US – Tuesday, February 9
The Senate’s Weak Health Care Bill
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid “got to 60” at 1:08 yesterday morning, clearing a key Republican hurdle and keeping the Senate’s version of a health care reform bill on track for passage before Christmas.
 
Patrick jumps on jobs bandwagon
As Washington leaders work furiously on national job creation legislation, their Beacon Hill counterparts are now doing the same. Tomorrow, Gov. Deval Patrick is expected to detail plans that include offering a $2,500 tax credit for every new job a small business adds — a move that could wind up creating 20,000 positions.
 
DeLeo wants house troops to go retail
Speaker Robert DeLeo has a message for the seven score or so House Democrats who will try to get reelected in the fall: Scram.
 
Will a two-phase plan ever finish?
For years, Somerville and Medford residents have anxiously awaited the Green Line's extension into their transit-deprived neighborhoods. But now it’s a question of how far the MBTA line will actually go.
 
For a really good time, call ahead
As Marvin Gaye so beautifully sang, “Let’s get it on.” Who are we to disagree, especially with so many smoochable spots to enjoy Valentine’s Day? It doesn’t have to cost the earth, either. 
 
[not too shabby]
“[title of show]” is a silly, little show filled with nudge- nudge, wink-wink moments and enough self-congratulations to make a Hollywood award show look like a spiritually-driven mission of mercy. And though there’s been a dearth of musicals that proclaim, “look at us, we’re a musical making fun of musicals,” there’s something fresh and oddly charming about this one.
 
Beanpot on its way back to the Heights
The outdoor game at Fenway Park last month went to Boston University.
 
What’s next for the Bruins?
After 10 agonizing games filled with near-misses, bad breaks and downright sloppy play, the Bruins ended their epic losing streak with a cathartic win on Sunday. Now that the distraction of that brutal run is over, here’s what to look for as the Bruins go forward:

 
T time
What to do and where to go. 
 
Published 20:43, September the 28th, 2009
 
Gov. Deval Patrick, labeled yesterday the "Bio Gov" for his support of the biotechnology industry, sits alongside Mayor Thomas Menino and Massachusetts Life Sciences Center President & CEO Dr. Susan Windham-Bannister as they celebrate the return of the BIO International Convention to Boston in 2012. Gov. Deval Patrick, labeled yesterday the "Bio Gov" for his support of the biotechnology industry, sits alongside Mayor Thomas Menino and Massachusetts Life Sciences Center President & CEO Dr. Susan Windham-Bannister as they celebrate the return of the BIO International Convention to Boston in 2012. 
Photo: NATHAN FRIED-LIPSKI/METRO
 

Bringing back the BIO to the Bay State

Biotechnology convention slated to return to Boston in 2012. Event expected to generate $30 million

Fire official: Boston is unprepared for incident

Edward Kelly, president of Boston Firefighters Local 718, issued an opinion piece yesterday claiming the city is unprepared for the type of hazardous incident that could arise as a result of the growth of the biotechnology industry in Boston.

“The city has consistently refused to fund a hazmat unit and we fear that it’s one of those things that will get funded only after disaster strikes,” he wrote.

Kelly pointed to an alleged illegal dumping call last month where fumes sent response team members to the hospital.  

 

The BIO International Convention will return to Boston in 2012, bringing as many as 26,000 attendees and providing a boost to the already burgeoning biotechnology industry in Massachusetts, officials announced yesterday.  

When it was first here in 2007, the conference set a record for attendance and generated more than $24 million for the local economy. Gov. Deval Patrick used the platform to pledge $1 billion in biotechnology support through the Massachusetts Life Sciences Law, which was signed a year later.

Patrick said in a statement Sunday that investment in life sciences had positioned the commonwealth to overcome the economic downturn at a more rapid rate than the rest of the nation.

Yesterday, Patrick labeled Massachusetts — which saw over $400 million in funding for the industry in the first year of the bill’s life — the “undisputed center of the life sciences universe.”

By the numbers

22,366
The 2007 BIO International Convention drew a record 22,366 attendees, up 15 percent from the previous year. The exhibition featured the largest gathering of biotech exhibitors in history, representing 48 states and 64 countries and 1,900 companies.

26,000

The projected number of attendees for the 2012 convention. In addition, 10,000 hotel rooms will be needed on peak nights, with a total of 41,200 for the whole event. The convention is expected to generate $30.1 million for the city. 

 
 
 
Share
 
 
 
 
MMMpod
The February MMMpod features conversation from Ozzy Osbourne. Michael Emerson from "Lost" tells us about his days enjoying punk rock in Boston. We also dig up an old interview from the late great Howard Zinn. We have a song from Delta Spirit and The Soft Pack, who tell us where they got their name.