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Rhode Island Tag

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 11, 2011 6 Comments

is pretty well set out in this article in The Providence Journal about intimidation of legislators who are considering reforms needed to save Rhode Island from fiscal collapse (see my post yesterday for background): Philip Keefe, the president of the second-largest state employees union, the R.I....

Posted by William A. Jacobson on October 10, 2011 9 Comments

I know you know about Rhode Island's public sector employee pension problem, because I've posted about it so many times. But take a look at this chart which shows how household contributions to public sector pensions (state employees and teachers) is expected to climb to just over...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 10, 2011 12 Comments

I'm sure that by "fight back" they don't literaly mean "fight" back, it's just a turn of phrase.  Like "take these son of bitches out," words, just words. And when it comes to the pension system in Rhode Island, which is on the brink of collapse, "fight...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on September 06, 2011 5 Comments

You know all about Rhode Island's pension and other fiscal problems stemming from an out-of-control public sector which made promises which could be kept only under the most rosy of scenarios, in a state almost completely controlled by unions: Is Rhode Island Our Future Under Obama? High...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 31, 2011 4 Comments

My town in Rhode Island still is mostly without power, as is much of the state.  My wife returned there briefly today (we were in Ithaca when Irene hit) and called me to say "I've never seen anything like this."  Even several days later the...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 31, 2011 5 Comments

Rhode Island still is without power in much of the state, including my neighborhood.  National Grid is estimating that power will not be restored to the entire town until September 5. As of yesterday, as reported by The Providence Journal: Electrical power was the biggest casualty of...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 29, 2011 22 Comments

The after-Irene hype is that Irene was overhyped. Yes, maybe in the big cities Irene was no biggie.  It's easy for a Philly Inquirer columnist to refer to Irene as a "Category Feh" hurricane. But in those areas of the northeast which city dwellers normally only train or drive...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 28, 2011 8 Comments

Well, so far things could have been worse, We decided to stay in Ithaca after neighbors took care to get our home in Rhode Island ready.  About 40% of Rhode Island, including our street, is without power since this morning.  Watching the Weather Channel I was...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 27, 2011 14 Comments

Looks like it was "just" a Category 1 when it hit North Carolina. I'll be interested to see what happens as it moves up the coast, because a shift East would be bad news for my home in Rhode Island.  We're not on the beach, but...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 08, 2011 10 Comments

You probably have no idea what I'm talking about. Victory Day, formerly known as VJ Day, formerly known as Victory Over Japan Day, no longer is celebrated anywhere in the U.S. except in my home State of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.  It is celebrated the second...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on August 06, 2011 7 Comments

Let me guess, you still will vote for The One because this bumper sticker was pre-2008, right? Spotted in my neighborhood in Rhode Island, on the same vehicle as in Thursday's post: ...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 22, 2011 4 Comments

Former Rhode Island Governor Bruce Sundlun has died at age 91.  Sundlun was a dominant figure in Rhode Island politics, and a true Rhode Island character.  A WWII veteran who was shot down behind enemy lines in Europe, and who joined the Belgian resistence before working...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 09, 2011 1 Comment

Now I can't say bumper stickers never taught me anything. I spotted this bumper sticker in Providence last night, near Thayer Street and Brown University: My first impression was that this was some sort of political statement, but thanks to the miracle of Google, I learned that...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 08, 2011 1 Comment

I've written many times about Rhode Island's public sector pension problem, which is like an albatross hung around the necks of taxpayers.  Although some reforms have been made, retiring at a relatively early age on full or near full salary forevever has created an absurd situation...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on July 04, 2011 12 Comments

Hey, it's a slow news day.  I can't even find a good Stuxnet story to write about. We have extensive hydrangea and hosta gardens at our home in Rhode Island, and I'm particularly happy with the way this Oak Leaf hydrangea is growing.   We bought it...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 30, 2011 2 Comments

I reported the other day how RI Gov. Linc Chafee was refusing to turn a murderer over to the feds because the murderer potentially was subject to the death penalty.  The murderer attempted to plead guilty to the murder in state court so as to...

Posted by William A. Jacobson on June 29, 2011 4 Comments

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI), who has lashed out repeatedly at Republicans and the Tea Party movement, is up for reelection. Whitehouse has a lot of money in the bank, and surely will use his connections to the White House in the campaign, but is...

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