Today the op-ed page introduces VoxOp, which offers a roundup of views on the issues of the day from opinion makers.
CASINO GAMBLING
"Tuesday's hearing on casinos will be the political event of the decade. Union supporters will be out in force, hoping to pack Gardner Auditorium and working the halls [to] find the same lawmakers getting DiMasi's "personal" touch. Members will be between a rock and a hard place equivalent to the gay marriage amendment vote.
"And that's why I think some independent arbiter may be needed. In this poisoned environment, casino supporters are going to look at the Bosley report with cross eyes. It's time for someone without a dog in this hunt to step forward."
- OUTRAGED LIBERAL baystateliberal.blogspot.com
"I'm fascinated by the administration's retreat from promising 30,000 jobs to 'tens of thousands.' Is 20,000 'tens of thousands'? I suppose. But when I hear a phrase like that, I think of, oh, 50,000, or 70,000. 'Tens of thousands' is not only deliberately vague; it's deceptive."
- DAN KENNEDY medianation.blogspot.com
"The real problem . . . is the clause pushing jail time for online players. . . The concept of felony online gambling is a frightening one, and the irony of Massachusetts okaying casino gambling while quietly persecuting online play is irrefutable. This casino bill needs to be defeated. If it's voted down, Indian casinos presently opposed by Patrick will inevitably open, and online play won't put anyone behind bars."
- JOSHUA McCARTHY onlinecasinoadvisory.com
LIMITS ON STUDENT HOUSING
"When he ran for City Council in 1999, Mike Ross promised students he would balance local residents' interests with the needs of Boston's college population. At age 27, Ross was himself a graduate student at Boston University as he ran for the seat representing District 8, which covers Back Bay, Fenway, and much of BU's campus. He enjoyed strong support from student volunteers and the endorsement of the BU College Democrats. After beating his well-connected opponent, Ross repeated his support for students at Student Union meetings and in a letter to The Daily Free Press criticizing former chancellor John Silber. That was then. Now, more than eight years later, Ross has traded promises of fairness for the pandering polemics of his colleagues, demonizing college students in a cheap effort to appease some of his constituents."
- EDITORIAL, The Daily Free Press, Boston University
"This would force students to live in their 'more expensive college dormitories.' Isn't that a pretty serious issue? The fact that dorms are more expensive than finding apartments outside?
"With all the measures from schools lately to provide more financial aid for tuition (here) - how about also looking at how much you're charging students for their dorm rooms. Student housing should not be a profit center for colleges."
- THE BEANTOWN BLOGGERY, Beantownbloggery.com
"Limiting renters to four will protect neighborhoods and students. The proposal will help neighborhoods by allowing other segments of the market to compete as well as improve student housing. Allowing an infinite number of renters to live in a single apartment does little more than prevent family and professional housing from existing and pads the pockets of speculating landlords."
- CITY COUNCILOR MICHAEL ROSS, The Northeastern News
