I get annoyed when I hear New Yorkers complain about Times Square, which they seem to do a lot.
Yes, it's crowded, and yes, tragically, many of the people crowding the streets are not New Yorkers, so they are not nearly as enlightened as the rest of you. They look up a lot. They pose for photographs in front of things that you find benign and commonplace. They crowd street corners and fail to act quickly when the light changes. They wear colors other than gray and black.
I know. It's terrible. Inexcusable, really.
But three things:
1. You have chosen to live in the most densely populated location on planet Earth. Complaining about the crowds in Times Square just makes you sound stupid and pretentious.
2. All of those people are bringing dollars to your city. They support your vibrant theater district and fill your hotel rooms and eat in your restaurants and buy your hats and tee shirts. Cities would kill for the kind of tourism that Times Square promotes.
3. It's not nearly as bad as you want us to think you think it is. Not even close.
Get over yourselves.
Published on March 11, 2012 04:00