The MBTA police, whom the Globe describes as "disgruntled," have stopped cracking down on fare evaders and are shining spotlights on the more nefarious elements of society, like perverts.

The MBTA police suggests they can't handle fare evaders and genuine creeps at the same time. Dan Grabauskas is upset because--well, the MBTA is so broke that it needs every last quarter from its riders.

Neither side looks good in this dispute. This Bostonist would prefer MBTA riders to enjoy a safe ride. And besides, there appeared to be plenty of MBTA police on hand during the No Pants Ride. At one point, the officers outnumbered the pantsless.

Part of the problem is that the officers busting fare evaders have to wear plain clothes. Maybe if they were allowed to wear their uniforms and stand by the gate, fare evaders would be deterred and would have to go somewhere else. That would also deter the more cowardly perps, for that matter. This really doesn't seem like a problem that's hard to solve.

[Boston Globe, Boston Herald, Massachusetts Liberal]