The art critic takes to the pages of the New York Times to compare the deficit plagued Met’s idea to make the museum’s entry fee mandatory for out-of-state visitors to a dystopian prison:

Mr. Weiss seems to be restoring some financial sense to the Met, but he has helped hatch one really bad idea: a proposal that, if approved by the city, would allow the Met to charge out-of-state visitors a fixed $25 entrance fee instead of letting them pay what they wish, like everyone else. This could be a logistical nightmare. Those who retain the privilege of paying what they wish will still have to have their papers to get in — which papers has not been worked out. The jobs of ticket sellers and others at the museum’s entrances will become more complicated and stressful; they will in all likelihood sometimes end up functioning a bit like border guards, adjudicating who has proper New York identification and who doesn’t.

The Fall’s Most Fascinating Art Show? The Met Trying to Fix Itself (The New York Times)