Editorial

This week's decision by MBTA leadership to renege on paying $43 million in back wages to thousands of unionized employees is but one more reason for the Massachusetts legislature to revisit the issue of debt relief for our state's main public transportation system.

Serving almost 200 cities and towns around Massachusetts, the MBTA is the transportation lifeline for over 1.1 million riders daily - in a state with a population of 6 million.

In Boston, as around the nation, poverty is on the rise. This is sadly unsurprising. Aside from a slight increase in gross domestic product in the second quarter of this year - due to improved export sales (courtesy of a weakening dollar) and the scant impact of the $600 "economic stimulus" checks thrown at many (but not all) citizens (but not most immigrants) by the Bush administration in the spring - there's nothing to cheer about in the American economy of late.

While we may not agree with everything that unions do politically - cleaving to the Democratic Party even on the occasions where there are left alternatives, for example - we certainly agree with the growing union-led movement to "Vote No on Question 1" in the November elections. If passed by statewide referendum, Question 1 would eliminate the Massachusetts state income tax. Cutting at least 40% of our state government's funding stream right off the top starting January 1, 2010.

Open Media Boston co-sponsored a 100-person "Ideas and Action: Human Rights in Boston and the United States" conference yesterday at the Boston Public Library and the Old South Church that joined a number of progressive sociologists in town for the annual conference of the American Sociological Association together with local community activists to discuss the possibility of Boston joining the growing ranks of "Human Rights Cities" around the world.