Reward for Failure

If it wasn't so emblematic of the institutional problems plaguing Gotham, it would be laughable. The City Council's preliminary decision to raise its own salaries puts an absurd cap on a year where Gotham's entire political leadership seems to have collapsed in the face of crime, corruption, and economic woes.

In a town where average salaries actually declined 8.3% in the last five years, the City Council's attempt to raise its own salaries $35,000 a year — bringing this illustrious body into the top tiers of America's wealthy — is close to criminal.

It's certainly politically tin-eared. We should all be sharing the sacrifice, not dipping into the public purse to enrich ourselves.

Gotham City Council members currently make $95,000 a year, while they preside over a city in crisis. The symbolism of the Council stuffing its own pockets yesterday, while city streets descend into gang bloodletting, is as depressing a development as The Times has seen in recent memory.

The City Council must retract its initial decision to raise its salaries. Indeed, in the spirit of the times, The Times suggests the Council reduce its salaries by $10,000 a year until Gotham turns a corner and overcomes its current difficulties. Now that's symbolism that the public could understand.