In the winters, we live in Washington Heights, north of the George Washington Bridge. The neighborhood has not changed much, except that the little stores and restaurants are getting to be nicer ones, as the area gets somewhat gentrified. This is happening in many areas of the city. We will have to see if the economic recession that has probably already started changes life in NYC a lot. NYC is very dependent on the financial industries (Wall Street, insurance companies, giant banks, etc.) both for tax revenues and for consumer spending. I just hope we do not end up in a depression or long-term stagflation (inflation and economic stagnation combined). Our country has been neglecting its infrastructure (roads, bridges, tunnels, public transportation, non-hydrocarbon energy sources, airports and air-traffic-control system, refineries, etc.) because of the wars and because of our American aversion (exploited by many politicians) to taxing ourselves, so we have built up giant debts to other countries, weakened the dollar and lost much international influence. This sort of behavior cannot go on for very long, and the bubbles are bursting: the finance/mortgage/real estate parts of our economy are already collapsing; the dollar is losing support internationally, so we may end up having to pay for imports in Euros some day. The biggest effects will be on the generations of our grown children and their children. We are leaving them staggering debts, high food and energy prices, global warming and its consequences, and an overstressed world. Many areas will be worse off than New York City, but I worry about NYC the most.
