Daily Feed: Mitt Romney (Barely) Wins Iowa Dress Rehearsals

Mitt Romney (Barely) Wins Iowa Dress Rehearsals. We’re going to go out on a limb here and guess that the pained grimace on Romney’s face is due to the severe heartburn that has to result from coming out literally eight stingy ballots ahead of an extreme conservative who surged up out of general obscurity barely a week ago. On the other hand, how lucky is Rick Santorum, who managed to time his anti-Romney rise to prominence with the start of actual ballot counting? [New York Times]

Get Ready to Pay More For Less on the MBTA. After a steady trickle of ominous hints, the MBTA is finally getting down to crunching the numbers for its inevitable fare hike: Subway riders, you’re probably looking at ride prices of either $2.40 or $2.25; bus riders, you’ll pony up somewhere around either $1.75 or $1.50, and, by the way, all options come with a side of reduced service. We know you’re not delighted, but if it helps, the MBTA isn’t exactly singing songs about it either. In the words of Charles Planck, the organization’s senior director of strategic initiatives: “Neither choice is appealing to the MBTA, and we know it won’t be appealing to our riders.” It’s just… well, this is what has to happen when you’re camping out on $5+ billion of debt. [Business Week]

While You’re at it, Better Prepare to Start Paying More for That Morning Coffee, Too. Starbucks is also kicking off the new year with announcements of imminent price hikes, which will apply to a half dozen of its drinks — including a 10-cent increase to the cost of a standard tall coffee. All in all, between the commute and coffee, it’s safe to say our collective mornings are going to get a lot more expensive. [Time]

Former Phoenix Editor Not Thrilled With Globe‘s Spotlight Stealing on Clergy Sex Abuse Scandal. Yes, the Globe‘s story was phenomenal, and yes, they deserve a lot of credit for getting the story out there, but as far as former editor Susan Ryan-Vollmar is concerned, that still shouldn’t add up to 100 percent of the credit — just 90 percent of it. Because when you get down to it, the Phoenix got there first, and neither of them beat the rest of the country to the punch. [JimRomanesko.com]

A Minnesota Priscilla of Boston Not About To Go Quietly. Employees at an Edina, Minn. branch of the Priscilla of Boston chain elected not to go gently into that good night of company closure, and instead decided to spray paint giant red X’s onto gowns before tossing them in the dumpster. According to reports, the damages add up to tens thousands of dollars down the drain. You stay classy, Minnesota. [Boston Business Journal]