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Election roundup: Wu says a bridge is not the answer to Boston's addiction problems; two unions make endorsements
By adamg on Fri, 06/04/2021 - 10:20am
The Boston Sun reports that Michelle Wu has come out against rebuilding the bridge to Long Island, saying the money would be better and more quickly spent on things that can be done now, instead of waiting for Quincy to finally yell uncle and stop fighting in court.
The Bay State Banner reports the ACLU is less than thrilled with a plan, signed off on by Acting Mayor Kim Janey, to create a nine-community video surveillance network. One example: Boston bars the use of facial-recognition technology, but other places don't, so what happens to images that are scanned in from those places?
Speaking of Janey, the Globe asks if the bloom is off her rose already. WGBH, meanwhile, takes a look at the increasingly messy - and increasingly public - story of the White family, leading up to a new affidavit by Dennis White in which he discusses how he spanked one of his two daughters, the one who spoke for more than an hour on how horrible he is.
WBUR seems surprised that few people seem to be paying attention to the mayor's race in the first week in June - and tries to shame suburbanites in particular to start paying attention, damn it, because Boston is the Hub of the Universe, and that includes the suburbs, and never mind that none of them get to vote for Boston's next mayor.
The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, local 2222, is backing Annissa Essaibi George. "Boston’s hard working residents need a partner in the Mayor’s Office, someone who will show up and speak up for workers’ rights time and time again - not just during campaign season, local Business Manager Myles Calvey said in a statement.
The local firefighters union has endorsed Mary Tamer of West Roxbury to replace Councilor Matt O'Malley in District 6 (West Roxbury, JP). "Mary is an experienced leader who cares deeply about the health and safety of our communities and is the leader we need at City Hall," Local 718 President John Soares said in a statement.
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Comments
RTFAA
This where RTFAA ("Read the f**kin article, asshole") is going to be needed here.
At first glance:
My knee jerk reply was "OMG no". But read the article and she makes a lot of points. Especially one I repeat myself about this.. people/agencies/cities all working in silo's on this issue.
And yeah 100m is alot of money to be spent on a bridge (and lets not forget those legal fees spent on getting Quincy to roll over). It could very much be spent better now on other things.
So yeah read the article(s) on these.
This kind of gets to the
This kind of gets to the heart of my problem with Wu. It's easy to find reasons to oppose things, but much harder to identify workable alternatives, especially when it comes to things like building homeless shelters, where many of the alternatives require uncomfortable fights with powerful neighborhood associations. There are a lot of valid reasons to be skeptical of the bridge solution--the fact that we could theoretically build multiple similar facilities here on the mainland for the same amount of money, for example--but just opposing the bridge without making a specific alternative proposal that addresses the same needs is not leadership, it's just pandering to a NIMBY base that I suspect she hopes to lean on for support for her eventual run for governor.
thats why
Thats why I read the link.. I was like. OK fine that you said that but "where's the solution"
and you're right, she doesn't say any specific solutions. But her points are still valid.
I don't 100% fault her on this, it is a newspaper article and it was an off the cuff answer. However, her campaign should back up what she said with a release or something. She needs a plan to backup that statement than just general theory.
How much would it cost...
... to rely mainly on ferry service -- but have a helicopter permanently based there to handle people needing emergency medical evacuation?
Much less than $100+ million.
Much less than $100+ million.
Also:
https://www.seaboats.net/new-build-10m-ambulance-boat-obm-version-1400328
Who would operate said ferry
Who would operate said ferry and who would insure it?
Same people who run the other harbor ferries?
Boston Harbor Cruises run the ferries to Hull, Hingham, Georges and Spectacle islands already.
How much
For Fire Department service and what is the response time? And is that response time acceptable?
Sounds like they'd need an on island station, adding to the yearly costs no one has added up yet.
Startup costs for a ferry system to get guests there are one thing, the yearly maintenance costs haven't been addressed as far as I can see. Maintaining a bridge, I would venture, is less than maintaining a ferry system.
There is a Fire Engine on the
There is a Fire Engine on the island, but obviously they’d need additional assistance quickly if there were any significant fire on the island.
This kind of gets to the
This is normal and rational behavior for a candidate, as opposed to an incumbent. While campaigning, it's safer for a candidate to point out problems than to propose solutions. A candidate that proposes solutions will have holes poked through them. Even if the solutions are good, opponents will hammer on the holes. The candidate won't get elected.
Yes, it's definitely safer.
Yes, it's definitely safer.
I agree
8 years ago I enthusiastically voted for her because she brought forth solutions to problems. Now that she is going for the bigger stage, she is coming up with ideas without plans for carrying them out. This is yet another example. Show us how $100 million (or even better, less) could be spent to offer better services than were offered on Long Island.
As an additional criticism to the Wu/City of Quincy idea, those who would be tempted by others would benefit greatly from being on Long Island in general. The Methadone Mile doesn't seem to be a solution at all. Location is key, and as Wu doesn't even give a location, my fear is that these problems will continue to be concentrated in certain parts of the city.
Even more specifically, and I
Even more specifically, and I do think Adam could have highlighted this, she is clear that he opposition to building the bridge as an immediate solution to the pressing issues with homelessness and addiction, particularly that in the Mass & Cass area that has received much attention of late. Yes, Adam did kinda highlight that, but my read of the source text is that Wu isn't shooting down the bridge completely, just that it isn't a fast plan nor is there an actual plan to provide the services needed on the island once the bridge is built.
It's really hard to disagree with the notion that the bridge building plan is going to be expensive and will take a fair amount of time to complete when immediate solutions are needed. I mean, unless someone thinks they can build a bridge for much less money and have it done by the end of next week or something.
It's really hard to disagree
No doubt, but like I said: Lets hear some alternative proposals. There are a lot of things we could do, but virtually all of them require some kind of sacrifice on the part of some voters. To me "leadership" means leveling with people on the real cost of dealing with a problem, not just shooting down other people's ideas while maintaining the status quo forever.
And he rposition on the wave
And he rposition on the wave of shootings and stabbings?
Just an assumption
She is against people shooting or stabbing other people.
Found the fear-mongering
Found the fear-mongering anonymous cop in the comments!
hey, gotta find some way to
hey, gotta find some way to occupy all those overtime hours
A lot of people are being killed
What can be done about it as the Mayor of Boston is a valid question.
Sure
It wasn't the question asked, though, nor the subject of the thread.
But with several recent
But with several recent notable incidents directly related to Methadone Mile, it is part of the question.
Charter School Money
Don't forget the globe article about all the pro charter school money flowing into a super pac that supports Campbell. Not sure if it will matter in the end since Wu and Essaibi-George will likely win the primary, but you got to watch the money in these races.
MBTA Aborway yard
I'm sure the residents of the South End and the people who live or work in the neighborhood known as the methadone mile would support relocating the homeless shelters to the Aborway yard.
Not continuing with the plan
Not continuing with the plan at the Shattuck site? There is currently a plan to bring the site with Shattuck currently into a housing for homeless and other services. The hospital is closing down as the building is ancient. There is a mix of people who want it to go back to Franklin Park and others, who support this. I would support housing for homeless and other homeless services at either site.
I remember going with my Dad to the T employees credit union that was in the building at Arborway. He also worked for a while there driving and shifting. It will probably need to be cleaned up.
Wu is not the answer to
Wu is not the answer to Boston problems.
Wow, thanks for your insight
Wow, thanks for your insight on the Boston mayoral race, Not From Boston.