Pointless amusement

Pizza rat vs. milkshake squirrel: which is the true metaphor for NYC?

Milkshake squirrel doesn't need a straw. via Youtube
Milkshake squirrel doesn’t need a straw. via Youtube

Earlier this week, a rat carrying a slice of pizza down the New York City subway stairs took the internet by storm. Today, a squirrel climbing into a garbage and successfully opening a Shake Shack milkshake swooped in to usurp the crown.

The only question remains: which one do you choose to bear the flag? Who is the city’s truer mascot? The feral, iconic rodent toting Old New York in its teeth, barely seeing the way ahead but determined to hold fast to what little he owns? Or the lesser-known woodland creature using artisan’s savvy to go where few dare to, and uncork the iconic beverage of a New Era, in the service of a private moment of bliss? 

Watch as the squirrel unearths the shake from beneath piles of other trash, throws the straw because he DGAF, and then climbs out with the cup, hopping over a fence and biting open the lid to enjoy his spoils, safely away from passersby.

Then again, let’s not forget who started all this: the rat. Remember how impressive this was?

This is almost as exciting as our runoff for Brooklyn’s King and Queen. New York Daily news has a poll going, so you can always cast an official vote there. But this is the people’s court, so let your arguments be heard in our comments section! Tell us which rodent you’re voting for, and why. For our part, it’s pretty obvious: the rat wins.

[h/t NY Daily News]

3 Comments

  1. Pizza Rat and Milkshake Squirrel need a third animal to complete E.B. White’s observation about the “three New Yorks.” If Pizza Rat is the harried commuter, and MS Squirrel the bright-eyed (and literally bushy-tailed) out-of-towner, what food-consuming mammal would symbolize “born and raised here”? Or maybe P.R. is the born-and-raised?

    • Sam Corbin

      Paula, I think P.R. is definitely the “born and raised.” Then again, I could be confusing him with the college transplant stumbling home from a night of drunken debauchery with the first dollar slice that caught his eye

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