BY DANA VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION FEB. 22-24, 2019) — Through the Secret Squadron, THE PLANET has obtained a copy of a soon-to-be-released press release from the mayor’s office announcing a dramatic new economic development project worth countless millions to the city. Here is the Good News Memo: […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY FEB. 20, 2019) — They blew it. Or perhaps the passive voice might be better, since “they” depends on your politics, hence: It was blown. Amazon’s pullout from Long Island City, Queens, will be a Harvard Case Study in the not-too-distant past. Why […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY FEB. 18, 2019) — One of the most under-reported aspects of Amazon’s stunning pullout from its HQ deal with Long Island, Queens is how the left battled the left. When you arm wrestle yourself, you can only lose. You can only win. One […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION FEB. 15-17, 2019) — Last week, NFL Films released its fabulous “Mic’d Up” film of Super Bowl LVIII. These productions never fail to provide fascinating glimpses of men under pressure, from the Rams’ Aaron Donald psyching himself up before the game with […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY FEB. 13, 2019) — It wasn’t the best of weeks for embattled Democrats, not with the likes of Reps. Ilhan Omar, D-Mich, and Alexandria Ocascio-Cortez, D-N.Y. screeching away. The two not-ready-for-prime-time freshmen reps resembled children pretending to sit at the adult’s table at […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY [EDITOR’S NOTE: Keeping in mind the warning we published last week, commentators are advised to keep their postings on topic, relevant, and free of diatribes and personal insult. If you go off topic, have a good point to make. Our first warning had a good effect, one […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION FEB. 8-10, 2019) — Our commentary on the inner workings at the District Attorney’s office led as we thought it would to more leaks, despite, again, Andrea Harrington promising Mach III and brimstone to watchdogs who drop a dime. Pressure cookers […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY FEB. 6, 2019) — On Tuesday, Boston hosted another Rolling Rally, revving the Duckboats for another celebration of a World Championship. This one was to honor the 6th Super Bowl title of the NFL’s Greatest Dynasty, the New England Patriots. This one’s the […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY [EDITOR’S NOTE: We were hoping for the “market” to self-regulate through common sense, but we see now that Big Brother has to come in for the Lecture. To wit: The pointless back-and-forth bickering lately on this site has grown more than tiresome, amounting to an abuse of […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION JAN. 31-FEB. 2, 2019) — It didn’t take long before reports trickled out of the Berkshire County District Attorney’s office, led by newbie Andrea Harrington. Our new Hamilton Burger assumed office with the startling agenda of going after “crime” on the basis […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY JAN. 30, 2019) — In early September, Pittsfield begat another bizzywerk brainchild of government in a welcoming event for the 20 or so people who would make up the Citizen’s Academy — and believe us: We mean “make up,” because the event proved […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY JAN. 28, 2019) — One subject that needs to be added to the public school curriculum is money. THE PLANET first learned about money and how it works in grammar school. We had our first bank book in first grade. Today, it’s not just […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION, JAN. 24-27, 2019) — Too bad the light from the Beacon Cinema can’t serve as a lighthouse for itself, because the Good Ship Movie House on North Street is heading for the rocky shoals. Here is an edited post from AgentSmith, shared […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, WEDNESDAY JAN. 23, 2019) — It’s been a while since THE PLANET dipped into the Letter Box. These are comments sent to us (usually by e-mail) that aren’t posted here but are also not submitted as off the record. We ALWAYS respect a writer’s call for […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, MONDAY JAN. 21, 2019) — On Oct. 17, 2017, the New York Times ran a prophetic piece on an online furniture and home-goods company. The article questioned how it would be possible for the firm, Wayfair, to compete given its razor-thin profit margins in an […]
BY DAN VALENTI PLANET VALENTI NEWS AND COMMENTARY (FORTRESS OF SOLITUDE, THE WEEKEND EDITION JAN. 18-20, 2019) — You’re an online business. You lose $151.7 million in the third quarter 2018. Customers file countless complaints about bad service, cheap products, and “bait and switch” practices. Your customer relations are a mess. You’ve just been hit […]
