Firefighters: The farce continues
The refusal of firefighter Albert Arroyo to return to work this week as ordered by Fire Commissioner Roderick Fraser is extending the accidental-disability pension farce now playing in Boston. If Arroyo doesn't return to work, the department should let him go. The firefighter took part in a recent bodybuilding contest just weeks after reporting a career-ending, on-the-job injury. It appears the muscular firefighter experiences less trouble pumping iron than carrying a clipboard in his role as a fire inspector. In the sport of weightlifting, "spotters" stand ready to assist contestants who are in danger of collapsing under too much weight. In Boston, however, it is the taxpayers who need spotters to protect them from being crushed by questionable disability claims by some firefighters.Oil drilling: Not on Georges Bank
The conflict between food and fuel is evident in the Midwest, where demand for corn ethanol is eating into production of feed corn. But New England has a parallel problem: The pressure to drill for oil off Georges Bank could endanger that historic fish-breeding area. Recently, President Bush lifted the presidential ban on drilling on the outer continental shelf. While the move was just symbolic - a congressional ban is still in place - Bush's move prompted new calls in Congress for easing that ban, too. The oil industry would have more credibility in asking for drilling authority if it would first explore millions of leased acres that are not subject to the moratorium. In the meantime, the New England congressional delegation should fight to keep Georges Bank free of drilling rigs.
Golf: Blue laws on the green
You can't blame the Puritans for all of Massachusetts' oddball blue laws. They were not around when Massachusetts became one of two states - Alaska is the other - to ban alcohol on the grounds of golf courses. Not surprisingly, compliance with the ban has been a good deal less than 100 percent. That is all the more reason for legislators to give final approval to a bill giving towns and cities the authority to license sales of beer and wine on golf courses in their jurisdiction. Passage of the measure would provide clubs with a new source of revenue and might help them keep fees within reason. And unless 48 other states are wrong, beverage carts won't lead to "Animal House" on the back nine.
