All of the readings were pretty interesting and fascinating. There were many things that stuck out to me, one of which is that there are “two New Yorks.” There is the wealthy and lavish New York, and there is also the New York with immigrants, the poor, living on the “brink of total impoverishment.” Although I believe that statement is a bit exaggerated, I agree with the author of “Cracks in the Edifice of the Empire State” in the belief that there are two New Yorks. It was interesting how the Twin Towers were where these two New Yorks intermingled. I think the author was implying at the end that the rich New York will need the poor New York more in the future, or at least that the poor New York will become more important. This author seemed doubtful of New York as a global city, that this system will soon fail.
The “Global City” was more of an introduction to this concept. This author also ponders at the question of the long-term durability of the global city. It does seem risky to have the whole world’s economy dependent on essentially a few cities around the world. The realization that the decisions made by these few cities, especially New York, control the economy of the world was shocking. Furthermore, the author points out that what “contributes to growth in network of global cities may well not contribute to growth in nations.” If this is the case, then these global cities will not be good for the sake of the world, if not detrimental. I think the author suggested in another part of the introduction that before these global cities, the good of the cities actually meant the good of the nation. It is interesting that economic globalization results in centralization, as in the case of New York, around which the central functions all exist in one area.
“Working Class New York” showed the importance of the poorer New York. It’s interesting how we have a system in which the people who get paid very little have such crucial roles in the stability of the city. When elevator operators or tugboat workers went on a strike or did a walkout, the whole city seemed to be paralyzed. Most New Yorkers are not business owners or in positions of authority; many of them are working class. The author emphasized the importance and size of this working class in New York. This author introduced words like “bifurcation,” which seems to be in accordance to the idea of the author of “Cracks in the Edifice of the Empire State,” the “two New Yorks.” There is a separation of mental labor from manual labor, which is prominent in New York.
