I left NYC after there was a shooting on my subway train.

I was working in Red Hook, Brooklyn, at a dingy BBQ joint where my boss had a sleeve full of tattoo's and a happy-go-lucky demeanor, while my co-workers all rapped on the internet (much more poorly than I do) and shots rang out on my subway train.

Actually, somebody threw a smoke grenade... and then shots rang out on my subway train, literally, as though Batman himself had committed the crime. Luckily, I had arrived home from work about 2 hours earlier but this incident still bothered me. And a similar incident had actually occured in Portland, Oregon roughly 2 weeks after I'd moved to NYC in 2017. Where it almost seems as though automotive giants or soembody, apparently want me to change my view-point on the subway system... because I keep, "just missing," mass killings on the train cars. *Yet, I still prefer the train to automobiles.

In Portland, in 2017, 2 weeks after I had moved to NYC... a man on meth-amphetamine near where I used to take the train... stabbed 3 random citizens, killing 1. Regardless, I actually still believe in the subway system, despite these incidents which occurred in close proximity to my commute, however, I have recently relocated to London, England... with the hope(s) of leaving some of this behind me.

Nevertheless, I'm that person that would've been stabbed had I been on that train that day... because on several occassions I've interjected in situations where people were being, "unkind," on the train car. And this article has very little to do with that topic... but in a world where the lower class is constantly fed nothing but drugs and lies.... this is but one problem I have with the modern-day, "TUG OF WAR," between the upper and lower class regarding communal things like; subway systems, food and housing.

Nevertheless, today I'm writing this article from London, England... where I'm now seeking residence and I've come here rather precariously under those circumstances. But long story short, I was in Cincinnati, Ohio last month (*trying one more city out before deciding to leave the good-ole United States of America) when I decided that Ohio wasn't the right place for me, either. So I started calling around for apartments in the Bronx to move back to NYC... before ultimately deciding to, "take a chance," and move to London, leaving my family and friends behind in the USA for the hopes of a better life, after I had an experience that I'm now calling, "the final straw," between America and I. (*So long LA, you won't be missed.)

So, I was in Cincinnati, being solicited crack cocaine on every street corner... and I decided to call around for apartments in the Bronx, initially intending to move back to NYC, my home from 2017-2022... when I had this, "final straw experience."

And it wasn't a violent experience that caused me to move but it was an experience that was equally frustrating from my own perspective. But I'm getting to that, the incidents on the train weren't actually why I left.

So I was calling around for apartments in the Bronx... where I typically go in NYC due to the affordable cost of living and down to Earth people, when I asked the landlord what the rent was on a wonderful 1 bedroom, sub-lease.

"700$ a month, 2 months down, plus security deposit," the ad listing said. So according to the ad listing... I needed 2,100$ in order to move into a lovely, 1 bedroom flat in the Bronx, with a shared bathroom, which is not uncommon in NYC. Nothing weird there.

Whereby, I don't like to cry over, "spilled milk," although, I do still remember a time (*like in 2009) when 400$ a month was a common rental price in most American cities.

Regardless, so I called the phone number on this particular Bronx listing and I inquired about the apartment. And I actually only had 1700$ from my restaurant job at that time (*my day job) but with the help of family, I figured that a move back to NYC was, "within reach." So I called the listing and I asked the landlord if it would be possible to move in on May 1st, 2023 and how much money I needed to get the key to the apartment.

"Hey, I just saw your ad listing for the apartment, how much money down do you need to move in on May 1st?" I asked.

"3,700$," the man replied.

"Wait, what?" I said.

"The listing I saw asked for 2,100?" I said, frustrated.

"Oh," the man replied.

"Oh ok, well I guess I can take 2,300$."

And I hung up the phone, VERY ANGRY.

And then I moved to London, where I now partner with a pub under my LLC, PDX Larsen and where I'm now dealing with some beuracracy over immigrating my small business over to the UK. But I traded those problems, for these problems, I suppose.

But that was how it happened, long story short.

And I'm laughing, as I type this, over the sheer ignorance of that whole situation... but it was not funny... and that's the reality of a modern-day economy where the top and the bottom seem further apart than ever.

Nevertheless, I feel very good about moving to London, I greatly appreciate the Brit's for accepting me thus far and maybe this will turn out to be a so called, "blessing in disguise," but I'll never forget the, "final straw," that led me to leave the United States. Whereby, I had a gun pulled on me in NYC, which didn't bother me, I knew he wasn't going to pull the trigger. I got into several random fights in NYC over all sorts of remedial things and that never bothered me. I've always had a swagger, I've always thought, "the criminals ought to fear me, not the other way around," walking around NYC. And quite frankly, even the worst neighborhoods in Brooklyn and the Bronx are typically quiet as a mouse past 2am. Whereby, the raping of women is the biggest threat in NYC these days. It's a classy city.

Regardless; and without straying too far off of the topic... now, I've moved to London and this incident with the landlord was the, "final straw," in that decision making process. And people I meet often wonder why I sympathize with Vladimir Putin and Bashar Al-Assad regarding their resentment towards the West... but this is why!

Nevertheless, I enjoy living in London (*I've begun the immigration process and I plan on paying both American and British taxes through my small business in the future) and hopefully things improve moving forward. But telling these stories and speaking my truth on this blog is a, "mechanism for creating positive change," in my opinion.

Back to the article.

So basically this guy in NYC gave me a, "high price point," just to see if I would pay it! Which was rather frustrating. And I don't know very many used car salesmen personally. I know a few but not many... but even they don't do that. Although, another interesting story... I had a friend from High School tell someone to, "bully me on social media," so that he could step in and pretend to care, in an attempt to sell me a used car and quite frankly, that also led me to leave the USA.

Nevertheless, these sales techniques are the outcome of, "sheer class," within the United States today. And I didn't even mention that England has no meth-needles littering the streets... because everybody can't leave the USA at once. However, Europeans are going to have one heck of a time in 2026, visiting Chicago for the World Cup. And cities like Chicago especially frustrate me because as a child I still remember when Chicago was a really nice place to live, before 2008.

Nevertheless, the GOP blames the immigrants for the deterioration of modern America... but I think it's a more complex issue than that, centering around nepotism and a constant tug of war between the upper and lower class. BUT I'M IN ENGLAND NOW... long story short, rooting for Paris Saint Germain futball club and Liverpool FC and I'm choosing to focus on a brighter future. Yet, I won't ever forget the incidents that led me to leave.

Where was I?

Anyway, the Bronx apartment that attempted to charge me 2000$ over the listing price was the, "final straw," in that equation, which inspired today's article.

What was a fair price for that Bronx apartment? I don't know. And is that style of business, "SMART BUSINESS?" Basically, "over-charging," patrons who can afford a 2000$ price hike? Or soliciting a price based solely upon the customer's ability to pay it? Which is a problem for both the rich and the poor, today. Or what about something metaphorically similar in terms of arbitrary economics? Like giving course grades in High School? What should the price be? And when you set a standard then often times the next generation eclipses it... further belittling those in power.

But in the automative industry it is considered, "ethical," to do business in this way and might I take a minute to also point out... that Ford is, "ironically," positioned perfectly in this modern day economy centered around 50,000$ trucks and hospitals. Whereby, for those who don't know, Ford not only recieves billions of dollars in government investments through highways and roads in this country but they also build hospitals in the state of Michigan, too. But the problem is immigration and violence on the train...

Where was I? So I live in the UK now... and I far prefer this country, where education seems to be at the center of this economy.

Nevertheless, nepotism has been a problem in Europe, wealth gaps are a problem in Europe and to some extent these are universal problems around the global economy. However, with that being said, "where do we draw the line," on price gouging? And what are the ethics concerning, "price fixing," versus, "sales-men-ship?"

And personally, I find a lot of wealthy, "salesmen," to be nothing short of swindlers in today's economy. Nevertheless, as an inventor and a blogger, who also makes music... I'm always trying to take the moral highground, often only to be reminded that money is often the bi-product of ill fated decision making and a bi-product of the wealthy elites ability to tame the pride out of the much more fierce, lower class (*fake news). Whereby, selling one's, "pride," by cheating others or degrading yourself... has almost become the new status quo for making money in the United States and we'll see if that holds true in the European economy as well, moving forward.

Anyway; did you know that homosexuality is up 500% since Obama took office in 2008? Nothing sadistic about that.

Speaking of which, my next rap album is titled, "Sadistic Rich People," for those who follow my music on BilliamsWorld.com.

Back to the point... where is the ethics? Is that good business? And how should I EVOLVE in order to meander through this evil economy, moving forward?

And let's keep this to 1-2 more paragraphs... but basically, what's a fair price? Person X inherited 20 million Yen, while person Y earned 5,000 Yen working at Burger King for 25 years, so how much should they both pay for apartment Z?

Yet, that GAP in the economy is creating all sorts of issues not just in America but worldwide, today. And I don't think that it's entirely unfair that a guy like Lionel Messi makes 5000x more than the average worker... but what about his boss, who doesn't even play soccer? And there has to be some sort of common sense, particularly regarding the GREATER ECONOMY in terms of wealth, because while one man inherits 500 million Yen, the other man might not earn that much money in their entire lifetime, leading to all sorts of pitfalls in pricing and inflation. And if Messi wants to literally fight me over this... I'll break his head... and I'm just a JV level American Football guy.

Regardless; that's the issue... where we call some guys professional athletes, like Veratti and Vitinha, here in Europe... than conversely... we have kids literally playing sports at a professional level by German standards, who don't even make the JV basketball team in America.

*Among other things.

But; long story long... there has to be some sensiblity concerning wealth... and I've migrated to Europe, in part, because you see more sensibility concerning financial fairness and GENTLEMEN'S agreements, here in Europe, as opposed to the cold hearted mentality of most American business' who seek nothing but profit and self serving business practices. Although, tell Messi to take a pay cut next season and he runs away like a little girl, here, too.

**Flash back to 2017 when I knocked on Jeff Weiner's door in Manhattan, the CEO of Linked-In at the time and he ran away scared like a b****, despite having 26 billion dollars. What I can't schedule an interview online? Why did you make 26b dollars for a job board then?

Where to an extent, the police have to almost stop defending these rich people for REAL CHANGE to occur.

And in any other century, these issues might be solved with a riot and a pitch fork. But at the core of it, who are the police defending? Is 60k a year worth continuing the corruption? And sadly, that's all it takes to maintain this status quo.

But good people still exist... and I often think to some of the circumstances that one of my personal heroes dealt with early on in his career playing futball at Santo's FC in Brazil. And that HERO is Neymar Jr. who despite financial hardship(s) now represents millions, IF NOT BILLIONS of poor kids who play a game with dreams and aspirations today, not unlike myself.

And I think that Cristiano used to have some of these same ambitions, as well, concerning closing the gap between the rich and the poor. Although, I see also where guys like that (*and Eminem also comes to mind) have been hesitant to support the poor in the past. Yet, with articles like this... reaking of quality, it must be hard not to speak. Because I'm sure that Cristiano is fed up with the mistreatment of the poor, also, I'm sure he is.

But how do you fix it? How do you create a fairer economy, while at the same time rewarding EXCELLENCE, be it in sports or business?

And that comes down to sensibility in my opinion. Whereby, some rich people need to understand that they are but 1 of 7 billion human souls on this planet and that while it may seem as though most of these people are nothing short of, "heartless zombies," the reality is that we all need to eat and co-exist under the same basic financial systems.

Rich people will say, "welfare is inflating the economy, prices are going up because of government expenditures." Whereas, I might argue that NEPOTISM and an overly inflated stock market are at the heart of, "the financial problem," today.

"The financial problem."

And if England doesn't work out... then I guess I'll have to go back to Germany. Which is another not very funny, "joke." And again, one day Navalny and I, might have to sit down with Prince William and discuss the future of the Western World, concerning these matters. Although, I don't expect Erik Trump or CR7 to be present at that meeting. And these elites typically shelter their kids. Where if you've noticed, Baron Trump isn't even being allowed to hear me speak right now... on this, "fake news website," as his Dad rails against the poor. Nevertheless, Baron and I will have a number of conversations as well, one day. And I hope that Cristiano and Neymar are there at that table as well, when Navalny, Prince William and I, inherit this mess.

However, I think that Peyton Manning, Damian Lillard and a few other NBA guys might need a seat at that table, as well.

Nevertheless, as our economy is guided by Charles IIIrd and 83 year old President Reagan, I mean Biden, who continuously seems to be apologizing to people who he himself has hurt as a career politician, there's a lot to be said. Especially when things continue to get worse for some people, people being led by the same man since the 1980's. That same man, Joe Biden, who once said, "lock the SOB's up," in 1996, before rising to fame behind America's first, "black," President, although I see a world moving forward. Yet, today that world is very torn by an older generation's sheer pettiness and a prior generation that needs to refresh their thinking, specifically regarding massive amounts of wealth, as well as welfare, which is inflating the greater economy and disturbing pricing.

And you can't hide Baron Trump from me forever, DAD.

But let's talk about solutions. And from day 1, or I think I wrote the initial article in 2016 concerning food stamp vouchers and housing vouchers versus cash, but I'd like to see housing and food prices fixed, so that the rest of the economy can be more, "gamified," and less, "live or die," as opposed to this, "hot and cold," make believe prices, BS. And if I had a place to live than Messi would have to really be scared... with his little body.

***Rips open a pack of Merlin cards.

-William Larsen, Civilians News

PS: Reddit is supposedly getting a big IPO this year... on Wall Street. But they we're founded in 2005 and Civilians News was founded in 2011. So that's fair that they make 2-3b and I make nothing. But with Oprah being so talented and Verratti being so good.