...”A Ride on the New York Subway” By Vivian Gornick New York has countless names which describe its greatness; what we do not hear about in everyday life is its underworld. Vivian Gornick introduces us to a new underworld and new ways of looking upon the Subway in New York. The subway system which she very much dislikes is being described as a “gloomy world of darkness” and with impressive imagery, she manages to make you feel like standing in the middle of hell. As an example the train is described as:” An iron monster spitting flames and noise (…) the iron creature goes roaring off down the pitch-black tunnel with its cargo of human prisoners.” (p.1 “A Ride on the New York Subway”). When closing one’s eyes after reading the very first paragraph, the feeling of being uncomfortable and to some extend even afraid of the Subway is slowly growing inside. Additionally, the people surrounding the main character in the novel are expressionless “People looked as though they dared not see, hear or respond” (p.3). Vivian Gornick draws our attention to the fact that humanity risk decreasing when waiting at a subway station. No chatting or laughter, only misery and tension. The mood in the story however becomes gradually more positive, as the main character experience positive actions towards her as a person. It all starts with a black male wearing a red shirt, helping her not only by making the way into the train, but also out of the path of an addict; which makes her feel safe...
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...the people of New York know one truth to be universal, that regardless of race, ethnicity, creed, or orientation mobility is important. Despite this, transportation for the elderly and disabled remain difficult and expensive. To combat this problem the mayor’s office must increase MTA accessibility as well as its scrutiny of paratransit services. As things presently stand the subways of New York are all but inaccessible for the elderly and differently abled. As one ages his or her knees tend to go the way of all flesh, making the act of climbing stairs a feat of endurance. For the elderly an elevator at a subway station, therefore, is not a luxury but a necessity, and yet less than a quarter of New York City’s 472 subway stations are wheelchair accessible. Additionally, what elevators there are tend to break down at an alarming rate. The mayor’s office should, therefore, keep records on which elevators break most frequently (this can be done with minimal effort via a crowd sourcing model) as well as conduct an accessibility study...
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...Sex/Gender • On the subway, I noticed the gender of riders are almost split evenly, but I feel like that there are more females then males on the train. • The people who sit down mostly on the train are predominately females, elderly, and women traveling with young children. Most people will offer a seat to pregnant woman, elderly and women with young children. • The females have more privileges over seat and more women tend to sit more over men. Men tends like to stand more over women due to gender role as men are expected to be muscular and standing up kind of show their muscularity than sitting down. • The people who stand on the train and hold the handrail are predominately-young people and males. Race/Ethnicity • On the subway,...
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...Metropolitan Transportation Authority has eliminated several bus routes running along subway lines. In addition, the authority has decreased the frequency of some of the bus routes. This reduced the number of people using buses and increased the use of subways. The high-profile improvements of subways have also contributed to the rise of subway ridership. Furthermore, buses are frequently breaking down, which affects the reliability of the NYC bus system. The average distance that buses travel before repair has declined, which reduces the number of buses on various routes.[1] The public consider the NYC bus system to be unreliable, overcrowded and not dependable. Its unreliability is associated with the frequent failure of buses, non-covering of runs, changes in routing and the use of antiquated dispatching procedures. Many people prefer to use alternative ways of transit because of the longer wait times, particularly along the busy routes. They prefer to be on a train rather than wait for buses. With the fare hikes and traffic congestion, New Yorkers usually walk instead of taking short bus rides.[2] New Yorkers feel that the bus system undercounts passengers, because some buses operate with broken fare boxes, which has increased the number of fare evaders and resulted in issues concerning bus operator safety. The increased deadheading of buses in recent years has raised concerns among New Yorkers, since buses operate not in service rather than carry...
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...------------------------------------------------- MTA Announces Proposals for Fare Increases The Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) has unveiled proposals that would increase fares and tolls to raise additional, vitally needed revenue to support the New York region's transportation system. The increases come during an era of successful and unprecedented MTA management actions to cut controllable expenses. In fact, the MTA will spend less in 2012 on its controllable costs than it did in 2011. Year-over-year controllable costs are lower by 0.3%. "Costs that the MTA does not exercise control over, namely those for debt service, pensions, energy, paratransit, and employee and retiree health care, continue to increase beyond the rate of inflation," said MTA Chairman and CEO Joseph J. Lhota. "We are grappling with long-term measures to reduce these frustrating and difficult non-discretionary expenses, but today, they are the drivers of the need for a fare and toll increase." The fare and toll proposals will be the subject of a geographically diverse, multi-platform public review process that starts today and lasts through mid-December. The proposals will be subject to modification after the public review process and will be considered for adoption by the MTA Board at its December 19 meeting. The new fare and toll rates would go into effect on or about March 1, 2013. "The public will have significant input into our decision-making process. In the spirit of transparency, the public will assist in shaping our fare...
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...New York city is one the largest city in the world. Home to numerous iconic landmarks such as Statue of Liberty, Central Park, Empire State building and a buzzing culture. New York is a city that wears many hats with elan. It is an awesome city with a blend of history and modernity offering feasts for all. 1. After the Empire State Building opened in New York City in 1931, much of its office space went unrented. It was nicknamed the “Empty State Building” by New Yorkers and didn’t become profitable until 1950. The Empire state building was built in 1931, 12 days ahead of schedule. It was the tallest building in New York dwarfing the newly completed Chrysler Building. Due to the Great Depression, the building had difficulty finding tenants.The...
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...New York New York is like a glaring bright window in a distant view. It’s a place of sunshine. While I was exposed to various elements, my brain short-circuited and needed to be rebooted. Everything around me was moving like the speed of light, and I stood motionless in the middle of it all. The Buildings were breathtaking, and the streets filled with joy.As I explored this seemingly infinite city, I witnessed freedom at its core. While waiting anxiously for a taxi outside of JFK airport, my mind pondered the obvious differences between New York City and Greenville. The taxi driver approaches in his snazzy suit and says: “Where would you like to go?” He asked. “I would like for you to drop me off at Times Square.” I said. “ Sure!” He said....
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... Randall Oberhoff According to Comer (2011), patterns of psychological abnormality are typically deviant (different, extreme, unusual, perhaps even bizarre), distressing (unpleasant and upsetting to the person), dysfunctional (interfering with the person ability to conduct daily activities in a constructive way), and possibly dangerous. Behaviors that are un-predictable and defy society’s norms are considered abnormal. I live in Maryland, but I am very close to the Washington, dc line. I see a lot of abnormal behaviors daily in such a diverse place. One of the recent encounters of abnormal behavior that I heard about was recently on the news. On Sunday, January 8, 2012, several people boarded the Metro in DC without pants; they were all in their underwear. This event is known as the No Pants Subway Ride. Supporters of this event participated as a way to have fun and to freely express themselves. Another encounter that I have seen almost every year is homeless men or women wearing winter coats and sweat suits in the summer. Lastly, another behavior that is viewed as abnormal which I have witnessed is some who is severely depressed and who has nightmares of being murdered. The Four Ds It is abnormal to go out in public displaying one’s undergarments. In the United States, we except everyone to wear clothing that fully covers their unmentionables. Each society establishes norms-stated and unstated rules for proper...
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...--Chandni Jhunjhunwala Hallmark arrived in my hometown of Calcutta, India, around the time I turned 14. On Valentine's Day, I waited in line with hordes of other teenagers just for a chance to get into the store. I remember wishing two things. One: That I wasn't the only person there with her mother. Two: That the cute boy whom I could see through the store window was skimming through the aisles picking out a gift for me. It was such a scene — the hundreds of greeting cards with messages of love and romance, guys in their school uniforms looking uncomfortable as they tried to pick the perfect stuffed animal for their girlfriends, many of whom were beside them giving them not-so-subtle hints. I wanted so desperately to be a part of this. Unfortunately, Valentine's Day passed and I received nothing but a lecture from my father on how Western capitalism was ruining our culture. The next Valentine's Day, I still didn't have a boyfriend, but I did receive a greeting card from a secret admirer. It would have been flattering, except the card featured a picture of an office desk with neatly arranged paper clips and pens. I can't remember what it said inside the card, but it hardly mattered. While other women inspire candlelit dinners and marriage proposals, some guy felt the need to tell me that I was as exciting as office supplies. Not to say that all my Valentine's Days have been dull. I had a particularly memorable one the year I was dating, long-distance, a guy who lived in England...
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...Hurricane Sandy, the city of New York experienced price gouging by merchants due to the increase in demand for many products. The supply is limited; therefore, many merchants decided they would be able to capitalize on the needs of the consumers. However, during the storm, public transportation was limited, and the buses weren't running due to the cost of fuel, trains, and the subways were at a standstill due to the flooding. Uber, a car service company, came into the picture for transportation. This paper will show how the demand and supply of transport services were affected by Hurricane Sandy, during a time of disaster, and how the consumers reacted to the changes in prices. The Law of Supply and Demand Maddalena (2012) states, “It is all a matter of supply and demand and what happens when one or both are disrupted from their normal point. When a market is functioning normally supply and demand intersect at a point (called the equilibrium point) which bases the best price that the market is willing to pay as well as the best quantity that the market will provide. When a market is disrupted due to some external event, supply and demand can change causing a new equilibrium point and a new price and quantity” (Maddalena, 2012). With the events taking place during Hurricane Sandy, the Uber transportation company took advantage of the consumers by surging their prices for services rendered. Surge pricing by definition means, the cost of a single ride can reach as much as seven...
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...“…As soon as you have an idea the changes some small part of the world you are writing science fiction. It is always the art of the possible, never the impossible” (Bradbury, Brainy Quotes). Ray Bradbury was a man who lived in two different but very similar worlds. He wrote a very complicated book called Fahrenheit 451. He made up things that came to be true today. Although there are many different things about the fictional world compared to ours though there are also many similarities. Fahrenheit 451 is a very complicated book to read. Fires are needed to be put out and books are encouraged. We have libraries full of books and people take as many as they want. But this is not the case in this novel. No books that is the law. If you are caught...
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...since [year rail was put up to vote], when 53 percent of the residents of Oahu voted in favor of having rail (author), there are loud voices in the community calling for termination of the project and one mayoral candidate is running with rail opposition as his sole platform. This essay argues that the people of Oahu are in dire need of this transportation system to reduce frustration and wasted time spent on the road, and addresses the flawed reasoning of those who oppose rail. People on Oahu need rail because traffic in Honolulu is ranked as the worst in the entire country. A 2011 poll conducted by __company__ found that traffic in Honolulu, based on distance traveled over time, was worse than traffic in well-known congested cities like New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. If you ask any resident about their commuting experience, their response is highly likely to be filled with only complaints. It is very common for people who live in west Oahu (Kapolei, Makakilo, Ewa, Waipahu) and central Oahu (Mililani, Wahiawa) to spend between two to three hours commuting to town every weekday, possibly more if there is a stalled care or accident. However, traffic is not only a problem on weekdays – freeways and surface roads can be equally congested on weekends. With the population on Oahu continuously growing every year, the number of cars on the road is only increasing and worsening the problem. Having rail would certainly help to ease the traffic issue. A rail system on Oahu would...
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...In his memoir, An American Comedy (cowritten with Wesley W. Stout), Harold Lloyd asserts that while growing up “I was average and typical of the time and place.” He continues: “Supposing Atlantic City had been holding Average American Boy contests, with beauty waived, I might have been Master America most any year between 1893 and 1910.” This insistence was not random; it suited someone who doggedly set out to create a type on-screen as close as he could make it to an average specimen—a mirror image of the American audience. The fact that the man who said this was anything but average, a brilliantly gifted physical performer with a genius for constructing comic gags, who moreover understood the film medium with greater sophistication than all but a handful of his peers, speaks to both his modesty and his vanity. It also approaches the mystery of why audiences today may find it harder to connect with Harold Lloyd than they do with, say, Charlie Chaplin or Buster Keaton. He embodied the spirit of the American dream that any average individual with gumption could attain success, an ideal that still seemed within reach in the twenties, before the Depression, Vietnam, and national disenchantment. Chaplin flirted perennially with pathos, Keaton with melancholy, while Lloyd went his merry way, positive thinking and triumphant. “It’s the optimism,” wrote his defender Richard Griffith, “which chiefly sticks in the highbrow craw and accounts for the continued fundamental lack of interest...
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...Mahindra Persaud May 5, 2014 Expository Writing UA1: Writing the Essay Brian Schwartz Finding Yourself With an expansive memory and imagination, the mind grows and constructs images, snapshots, of the everyday life and stores them in the mind for later access. Sitting on the number one train in uptown New York, Colson Whitehead looks out of the subway window as the train rises out from the tunnel as it head towards the next stop. It is the early ages of the city, when “everything is filthy.” This is where he started creating his own private New York (City Limits). “Never listen to what people tell you about old New York,” he says since you were not there to see it for yourself you cannot include it in part of your own New York (City Limits). This is why the Met Life building will always be the Pan Am building to him. He does not call it that “out of affection” but because “that’s what it is” to him (City Limits). To anyone seeing the Pan Am building for the first time will call it the Met Life building because “That’s what it is” to them (City Limits). “The city knows you better than any living person because it has seen you when you are alone” (City Limits). It knows the kind of person you are who you will become. The way you live your day-to-day life, permanently brazened onto your record by the “neon footprint” that is left by “every step” that you make (Broadway). Each person in the city “track [themselves] through city and years” as they walk their familiar paths...
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...Duncan Tonatiuh is a Mexican-American author, who has written many children books such as Dear Primo, Separate Is Never Equal, Pancho Rabbit and the Coyote and Diego Rivera. His work is mostly influenced by Pre-Columbian art, specifically that of Mixtec codex. He is inspired by the culture and artwork of Mixtec and other Mexican cultures. In his work, he talks about complex topics such as social justice, history of Latinos and Americans, art and immigration. He was born in Mexico and was raised in San Miguel De Allende. Later, he moved to New York as a teenager. He graduated high school from the state of Massachusetts and got his bachelors from Manhattan, New York. In the lecture, Duncan Tonatiuh talked about his most prominent work and shared...
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