Monday, May 20, 2013
Back in 1995, New Hampshire communities were given the option of a new way to govern themselves: SB 2, which allowed residents to vote at the polls, rather than in town and school district meetings, on everything from local budgets to labor contracts and government policy. Since then, …
Sunday, May 19, 2013
The anti-panhandling ordinance enacted by the city council last week offers no answers to the problem of homelessness in Concord. The ordinance doesn’t even provide an answer to the problem of panhandling itself – and yet when it passed unanimously, it drew praise from all sides. Rightly so. …
Friday, May 17, 2013
Turns out, politicians really can do more than just talk. They can do more than plot against each other for partisan advantage. They can put aside giant philosophical debates and actually get something done for the people who elected them. There’s been precious little sign of such behavior, …
Friday, May 17, 2013
Perhaps inevitably, the debate over gun violence in New Hampshire has become a long, angry referendum on Sen. Kelly Ayotte – her vote on gun control measures in the U.S. Senate, her town hall meetings in the aftermath and her recent column describing her views. Residents on both …
Thursday, May 16, 2013
Richard Nixon’s second term as president ended in political tragedy because of Watergate. Ronald Reagan’s second term was hamstrung by the Iran-Contra scandal, and Bill Clinton’s was crippled by personal misbehavior that led to impeachment proceedings. We recite this sad litany not to equate any of these episodes …
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
A special legislative committee investigating casino gambling in New Hampshire is expected to vote today on a recommendation to the House of Representatives. The group has worked admirably to study the pros and cons of legislation that has the potential to change the state’s politics, economy and reputation. …
Tuesday, May 14, 2013
We can’t help but wonder what Tamerlan and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev were thinking about on April 12, three days before the Boston Marathon bombings they are accused of perpetrating, as FBI Director Robert Mueller rose many miles away to address an audience at the University of Virginia Law School. …
Monday, May 13, 2013
Did you see the Colbert show interview the other night with author Douglas Rushkoff about his new book Present Shock? We were re-watching it on the internet at work just now when – hold on, just got a text – where were we? Oh yes, right: when Rushkoff …
Sunday, May 12, 2013
Magicians rely on misdirection to fool audiences and pull off their tricks. So do politicians when asked tough questions, as Sen. Kelly Ayotte has been at venues like her town hall meeting in Tilton this month. At that event Ayotte relied on misdirection and a magician, former congressman …
Friday, May 10, 2013
There was good news and bad news to be found at the casino presentation in Salem this week. In fact, the good news was the bad news. Millennium Gaming officials detailed their latest plans for a casino at Rockingham Park, the former horse-racing track that has fallen on …
