STATE HOUSE — People accused of stealing items worth between $250 to $1,500 would no longer be charged with felonies in Massachusetts, under a bill passed by the Senate Thursday.
The legislation raising the threshold at which a misdemeanor becomes a felony to $1,500 for larceny, fraudulent use of credit cards, malicious destruction of property and buying or receiving stolen goods, is intended to make it easier for offenders to "get their lives back on track" after a conviction, Sen. Patricia Jehlen said.
Beaming over the convention of the consonant caucus, the speaker uttered what would be the second most memorable line in the 1988 presidential race: "This election isn't about ideology, it's about competence…" This dramatic statement was later bested by George H.W. Bush's "read my lips…" tax pledge. Atlanta's Democrat Convention that July proved to be, in retrospect, the last stand for Michael S. Dukakis, the last progressive.
As progressivism gallops to a new beat of populism, modern day revivalists should look to Dukakis as their godfather. He is the last living link to the progressive forefathers.
