wnyc.org / 93.9fm / am 820

Thanks to Brian and WNYC again for these very interesting, relevant topics today -

Might we think a bit outside of the straight-ahead business model and consider that perhaps there are overall negative consequences--civil, social, cultural, and yes, even economic--of having a (g)local economy so hevaily keyed to an industry (if you can use such a word) whose very raison d'etre is to extract and concentrate wealth, and to manipulate liquid capital into (somehow) creating more capital?

This is not to deny the power of Wall St/capital as a creative force, BUT

What if the city were no longer a playground for the absurdly wealthy?

What if there were fewer McWhatever's and luxury bars and restaurants and more of the many many many so very interesting little places that have closed due to absurd rents?

What if apartments were first and foremost a place for human beings of all kinds to make their homes and not *investments?

What if there weren't these crazy engines of displacement making more and more neighborhoods into inaccessible, sanitized sanctuaries for the overly entitled and forcing any kind of economic diversity contrantly outward, moving this very same process along with them?

What if . . .?

Why see Wall St go down and think, there goes everything, and not there goes just the very thing that has been ruining everything all along (ie, how do you think this credit crisis started in the first place??)

Ah, so NOW the middle class is starting to worry. Too bad its too late folks. After you sold out the underclass, you complied with your own demise. We're all in the same boat together now. Enjoy the collapse of the dollar, the new great depression, and the end of American sovereignty. Which I might add, you worked your butt off to bring forth.

On the impact on NYC: For years we have allowed--encouraged--the loss of blue-collar, midsize businesses--and emphasized a schism of financial/hospitality industries. That is, rich-poor incomes for NYC workers. (And, no coincidently, of jobs that pay middle class incomes.) So of course when one or the other is hit, the city overall will be disproportionately hit. It's unfortunate that the city has not--for several decades now--seen the wisdom of supporting small businesses of varied industries. Unsurprisingly, many of the midsize businesses were also unionized.

A lot of the job losses you're mentioning happened before the current crisis. Most of those jobs have been lost to offshoring.