June 1st: New York’s Long Dark Night of The Soul

This morning, my wife and I walked the streets around our neighborhood to see what transpired last evening, June 1st. Street noise around 11 p.m. told us the news would not be good.

The thoroughfare of 5th Avenue, perhaps the most famous street in the world, resembled a war zone with an odd assortment of open-air shopping thanks to broken storefronts and shattered windows. The few who were out this morning, other than the occasional rioters’ lookouts on street corners casing out tonight’s revival, were simple New Yorkers, first and second-generation immigrants with hourly paying jobs, New York policemen dealing with the mayhem, and construction workers rebuilding a torn metropolis. These people aren’t interested in politics and social matters. They want their city back.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

It was spraypainted with vulgar graffiti Sunday night, but the team at St. Pat’s had it cleaned up by Monday morning.

Apple Store

Tim Cook’s people were taking no chances.

Window shopping at Bergdorf’s

New York’s Finest

Those of us who live here don’t know how they do their amazing but impossible jobs.

Trump Tower and Across The Street

Microsoft Store: Not Showing Bill Gates The Love

Morning After: Meetups, Lookouts, Hangin’

Cartier and Victoria’s Secret

Rockefeller Center: Atlas Shrugged But Unharmed

Saks Fifth Avenue

Madison Avenue, Mayhem, Clean Up, and Scavenge

Celine’s Windows Were Empty

Hermes Broken Window Theory

As a doorman explained, the boutiques use windows that are impenetrable (they turn into a sponge, he said) with a backup window to prevent penetration. In the lower right, you can see the secondary window was broken but no way to invade.

Paul Shark Store: Unreal Meets Surreal

Cobblestones on Madison Avenue

There are no cobblestones in this part of New York.

“I break things.”

Chanel’s New Look

Goyard Trash

This small boutique was broken into and boxes were strewn along the street a block away.