by charlesriverbranch
CRail wrote: ↑Fri Feb 03, 2023 10:04 am The MBTA is a state agency by necessity and its abolition would result in the need for another state agency meaning you'd just be changing the name as you'd have no choice but to bring folks over from the old agency.All human institutions are subject to what I call "social entropy". They are founded by people who work diligently and make great sacrifices to build and perfect them; when they are gone, the next generation strives to live up to the high standards the founders set. But as generation succeeds generation, gradually people seep in who see the institution more as a career opportunity than a cause worthy of dedication and sacrifice. Eventually, the institution comes to work more for its caretakers than for the people it was built to serve. When people become aware of this, they abolish it, and build something new in its place.
For the MBTA, that time has come. Yes, many of the folks who worked for the old agency will end up working for the new one... but not on the old terms. Their union contracts, their pension fund, their myriad perks, will all be gone. If they come to work for the new agency, it'll be with the understanding that they're there to serve, not to be served. The worst of them will probably decamp to New York or Philadelphia, thinking that the pickings are easier down there.