Guess what? T fares are variable.
But my main problem with this article is that the authors perpetuate the myth that George H.W. Bush had never seen a supermarket scanner. They report:
"Romney's gaffe recalled President George H.W. Bush's puzzlement during the 1992 campaign over a supermarket scanner, seen by many as patrician aloofness. The charge has been disputed by some, but has neverthless dogged the elder Bush ever since."A quick trip over to snopes.com shows that the supermarket scanner story was false.
What this quote shows is a bias on the part of the reporters.
The scanner story, false, and the cost of the T, no big deal.
I'm going to send an email to the Globe's new Ombudsman to see what he has to say about it.
Instapundit had similar complaints about reporters in 2004.