In a stunning development in the race to fill the U.S. Senate seat formerly held by Ted Kennedy, the Republican nominee State Senator Scott Brown has surged within nine percentage points of the scandal plagued Democrat nominee Martha Coakley. It's been the conventional wisdom that whoever won the Democrat nomination in last month's primary would win in a walk, but now it appears that it is turning into a real horserace and that the Democrats will have to fight to hold onto the seat. Making it that much more challenging, Sen. Brown also received the endorsement yesterday of Boston Red Sox deity Curt Schilling:
Curt Schilling, the former Boston Red Sox pitcher who had toyed with running for the Senate in Massachusetts, has endorsed Republican state Sen. Scott Brown. Schilling made the announcement on his blog Monday, calling Brown “exactly what this state and this country needs right now.”
“He’s for smaller government, stopping the concentration of power in one political party, a strong military and vigorous homeland defense, as well as — and probably most appropriate and meaningful right now — giving all Americans health care, but not by creating a new government insurance program,” Schilling wrote. “This state can literally change the nation in one day,” he added. “Think about that, and then go vote for Scott Brown and make it happen.”
Of course the candidate in the race that is the most right on the most issues is Libertarian Joe Kennedy, who gets only two percent in the polls. However, considering how important this race is, and how much misery we can be spared if the Democrats lose their 60th vote in the Senate, it may well be time for the anti-Coakley forces to swallow their differences and unite behind Brown. At the very least some people can make themselves useful by following this advice offered by a poster on the Boston Herald website:
"Could all those who hurt this country by blindly voting for Ted Kennedy for 50 years please stay home on election day? You've done enough damage."
Inauguration Day
Yesterday a motley crew of politicians were sworn in at cities and towns all over the Valley. That incluldes Springfield, as shown in this Angelo Puppolo photo.
Inauguration ceremonies always bring out a big crowd in Springfield, as seen in this Bruce Adams photo.
Here's a gang of Springfield politicians as captured by Adams. Believe it or not, there are actually a few good apples among the rotten bunch, but Springfield still has to face the truth about its corrupt past before it can move into the future.
The real political war in Springfield is being fought between lies and truth: So far, lies are winning by leaps and bounds; and that's the truth.
Baby It's Cold Outside
Every morning I enjoy the transcendant beauty of the woodland way into downtown Northampton.
The shame is it's so damn cold even dogs are wearing boots!
It makes you wanna hide out in the cozy confines of the Haymarket.
In Westfield they have a Santa House on the rotary. That's my sister Bev waving in front of it. With the holidays over, Santa has split the scene.
May as well go across the street to the Westfield Tavern and admire John Bonavita's Christmas decorations while they're still up.
Music Flashback
When I was still too young to legally hold a job I worked "under the table" at Nora's Variety on Boston Road in Pine Point, sorting the newspapers before school at 5:30 in the morning and tieing up the returns. I remember being hypnotized when I saw David Cassidy posing nude on the cover of Rolling Stone. It made me wonder why none of the pictures of pretty girls on the covers of the other magazines had the same effect on me.
Later and still underage, I used my brother's draft card to assume his identity and get a third shift job on the weekends in a Dow Jones printing plant in Chicopee. The problem was I would forget that my name was supposed to be my brother's and wouldn't respond when people called me "Rick." All the while I was an honor student at the High School of Commerce serving on the Student Council.
Then I discovered drugs and all that changed, but damn, what demon possessed me to be so ambitious?
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