Wild West

There are phenomenon in New York City which are the result of the unique confluence of numerous factors - population density, large ethnic groups with their cultural traditions and what I perceive as a certain lawlessness and laissez faire attitude regarding victimless crimes in New York.
It's really a question of numbers. Any densely populated city affords opportunities not found elsewhere. For example, there is always some need for emergency umbrellas with the onset of an unexpected downpour, but only a place like Manhattan will offer enough potentiality to actually buy umbrellas, set up on the street and make it a venture - see my post, Opportunity, with photo of a street umbrella salesman in a rainstorm.

For some time, there were the squeegee men - individuals, particularly in the Bowery area, who worked washing the windows of cars stopped at traffic lights. What started in New York as a annoying "service" eventually became tantamount to blackmail - the windshield washing was done hurriedly without asking permission and followed by demands for payment. Mayor Rudolph Guiliani effectively eliminated the squeegee men as part of his quality of life campaign.
One activity that remains and can be often seen around the metropolitan area, is the sale of flowers on highways. This is obviously a dangerous activity for both the vendors and motorists. Arrests are occasionally made and fines collected. According to a New York Times article, many of these flower vendors are Ecuadorean - you can read the story of one man's trials and tribulations here: Hard Way to Sell Flowers: Dodging Cars and the Police.
Turning corners and not waiting for pedestrians, double and triple parking parking, jay walking, counterfeits of luxury products sold openly on the street, known drug dealers chatting with police officers - all somewhat surprising activities in a first world city in the 21st century.
But Americans don't really like rules. I often think of the wild west as symbolic of the American temperament with New York City keeping that tradition alive :)