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mowotlarx OP t1_iyxlrii wrote

Archive article here for those who don't have a subscription.

>He met with heads of state. He visited the Acropolis in Athens and the transit system in Doha, Qatar. And after catching a game at the World Cup, Mayor Eric Adams of New York sampled the local nightlife. For Mr. Adams, his first extended foreign trip as mayor seemed as much of a vacation as an official trip for city business — and, to his credit, he had made no pretense about that. The day before his departure, Mr. Adams told reporters that he would pay for his lodging in Qatar to lessen accusations of wasting taxpayer money. “It’s on my dime,” the mayor said. “When I do my dime, I can do my time and I don’t want to hear anyone whine.” The nature of the hastily arranged trip — a four-day journey to Greece and Qatar — made it difficult to track much of the mayor’s overseas adventure. His official press schedule, especially while he was in Qatar, made it all but impossible. None of his events there were open to the press, and his schedule did not list the precise location of where he would be or whom he would be meeting with.

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RyzinEnagy t1_iyy7ms1 wrote

> And after catching a game at the World Cup, Mayor Eric Adams of New York sampled the local nightlife.

Mission accomplished.

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Castor_and_Pollux123 t1_iyyfo8b wrote

There's nightlife in Qatar?

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RyzinEnagy t1_iyygnir wrote

From what I heard from an acquaintance who went to one of the first games, they had containment zones where they let the foreigners go wild while making sure no Muslim was partaking.

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Jgflight86 t1_iz02r95 wrote

Wow, like some sort of quarantined fun zone. Can't let that contagion spread!

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mercyful_fade t1_iz067wg wrote

I've been there a bunch of times. There is a pretty active roving party with different hotel bars and clubs hosting on different nights of the week. They're pretty welcome to foreigners as long as you do your thing in the designated place and pay your bills etc.

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JustAUselessThrwaway t1_iyzkpd2 wrote

> “When I do my dime, I can do my time and I don’t want to hear anyone whine.”

This phrase may come back to haunt him.

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ironichaos t1_iyy653h wrote

I get NYC is a global city, but why should state level officials be going on foreign trips? I guess to try and get them to invest in realestate in NYC or something?

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Grass8989 t1_iyyh7rt wrote

He should be going overseas and view other countries subway systems and see how clean they are, how there aren’t people acting erratically everywhere, and how it’s overall a more pleasant experience.

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poopmast t1_iz173ad wrote

So he should be visiting Seoul, Singapore, Osaka, and Tokyo then, not Qatar and Athens.

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xxl_gal t1_iz4l26p wrote

What's different about these places that allows for their subway to be as clean and efficient as they are, vs ours..? Hmmmm I wonder what it could be..

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iv2892 t1_iz1dvfg wrote

Good example . I’m pretty sure nyc has better subway that most countries outside of Europe and Asia

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[deleted] t1_iz1r4jn wrote

> I’m pretty sure nyc has better subway that most countries outside of Europe and Asia

Depends how you mean by 'better'. NYC's is very expansive, so (AFAIK) it's hard to find comparable systems outside Europe or Asia. Saying that, having used the subways in Toronto and Medellin - both of them were cleaner and more reliable than NYC's.

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iv2892 t1_iz239gr wrote

Yeah , I feel like Toronto was similar to NYCs. Way less crowded though. But didn’t ride it long enough to make a decent comparison

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iv2892 t1_iz23hy5 wrote

In nyc the subway experience can change a lot from line to line and stations . Some stations almost look like you can off the floor and then there’s some others that look like they are falling apart .

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iv2892 t1_iyyxehv wrote

Many countries don’t have extensive lines of subways like nyc, though .

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Inquisitor_Keira t1_iz013my wrote

Most Major European cities do. America is the outlier with our awful public transport

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socialcommentary2000 t1_iz0q94p wrote

This issue is a bit more complex because we keep them running 24 7 and we literally hate funding transit, so you have this unholy union of the very worst deferred maintenance situation clashing with one of the heaviest used systems out there.

It's honestly impressive it runs at all and if you watch a cab view ride of the lines, we keep the actual tunnels and trackage very clean and tip top.

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Inquisitor_Keira t1_iz114io wrote

Oh I know it’s a marvel of engineering on its own. I just wish we actually put more money into maintenance and innovation.

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iv2892 t1_iz1dfn1 wrote

Is still surprisingly good, they should fix some stations and reduce delays . But we have it good in nyc lol

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WorthPrudent3028 t1_iyysxzn wrote

He's not even a state level official. Other cities like Dallas, Seattle, LA, Chicago etc will host 2024 World Cup games. Their mayors didn't go to Qatar.

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sr71Girthbird t1_iz21yb4 wrote

I mean he was the/a keynote speaker at the "Mayors’ Summit Against Antisemitism" and those travel plans were documented weeks ago, that was the reason for being in Athens.

I don't care for the guy but if he decided to see a World Cup game because he was a 4 hour flight away instead of 13 hours, then so be it. While many people sadly don't get sick days or vacation, or will get fired if they decide to take them, doesn't mean I think everyone shouldn't be entitled to them, public office or not.

Hard to think of anything super malicious or underhanded about him piggybacking a few vacation days on the end of what should objectively be considered official business, regardless of whether we feel the official business reason is where he should be focusing his efforts.

I'd much rather hear that he saw a soccer match and went out for a night than had shady meetings with X and X and X characters.

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TonyzTone t1_iyzsx9k wrote

There are plenty of reason that both state and city level officials would go on foreign trips. Studying and seeing how other cities develop solutions to similar problems is not a bad thing.

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noahsilv t1_iz0feph wrote

Bloomberg used to do it a lot. I’m not against it - there is the C40 summit and other things to attend. Probably good to meet and learn from mayors of other global cities a few times a year.

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HEIMDVLLR t1_iyyh93c wrote

You think he’s the first NYC mayor to visit foreign countries?

I swear a lot of the criticism / comments here sound like none of you lived here that long.

Edit: > Sep 24, 2002 — New York City Mayor Michael R Bloomberg's just-completed four-day trip to Greece, Turkey and Afghanistan

> Mayor Rudy Giuliani billed obscure agencies for trips. As New York mayor, Rudy Giuliani billed obscure city agencies for tens of thousands of dollars in security expenses amassed during the time when he was beginning an extramarital relationship with future wife Judith Nathan in the Hamptons, according to previously undisclosed government records. - Politico 2007

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ironichaos t1_iyyosci wrote

I just asked what their purpose is. If they are going to look for foreign investment in NYC then that makes sense to me. Qatar has a shit ton of money to invest, but idk what Greece has to offer. That’s all I’m asking.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iz015mc wrote

The Mayor shouldn't be traveling to find private investors for a city. That's...a big no no.

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socialcommentary2000 t1_iz0qorp wrote

The NYC Mayors office is, behind the Presidency, the most famous elected civic office in the United States. There's a certain amount of leeway the Mayor has with attending junkets, NYC being the Us's only alpha world city.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iz0ro85 wrote

There actually is very little leeway when it comes to Conflict of Interest and corruption rules and reporting required by NYC. The issue is we allow our mayor's to appoint half the COI Board and they rarely or never are punished for what they do.

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Grass8989 t1_iyyiybj wrote

Literally, and the trips on his dime too. Love him or hate him, he’s very visible in the city and hardly hides in his office.

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Babhadfad12 t1_iyyq38j wrote

I doubt it. He went out of his way to say he was laying for his “lodging”. I would assume this means he’s only paying for the lodging, and the hotel might even discount his room so they can charge the city for all the other rooms needed for security.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iz01kf3 wrote

The trip isn't on his dime. He brought city staff and security detail, which we pay for. He only said he's paying for his own lodging. Which means meals, tickets and other events are being paid for by somebody else. But will never really know that because he refused to tell anyone in the public or press where he's going and what he's doing on this "work" trip.

By the way the better reading of the "doesn't hide in office" issue is that all he does is schmooze and get free shit on the taxpayer dime. He loves being around celebrities and partying. So what is he actually doing besides networking and promoting his own personal brand? Maybe he should spend more time in office and less getting comped meals from his sleazy friends.

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LostSoulNothing t1_iz0mr7b wrote

"On his dime" my ass. He claims that he paid for his own hotel in Qatar, even if that is true everything else (including his flights, hotel in Greece, etc) was paid for by the taxpayers or entities that will likely expect something in return. The taxpayers were also stuck with the bill (overtime, travel expenses, etc) for his security detail

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Dymatizeee t1_iyyewxg wrote

He using our tax money just to have a nice lil vacation

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Grass8989 t1_iyygyfa wrote

He went on his own dime.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iyyo6mu wrote

No, he went with staff and security detail. We paid for that.

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HEIMDVLLR t1_iyyogg2 wrote

But he wasn’t the first NYC mayor to do this and won’t be the last.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iyzqymc wrote

And every time a Mayor does this, journalists report on it and people get angry. It continues to be unethical and shady as hell.

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libananahammock t1_iyzrg5k wrote

And that doesn’t make it okay.

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Filmatic113 t1_iz06mby wrote

There are bigger things happening in the world

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libananahammock t1_iz06xni wrote

I mean, you could say that about most acts of corruption and other illegal things but that doesn’t mean we don’t work to stop it.

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NashvilleHot t1_iz0bdlp wrote

It could be argued that most of what’s behind those bigger things happening in the world is corruption.

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mowotlarx OP t1_iz0rwyl wrote

There are bigger things happening in NYC, so why are we supposed to be cool with the Mayor wasting tax payer money and his time on a dumb ass vacation to Greece and Qatar with the weakest justifications? A summit in Greece on antisemitism? For real?

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nexert233 t1_iyynfxm wrote

Sounds like some of the hotel was paid for by him. However, I’m sure all transportations costs were out of tax payer pockets.

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surferskaterpro t1_iyyxd65 wrote

did the ny times really think this guy would have a credible meeting dossier on his trip ?? he prolly just sat in the hotel getting back massages and smoking cigars. i'm just surprised the nypd didn't take over the city while he was away.

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603er t1_iyymzul wrote

Were there aggressive panhandlers on the Qatari metro or no? Any lessons learned from that?

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Gohanto t1_iz014ff wrote

There are not, largely as they deport anyone without a job out of the country and put anyone hassling tourists in jail.

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brihamedit t1_iz09kc9 wrote

Are M.E funders gifting adams tickets? vacation expenses? If there are foreign funders, you can be certain they are buying some level of influence. Could be anything.

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beagle_bathouse t1_iz1aupg wrote

Literally:

  1. show up to Qatar

  2. ???? [definitely not a financial crime]

  3. Profit

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JuliaMac65 t1_iz0ge0f wrote

He should be here fixing things.

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DawgsWorld t1_iz1ln3c wrote

It was waiting to take him away. 🎼

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Own_Decision_4063 t1_iz2ofr3 wrote

Wanted to go to the world cup paid by NYC. He should stop being the celebrity major and jet setting, attending gala events and clean up his own mess of a city that he was stupidly elected for.

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mousekeeping t1_iz2wq49 wrote

Going to Qatar is shady for anyone (unless you’re one of their ‘guest workers’ AKA slaves).

There is basically no reason to go there except for tax evasion, helping them suppress democracy and keep their indentured servants in line, or (if ethics aren’t a big deal to you) I guess soccer.

It’s like the Cayman Islands with worse beaches, less financial regulation, and an unbearable upper class that are some of the most spoiled, lazy, abusive nouveaux riche people on the planet. Even other Arabs find them to be unbearable narcissists.

If you’re a native Qatari you literally don’t need to do anything ever - government provides healthcare, education, food subsidies, free gasoline, and servants from the cradle to the grave.

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lovelyangelgirl t1_iyzoy9t wrote

Idk, doesn’t he plan to have NYC host the next World Cup?

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mowotlarx OP t1_iyzqteg wrote

So he needs to go to Qatar 4 years beforehand to "study" how it's done? That's a reach.

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d2d2d2d2d2 t1_iz0ekdp wrote

NYC isn't hosting it! The games will be played across North America, and the closest games to NYC will be in NJ.

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