Most Powerful City in the World? (taxes, live in, centers)

[SouthCali4LifeSD]

LA also has a huge porn industry. 80% of pornos come out of the san fernando valley. porn has a lot of deceptive power. i guess i vote LA too!

[CarolinaBredChicagoan]

Originally Posted by DannyBanany

Media has a lot of power. Los Angeles is home for media/Hollywood. I vote LA.

More movies come out of Bollywood every year than Hollywood. Media isn't universal. Finance is probably a better indicator, imho.

[goozer]

Originally Posted by DC's Finest

NYC is the most influential but come on. Get serious! DC by a landslide. If North Korea or China starts to act up, who are you gonna turn to for answers. NYC? LA? Chicago? Decisions made in DC shape the free world.

Cuban Missile Crisis is a prime example!
September 11th is another example!

I would also add that your list of ranking cities is outdated. Hong Kong is the financial capital of China but all of China's decisions are made in Bejing.

Gotta agree here. The guy who sits in the white house has the ability to launch a nuclear strike that could vaporize any other country in the world.

[oilpainter]

How much is that institution in New York selling for now, 2 bucks a share? Real powerful environment D.C. without a doubt.

[SouthCali4LifeSD]

Originally Posted by oilpainter

How much is that institution in New York selling for now, 2 bucks a share? Real powerful environment D.C. without a doubt.

actually, it's trading for $6.50+ a share, and Bear Stearns is only one organization. You can't use a sample size of one to speak for an entire city. Do you realize how many financial institutions are based in NYC? So many that JP Morgan, another NYC based company, BOUGHT Bear Stearns.

the answer is still NYC until otherwise proven wrong!

[oilpainter]

Originally Posted by SouthCali4LifeSD

Do you realize how many financial institutions are based in NYC? So many that JP Morgan, another NYC based company, BOUGHT Bear Stearns.

the answer is still NYC until otherwise proven wrong!

I think that just happened. And yet another example of how industry is being subsidized in NY by the rest of us when it fails. How many banks dipped into the sub-prime mess, looking for even more money? Could happen again, and the Feds (the rest of us) can only bail those institutions out so many times. Typical.

[SouthCali4LifeSD]

Originally Posted by oilpainter

I think that just happened. And yet another example of how industry is being subsidized in NY by the rest of us when it fails. How many banks dipped into the sub-prime mess, looking for even more money? Could happen again, and the Feds (the rest of us) can only bail those institutions out so many times. Typical.

i lost a lot of money in those damn financials it hurts to think! and like an idiot, i knew the fed was cutting rates yesterday and i sold all my stocks at the open, and the dow went up 420 points. i am cursed

[oilpainter]

See? All that mullah went to NY. If you're going to invest, invest in your own locale. Absolute power corrupts.

[jjbradleynyc]

I've been to London, and also live near NYC. I love NYC and think it has a phenomenal influence on world culture and is "the center of the world" in many respects. However, I do think London has the edge. London is undergoing a major building boom that when mostly completed in 4-5 yrs, will transform the city's image worldwide. The city is a major financial center--rivaling, if not surpassing NYC. Hate to say it, but I think London definitely has the edge over NYC right now.

[SandyCo]

I live in Los Angeles, and entertainment is only a small piece of the pie here. It's an alpha city not because of entertainment and media, but because it's a huge city with a very diverse population.

I've never been to London or Tokyo, so I don't know what they're like. I think New York, as the financial hub of the U.S., could have a slight edge. Washington, D.C. has the political power, but I'd still say New York is #1 - at least in the U.S.