Nine wishes for 2009

FEW New Year's Days have been imbued with as much hope as this dawning of 2009. No doubt the fervent finger-crossing is so great because it matches the level of national anxiety, especially about the teetering economy. But today, with a year of possibility stretched out before us like pristine snow, is a time for optimism. So we offer these nine good wishes for 2009, in hopes of a better world - from the Globe's backyard to places far outside the circulation area.

1. We wish strength and wisdom for Barack Obama. The president-elect has an In box overflowing with challenges. We hope he keeps his head while navigating the perilous interest-group politics that his election has not banished from Washington. The immense goodwill greeting this historic presidency needs to be harnessed to propel the nation out of the current desolating recession, with its rippling job losses, housing foreclosures, and credit freezes. States and cities, where services for the neediest are dispensed, are facing extreme budget shortfalls of their own and require a boost from Washington. But Obama and his advisers need to take care, when dispensing the crucial billions in stimulus dollars, not to turn balm into boondoggle. Meanwhile, there needs to be accountability for the banks, Wall Street sharpies, and federal officials who allowed years of economic voodoo in the mortgage and financial markets to bloom into this crisis.

2. We wish for a lively, respectful challenge to Mayor Menino. This fall the mayor is almost certainly going to stand for an unprecedented fifth term as chief executive of our beloved city, and he should not get a free ride. Much as we support the mayor on many initiatives, there is always room for new ideas and fresh thinking. After almost 16 years with Menino in office, progress in Boston is only halting on crime reduction, education, civic engagement, and downtown development. It is time for a serious evaluation. We hope Menino doesn't adopt a Rose Garden strategy and avoid engaging his potential opponents; there should be plenty of debates, especially if the preliminary campaign draws more than one challenger, which we also hope for. In addition, there is a good chance that two or three City Council seats will open up this year, and we hope to see new candidates step up to run - inspired by Obama's example, perhaps - from the city's many communities of color.

3. We hope the temperature keeps turned up on global warming action. The Obama administration may be tempted to put the issue of climate change on the back burner while it copes with the economy. It should not, because the United States must lead if the world is to agree in 2009 on a successor to the expiring Kyoto protocol. If the new president presses the issue, Congress should finally have the votes to put a tax on carbon or create a cap-and-trade system on emissions. And there is a way to keep either measure from burdening the economic recovery: return the revenues from a carbon tax or from the sale of emission allowances to the public in the form of reduced personal taxes or more immediate investments in green technology. Obama's campaign talked about investing $15 billion a year for 10 years on green technologies, an amount dwarfed by the financial bailouts and economic stimulus plans of the past few months. The way to get consumers to choose more sustainable energy alternatives is to make them ubiquitous - and affordable.

4. We hope ethical government makes a comeback. From bucolic towns such as Hamilton to Boston City Hall and Beacon Hill, far too many public officials been found - allegedly - with their hands in the till. Governor Patrick's anti-corruption task force needs to come up with more than obvious quick-fix solutions such as increasing fines for violators. A good start for the next legislative session would be a cold-eyed look at the state and municipal pension systems, which have been tarred by high-profile abuses. And Patrick should more actively champion clean government. It is possible to defend public service as an honorable calling while showing no tolerance for corruption. In fact, the two go hand in hand.

5. The ethical cloud hanging over the Legislature will complicate the intricate dance needed to pass important policy changes. But we hope Beacon Hill finds the will to address the state's transportation crisis. The expected federal stimulus package, large as it is, will not be sufficient to address the $19 billion in deferred maintenance on the state's roads, bridges, and rails, nor all of the $4.7 billion in "shovel-ready" plans on Patrick's own wish list. Especially crucial in hard times is a functioning public transportation system, and the MBTA is a woeful mess. Transportation will be Patrick's priority issue for 2009. It is time for him to lead the Legislature toward sanity and equity in transportation funding by raising the gasoline tax for the first time in 18 years - and by enough to make it count.

6. The planets at last seem to be aligning for significant national progress on universal health insurance. So we hope the state's landmark healthcare law survives the fiscal storm. The recession is cutting state revenues needed to subsidize both the newly insured themselves and the hospitals and community health centers that treat disproportionate numbers of low-income patients. Layoffs will also increase the ranks of those who lose work-based coverage and need the state-subsidized programs. If the state's experiment is to serve as a national model, it must demonstrate that it is not just a fair-weather solution to the nation's healthcare ills. It's good news that Obama understands that healthcare costs are intimately tied to the economic health of American business, and that reforming the system cannot wait until the economy recovers. Universal coverage, properly designed, can do more for the nation's health than all the usual vain New Year's resolutions to stop eating cookies after lunch.

7. We hope for peace in the world. It will take more than a single year for the new president to undo the damage done to America's standing in the world by his predecessor's policies. But since governing is about putting first things first, there are some knots we would like to see undone in 2009. Most urgent is the need for renewed engagement in the Middle East, where a hot war has started in Gaza. The most promising areas may be North Korea's nuclear program and an American-brokered peace between Israel and Syria. At the same time, we would be cheered to see a dialogue opened with Iran, the lowering of tensions between Pakistan and India, and a fresh start for US-Russia relations. That would be a good year for the home team.

8. We hope Greater Boston's public institutions become better neighbors. Lately it seems that hospitals and universities are the only places around that are expanding. Increasingly, these tax-exempt stalwarts are city-builders, reshaping whole neighborhoods - architecturally and culturally - into new institutional zones. While no one doubts the value of education and healthcare, and the substantial employment opportunities that come with their success, we hope local colleges and medical centers will take a closer look at how their master plans line up with their charitable missions. That means Boston College thinks twice about forcing an unwelcome dormitory expansion plan into residential Brighton; Harvard continues close dialogue with community leaders as it builds its life sciences campus in Allston; and the great hospital network operated by Partners HealthCare recognizes the impact its muscular expansion into the suburbs is having on community hospitals.

9. We wish for a re-setting of national values. We don't want to romanticize hard economic times. The recession hurts real people's current lives and strangles their futures. But we are hoping for a corrective balance to the profligacy of the past decade, built on an unsustainable tower of national and personal debt. New Year's is traditionally a time for personal introspection. This year, more than most, it is fitting to redefine needs and wants, to nurture friendships, take solace from the arts or the natural world, and delight in what is right in front of us instead of grasping for what's out of reach. We hope that helps.