The New York Times offers this report, which begins: “NEW ORLEANS, March 15 — For decades, when it came time to visit your friendly New Orleans property assessor with a complaint, the outcome was likely to be mutually beneficial. The assessor gave you a break on your taxes; you gave the assessor your vote in the next election. No use righteously demurring; the deal has been offered to generations of homeowners, always with a wink and nod. With seven elected assessors handy — far more than in most other cities — it has been a near-perfect system, except for the estimated $80 million in lost revenue annually to a hard-up New Orleans. This flaw, no longer considered folkloric in an age of diminished population and empty city coffers, has now sparked an ultimate gesture of political disgust. Seven challengers are running against the incumbent assessors in next month’s municipal election and are pledging to quit as soon as they are elected. They are the newest political sensation here: the ‘I.Q. ticket,’ meaning ‘I Quit.'”