Well ok, this is not a manifesto at all, but isn't The Red Hook Manifesto a kick ass title? Well I think so anyway ;) In the New York City Borough of Brooklyn, just south of downtown is a neighborhood called Red Hook. Most of what I knew of Red Hook before becoming a New Yorker myself came mainly from Harlan Ellison's book Memo's From Purgatory, where brass knuckle and .22 caliber pistols (called 'zipguns') packing juvenile street gangs ran the streets with impunity.
Fast forward fifty some years and Red Hook no longer possesses such an image. Red Hook is home to Brooklyn's Ikea store and several art galleries and restaurants. Its an interesting neighborhood and much like the neighborhoods of Brooklyn, it has a unique character and feel all it own which is completely different than its surrounding neighborhoods. There is one issue that one can't help but notice when visiting; unlike the majority of Brooklyn, its rather undeserved by public transportation. The majority of transportation that serves the area, ostensibly serves customers visiting Ikea.