On Brookline

If there’s anything I lack, it’s a political sense. But even I can see that the prospects for a Prop 2.5 override passing in Brookline are getting shakier by the day. Today’s Herald features an interesting chart which can be interpreted to show that when economic conditions worsen, voters are likely to say no to property tax increases.

So what happens when, or if, the Town’s Hail Mary pass falls short? What then? I haven’t heard a plan.

What I hear are the town hall apologists saying that they want to return Brookline to halcyon days past. It’s hard to miss the message - this is their town and the rest of us just get to live in it. And if that means we have to stretch to finance a DPW under Federal investigation, a town administration that has lost all control over spending, a health department that has no sense for environmental safety, and a school administration that thinks all cuts should occur in the classroom; so be it.

The tragedy is that they may get lucky and complete the pass. But it’s not a game ender, it just prolongs the misery to another year. And we’d better ask if this is the team we want on the field when that happens.