New York Sucks

Added 5 years later: The inexplicably high ranking search engines give this little rant has led to a lot of comments below, including some excellent rebuttals to my original points. There are also a lot of people adding their own complaints about the city that never sleeps. All comments are welcome, but overall I find the ones who disagree with me to be more interesting, and a few are worth digging up and reading. There are definitely some things to love about the city. My favorite comments of all, however, are the ones on both sides of the fence that hide their whiny, entitled attitude behind foul language, apparently unaware of the irony.

Recently the quality of comments has been so low that I’ve considered not allowing any more of them. Semi-literate ravers, please don’t bother anymore. There’s already plenty of barely-coherent blather on both sides.

Anyway, on with the original episode:

– – –

In the unlikely event there are two New Yorkers capable of mounting a meaningful defense of their home city, I’ll publish them both. More than two, either I’ll pick the one hardest for me to rebut, or I’ll figure out a way to let the polls decide. Messages of the form “F%*$ you, you f^%#ing f$^*!” will just add to my smug belief that I am better than you are and will be deleted and mocked.

I have for a couple of years now held the opinion that New York City is filled with victims and crybabies. Everyone knew already that the city was filled with arrogant assholes.

To start with the arrogant assholes, here’s a case in point. Tonight I was sitting in a bar, and at the next table was a pair of Yankees fans. Yankees were playing the Bosox, a game with history and significance. You would expect a Yankees fan to be passionate about such a game, and these guys were. I’m OK with that. That’s why God made baseball. That’s why Steinbrenner bought it from Him.

I overheard part of their conversation early. “They’re still talking about ’98 here. Was it ’98? The Yankees humiliated them. It was a sweep.” Now, I don’t know if it was ’98 or ’96, and yes, the Yankees did completely dominate the Padres. It was a sweep. But that year San Diego won the pennant. When dad buys you a pennant every year, that may not seem so special. But when you earn it, doesn’t it mean so much more? No point explaining that to a Yankees fan.

And that’s what New Yorkers just don’t seem to understand. They seem to believe that simply being from the hive is enough to entitle them to all the respect the world has to offer. Later, the New York fans were outraged among themselves when the best TV was switched over to the Padres game. There was still a TV right in front of them carrying their game, but it wasn’t Hi-Def. “What the f@%& are they doing showing the Padres game?” one NYB asked the other (B is for bastard). Had the man been grandstanding, trying to get a rise out of the other people in the bar, I would have simply labeled him as an asshole and shrugged it off. But the simple fact was that as a New Yorker he expected to get his game on the hi-def TV. He was entitled.

New York is inexplicably proud of being a bunch of arrogant assholes. They call it “street smart” and other transparent euphemisms. When I passed through New York I was not prepared for the incessant whining and victim attitude.

I was passing from Aruba to San Diego, and because I’m a cheap bastard my return flight included a sleepover in New York. No problem, I figured. I’d just find a less-uncomfortable place to crash at JFK. Best case, I find a bar and just hang out all night. It was a naive notion, I now realize.

My first welcome as I came off the plane set the tone for my stay in the city that never sleeps. “Did you see what he just did to me?” I heard an angry woman behind me say. We made our way to an escalator and I tell you now I have never seen such concentrated uncivilized behavior. Poor little Jerry was pushed aside and every time I said, “Oh, I’m sorry” as I was shoved into someone else I was answered with “eat me” or something worse. “Screw the other guy before he screws you” was the rule of the day.

The airport was closing. There would be no crashing in the terminal, no all-nigher in the bar. The bartender was terribly appologetic. I called a hotel and they said the shuttle would be right over. It was a cold night, freezing rain, and I was in shorts. People were not looking at me with sympathy as I stood waiting for the shuttle; they were looking at me with suspicion. I watched two old men get into a fist fight over a taxi. I shook my head. The cold rain on my legs hurt far less than the anger all around me hurt my poor west-coast brain.

It turns out the signs telling me to wait for a hotel shuttle did not direct me to the place hotel shuttles were going. After freezing my ass off (proudly, stoically, without whining) I tromped back to the terminal and called the hotel again. The friendly person apologized and the shuttle was redispatched. I stood longer in the bitter New York sleet until I was finally swept away to the warmth and security of a nearby hotel. I was happy to see that guy, and he was downright nice. Maybe New York isn’t so bad after all. Pff.

Once safely installed in my room, and with the local anger fizzing in my head, I made my way with laptop to the hotel bar. There I sat and watched the local victim hour, also known as the news. Crap, can’t there be one story on the evening not spun as injustice? The weather report was “here’s how mother nature is fucking us over today.” I have never heard a more consistent, pervasive whining than I did in NYC. I have gone out of my way in this story to mention people that were not whiny little fucks who thought the world owed them something. Two were bartenders, one drove a van. Who knows what they thought when they weren’t sucking up to travelers. [Unfair – the bartender at JFK was the read deal. She was funny as hell and a true sweetheart. I would have loved to stay up all night in her bar.]

The next morning I caught the plane back to San Diego. I staggered down the jetway and heard someone say, “Oh! I’m sorry. Go ahead.” I laughed not from humor but from joy, back where we may not be intimate but we are certainly polite, and we don’t feel that the world owes us happiness. We make that for ourselves.

7

134 thoughts on “New York Sucks

  1. Travis, my ex-roommate, said when I described this monotribe, “I liked New York. I had a great time there.”

    So maybe it’s just me.

  2. So, did you actually hang out in NYC? JFK is outside of Queens and halfway to Long Island, I wouldn’t really consider that NYC. Its just a really seedy area, so I’m not surprised you experienced a bunch of gross people.

    And don’t generalize all NYC folk based on Yankee fans- that would be like generalizing all of SoCal based on the Hollyweirdos. Yankee & Red Sox fans are CRAZY- they will go on about their rivalry for days and it really cracks me up.

    Anyways, I’ve lived in Cali and out here, Im now in NJ 15 miles SE of Manhattan and I think the folks in NYC are pretty cool. Different for sure, but pretty cool. You’ve got to admire what they’ve put up with since September 11th, that *crushed* the city mentally, physically and especially financially.

    Just wanted to offer a different opinion, but I can see fully where you got yours from :)

  3. You’re quite correct that my sample was unfairly small. The main thing was just the sense of angry frission that struck me the moment I stepped off the plane and surrounded me until the moment I set foot in San Diego. Suddenly the pace changed and people were polite again.

    Really I just wanted to see if I could get people riled up. I was feeling belligerent at the time.

  4. Pat and I have been to New York once — we attended a conference upstate and then spent the following weekend in Manhattan. Of the Manhattan part, I have a few recollections:

    Whenever it started to rain, umbrella-sellers would appear out of nowhere. One need never fear being caught by surprise by the weather. These umbrella-sella-fellas would sell for $6 a cheap folding umbrella that one could get at Wal-Mart in Albuquerque for $4. But, hey, that $2 premium is worth it for an umbrella that shows up, unasked, exactly when and where it’s needed.

    The homeless people sleeping in the Staten Island Ferry terminal. Man, did they STINK! There are a whole lot of homeless people in Albuquerque, and I got to know some of them, one fairly closely, and they never smelled bad. Maybe being out in the open helps. All I knew was that I couldn’t come anywhere near a New York homeless person without experiencing a stench so foul, it triggered a gag reflex.

    The traffic — we didn’t drive in it, but we observed it. In Manhattan, it’s common courtesy, if you’re stopped at a traffic light and you’re the second car in line, to tap your horn just before the light turns green, just in case the driver ahead has dozed off. This is a courtesy not only to the driver ahead, but also to all the cars in line behind, because it gets the traffic moving sooner. To the rest of the world, this looks like impatience, but to a Manhattanite, it’s part of making the world flow more smoothly.

  5. It would be interesting to compare New York traffic, structured and impatient, to the traffic in Rome, where traffic moves at all through sheer force of will and is lubricated by eye contact between drivers.

  6. Even if NYC was the most perfect place in the world, full of ambrosia feeding cherubs, it would still deserve a good monotribe every now and then for the simple reason of karma – they sneer at the rest of the world. Remember Ed Koch needing an example of a city-not-to-be, and coming up with Albuquerque? If they’re gonna dish it out, they’re gonna have to take it.

  7. There really is a New York worth loving, but lord knows it ain’t at JFK. It’s Manhattan’s East Village: below 14th Street and to the right of Broadway. I have never seen the human animal more alive and engaged and collectively creative than I have there. Highlights include St Mark’s Bookstore, wild and wacky off-off-Broadway plays, and some superlative bars: the KGB, Decibel, and my personal favorite, the Tile Bar — play “Devil in Disguise” on the jukebox and order the Brooklyn Pilsner. Woo hoo! The only thing Albuquerque has over the East Village is the cost of living, which proves to me that sometimes you really do get what you pay for.

  8. It takes an awful lot of civilation to overcome the problems of human density … and what I call the Law of Conservation of Compassion: you only have so much patience to dole out to your immediate environment; time-slice it too thin, and you get NYC. But that isn’t the edge condition … take a trip to Manilla, Jakarta, Bangkok … the worst is worlds away from what we’ve gotten to yet, and the end game for capitalism is really really fugly.

    Even with an incredible veneer of politeness (probably acquired of necessity over the centuries, Japan being home to the world’s first 1M person city), I’m sure Tokyo would be more than I wish to handle. NYC lacks that intrinsic (even if faux) mutual respect, and it will only get worse over time. But I see it as the Fisherman’s Wharf for non-tourists … someplace I wouldn’t want to go to myself, but which I’m happy exists to soak up people I don’t want to deal with.

    SO … when *are* you going to Prague? Will I get there first? -b.

  9. I have to agree with you. New York City sucks. I travel all over the country for work and just completed a week stay in Manhattan. The people are so rude here. They whine about everything. I hate it so much that I spent an extra $100 bucks to get my flight rescheduled for an earlier time to get out of here.

  10. I grew up in NY and I now live in Colorado for a very good reason….I couldn’t agree with you more. The only saving grace for me is lower Manhattan. I used to think that I was a liberal until I went back to NY to visit family and I realized that I never want to identify myself with those rich, smug f**ks. Right now, I’m stuck here and I feel infected with the victim mentality. This place is a crumbling shit hole filled with annoying accents.

  11. New York Cit is so diverse, that there doesn’t truly exist a microcosm of such. You appear to be under the assumption that your experience WAS in fact a micrososm. However, there is more to NY than the baseball-diehards, the rude drivers, etc.

    I do not identify with the baseball fans myself. Baseball fans in NY and where I’m schoolin (in Boston) are seemingly arrogant and “the best”. I am a WQXR (classical music) listening, NY Times-reading liberal myself, but as far as I know, I’m not arrogant or rude MOST of the time, at least. Then again, that’s for you to judge. (Not here, of course)

    Sorry bout your rather unpleasant experience. You should give it another chance. If it screws you over again, well then its not the city for you. I don’t even think its the city for me. In some regards, I prefer Boston.

  12. I’ve spent a lot of time in NYC, but I grew up in Rochester and have a lot of family in NYC. It’s ok… that’s it… just ok.

    I really enjoy my time in Brooklyn. I find the residents to be a little more easy-going for the most part. But, still whiners from time to time. Almost always, when I ride a subway that isn’t packed like a sardine can, I find it pretty enjoyable. But, when it is crowded, it blows… and it blows bad.

    The one problem that have with NYC is the people that feel like it is their right to be a dickhead. Like it’s some glorified and justified excuse to treat people like shit. When I moved to San Francisco I had a pretty hard time dealing with some of the Asians. I am not being racist here, but they didn’t speak a fucking word of English. And they were pricks. But, that doesn’t even compare to the dicks in NYC. Seriously! I’m used to the Asians now. And whenever somebody tells me that they are traveling to NYC they say it like I’m supposed to be fucking impressed. Big deal!

    My good friend moved from Rochester, NY (it is an actual city in Western New York, not some farm village) to NYC. And she is sorely disappointed. I won’t elaborate too much, but she hasn’t been treated well. And she claims NYC to be “disconnected”.

  13. Amen. And amen. NYC sucks! Or rather, in fairness — New Yorkers suck. Have you noticed that people from New York will tell you they’re from New York in the first 15 minutes you’re talking to them? And they don’t ever do so as a response to one questioning where they’re from; no, it’s always meant to be a statement about some skill or attribute they possess – as if being from New York automatically endows one with excellent, laudable skills and knowledge. Pfff. Now, when someone tells me they’re from NYC , all I hear is “I’m more than likley than not an asshole.”

  14. Your story’s wonderful. Keep it up. I’m from the Bronx. When I was a child NYC used to be fun. Then 9-11 came crashing down…now the city sucks balls. I got a question. I’ve never been to California. What’s life like in San Diego? Write me. Thanx!

  15. I grew up in a small town, nestled in the mountains, so for me a good city is one that isn’t so… well, citylike.

    A few yeas ago I was listening to NPR and they were discussing a study that set out to rate major cities for the pace of life there. The researcher used things like the percentage of people who wore watches, the speed people talked, and stuff like that to come up with some sort of ranking of cities. Boston was listed as the most hectic, while Los Angeles was the most laid-back.

    Which just goes to show that a) the science was questionable, and b) San Diego was not in the survey. Compared to San Diego, LA is a rat race (well, a race of rats sitting stationary in their cars).

    San Deigans look to the north and are constantly perplexed why anyone would live in LA on purpose. It’s just not a pleasant place. Not aggressively nasty like New York, but more a giant, sprawling (growing) blight on the planet. That’s not to say San Diego is perfect, but it’s a hell of a lot better than Los Angeles.

    Up in Northern California, I’ve stumbled on a couple old gold rush towns where I’ve said, “I could live here”. They’re as different from Los Angeles as Lake Placid is from NYC.

  16. So, New York, does kind of suck – I would bet especially to a guy from the west coast where everyone seems to be happy all time. Here’s the thing…. New York is literally the most phenomenal place in the world.

    OK, so I’m a Jersey girl and I get all the really bad jokes- all the time. So, I moved to NY – Manhattan – about 5 years ago and I think it’s probably the best thing that I have ever done. And I’ve lived other places – the south, Europe, I visit Cali all the time for familoy reasons – and I do think it’s a gorgeous state – and that’s my disclaimer….. but to my knowledge, NYC is THEEE only place you can actually speak your mind – always, with no inhibitions – and be yourself – and still, no matter what, never ever be persecuted for it. Judged…yes, almost definitely. And that’s probably why you hated it.

    The bad part is that New Yorkers live in a bubble – that’s why they come across so brash. It’s such a crazy little microcosm. And the worst part is that the more you are here, the more you buy into it – and that’s why it sucks. And on the same note, New Yorkers can be horribly, brutally honest, and usually it’s at the exact time that they probably shouldn’t be. And that’s definitely why NYCers come across to be so horrible.

    On the flip side, I live a really great life here – something that I have dreamed about since I was young. And I have it – it’s amazing. Do I miss the ‘burbs? YES! I was brought up there and I love it and I honestly would want my kids to have the same wonderful experience that I had. And, if I may, go on a short tangent on Jersey. It honestly was the best place to grow up. My parents had an old farm house with 5 acres, a stream in the backyard, tree houses, our only neighbors where farmers (which unfortunately has changed). So, I grew up on an old farm, the beach (Jersey beaches are gorgeous) was 20 minutes away, NYC was an hour drive, and even Philly was only and hour drive. When I grew up, my third grade field trips were to the Natural History Museum in NYC. Can you get a better education???

    So anyway, yes, NYC does suck for a number of reasons. There’s too much temptation all the time, the people here are rude and obnoxious, you can’t get a cab during shift change, especially when you need one – especially in the rain – and there are so many people here that are fake and try so hard to be something they are not.

    BUT, the culture here is extraordinary and the history here is remarkable. In some crazy way, if you can make here, I would hope that you would be able to make it anywhere. (so cliche)

    In the same respect, I don’t think I could ever make it on the West coast for the reasons that I make it as a New Yorker. My in-laws live out there and I love visiting – southern CA actually has great food! (Once you live in NYC, I hate to sound like a snob, but it’s really really hard to find a really great restaurant.)

    Alright, I’ll stop ranting. Thanks for the ear if anyone really reads this…

  17. Thank you for your comment. Next time I’m in New York, I’ll try to see your version. It sounds pretty cool. When I’m there, I will try to accept that the rules are not what I’m used to, and appreciate the city for what it is. That it is one of the cultural hubs of humanity is unquestionable.

    In exchange, I’d like to ask that New Yorkers recognize that when they leave the city, they don’t bring their rules with them. Witnessing a New Yorker in Prague single-handedly turn fifty people against the US is tough to take.

    I know what you mean about the restaurants. I live in a place now where “Mexican” means “contains corn”. If there’s a Thai restaurant in this town it’s a carefully guarded secret, and I’ve never even bothered asking about Vietnamese. I bet in NYC is my favorite restaurant – I just haven’t eaten there yet.

  18. I feel like you were writing my very thoughts, as a native San Diegan who had to endure 5 years in DC, NY and the like. Thank you!

  19. NYC.. if you got the dough, id imagine you could have a good time. Iv’e heard about/known a few immigrants from Turkey, Bangladesh, West Africa, while working in restaurants and they all told the same story. They come here for opportunity and all they do is work. Day and night, sixty hour weeks. And its not so much the urge to have a family and educate them so they won’t have to do the same, but it’s an urge to come here in hopes of enjoying what NYC has to offer. So people in that situation pay doubly, they can’t afford to enjoy NYC for what it is, and have to deal with it’s rudeness and culture of “who gives a fuck” till it’s you that’s been wronged, then you’ll see headlines in the NYC post at about size 35 font.

    What does the city have to offer to these people? They came looking for an improved life, and all they do is work to pay bills, buying up the imagine of the NYC skyline as a token of how great it is here.

  20. Mike – I don’t want to pee on your parade, and for all I know you are totally right about New York women, but when you have that large a sample all reacting the same way…

    maybe it’s you.

  21. So right! I have been in New York for the past 6.5 months and have 2.5 to go. Within the past month I have become more homesick than I ever have had in my life. I am also a native San Diegan! (yay for us). I miss the “Oh sorry, excuse me” and the “I’ve got time, go ahead!” Now it’s “Yo kid you wanna buy dis CD, you seem like you listen to rap, buy this thang man!” (i do listen to rap). But it is an everyday thing to hear because i live in midtown next to the empire state building. The streets are always crowded and you can’t step to your left or right cause there’s always someone there! There are so many damn homeless people here that they start to really piss me off! If I see another homeless dude sitting in front of subway stairs (blocking foot traffic) asking for change one more time I’m gonna punch him in the fuckin face! Excuse the language but it’s how I express myself in a strong way. They say that there is always something to do in New York, ya if you’re a fucking rich kid that doesn’t drink or smoke ever (pussies/straightedge)! Rent is outrageous, cigarettes are $9 a pack, and weed costs twice as much as it does in san diego and is 10 times worse. Cali bud rocks!!! And to top all of that off, prices are still going up! wtf does the gov’t think, rising prices is going to do any good to this city (HELL NO) there are already enough homeless people! I just can’t wait to go back to San Diego where the buildings don’t block the sunlight and where you can cross the street without getting run over (BY PEOPLE)! That’s all, thanks for reading! SoCal for life!!!

  22. yeppers.ny sucks fukin dick!!!pure west coast shit boyee!!!oh nd fuck everyone who backs up any ny shett.!!!!:)westcoast fur life!!!calithugs!!!!pure brown power!!!and yea Cali. Bud is da shett!!!

  23. Reading my ancient post, I must say that my comments about the Yankees buying championships is unfair. Yes, they buy championships, but the only thing worse would be for them to make all that money and NOT buy championships. At least they put some of that cash gusher back into the team and reward their fans. I’ll give them that.

    I have a feeling that there is a segment of the New York population that is pissed off at the Yankees for no other reason than the team doesn’t give them enough to complain about. Although the New York Post will always be able to find something. That paper is run by the whiniest bunch of pussies on the planet.

  24. Hey, what’s up ya’ll, this is J-1 from NYC. I’ve gotten the vibe from these posts that a lot of native San Diegans are shocked by NYC’s rudeness and over-crowding. I couldn’t agree more. I’ve lived here all my life (not by choice though) and it smells horrible all the time, there are no real parks (Central and Prospect don’t count)with actual animals or diverse wildlife.

    I’m planning on moving to San Diego soon and I was curious about the cost of rent there (a studio in NYC is about 1500 a month!)

    NY sucks for a few reasons. First off, it is a lot more racist than it lets on. I’ll explain. Many areas poke fun at people from different backgrounds than the native population. NY has so many immigrants that you can be a native in your own neighborhood and still feel like an outcast. Second, it costs about 3 TIMES as much to live here than it does any where else, except maybe San Fran. A pizza slice is now $2.75. 5 years ago it was a buck. Cigarettes are close to $10. The train is going to $3 in March of ’09. THERE ARE NO COLLEGE CAMPUSES WITH DORMS IN THE CITY. So prepare to live at home and/or work after school. The clubs have been getting thinner and thinner crowds, because of the New Economic Recession we’re in. Gas was $5 in July, now it’s half that.

    I remember growing up in NYC. You could paint the town red with $20. The Knicks had Ewing, the Yanks Mattingly and the Rangers had Messier and even Gretzky. Now the whole City has sold its soul to the Major Corporations. It’s also freezing cold from late September to about the second week of May.

  25. San Diego is a fine place to live, but it is also not cheap. A few years ago I read that when adjusted for median income, SD was the most expensive city in the US. Of course, poor is poor anywhere, and for those well below the median income the absolute cost is probably a better measure of hardship. The $500 I’m paying for rent here in Prague is killing me now, though $20 will still go a long way in a local pub.

  26. Hey thanks, people from San Diego are a lot nicer than New Yorkers!

    $500 as in $500 a month! Wow, I live here and pay about $950 for a small studio. It sounds too good to be true.

    A few other inquiries if I may Jerry,

    1) How is the Weather out there?

    2)I’m a Financial Analyst, is the Securities Market in S.D. decent?

    3) I heard it has some beautiful beaches and women, is that true?

    Look forward to the response!

    Peace!

  27. The thing about that $500 rent I mentioned above is that I don’t live in San Diego anymore. You won’t find anything that cheap. Prices vary a lot by which suburb you choose. (coming from NYC, even downtown will feel like a suburb.) Also, if you’re accustomed to using public transportation, choose your abode VERY carefully, because overall public transport sucks.

    The weather is awesome. I had only one pair of long pants while I lived there, for emergencies.

    I haven’t the slightest idea about the securities markets there.

    Beautiful beaches, check. Beautiful women on the beaches, check. You can do a lot worse.

    Good luck!

  28. Best bet for low rent on the waterfront in SoCal: Get a boat.

    Slip rental in marinas is typically about $600 a month for a good-sized sailboat, a bit more if you’re a live-aboard. A tiny studio apartment will be about twice that if it’s anywhere near the ocean.

    Of course, that means you also have to buy a boat. And there are usually other drawbacks, such as limits on what percentage of boats in a marina are allowed to be live-aboards, waiting lists to get into the good marinas, and the fact that a boat typically has even less living space than a studio apartment.

    Still, if a good breeze comes up, you can’t take an apartment out sailing in the bay.

  29. I don’t think I can relate to this article as to why it sucks. It’s almost there…but not really. Keep in mind, I’ve lived here for pretty much all my life. I can rest assure, I AM a city child at heart, and I doubt it’ll ever change. But in all truthiness, I don’t think I can handle the way this city has changed. Gone are all the things I remember about New York, everything you see now is superficial and glossed up. What was once owned by the people is now taken up by big business. From those oh so annoying Brooklyn Hipsters and all the Yuppies of Manhattan, I miss the time when New York was dangerous and gritty, now it’s just like LA, and anyone willing to argue otherwise is a dolt. In fact, I would be willing to say that LA hasn’t lost it’s luster and hasn’t sold out as much as New York has.

    Also, I find it hilarious when people try to get into a match into who’s “more New York” than the other. PLEASE, no one left in this state cares and at the end of the day, no one gives a fuck. Being a New Yorker isn’t determined by whether or not you have a guido accent or if you like the Yankees or any other stupid crap. In short, you are right about one thing, New Yorkers are still pretentious, that’ll never change. The only problem is they no longer have anything to back that pretentiousness up.

    No wonder this place is so miserable.

  30. Worth noting now that the blog has moved that there are a bunch of good comments in the old system (link at the bottom of the article). As a general pattern, the people who disagree with me talk about a vibrant city full of life and culture not available anywhere else, while the people who agree with me perfectly fit the stereotype I’m complaining about. So, I’d much rather hang with the people who love New York. YOMAMA is a good example of the sort of New Yorker I think I’d like to hang with.

    • are youthat EVIL?
      im from New York, and not everyone is like that,
      do you wish innocent people TO DIE in 9/11?
      are you fucking serious?
      i hope youf ucking die in hell asshole.
      many people fucking died and whereever the hell your from, i wish you the best. im not gonna wish somebody to bomb where you live because not everyone is an asshole.

  31. No, you’re right, NYC is filled with assholes. They seem to think the rest of the state has to be their landfill, and the whole purpose of owning property in north or western New York is to provide pipelines for natural gas and water.

    The only people in the state that likes New York City are the people that live in NYC. It’s got the highest concentration of dickheads in the world, even worse than Boston – and if you want to defend Boston, try using a blinker light there while drive just to be nice.

  32. I don’t think that’s good thing to say. After all it’s the red necks who want to go to war all the time anyway. NY I’ve lived outside of ny over 20yrs now and I was thinking of coming back but the people their now have no back bone. I’m from the old new york and yes I have a problem with boston and the midwest and the good old south. But I see want alot of people are talking about, every little thing I do in NYC now is a big deal with these new new yorkers. Alot of these people in NY I don’t remember from the streets and now they want all this respect. So all you out of towner, you are dealing with these fake ass new yorkers that hide in the house in the 1970 because the city was so bad. Now that it punk friendly everybody thinks their a tuff guy. I interview at one job and they wanted to see my passport not a bithcertificate want kind of shit it that???and ny has soleout I should go back to LA but i’ll give it a try!!!

  33. You know, MOST of the New Yorkers who have responded to this make the city sound pretty cool. Then you get ones like this (though using both ‘lol’ and ‘fucking’ in the same post is pretty good). Not that there are many places in Texas I’d want to live, either.

  34. NYC used to be kind of a cool tropical reef with all kinds of interesting fish, swimming around having fun.

    Then a super tanker called The Bushberg smashed into it and spilled it’s vitriol and cess all over it. The cool fish were smart enough to leave, ahhhhhh.

    The rich fish stayed because they are all shit eaters anyway.Yep.

    The poor fish were stuck in the muck reduced to shoveling shit from the rich fishes asses back into their mouths. This made them very angry, so they all started to fuck each other over for tiny little bits of rich fish shit.

    Tadah….. and have a good sleep my little babies.

    Lights out

  35. NYers are so funny. If they’re not whining, banging their chests, they’re putting down everyone else. It’s become cute. i love seeing yankee fans get upset about their team. Soooo funny. Yeah, we get it, you USED to win. Good for you. Yayyy.. Woohooo.. you go girl!

  36. I would like to post some factual information. A fact that simply the majority of people residing in Ny are bred to be assholes. I believe there is nothing they can do about it. If you are one that has been cursed with this unbelievable diminishing trait of a human being, I feel for you.

  37. Interesting posts, but they all miss the point. I was born and bred in NY. I lived there until I was 32 and finally left because the damn place was too expensive. I’ve spent the last 7 years living in the south and I can see now how the minority of dumb arrogant NY’ers make the majority look bad. We’re not all Yankee fans. We’re not all liberals. We’re not all arrogant and rude. I must confess that we do feel “superior” at times, only because we were brought up to think that NY is the capital of the world, the melting pot, etc. etc.

    The truth? There are 2 types of NY’ers. There’s the type that thinks NY is the center of the universe and have a limited grasp of reality (some people I grew up with fit this description) and then there are the folks who’ve been to other parts of the country and understand that we all bring something unique to the table and respect each other (outside of sports – I could never love a Cowboys fan).

    Bottom line is that not all NY’ers are bad. It’s the idiots that make the most noise that make us look bad.

  38. I WAS BORN IN NEW YORK. I spent all my life there and if it wasn’t for my family, I would have left a long time ago.

    Many New Yorkers are a piece of shit people who are mean and rude. I have traveled to other parts of the country and the World and I have never met a group of people so rude and mean. I was so sick of the people in New York, I forced myself to move to New Jersey. Not to mention the government of New York. These asshole New York politicians do anything to screw the people over. There are better places to live then New York. Quality of life in New York is horrible.

    FUCK YOU NEW YORK

  39. New York sucks. I had lived there for 36 years and hated it for the last 10 years with a passion. I moved to Sweden 3 months ago and I am so happy. Sweden is great. Stockholm where I live is a remarkably beautiful city. Just imagine14 Islands (archipelago) connected by modern sleek bridges, filled with low-lying buildings, architecture from the 18th century, and panoramic views of nature and the ocean. Simply incredible.

    New York on the other hand is stressful; poor quality of life; poverty, high cost of living, congestion, overpopulation, and the downright mean-spiritedness of the local power structure. Many New Yorkers can not affford to leave and many others buy into the hype that New York is the center of the world are in denial thus they stay. I am so happy I left the rat nest called New York City.

  40. Listen buddy. This place is too crowded to be saying “excuse me” every time you brush or bump into someone. It is inevitable, you will be touched. Some people are in a hurry, late for $10,000 deals or even $1,000,000 dollar deals. Unless you get tackled and bowled over, WHY DO YOU CARE ANYWAY! Oh, you are the sensitive type, “if a feather drops on your shoulder, you want the bird to stop down on the other shoulder and say “Oh, I’m sorry pal”. New York is for those who have the talent or “think” they have the talent to conquer the world and “look good” while doing it. If you don’t have balls or stomach to smell the feces left behind on a homeless person, “STAY THE HELL OUT OF HERE” Until you grow some and your “PUPPY STOMACH” becomes a ROTTWEILER! We have to hustle in the megopolis, rent in the outter boroughs in $1,200 a month. SO YES, WE ARE ENTITLED, WE WORK HARD, AND WE DESERVE SOME DAMN RESPECT, and no one has time to BE POLITE TO YOU!

    • I was reading this, thinking that this is the perfect New York response, and I can respect the ‘if you’re too much of a pussy then stay the hell away’ attitude. I think I could handle New York now, thanks to all the comments here. I’m prepared.

      Then you said ‘entitled’ and I just rolled my eyes. Entitled to what? Any why exactly? Because you’re the type of person that thrives in the fuck-the-other-guy world of New York City? This is what gives New Yorkers a bad name. They leave the hive and expect special treatment from the rest of the world. They’re entitled to it.

      Yes, I know, not ALL New Yorkers are like that. Maybe only a small percentage. But enough.

      And face it, dude, there are million-dollar deals and outrageous rent in Silicon Valley too. At least you have functional public transport. There are other cities just as crowded, but none as downright rude as New York. (Except Seville, but they don’t seem to feel entitled to anything just for living there.)

  41. Great piece. I was born in New York, and have lived there for most of forty years. YOMAMA put it best. You still get the attitude, the difference is that now there is nothing to back it up. The main business of the local economy (Wall Street) is actually to destroy the world economy! Its become the epitome of the declining city.

    In the US, there were once a group of great cities in the Midwest that were ruined, I used to live in one, one of the problems here is that the same rich f—- who ran some of those Midwestern cities into the ground then moved here. OK, the city is safer than thirty years ago, but people are also ruder, the transportation system is falling apart, there is very little that is interesting going on culturally.

    So I’d have left here like yesterday if I could get a job elsewhere. Sadly that’s not likely in today’s economy.

  42. Yes, NY sucks.

    I couldn’t have said it better if I was Henry Louis Menken.

    The people, luv ’em, the country -close to the best!

    But NYS govt., God and I both hate ’em.

    Highest taxes in the nation, highest regumalations in the nation, highest ‘incarcerations’ in the nation, and the most trough sucking fascist boobocrats in the nation. This ‘state’ deserves to die. -and it will.

    God help the people and businesses there.

    Please read up on Doctor Ron Paul’s latest at: dailypaul.com or campaignforliberty.com

    Think for yourself, learn your American history,
    and lets make this country GREAT again! :)

  43. Well being from high class new yorkers i night be able to put it better. Of course i don’t speak for the entire city it would do well to remember. First i would like to point out Silicon Valley is not a city. Being a New Yorker i have high expectations for a city, and looking at it, it fails to met those. So you can not compare NYC to silicoln valley in the manner that you did when you stated, “And face it, dude, there are million-dollar deals and outrageous rent in Silicon Valley too”. When my friend up there said entitled what i think he meant was, “Look we have what it takes to be New yorkers so that entitles our self to be able to have a sense of pride and dignity unlike any where else in the country (except for Texas). And of course you have the common myth in your head that we just hate the entire world or something like that. When we get pushed you know if your heart you more or less deserved in in the way that you were blocking someones path. Its hard to explain. When you were talking about how the bar manager changed the station, they had every right to shout and complain. Any good bar tender would know to put a mets or Yankee game on the best tv, not the padres. In that also you made it seem that they were the complaining because, “the bar manager took their god given right away to watch the game”. Well no. It could have been i was watching that and you turned it off, now i will complain. I can see why that might seem strange to someone from the west coast, not standing up for yourself. Id also like to say i have never seen arguments over whos more ‘new york’. I dont really blame you to much, you have to be born with it and obviously you were not; and thats not your fault. Just dont come whining about your city. ESPICALLY about ‘how its cold out side with your shorts’. Your complaining about new yorkers whining, but YOU were to stupid to realize that its not your little wonderful warm California. you came unprepared so shut up and dont blame new york for it

  44. I love NYC or rather I used to – but now I hate it here… I have been here for 26 years..but it’s like a bad boyfriend – won’t stop nagging me about money….! It is crazy expensive and here – I went out last night with friends and ordered a basic margarita and had to shell over 19 dollars for it – that is stupid…! The drink was small and weak just the like most of the men here…! I have thought about leaving many times but my career kept me here…. However, this year has been the worst year of my life – I lost my job, had to dump another loser whiny NYC boyfriend who he told me he was depressed and didn’t want to have sex cuz he needed to go on Paxil – yeah whatever – get a life without me. I’m so sick of NY people living on antidepressants – it’s really gross. All the guys here are selfish pricks by the way and want woman to cater to them like their mommies. I now hate it here… I have gone through all of my savings, I’m completely broke, I have nowhere to go around town because I’m completely broke, my cat died this year and I do not want to date another NYC guy – they are really awful. You know what anytime I Ieave NYC for a vacation – I meet a great man outside of Gotham – it’s so easy to meet people who are not assholes outside of NYC. This place truly sucks now – it used to be fun, it used to have a thriving scene, it used to be exciting to live here, now it’s just a gigantic mall and people live in tiny boxes they call home.. I love my apt but I’m willing to wager I can get a nicer place to live somewhere else and men would actually think I’m worth dating for the long haul. I’m completely invisible to men here – oh and the footnote. I’m 5’7″, long natural blond hair, blue eyes, slender and and I have been told I look like Tony Collette – go figure… NYC SUCKS for me…! Now I have to change my career to live somewhere else – Yikes…

  45. I have to agree with you, I lived in New York my whole life and recently moved out to Europe, could not be happier but I think the US as whole has deteriorated sharply. NY is a like a third world country, with an ultra rich center, Manhattan, and four mostly poor suburbs called boroughs. Its the modern day version of a feudal system, with a few wealthy elites and a large working class that exists to serve this wealthy few. I would expand that the US in general has gone sharply downhill and I don’t see things turning around any time soon. I have to concede that if I were to return to the US, I would only live in California, Oregon, or Washington, the most livable states in the country. You could not make me go back to NY for all the money on Earth. The only other states as bad as NY are New Jersey and Florida, the latter is full of transplanted New Yorkers who have made the state like NY but with palm trees. The sad truth is that the general structure of NY, a free for all time economy has spread out to much of the US in general and hence America is a lot less livable then it was years ago.

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