Pubdate: Thu, 16 Oct 2014
Source: Boston Herald (MA)
Copyright: 2014 The Boston Herald, Inc
Contact:  http://news.bostonherald.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/53
Note: Prints only very short LTEs.

TOO 'COMMON' PROBLEM

It was a logical reaction to Tuesday's double-stabbing on Boston 
Common when a young bystander told Herald columnist Peter Gelzinis, 
"Bad stuff can happen in the nicest places."

But the unfortunate fact is that the scene of that stabbing, the 
Soldiers and Sailors Monument, isn't among those "nicest places" and 
hasn't been for a very long time. It has for too long been a place to 
be avoided, a place inhabited by drug dealers, dope smokers and 
assorted ne'er-do-wells who have claimed the turf for their own and 
rarely get rousted.

Even the nice Asian-American ladies who used to like to do their 
early morning exercises up there seem to have abandoned it for lower 
and safer ground.

So why are we at all surprised when two unarmed park rangers, trying 
to make a dent in the cesspool the monument area has become, are attacked?

It is no secret that much of the Common has become a convenient spot 
for the homeless and for kids from nearby colleges alike to sit on a 
convenient bench and smoke a little weed. It is the common 
denominator along the main walkways of the Common. And we haven't 
even entered the "medical marijuana" era yet.

The city, the state and private foundations are even now investing 
thousands of dollars in refurbishing the fountains and the 
landscaping along the Tremont Street side of the Common. But all of 
that will be a wasted effort, if passersby don't feel safe. This 
shouldn't be about just one guy with a history of violence acting 
out. This is about abandoning whole sections of the Common and law 
enforcement responding only after there's a problem.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom