Marc Comtois

Rhody Going After “the Little Guy”

By Marc Comtois | July 30, 2009 |

This ProJo story about RI government going after small businesses for uncollected sales tax caught the attention of the Drudge Report. Great. Li’l Rhody comes shining thru again….. State tax officials have put more than 1,200 businesses across the state on notice this week that they are out of business unless they pay their overdue…

“The Way We Get By”

By Marc Comtois | July 28, 2009 |

The Maine Troop Greeters have been welcoming our troops to Bangor, Maine for over 6 years (actually, longer, since they have been active since the first Gulf War) and have earned a soft spot in the hearts of many military families: For a town not especially known for its military presence (as compared with places…

Cutting Sports Now, What’s Next?

By Marc Comtois | July 23, 2009 |

Faced with the cuts in sports funding, Woonsocket athletic director George Nasuti is taking a proactive approach in hopes of averting a similar situation that occurred nearly two decades ago when several sports programs were weakened and athletes fled to other schools. He called a meeting of athletes and parents: “Either we work to fund…

“Blue State Meltdown”

By Marc Comtois | July 22, 2009 |

Joel Klotkin’s “The Blue-State Meltdown and the Collapse of the Chicago Model” contrasts the political power held by blue-state liberals: On the surface this should be the moment the Blue Man basks in glory. The most urbane president since John Kennedy sits in the White House. A San Francisco liberal runs the House of Representatives…

NEA Leader Compares RI Revolutionary War Hero to My Lai War Criminal

By Marc Comtois | July 21, 2009 |

I suppose when you’ve established a weekly shtick, you gotta keep doing it. Even when the source material is a Revolutionary War hero. So sometimes you overreach. Like comparing Rhode Island’s own Revolutionary War hero General Nathanael Greene to Lt. William Calley, the war criminal notorious for his role in the My Lai massacre. It…

Ham=Pork

By Marc Comtois | July 20, 2009 |

To paraphrase….”I’ll gladly pay you $1 Million over the next decade for a ham sandwich today.” Award Overview Agency Name: Department of Agriculture Project Location: LOS ANGELES Contract Number: AG3J14120297196 Project Location – State: CA Funding Amount: $1,191,200 Project Location – Zip Code: 90058-1800 Completion Date: 2009-06-30 Congressional District: CA-34 Recipient Information (Award) Recipient Name:…

It’s OK to be a Yankee Doodle Dandee

By Marc Comtois | July 10, 2009 |

I was once part of the band that would be eventually named “George M. Cohan’s Own“, and I was interested to read about the recent Independence Day weekend unveiling of a new bust of George M. Cohan on Wickenden street. It is a fitting tribute to the man who penned so many patriotic songs. The…

Warwick Payrolls

By Marc Comtois | July 9, 2009 |

Over the weekend I was at a neighborhood July 4th get-together. The group was a mixed one. If I had to guess, most were either a-political or run-of-the-mill Rhode Island Democrats. The topic turned to the recent closing of a local Warwick elementary school and how property taxes just got a big bump (believe me,…

Patrick Kennedy Compares Substance Abuse to Cancer

By Marc Comtois | July 8, 2009 |

Patrick Kennedy thinks that his chemical dependency is like having cancer: Kennedy said Wednesday that he hopes his decision to seek treatment was another “sign to people that this is a chronic illness not unlike a cancer that goes into remission but then becomes malignant again.” He said, “This is a chronic illness that needs…

Patrick, again

By Marc Comtois | July 7, 2009 |

Surprise: Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy will return to Congress Tuesday after an absence of about four weeks to undergo treatment for addiction, his office said Monday. This just the last in a long list of repeated bouts with substance abuse and generally erratic behavior. I hold no ill will towards Kennedy, but its obvious his…