Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Bloomberg: You Wouldn't Murder Your Parents, So Why Would You Park Illegally?
By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 4, 2011
Modified Nov 4, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Ben Yakas
Published Nov 4, 2011
Modified Nov 4, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Mayor Bloomberg is quite adept at verbal jujitsu when he needs to be—which has become quite clear in his bipolar responses to the ongoing Occupy Wall Street protests. But he outdid himself today on his radio show: when he was asked about a bill that would ban hard-to-remove parking violation stickers, Bloomberg weaved into a metaphor which involved murdering your parents as he defended their continued usage.
If people are complaining, then we should keep doing it...I mean, don’t break the law. It’s almost like, you know, you murder your parents and then you say to the judge, ‘But I’m an orphan, you can’t put me in jail.’ Don’t murder your parents, you don’t have, you’re not an orphan, and in this case, don’t break the law you don’t have to worry about it.
Brooklyn Councilman David Greenfield has introduced the bill to outlaw the stickers —“Innocent until proven guilty is true for everything except alternate side parking,” he quipped. The Sanitation Department, which affixes approximately 400 stickers a week, claims they’re more effective at clearing the streets of cars before street sweepers arrive than fines. “If you don’t like the law of cleaning the streets or alternate side, change that, but don’t go break the law,” Bloomberg added.
The City Council also approved a plan yesterday backing Albany legislation that would allow the city to implement a residential parking permit program. The program is intended to curb traffic by designating street parking for local residents, but critics say it amounts to a tax for something that has always been free. Bloomberg isn't nervous about it either way: "I'm told it has no chance of passing," he said this morning. But if it did pass, would that be like stealing your sickly grandparents' organs and selling them on the black market?
Tagged
bloomberg
illegal parking
mayor bloomberg
metaphors
parking
parking violation stickers
residential parking permits
Ben Yakas
Ben Yakas is a former Gothamist reporter.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Plainclothes ICE agent with long gun looked like mass shooter, Mayor Mamdani says
The mayor said his administration would review ICE and NYPD actions surrounding Thursday’s shooting.
By
Michael Sol Warren
Published Oct 11, 2026 at 1:49 p.m. ET
NJ Transit riders face 5 weeks of schedule disruptions starting Sunday
NJ Transit and Amtrak riders should prepare for cancellations, schedule changes and longer commutes as work continues on the new Portal North Bridge.
By
Giulia Heyward
News
NJ Transit riders face 5 weeks of schedule disruptions starting Sunday
NJ Transit and Amtrak riders should prepare for cancellations, schedule changes and longer commutes as work continues on the new Portal North Bridge.
By
Giulia Heyward
For a Democrat in a traditionally red NJ district, how to woo Republican voters
By
Mike Hayes
2 pedestrians killed in Bronx crash after driver ran red light, police say
By
Brittany Kriegstein
and
Ann Givens
Rain could put a damper on NYC’s long weekend. Here’s when it will clear.
By
Brittany Kriegstein
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .