From yesterday’s letters to the Globe: Sounds like some people saw through Andrea Estes’ non-story on Deval Patrick’s choice to run the Department of Industrial Accidents. Here’s Steven Salerno of Cambridge:
Apparently, we are to understand that some kind of “Heckuva job, Brownie” hackery is at work, with Paul Buckley, husband of Patrick supporter Marian Walsh, weaseling his way into a cushy sinecure, commissioner of the Department of Industrial Accidents, simply to boost his state pension.
… When we get to substance, Estes glides over the devious loophole Buckley plans to exploit to secure his pension boost: He has to work for it, for three full years.
That lousy cheating no-good hack! They’re all the same!
Neither did Richard Hale of Newton get the memo that this was more of “hacks run wild”:
While it’s true that Judge Buckley’s pension will increase if he works three more years, that is the way the pension system works in Massachusetts. He is being given a job, not a “pension boost.”
Look, if you left out all the insinuation of skimming, sloth and sleaze, what kind of story would you have? Oops.
But hey, maybe we just need to give journalists permission to actually just report the facts — all sides — even without the fakey pre-packaged narratives. Real, granular, complex, messy truth is much more interesting than the same-old same-old.
Actually Judge Buckley has zero experfience with workers compensation. That is what the IAB does. and only does,
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He was a prosecutor and then a district court judge. Never saw a workers comp case in his lengthy legal career. Please don’t tell me he is extremely qualified. Because he is not.
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I don’t really care except for Deval’s hypocrisy. He looked us in the eye and said he was going to change the culture of Beacon Hill. This appointment must be part of his secret plan.
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My advice to you Charley is rather then defend devals’ ‘do i say not as i do’ philosophy you should ignore this stuff so as not to call attention to the hypocrisies.
….is a statutory mechanism for settling specific types of tort claims that arise on the job. A former judge with experience in presiding over both criminal and civil trials, regardless of whether he has not presided over any worker’s compensation claims, is in fact extremely qualified.
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are more qualified.
…do you know of any Workman’s Comp attorneys who applied for the job? You can’t hire somebody for a position if they don’t apply for it.
….the case. If we were talking about a position as a lead cousel where one would be required to try or mediate workers comp cases you might have a point. But for the role of Commissioner which is to preside over the entire function of the agency, simply having been a workers comp attorney is not actually sufficient experience. A judge with longtime experience is actually better situated to preside over an agency than one who merely served as an attorney.
…it sounds like the position is more of an administrative one. While it would be helpful to have someone experienced in the laws that are being administered by the agency, it seems that someone with administrative experience might be preferable.
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Does anyone know whether the judge had administrative experience?
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That’s orthogonal to the issue implied in my comment above, whether anyone else applied for the position. Aside from that, as far as I’m concerned, the pension issue is silly.
They have proved time and time again they cannot manage. Look at out courts.
….being purely argumentative. The failures of an over burdened court system cannot be boiled down to the inability for judges to administrate. As is the case in all professions, some thrive where some fail. There are a number of district court judges who are fine administrators both in the court room and out. You have no basis to criticize the appointment of Judge Buckey to his posistion other than the fact that it is politically convenient for you to do so. Neither you, nor anyone else has provided any evidence to suggest that he is not fully qualified to helm the DIA. If the best you can do is a sweeping generalization about judges you’ve got less than nothing.
have to view this as an infinitesimally small development in the global scheme of things.
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This weekend I emailed my local hospital asking if they are a part of the 500 hospitals in the pilot program from VeriMed. VeriMed is part of VeriChip and as such I can either have health care or accept the Mark of the Beast Satanic microchip in return. Such things I do not take lightly and I really don’t give a flying F… if you dismiss my comments as “tinfoil” hattery or whatever.
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In total we have tons of “Heckofajob” Brownies in “government”. Note I have the tendency to put Orwellian phrases of Newspeak in quotes.
In which I include the details of the bond bill, for example, or the successful “movement in the right direction” on health care.
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The use of innuendo rather than fact, and the choice of adjectives that bite has been so global by the Glob – without being “thrilled” by all that our new governor has – and has not done – as my posts show, I can be irritated at the constant barrage of negativity without substance.
in case you missed these two hc itemsin Saturday’s Letters section…
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blockquote>2 Letters titled “Promises, promises in healthcare reform”
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PEOPLE OF all stripes are closely following the state health reform plan as it is rolled out. Many are beginning to feel that in fact it will be rolling over quite a few in need of affordable quality healthcare…
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and
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JAMES ROOSEVELT, chairman of the private insurers’ trade organization, dismisses worries about the affordability of the state’s mandated health plans…
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Thoughtful analyses not covered by the MSM. Have a look for yourself here
Topic and style.