A lot of things have been going on both at work and school, that my mind is going blank and could not think of anything to write. Blah blah blah.
With that said, I shall let
Joyce Purnick of
Times Select indulge you with this article I read that I found so interesting about New York:
Adventures in the City of DreamsNOT too long ago, a colleague transferring to the city from a foreign assignment said he looked forward to finally figuring out how New York works. Optimistic fellow.
I've been writing Metro Matters for years and I still haven't figured out how or why New York City works.
Because it does work, when logically a city of 8.2 million people from everywhere should be dysfunctional.
New York thrives on imagination and reinvention. Ever-changing, it is more an idea than a place, a fantasy that has developed the veneer of reality because we New Yorkers believe in the fairy tale. The ultimate urban myth.
A pack of newspapers and radio and TV stations cover our mayor as if every word he utters has earthshaking importance, which it does not. But assuming that it does knits New Yorkers together, gives us something in common — that outrageous or boring or flaky character in City Hall.
Our wondrous subway system theoretically connects us, but even though it jams us against each other all the time, we don't connect much. We just want to think we do, which is grand.
New York City is, of course, a jigsaw of ethnic and racial enclaves, of the rich, the poor and the in-between, of the struggling immigrant and the billionaire businessman and the diligent striver. We occupy our own worlds and know that other worlds live next door — but few of us drop by.
How many Upper West Siders know that a population of Mexicans is growing quickly on Staten Island, drawn to the red-state (for now) borough to tend lawns?
How many young people from neighborhoods just a few miles away from Times Square have never seen it?
Friends who live in Midtown Manhattan recently confessed that they always insist on seeing the outskirts of any city they visit. But they've never been to Flushing.
To qualify for a MetroCard, New Yorkers should have to take the Staten Island ferry round-trip once a year to look over at the Statue of Liberty, and ride the No. 7 line through startlingly polyglot Queens. Getting off at a few stops to look around wouldn't be a bad idea, either.
MAYBE our separateness together is what keeps us going. We clash furiously every now and again, then calm down because we have to.
New York keeps going through bad times, attacks, injustices, fiscal woes and bad leadership — inevitably followed by better leadership. The place is admirably resilient and demanding. New Yorkers kvetch — an admirable survival technique.
So is self-interest. The city always was, and still is, mostly about money. Its economic, political and journalistic establishments demand a semblance of stability and restore it when imbalance threatens the bottom line. Then the politicians have to respond.
Which brings me to a few observations about politics.
¶Those elected officials who would like journalists to go away would expire of neglect if they got their wish.
¶Some politicians do indeed care about the public, but most first care about their own survival. They need frequent, even rude, reminders about who employs whom.
¶Dishonest elected officials who manipulate judgeships and misspend the public's money truly believe they are doing nothing wrong, because in their world, they aren't — which is why journalists must forever invade that world.
¶Advocates for admirable causes are not immune to the hyperbole and distortion we associate with politicians. As effective kvetchers, they are essential — just not always right.
¶Follow the money. Always follow the money.
If all this has been sounding existential, and readers are wondering what's up, it is this: I have decided to move on from this column after nearly 10 years to face new writing challenges at The Times, and my editors have graciously granted my wish.
I think it is essential for journalists to keep reinventing themselves, just as New York City does.
To fellow columnists, one suggestion: Deliver a swift (nonviolent) kick from me to those who say, "Oh, so you write twice a week? Have you ever considered working full time?"
To readers: Thank you for the privilege of letting me write about the city that I love, which I do even though it exists only because we all think it does. Keep on thinking that, New York, and it will ever be so.
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I specifically love her last paragraph - that New York only exists because we all think it does. That is a very good point and, believe it or not, I think it is true.
