Re: RAT "at least the trains ran on time"

[Pwpny@aol.com]

Nick,

To nitpick, the transit strike would have technically been against the MTA, 
not Rudy. But, of course, with all of Guiliani's grandstanding about the 
strike, to me, that's almost enough reason to do it, in addition to the the 
equitable wages, benefits, treatment the workers have been seeking. Sure, a 
strike is an enormous hardship, but if that's what it takes to wake up a huge 
company like the MTA (which has had record profits the last coupla years), 
then STRIKE! That being said, it seems the workers got some decent 
concessions, if not all they hoped for and deserve.

Back to Guiliani. I was visiting relatives in Texas recently, and it's 
sometimes hard to convey to folks outside NYC what living with under his iron 
fist is really like. It's a thousand little things every day, the ones you 
mentioned and much more. And it keeps getting worse. Even die-hard 
Republicans I know that voted for him twice cannot stand him now. The idea 
that this mean, petty, vengeful man could be our senator is truly 
frightening, no matter what you think about the carpetbagging Ms. Rodham 
Clinton (although it'd probably do Rudy good to be a powerless freshman in 
the Senate - teach him a thing or two!) The street theatre you call for would 
likely accomplish nothing practical, but, as you say, could act as a 
catharsis for weary New Yorkers. Unfortunately, it would probably also boost 
his election ratings with upstate New Yorkers, who hate the City...

Catherine Porter
Peculiar Works Project, NYC

In a message dated 12/15/1999 2:28:12 PM Eastern Standard Time, 
NOMADMONAD@aol.com writes:

<< I, like all my New York friends, am sick of Guiliani's bullying.  It's 
hard 
 to explain how his "zero tolerance" policy has affected our lives. 
 
 Come outside your home to find a $50 ticket attached to your car because 
your 
 inspection sticker is placed over the registration sticker, not to the side 
 where "zero tolerance" says it officially belongs.   No matter that your 
 mechanic has been placing it on your windshield that way for the past 20 
 years.  No matter that the cops are giving a ticket to every other car 
owner. 
  In Rudy's perverted mind this is good for the city.  But the only thing it 
 really does is feed an animosity between the cops and good citizens. Between 
 good citizens and their good citizen mechanics. Now multiply this one 
 instance by the many other similar ones and you have a city that starts 
 hating one another and itself.
 
 Recently two artists created an inspired work in reaction to Guiliani's 
 attempt to cutoff funding to the Brooklyn Museum. A giant portrait of 
 Giuliani as the Madonna, painted by Skaggs and artist Steve Powers, was 
 exhibited; a giant barrel of elephant poop was provided as ammo. Each 
 participant was given a latex surgical glove with which to dip into the 
 doodoo and heave ho a handful at the portrait. A $1.00 contribution per 
 "load" was donated to Housing Works, Inc. to benefit homeless people with 
 AIDS.  
 
 The day before this event Skaggs' apartment was raided and he was arrested.
 
 I wish my city would react against this littlest dictator en masse. We do 
not 
 a riot or a war, but we do need an Action. A strike, a protest, civil 
 disobedience, militant nonviolence.  Something. Whatever the name, what we 
 need is a big piece of theater that puts us all on the stage with one 
 another. We need a catharsis to set us free from Rudy and ourselves. >>