[DouglasUrantia]

Originally Posted by GaylordWilshire

Jesus, I thought I was cynical. It's called capitalism, tovangar. Not a flawless system, especially as the country ages, but corruption and self-interest and moral compromise have always been integral parts of it. How do you think L.A.--or any other American city--got built in the first place? (As for the quote attributed to Balzac--its translation from his original French has been debated forever. "Behind every great fortune lies a great crime" is a simplified and convenient translation, but it's a good idea to remember the subtleties of a more direct translation, such as "The secret of a great success for which you are at a loss to account is a crime that has never been found out, because it was properly executed."

In other words..."Forget it, Jake. It's Chinatown"


Now, back to noir. Here's a link to an old post of mine that combines a school, bricks, and noir, and even an Ayn Rand connection: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...postcount=7373

Well stated Mr. Wilshire. At the end of the day all the little people who built LA are dead and gone. Oh and BTW, so are all of the titans. That's real justice.