Floating
Born in India in 1966, Sudhir Venkatesh earned a Ph.d at the University of Chicago. A sociologist, ethnographer and documentarian, he did a renowned study on a Windy City housing project. He then set his sights on NYC, teaching at Columbia and examining the city’s vast underground economy. His experiences are cataloged in a first person work of non-fiction, Floating City, which I just finished. He spent a lot of time with a coke dealer, the operator of a porn shop, prostitutes, and madams, and found that the businesses had vast extension, and that those involved and those that patronized included the poor and the well-to-do, who frequently crossed social lines. A network exists where such folks lead others to those who traffic in phony social security cards, and to doctors who service sex workers. Since I’ve always had an instinctive resistance to drugs, I wasn’t particularly interested in that part of the narrative. Being a dirty old man, I was interested in the sexual underworld, although I was at first disappointed that porn queens were not part of study. Then I realized that porn has been above ground since the birth of the internet, and now an open billion dollar industry. As one would expect, Venkatesh views are liberal. He does not judge the people involved in illegal activities. To his credit, he keeps politics to a minimum. As the years pass, what he sees weighs on him, and he feels like a failure because he is powerless to change it. Here are some of his thoughts: “… the poor are actually more resilient and economically creative because they have much bigger obstacles to overcome…” “Maybe sex was the means of crossing the boundaries that defined and connected New York City…” On people’s willingness to confide in him, he quotes Carl Jung: “The desire to reveal is greater than the desire to conceal.” And at the end of the book, recovering from his disappointment, he writes: “… forgive your sins, let go your failures, create yourself afresh, and live for another day. After all, there are always new opportunities. The city constantly changes. So why not you?” The writing is solid. The 273 pages glide by except for the parts that deal with the nuts and bolts of sociology, which are few. 67 users at Amazon have rated Floating City, forging to a consensus of 3.5 on a scale of five. Published in 2013, it is still selling fairly well. I found it unsatisfying in that nothing in it surprised me. I think it’s greatest value would be to readers who would be surprised, although I doubt it would change anyone’s political views. I still hold to personal responsibility, although I realize that some are so overwhelmed by circumstances that it leads to the dark side.
In the current era of of MLB, many fans complain about pitching changes, especially the frequency of them. Orioles rookie manager Brandon Hude has drawn criticism for his action in yesterday’s win in Toronto. David Hess, 25, had allowed no hits through 6–1/3 innings, and was pulled despite having thrown only 82 pitches. Even Blue Jays fan booed the move. Fittingly, two batters later, the O’s reliever gave up a two-run homer. When questioned after the game, Hude cited Hess having worked two innings in relief two days ago. He said he did not want to jeopardize the player’s health. I still think it was absurd.
As for the floating book shop, my thanks to the young woman who bought When Bad Things Happen to Good People by Harold S. Kushner, and to the gentleman who selected Deathbed Wisdom of the Hasidic Masters: The Book of Departure and Caring for People at the End of Life by Rabbi Joel H Baron, Rabbi Sara Paasche-Orlow, et al.; and to Ludmila, who purchased three books in Russian; and to the woman who chose three paperbacks in that language and who returned an hour later with a donation of more than ten, both hard and soft cover.
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