Toby Young Toby Young

Status Anxiety | 23 August 2008

New York’s Eurotrash exude a preening self- regard that makes me sick to my stomach

issue 23 August 2008

New York’s Eurotrash exude a preening self- regard that makes me sick to my stomach

In New York, the big story of the summer is that the Eurotrash are back. Thanks to the weak dollar, rich Europeans have been descending on the city by the jet-load, irritating the locals by referring to ludicrously overpriced luxury goods as ‘bargains’. To add insult to injury, some shops have even put up signs saying, ‘We accept euros.’ The rapper Jay-Z seems to have caught the new mood. In his latest video, he is filmed cruising the streets of New York clutching a fistful of the European banknotes.

Among the expat community, the resurgence of the Eurotrash is a source of some irritation. The issue is not that the Brits have to join the natives in doffing their caps to the French and the Italians.

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