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More than any other city on the East Coast, Boston is addicted to property taxes. Could the Hub be hitting a crippling tax-levy ceiling soon?
In 2012, collections on homes, buildings, and private infrastructure will feed more than 65 percent of Boston's $2.4 billion budget.

It's 2015. Foreclosures have left Boston's outer neighborhoods gutted, and homes virtually worthless. Downtown, property values have also dropped, triggering sharp declines in commercial activity. The budget has been gutted, and reductions in essential city services are noticeable. Teacher, fire, and police contracts that were negotiated in 2011 and 2012 continue to bleed resources, as baby-boomer pension costs increase at exceedingly higher rates than the city's available finances.

>> CHART: Beantown counters: Boston's addiction to property taxes <<

It's a doomsday scenario, sure. But it's one that becomes more and more likely as Boston's residential values continue to tumble, as they have since the 2008 housing-market meltdown. Experts have been saying for years that the economy will rebound, but so far they've been wrong. And there's more at stake here than real estate — the Hub's budget hinges on how much your home is worth.

More than any other major East Coast city, Boston relies on business and residential owners to pay for things like jakes and teachers. One critical observer says the budget is "like an animal that we have to keep feeding" with property-tax levies; in 2012, collections on homes, buildings, and private infrastructure will feed more than 65 percent of Boston's $2.4 billion budget.

That's feasible right now. But in the next five years, Boston could hit the ceiling for how much property tax it can extract under state law. In the uncertain interim, some say that prospect should raise concern on several fronts:

* Though Boston businesses still pay the lion's share of property taxes, city assessors, out of necessity, have gradually shifted more tax burden onto homeowners for nearly a decade. That affects everyone from downtown millionaires to low-income renters.

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This campaign season, you’re not really committed to defending the GOP agenda unless you sign on the dotted line
Whether it's to flags, fraternities, or charities, privileged douchebags love pledging allegiance.

Whether it's to flags, fraternities, or charities, privileged douchebags love pledging allegiance. That goes double for this season's presidential candidates; more than ever before, Republicans are being asked to sign promises ensuring that, if elected, they will protect the rights of white Christian heterosexuals. The rush is understandable; according to right-wing political consultant Grant Hewitt, "If there wasn't such a distrust in elected officials, you wouldn't have a need for pledges."

Of course, the conservative luna-sphere can't take all the credit for this endless pledge drive. Media outlets of all stripes have fed the frenzy, forsaking meaningful reporting and analysis for constant updates on who signed what, and who got pissed off as a result. With that said, the current conservative pledge matrix, when considered as a whole, actually serves an important purpose: it shows how childish and bigoted these candidates — and their kingmakers — truly are.

THE MARRIAGE VOW

HASHTAG #takethevow

DESCRIPTION Candidates must oppose same-sex marriage in order to save women from prostitution, porn, and abortion. Basic stuff, really, but this has been the most controversial pledge yet, as an early version stated that "a child born into slavery in 1860 was more likely to be raised by his mother and father in a two-parent household than was an African-American baby born after the election of the USA's first African-American president."

MESSIAH The guy getting all the flak (and publicity) here is BOB VANDER PLAATS of the Family Leader, an Iowa-based Christian organization that stands for "God's truths," humility, and limiting the rights of gays and lesbians. Vander Plaats, an Iowa activist and operative who headed Mike Huckabee's state campaign in 2008, won 41 percent of the vote in last year's GOP gubernatorial primary — in case you needed more evidence of why Iowa should not guide the nation electorally.

WHO SIGNED Michele Bachmann (Rick Santorum has committed, but didn't sign)

ELECTORAL REPERCUSSIONS Nothing good for suspiciously lisp-y first-husband hopeful Marcus Bachmann.  

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