Philosophers have debated this for centuries. Mankind has been trying to hunt for its own roots, to search for the meaning of Life? Why were we born? Why are we here? And then there is the other big question: how did we get here?

If we all came from Adam’s rib, where did Adam come from – and where did that special rib of Adam come from?

What came first: the chicken or the egg?

My brother gave me an answer, which is the most logical one that I have heard to date: “The egg,” he said matter-of-factly, “because we have it for breakfast!”

Not quite the philosopher, but puzzled by the daily behavioural patterns of a seemingly intelligent race sent to Mother Earth on some Unknown Mission, I enjoy making observations.

And I have discovered a certain pattern of behaviour in New York city that makes me ask my Big question.

What came first: the labyrinth system of bell boys and bell captains and doormen and taxi drivers that populate New York City or the crooked behaviour of Wall Street?

As any visitor to New York will tell you, the city is out to get your money.

You land at the airport and the money-taking begins in rapid earnest.

The taxi ride into the city is loaded with a toll of USD 8 (INR 325) just to enter the Kingdom of Money.

You reach the hotel. The taxi driver waits to get his “tip”. If it is anything less than 10% of the fare you just paid, be ready for some abuses.

And since the taxi driver is from India, Pakistan, or Bangladesh chances are that you will get a very good idea of his description of your behaviour.

Before you have even allowed yourself to absorb the taxi driver’s impression of your family history and the legitimacy of your birth, the doorman turns to you.

“Anything more, sir?” the doorman asks looking at you with his hand outstretched.

He took the bags out of the trunk of the taxi and kept them on the pavement.

The taxi driver, you see, is not supposed to do that. The taxi driver’s job in New York city is to get you from point A to point B.

Your luggage is your luggage.

So the doorman stands there waiting for his birthright of a tip.

Next in line is the hotel bellman. He rambles along with a luggage cart.

“Good afternoon, sir”, he greets you with enthusiasm, “how are you doing today?”

I am about to tell him that my day was quite fine till I landed in New York, paid toll to enter the city, got abused for giving the taxi driver a tip that seemed good enough for me but not good enough to pay the taxi driver’s down payment on his next condo….but, before I can get my thoughts together, I find myself at the reception area, waiting to be checked in.

“Jim will take care of you from here, sir”, said the bellman, not moving till I pay he required toll for him to get away from me.

Jim ambles along and takes the cart from the previous bellman, “Whenever you are ready, sir.”

I get the gist of it by now and know that there will be another tip that I have to pay to see the bags in my bedroom.

I lean over to the receptionist and ask them to change a ten dollar bill: I figured I would need the “singles” (the one dollar bills) to pay all those tips.

After an estimated USD 19 in tips and tolls, I am in my room – with my luggage.

And that is only for starters.

Every restaurant adds a “suggested tip” to their bill which is usually 15% of the bill amount.

No matter how good or bad the service is.

The waitresses, the bar tenders, the doormen, the bellboys, the taxi drivers get their tip.

It is their birthright.

The “compensation structure” is designed that way.

Now, I don’t wish to discourage not-so-rich people from making money and trying to get rich.

And I recognise the effort that goes into most of those jobs and the desire to earn a living.

But there seems to be a similarity in this New York pay structure and that of another species that lives in New York.

Namely, the CEOs and finance folk who dominate Wall Street and the financial companies.

They, too, get paid “extra” for a lot of doing nothing “extra”.

Think about it.

The financial services industry has built its “compensation structure” to take a lot of money from those they serve and have added layer upon layer of costs as their service fee.

Take the home loan industry.

Since the year 2005, the banks were willing to give loans to buy a house many Americans could not really afford.

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