recession

Latest Articles

Obama responds to the 99 percent

Band-aids or benefits?
In announcements that could be interpreted as gifts to the Occupy movement, President Barack Obama recently introduced three measures to help struggling students, veterans, and homeowners.
By DEIRDRE FULTON | November 09, 2011

Occupy Providence on the march

Protests
It's 11:30 am on Day 3 of Occupy Providence and a small group of activists has gathered at the foot of a statue in Burnside Park to plot a march on Bank of America's Kennedy Plaza branch.
By DAVID SCHARFENBERG | October 19, 2011

Photos: Occupy Boston protesters rally with unions, veterans, and more

Downtown Crossing | October 13, 2011
Occupy Boston protesters march alongside Veterans for Peace, as well as other activist groups such as Jobs with Justice and the AFL-CIO, at Downtown Crossing on October 13, 2011.
By PHOENIX STAFF | October 14, 2011

Three-city news war

Press releases
The Portland Press Herald is really under the gun right now, from within and without its walls.
By JEFF INGLIS | September 21, 2011

Obama’s jobs plan is a step in the right direction

Notes on class warfare
President Barack Obama's September 8 speech outlining his new jobs program — and the tax policies needed to finance it — was a sign of hope.
By EDITORIAL | September 22, 2011

Liquor blues

Maine's booze economy
"For great sale prices, there's no place like Maine."
By AL DIAMON | September 14, 2011

Indentured servitude and other keys to the Rhode Island recovery

Dollars and Sense
Despite the continual awarding of tax breaks to various upper-income types, we Rhode Islanders are told our business climate is still near bottom. So I make these seven modest suggestions for addressing the problem.
By BARRY SCHILLER | August 31, 2011

Review: Chasing Madoff

Jeff Prosserman's documentary
Few will dispute the evil avarice behind the $50 billion Ponzi scheme Bernie Madoff masterminded.
By TOM MEEK | August 23, 2011

Mobility unemployeds

Big Fat Whale
Medicare is reducing benefits for mobility scooters, but there is an alternative ...
By BRIAN MCFADDEN | August 09, 2011

The debt crisis is only on hold

Plus, what does congressman Bill Keating have against Cuban families?
The United States was only hours away from joining in the international community of deadbeats and bunko artists — think Greece, Spain, Italy, Ireland, Portugal — when President Barack Obama signed the legislation raising the national debt ceiling and cutting trillions of dollars in federal spending.
By EDITORIAL | August 03, 2011

Cheap places for rent

Big Fat Whale
What are you willing to put up with?
By BRIAN MCFADDEN | August 03, 2011

Chafee’s number

Gubernatorial Scorecard
This week, we continue with a running feature, the Gubernatorial Scorecard. Every so often, we'll rate Lincoln Chafee from 1 to 10 on both the politics and substance of his most recent maneuverings.
By PROVIDENCE PHOENIX STAFF | July 27, 2011

Revenge of the Blockbuster

Big Fat Whale
You can rewind, but you won't survive.
By BRIAN MCFADDEN | May 26, 2011

Talking points

Letters to the Portland Phoenix Editor, April 22, 2011
Maine has had a favorable history when it comes to third parties in chaotic political times.
By PORTLAND PHOENIX LETTERS | April 20, 2011

I can't recall

Maine's mixed history with recall efforts
“I can think of no single measure that would do more to strengthen the credibility of state government than . . . the institution of recall.”
By AL DIAMON | April 13, 2011

This trickle-down stinks

Commentary
True free-market capitalism has lasted 30 years — barely half as long as its arch-enemy, Soviet communism.
By JEFF INGLIS | April 06, 2011

The last middle class American

Big Fat Whale
The last middle class American, on the run from the recession.
By BRIAN MCFADDEN | March 22, 2011

Unemployed: My Diary of Spiritual and Emotional Decline

Two years of job-seeking takes a massive toll
Just over two years ago, I lost my job. I knew what was happening the moment my boss's eyes broke contact with mine to glance outside his office window.
By ANONYMOUS | March 10, 2011

By | January 01, 0001

Smoke Local

Where will marijuana fit into Maine's economy?
Lobsters, blueberries, potatoes, and . . . pot? As Maine's medical-marijuana program inches closer to business-as-usual, weed is on the verge of becoming a meaningful part of the state's economy — a budding piece of Maine's local, sustainable, pro-agriculture aesthetic.
By DEIRDRE FULTON | February 16, 2011

Talk time

Press releases
The state's largest newspaper company is about to negotiate its contract with its employees. With workers seeking a share of the company's newfound profitability, and owner Richard Connor striving mightily to stay in the black, this could go very smoothly, or be a bloody, destructive battle — with the quality of information available to Mainers hanging in the balance.
By JEFF INGLIS | February 09, 2011

LePage's secret puppeteers

How the governor outsourced his regulatory-reform efforts to corporate lobbyists
It was no surprise that Governor Paul LePage would seek to reform Maine's environmental regulations.
By COLIN WOODARD | February 10, 2011

To curb global gluttony

Hoopleville
Consumption outweighs production. What should we do?
By DAVID KISH | January 19, 2011

Can Maine's Democrats come back from the dead?

Or have they been Republicans for too long?
Let's skip over several huge problems the Maine Democratic Party faces as it tries to recover from its historic losses in November, when for the first time since 1964 the Republicans took control of both houses of the Legislature and the governorship.
By LANCE TAPLEY | January 19, 2011

A critical reading of LePage’s inaugural address

Starting points
Governor Paul LePage's inaugural address was fairly short, and was filled with rhetoric much like that from his campaign.
By JEFF INGLIS | January 12, 2011

Caprio's Clinton fixation

The gubernatorial hopeful is running an ‘It’s The Economy, Stupid’ campaign. But will the centrist approach work in a liberal-leaning state?
It was the highlight of Democrat Frank Caprio's bid for governor: an endorsement by Bill Clinton before an enormous American flag at the Rhode Island Convention Center.
By DAVID SCHARFENBERG | October 20, 2010

Review: Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps

Not even Oliver Stone can make derivatives sound all that exciting
Oliver Stone can't be blamed for not knowing that his ironic "Greed is good" would be taken seriously as a motto by a generation of ruthless buccaneers.
By PETER KEOUGH | September 21, 2010

My new excuse

Whatever Colgan does, it's not his fault
Charlie Colgan isn't to blame for all the mistakes made by . . . uh . . . Charlie Colgan.
By AL DIAMON | September 08, 2010

Bipartisan map to economic security

A cartography lesson
Where are we?
By DAVID KISH | July 28, 2010

Beer on a budget

In defense of expense
The beer industry is generally considered recession-proof, since people are still going to drink beer when times get tough. But has the same been true for more expensive craft beer in the recent recession?
By JOSH SMITH | May 19, 2010