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Ethical Conundrum #357:
You are sitting on your couch at about 10:46PM
when in the distance, above the noise of a home makeover show you hear some sort of wailing.
You don’t think much of it at first.
A couple of minutes pass and the screaming and wailing is getting louder and closer. So you start muttering to yourself WTF now?…as you continue to watch a couple of boneheads trying to fix their kitchen.
you start to realize that it’s the shouting and screaming of a little girl. At that point you decide to get up.
You open your front door and you see a thin little girl about 6 years old screaming down the block accross the street about a block down.
there’s an adult man draging her by her arms forcing her to walk at a fast pace in a determined direction.
the screaming continues; “noooooo, noooooooooo, I don’t want too” in very loud shrieks as the man ignores her and forces her to walk quickly by his side.
the man is in his mid to late 30’s and medium build,
he’s wearing shorts and a wife beater, a loose one.
the girl is in shorts and a t-shirt with sandals.
he appears to be her father.
people on bikes pass by and stop to look, as do two women standing on a corner.
the wailing continues unabated with the man saying nothing.
You watch them walk down a block past your house to the trailing sound of the girl screaming.
Snappy, not really my point at all, but some of the most enthusiastic New Yorkers are those who come here from other places without a dime to their names and struggle to make ends meet. I moved here and was making 25k a year, could barely afford to eat anything by ramen every night, was sharing a room with someone sleeping on an airmattrress and loved New York City and all the possibilities it offered.
I think too many people on this thread have become incredibly jaded.
“This whole mosque debate (which I — thankfully? — missed on yesterday’s OT) is a typical right-wing, fear-mongering red herring. It’s not as if Al-Qaeda is building their headquarters in downtown Manhattan. I frankly can’t think of a better location for an inclusive Islamic cultural center to be built than right at Ground Zero.”
Bxgirl, didn’t mean to imply that I’m counting out the Bronx. My point to Rob is that, even if it is the highest concentration of poverty in the US, that doesn’t equate to making NYC as a whole a terrible place to live.
“THANK YOU ISHTAR! it is also no more of a symbol for what america stands for than any suburb, or small town or remote island that is part of america.”
Of course NYC is a symbol of what America stands for. Images of the Statue of Liberty — not to mention the Empire State Building, or the Brooklyn Bridge — are iconic symbols of the freedom of expression which is ostensibly the foundation of this nation.
It’s super easy to say that NYC is the absolute best place on earth if:
1. You make a comfortable salary that allows you to
(a) pay for necessities – groceries, rent, utilities, etc.
(b) be able to, at least on occasion, take part in the social/cultural amenities
2. You live in a reasonably safe and decent neighborhood
3. You’ve built a community of family/friends with whom you can hang out with.
It’s super easy to say that NYC is a shit-hole if:
Nothing under the above listed items apply to you.
“i dont use sheets. i sleep on a leather sofa in street clothes.”
Oh, yeah, I forgot you sleep on the sofa. Well, so long as your street clothes haven’t picked up any bedbugs in the washer or dryer, you might be safe.
Ethical Conundrum #357:
You are sitting on your couch at about 10:46PM
when in the distance, above the noise of a home makeover show you hear some sort of wailing.
You don’t think much of it at first.
A couple of minutes pass and the screaming and wailing is getting louder and closer. So you start muttering to yourself WTF now?…as you continue to watch a couple of boneheads trying to fix their kitchen.
you start to realize that it’s the shouting and screaming of a little girl. At that point you decide to get up.
You open your front door and you see a thin little girl about 6 years old screaming down the block accross the street about a block down.
there’s an adult man draging her by her arms forcing her to walk at a fast pace in a determined direction.
the screaming continues; “noooooo, noooooooooo, I don’t want too” in very loud shrieks as the man ignores her and forces her to walk quickly by his side.
the man is in his mid to late 30’s and medium build,
he’s wearing shorts and a wife beater, a loose one.
the girl is in shorts and a t-shirt with sandals.
he appears to be her father.
people on bikes pass by and stop to look, as do two women standing on a corner.
the wailing continues unabated with the man saying nothing.
You watch them walk down a block past your house to the trailing sound of the girl screaming.
…What do you do?
Snappy, not really my point at all, but some of the most enthusiastic New Yorkers are those who come here from other places without a dime to their names and struggle to make ends meet. I moved here and was making 25k a year, could barely afford to eat anything by ramen every night, was sharing a room with someone sleeping on an airmattrress and loved New York City and all the possibilities it offered.
I think too many people on this thread have become incredibly jaded.
This whole argument is useless. It’s all about perspective/life experiences. And that differs for each and every one of us.
“This whole mosque debate (which I — thankfully? — missed on yesterday’s OT) is a typical right-wing, fear-mongering red herring. It’s not as if Al-Qaeda is building their headquarters in downtown Manhattan. I frankly can’t think of a better location for an inclusive Islamic cultural center to be built than right at Ground Zero.”
Thank you, PS!
Bxgirl, didn’t mean to imply that I’m counting out the Bronx. My point to Rob is that, even if it is the highest concentration of poverty in the US, that doesn’t equate to making NYC as a whole a terrible place to live.
“THANK YOU ISHTAR! it is also no more of a symbol for what america stands for than any suburb, or small town or remote island that is part of america.”
Of course NYC is a symbol of what America stands for. Images of the Statue of Liberty — not to mention the Empire State Building, or the Brooklyn Bridge — are iconic symbols of the freedom of expression which is ostensibly the foundation of this nation.
It’s super easy to say that NYC is the absolute best place on earth if:
1. You make a comfortable salary that allows you to
(a) pay for necessities – groceries, rent, utilities, etc.
(b) be able to, at least on occasion, take part in the social/cultural amenities
2. You live in a reasonably safe and decent neighborhood
3. You’ve built a community of family/friends with whom you can hang out with.
It’s super easy to say that NYC is a shit-hole if:
Nothing under the above listed items apply to you.
“i dont use sheets. i sleep on a leather sofa in street clothes.”
Oh, yeah, I forgot you sleep on the sofa. Well, so long as your street clothes haven’t picked up any bedbugs in the washer or dryer, you might be safe.
I don’t hold with John Lennon. All that peace and love talk and then treat your own wife & son like shit.