How’s That Working For You?
Every afternoon at about 6 the small one way street outside my apartment fills up with cars and trucks trying to get across town and onto the Henry Hudson. This means that they have to wait to cross Broadway, which is also full of traffic, so my street becomes a part of famous NYC gridlock.
Then something happens that I don’t understand, something that seems useless and ridiculous, and yet it happens everyday: horns begin to blow. What is this accomplishing? On a small country road where the person in front of you is a little slow reacting to a traffic light, yes, blow your horn. But in a street full of apartments where you are 10 cars back from the signal and have no hope of moving anyway, why do you do it? Emotional response is the only solution that I can come up with, the feeling that you are doing SOMETHING to make your situation better, even if it doesn’t.
This got me thinking. What other futile acts am I routinely witness to? The first thing that came to my mind was the Scientologists in the 42nd Street subway station, but then quickly expanded to all of the evangelist types that I see around town. There have recently been four young Mormons stationed in my neighborhood subway station handing out materials and trying to engage people. Are they accomplishing anything? I never see anyone talking to them, just like I rarely see anyone talking to the Scientologists (and the ones that do I suspect are tourists). Who takes the fliers from the guy who spreads out his propaganda down the tunnel between the A and the 1 at 42nd Street? I’ve seen far more “Jews for Jesus” pamphlets on the ground than in people’s hands. Other than the feeling that they are possibly saving souls, do these people accomplish anything with their acts?
This applies to the people handing out advertising fliers as well. Have you ever chosen to go to a strip club after receiving one of those postcards from a street marketer? A sample sale? A new restaurant? Have advertising fliers ever worked on you, or are they futile too?
All of these acts of futility (in my eyes at least) have the added effect of damaging other people, mostly through litter, sound pollution and being generally “in the way.”
What other futile acts go on around the city? Who do you see that thinks they are accomplishing something, but so obviously aren’t?
subway PA announcements are mostly futile. what’s the point if nobody can understand what you’re saying?
The honking thing drives me absolutely nuts too. Sometimes a delivery truck or garbage truck will block my street for a few minutes, and the honking begins. I can’t imagine that these people actually think there is just some guy sitting there oblivious to a light change, especially not after they’ve been honking for a few minutes. It’s got to be out of pure frustration, but sometimes it makes me want to throw water balloons out of my window onto the honkers.
The fake weed dealers in Washington Square. In this post 9/11 world, is there anyone - even NYU freshman - that doesn’t know these guys are totally bogus? I’ve never even seen someone’s eyes shift at the muffled cry of ’smoke smoke smoke.’
You already named my primary source of frustration re: futile acts. That’d be the car horn honking. I’ve never understood how a light could turn green and the 12th car in the line would begin to impatiently honk his horn, as if the one car in front of him who can hear the horn (aside from all of us hapless sidewalkers) could do anything to alleviate the wait.
Has anyone ever seen the honking fines actually enforced? (I don’t think my block as one anyway… but…)
Fine for Honking - oh yeah! It is enforced but only in very restricted areas around Holland Tunnel, Lincoln Tunnel.
The fliers do make me wonder - I think it is a deperate attempt to get popularity at a price which cannot buy it anyways.
Good post Cully!
My favorite is the traffic cops that stand at an intersection and direct traffic. Has anyone noticed that they make things worse?
Utterly futile act: catching the attention of a cellphone boor, then rolling your eyes in the hopes that(s)he will get the hint and shut up.
Cully,
As one of the Jews for Jesus you mention in this post, I’d disagree that it’s “just a feeling that we’re saving souls.” We’ve been distributing literature as you describe for 30 years, and if we hadn’t found it to be an effective way of communicating a message we wouldn’t continue to do it. Of course, responding to your post could just be another futile act :-)
Chad, hope I didn’t offend you, just making an observation from my end. Good to know it actually IS working for you.
Good points on all Cully… Honking in NYC gridlock does seem to be completely and utterly futile. Do people think that the people in front of them aren’t looking to move? As if there is one guy at the front who is gonna hear the honking and go “oh, I guess the 500 cars behind me want to move. Maybe I will get out of the way.
I am going to be writing about my most hated futile act later this week. Stay tuned!