Cutting NYC's Culture Budget

All of New York City is going to feel the hurt that budget cuts have, no matter what the institution is. Whether it be less beds for the homeless to sleep in during the coming cold winter nights or higher property taxes for those that are lucky enough to have NYC real estate, the pain is coming in one way or another. Of course for some, like the poor, it'll be worse, but everyone is going to be affected by the slashing of our cultural budgets.

From PolitickerNY:

As Michael Bloomberg announced ways in which New Yorkers could enjoy cheap or free cultural activities in the city, Cultural Affairs Department head Kate Levin testified at a City Council hearing about how the mayor’s budget cutbacks are affecting the department and the cultural groups it supports.[...]

Here are a few items from a chart they prepared outlining how much money some institutions will lose by the end of Fiscal Year 2009:

--American Museum of Natural History: $2,790,746, a 22 percent reduction from the previous fiscal year;

--Carnegie Hall: $271,687, a 33 percent reduction;

--Lincoln Center: $1,035,290, a 42 percent reduction;

--Metropolitan Museum of Art: $1,691,246, a 13 percent reduction;

--Staten Island Children’s Museum: $170,146, a 31 percent reduction.

From Manhattan to Staten Island, the price of going to the museum or the opera is going to go up. While the arts can be easily overlooked by politicians, it is important to remember that when you make these institutions raise their prices, it shuts the door onto a form of higher learning. For those that can't afford to pay $20, $30 or $50 to see the myriad priceless treasures our city has to offer, it'll be one more way for Bloomberg to make our city serve the rich before anyone else.

A Soulless City?

First off, I love living in New York, there is nothing out there like this city. On my street, I live across the street from an SRO and there a few local shops across the way as well. The neighborhood (Kips Bay)has its own character for sure, but you can definitely see things are changing. The 99c store on the corner went out of business and now there's a Chase Bank branch coming, even though it is only a five minute walk to one that is already open. Is it really necessary? What the hell is going on?

From AM New York:

"It used to be a badge of honor to live in New York City, and we used to laugh at the people in the suburbs," said Jerilou Hammett, co-editor of the book "The Suburbanization of New York."

"Urban areas were all about diversity and the struggle of the creative individuals ... Now, other than little monikers like SoHo and NoHo, where is the uniqueness of most neighborhoods?"

Indeed, with the seemingly epidemic-scale disappearance of the longtime small shops and low-scale residential buildings that give neighborhoods texture, some are wondering whether the feel of New York has forever changed.

The Municipal Art Society is examining these issues with a new exhibit on the legendary city urbanist Jane Jacobs, who successfully blocked a highway from cutting through Greenwich Village in the 1960s and argued that a neighborhood's character is its most valuable asset. The exhibit and accompanying panel discussions look at the numbing qualities of gentrification, chain stores, and an influx of people who move to the city without a sense of its history.

The only difference between bank branches and Starbucks in New York as compared to burbs' is that there are generally ten to forty stories of offices and/or apartments above the stores. Even in my place of refuge in the city (Greenwich Village) you can see the crushing forces of gentrification on the horizon. The East Village is a shell of what it used to be and although I like Max Brenner's, there is nothing wrong with keeping stores like it out of our unique nabes.

The uniqueness of New York is one of its largest gems. Having a Starbucks and a bank on every corner while eventually erode the character of our city.

From Paris To London

So I haven't posted anything in a week since those pictures in Paris. The City of Lights was incredible to say the least. It is always nice to see stereotypes busted first hand. The only exception for the French (in my experience) is the B.O. Some, but not at all, do not shower enough, including three-quarters of the taxicab drivers there. Other than that, people are friendly and have manners (a concept Americans still need to learn), the food is unbelievable....there is nothing better than French food....no matter what it is. Oh and Bill O'Reilly can shove it. Stop attacking the French, they are far beyond you Billy boy.

Well now I am in London until Saturday and after Labor Day I'll begin to post like I did before I got to Europe. Honestly I have been reading more news about Paris and France than my own NYC locale. I must say the writers for the Guardian and the Independent far surpass the "journalists" in America. They write with wit and dare I say, snarkiness. The articles are hard hitting and make you (or at least me) laugh at the ridiculousness of politicians both here in London and back home.

Since I am coming home in less than two days, I've been thinking about the differences between the States (and especially in NYC where I live) and here. Europe is......amazing in so many regards. The mass transit systems in Paris and London and in between are better than anything in America. Traveling on the Eurostar was something I can only dream the U.S. can have. Moving at 200 mph makes Amtrak look extremely pathetic. People are also more knowledgeable about current events....and climate change is a serious issue that everyone agrees on as something to be dealt with, if only going about it different ways. In America, its the "debate" is between the realists and those that suffer from delusions or plain ignorance.

The Liberal Democrats want to make England carbon neutral by 2050 and the Tories want to curb airline use and move commuters to high speed trains....the U.S. could only hope to stem the increase in carbon emissions by then with simple-minded programs. The only bright spots are in progressive cities like New York, San Francisco, Portland, Seattle and the like.

I know there are problems here, like unemployment and the high cost of living. Yet when it comes to weighing pros and cons, Europe (or at least Paris and London) are far ahead of us. It is time that we start catching up.