Tons Of Trash After Times Square Bash

Million Revelers From Around Globe Join In Manhattan's Well-Managed Mayhem As Ball Drops On 2007

(AP)  A lack of alcohol didn't bother Lena Zellers, 22, of Pittsburgh, who was attending the event for the first time with friends from New Jersey. She wore a "Happy New Year" tiara and "2007" sunglasses.

"I came here to be here, not to be in a bar down the street," she said. "You can drink anytime."

Police corralled spectators for several blocks up Broadway almost to Central Park. The lucky ones were penned in around three performance stages set up for the show. More than a dozen major acts performed during the six-hour bash, including pop singer Christina Aguilera, country band Rascal Flatts and the cast of the Broadway musical "Jersey Boys."

The Texas band Radiant kicked off the event at about 6 p.m. Cheerleaders from a Long Island high school performed and organizers doled out red "2007" top hats, noisemakers and bright blue pompoms to those standing nearest the stages.

"This is the center of the universe," said Raffael Dalvise, who lives outside Venice, Italy, and traveled to the city for the holiday. "There is no other place to be."

Clark was back for ABC's "New Year's Rockin' Eve" broadcast for the second time since a stroke caused him to skip a broadcast in 2004. He co-hosted the event with Ryan Seacrest.

"It's still the biggest party in the world," a raspy but healthy-looking Clark said about 20 minutes before the countdown.

Clark had a little trouble with the 20-second countdown, starting about a second behind the ABC clock and the chanting crowd and then skipping ahead from 11 to 9 as he tried to catch up.

Warm winter temperatures in the low 40s brought out droves of tourists, but New Yorkers came out for the event, too. Eskie Garcia, of Queens, has attended the show for the past seven years.

"It's great," she said, standing next to families from Germany, South Africa and California. "You meet all sorts of people, and you take in the joy and happiness of the season. I just love it."

But almost immediately after the confetti fell and the 2007 kisses began, police started removing the barricades and crowds started dispersing. Sanitation crews began sweeping up the garbage and confetti left on the streets.

"I feel bad for whoever has to clean this up," said Stacey Stanley, 26, of London, whose new year's resolution was to eat less chocolate.

[mo005]

I have to agree with ncolsens , this was a story of trash in times square. Are you people even reading the news or going straight to the blog section. I did like what goldenpost stated just wasnt in the right area for it. Happy New Year everyone now lets get all the trash cleaned up and just get along with each other.

[bellal-2009]

"My New Year's resolution is to work on my marriage and be a good mother," said Amanda Bermudez, who just found out she's pregnant.

She hoped for peace in the Middle East in 2007.


Ahhh, that's nice. We hope for peace too, Amanda.

[randalds]

That's right, this most certainly is not a game. The families of the young men and women dying in Vietna...opps...excuse me...Iraq, don't think of this as a game. This is one of the reasons the Bush administration decided to fight this war "on the cheap" and without a general draft. They knew that the American people would not tolerate a costly war where all classes of people had to sacrifice the young of their families. So they fought a war and gave the rich a huge tax cut to win their approval and consciously decided not to have a draft so that mostly people who needed a job more then their lives would join the military and the rich kids (like the Bush twins) were safe from service.

Let's celebrate that the Bush administration has re-introduced the concept of "class" (something they have and the rest of us don't) and class warfare" into the American life.

[ecoflame]

i They are the same people who are "quibbling with the umpire" ad nauseum. Enough already, get in there and play the game! This is 2007! /i

This isn't a game. We're not 9 years old playing dodge ball. This is stuff that impacts people's lives.

I don't know too many who want to hurry off to NYC to contribute to trashing the street because it's some inane 'holiday.'

[nothappyatall]

Oh yeah goldenpost- REAL solutions there to terrorist, forgetting that *WE* and *OUR* failed foreign policies and actions over there and elsewhere is what CAUSED 9/11, 9/11 was a REACTION not an action. We can't even catch and stop our own DOMESTIC terrorists- ALF, PETA, Earth FIrst and others who burn down University facilities and new homes under construction, yet somehow we are going to globally stop all terrorists LOL!!!!

Bush stole the election, don't forget the Supreme Court has right wing conservative BUSH appointees on it- real unbised huh?
Don't forget the LAWSUIT filed to prevent a recount in Florida- highly irregular!

I'M also sick of this idiotic Times Square garbage pile every year, it's JUST a change of date it's nothing.

[jstarship]

i Oh Wah, if you people think you have it so bad in this country then perhaps you should leave and try to live the way you are accustomed to elsewhere. We have these wars to preserve you whiney babies right to come on these websites and post idiotic chatter. /i

This is typical behaviour of a knee-jerk Bush-supporter. You probably never in your life had the guts to say something that insulting to the face of someone like me.

[dark66-2009]

Oh Wah, if you people think you have it so bad in this country then perhaps you should leave and try to live the way you are accustomed to elsewhere. We have these wars to preserve you whiney babies right to come on these websites and post idiotic chatter.

[hermit22]

Maybe people are tired of hearing and reading EVERY year about that silly ball dropping in NYC as though there is no other place that celebrates New Years! This year it is the MESS in NYC.

This is 2007, and I'm very tired of seeing people parroting the same old line about "Bush stole the election". What they are really saying is they have no confidence in the USA Supreme Court to have made the decision that BUSH WON!

They are the same people who are "quibbling with the umpire" ad nauseum. Enough already, get in there and play the game! This is 2007!

[goldenpost]

I think that all you bloggers are missing the point.
This is not about bush or blair.
9-11 started all this terrorist ***,the only way to clean up this planet is to wipe out all the terrorists whatever country they are hiding in.
They are not very brave are they? when they have to resort to car bombing innocent people.
Killing their own kind just goes to show you what idiots they are.
If this is following their religion,then i am glad to be a true christian.
R.I.P. to all you troops from every country, that have been killed by terrorists.
Fight the good fight people,terrorism will be defeated no matter how long it takes.

What does all of this talk about the war have to do with the story at hand? "Tons Of Trash After Times Square Bash" I think you all are in the wrong blog......

[cagetherage1]

It is beyond my belief that there are still individuals out there that still think Iraq had anything to do with 9/11. I guess it is that kind of narrow thinking that keeps politicians like Bush in office who continue to abuse thier power.

[jacohor2002-2009]

The reason we fight them there , is so we don't have to fight them here.
The wars in iran and irac have going on for 5000 years . how fast we forget our dead in the TWIN TOWARS .
I say quit *** around and lets kick some more *** .

[talk2kim67]

They died so people like you can write idiotic stuff on blogs like this. They died so you can say openly how much you hate Bush or the war blah blah blah. Basically they died so you can be the biggest nay-sayers that you want to be. Does that make you feel better now? Lift your spirits does it? Not that it makes it okay that they have sacrificed their lives for you--but they voluntarily joined the service for all the above that I just expressed. So people can stand in a large crowd on the 4th of July or New Years and watch fireworks and celebrate without the fear of bombs going off among them. Go away and shut up--people and done and tired of listening to you whine!

[mgpm-2009]

There is good and bad in the world. People die, sometimes unfairly, and that is tragic. We should work to do something about that. But there is still good in life, and we need celebrations too. If all we did was think about the horrible stuff we'd all go mad.

But something should be done about the lies and atrocities that have been occuring from the White House.

[randalds]

Our 3000th soldier died today in Iraq. Does anyone think how his or her family will be remembering New Years from now on? How is their parent going to feel or the child when they find out daddy's coming home in a box?

There is a mass-murdering madman sitting in the Oval Office and until he's in prison we have nothing to celebrate.