I thought the story in the “Tavern in the Town” was very interesting and amusing. The funniest part of this chapter was when the author describes the way that the media portrayed what actually happened. Because it was about moms, children, Central Park, and rich, educated people, this small incident blew up to something much bigger than necessary. Moses was the man who evicted thousands of people out of their homes for his projects. But it is interesting how the fight over a half acre of Central Park with a petition signed by a bit more than twenty people was the thing that cracked Robert Moses’ image. The awe of politicians and reverence of journalists were broken over the parking lot. I personally did like how the media twisted things around and portrayed Robert Moses as an evil, corrupt character after everything that he did for New York.
I agree with the more positive view of Robert Moses in Jackson’s Robert Moses and the Rise of New York. I think it is a very important fact that Caro wrote his book when New York was at one of its lowest points. I believe that at the time, the people just needed someone to blame and Moses was their scapegoat. Robert Moses actually did very great things in New York that people of subsequent generations can still appreciate and enjoy. It may be true that he enjoyed his power and influence, but I do not believe this resulted in anything less than the better state of New York City. He wasn’t interested in making profit or having lots of women or living lavishly. He may not have necessarily worked for the good of the individuals, but for the good of the public. Whatever happened to New York in the 70s was not brought upon by Moses, I believe, and this city would have been in an even worse state had it not been for him.
As for Jane Jacobs, I understand that she has studied many different cities in depth and disagrees with the way that they have been developed and influenced by different leaders. But I did not really respect the criticisms she made because she did not clearly state an alternative to all these problems. I don’t think there is anything overwhelmingly wrong about the way that New York City in particular has developed. Although she doesn’t state it directly, I think she is against Robert Moses’ principles and the ways that he conducted things within the city. But I doubt that anyone else could have shaped and developed the city more effectively and efficiently than Moses did.
