In Joan Vennochi’s column “The props for Patrick’s wish list” (Op-ed, March 10), she urges the governor to “respect the public’s intelligence and stop using fellow citizens as props in a tired political play.” Yet Vennochi’s entire column is an insult to the very citizens she purports to defend. She asserts, without any evidence or facts, that those of us supporting Deval Patrick’s thoughtful, balanced, and necessary revenue package are mere props for the governor. The truth is that many of us have been advocating for such a package for years, long before the governor introduced his plan.
We are citizens who care deeply about the future of this Commonwealth, and we are ready, as are many of our fellow citizens, to pay it forward so that future generations can benefit as we have from past investments in public infrastructure. These revenues are not needed to fulfill a “wish list”; rather, they are essential investments to ensure our global competitiveness in the 21st century.
Vennochi insults us by suggesting that this is mere political theater. This is about our future.