OPINION:
“If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere.”
— Frank Sinatra
Ah, New York. The Big Apple. The City That Never Sleeps. The place where dreams are made, and empires get built.
New Yorkers handled Sept. 11 fearlessly. They battle some of the toughest rush-hour traffic in the country, not to mention some of the roughest rent prices.
They’re rude, they’re crude, and they don’t take any crap from anyone — and that’s just the women.
Growing up in Michigan, I used to think New Yorkers were so tough. So when a presidential candidate takes the opportunity to criticize the city’s politics, surely they can handle it.
Right?
Well, maybe not exactly.
Early last week in a radio interview, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas commented that Donald Trump “comes from New York and he embodies New York values.”
Of course, he was referring to the progressive values of Mayor Bill DeBlasio, an unapologetic socialist whose policies have led him to sink to an abysmal 38 percent approval rating since he took office in 2013.
But the New York Daily News couldn’t handle the heat and immediately printed a cover depicting the Statue of Liberty giving Mr. Cruz the finger with the headline, “Drop dead, Ted.”
Apparently, the media gets to gripe about the abundance of “anger” and “aggression” coming out of the GOP primary race, while excusing themselves from the same standard.
What happened to you, New York? When did you get so sensitive?
The rest of the country has dealt with your elitist insults for decades. Just ask “Florida Man.” Or Cleveland Browns fans. Or literally anybody in Detroit.
How do you think Americans in the South feel when news anchors in a metropolitan studio say things like, “Nothing says ’Let’s go kill some Muslims’ like country music.”
Or when our own president quips that his fellow citizens, “cling to their guns or religion”?
Welcome to the New New York, where Manhattan is a “safe space” and the self-proclaimed toughest people on the planet can’t handle hoverboards, horse-drawn carriage rides, styrofoam containers, or large quantities of Mountain Dew.
The Big Apple can dish it out — but when it comes to taking criticism, they’re more like a delicate flower.
If the Daily News is looking for something to get mad about, here are a few things to consider:
• Bill DeBlasio has spent 33 weekdays on unofficial travel since he took office 22 months ago. That’s more than an entire month off work, paid for on the taxpayer dime.
• The homeless population has increased by the thousands since Mr. DeBlasio took office.
• Mr. DeBlasio has managed to increase the number of anti-police protests under his tenure while simultaneously alienating the New York Police Department, leaving everyone in the five boroughs more unhappy and less safe.
• New York’s mayor was born Warren Wilhelm Jr., but ran for office under the name Bill DeBlasio to try to pull a fast one on New Yorkers, who normally resent being given “the runaround.”
• Only 35 percent of New Yorkers think Mr. DeBlasio is doing a good job at stopping crime, and more than half the population thinks the city’s quality of life is getting worse.
In true New York fashion, let’s get to the bottom line.
The Daily News isn’t offended by what Ted Cruz said. They are offended by Ted Cruz, and everything he stands for.
The liberal media have always had a bias against small-government conservatives, and finally Democratic rags like the Daily News are exposing themselves for what they really are: elitist, thin-skinned, card-carrying members of the jackass party.
Get it together, New York. You’re better than this.
P.S.- Your pizza is overrated. Just sayin’.
• Fingers Malloy hosts The Snark Factor radio program on FTR Radio.
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