The Real Reason for the Crane Collapse in NYC - G R E E D

You might have heard about a crane collapsing on an apartment building in NYC, killing up to 7 people, and you might have heard about the heroic efforts of the NYFD and the sad tragic tales of the people who died and others who are now homeless.

But what you won't hear in the corporate media is the real reason for this tragedy: G R E E D!

NYC has become one huge construction site. On almost every other block in the city there's a new luxury condo construction project occuring. These projects are getting bigger and bigger every day, and with that, the dangerous risks associated with these projects grow as well. In my block alone, there are three current construction projects, and three more are in the development stage.

These projects are not contributing to the city's housing crisis nor do they offer any real public benefit. These projects are nothing more than investment vehicles for the super wealthy. They buy and flip these condos on their to way to the upper echelons of NY real estate. You have to own one, sell it, use the proceeds to bid on another, and repeat until you get to the top.

As a result, there's been a condo construction boom in this city that knows no end, and it's putting peoples' lives at risk because there's little space to maneuver these huge machines. This is the second crane collapse for this company in the past three years!

So, fuck you Mayor Bloomberg, and your rapacious need for more and more construction projects in NYC.

The great underlying problem to so many problems. Thanks.

I have brothers who supervise BIG construction projects; they find it necessary to fight for standards and practices all of the time. Going along to get along is the rule, not the exception.

It's a simple matter of probability. The more construction projects that are greenlighted, the greater the risk of this kind of tragedy. You should see the kind of heavy machinery that has to be used and the small spaces that they have to work in. Also, these construction projects contribute mightilty to the traffic congestion.

Again, I may not have a problem with these projects if they were serving some sort of public good, like increasing affordable housing, but they are not. They're luxury items for the wealthy.

Yep. The truth is, by definition, inevitable. It's usually just a question of time.

You're right there's no way the system can create the personal integrity it takes to do the right thing. That must come from parenting. My Dad was always one of the formen on the big power-plants he helped to build. He helped to start a Pipefitters' Union local, partly to deal with the Racism he saw on the job. He and my brothers used to tell stories about the crazy things that go on on big projects.

...sub-prime, forclosure crisis, eh?;)

People don't even live in them. They buy them, and then flip them.

This is the $10,000 blackjack table.

n/t

In addition to "yikes!", she essentially said what you did.

She says the market in Manhattan hasn't softened as elsewhere because of foreign capital scooping places up with an exchange rate fueling that.

It's a very scary sight.

... incompetent and out of control the city gov't is. Apparently, the city got a deluge of warnings and complaints about this site that vanished into the bureaucratic ether.

But the media here loves Bloomberg ( he is the media, after all) so the narrative will be spun in a different direction.

And the Skinnerian pigeons will peck.

Bloomberg for governor, anyone? That David Patterson's starting to look a little "incompetent" already.

I hope things are done safely, but construction doesn't only benefit the rich. Rather it benefits workers who can get paid and make a decent living. And Construction can't be outsourced, though it can be done by workers who are not on the books. That is not good.

However, rampant construction is not. You really have to come here to see all of the major projects with huge cranes and other dangerous machinery hanging precariously close to other buildings and people. It's literally out of control here.

Obviously these guys were cutting corners.

on a week day.

But I have to say that NYC's real estate bubble is going to burst in a big way. Many people hoping to get rich selling or flipping condos will end up upside down.

Three ironworkers building the roof of Miller Park lost their lives and the opening of Miller Park was delayed by one season due to the greed of the construction Company, who decided to do a major lift in conditions that were too windy.

http://www.uwm.edu/Dept/EHSRM/PROJECT/crane.html

people have a right to buy and develop land. It sucks that you don't like that, and my condolences go out to the victims' families, but to blame this on greed is just asinine. i didn't realize that being a democrat meant having to give up all rational thoughts in relation to money.

being a Democrat means BEING ABLE TO SEE THAT

and foreigners especially can afford it. So people build more housing. Of course it is about greed, and playing the odds, construction, especially high rise construction, is a dangerous business. The only way to make sure that no construction accidents ever happen again is to simply halt all construction and repairs.