HOT MESS IN MANHATTAN

If you are in Manhattan for the next few days, leave your car parked somewhere - traffic will be a mess at least through Thursday morning. All the big mucky-mucks from around the world are in town for some shindig on the East Side which will be big on noise but probably small on accomplishment. It is a once-a-year chance for a bunch of non-important people to feel important by arranging motorcades to zoom around the city, running red lights, chasing all other cars to the curbs and generally causing gridlock and mayhem along their routes. Stay away from the areas between First & Park Avenues and 42nd to 50th Street because there will be a constant shuttle between that area hotels and the East River debating society's building. Even the theater district and the major shopping areas will be affected as wives and girlfriends of the delegates (most of the delegates are male) spend the aid dollars the US gives their countries at the fancy shops and for expensive theater seats - all the time accompanied by several carloads of police and secret service agents.