There's a firestorm brewing surrounding the Mass Turnpike Authority's latest revenue-generating proposal.

The MTA wants to significantly increase tolls in the tunnels that connect East Boston to the rest of the city.  Understandably, this has set many Eastie residents, business owners, property owners and representatives into a panic.

MA House Speaker Sal DeMasi has offered an alternative proposal: Hike the state-wide gas tax instead.

I can understand the potential argument that it would be unfair to tax all MA drivers to cover MTA's debt.  But would it be fair for the MTA to single out a neighborhood that's on realatively unsteady economic footing as it is?  (Here's the 2000 Census data for East Boston).

For the record, this very unscientific poll finds overwhelming support for raising the gas tax instead of the tunnel tolls.