You ever see 8-year-olds play soccer? It’s just this weird clump of legs, and then all of a sudden the ball will fly out and with no strategy or game, they just go ‘Ball!’ That’s what the media is.
Well, since the primary, the Healey campaign has done quite well at kicking the ball where it’s wanted to, leading to this (ridiculous, to my mind) notion that “the public agrees with Healey on the issues.” Hooey. They agree with her on the issues that Healey has chosen to spotlight … but they don’t particularly care for Romney/Healey’s actual record.
So what real, substantive issues would you like to see kicked around between now and November 7th? Oceandreams gave us a good start: Wage stagnation, cost of living, public transit, universities, the Big Dig and Big Dig Culture … what else? What’s going on in the real world, outside of the media circus?
I’ll be away from the computer most of today — light up this thread and the user posts, and I’ll front-page some things later today.
I have always been a fan of EJ Dionne’s idea that what Americans hate is not big government, but bad government. I’d like to see Deval hit Kerry on the Angelo Buonopane’s of the Mitt/Muffy adminstration.
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I think he needs to hit hard on the Big Dig, Mass Highways, and the MBTA. A lot of commuters would like to see the MBTA actually take back the running of the trains from the private group that has totally screwed it up.
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Deval could get out to alot of the outer suburbs where he needs to do well – at the train stations, talking to people, etc.
It involves a ton of federal money, so the discussion could focus on good management instead of how much it will affect state income taxes. It also involves good jobs for construction workers, assisting businesses to transport goods, improving property values, energy conservation, the daily life of every commuter, rural roads, bike paths, etc.
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In Massachusetts, MassHighway has been the scene of a lot of Republican patronage jobs and a major battleground for local control vs. state bureaucracy. There is also a major backlog of bridge repairs and other prioritized projects affecting every community in the Commonwealth because the long line of Republican Governors and MassHighway administrators ignored the law establishing the Metropolitan Highway System.
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This law was supposed to maintain a separate revenue stream for transportation needs outside the Big Dig. The average voter may not grasp all of the cost recovery issues (some examples here and here), but they know when a local bridge has been closed or when a road has crumbled to pieces.
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Go get ’em, Deval and Tim!
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P.S. With apologies to the Del Valle family, I can’t help but notice this unfortunate choice of words by former Big Dig boss Kerasiotes, as reported on 2/25/97:
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Well, maybe Patrick can’t take this on (campaign finance reform that is) with the substance it demands before Nov 8.
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Follow this link to a “Get up offa’ that thing, and shake it” music video and get in the groove for Prop 89 in CA for Clean Money Elections.
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Any interested Mass. rappers out there? I’ll help with visuals and recruiting nurses and other social justice activists to participate in something like this here on the east coast.
I am so tired of politicians on all sides talk about how they will better the economy, create jobs and induce a new spirit of cooperation with all. In reality, none of them have control over the economy, the only jobs they can create are political ones, and once in power, they all bicker among each other for control. I wish to see politicians do something that is within their power to change for the better.
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Governments are the only entity allowed by law to use force upon the citizens. This is supposed to be for the public good. It is not supposed to be means of profit for law enforcement and the judiciary. The blatant corruption of these entities used to be mitigated by fears of newspaper (public) exposure. Now that the newspapers have been compromised there is no control of this basic governmental power except for a little Federal intervention through Justice Department investigations.
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Just today I saw police going through a strip mall again, harassing motorists at a local donut shop. It looks like the police are shaking down either the mall owner, the donut shop owner or both by driving customers away. A few months back I was pulled over there for wearing a seat belt. I was let go when the officer noticed I was looking at his badge number. If you go to a local courthouse to watch a public trial, chances are you will hear the police lie about the most easily verifiable facts (weather, time, etc.) while the judge sits there and allows it to continue. Eventually a court officer will ask you why you are there and tell you to leave unless you have business there. Why do the courts fear witnesses of their operations?
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There is no one to protect the public from these people that are supposed to protect the public. No one monitors police or courts, yet they are fundamental building blocks of any free society. Crumbling societies first see their demise in the corruption of police and court systems.
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Would it be too difficult to set up a monitoring organization (audit, if you will), that is subject itself to public review, as oversight of basic citizen rights?
A “monitoring organization”? First assignment: Catch the cop that pulled you over for “wearing a seat belt”. Next up, find out why the cops were “harassing” motorists at the strip mall. If someone tells you it was at the request of local merchants or some other lame explanation, have that person investigated. They’re probably one of those “cop lovers” Damm I hate those “cop lovers”. Can’t people see that cops just aint’t any good to nobody? They’re different from us, I tell ya. They just can’t be trusted. I say let’s ship ’em all back where they came from. Dirty stinkin’ cops. Same goes for that court officer who tossed you out of the courtroom.
maybe a talk with Mr. Tas will educate IKANT.
This period since the primary is the only time I have ever been happy that almost noone reads newspapers anymore. We need to set the agenda and frame the discussion around or agenda. Not Healey’s fake issues.
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What effective strategies can be employed to curb the cycles of violence that engulf our inner-city neighborhoods?
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Our nation is this year paying more in debt to foreigners than we are getting income from investment abroad. This means more and more of our productive assets will be owned abroad. How do we manage a local economy in an era of globalization? How can we address the great dissatisfaction people feel today? That is what is fuel the great ant-incumbency feeling that is going to lead to tossing the R’s out of the majority in Washington.
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We have competing claims on educational time and resources. We need to balance the requirements for classroom instruction and accountability. What is the right mix of testing to further these goals? If we are continuing to test to meet federal and state laws how do we make sure our students are prepared? How do we increase all around instruction without breaking the bank of our cities and towns?
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Our state has a strong natural heritage. How can we protect our environment from the onslaught of development caused by the incentive we give to cities and towns to develop land as the only hedge against Prop 2.5?
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These are a few of many of the issues that are real in people’s lives and require debate and discussion. I have no doubt that Deval’s answers are a thousand times better than Kerry Healey’s. That is why he will win. This is an exciting chance to reject the all too typical politics of personal destruction.
I am concerned about a lot of things that seem to have suffered during the Romney administration and other Republican administrations, such as funding for public education and job creation in this state. However, the one thing that suprised me and distressed me the most when I first moved back here 6 years ago was the crumbling infrastructure. I mean the bridges, roads, and some buildings that seem to have been neglected for years or patched haphazardly. I also mean something so trivial as the trash that now litters our highways and streets. (Was there some notice I did not receive that said it is now ok to dump trash wherever there is open space?) I have lived in, and traveled to, a lot of other places in this country and I do not think I have seen many places that look as dirty and rundown. I also have had friends from other places comment to me about it when they visit me.
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It may seem trivial compared to all the other pressing needs of this state, but it is the kind of thing that creates a first impression when business people come here to determine if they want to invest in the area. It sends a message about how people who live here care about their own state, whether that message is correct or not. And if there is anything to the “Broken Window” theory, it could have a ripple effect on other issues as well.
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No disagreements with any of the above. I would add energy costs, and bringing more businesses into MA. These have been touched on briefly in the second debate but need more attention. Also housing costs.
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I predict the MBTA will become a campaign issue with the new increase. I’d love to see it happen with campaign finance reform but I doubt it.
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How about support for the rest of the state west of I-495? Off the top of my head:
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– infrastructure maintenance and improvement,
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– better WMass/CMass connections with Boston (commuter rail?)
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– increased local aid (and increased lottery funds distributions for towns that have larger numbers of residents that play the lottery so the working poor aren’t subsidizing Lexington and Wayland)
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– investments in UMass Amherst to give WMass a truly world class university
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– working to place industry in WMasss/CMass instead of letting them go to other states or overseas because of high real estate & living costs in EMass
and the influence of the insurance, provider and drug companies should be discussed.
Thank you for this subject and the thoughts generated on this forum. We are a two-income (median for our region), working family that struggles to make ends meet, while volunteering in our community (town committees, school pto, etc). We are concerned about costs of fuel, insurances, and our child’s education. Reduced costs for higher public education with improved collaborations between elementary/secondary and higher education [www.timmurray.org-Issues]. The 2 + 2 model is working in Worcester. Our parents are elderly and are struggling to stay in their home with health care costs. Expansion of home health care training, certification and service delivery.