Drunk People Assert Claim To Ancestal Homeland

"The Bowery" was once synonymous with the natural habitat for intoxicated ne'er-do-wells whose rich language and traditions and legendary hospitality toward outsiders were celebrated in the lyrics of a popular ditty:

The Bow'ry, the Bow'ry
They say such things and they do strange things,
On the Bow'ry! The Bow'ry!
I'll never go there any more.
-"The Bowery", by Charles H. Hoyt and Percy Gaunt

In the early 1960s, however, an influx of bohemians, artists, writers and musicians dramatically shifted the demographics of the neighborhood due east of Greenwich Village away from the lovable, comically hiccuping and staggering tramps to a new breed of vainglorious substance abuser--and the East Village was born!

According to the New York Times, the East Village's unchecked proliferation of bars, clubs and lounges is luring a new generation of sloppy, noisy inebriates back to the homeland of their forebears. In an ironic reversal of fortune worthy of a lugubrious spoken word poem, it is now the the diverse, bohemian culture that is being driven from the land, due--in part--to the resurgent hearty partiers and their deep-pocketed backers, the Bank of Mom and Dad.

But the near extinction of the East Village Bohemian is a result of many irreversible changes in the neighborhood's eco-system, and the introduction of invasive, well-heeled species is but one. Initiatives to preserve the neighborhood's unique character through historical preservation and subsidized housing for artists are--fortunately--underway.

LINX
If you live in Apt. #665, just guess who lives next door... (NYT)
Shoplifters Look Forward To Easier Commute (BP)
What's a home without a nosebleed? (Sun)