A Story Of Units Lesson 6 Exit Ticket 2 1: Fill & Download for Free

June 3 , 1999 . A Horrible Bus Accident . We all could have been burnt alive .Met with a horrible bus accident where we all could have lost our lives ( Mom , dad , younger brother and myself ) .My native is Ratnagiri , Maharashtra . The Land of Mangoes . My dad started his career and then a family in Indore , Madhya Pradesh . Maharashtrians all over India will definitely travel yearly to their respective natives . It's with everyone but still . Traveling to native place for us would be via a halt at Mumbai at that time . Train till Mumbai then bus to my native place after staying at our relatives house for a day or two . It was joint family setup so the house was fun to be in . The journey was lengthy but worth it as we had no touch with our relatives otherwise except letters , post cards and monthly calls . Yes , that age ! Being from middle class , flights were out of question. Also bus to/from Mumbai from/to native place was the best option for us at that time .After spending nice time in May 1999 at native it was time to return to Mumbai and then Indore . June 3rd was the day . But this time the Bus wasn't a daily scheduled one . During peak months like April , May , June, the state govt adds extra buses to the fleet as per rise in number of travelers . And the tickets are available quite easily sometimes . We had our reservation in one of these extra buses that night . Seems the depot could not manage a driver that day and asked an already overworked driver to take our bus to Mumbai . The bus was supposed to start at 6 PM but started at 9 PM instead due to this. Something did not feel right that day . I don't know about others , but I do have this black or white feeling at times that something is fishy. After waiting for like 3 hours our journey started . Normally I feel sleepy by 3:00 AM but this fateful night I could not sleep . At around 5:30- 6:00 AM , when I was awake , I remember I was looking out of the window with my hands firmly on the front seat handle bar where we were going parallel to a railway track somewhere near Panvel .My mom was sleeping keeping her head on her hands and her hands crossed around the same bar. Brother by my side and dad was asleep too. It was dawn already . Nice bluish yellow sky . Then suddenly a big jerk and people screaming on top of their voices . I had closed my eyes during those few seconds . When I opened my eyes I had to comprehend where I was . I could not see my family nor the seats . Seats were gone for a while till I looked up . The seats were at the top and we all 60–65 passengers were lying down . The bus was upside down! And the most horrible part was diesel all over us . We all were drenched in diesel , yes diesel . The tank had burst and leaked on all of us since the bus was upside down and that too quickly.Now , what happened exactly ? The bus driver slept at the end . Two-three days of non stop driving it was . You guys won't want to know what happened to him ! Will keep it out of this. The highway was straight single lane elevated road with wet fields on both sides . May be it rained . He rammed the bus into a tree and then the bus rolled down side ways to the field . Imagine finding your family in this mishap . Now , the diesel itches a bit . I still know how it feels . It stinks . The itching stinks . Now I had to find my family . Some people managed to exit the bus from the rear emergency exit . I found my younger brother somehow while he too was searching for my mom and dad . Anxiety to find parents made me forget that we were not so far from getting burnt alive . We were searching for them while others slowly tried evacuating the bus . Found my mom then with her right hand broken and left wrist twisted . Horrible ! She wore a yellow saree that day and used her pallu to wrap her hand to keep it straight . The way she slept caused her hand to break. We three then resumed our search for dad. We found him after couple of minutes later lying unconscious with his left hand broken and pulled him out of the bus . This was the scariest and most ambiguous part since we had to pull him out while others were still lying lifeless being helped simultaneously . Fields were wet so even after getting out we had to struggle getting to the road . Local community helped us here with getting far from the bus whose diesel tank had burst . I still can recollect the whole scene where I was staring the bus . Roughly 20 people died on the spot . Many of whom still inside . Saw the scene for last damn time and headed towards the traffic . I could see not many people helping us who were passing by . Also , my parents got robbed of their jwellery by some locals who were helping us. Had no sense about this jwellery stuff then . Then a young Sardar who was driving another govt bus stopped and asked all current passengers to get down and let us in . Majority of us got in and he then took off . I could see how worried even he was with the way he was trying to get us to the nearest hospital . We reached a hospital shortly . He even took the bus directly inside the entry area where buses were definitely not allowed and was also a bit narrow . Some ward boys tried interrupting but when they saw who really inside were , they guided us inside the building where normally the ambulances are parked . God bless that Sardar who was a hero for me and rest that day . We then were taken to respective first aid rooms with my dad in the operation theater . It was already 9–10 AM by then . There were about 4 people that day who did not even get a scratch by this accident . A lady in her 30s , a baby may be a few months old , my younger brother and myself . We 4 were confirmed not hurt at all physically . May be there might have been 2–3 people more but we all 4 people narrowly escaped . We were the luckiest ones . My mom was then taken into the operation theater while my dad was still in . I and my brother stayed outside for a while thinking about whats gonna happen now . I was 8 years old and my brother was 3 at that time . We sat outside mom’s operation theater while my dad’s operation theater was a bit far . By 4 PM , an old nurse asked us if we ate anything or not . We had not eaten anything the whole day . Diesel’s smell had killed our hunger I think . That nurse then offered us milk and bread . I can still faintly recollect how it tasted that day. Now , I have always been very choosy when it came to food . I do remember my parents doing anything to keep my taste buds satisfied right from my “Cerelac days” and they still do . My mom had developed a habit of asking me what to make for breakfast , lunch or dinner . She still does at times . “Pappu , xyz bhaji ani hey hey banavte ahe , kashil na ? ( Pappu , my pet name , I am making so and so stuff , you will eat it right ? ) I believe that was the first time she wasn’t there to edit the menu ! We gulped everything we could . Even asked for more . My dad had gained his consciousness later and the hospital staff asked about our relative’s contact details at night . My mom just knew where they lived but my dad had his mini phone diary but could not recollect the exact name of relatives . After some attempts dad told the contact and they were called to take me and my brother with them. They arrived at the hospital that night and it felt so good . We were happy to see them around . I do remember we did not cry at all during the whole time. Everything happened so fast . We arrived at cousin’s house in Mumbai late at night after like an hour of local train’s journey . ( Never knew that these local train will become a big part of my life later on when we relocated to Mumbai eventually , with occasional first class travel now just to enjoy hanging outside the bogie comfortably a bit . I strongly feel everything we cross our paths with, be it things or people , they all are strongly connected. Not being philosophical here ). Our names were there in local newspaper articles the very next day . The place where this happened near Mumbai is quite notorious for accidents by the way .After arriving at our relative’s house , we had bath . We definitely needed help with getting rid of diesel that night . These guys helped us with bathing with maximum foam they could create by rubbing us as hard as they can . It actually took me 1 week to feel the diesel’s smell finally gone . We were then fed some plain dosa with some tea . Slept then for a while . The next morning some of other relatives headed towards the hospital again . Now my dad used to work for Raja Ramanna Center for Advanced technology , Indore , a unit of Department of Atomic Energy . My dad’s uncle used to work in Bhabha Atomic Research Centre - BARC , another unit of DAE . Hence he made arrangements to shift my parents to BARC hospital which was not so far and asap . So shortly they were shifted to BARC hospital where to our nightmare the doctors said the initial surgery was not properly done . Within a week , my dad was operated again with platinum plates being inserted which are still in and will never be taken out ( since doctors joked after a few years that its skin and not a zipper to keep on operating the same patch of flesh ). Meanwhile I was asked to come to a warehouse where all our luggage was dumped belonging to all passengers . Same relatives accompanied me there. Found some stuff but we had to discard some because it was damaged due to the fuel . After being hospitalized for couple of weeks , parents were discharged and we left for Indore . Now , my dad’s left hand and my mom’s both hands were heavily plastered . We asked one of our aunts ( Mom’s youngest sister, I have total 5 such aunts ) to accompany us to Indore as my mom needed help for the basic of the basic things of daily life .We resumed our school after vacation and trust me , I loved it ever than before . Till 2nd standard I hated school . Fights and all . Post accident , I was in 3rd standard and I loved every bit of it . Emotional attachment with the moments were at its peak . Each class was ecstatic . It would make me forget the tough time we had been through just couple of months ago . Some of our dad’s friends and their relatives helped us a lot in reshaping our mental well being . ( We are still in touch with them and I recently visited Indore and met those special people after 17 years ). My mom was more affected since we three had our school and work to keep ourselves busy but she being a stay at home mom , trauma was definitely something which stayed with her for a while . And still has not completely recovered . I do feel that I lost a small part of my jolly parents there and I am still that 8 years old kid a bit . 6 months my paternal grandma came to Indore to help while our aunt returned. It was highly exhaustive for her . We owe her a lot for her help . I still visit her whenever I am at my native place . Simultaneously my dad requested his research center to relocate us to Mumbai since it was easier for us to be in touch with our relatives and native place . May 2000 , after a year , we shifted to Mumbai . Joined my 4th standard class in Mumbai . The name of the school and hence the uniform were same. Rest was different . We have been taught in fairly strict CBSE Board schools and the new school did feel homely a bit. State board people please don't judge me now !! Nhaaa . It took me couple of months to adjust but made some friends for life in Mumbai . Obviously I turned out to be a bit of weirdo and I just needed to find other wierdos to resonate with . I wasn't afraid of exams anymore . School was indeed my second home . It took us 2 years to finally get a quarter of our own in the govt colony we used to live in . Till then we were moving from one house to another . The visits to hospital were frequent initially. Being a fairly quite guy , the school curriculum and evening time spent on playgrounds with more kids played an important role in keeping me hooked to some or the other thing . I am known to laugh at wrong times sometimes among my closed circle of friends . I just cant control . I just enjoy some moments. It has been almost two decades since this incident and all feels great . My parents have not discarded the clothes they were wearing that night . That yellow saree and shirt of my dad . I did sniff these twice or thrice in past couple of years to check out for that smell of diesel . The smell is gone. Sigh !! You guys have no clue how happy I am . To be alive . To enjoy even the slightest of the things . Be it even walking post dinner or getting scolded by parents for irresponsible stuff. Its sometimes intentional . I am there to see it , to feel it . After all , breath is the frequency of life , isn't it !Things have changed now of course . We travel via our own car now since a decade. My dad once said he bought car also because of my mom’s motion sickness due to buses . We did resume our travel to native place via the same buses but I was reluctant to travel at times . I do avoid the state govt buses now as much as I can not for being afraid but because of the loud noise of the turbocharged engine with shaky shaky ride. But yes , I do pray once when I get in one ! My recent Indore's visit was done by bus only even though I had options of flight and train , accidental insurance cover-check !!We stayed alone in another state for almost a decade initially . Almost cut from our family residing in Mumbai and native place . Have felt one thing , we do need our family and friends by our side on toughest times to channelize the energy of the one in need . We slowly breakdown after such repeated incidents in the absence of our family . By family I mean even the ones we have in Indore right now . Though I am very bad in keeping in touch with people . After the incident or accident whatever we call it , I did receive many life advices along with sympathy . Subconsciously I am following many I believe .Made people cry till 1999 and smile since then .

A New York city mayor running for President of the United States? Many have tried, many have been talked about, but none so far have won. That could change, and I'll get to why, but...Meantime, you guys got time for a little story?A story that will take you through an airplane crash, bad timing, a bosses' puppet turned corruption fighter... two of 'em, why it's bad to make fun of small towns, a politician named Clinton (not that one or that one), and an assassination caught on film...YOU SEE, ALL THAT NEW YORK WORLD photographer William Warnecke really wanted to do was take the picture of the Mayor of City of New York, in a lively pose, while talking.Instead he recorded history...It was 1910, and then New York City Mayor William J. Gaynor was touring a boat docked outside of Hoboken, NJ. Warnecke was getting a few photos of the Hishonor, not sure which one would be used, if any, in the next day's issue. Just as he snapped his camera, a disgruntled and recently fired city employee named James Gallagher walked up to the mayor and, at point blank range, shot a bullet through Gaynor's neck.Gun and camera were improbably timed. And in an age well before TV journalism, the resulting image was one of the greatest but also the most horrific works of photojournalism up until that point.Gaynor would survive the shot and recover quickly, though the bullet would remain lodged in his throat. And given his record of reforms in a city run by bosses- indeed Gallagher was just one of many boss -- appointed employees that Gaynor had dealt with, but especially given that Gaynor was and still is the only new york mayor to suffer an assassination attempt, and given that the photo made its way around the world, Gaynor became a national name and was mentioned among many as a candidate for governor and / or President. But three years later, just as Gaynor was to run for a second term, something that would have been needed if he was going to be considered for President, complications from the shooting caught up with him, and he passed away in 1913.Gaynor is rare to be a New York City Mayor known and liked nationally, and to be under serious consideration for President. But why? why didn't more people rise up from America's greatest city to lead the nation. Why is it rare for Mayors to even be talked about for President... until 2007.By announcing his intention of running for President as a former mayor of New York in 2007, Rudolph Giuliani became one of just three individuals in 218 years to formally go from having what one John Lindsay called "The Second Hardest Job in the World", and to then officially try to secure what must be, to follow that logic, the First Hardest Job. In the entire history of the Presidency and the Mayorality of America's largest city, which actually has a longer history than the office of the American President, the paths of these two great offices, these jobs of great responsibility, headaches, control over the lives of citizens and jobs, have not often crossed, though there's been a few moves in that direction.Prior to 1991, when someone spoke of two Clintons in politics, there were two very different Clintons they were speaking of: George Clinton, Thomas Jefferson's Vice President and former governor of New York, -- and his nephew, DeWitt Clinton. De Witt Clinton was like his uncle a politician in Jeffersonian Republican circles, and was appointed Mayor of New York twice. This was before the Mayor was popularly elected, that would not occur until 1834. In this case the mayor was appointed by a state board which was in control of his uncle.So disappointed with President Madison, particularly his embargo against England that hurt Northeast merchants, that DeWitt Clinton switched to the Federalist party (or we should say, sought the Federalist's out) in time for the 1812 election, and ran against James Madison in attempt for a second term. With Madison, deep in an unpopular war, DeWitt came pretty close but would fail to get the Presidency, and would go on to finish his term as mayor and then become New York governor.The Mayor Who Ran For President of New York CityProbably the boldest mayor was Fernando Wood, the first New York City mayor to recognize, cultivate and manipulate the Irish-American immigration coming into the city and the creator of the New York Police Department as a source of jobs for them. Though Wood's police were not the NYPD of today , they were corrupt and deeply associated with gangs such as the Dead Rabbits and the Bowery Boys.Fernando Wood never ran for President of the United States --- but did attempt to make New York City its own country and then preside over it. Well, if not a country, more like a Free City. When South Carolina seceded in 1861, New York City, which did a brisk business with the South, was perhaps about to lose a lot of its customers. Business leaders were concerned about the upcoming war. Wood's solution was that New York city secede. There were benefits to the concept... as Mayor Wood detailed.As a free city, with but nominal duty on imports, her local Government could be supported without taxation upon her people. Thus we could live free from taxes, and have cheap goods nearly duty free.His idea was not immediately dismissed either. City businessmen were considering Wood's idea. There was no way to predict how the Civil War was going to go at the outset. There had been cities in Europe, such as the not-yet-unified Germany and cities like Hamburg, which were 'free cities.' of no nation. Also, Mayor Wood's suggestion came at a time when it looked like their may be many successions -- one of the Pacific states like California and Oregon, one of the Midwest, as well as the south. In such a scenario, New York would be one of many.One person not taking Mayor Wood's idea seriously was the new President Elect, Abraham Lincoln who would not take office for another month when Wood made his proposal to the city council. Lincoln had just been elected with a minority of the votes, losing 2 to 1 in New York City. He regarded as folly to think that new York could survive and perform all its needed services from port revenue without the benefits of national government. Comparing New York City to the Front Door of America,It will take some time for the front door to settle the house-keeping for itself.A backwoodsman criticizing the snobbery and arrogance of the big city. Though the politics were reversed, the cultural feeling was the same.It was not Lincoln's sarcasm that did in Fernando Wood's chances to move from Mayor of a city to leader of a country. It was the Confederacy he was hoping to do business with. They instituted a new tariff policy that lowered tariffs, specifically to undercut New York City. And after the beginning of hostilities, Mayor Wood reluctantly participated in Union mobilization efforts. In the 1862 he would lose the mayor's office to a war-supporting Republican.Republicans would do quite well running for New York City mayor, although an ambitious dandy from the state legislature named Theodore Roosevelt would lose his bid in the 1880's. Mayor William Strong would combine the cities of New York and Brooklyn and take Queens, Bronx and Staten Island in. A Democrat, Robert Anderson Van Wyck, was the first true mayor of the consolidated city. Van Wyck got caught up in an ice monopoly scheme. The New York World reported that the American Ice Company of planned to double the price of ice, from 30 to 60 cents per hundred pounds (from 66 cents to 1.32 dollars per 100 kilograms). In the era before refrigeration ice was the only preservative available to keep food, milk and medicines fresh. Van Wyck owned stock in the company. Outraged Democrats joined with Republicans on a fusion ticket.This set up New York City's first Brooklyn mayor, Seth Low. He had been mayor of Brooklyn and New York City and will remain the only to do so. A well-regarded person, he was never a national candidate.The fusion ticket didn't last. Tammany Hall found a way to beat the Republicans and that was to invoke the still popular name of former Union War General George McClellan, who at this point had served a term as Governor of New Jersey. They ran his son, George McClellan, Jr. or Max McClellan, and he defeated Seth Low.As head of Alderman and acting mayor in the 1890's, he was famous for ordering an Irish flag raised over city hall on St. Pats and didn't back down when questioned about it. As mayor, he named Times Square, builte bridges. He established the first NYC subway and drove it himself for the first ride. (This according to the excellent Bowery Boys Podcasts Know Your Mayors: George B. McClellan Jr. - The Bowery Boys: New York City History.)An intrepid tale springs up about McClellan involving the grand opening of the IRT’s first subway tunnelin October 27, 1904. Meant only go ceremonially start up the engine of the first train, McClellen requested that he would like to actually go ahead and drive the train all the way up to Harlem! (And Bloomberg brags that he only rides the train.) He deftly steered the new engine up to 103rd Street before handing over the controls.He also banned movies on Christmas Eve one year.The mayor exiting one of those new automobiles. But his ride would end. McClellan's aren't known for liking politicians - see my answer on his father and his opinion about how the war went - he started hiring non Tammany Hall employees, and relations between he and the bosses that sponsored him soured, and he was denied a third term in 1909.But not before his name was floated at the 1904 Democratic convention in St. Louis. After two losses by William Jennings Bryan, the party needed a break from populism. Yet there was too many competitors. There were 13 candidates for president: Alton B. Parker, William Randolph Hearst, Francis Cockrell, Richard Olney, Edward C. Wall, George Gray, John Sharp Williams, Robert E. Pattison, George B. McClellan Jr., Nelson A. Miles, Charles A. Towne, Arthur Pea Gorman and Bird S. Coler. It took one ballot of commitments, one ballot of shifts and a unanimous vote to decide on Parker as the presidential candidate. Why? He offended no one, not the hard money types nor the Populists.Tragic Reformer and Boy MayorWith the dark cloak of Tammany Hall controlling events, the mayorality and the Presidency would not be talked about much together, even remotely, until 1910 when an unconventional mayor named William J. Gaynor was appointed, a creature of Tammany Hall bosses. But once Gaynor got in, he soon defied Tammany hall. He filled high level government posts with experts and city employees were chosen from civil service lists in the order they appeared, effectively curbing patronage and nepotism, and continued the development of the New York City subway system. As we refered to earlier, Gaynor's time as mayor would be cut short by the lingering effects of an assassination attempt on him.His dream didn't completely die with that bullet. The man who succeeded Gaynor would share his reformist beliefs. A special election was held and at thirty-five years old, John Purroy Mitchel was the youngest person ever to be elected Mayor of New York City, a distinction that earned him the nickname, "Boy Mayor."A hyper ambitious graduate of Columbia University and New York Law School, Mitchel held numerous government posts after being admitted to the bar. While city Commissioner of Accounts, Mitchel uncovered a protection racket in the Police Department and conducted investigations that forced the ouster of two borough presidents, and prompted another to flee the continent. In 1913, he dealt a crushing blow to Tammany Hall, winning the mayoral election on a fusion ticket by a large plurality.Mitchel's waste-cutting measures and accounting practices earned the city national acclaim. He brought into the administration competent professionals and devised a zoning plan to govern city development — the first such plan in the nation. He also standardized salary and work requirements for city employees. But Mitchel was unable to beat Tammany a second time to win re-election. In 1918, he enlisted in the Army Air Service to be trained as a pilot in World War I. His life was cut short during a training exercise in Louisiana, when his plane plummeted 500 feet to the ground on July 6, 1918. He was only a few days shy of his 39th birthday when the incident occurred. Though he would never live to see future office or national office, Mitchell did see national press...there is no doubt that had he returned from World War I which would have lasted only about six months after his accident, as a hero and former reforming mayor, a gubernatorial and perhaps national office was sure to follow. This was a man not even 40 who had already served a term as mayor of America's biggest city.As Theodore Roosevelt said about him. "No stauncher American, no abler and more disinterested public servant, and no finer natural soldier than Purroy Mitchel was to be found in all our country." Surely the plane took the life of young man who was going places.LaGuardiaOne New York City politician who had better luck with his own airplane, who did make it back from the early air service of World War I was Fiorello LaGuardia, or "Little Flower," son of immigrants of Italian and Jewish ancestry one of the best known mayors in New York City history.He interrupted his first term in Congress to fly a plane called the Congressional Limited over the fields of France. His tenure redefined the office. He was reelected to Congress, and after. After losing the mayoral election to Jimmy Walker in 1929, he successfully ran for mayor again in 1933 on a fusion ticket after Walker would resign in disgrace.More importantly, La Guardia was able to do what many 'reform mayors' were not able to do - he was reelected. For the next twelve years, the 5 foot 2, demanding, chief executive dominated New York City.And he was popular - he ferreted out corruption in city government and brought in talented professionals. LaGuardia earned a reputation for placing the city ahead of politics. Although technically a Republican, he worked closely with the New Deal administration of President Franklin Roosevelt to secure funding for large public works projects. LaGuardia never made any moves for national office during Roosevelt's lifetime, but in 1945, after Roosevelt's death the first three-term New York City mayor decided not to seek a fourth term, and it was widely sought that in a time when one out of 10 Americans were in New York, LaGuardia was going to enter national politics. But his health would thwart his ambitions, would die of pancreatic cancer before the next Presidential election in 1947.Lindsay's AmbitionJohn Lindsay, a Republican Congressman with a Kennedy-like charm, successfully ran for mayor in 1965 as a Republican in a three-way race defeating the Democratic candidate Abe Beame, then City Comptroller, as well as National Review founder William F. Buckley, Jr., who ran on the Conservative line. Lindsay inherited a city with serious fiscal and economic problems. On his first day as mayor, the Transport Workers Union of America (TWU) led by Mike Quill shut down the city with a complete halt of subway and bus service.One area of success was in race relations where though New York was no interracial utopia in the late 60's, the city managed to avoid a major race riot that had plagued several other major American cities. Lindsay was credited for this, and his walks in different neighborhoods helped residents to keep calm.Lindsay's position in the Republican Party grew precarious over time. In 1969, a backlash against Lindsay's policies caused him to lose the Republican mayoral primary to State Senator John J. Marchi. Lindsay was still on the ballot as the candidate of the Liberal Party, and with a coalition of minorities, Jews and public sector unions to eke out a win by a plurality. Lindsay would take this razor-thin reelection as a sign that he should be promoted, and in 1971 Lindsay became a Democrat and shortly thereafter began a brief and quite unsuccessful bid for the Democratic Presidential nomination. His run was never serious and he attracted more attention from hecklers and protesters than voters.You could say in general terms that the famous Ed Koch, who became mayor in 1978, was a Presidential possibility, however slight. In 1982, he ran unsuccessfully for Governor of New York, losing the Democratic primary to Mario Cuomo, who was then lieutenant governor. A pledge that all he was interested in was being mayor hurt him, as well as an interview with Playboy magazine in which he described the lifestyle of both suburbia and upstate New York as "sterile" and lamented the thought of having to live in "the small town" of Albany as Governor, turning off most voters from outside the city. So while its true Koch never ran for President, though much of the eighties he and Speaker Tip O'Neil were the best known Democrats.Cuomo, he was never as well known as Koch when he ran for governor had parlayed that office in to national fame, albeit never tested Presidentially. Had Koch and not Cuomo won the governorship, who knows where this personable figure would have sought out next?A Matter of Timing?Since Lindsay, no mayor actually had run until Rudolph Giuliani. For him, the crime-fighting mayor had a national reputation especially reinforced by an overwhelming reelection in a city of Democrats and the national profile on NYC as a result of the 9/11 terror attacks. But his timing was somewhat unlucky. Giulani's two terms as mayor propelled him to the national scene but at a time too early in his first term to be seriously considered for President in 1996, and by the time of his exit, a member of his own party was President and just starting an eight year stretch.A Republican who could win New York City and likely the state was a rare bird in those days, and had the GOP nod been open in say,2004, he might have a great shot. As it was in 2008 the GOP chances weren't very good, and Giuliani made a fateful decision to stay out of Iowa and New Hampshire, allowing John McCain to gain early momentum.He spent millions of dollars in the Florida primary, only to lose to McCain. While he likely will not become President, a former mayor of NYC has taught a valuable lesson to future campaigns.Bloomberg's First "Not-Run"Giuliani's successor Michael Bloomberg. Though he keeps saying he is not a candidate, he seems to be dropping some hints, weighing in on gun control and national healthcare, issues that don't seem to be in the realm of New York city mayor alone. He's ended some speeches calling for Americans to think anew and set a new course for our nation...then combined with the fact that he refuses to rule out a run in the future. It's not likely that Bloomie challenges Rudy, but many are concluding that he is looking to create a Republican left wing in '08 I didn't happen, and in 2009 he left the Republican party to boost his third-term chances. But there's the talk again 8 years later.Would it have been a good idea for La Guardia, for Lindsey, for Koch to become President? Is it a good idea for Bloomberg or Giuliani? At first glance, the awesome job of Mayor of New York, with control over thousands of city jobs and a city of nearly 10 million people, would seem to be uniquely suited for a run for President. On one hand, a mayor is an executive, and we know that American voters prefer executives -- like governors, incumbent Presidents and Vice Presidents -- more than they like Senators or legislators when choosing a President.On the other hand there is a difference. The Mayor of New York has actually a lot more direct control over the city than the President has proportionately over the nation. New York City has a strong mayor-council form of government, with the mayor in charge of all day to day administration and the council approving the budget. When its not budget time, the city council serves as a weak monitoring body. What little the city council can do, the mayor can veto like the President. In fact, the control has recently gone up as the Mayor now controls the schools system of New York City.Hishonor for the most part, orders people around. He has hiring and firing power and tells people what to do. The President, outside of foreign policy, doesn't bark orders - he must lead Congress to secure funding for his policies, to approve appointments and secure treaty agreements. He must constantly court public approval. Mayors are concerned of course with re-election and public approval but in the end of the day the bulk of city government is under their control. This does not bode well for a New York Mayor running for President.Yet something has changed, particularly on the Democratic side of the equation. There is a bit more of a demographic change that helps Democrats in California, Florida. And Democrats have done better in swing states like Virginia and Colorado. And the state wins are not due to moderation in ideology but due to population changes, voter preferences, blue voters moving West and South and better Democratic turnout, especially among young voters. A New York City Democratic mayor who is able to get their party's nomination may have more of a shot than they would have in the 80's.Now it's too early to look at this, but I do note that current mayor Bill de Blasio is attending a fair amount of national conferences supporting a more progressive agenda for the party. He's also visited Iowa. While only in his first term, if he can cobble a second term victory (and perhaps run for governor), I would not be surprised to see him mentioned as a Presidential possibility, a Bernie Sanders of the 2020 or 2024 race. Long way off.Getting Around to Bloomie. And, you know, Answering the QuestionSo while history doesn't have a lot of hope for a New York City mayor running for President, demographics have changed a bit in the electoral college, always purple has taken on a blueish tint. Bloomberg has staked out a national position particularly on gun control and could attract some attention.He has run both as a Republican and an Independent in three terms as mayor, and had supported Democrats in the past. Ostensibly there could be some support for him. There are a couple of issues though:Independents running for President will always suffer from strategic voting considerations. Voters don't want the worse alternative, so a moderate is more appealing than favorite choice for a good part of the electorate. Even his top supporters, gun control advocates, may fear a strong gun-rights President who would be elected if he split votes.Bloomberg get's all the downside of being a New York City mayor without a serious upside of at least uniting Democrats and hoping for ubber youth turnout and an electoral college win.While a few of us believe gun control is an issue that should be more of a focus, it is a decisive issue and one that the 'anti' is strongly 'anti.' His run could enthuse partisans of the opposite side.Bloomberg generally was deemed to be a good mayor, a good manager, but he's no LaGuardia, Lindsay or even Giuliani. He lacks the personal touch and the charisma needed for a long run.His second and final terms were average by most accounts and not as successful as his first, he won his third election narrowly against a no-name where he spent millions.He could be subject to criticism as a one Percenter, upper class, sometimes a little arrogant. Great for Mayor, not so much for President.