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Manic Monday Markup 3/26/2012…

…And the World: Another Tory scandal in Britain over being too close to influence peddlers.  British Prime Minister David Cameron and his Conservative Party have been caught, seemingly selling out once again.  After being caught too close to Rupert Murdoch’s British newspapers (a former New

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Take My Council, Please: Cheers & Jeers…

Monday was a day of minor victories, but also grim financial news and schizophrenic behavior at the Springfield City Council.  With three members absent, councilors debated a host of resolutions, put off several measures to committee and even took some further steps on ordinances.  Prior

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Tardy Tuesday Takedown 3/20/12…

Our apologies for no Manic Monday! Plus we will be back this week with some new local stories including an edition of “Take My Council, Please!” …And the World: Last summer in what was one of many dress rehearsals for the Occupy movement that shook

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Manic Monday Markup 3/12/2012…

…And the World: In Afghanistan an army sergeant allegedly killed sixteen Afghan civilians including many children in an attack that has been described as the worst war crime of the US’s ten year military involvement with the country.  The attack comes after protests riled Afghanistan

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Take My Council, Please: Pushing Paper…

Every now and then the Springfield City Council assembles and does little more than ministerial duties dressed up as discretionary acts.  For example, the city cannot accept a grant or money outside of its own tax base or consistent with a general state law unless

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Manic Monday Markup 3/5/2012…

…And the World: In an election that few saw as suspenseful, Russian Prime Minister and one-time President Vladimir Putin was elected once more to be the nation’s president with nearly 64% of the vote.  Despite new allegations of electoral fraud, it seems doubtful that Putin

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The Maine Event…

**UPDATED 3-3-12** This post has been updated with additional commentary and for grammatical corrections.“You are not going to go off on a tangent about Olympia Snowe and Maine politics now,” you are probably thinking, right?  Well, yes and no, but the reasons run deeper than

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Manic Monday Markup 2/27/2012…

We took the week off last week other than the Take Down…late as it is, but packed! …And the World: It’s a political tussle Down Under as the former Prime Minister and leader of the ruling Labor Party tried to throw his successor on the

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Tardy Tuesday Takedown 2/21/12…

Happy Belated Presidents Day! …And the World: Could Europe’s nightmare be over?  Well, we have asked that question before, but a definite shift in tone from both European finance ministers and the press suggest that this fix for Greece may be the one that holds. 

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Take My Council, Please: Financial Cobwebs…

(WMassP&I) Under normal circumstances, Monday’s meeting of the Springfield City Council would have been a quick one.  There were few controversial items and councilors seemed in agreement about the diciest issues before them.  Rather, since the council had not met since January, a huge amount