a single digit lead. I reiterate my earlier comments on Hub Politics that internal polls survey, likely voters, other polls don't. From The Lowell Sun:

ELECTION FOOD for thought: At least one local Democratic Party member
doesn't believe recent polls showing Deval Patrick with a 25 percent
lead over Healey. The veteran Dem, who wished to remain anonymous,
called The Sun this week to say he's been involved in several internal
polls covering Merrimack Valley towns and results show Patrick holding
a much smaller, single-digit lead.

"Where are they getting these numbers from?" he asked. For confidential
reasons, he refused to give precise information. But he did say that
Healey, by his survey work of 200 calls to residents in Tewksbury,
Wilmington and Billerica during the past week, was narrowly trailing
Patrick. Of course, those three towns were the weakest in supporting
Patrick in September, but this person said he has seen other internal
poll numbers reflecting similar results.

"You have to wonder who is being called by these pollsters, and whether
they are going to vote," he said.

Patrick Skipping Wednesday's Debate?

2006-10-23T07:00:00.000-05:00

So how exactly does Deval Patrick expect to be in two places at one time? He's got two major campaign events planned for Wednesday October 25, 2006. The first is the Debate with John Keller at CBS4 and the second is his rally with the sexual predator Bill Clinton at the DCU Center. Seems to me like he's trying to be in two places at the same time. Maybe he won't show up to the debate. After all why would he want to face a pitbull like John Keller?

Congratulations Chief Davis

2006-10-22T22:46:00.000-05:00

Tom Menino today named Lowell Police Chief Ed Davis as police commissioner. This is absolutely fantastic. Having grown up in Lowell, I know Chief Davis to be a tough as nails, no-nonsense police chief, and will make a great commissioner here in Boston. Chief Davis is a large imposing officer that still goes on drug raids for fun. He will set a no-nonsense tone in this department, and will take charge.

The mayor often doesn't get things right, and I've called him out. This hire however is right on the money.

Dennis Miller Gets it Right

2006-10-22T21:19:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting at home watching Dennis Miller's latest HBO special on On-Demand and hoped I'd find this thread on You Tube. I did. This is great, enjoy....

Bob Hope must have met Deval Patrick Supporters

2006-10-22T08:34:00.000-05:00

Bob Hope must have met Deval Patrick supporters because this clip describes them to a T.

Chilling

2006-10-21T17:03:00.000-05:00

This story in the St. Peterburg Times revisits the Carl Songer Case. It's chilling to read the account of how Songer killed the Florida Trooper in cold blood. It's also worthy to note that Carl Ray Songer and his accomplice had escaped from "work relase" a la Willie Horton. Good character..... yeah right!

Oklahoma police already were looking for Jones and Songer when the shooting occurred. The pair had walked off a work-release job, where Songer was serving a three-year sentence for car theft, his third conviction. After a drug-fueled drive to Miami, they had turned for home when they ran into Smith.
Jones got a two-year sentence as an accessory after the fact. Songer, then 23, was sentenced to death.
For the next 11 years, Songer’s appeals delayed his execution. Gov. Bob Graham finally signed a third death warrant for Feb. 5, 1985.
Songer was little more than a week from the electric chair when the 13-year-old Alicia watched Patrick defending her father’s killer in that Inverness court room. A judge denied the appeal.
“We thought it was over with at that point,” Alicia Hayes said.
Patrick, then an attorney with the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, kept trying. Less than 24 hours before the execution, Patrick won a reprieve.
A year later, the appeals court ruled that Songer had been denied his right to present evidence of his good character.
Prosecutors tried to get the death penalty reinstated, but in 1989, the court resentenced Songer to life with no chance of parole for 25 years. He has been denied parole twice.
After defending Songer, Patrick went on to serve in the Clinton administration as assistant attorney general for civil rights.
A child of Chicago’s tough South Side, he looks likely to become Massachusetts’ first black governor.
Patrick, 50, defended his record after the Songer ads began airing.
He said, “I am proud of the work I have done, and I will not have it trivialized or minimized by someone who has never seen the inside of a courtroom,” the Lowell (Mass.) Sun reported.

The Street Debate

2006-10-21T08:52:00.000-05:00

Nothing gets the blood pumping like trying to defend yourself against the onslaught of union thugs.

For Four Decades, Highest Crime Rate

2006-10-21T07:52:00.000-05:00

Grasping at straws trying to make himself seem tough on crime, Deval Patrick said that Massachusetts has the highest crime rate in New England. Well Mr. Patrick, yes it does, and it has for four decades save two years in the 60s and 70s respectively, as the Lowell Sun has reported.

What the Republican didn't mention at Thursday's gubernatorial debate is that Massachusetts has had the highest crime rate in New England for the past 44 years, with the exception of 1967 and 1970 when Rhode Island's crime rate was slightly higher.
It's true that the number of violent crimes has declined since Healey took office in 2002. That year, the rate of crime in Massachusetts per 100,000 people was 484.9, according to statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Justice. That figure sank to 473.1 in 2003, and to 458.8 in 2004, the latest numbers available.
Despite that downward trend, Massachusetts' crime rate continues to be significantly higher than the rest of New England. In 2004, New Hampshire's crime rate was 167, compared to Massachusetts' 458.8. Maine's crime rate was 103.5; Vermont's was 112; Connecticut's was 286.3; and Rhode Island's was 247.4.

What is really interesting is that Mr. Patrick threw out his "facts" without knowing the whole history. That is really poor research on behalf of Patrick's team. But hey he can't distinguish between 15 years and 5 years as we've already seen. You don't have to take my word for it though:

Democrat Deval Patrick noted that Massachusetts' crime rate is the highest in New England at Thursday night's debate, but his spokesman Richard Chacon said afterward that the campaign did not realize Massachusetts' crime rate has been the highest in New England for decades.

Perhaps Mr. Patrick has been reading "How to Lie with Statistics"

Priorities Run Amok

2006-10-17T05:58:00.000-05:00

Again the Boston City Council has its priorities in the wrong place. Murders are out of control, yet they find the time to talk about satellite dishes on the front of buildings. Give me a break. This is just another way for the city to collect fine revenue, plain and simple, and another reason for people to think of leaving the city.

Another Rapist for Deval Patrick

2006-10-16T21:19:00.000-05:00

Ho-hum, Bill Clinton came to the Hub to stump for Deval Patrick. Why should we surprised, after all he's just another Rapist for Deval Patrick. Kind of goes with the territory.

Suffolk Poll 10/12/06 Press release out

2006-10-12T12:59:00.000-05:00

10/12/06 Suffolk Poll out.

Deval 46.5
Healey 33.5
Mihos 7.0
Ross 1.0
Undecided 12.0

Among Unenrolled
Deval 38
Healey 38

www.suffolk.edu

Welcome To East Boston

2006-10-11T11:37:00.000-05:00

Deval,

Welcome to Healey country. What couldn't get any sign holders to help with your campaign appearance. Eastie welcomes you.

EaBo Clipper

Year 2000

2006-10-08T07:13:00.000-05:00

The Yankees fans used to chant 1918 to us Sox fans all the time. It's time after their epic collapse to the Detroit Tigers (snicker) that we start our own chant. Anytime a Yankee fan mentions their 26 championships, reply with Year 2000. Oh and you could also remind them that they are Oh for the Millennium. The Millennium rightfully beginning in 2001.

Open Letter to Dan Grabauskus

2006-10-06T23:08:00.000-05:00

Mr. Grabauskus,

I supported you when you ran for state treasurer in 2002. I've been a big fan of yours. However some things at the MBTA have rubbed me the wrong way. Most of them have to do with the MBTAs insistence on bilingulaism.

For instance, this evening I entered the Blue Line at the Aquarium station at about 11:45 pm, and what did I hear, some sort of announcement in Spanish as I went down the escalator. Perhaps it was an important announcement, I wouldn't know, because I'm an AMERICAN citizen who speaks ENGLISH!!! Luckily it wasn't an emergency annoucement, at least I don't think it was.

Just because I use the Blue Line, and live in East Boston, with undocumented workers from El Salvador, doesn't mean I need to listen to announcements en espanol.

Please refrain from the Spanish, and only use English. If the riders don't wan't to learn it, tell them in English, to go home. When my mother came here in the 1960s from French Canada, she learned English. They should too.

Thanks,

EaBo Clipper

"No is the answer because I'm running for Governor.."

2006-10-06T05:56:00.000-05:00

When asked in a press conference if he would support parole for Ben LaGuer, the savage rapist, today with the DNA evidence the Boston Globe reports this was Deval Patrick's answer:``No is the answer because I'm running for governor, and now everything is overly scrutinized."

That's not all he also tries to school us all on what Parole really is:

``If the question is would I have gotten involved knowing that DNA testing had been done -- I will tell you I think that's hard, because the question of parole is a broader question than guilt or innocence," he said. ``That question is about whether time has been served and the readiness for release."

Felons rejoice, there's may be a new sherrif in town. Bad Boys, Bad Boys what ya gonna do, what ya gonna do, when Deval supports you, Bad Boys.

Patrick: Bank Racist, because it didn't open branch in DC

2006-10-05T20:09:00.000-05:00

I uncovered this little gem today. It seems as though Deval Patrick, among other Racialist policies forced the Chevy Chase bank to open a branch in DC. He did this by saying the bank was racist for not doing so. This speech by Orrin Hatch in 1997 lays it all out:

Mr. Lee’s supporters have characterized him as a "pragmatist" – a "practical litigator," rather than a pro-preference ideologue. That is a familiar tune in this debate. Three years ago, the President nominated another individual who was widely hailed as a pragmatist. Deval Patrick, another man for whom I have a high personal regard, was described by one paper as "a practically oriented working lawyer." Based upon those assurances, I resolved to set aside my concerns about Mr. Patrick’s views, gave him the benefit of the doubt, and supported his nomination.

But upon assuming the reigns of the Civil Rights Division, Mr. Patrick revealed himself to be a liberal civil rights ideologue. He used statistical racial imbalances and the vast resources of the Justice Department to extract race-conscious settlements from businesses and governments, large and small. For example, he undertook a credit-bias probe of Chevy Chase Savings & Loan in Maryland based largely on the fact that the bank had opened branch offices in the District of Columbia suburbs, but not in the city itself. There was no evidence that the bank had discriminated against qualified individuals seeking bank services. Nevertheless, Mr. Patrick entered into a consent decree that essentially forced the bank to open a branch in a low-income District neighborhood, and measures the bank’s compliance with the decree by assessing whether the the bank achieves a loan market share in minority neighborhoods that is "reasonably comparable" to its share in non-minority neighborhoods. Mr. Patrick’s Civil Rights Division took it upon itself to decide where a bank must do business, and then implemented dubious statistical measurements to determine whether the bank’s efforts stayed clear of the Division’s view of the law.

..........

Given Deval Patrick’s excesses in the Department, I am unprepared to again give the benefit of the doubt to a liberal activist nominee described by political allies as a "pragmatist" and a "conciliator." When asked at his hearing how he would differentiate his views from those of Mr. Patrick, Bill Lee was unable to muster a response.

Kind of interesting coming from a guy that worked for predatory lender Ameriquest.

Deval Patrick ... Together We Can... Enact Quotas

Patrick-Dukakis Together They can Commute Sentences

2006-10-05T19:49:00.000-05:00

Howie Carr has a list of the commutations Michael Dukakis made in his first term. No wonder he's supporting Deval. Both the Duke and Deval haven't seemed to see a criminal they didn't like.

The video below is getting more true every day!

Death Penalty not for Nice Guys

2006-10-05T19:40:00.000-05:00

No matter how the Patrick campaign tries to spin this, Deval successfully saved cop killer Ray Songer's life by arguing that in 1974 he couldn't offer evidence of his good character. Excuse me, he killed a Cop but has good character??????? Don' t take my word for it, take the New York Times who on February 6, 1985 had this to say:

Less than a day before he was to die for killing a state trooper in 1973, Carl Ray Songer won an indefinite stay of execution from a Federal appeals court today, and the United States Supreme Court refused a request by attorneys for the state to intervene.

The United States Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit, in Atlanta, voted 11 to 0 to have the entire court hear Mr. Songer's case along with that of another Florida death row inmate, James Ernest Hitchcock.

A three-judge panel of the appeals court that heard arguments in the case Monday had given Mr. Songer a temporary reprieve to block his execution, scheduled for today. His death warrant was to expire at noon Wednesday.

DeVal Patrick, an attorney for the Legal Defense Fund in New York, has argued that Mr. Songer, who has no previous convictions for violent crime, did not have a chance at his sentencing hearing in 1974 to offer evidence of his good character, background and education.

Deval Patrick - Together we can.... Let off Cop Killers and Rapists....

Kerry Healey, just your typical Minnesotan

2006-10-04T17:22:00.000-05:00

Christy Mihos has a rather spurious explanation for why it looks like Kerry Healey is sticking her head up her posterior. It's not her.... It just "looks" like her. No really that's what he told this weeks Weekly Dig. Rather it's a typical Minnesotan woman don't ya know.

People have also said [another cartoon character] looks like Kerry Healey, and we called [the animator], and she said she wouldn’t know the difference between Kerry Healey and Deval Patrick. So I guess it just doesn’t register out in Minnesota.

Really, because that sure looks like Kerry Healey rolling around on the ground with her little cartoon legs in the air.
How many times have you been in Minnesota?

Mihos has really lost it hasn't he. Who's gonna believe that one.

Patrick and LaGuer A budding friendship

2006-10-04T08:20:00.000-05:00

According to the Boston Globe it seems as though Patrick and Ben LaGuer had a budding friendship. It further goes to prove that Patrick cares more about the rights of perps than the rights of victims.

Ben Laguer letter 3

2006-10-04T07:10:00.000-05:00

Ben LaGuer Letter 2

2006-10-04T07:09:00.000-05:00

Ben LaGuer Letter 1

2006-10-04T07:07:00.000-05:00

Debate on Comcast On Demand

2006-10-03T19:38:00.000-05:00

For those that couldn't watch the debate live, like me, I just found the debate on Comcast On-Demand. It is under the WGBH menu. Enjoy.

Hatfields vs. McCoys Mihos Style

2006-10-03T06:17:00.000-05:00

Christy Mihos won't be getting any help from his kin this campaign season. His brother Jim is supporting Kerry Healey and is not shy about it :

From: Jim Mihos
Sent: Friday, September 29, 2006 11:46 AM
Subject: Donation
Good Morning,
My wife and I are pleased to have recently contributed to the Lt Governors campaign. We do so because we believe that Kerry Healey is the most qualified candidate amongst the four contenders but also in part because we are embarrassed by the way my brother Christy has treated the Lt Governor during the campaign. While he may disagree with some of her positions his disrespect for the office of the Lt Governor and Kerry Healey as an individual is abhorrent to us. We sincerely hope that in a small way our donation will mitigate Christys despicable behavior.
Sincerely,
Jim Mihos

Thanksgiving should be fun this year.

Massachusetts Education Improves Under Healey

2006-10-02T19:50:00.000-05:00

The funny thing about facts is they don't lie. While Deval Patrick is running around telling the voters the sky is falling regarding education, the facts bear out something completely different. In the three years of the Romney-Healey adminstration the Commonwealth has gone from Ranked 7th in 02-03, before they were elected, to first twice and third once, according to Morgan Quitno rankings. The 06-07 rankings come out on October 10, 2006.

This compounded with rising SAT scores shows that the Healey model of accountability and the focus on measuring students and holding them to standards is working.

Where's Reilly

2006-10-02T06:55:00.000-05:00

Has anybody seen Tom Reilly since the primary, he seems to be lost. Perhaps he knows how bad a Patrick Administration will be for the Commonwealth?

If you see Tom, post a comment and tell us where you saw him.

UPDATE: 10/2/06 12:39

Lisa Wangsness of the Boston Globe has the following statement in an article on boston.com:

The most prominent Democrat featured in the Healey ad, Attorney General Thomas F. Reilly, did not appear at yesterday's news conference. The ad has a clip from a primary debate in which Reilly characterizes Patrick as soft on crime and intent on raising taxes.
Cyndi Roy , a spokeswoman for the state Democratic Party, said Reilly had been invited to the news conference but said he could not attend. She said he did not say why. Two former spokesmen for the Reilly campaign did not return phone calls yesterday afternoon, but Roy noted that Reilly has endorsed Patrick and that many of his former supporters are helping Patrick's campaign.

Still no Tom Reilly... Anybody see him?

Jamie Gorelick to Fundraise for Patrick

2006-10-01T15:36:00.000-05:00

Bill Clinton's number two in the DOJ Jamie Gorelick is coming to town to fundraise for Deval Patrick. Ms. Gorelick is the author of the "Gorelick memo" which strengthened the wall between the FBI and CIA druing the Clinton adminstration. This has been reported in this weeks "Trail Report" in the Boston Globe.

An Oct. 30 fund-raiser will feature Jamie Gorelick, a former deputy US attorney general; Harvard professor Charles Ogletree; and Scott Harshbarger, former state attorney general. Others on the host committee include Donald Stern, former US attorney, and Boston lawyers William Cowan and Nick Littlefield.

First Deval wants to allow Illegals to slip into society with a driver's license, now he is being supported by an ultra-liberal who didn't want the FBI and CIA to share terrorism information. Just imagine if the next Mohammed Atta could get a driver's license in Massachusetts to board a plane... and Imagine if the CIA and FBI couldn't tell each other about it....... You get both with Deval Patrick

Mount Vernon Restaurant...... YUM

2006-10-01T08:27:00.000-05:00

I finally gave in and went to the Mount Vernon Restaurant on Broadway in Somerville last night. I kept hearing the advertisments on WTKK and WRKO and had to try it. Boy was that a good decision. While I had the $17.99 twin lobster special, with a couple of appetizers I saw the other plates around the room and will definately be going back. The bone in pork chops (3 large ones) looked particularly appetizing.

If you haven't been to the Mount Vernon, go....

Christy It's Time to Go

2006-10-01T08:01:00.000-05:00

Christy it's time to go. "Maybe she's spoiling my chances," I think not the latest CBS4 Boston Globe poll shows that you are definately playing the roll of spoiler. Your 7% comes right from Healey supporters.

You will be responsible for the Commonwealth delving back into the Dukakis years of high taxes, rampant crime. Worse yet you will be responsible for making the Commonwealth a sanctuary for illegal immigrants.

Christy, do the right thing. Leave and leave now!

Globe poll shows Healey right on the issues

2006-10-01T07:44:00.000-05:00

Reading today's Globe poll shows that Kerry Healey is right on the issues that concern Massachusetts voters and Deval Patrick is woefully out of touch. It's also been a good week for Healey as she's gained 5 points on Deval. As more and more people see what Deval is really about, the more that number will move. 5 points a week gives Healey the election.

The poll's author agrees that Kerry is right on the issues:

* While Healey is faring very poorly in the head-to-head match-up with Patrick, the positions she supports on various issues are more popular than those supported by Patrick. The most visible tax related issue in the campaign is the roll-back of the state income tax from 5.3% to 5%. Half of MA voters support Healey’s position of rolling back the income tax to 5% (36% strongly and 14% somewhat), 40% oppose the roll-back (23% strongly and 17% somewhat), 6% are neutral and 5% don’t know.
* Support for the roll-back is widespread. Republicans and Healey voters are most supportive of the roll-back.
* Democrats, O’Brien voters, voters with post-graduate educations, those making $75K to $100K, and non-religious voters are most opposed to the roll-back.

* When asked if they supported or opposed a proposal to require voters provide a photo ID in order to vote, voters clearly back Healey’s position – 47% strongly support requiring a photo ID, 21% support this somewhat, 5% are neutral, 13% oppose it somewhat, 11% strongly oppose, and 3% don’t know.
* Republicans, Healey voters, and voters in Central MA are most likely to strongly support photo IDs.
 However, even majorities of even Democrats support this idea.

* Another issue where Healey holds the more popular position is opposing a proposal to let students of undocumented immigrants pay in-state tuition at MA state colleges and universities. Only 30% of MA voters support in-state tuition for the children of undocumented immigrants (15% strongly and 15% somewhat), 59% oppose (44% strongly and 15% somewhat), 6% are neutral and 4% don’t know.
* This issue represents an opportunity for Healey as it is opposed by most groups of voters, especially by Republicans, older voters, low income voters, Catholics, and voters from Central MA.

* Similarly, 63% of MA voters oppose issuing drivers licenses to undocumented immigrants (51% strongly and 12% somewhat) -- Healey’s position. Only 29% support this proposal (14% strongly and 15% somewhat), 4% are neutral and 4% don’t know.
* This issue also represents an opportunity for Healey as most voters oppose this idea, especially Republicans, Independents, Mihos voters, voters with lower levels of education, and voters in Central MA.

* Almost two-thirds of MA voters (64%) do NOT favor Patrick’s position of limiting criminal offender record information (CORI) to businesses, only 23% favor limiting this information and 13% don’t know.
* This is another issue which favors Healey as majorities of all voters, including Democrats and Patrick voters, oppose sharply limiting criminal background information.

The task for those of us who support the LG is to hammer those points home in every conversation we have about this race, even to those who like Patrick. If voters begin to see beyond the smooth pretty boy image, it will crack and voters will move to Healey.

Remember with Patrick Together We Can... Raise Taxes.

First Post

2006-09-30T19:22:00.000-05:00

This blog will collect my random thoughts on Massachusetts Politics primarily, but will also have some rantings and ravings on other subjects, such as a good place to eat, beer, boardgames, and sports.

Hopefully you'll enjoy.