From: Valence (valence10@hotmail.com)
Date: Mon Jun 30 2003 - 16:03:54 BST
Hey David,
> Pirsig in chapter 17:
> "When something new and Dynamic wants to come into the world it often
looks
> like hell, but it can get born in New York. It can HAPPEN. It seems like
it
> can happen anywhere, but that's not so. There has to be a certain kind of
> people who can look at it and say "Hey, wait a second! That's good!"
without
> having to look over their shoulder to see if somebody else is saying the
> same thing. That's rare. This is one of the few places in the world where
> people don't ask if something's been approved somewhere else. That,
Phaedrus
> thought, is how the MOQ explains the incredible contrasts of the best and
> the worst one sees here. Both exist here is such terific intensity becasue
> New York's never been commintted to any preservation of its static
patterns.
> Its always ready to change. whether you are or not. That is what creates
its
> horror and thatis what creates its power. Its strenght is its looseness.
Its
> the freedom to be so awful that gives it the freedom to be so good."
> "When you pass a lot of static laws to cut out the worst, (which Giuliani
> did.) the best goes with it, (To Long Island and New Jersey, if my friends
> are correct.) the sparkle disappears and what's left is just a lot of
> suburban blandness." (Which, by most accounts, is what has happened to
Times
> Square. It has gone from porn central to McDisney circle.)
RICK
Despite what Rudy Giuliani himself would have you believe I don't think the
'clean-up' of Times Square had nearly as much to do with Rudy Giuliani as it
did with technology that softened the market for porn stores (no pun
intended). NYC had been trying to get rid of "porn central" for years and
though Giuliani pushed the sweep through, the reason it went through is
because nobody really needed these stores anymore... people get their porn
from the internet now. The porn vendors just weren't making enough profit
and many of them didn't put up much of a fight. As for the rest of NY's
seedier side, it's all pretty much still there for those who know where to
look (just as it's always been). But I don't think there's much DQ in any
of those things, and I don't think it's exactly what Pirsig had in mind when
he wrote the paragraphs above. The DQ of NY bubbles to the surface via our
industries and arts (when Pirsig says anything can be born here... he wasn't
talking about an effect of prostitution).. There wasn't much DQ in those
old porn shops, just sleazy static patterns.
Moreover, I'm not sure what scene it is your friends are talking about. I
don't know anybody who thinks anything "edgy" or "out there" is going on in
Jersey or on LI. Maybe you could be more specific about what kind of 'edgy'
'out there' stuff you're seeking. There are still plenty of wacky
performers, raves, crazy modern art, etc... Is that really what you're
looking for?
take care
rick
New York will be a great place one day if they ever finish it. - Fanny Fern
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