From where did the author get his title? I think of him as a "I Heard It on the Grapevine" man as opposed to a Billy Strayhorn or Nat King Cole man.

G1 - yeah, that's what i think: it seems like common sense. but nicole had a different sense of the world. the boy had already severely hurt her friends, & she thought that talking straight-up would bring him to his senses so he'd realize he'd just wanted to get some cash (& harass people who angered him with their laughter while he was miserable). he was high or whatever & didn't have any senses left. she didn't see it as a taunt, but he did. (& she didn't have more money than he did.)

I don't think he was blaming the victim, but you don't have to be from "around here" to know it's a bad idea to taunt someone who's pointing a gun at you. That's just common sense.

Sorry, but I also got the impression that the victims were to blame... and a sensationalistic story was being written at their expense. I didn't feel much sympathy coming from the author, maybe it just didn't come across...

I live on Orchard St.
this is very very sad story...

real estate is so violence. nice quote.

that said, there are a lot of yuppies on the lower east side. it's not a judgement, i just mean, they aren't in school, they aren't arty. they're just upper middle class businessy types.

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/28/nyregion/28murder.html

btw, please don't blame the victim. it's disgusting. she didn't know what to do 'cause she wasn't from here. she DID acknowledge those around her, and so did jeffrey. she took bought dinner for a homeless man on her block every night. she was executed by a stupid young drunk boy with a gun.

this isn't fiction. it's my friend jeffrey's story. change the victim's gender. sorry, jeffrey.

Richard, what is your reaction to Madonna's recent comment that NYC has lost its magical edge (paraphrasing)?