Buddy Cianci Would be Proud. Anthony Garofalo, SHA 2005, Resident of Long Island, NY
As the popular e-mail forward “98 reasons you know you are from Long Island” says, “You hate it when you are there, but you love it when you are not.” After reading “New York? Give me a break.” (Nov. 14) I couldn’t just sit here and watch someone make generalizations about the place I come from. Mr. Carnevale is of the opinion that NY is a city unlike any other, a city that is teeming with crime, a city that loves Al Franken, and a city in which everyone is rude. It seems to me that Mr. Carnevale should turn his sights on his own town, Providence, RI, a city run by the mafia. Now I do not wish to do the same as he did, I am not here to talk about the cons of the Ocean State, I would just like to clear up his misconceptions. Any commentaries on other states I make are simply to draw a line of similarity.
Yes, I will admit that Manhattan has crime. Any major metropolitan area is going to have a certain amount of crime; I think we would be hard pressed to find one that didn’t. New York, as a state is currently ranked 11 in terms of crime rates in the US, Massachusetts is 16. Under the guidance of Rudy Giuliani Manhattan made leaps and bounds in becoming a nicer place. For instance, Times Square was converted from a 4-block long strip club into a friendlier, safer attraction. In Mr. Carnevale’s article it sounded like you couldn’t get away from the drug dealers in Manhattan. I go in to Manhattan quite often and I have not been offered drugs once. I did however get offered drugs at Fanueil Hall. There are some things that were brought up that I do not have the time nor the energy to discuss, such as Manhattan’s apparent love for Al Franken and bootleg videos. What I resent the most is the arrogant statement that all New Yorkers are rude, I disagree. I am a resident of New York and a student in the School of Hospitality, I am making it my career to serve others. New York has one of the largest Hospitality industries in the country. That says something for itself. While I will agree that a certain amount of New Yorkers are rude, the statement that all are simply has no merit.
As for New York’s entertainment value, Manhattan is a wonderful city, rich in history and culture. We have Broadway, many museums and many historical attractions. I could go on for pages and pages about what there is to do. Yes, part of the city’s history is its food and we are proud of it. We are known for our pizza, our “dirty water dogs”, and definitely our bagels. To finish, as Mr. Carnevale did, if you are not from New York and you are not homesick, come visit us – we’d be glad to have you.
