It is hard to say what city New York would be without Robert Moses, whether he made it better or worse. I think the article is extremely enlightening in the sense that it not only takes about the glamorous achievements New York scores but those blood and tears shed by those who were displaced. I do however believe that there would always be a price to pay for any progressive reforms, the question is then whether the price you are paying is acceptable to the result you are getting. In Moses’s case, the power he was able to wield to reinvent New York – building bridges, expand its shorelines, erect expressways for connection and convenience is truly impressive. I think he has, regardless, laid a strong foundation for us to improve the city on today.

It’s admirable that Moses was able to find his ways between bureaucracy and ranks to achieve things at a time that no one else is able to. He also started with rather noble ambitions but later turned to the “means and only the means, which he used as a criterion to determine while the project will grant him more power if it were to be undertaken. It’s another example of how the pursuit of pure power will corrupt the individual – I guess the lesson to take home is that to never lose sight of what you want and the means are only to be means, not ends.