“New York may be the most maligned city in the country. Out-of-towners sometimes put off by what they think of as its sharp elbows and brusque manners. Now the world was watching what a “New York Minute” really meant when the chips were down.” I cut and pasted that from the DATELINE / Miracle Transcript / January 16, 2009 / reported by Dennis Murphy / NBC News Correspondent.
New Yorkers are different – we are brusque – we are loud – we will tell you to hurry up and move along, the same way we’ll tell you your slip is showing or your fly is open or your car is on fire – quickly, without any fanfare. The same way, we’ll rescue you from a crash landing. The same way we labored at the Twin Towers.
We won’t whisper to you in passing.
In his book, Civility – Manners, Morals, and the Etiquette of Democracy, Stephen L. Carter states that civility is, “the sum of the many sacrifices we are called to make for the sake of living together.”
In a city of 8.2 million, sacrifices are made ~ You’ve seen and heard the rescue people talking about this Miracle on the Hudson. You’ve seen their mouths move, heard the censorship BLEEP, yet read their lips, “Holy shit – it’s a plane”
We won’t whisper to you in passing.
The “New York Minute,” exists because New Yorkers make sacrifices every day. They go to work in tall and tight buildings, then go home to families, friends, neighbors, and neighborhoods to eat, watch TV, get some sleep, then set out for the living together again the next day.
We won’t whisper to you in passing.
They crowd the streets, buses, and subways, yet stop to help someone with a package, never missing the beat of a footfall or an instant of speech.
We won’t whisper to you in passing.
Sometimes we’ll say please, thank you, and you’re welcome, but only if it’s heartfelt. We can’t spend that “New York Minute,” on the mundane, when we are always preparing to make sacrifices for the sake of living together.
We won’t whisper to you in passing.
That plane, the pilot, those passengers, and all the rescuers have somehow set right 9/11.
This can help us to heal now.
And we won’t whisper to you in passing.
Kate's Window 
A great post. Thanks for showing us your perspective. Clearly you love New York and, more importantly, New Yorkers.
I came here via Humorbloggers.com. I’ll be back for more!
I agree, well done.
I love the quote about civility; it sets the record straight.
One observation: I believe New Yorkers also rose to the occasion in the muck of 9/11, helping each other, keeping their wits and yet, of course, not whispering.