New
York post-Sandy
From
Jenna Orkin
The
city is giving the finger to Sandy victims in a way that seems
designed to arouse a furor.
As
soon as the hurricane passed last month, the dearth
of aid from official quarters led some Staten
Island residents to take matters into their own hands. One
of them, Aiman Youseff, constructed a makeshift "hub"
on the ground where, a few days before, his house had stood.
Here volunteers brought food and other donated supplies
which could be picked up as needed by residents (to the
extent that you can be called a resident when your residence has been
destroyed.)
Now
the City
has declared the hub "unsafe" and restricted its activity,
even sending away a Red Cross truck.
Though lacking
the midnight raid aspect, the move is reminiscent of the end of
Occupy Wall Street at Zucotti Park last year, particularly in its
pseudo-concern while at the same time, the government's own
lack of help tells a different story. Doubtless the restraint
the city is exercising in the current instance is intended
to convey their sympathy with the blameless victims of
the storm.
But
in a development sure to delight the gods of irony who actually
pull the strings in the universe, one of the "positive"
effects
of Hurricane Sandy is that it boosted November car sales. Honda
reports having its best U.S. auto sales rate in almost five years and
Toyota's
sales rose 17%.
Halliburton would be proud.
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