The Hidden Wire Around New York City

did you know there's an 18m long string. of wire circling the island of Manhattan. every morning the wire is checked for. brakes and snags and every day it's. repaired and it cost about. $150,000 a year to maintain the wire has. been there for years yet most New. Yorkers myself included didn't even know. it was there let's find out. [Music]. why to understand why there's an 18m. long wire going around New York City we.

need a quick lesson about Judaism the. Sabbath begins every Friday night at. Sunset and goes all the way through. Saturday and Jewish people who observe. the sabbath Saturday is a day of rest. meaning you don't work at all and work. doesn't just mean your job work is. defined as any activity that was. necessary in the building of the. Tabernacle now that might sound like. just construction work is forbidden but. it's actually much more obviously no. building of any kind is permitted but. also no grinding baking sewing even. starting a fire not even small tasks.

like tying tearing or putting finishing. touches on objects oh and also no. electricity on the Sabbath who set up. all these rules God why doesn't God want. you to do any of this stuff on Saturday. well because he feels you should have. one day a week to engage in pleasurable. activities like eating spending time. with family and having sex Shabbat. sounds pretty good actually it can be. but on Saturday there's one tricky rule. no carrying anything from a domestic. area to a public area you can't carry.

anything nope no wallet no keys No. carrying or pushing your children in a. stroller nothing like that you can carry. these things within your home but not. outside and that's where the wire comes. in N I don't follow well stick around. and I'll tell you no. [Music]. clipping what what the heck is this. Shabbat sounds like a really good idea. so I'm sh shabas you're sh shabas shabas.

you can't just put on a hat and okay. okay take it easy show me shab over here. anyway on the Sabbath you can carry. things within your home so grabbing a. glass of water from the kitchen is fine. but you can't carry anything from your. home to a public place now this is. tricky if you want to leave your house. and lock the door behind you you aren't. permitted to carry your keys and what if. you have an infant you can't carry a. child or even push a stroller and if you. need a cane to walk no can do and if you. think this sounds incon convenient.

you're not the only one many years ago. rabbis realized that in order to fully. enjoy the Sabbath you sometimes needed. to carry things and this is where the. wire around New York comes in it's. called an AO and an AO is an unbroken. continuous string or wire that circles a. large public area now originally a ruven. were actual walls but now they're. symbolic walls and anything within the. borders of the AO is now considered part. of the domestic domain which means if. you want to carry on Saturday as as long.

as you're within the a roof you're good. to go If I Were a Rich. fishby all day long. I if I a wealthy. fish in the 1990s there were only a few. aen in the United States but now there. are hundreds if you live in a. medium-sized City there's probably an. aru or two in your neighborhood and if. you live in a big city there's. definitely at least one the most. expensive Ave in the world and the one. with the largest population is the Mayu.

in Manhattan and it began as a small. community enclosure in the upper west. side and now it covers almost the entire. island of Manhattan what area isn't. coved Hell's Kitchen checks out every. morning a rabbi drives the entire length. of the wire and notes places where it. could be broken then on Thursday and. Friday he goes out with a construction. team to make sure the wire is repaired. and it costs about $150,000 a year to. maintain this the Manhattan a has. survived vandalism two hurricanes even.

one really aggressive Thanksgiving Day. float damn you SpongeBob it's had a. couple of close calls but for over 20. years the a roof has remained intact so. there's an almost invisible wire running. around almost every major city in the. western world including 18 miles around. Manhattan Island and now you know. why thank you so much for hanging out. with me today my name is AJ that's. Heckle fish this has been the W files if. you had fun or learned anything do me a. favor and comment like subscribe and.

share and until next time be safe be. kind and know that. you you're stepping on my outro calm. down I will not calm down I'm trying to. thank people for watching the episode. and you're over here stepping on my. lines just put on the hat because I say. something that's gratitude. [Music].

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