The Suburbs Will Die: One Man's Fight to Fix the American Dream

Post by coryrc » Tue, Jul 29, 2014, 7:03 PM UTC

pnathan wrote: post #24

I don't like suburbs. Why? - I don't like the constant driving to get anywhere. - I don't like the malls, the big box stores, the "clone" button that seems applied across the landscape. - I don't like the giant roads carving their way around, splitting communities. - I don't like the squandering of resources on lawns! individual houses! low-density housing! I can say, with confidence, I'd like to live in a place wher…

Post by ch4s3 » Tue, Jul 29, 2014, 7:04 PM UTC

watwut wrote: post #59

ch4s3 wrote: post #19

Earlier quoted context omitted.

@enjo Especially since the best marker for performance in school is parent involvement, if you're a really involved parent the school your child is in ends up having a lot less effect than people think.

Yep I read stats that my kids results depends more on parents then on school choice. But you know what? If I have kid in shitty school, I will have to spend a lot of time and effort by supplementing that school and occasionally fighting that school. I will have to pay for tutors. I will have to look up math plans and exercises on the internet. The preparation for SAT or CAT or whatever will take more months then it w…

Post by ch4s3 » Tue, Jul 29, 2014, 7:07 PM UTC

mtinkerhess wrote: post #79

Apofis wrote: post #61

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I live in NYC, and recently I spent two weeks in Simi Valley, a city north of Los Angeles, and was shocked that it's basically impossible to get around without a car. Even in LA, it seems as if the public transport system is nearly non-existent.

NYC is one of the only places in the country where it's feasible to live without a car (without major hassle). Edit: I guess my point was that from my experience visiting New York that's a city where public transit is so good that a car really seems unnecessary. Someone from NYC might be surprised to learn (or be reminded) that it's the exception, and that in most other places in the country it's a hassle not to own…

Post by bootsnpants » Tue, Jul 29, 2014, 7:09 PM UTC

aaron-lebo wrote: post #64

pnathan wrote: post #24

I don't like suburbs. Why? - I don't like the constant driving to get anywhere. - I don't like the malls, the big box stores, the "clone" button that seems applied across the landscape. - I don't like the giant roads carving their way around, splitting communities. - I don't like the squandering of resources on lawns! individual houses! low-density housing! I can say, with confidence, I'd like to live in a place wher…

I'm a child of the suburbs and have since moved to the city so take this with a grain of salt. I enjoy the malls, the big box stores, and the clones. Why? I know that pretty much anywhere I go I can get a consistent experience. I can go the local mall and almost anything I can want or imagine is available, which at some level is fascinating. What's more, as cliche as all these places ares, there is a bit of a shared…

Post by pnathan » Tue, Jul 29, 2014, 7:20 PM UTC

School-Cotton wrote: post #85

mtinkerhess wrote: post #79

Earlier quoted context omitted.

NYC is one of the only places in the country where it's feasible to live without a car (without major hassle). Edit: I guess my point was that from my experience visiting New York that's a city where public transit is so good that a car really seems unnecessary. Someone from NYC might be surprised to learn (or be reminded) that it's the exception, and that in most other places in the country it's a hassle not to own…

Is that true? I live in Ballard, a pretty damn residential neighborhood of Seattle, which is only a medium-density city. I live perfectly comfortably without a car. I have heard of people living comfortably without a car in NYC, Chicago, San Francisco, Pittsburgh, and I'm sure others that I'm forgetting. I even did so myself in Tucson for a year, though I'll grant that that was pretty annoying.