Parking in Boston (a non Mia related post for a change)

This was submitted as a letter to the editor of the Boston Globe/ Mayor Menino was described in Brian Ballou's article today, entitled "digging in on shoveled spaces," as being of the mind that a "common sense approach" should apply to the parameters around saving parking spaces when it snows. It is clear that his stance reflects the many who have taken it and run with it to the extreme. Many abusive citizens hold onto spaces with ugly markers for weeks on end and then react criminally when others seek to use the spaces that they are laying claim to. In fact, our parking spots are public property and should be no more subject to reservation than a seat on the T or a spot on a public beach or park. There should be no rationalizing one person's claim to a piece of public property above another's. This is blatantly wrong and exactly the kind of behavior that runs against the establishment of the "sense of neighborhoodliness" that public officials have called for in response to a rash of recent break ins. It is time for the city to take a hard stance against this bad practice that has been taken too far for far too long. Let the city plow the streets and let the parking spots be available to all on a first come first serve basis. Certainly some citizens would be angry with public officials if this were the established rule and norm, but at least they would not be angy and frustrated with eachother over something that none should have a right to claim.