As for substantive issues, many are of the motherhood and apple pie variety, with only slight differences in phrasing or emphasis distinguishing the supposed conservative from the avowed liberal or radical.
The following is a brief rundown of what the candidates are talking about:
TAXES--Cambridge's real property tax is the third highest in the Boston area, topped only by Boston and Chelsea. Predictably, none of the candidates advocate increased taxes, although their programs for stabilizing the present tax vary. Some favor redistribution of the tax burden within the city (for instance, the Socialist Workers Party would tax businesses while removing taxes on incomes under $15,000 or property valued at less than $30,000) or between the state and city.
Other strategies call for utilization of federal revenue sharing funds, replacement of the property tax with a sales tax, the taxing of presently exempt universities, and reduction of "waste and inefficiency" in the municipal government.
HOUSING--Everyone agrees that the city's housing supply must be upgraded. For whom and how is the question. Conservatives such as Danehy argue that the city has already built more low-income housing than it can absorb, creating a demand for city services that it cannot fulfill. Danehy wants a moratorium on public housing construction.
Others urge the use of Federal subsidy programs to rehabilitate existing structures and construct scatter-site