What do you think of the controversial decision of New York
to hold its marathon on the scheduled date despite the circumstances? Will this help or hurt the image of the city
for its citizens? What about for those
outside the city? Do this writer′s
arguments hold water for you? Is there
something she is missing? (Since the writing of this article, the marathon has been called off. Good choice?)
I agree with the author of the article that the marathon should not be cancelled. For some people this race might look unnecessary in comparison with the huge tragedy of Sandy. However, as the author already said, for some people the marathon might be a positive symbol, therefore cancelling it might also hurt some feelings. I do not think that cancelling the race will solve anything, those who still want to run should have the opportunity to do so.
ReplyDeleteAs the main argument for keeping the argument I consider the preparations that have already been done. It would be wasteful to not hold the marathon, because all the funds that have been used will go to waste. The race could also help the economy, as an event of this size usually does.
I do not think that calling off the marathon was a good idea, but if they just postponed it so they could still use all of the preparation that went into it, it sounds like a fairly good idea.
This comment on comment is a response to Janka’s comment:
ReplyDeleteI completely agree with Janka: the marathon should not be cancelled, but I do think that it should have been postponed.
“It’s just a sports event” is a very undermining statement. Notice the power sports have over people, and you will never call something “just” a sports event. Nelson Mandela very wisely said, “Sport has the power to change the world. It has the power to inspire. It has the power to unite people in a way that little else does. Sport can awaken hope where there was previously only despair. Sport speaks to people in a language they can understand.” In my opinion, for precisely this reason it was vital to organize the marathon, but at a later time. It was something that the people could look forward to and take part in to take their mind off the calamity that occurred.
The person that claimed that the city needs all of its resources to deal with the aftermath of the hurricane has also not thought his argument through very well. Isn’t a massive event like the New York City marathon a great way to raise funds and collect the needed resources for the recovery of the city? Should the affected people not do anything exciting until the city and their lives are back to normal? How is a great event that encourages people and gives them hope “an event that in the grand scheme of things is really inconsequential”? The fact that it is a change in the lives of those affected is proof that it IS consequential.
However, I do agree to postponing the marathon for a week or multiple days, as the city does need to recover quite a bit. By moving it to a later date, maybe people which would not have taken part at the original date will be eager to join. Right now, the officials and volunteers should be concentrating on providing those individuals which are in need with blankets, water and food.