Yesterday’s New York Times carried an Op-Ed piece by Jerry Seinfeld on the greatness of New York City. It was inspired by an acquaintance who declared on social media that the city was finished and he was moving to Florida. The comedian countered, with occasional humor, that the city was not finished, that it would survive the pandemic as it’s survived a number of other crises over the decades.
He was right, of course. But his paean to his hometown was weakened, for me at least, by his cheap shots at Florida. “We all know the sharp focus and restless, resilient creative spirit that Florida is all about,” wrote Seinfeld, before noting the man’s “enervated, pastel-filled new life.” What bothered me was not so much that he was resorting to the usual tired clichés about Florida but that he was employing the same sad tactic his acquaintance had: painting a large and extraordinarily diverse place with a broad brush.
