Jackson: I didn’t make the kind of money she wanted me to, which bothered her way more than me. I feel like I’m lucky that I have a rent-stabilized apartment and work that I enjoy. In my eyes, there wasn’t anything I couldn’t provide for her or her son. Love, affection, adventure. I was devoted. Dollar signs weren’t a thing as far as I was concerned.Her new boyfriend is a lawyer — a "corporate lawyer." No word on what he looks like, but Jackson was "really sexy, long-ish hair, amazing eyes, great body."
Carly: It started to annoy me, big time, how little he worked, how rarely he thought about money or ambition. He’d do the littlest thing, like maybe smoke a joint with my friends, and I’d just boil over inside. Like, “You fucking stoner deadbeat!” Meanwhile, all my friends were also smoking and I’d be like, “Cool, love you guys.” But I was conflicted — he and my son had gotten so close and there was so much I loved about Jackson too.
Jackson: She wanted to change this very innate quality about me, which is that I’m not driven by money. I’m not materialistic. I don’t need fancy things. I just need good people, creativity, inspiration, honesty, a beautiful woman, a cold beer on my front stoop…
Carly: The Urban Cowboy thing got real old.
Jackson: I would have done anything to make it work, except get a terrible, soul-crushing job. And that was the only thing she ever wanted me to do.…
Anyway... "Urban Cowboy"? That's a reference were supposed to get in 2017? Is it the John Travolta movie from 1980?
I'm not seeing anything useful at Urban Dictionary, where the least up-voted entry seems most apt:
An urban male who wants to be a [rugged] individualist without performing manual labor to make a living. These people include actors, singers (mainly country singers), government workers & Democrats. All Symbolism, but no Substance. They want the look, but not the work.
पोस्ट्स
१०९ टिप्पण्या:
See: Cute/Money Matrix.
Rent control. That's the beginning and the end of the story. Rent stabilization if you like. That's your Haves and your Have Nots right there. Let him pay $2,500 a month instead of $500 a month for his place and see how materialistic he gets. It's like Robert Cook with his remittances. If he had to work for a living he'd shape up.
In Texas, they'd say "All hat, no cattle."
Greedy self-centered Carly reminds me of this saying: "Check out the wallet on that guy!"
And of this comic: Dream Catcher
"It gets rid of bad dreams."
Kid stops dreaming of being a rock star and studies soul-crushing law and finance.
Now I ain't sayin' she a gold digger. But she ain't messin' wit no broke . . .
The lawyer is gonna get cucked big time.
He's more of a socialist playboy.
Clyde said...
In Texas, they'd say "All hat, no cattle."
"Behind every successful rancher is a wife with a job in town."
Hmm, in Urban Cowboy John Travolta was a hard working refinery worker.
The look, but not the work. Big hat, no cattle? (Great lyric by Randy Newman). But does this guy actually assume any particular look that goes with this?
Now I see "All hat, no cattle" goes back to the TV show Dallas, but it was actually a Texas idiom before that.
She expects him to strive (i.e. positive progress - a conservative outlook), not languish in perpetual idleness.
"but Jackson was "really sexy, long-ish hair, amazing eyes, great body."" Goes to show, women are into the things that matter, the deeper things.
Why is she bathing a five year old son? Much less washing his bottom? He should be able to do that himself. And NO WAY should a "date" be brought in to watch that. Very strange.
Jackson sounds like the Aaron Eckhardt character in " Erin Brockavich"
"The lawyer is gonna get cucked big time."
Cornified and hornified.
Funny how so many women want to change the very qualities that attracted them in the first place.
"Why is she bathing a five year old son? Much less washing his bottom? He should be able to do that himself. And NO WAY should a "date" be brought in to watch that. Very strange."
Maybe by "washing my kid's ass" she just meant washing my child. It's synecdoche, like when you say "Get your ass over here." Who knows how those who value money over beauty and great sex talk these days?
The struggle for self esteem is going haywire since Christianity was thrown in the trash. Without the identity God provides , all defaults to the game of handling Money. And that is a guaranteed loser. Although it affords the winners paid servants , they are never satisfied with life, and like Zuckerberg, they need to act out an ideal to feel good about themselves. And so many ideologies are offered to the rich.Spirit Cooking anyone?
Well said, tradguy!
I'm guessing the reference is to the original Aaron Latham article in Esquire, from 1978, that the movie was (loosely) based on two years later.
An urban male who wants to be a [rugged] individualist without performing manual labor to make a living. These people include actors . . .
So, John Wayne, Clint Eastwood and others who starred in Western movies were "urban cowboys"?
"It's like Robert Cook with his remittances."
?????
When douches collide... Seriously, what a collection of unserious clowns.
Phil above remembers the movie the way I do- the Travolta character was blue collar. However, I haven't seen the movie since 1980 or so since it is horrid. Of course, the soundtrack is one of the greats of all time.
My prediction; She will rely on the high-status lawyer to provide for her and her son. One day the lawyer will find out that she is having sex with some long-haired "bad-boy" with a nice body that he doesn't have to work out for.
I guess its axiomatic that only the inherently unworthy enjoy emoting about their relationships in public, anonymously or not.
When douches collide
Now there is a movie title.
Read the article now where, at the end, she is still using him, just as she did throughout. And he is still hanging on like a puppy.
Well, I read the actual article, and Ryan above is 100% correct.
Meanwhile, she's also messing with her kid's emotions.
Like Ms. Althouse, I also am suspicious whether or not these people actually exist.
Don't worry about the lawyer. He'll upgrade to a younger wife in a few years. Looks fade but money always attracts.
"Looking for love in all the wrong places
Looking for love in too many faces,
Searching your eyes, looking for traces
of what I'm dreaming of."
I could see why she dumped him:
"the only issue from the very start was that Jackson didn’t have a stable job. He’s a super-talented photographer, but his work was a little unsteady."
"It started to annoy me, big time, how little he worked ..."
"I did not want to have another baby with another unreliable man."
This is a woman who spent five years alone after the last man walked out. That's gotta leave a mark. And if she got pregnant, she would be unable to work. Could he support the family from his photography? The answer is no. He sounds like someone who will work on his art when he feels like it. Not to treat it like a job.
And yes, marking art is a job. When Twyla Tharp goes into the studio each day, she's working on her art. She's not dillantanting like this guy.
His last statement is especially immature: "What’s in the middle of a beautiful single mom and a Brooklyn partier?" The answer, chum, is an alcoholic who'd abandon her children for him. You really want that?
She's better off without him, and kudos for arranging a way to have him in her son's life, at least for now.
Like Ms. Althouse, I also am suspicious whether or not these people actually exist.
I am pretty certain they do, at least as representative of real people. I've heard similar stories, not in the particulars of course, but as a general matter.
City kids. Playing cowboy. Creepy and disgusting to real cowboys.
Jackson, meet Mark Zuckerberg, he has something he wants to talk to you about.
?????
Sorry, inheritance? How else can you possibly support your NYC lifestyle? How much is your monthly rent?
" But does this guy actually assume any particular look that goes with this?"
Man bun and romper?
"When douches collide" indeed. They both seem like extremely unlikable people.
Re: Robert Cook:
"It's like Robert Cook with his remittances."
?????
Are-- are you suggesting you don't live a life of luxury supported by relatives who toil abroad and send you remittances? Wha~at?
(is there some other meaning of "remittances" in this context? I was surprised by that too . . .)
I did not want to have another baby with another unreliable man.
He sounds completely reliable in all ways but one. Your effort to hide behind this generalization shows you know how shallow you are.
Re: Bill, Republic of Texas:
Don't worry about the lawyer. He'll upgrade to a younger wife in a few years. Looks fade but money always attracts.
There are lawyers like that, but whether it's a matter of personal taste or a lack of attractiveness, I kind of doubt a lawyer who has intentions towards a 38-year old woman with a young child is going to be switching to a young wife in the next few years. I'm pretty sure 38 is around the age you start the process of switching.
I mean, look at our President. I guess his first wife was, what, 39? 40? When he started fooling around with his second wife . . . who in her turn was around 34? 35? When they separated.
Like the estate lawyer who dies intestate, I worry that this lawyer won't get a pre-nup. Carly probably has T-R-O-U-B-L-E tattoed on her ass. But can he see the handwriting on the wall?
Go read some of the other “Both Sides of a Breakup" articles. Many of the stories follow a similar theme -- guy becomes fairly serious, girl who was in it for the financial or sexual benefits then bails.
Are-- are you suggesting you don't live a life of luxury supported by relatives who toil abroad and send you remittances? Wha~at?
Those aren't relatives, they're handlers.
If all the world and love were young....
The only really bad thing I would say about the male in this story is that he is exceedingly immature in that he wanted to have a child with this woman without altering his attitude about income. I don't remember now who wrote it above, but I had the exact same impression- he didn't even take the photography seriously, and if you haven't developed that level of effort by age 37, it won't ever develop.
Sorry, inheritance? How else can you possibly support your NYC lifestyle? How much is your monthly rent?
I have a job. No trust fund, no inheritance.
traditionalguy said...
The struggle for self esteem is going haywire since Christianity was thrown in the trash. Without the identity God provides , all defaults to the game of handling Money.
Other than expressing your ignorance and prejudices, do those words mean anything?
"The numbers fluctuated a bit, but once again atheists came out painfully good from a prays-together-stays-together perspective. Thirty percent reported ever being divorced, in contrast to 32 percent of born-again Christians. Slicing the U.S. by region, the Bible belt has the highest divorce rate, and this has been the case for over a decade, with the institution of marriage faring better in those dens of blue-state iniquity to the north and west."
Exhibit number 250 in the phenomenon that the PUA websites refer to as Alpha F's, Beta Bucks. Carly got her thrills with the alpha bad boy and now gets kept by the beta lawyer. Bet she has to think about cowboy to get atoused for lawyer man.
As one gets older, litigation replaces sex. – Gore Vidal
Yesterday's Urban Cowboy is today's Urban Lumberjack.
"Carly got her thrills with the alpha bad boy and now gets kept by the beta lawyer"
He's alpha? A good looking dude without much ambition who does as little work as possible? That doesn't strike me as alpha.
She wants a sugar daddy.
The worst indictment of the guy is at the end when he describes a single mother who's dumping the guy she appears to love so she can cynically exploit a man-wallet as "a woman who had her shit together." Uh, no.
Carly got her thrills with the alpha bad boy and now gets kept by the beta lawyer.
Either you didn’t read the piece or you have no idea what alpha means. Here’s a bite-sized spoon-fed portion for you:
“I felt like the father to the child she already had. The only good thing was that every time we fought, she assured me I could always be in his life. I trusted her on this. It’s probably the only reason it didn’t tear my heart out when we did break up. . . . It was a crazy-sad time after that. Thank god I could still hang with her son. It was weird at first, the three of us hanging out at playgrounds and meeting for pizza. Then it started to feel nice again.”
I have a job. No trust fund, no inheritance
There is some discontinuity in your personal economy. How much is your monthly rent? Nobody here believes you can possibly earn enough to pay market rent, let alone expenses on the UWS, where I think you said you were. (Roommates? At your age?)
I'm sure you have some kind if job, but who would hire you, for what? Bagboy? Artist? [snarf] Critic of Western Civilization? Ditchdigger? Flagman?
So you must be getting some kind of input. Something you didn't earn.
Of course, you don't have to answer, but as you can see, that's what everybody thinks.
Ugh. The fact these people are still acting like 20 year olds at almost 40 is infuriating. Grow up. Poor lawyer. My advice is to run away before you get saddled with child support payments. Sometimes I feel great contempt for my sex.
" I’m not materialistic. I don’t need fancy things. I just need good people, creativity, inspiration, honesty, a beautiful woman, a cold beer on my front stoop"
So, a "beautiful" woman..... that is the only quality you seek in a partner?
Two shots fired, two bullets dodged.
Jackson is so proud that he "doesn't care about money," but is unashamed of depriving his landlord of the full worth of his or her property through rent control.
I don't have remittances or a trust fund. I do have social security and several annuities. I live well in NYC. I have no complaints about my present condition, but it's very sad that it happened so late in life.......Poverty is a moveable stench. If you grow up poor, it stays with you, and you keep putting in the hours hoping for some final, cleansing rinse of money.......Alternatives exclude. Money solves a lot of problems. I have read that enduring love is also a pretty good thing. You need at least three or four lives to develop and understand the options, but you only get one.
"The numbers fluctuated a bit, but once again atheists came out painfully good from a prays-together-stays-together perspective. Thirty percent reported ever being divorced, in contrast to 32 percent of born-again Christians. Slicing the U.S. by region, the Bible belt has the highest divorce rate, and this has been the case for over a decade, with the institution of marriage faring better in those dens of blue-state iniquity to the north and west."
I don't dispute your point, but in order for those numbers to have meaning you'd have to compare the initial marriage rates of atheists to the initial marriage rates of born-agains. If atheists don't get married in the first place, they can't get divorced.
You need at least three or four lives to develop and understand the options, but you only get one.
Truer words rarely spoken.
William, wasn't questioning you, just so we're clear. Yes, it is undoubtedly enriching to be raised at a higher socioeconomic/cultural status. Even so, at all levels there are doubtless trade-offs. The sad part of the world Cook wants is that this will go away and society will become a puddle of gray goo.
I don't know why she was attracted to this guy as boyfriend material in the first place. The cause is unclear.
Here's some advice, maybe not have sex with someone before you know whether or not he's baby making material. Crazy concept, right?
With two children, young and adult, she chose one. No one was aborted. The adult will return to his urban playground. The child will have a mature role model and material support. Mom learned the purpose of dating is more than sexual relations.
Freeman Hunt said...
I don't know why she was attracted to this guy as boyfriend material in the first place. The cause is unclear.
6/24/17, 1:23 PM
Because she thought she could change him? "I'll be the one to turn him around and make him responsible" is akin to belief in Communism - it never turns out well, but that doesn't stop people from believing that this time it's going to work.
Full disclosure: I've been there myself, when it comes to men. I was never dumb enough to think Communism would work.
FH --
Carly: Of course, the first thing I thought when I saw him was: Sexy.
Carly: I’m not sure if we were compatible. But we definitely had sexual chemistry.
Carly: I remember freaking the fuck out. Like, great, this is the first guy I’ve liked in over five years! He’s hot as hell.
Carly: It felt great having a boyfriend. A giant weight was lifted off my shoulders because I had someone to talk to, someone to rely on, someone who fit with me and my son. Plus, the sex was incredible.
Carly: I think I said, “I can’t explain it, but I know in my heart that we are not meant to be together forever.” And then lots of I love you’s, tears, kissing — and sex. One last and final time, sex. It was amazing, of course.
Why not a modern life filled with friendship with "benefits". A libertine life of polygamy without commitment. Redistributive change can feed, clothe, and house them, while daddy rides puff the hallucinating dragon to a progressive paradise.
Carly: I had someone to talk to, someone to rely on, someone who fit with me and my son. . . . ugh, this is what made it so tricky — Jackson was reliable in every single way other than his finances.
Carly: He’s a super-talented photographer, but his work was a little unsteady.
Jackson: I didn’t make the kind of money she wanted me to.
So, he was a good guy, great with her kid -- enough to take him off her hands -- and is "reliable in every single way." And he also DID work and was able to support himself. And indicated that he would provide. He's not a deadbeat, but he lives a simple life. The problem is that she wants more money and more money.
The question isn't what she ever saw in him, the question is what the hell he ever saw in her?
So Carly is a man. Anything wrong with that?
Money for nothing, chicks for fee.
If he really is a stoner, the sex won't be good for long.
I remember reading that women are attracted by the commitment of military men to their profession and country, then that's the first thing they try to change in them. Can't bear the competition and emotionally needy. But I know my mother felt the stress of running the house on her own for 6 months, and then handing it back to someone trained to order people about.
Jackson's not the stoner. Carly's baby daddy is and so are her friends.
Carly: My son’s father had addiction issues and anger issues . . . all my friends were also smoking and I’d be like, “Cool, love you guys.”
Freeman said: I don't know why she was attracted to this guy as boyfriend material in the first place. The cause is unclear.
Thought it was pretty clear that he's very good looking and incredible in bed. Plus her son really seems to like him and he returns the affection.
A few other thoughts:
- She has a skin-care business = she works at a spa giving facials, manicures and pedicures, which means she has very little money. I suspect she is also very attractive, especially for her age.
- She admits she would have been perfectly happy with her photographer if he had family money. So it's not his lazy, not-focused-on-money, not materialistic, unambitious attitude she objects to. She objects to the fact that he doesn't have money.
- This doesn't bode well for her new lawyer. She will hate the fact that the lawyer works long hours, is never around for her and her son, doesn't have time to take her on long holidays, and frequently has to cancel dinner dates because he has to work. She isn't attracted to ambitious, driven, hard-working men. She's attracted to attractive men - she just wants them to have money.
Of the two, he strikes me as the better human being. I suspect her new wallet / boyfriend is in for an unpleasant time.
"You didn't make enough money while paying for me and my son's lives." Charming woman.
Like a fish needs a bicycle, right?
She has a skin-care business Or she sells Avon. Is that a pyramid scheme like Amway?
Longish hair. Why are women attracted to men who look like women (see young Decaprio and Depp)? Asked the geeky balding poof with quarter inch hair who has no skin in that game.
"There is some discontinuity in your personal economy. How much is your monthly rent? Nobody here believes you can possibly earn enough to pay market rent, let alone expenses on the UWS, where I think you said you were."
It's constantly getting tougher than it used to be, for sure. I do have a rent-stabilized apartment, but it goes up every two years and it takes a big chunk out of my take-home pay. I will eventually have to leave, I'm sure.
Yeah, up and up and up, a whole 0 to 2% a year, because rents are supposed to go down, right? Stay as long as you can, you're cutting the landlord's throat it with every rent check. I'm sure I would take you over your lease sight unseen if I could. And I don't even know what you have.
"I do have a rent-stabilized apartment."
White privilege, baby. Not a lot of black people with those.
She doesn't seem like a golddigger to me, but a woman with enough sense to know that money=stability.
Remember, he makes enough to support himself. She is probably making enough to support herself.
If she gets pregnant, the expenses will go up. She won't be able to work for awhile (does she have health insurance)? She won't be bringing in money.
When the kid's born, she'll have two youngun's. Anyone want to guess how much day care is in NYC? Or will she board the kids with family and return to work?
Frankly, if she was a golddigger, she wouldn't have latched onto him in the first place. Instead, she saw a hot guy who was great with his kid and treated her wonderfully, the first time it's happened in five years.
That's a long time to be lonely, and reminded every time you look at your child how you fucked up your life.
I can empathize with both of them. He is a nice guy. She seems like a good woman. Both have excellent qualities. But they don't synch up when it comes to the important issues.
She values security, he values pleasure.
But Robert, just so you know, I'm honestly not jealous. Envious, yes, but not jealous (unless you're in a classic six at the Ansonia, then I'm jealous). I only wish I knew who to bribe to get one of those. I've never bribed anybody, but for a nice 1BR or JR4 in a doorman elevator prewar like my friend's on West 75 St for like $800 a month (market would be like $3000), I'd learn how. I hope you're grateful for what you have.
David re white people: Ha Ha! It's funny 'cause it's true.
Uh, Bill, she values pleasure too. He's supposed to give her both.
Beds, make, lie. Good luck to 'em all. I do pity the lawyer wallet guy.
"Yeah, up and up and up, a whole 0 to 2% a year, because rents are supposed to go down, right?"
Um...the rate of increase varies every year, as it is determined annually by the Rent Guidelines Board. I had an increase of 7% about 3 years ago.
"But Robert, just so you know, I'm honestly not jealous. Envious, yes, but not jealous (unless you're in a classic six at the Ansonia, then I'm jealous)."
I'm not.
"I only wish I knew who to bribe to get one of those."
I moved here 36 years ago, in a part of the Upper West Side that was considered "dicey" back than, so I didn't have to bribe anyone. It was dumb luck.
"I've never bribed anybody, but for a nice 1BR or JR4 in a doorman elevator prewar like my friend's on West 75 St for like $800 a month (market would be like $3000), I'd learn how."
I pay more than double what your friend pays.
"I hope you're grateful for what you have."
I am.
I think it's 0% this year for a one-year renewal.
Yes, but I always renew for two, and my lease renewal didn't come up this year. Next year the rent increase could be moderate or substantial...but it won't be 0%.
Uh, so basically we get two losers who couldn't manage to stay together - y'know like they've never been able to stay together with anyone (they're both in their late 30s)
I always have trouble caring about other people's love lives, since there are rarely any victims - just peeps who don't want to face reality or grow-up. I've had to listen to too many "friends" and co-workers yak my ear off about their "bad" boy/girl friend, lover, wife/husband, or ex.
I suppose that's the whole point of the article, its supposed to make us feel good for not being such superficial losers while eavesdropping on their love life.
And btw, you could live in a rent stablized apartment too. All you have to do is help pass a rent control law.
But then, that would be against FREE ENTERPRISE!!
So, I'll guess you'll have to suffer.
I mean Rich Cook gets to live in 1 Br apartment in NYC. Wow, talk about the high life!
Diamond Jim Brady look out.
Yes, but I always renew for two
Nobody twists your arm...anyway it's di Blasio so you'll be fine.
Rcocean, yes, prime NYC real estate is now expensive. Yes, for $800 a month I suppose you can get a 3500' split-level ranch in Houston. Nonetheless he has been getting subsidised on the order of $1-2k a month for four decades.
No, I would never vote for more rent control, OMG no. It's a scam, although there was a point to it during World War II. No, what I would vote for is for them to build more housing. But do yourself a favor don't get me started on my urban renewal scheme for New York.
He may be paying low market rent - but he's still living in a fucking 1 bedroom apartment. And what's so great about living in NYC?
I've been there, and ....wait for it.... its a nice place to visit, but I wouldn't want to live there.
Rent control makes a lot of sense in places that have been built up and are extremely popular because rich assholes decide to put all the jobs there (silicon valley) or want to live there (NYC).
Why should landlords be able to rob people? Sometimes living somewhere isn't a choice its a necessity.
Notice that he talks about all the things HE "wants" and needs...the guy is Peter Pan, and Wendy just said: I've had it.
Rc, I thought you were for the free market. Rent control, among other things, contributed to the virtual nuking of great swathes of Brooklyn, Bronx and Manhattan. It would take a book to tell you but believe me, rent control is no answer. What is needed is more housing. Where do you live? Describe the housing stock there and typical prices, please.
Her plan is straightforward. Use the corporate lawyer, or someone like him, as husband and sperm donor, then divorce him, get lots of child support, and spend it on herself and her boy toy -- Jackson or someone like him.
"Notice that he talks about all the things HE "wants" and needs...the guy is Peter Pan, and Wendy just said: I've had it."
And Wendy talks about what SHE "wants" and needs and a male is to provide the cash for it.
Such female entitlement.
"Rc, I thought you were for the free market. Rent control, among other things, contributed to the virtual nuking of great swathes of Brooklyn, Bronx and Manhattan."
Baloney.
"What is needed is more housing"
I absolutely agree. But virtually all of the new housing units being built are luxury-priced mansions in apartment form for rich people.
"And what's so great about living in NYC?"
Almost EVERYTHING!
Rhinestone cowboy. Drug store truck drivin' man.
Take your pick.
I absolutely agree. But virtually all of the new housing units being built are luxury-priced mansions in apartment form for rich people.
What can you do with these tiny spaces that are left? It's the zoning. They have to get the most out of what is available. These luxury high-rises going up recently are known as pencil buildings because the square area of the lots available is so small. Like at 432 Park Avenue.
What they really need to do is tear up whole blocks of three, four, five story walk-ups, like the crummy tenements in Hell's Kitchen, and replace them with, not skyscrapers, but 12-16 story buildings of roughly the same footprint, with courtyards containing pools, gyms, parks, dog runs and all that, with underground parking wherever possible.
I was so struck by a National Geographic long ago showing an aerial view of a block of tenements in I think it was Greenpoint, with all their little tiny backyards chopped up with decaying fencing and having either miserable little above-ground pools, so-so swing sets, random gardens, or just lots of junk. As a commons the totality of those vest-pocket yards would be so much more attractive.
Of course people would have to share. Perhaps you alter to the point of having terraces for pot smoking, nude sunbathing, meditation or whatever you need privacy for.
"Rc, I thought you were for the free market. Rent control, among other things, contributed to the virtual nuking of great swathes of Brooklyn, Bronx and Manhattan."
Baloney.
Lol, Robert, I was lazy and abbreviated rcocean. I know you don't believe in a free market. Although I'm right about the bombed-out buildings of Eastern Parkway. Have you ever been out that way? Surely you know what I mean.
m not materialistic. I don’t need fancy things. I just need good people, creativity, inspiration, honesty, a beautiful woman, a cold beer on my front stoop…
One of these things is not like the others.
Men marry women they want to remain the same, and they don't. Women marry men they want to change, and they can't.
"Her new boyfriend is a lawyer — a "corporate lawyer." No word on what he looks like, but Jackson was "really sexy, long-ish hair, amazing eyes, great body."
It sounds like the guy she just dumped was a good catch for a fling but maybe not so good for an LTR. So, once she gets her corporate lawyer to commit she'll just need an occasional "really sexy, long-ish hair, amazing eyes, great body" on the side now and then and she'll be all set. At least, until she gets too old to attract guys like that.
So, she confused what she wanted for long-term with what's great for a fling, and now she's fixing that. And so maybe there'll be some collateral damage, but that's that. Her happiness is paramount, isn't it?
"virtually all of the new housing units being built are luxury-priced mansions in apartment form for rich people."
It costs a fortune to build anything in NYC, not only because land on which to build is scarce and expensive (although it is) but also because of union control of construction, and endless regulation.
Yet in part that's how housing markets mostly work: new housing is costly but after a generation or two it becomes old housing (worn and often functionally obsolescent) and more affordable.
Without rent control it's possible to get tenants out of the old walk-up buildings so they can be replaced with higher density housing, but with rent control they don't have to move and sometimes they won't. Sometimes a hefty bribe will get a rent-control tenant to vacate, but it only takes one holdout who (for whatever reason) just refuses to go. And even if you do get everyone out, the City probably won't let you put up another "sliver building" (a tall bldg on a narrow lot) anyway, so you'll need to acquire and empty adjacent properties before you can build.
With rent control you get a single, older woman living in a huge three-bedroom apt. (because that's what they had when the kids were small, but now they're grown and she divorced hubby-the-bore). And when her rent-controlled 3-br costs less than a market-rate studio, why should she move?
Rent control produces immediate benefits for tenants when enacted, but then there are long-term costs produced by the higher cost to build new housing plus the often-inefficient use of existing housing.
And because removing it creates short-term pain long before it can produce new growth, it's always very, very difficult to get rid of it.
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