Coney Island And The Santa Monica Pier

Two amusement parks on the ocean at each end of America. Must have been weird to drive from one to the other seeing that Elmer Gantry, Hank Williams, Chuck Berry, Jack Kerouac, Betsy Ross America pass by in the never stopping long winding days and  happy/sad boozy neon nights of all of America in between.

1952-Coney-Island-by-Margaret-Bourke-W

Photo by Mitch James
Built in 1939, the bridge connecting Ocean Avenue to the Santa Monica Pier is nearing the end of its useful life and will be replaced.

For some people The Santa Monica Pier is the “actual” end of Route 66, and America.

Coney Island

The Santa Monica Pier

 

 

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Capitalism efficient? We can do so much better

By Richard Wolff

A Madrid woman holds a banner reading ‘Your benefits, Our crisis. Another world is possible’ at the Spanish headquarters of the European Commission. Photograph: Susana Vera/Reuters

What’s efficiency got to do with capitalism? The short answer is little or nothing. Economic and social collapses in Detroit, Cleveland and many other US cities did not happen because production was inefficient there. Efficiency problems did not cause the longer-term economic declines troubling the US and western Europe.

Capitalist corporations decided to relocate production: first, away from such cities, and now, away from those regions. It has done so to serve the priorities of their major shareholders and boards of directors. Higher profits, business growth, and market share drive those decisions. As I say, efficiency has little or nothing to do with it.

Many goods and services once made in the US and western Europe for those markets are now produced elsewhere and transported back to them. That wastes resources spent on the costly relocation and consequent return transportation. The pollution (of air, sea and soil) associated with vast transportation networks – and the eventual cleaning up of that pollution – only enlarges that waste.

The factories, offices and stores abandoned by departing capitalist corporations increase the waste of resources and of workers’ lives. In the surrounding communities, tax bases eroded by capitalists’ departures mean reduced social services, public spaces, and qualities of life for all but the richest. Those vast wastes of resources and damages to lives offset whatever small efficiency gains corporate relocations only sometimes achieve.

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Saint Lawrence Seaway Turns 50!

There were those who felt that the opening of the Seaway would turn Montreal into a ghost town seeing as how we would lose our status on being the main terminal for everything going and coming from the Great Lakes. Didn’t happen and that is a great testament to the people of this amazing place. Still, on the 50th anniversary of the Seaway we need to keep in mind that while it was an economic boom for North America on the whole, and many of it’s inland ports, the environmental price has been very heavy indeed.

Fallen hero: the St. Lawrence Seaway at 50

Green groups dredge up the past as St. Lawrence Seaway turns 50

As Seaway Turns 50, it’s Time for a Reality Check

View of Montreal and Seaway at Laprarie Pier by Roger Kenner

Today the Arctic is melting and we have a Prime Minister who drools at the thought of excavating the Arctic ground while cruise ships dock in Nunavut, or will they have built a canal to Banff in another 50 years?

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Let’s Paint The Riviere Saint Pierre Across Turcot!!

Turcot won’t be available for long. There are hardly any cities in the world capable of doing this project – who has that kind of land empty so close to the city center? Does anyone have any ideas on how to proceed?

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La P’tite Bourgogne

Excellent NFB documentary about a neighborhood being expropriated. See any parallels with some of the issues at Turcot?

Here.

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The High Line in 2008

Here are some updates for those of you curious about New York City’s beloved restored elevated train line, The High Line.

Newsletter here.

And here is a recent shot of a section of  The High Line in winter. “Judging by the effect of last Friday’s snow on the High Line, we’re eager to see the High Line join the likes of Central Park, Radio City Music Hall and the Empire State Building in the ranks of New York City landmarks that are altered spectacularly in the winter to become memorable and historic parts of the New York City landscape.” Story here.

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Turcot Yards 1956

Big thanks to striderv over at Flickr for posting an amazing set of pictures from his grandfather’s collection. Seems there was an open house at the roundhouse that day (and there is more to come  as these people seem to have toured the Glen roundhouse and yards as well). Enjoy!

You can catch the whole set here.

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Fire At Old CN Yards In Point

Story here.

And here are some photos courtesy of Michel Latour.

And here is some video footage of the morning after from Boucrate.

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Expo ’67 (magstb67)

Was, of course, the ridiculously fabulous world’s fair in Montreal in 1967. I turned 13 during Expo summer and I have nothing but extraordinary memories of it. Decided to blog about it when I was recently led to a Flickr page by magstb67 who is trying to put together the biggest collection of photographs ever about Expo ’67 online. So head on over, take a look, and send him your images that are not already there!

Well, there literally are over 5,000 interesting images to choose from but I will go with these three.

Like this because of the fashion but also the total surrealistic effect (She must be boiling under there). There are not a lot of uncluttered views like this from those very busy days at Expo.

Here is the Autostade.  Goose Village was torn down to make way for this stadium which was to fill all our future stadium needs. Almost hard to believe the Olympics, and their stadium, would be only only 9 years later, when I look back. The Autostade served it s purpose during the fair but really sucked afterwards when it was mainly the Alouettes home field. The gaps in the stands were filled in the following year creating a bowl. As you can see the seats at the 50 yard line were among the furthest from the sidelines, especially as you went up, and the end zones seats were just about in another part of town. There was often incredible insect problems for games, and it was just a very, very, awkward place for most people to get to. It s just a little ironic that the Alouettes ended up back in their original stadium after playing both here and in Olympic Stadium for so many years. And of course, the fact that Goose Village will always be of greater interest than this stadium that never really entered the city’s hearts. The last time I was in the Autostade was probably a Pink Floyd concert in 74. Was good.

And this huge photograph of Humphrey Bogart was one of the most lasting images for me. It was as though the Americans were saying there was another side to all the glitz and the glamor, as if there really was a film noir running under the surface. Incredible!

So head over to magstb67′s Flickr Expo ’67 collection here.

Also check out Expo Lounge for lots more interesting stuff.

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Diamond Taxi and Ben’s Signs

Factotum posted a few pictures of this. I went by here recently and thought, well, if it cant be the Diamond Taxi Sign, then why not let local artists have a go at it?

And this Gazette article says that while demolition of Ben’s Delicatessen has begun, it looks like Concordia has taken the large red wrap around sign so well known to a few generations of Montrealers.

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Verdun Waterfront

Some images from the Virtual Museum Canada.

Around 1900 at the foot of Church Avenue, now known as De L’eglise.

1907.

This may be what my father’s generation would have called LeBlanc’s Wharf.

Tourist boat that would go through the Lachine Rapids area.

By 1930 the dike had been long built and the famous boardwalk appears.

Boardwalk was paved over in the early 40′s.

More in the coming weeks.

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Griffintown Update

Latest rendition for Griffintown over at Save Griffintown.

Well, if your central nervous system has been technofied, this may look pretty cool. Sad to see Montreal’s uniqueness being transformed into an international generic that has no true home or cultural value.

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À Saint-Henri le cinq septembre

The NFB is putting it’s vault on line!!!

Here is a classic.

(Do not know why I blog when Neale over at Five Whys is writing all my material these days:P Thanks.)

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Baghdad Blast Wall Art

Images taken from here.

Story here.

And here.

And here is a video.

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The Doney Spur (4)

Continuing the journey with Avrom Shtern and Andrew Dawson.

Here is a map of this leg. We started at Sources and went east.

As far as I know the La Belle Province on the left is the only open 24 hours place on the entire West Island.

Trains used to go right up to that door. (right in?).

Avrom and Andrew checking out one of the countless sidings, wyes, and backtracks that have been pulled up but attest to how busy the Doney was in it’s day.

They used to load up here but the doors are bricked up.

Avenue Andre.

Had to follow this one.

There was all kinds of these on the tracks. Maybe they like the warmth? This was a very hot day. It’s usually about 3-5 degrees warmer on the tracks as the steel gets hot, but the ballast also holds it in like a good old brick oven!

It s astonishing how much rust the rails can take and still be usable ( at very slow speeds I would guess).

Start of the Saint Francois Spur.

Here it splits. That is Golf Dorval (what’s left of it) due south.

I don’t think you will see a diamond crossing with a switch going into a building like that too often.

Back on the Doney, still active over in there.

Approaching the bridge that crosses the 40 otherwise known as the Trans Canada Highway.

Looking west.

Looking east. This was a Sunday afternoon. Traffic, what traffic?

And we called it a day up ahead at rue Douglas -B- Floreani.

We had taken the 215 bus from Cote Vertu Metro to get out to Sources and took the 215 back to Cote Vertu. While I am often critical of our (lack of) public transportation, I am quite willing to offer praise when it works so damn well as that!  Cars, on the other hand, are not very good for this kind of trekking as you have to walk all the way back to where the car is parked. Was a good one.

More to come.

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