NYC Marathon canceled

From nytimes.com

One of my colleagues was set to run the NYC Marathon this Sunday, which sparked a long conversation in the teachers' room today that echoed the sentiments in social media and dozens of news outlets over the past few days.

I live in New Jersey, and while Hurricane Sandy leveled parts of my home state, we were not the only ones to be hit hard.  New York City also experienced loss of power, flooding, fires, and loss of life, causing many to question the decision to continue with the marathon so quickly after such a devastating event.  On the one hand, people criticized Mayor Bloomberg and the NYC Road Runners for diverting needed resources and being insensitive to those suffering from Sandy's wrath.  Two diesel generators the size of tractor trailers sitting in Central Park for the marathon's use only added fuel to the fire.  On the other hand, people argued that such a large event would be a large economic boon to the city while giving it a much-needed morale boost.

I caught up with my colleague at the end of the day and wished her luck.  She admitted that she felt like a "total asshole" for going through with the marathon, but having registered and made travel and lodging arrangements months ago, and trained for months, she just couldn't bring herself to not go through with it.

Just a few hours later, though, the whole debate became moot anyway:

From nytimes.com

If I were in my colleague's shoes, I probably would have done the same, but let's face it: that's an easy stance to take when I haven't been immediately affected by the damage, nor witnessed any of it firsthand.  If I were to tour Staten Island tonight, I might change my mind.  What do you think?  Would staging the marathon, and participating in it, have been disrespectful?  Or would it have been a welcome and positive distraction after so much negativity preceding it?