Who's the bigger man?

Come on, we knew it had to happen someday. NYC is a growing city; without the means to grow horizontally, it has to grow vertically. Why is it surprising (zoning laws aside, etc.) that someone else wants to steal the thunder held by the Empire State Building for more than the usually allocated threescore years and ten? (And by the way, if those zoning laws don't exist for the ESB, there's no reason they should exist for any other structures within a few blocks of the ESB either!)

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/08/24/nyregion/24empire.html

My opinion? Yes and No. On the Yes side is this: with NYC's eclectic architecture, the "new structure" will only provide a wonderful foil to the ESB's art deco facade, and vice versa. The sky is not yours, Malkins; and neither is the earth. No, not even the seventeen blocks around the ESB! I do hope the authorities don't grant the no-go zone that the owners of the ESB want: that will be ringing the death knell for skyscrapery (and, by extension, entrepreneurship) in NYC! As a member of the City Council put it, “Is New York City a snapshot taken in 2010 to be held in perpetuity, or is New York City an evolving, dynamic entity?”

On the No side: As much as I respect Cesar Pelli, I should think that the proposed structure looks a little too familiar (think IFC 2 in Hong Kong) for NYC's comfort. (It didn't take me a few seconds to make the connection, and I'm no architect!) Considering NYC's iconic status within the USA, I'm sure the Hon. Dr. Pelli can come up with something more unique for this city than a copy of a building existing in a country that, for a large period in recent history, has been the very antithesis of the things that America and, more importantly, NYC, stand for!