RT,
You got it in one. The move to sanitize the city has been disasterous for us
all. I particularly remember Tony "the onion" Scallon demanding that all the
undesirables be removed from downtown so he could bring his kids downtown. I
also fondly remember my dad taking me downtown (Cincinnati) when I was 4, 5, and
6--and to the race track--so I could meet a variety of people and be introduced
to them so I would know that just because they were "different" they were not
scarey. I also remember coming to Minneapolis in 73 and wondering why everyone
was blond (an exageration) but I had never lived anywhere where there were so
many blonds. I also remember there being so few African Americans that I was
puzzled. I couldn't understand how that could be in the late 20th century.
Wizard Marks, Central
R.T.Rybak wrote:
> Thanks to Barb Lickness for reminding people how great it was to go to Moby
> Dick's.
>
> It was a perfect example of a place you could only find in the city, that
> was often misunderstood by those who didn't go there, and ultimately, was
> destroyed because we often aren't comfortable with being a city.
>
> Like Barb I loved going to Moby's. No matter how scary the people seemed at
> times, the bouncers were always scarier and tougher...so most people really
> didn't get out of line. It was a place were suburbanites, and yuppies
> (before they were called that) and pool sharks and street people and people
> who wanted to dance and people who wanted to sit on a stool all night
> downing gin and bachelerette parties...and everyone in between and beyond
> could have a good time. People were dancing or playing pool or talking with
> people they would never run into in their daily lives...which in so many
> ways is what's at the core of what a city can do.
>
> Yes, near the end there were some problems there but mostly this was an
> institution that didn't have to go. Too often we are left with an
> antiseptic, sanitized version of downtown...when part of the whole fabric is
> that we have to have some places where everyone feels welcome.
>
> R.T.Rybak
> East Harriet
