Why is it even in this day and age that Hollywood Directorsa who ride in limos keep promoting ther stereotype in Dooby Brothers Dolby Suround Sound Stereo that All Subways are full of crazy skecty people! From the Movie GHOST to MONEY TRAIN to Any TV show its all the same. Matter of fact the only time on TV I saw a subway that did not have crazys on it was for a Caddilac Commercial(You know the one were the well dressed man gets on the subway and has vision of a Fat *** Gas Guzzeling SUV outside his window.) The Sublimanal message that Hollywood is sending us is this “Mass transit is for the Disabled and the Crimanaly Insane Buy A General Moters Car like every other red blooded American!” There is my alloted one rant per month[}:)][}:)][}:)][}:)]
I’d say you’ve been writing checks against future month’s rants, or is just for this screen name?
…and apparently they’re not that far off base either…
Been watching “The Matrix Reloaded” on TV and “Matrix Revolutions” as well.
The “Trainman” in “Revolutions” is a disreputable, downright ugly cuss sorely in need of a haircut and dental work. He has a great line, though, “I decide whether you ride or not. Down here, I’m God… because I made this place.” Sound like anyone’s coworkers?
On the other hand, “Reload”'s main thrill to me was watching the outstanding car chase scene on the I-5 (or the Ventura freeway). If California rush hour traffic is like that, I’ll take God on the train any day of the week…
Erik
it’s a convenient stereotype which the yokels from the sticks believe in – and it sells. It’s also not true, but when did that stop Hollywood?
They probably rode the New York Subways in the 70s and 80s as I did. There were no shortage of drunks, panhandlers, crooks, pickpockets, rapists and others on it back in those days.
LC
To answer the question, because they are. Even in Toronto’s TTC Subways are filled with lushes, leches, thieves, wierdos, stinky folk, punks,teen gangsters and many other unsavory folk. Can’t explain why but that is how it is. Why do you think police officers often have to patrol them?
They have those kind of people in Canada?
Gabe
Hell yeah. You don’t think all Canadians are a garden of posies do ya?[:D]
Ever heard of Conrad Black?
What do you expect?
Hollywood is now the land of intelligent but wacko-ultra extreme leftists that seem to reli***aking day to day scenes and making them 10 times worse!
That’s Hollywood!
Because its “Public” transit, which by definition means that any member of the public that doesnt own (or is not allowed to own) a car that can afford a ticket can ride it, and its not just subways but light rail, commuter rail and busses. That “public” just happens to include: vagrents, bums, pan handlers, oldsters, stinkers, punkers, junkers, crazies, druggies, loonies, moonies, perv’s, jerk’s, gang-bangers, cross-dressers, transexuals, and republicans.[:p]
Erik, that freeway never existed outside of a studio lot. It was made specific for the movie, next time you pop the DVD in (if thats what you were watching) one of the extra features talked about tha filming of that scene.
I honestly don’t know why they do that??? It gets on my nervous sometimes. I’ve been on some nice subs and some dirty ones. I think it’s a sterotype that got out of hand. They think that most drunks and homeless people live undergound because it’s dirty. Metro in the Washington D.C. area has really nice subs. Pjilly’s SEPTA’s heavy rail isn’t that bad either. SO, I think they need a reality check.
They’re describing a late night ride on Sacramento’s light rail system.A friend who used to live in Sacramento,tells me that the locals call the system “Fright Rail”[:0].
Come to L.A. and ride the Metro bus system if you want to see some serious insane types. So far the light rail and subway have been mostly free of it, but the transit police do a good job of keeping the real bad cases from camping out on the trains.
The Think is that when Subways and Heavy rail want to expand out in the Burbs into areas that never had Subways the Suberban Public gets uo in arms because this is all they know
You should have heard the stink when MTA wanted to expand the subway into the San Fernando Valley! A small group of very vocal Nimby’s croaked loud enough to stop the subway at North Hollywood. The MTA now is building an express busway westward towards Warner Center but even this is getting crybabies opposing it. I honestly dont know what the hell these idiot Nimby’s want? They gripe about how horrible the traffic is, but then they kill any attempt to improve traffic or transit. I dont get it?
Seattle doesn’t have a subway, but it does have a downtown bus tunnel which is wider, safer and better lit than any subway tunnel I’ve ever been in. Someday, if Seattle voters ever get their acts together, it will also accomodate light rail.
Right now there is zero “streetlife” hanging out down there and I’m not the least bit uncomfortable. Guess I’ll have to wait for the coming of rail to attract the creepies and the movie makers??
I’m being extremely facetious, I hope you realize… '-)
Best wishes!
Roy
Seattle
I once road a bus at 3 AM on Sunset Blvd. There wern’t any obvious bums on board, which I thought unusual because of the number I normally saw in the daytime. The only problem was it was raining, every seam in the bus roof leaked, and every seam was over the middle of a seat.
Don’t know if its true, but I’ve read that the crime on the Ney York subways dropped dramatically when they started arresting people for not paying the fare.
Junctionfan,
Somehow your image of Conrad Black on a Subway train struck me as pretty scary. I’ve never seen Rupert Murdoch on a train either!
The scariest things on Australian trains are drunken teenage schoolboys - if you can keep out of their way, you can think how lucky it is that they can’t afford a car!
Peter