Albany Declared One of 10 “Dead Cities” in the United States (Capitol Confidential)

The city of Troy re-opening a painful wound. (credit: Lori Van Buren, TU Photographer & Accessory to Shameful Gloating)

I hate to harp on this whole “Albany is dead” thing, but in light of Troy’s actions I can’t help but speak up again.

Firstly, I want to express my condolences to Albany’s friends and family. My heart goes out to you, and I share in your grief.

Younger people probably don’t understand what it was like to see an entire city suddenly just drop dead. It was, for lack of a better term, indescribable. I can’t even put into words what I was feeling. It’s almost as if it didn’t even happen. It was as if one day I’m on Lark Street buying gelato while preparing for Rest Fest this weekend, and the next day the city had passed on.

I don’t even remember it happening. I must have blocked it from my memories. Know, though, that I still keep fond memories of our dearly departed sister city across the river.

Yet in spite of our suffering and the sensitivities surrounding the demise of the former State Capitol (which now resides in Delmar), the city of Troy is putting the finishing touches on a mural and possibly opening a 24-hour diner directly across the River from Albany. And just last night I passed a rollicking celebration titled “Rocking on the River” which seemed to be celebrating at a time that should be reserved for deep reflection.

These actions are a disgrace and twist the knife in an already open wound, and I will not stand for it.

Some would say that the city of Troy has a right to operate and live freely and to express itself artfully while encouraging commerce to flourish. Others would say that I am overreacting and laying blame at the feet of the entire city of Troy for something that it was not responsible for. My issue, though, is not with the city of Troy. The city of Troy can do whatever it wants. I just want it to do that stuff somewhere else, far far away from Albany and the surrounding area.

Adding insult to injury is President Obama’s continued silence on this matter. Why would that be? It couldn’t be that Barack Obama, President of the U.S. (Troy is the home of Uncle Sam – coincidence?), was secretly born in Troy. Until I see a birth certificate telling me otherwise, I can only assume he’s in secret collusion with Albany’s enemies.

To this Mayor Tutunjian fellow, who purports to be a city executive and a man of municipal peace, I ask this: Please do not do anything in Troy that might hurt the victims of Albany more than they’ve already suffered. I appeal to your better angels to help in this healing. Why not develop your city in Schenectady instead? The answer can only be because you hate Albany and all that it stands for.

Well, sir, I will not stand for that.

 

9 Responses to New Troy Business & Mural a Slap in the Face to Albany

  1. B.J. Hart says:

    Great job…you are too funny.

  2. cute~ella says:

    LOVE IT! You forgot that the aliens dropped of Jennings because he was orange and not green.

  3. Tony Barbaro says:

    “So Troy, where were you on the night in question? Do you have an alibi, for the time when Albany met it’s un timely death…..HA, I thought not….and having Schenectady as a patsy won’t work.”
    and having the new Capital in Delmar won’t work….it’s those darn kids….they’ll ring and run the Capital Building.
    We do however have room in Schodack….take a left at the cow.

  4. Siobhan says:

    I didn’t even know Albany was dead until the smell drifted out into the apartment hallway. So sad when that happens…

    (On the real, though, as an Albany resident, I’m disquieted by my lovable little burg being labeled a “dead city.” Things aren’t perfect here, just like everywhere else, but people seem to be working, living and partying regardless. Dead city or not, I still think it’s a great place to be.)

  5. J-EM-P says:

    Another great post!

  6. Joan says:

    Maybe if Albany would count bar room patrons as population than we could show a weak pulse.

  7. Rob Madeo says:

    Hmmmm… don’t know. To me, the giant mural actually detracts from Troy’s cool factor

  8. Donna H says:

    Good one, Kevin! That was just great.

  9. gs draiss says:

    How long can the limousine do gooders deny the crime, poverty and such while rushing off to the next charity event?
    Albany is not the only dead city. In fact there is much good about Albany. Just stay on the center line and not venture too far north or south.
    Same in Hudson except central is Warren Street.
    Kingston is uptown and downtown stay out of mid-town.
    Poughkeepsie: stay out of town altogether.

    I assume other small upstate cities show similar traits.
    Funny how most are county seats.
    All that goverment and all that crime and poverty right outside their windows.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

You may use these HTML tags and attributes: <a href="" title=""> <abbr title=""> <acronym title=""> <b> <blockquote cite=""> <cite> <code> <del datetime=""> <em> <i> <q cite=""> <strike> <strong>