Recent comments in /f/boston

ClarkFable t1_j6obau5 wrote

Reply to comment by aVeryLargeWave in Boston's latest murder victim was just 13 by rabblebowser

Early childhood education, family planning resources, birth control accessibility, incentive based basic income, etc. There will never be a silver bullet for these type of issues, but there are plenty of things we can do better. We also need to face the reality that some of the best policies won't work over night, and will take many years to really payoff.

That's all to say that there is more than can/should be done.

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sock-opera t1_j6obaf2 wrote

Reply to comment by ftran998 in Wu wants to cut fares at Boston’s commuter rail stations. Is that really a good idea? (NO PAYWALL) by GlobeOpinion

I’ve heard this argument many times and I just don’t agree. It’s a straw man argument. By your logic, toll roads are also a tax on the poor. Or you could say taking the T is a tax on the poor. This doesn’t make sense as a toll model is a fee-for-service model just like many things in this world. Except EZpass tolls and the MBTA are tax deductible as commuter benefits. Or, we could exempt Boston residents from the congestion toll. It’s an inappropriate assumption that a congestion tax cannot be implemented without disproportionately affecting those who are low income.

Not only that, but we know that the pollution created by ICE vehicles disproportionately affects poorer residents who are more as risk for respiratory illness, so it’s not so easy to just say “drive tax bad for poor” because driving is already bad for them.

edit: typo

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