Why I’m Leaving New York City

Xiaomanyc 小马在纽约

12 Apr 202411:29

Summary

TLDRThe speaker shares their decision to leave New York City after 20 years, citing issues like high taxes, public safety concerns, and inefficient use of taxpayer money. They discuss incidents of rising crime, particularly around the subway, and frustrations with the city's costly and delayed infrastructure projects. The speaker, though pro-tax and pro-immigration, criticizes how funds are mismanaged, resulting in poor services, such as failed pre-K programs. Now living in New Jersey, they express relief, noting improved quality of life and better value for their money.

Takeaways

🏙️ The speaker lived in Manhattan, New York City for 20 years but has decided to move due to various concerns.
💰 High living costs: A small studio in Manhattan costs $3,900 per month, compared to much larger homes in other areas for the same price.
💸 Taxes are a major concern: The speaker paid over 50% of their income in taxes between city, state, and federal levels.
🚨 Public safety has deteriorated: The speaker had several unsettling encounters with aggressive individuals on the streets of New York City, making it feel unsafe to raise a family.
🚇 The subway system is both unsafe and inefficient, with rising costs and poor infrastructure, despite major investments.
👷‍♂️ The New York City government is criticized for mismanaging taxpayer money, particularly in projects like the subway and public safety initiatives.
👶 The 3K (free pre-K) program, intended to provide free daycare for 3-year-olds, is failing due to mismanagement and the influx of migrants.
👥 The speaker supports immigration but is concerned that New York City is attracting migrants through extensive free housing and benefits, while failing to address its homelessness and mental illness crisis.
🌳 Neighborhoods and parks are affected by long, disruptive construction projects, further decreasing the city's quality of life.
🚶 The speaker has moved to New Jersey, where they feel safer, experience better quality of life, and believe the government is more effective in managing resources.

Q & A

Why did the speaker decide to leave New York City after living there for 20 years?
-The speaker decided to leave New York City due to rising safety concerns, frustration with how tax money was being spent, and a declining quality of life, especially for families with young children.
What specific safety concerns does the speaker mention in the video?
-The speaker mentions multiple safety incidents, such as encountering violent or unstable individuals in broad daylight, being almost assaulted in a park, and the general increase in crime and unsafe conditions in New York City.
What are the speaker's complaints about New York City's tax system?
-The speaker is frustrated with the high taxes in New York City, stating that over 50% of their income goes to taxes, including city, state, and federal taxes. Despite this, they feel the return on public services, like safety and infrastructure, is inadequate.
How does the speaker compare living costs between Manhattan, New York, and Manhattan, Kansas?
-The speaker compares the cost of living by stating that a small studio in Manhattan, New York, costs $3,900 per month, while the same amount could buy a large 8-bedroom home in Manhattan, Kansas.
What does the speaker say about the condition of the New York City subway system?
-The speaker criticizes the New York City subway for being dirty, frequently smelling like excrement, and being unsafe due to encounters with mentally ill or unstable individuals. They also mention how the subway system has become an international embarrassment.
What are the speaker's views on New York City's public spending and infrastructure projects?
-The speaker feels that New York City's public spending is inefficient, citing the example of an 11 billion-dollar subway station project and long, expensive construction delays. They compare this unfavorably to infrastructure projects in other cities like Paris and Shanghai.
How does the speaker feel about immigration in New York City?
-The speaker is generally pro-immigration, recognizing it as a key factor in New York City's success. However, they are critical of how the city has been spending taxpayer money to offer free housing and other benefits to migrants, leading to challenges with access to services like daycare.
What frustrations does the speaker have with New York City's '3K' program for free daycare?
-The speaker is frustrated that despite the promise of free daycare for all 3-year-olds in New York City, it has been difficult to secure a spot for their child. They feel this failure is a result of mismanagement and an influx of migrants taking available spots.
What is the speaker’s opinion on the homeless and mentally ill crisis in New York City?
-The speaker believes that the homeless and mentally ill crisis is a major issue that should be addressed with the city's tax dollars, instead of spending on free housing for migrants.
How has moving to New Jersey impacted the speaker's quality of life?
-After moving to New Jersey, the speaker expresses happiness, noting a higher quality of life, better management, and more value for their money compared to New York City.

Outlines

00:00

🏙️ Leaving New York After 20 Years

The speaker discusses their decision to leave New York City after living there for 20 of their 33 years. They clarify that this isn't about the high cost of living but rather issues like taxes and public safety. While acknowledging New York's status as a great city, they share their concerns about how over 50% of their income went to taxes, including federal, state, and city levels. Despite not being anti-tax, they believe the return in terms of public services, particularly safety, has been lacking. The speaker recounts personal experiences of street violence, unsafe encounters, and a deteriorating environment, which has made raising a family difficult and unsafe in New York.

05:01

🚇 The Failing New York Subway

The speaker criticizes the state of the New York City subway system, highlighting the National Guard's recent involvement to improve safety. They describe frequent encounters with mentally ill individuals on the subway and how these experiences create a sense of unease. The subway is also seen as dirty and dysfunctional, often mocked by other countries for its inefficiency. The speaker recalls making a viral video about the exorbitant costs associated with constructing subway stations in New York, comparing it unfavorably to much cheaper metro systems in places like China and Paris. The subway's high cost and poor performance are cited as examples of the city's mismanagement of taxpayer money.

10:02

🛑 Migrant Crisis and Public Spending Mismanagement

The speaker shifts to another major issue: the misallocation of funds in New York City, especially regarding the migrant crisis. While they express strong support for immigration, they criticize the city's lavish spending on free housing and resources for migrants, which they argue could be better spent on the homeless and mental health crises. The speaker points out that despite the promise of free pre-kindergarten for 3-year-olds, the system is failing, making it nearly impossible for their child to get a spot. This, coupled with massive public spending on inefficient services, leads the speaker to feel disillusioned with the city.

🏞️ Endless Construction and Decline in Quality of Life

The speaker describes how New York City's long, drawn-out construction projects have negatively impacted neighborhoods. A local park, for instance, has been under construction for five years, becoming a haven for drugs and crime. They also point out the explosion of illegal weed stores, a result of the city's failure to properly implement a licensing program. Overall, the speaker reflects on how New York has become an increasingly difficult place to live and raise a family, prompting them to relocate to New Jersey. They note the mass exodus from the city since 2020, as residents, like them, seek a better quality of life elsewhere.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Taxes

In the video, the speaker discusses the high taxes they paid while living in New York City, with over 50% of their income going to taxes at various levels—federal, state, city, and corporate. This is central to their frustration with New York, as they question the value they receive in return for such high taxes, especially when it comes to public services like safety and infrastructure.

💡Public Safety

Public safety is a major concern raised by the speaker. They describe New York City as an increasingly dangerous environment, especially for families, with frequent encounters with mentally ill or aggressive individuals in public spaces, including a personal story of having to avoid a half-naked man while pushing their son in a stroller. This lack of safety contributes to their decision to leave the city.

💡Subway System

The speaker criticizes New York City's subway system, highlighting its poor condition, safety concerns, and inefficiency. They point out how much money the city has spent on the subway, including $11 billion for a single station, while comparing it to more efficient systems in cities like Paris and Shanghai, which build far more for much less. The subway is seen as a symbol of New York's mismanagement of public funds.

💡Cost of Living

New York City's high cost of living is a recurring theme in the video. The speaker mentions the cost of a studio apartment in Manhattan at $3,900 a month, comparing it to what the same amount could get them elsewhere, like in Manhattan, Kansas. The exorbitant living costs, coupled with other issues like safety and taxes, form a major part of their dissatisfaction with New York.

💡Family

The speaker frequently references their family throughout the video, particularly focusing on how unsafe they feel raising their child in New York City. They express shame and frustration that their wife is afraid to go outside alone with their son, citing this as one of the primary reasons for their move to New Jersey, where they believe the environment is safer and more conducive to family life.

💡Migration

While the speaker expresses support for immigration, they criticize New York City's handling of recent migrants, suggesting that resources meant for public services like free pre-K are being diverted to migrants. They point out how New York's policies, such as providing free housing, have strained resources and worsened living conditions, while stating that immigration is one of the things that made New York great.

💡Pre-K Program

The speaker mentions New York City's promise of free pre-K for all 3-year-olds but shares their disappointment when they find it difficult to get a spot for their own child. They see this as another example of New York's failure to deliver on public services, despite the high taxes they pay. The failure of this program adds to their frustration with how the city spends its resources.

💡Construction Projects

Endless construction projects are highlighted as another point of contention. The speaker describes how some neighborhoods and parks have been under construction for years, often leading to unsafe conditions, such as turning a park into a 'drug-infested murder zone.' These prolonged projects are emblematic of what they see as inefficiency and poor governance in New York.

💡Homelessness and Mental Health Crisis

The speaker raises concerns about the homeless and mentally ill population in New York City, describing encounters with individuals behaving erratically and aggressively. They suggest that taxpayer money should be redirected toward solving this crisis rather than being spent on benefits for migrants. This issue ties into their overall dissatisfaction with the city's management and public safety concerns.

💡New Jersey

New Jersey is presented as the speaker's new home, where they feel they get more value for their money and enjoy a higher quality of life. Despite New Jersey also being a high-tax state, they express happiness with their decision to leave New York, noting that things are better run and safer there. This comparison between New York and New Jersey serves as a conclusion to their critique of New York City.

Highlights

After living 20 years in Manhattan, New York City, the speaker decided to leave and has already moved.

The speaker acknowledges New York City's high cost of living, stating that $3,900/month gets a small studio, whereas in Manhattan, Kansas, it buys a large 8-bedroom home.

The speaker paid over 50% of their income in taxes in New York City and questions the return on investment in terms of public safety and infrastructure.

New York City has separate personal and corporate taxes on top of state and federal taxes, creating a high tax burden.

Public safety is a major concern, with stories of aggressive encounters, such as having to avoid a half-naked man and a friend being sucker-punched.

The speaker no longer felt safe raising their family in New York, citing their wife’s refusal to go out alone with their son.

New York City's subway system is described as dirty, unsafe, and extremely expensive to maintain, with Governor Kathy Hochul deploying the National Guard to ensure subway safety.

The speaker contrasts New York’s subway costs with cities like Paris and Los Angeles, noting New York's astronomical infrastructure expenses.

Despite high taxes, the speaker questions where all the money is going, citing wasteful spending and inefficient public services in New York.

Sweden is mentioned as a country with higher taxes but efficient spending, offering services like free healthcare and university, which New York City does not provide.

New York City’s failed promise of free Pre-K (3K) is highlighted, with the speaker unable to secure a spot for their child despite the city’s earlier promises.

The recent surge of migrants in New York is blamed for taking public resources, such as spots in free daycare, while the speaker emphasizes being pro-immigration.

The speaker criticizes New York for spending millions on free housing and debit cards for migrants, arguing that these resources could be better used to address homelessness and mental health crises.

Neighborhoods have been disrupted by endless construction projects, with some parks becoming crime zones due to years of delays.

Illegal weed stores have proliferated in New York City due to the government’s failure to efficiently manage the legal licensing process.

The speaker contrasts their move to New Jersey, where they find the quality of life higher, things better run, and more value for money, concluding that New York City is no longer suitable for raising a family.