Tuesday round-up (news and opinion edition)

• An Inquirer piece looks at senior citizens in Southeast PA, caught between fixed incomes and the area's increasing housing values (and hence property taxes). They appear not to qualify for much of the tax relief in Philadelphia, which put its casino-bill cuts into wage tax relief instead.

  Asked about the complaints last week, Rendell said Act 72 does provide special rebates for low-income seniors in the city. And he pointed out that while he was mayor, the city adopted legislation capping property tax increases for low-income seniors until they sell their homes.

  Unfortunately, it's those just above the "low-income" threshold who are in danger of losing their lifetime homes. tricky.
  
  
• John Grogan is frustrated that legislators don't know the constitution that they're supposed to uphold and cries out for politicians at any level of government who display competence in pursuit of their jobs.

  Forget Republicans and Democrats. Forget liberals and conservatives. Forget blue states and red states. Just give me someone who is not a complete, card-carrying doofus.

  Heh, I feel your pain.
  
  
• On a similar plaintive note, John Baer takes a look at the expense claims of regional judges and thinks they're playing a bit loose with taxpayer money, on expenses big and small.
  
  
• Finally, the Committee of Seventy weighs in on the issue of when/whether to hold an election to fill Councilman Cohen's empty at-large seat (see prev. here). They think that a special election should be held sooner rather than later, specifically at the time of the party primaries in May.