Signs Signs Everywhere Signs

Flushing has had an ongoing problem with signs. Every election cycle someone in the audience of a candidate's night will complain about signs in Korean or Chinese without English translations. These signs can be mildly annoying like not being able to read the name of a fruit or vegetable you'd like to try or more serious like a fireman or policeman not being able to read the name of a store they are rushing to.

But signage is a problem that goes much further than Flushing. The corporate community seems to be waging a war on the public through signage. Everywhere you turn there is constant advertising, almost every moment of the day. Everywhere you turn there is a sign urging you... and your kids.. to buy something. A sign showing how happy, popular, good-looking and sexy you will be if you buy these jeans or that iphone.

As you ride the #7 train, the latest ad technique seems to be bombarding the whole subway card with a single ad. I rode from Main Street to 42nd Street with a certain brand of booze staring at me from every angle.

The subway riding experience isnt limited to those 21 years of age and older. Every child, every teen ager, and every alcoholic trying to stay on their program was surrounded by this ad also.

The ever increasing subway and bus fares should be making enough profit for the MTA that we shouldn't need ads at all. What if when you looked up, you saw the multiplication table, or facts about our government and economy like the fact that six Waltons (the Walmart Family) have more wealth than the bottom 30% of Americans. Advice on eating healthy, ads with mini lessons in foreign languages, ads about free events in New York City.

 

What if there were ads showing how to plant window box gardens; or reminding us to water the trees on our streets; or updating us on recent bills that have been passed by our government?

 

What if there was an ad that said, "smile at the person sitting next to you and tell them to have a good day?"

Campaign Money and Flushing

"FBI probe of Liu funds shocks Flushing!" reads the headline in the Flushing Times. I say innocent until proven guilty, but it is a fact that politics in Flushing revolves around money. The politician who raises the most money wins. Any discussion around candidates begins, not with their political views, but with how much money they have raised. Most are business owners, who may or may not lean on their workers to support their candidacies. Corporate donors and business owners are well represented on their lists of donors; as well as donations from employees.

Once elected, it is clear to see who in Flushing is truly represented. Whether Democrat or Republican; Flushing has more luxury housing and high-rises built than most other districts in Queens except perhaps Long Island City. Yet Flushing has large numbers of workers who barely earn enough to make ends meet. We have workers living eight or more to a room; but over the last decade of Asian representation; we have begun to see the Flushing middle-class and professional class feel the sting of the city-wide economic failures.

Flushing has seen layoffs at local banks; closures of small businesses, and the threatened closure of Flushing High School. Maintenance payments on co-ops in Flushing are higher than those on apartments of equal value elsewhere. Flushing residents are facing eviction, unable to pay the raised rents. Few current residents can afford to pay the rents on the new luxury housing that has sprung up throughout Flushing. Our elected officials see no problem with letting expensive apartments and condos remain empty while the people of Flushing are unable to find affordable housing. Affordable housing does not mean that only poor people cannot afford it. Affordable housing is also for the middle class recent graduates who would like to leave home; or young couples with a new child, who have outgrown their studio apartments. Why should anyone work hard at whatever their job may be; and then have to hand over half or more of their pay to the landlord or to pay maintenance, rent, or for an artificially inflated mortgage?  Why should small businesses face constant commercial rent increases until they are forced to close? Why can large businesses in Flushing be so profitable that they can expand and open various branches and yet not give their workers the wages and benefits that are due them?

Politics in Flushing must begin to mean more than raffling off our representation to the highest bidders.

Jeremy Lin Representing for the NY Knicks

Just came back from the Applebee's on College Point where we all screamed ourselfs hoarse for Jeremy Lin and the Knicks! I saw Fred Fu there wearing his Lin jersey, I bet the Modell store on Main Street has been sold out already for weeks. If not, I'm buying one tomorrow. Lin was great, he took a lot of gutsy shots and pulled them off. The new year is looking good for local sports!