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- Today's Moment of Idealistic Naivete: Wikileaks: http://wp.me/pCprU-mB 2 years ago
- Ending the War on Drugs: http://wp.me/pCprU-mw 2 years ago
- Twilight Of The Suburbs, Now Home To One-Third Of America's Poor http://huff.to/bGZP7F 2 years ago
- U.S. Subways Harness Kinetic Power To Recycle Train Energy http://huff.to/bVsXvR 2 years ago
- America's Walk Deficit http://yhoo.it/dijIvg 2 years ago
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Recent Posts
- Today’s Moment of Idealistic Naivete: Wikileaks
- Ending the War on Drugs
- The Most Walkable Cities in the World
- It’s Where We Live
- Can Cities Feed Themselves?
- French Street Artist Wins TED Humanitarian Prize
- Dimanche Sans Voiture
- Are Brussels and Los Angeles Sister Cities?
- Masdar begs the question: What exactly is meant by “a sustainable city?”
- Is Generation Y Passing on Cars?
- Can Cities Make Us Crazy?
- Stranger Studies 101: Cities as Interaction Machines
- Does New Orleans Have an Identity Crisis?
- Three Urban Interventions in Two Hours: NYC
- Cargo Bike Spotted…
Tag Archives: Mercer
Beauty Kills—A Self-Rebuttal: Or, Why Joel Kotkin isn’t Always Wrong
In my recent post, Universal Beauty and the Responsibility of Cities, I argued that beauty is an essential element of urbanism. Forget all of that for a moment; here’s the other side of the coin: beauty kills. It can turn cities into lifeless museums animated only by tourists, inhibiting creativity and innovation while exacerbating segregation and homogenization. Look at any interior design magazine spread; room upon room of artful still-life orchestration. These are rooms that pose, not rooms that are lived in. Look at fashion models, their faces inscrutable and eyes vacant. True, this is not the sort of beauty I was advocating, but an emphasis on beauty can quickly lead one astray if untempered. Beauty is essential, yes, but it can be as intoxicating as drugs, and potentially as destructive.
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Posted in Culture, Josh Grigsby, Livability, Placemaking, Rants, Response Pieces, Sustainability, Uncategorized, What if?
Tagged Amsterdam, ancient Athens, ancient Rome, art, Aspen, Auckland, compact cities, Copenhagen, creativity, cultural diversity, Economist Intelligence Unit, European cities, Florence, Forbes, Geneva, growth, Helsinki, homogenization, Houston, inventory of the possible, Islamic Baghdad, Joel Kotkin, Livability, London, Los Angeles, low birth rate, Melbourne, Mercer, Monocle, Mumbai, Munich, New Geography, New York, Palm Beach, Perth, pollution, poverty, quality of life, Renaissance, Rene Descartes, responsible urbanism, segregation, Shanghai, social dynamism, sprawl, Sustainability, Switzerland, technology, Toronto, universal beauty, urban tension, Vail, vancouver, Vienna, Zurich
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Seattle, Vancouver, and Portland by Rail, Bus, Streetcar, and Foot: Part Two
According to The Economist, Mercer, and Monocle, Vancouver is one of the world’s most livable cities. They cite its ecodensity, cosmopolitan population, scenic natural surroundings, progressive governance, general safety and cleanliness. Others, less enthralled, have taken to calling the city Blandcouver, or even Vanshitty. I had visited Vancouver twice before boarding Amtrak’s 510 Cascades Line train out of Seattle, had fallen in love with the city twice, but both trips had been brief, summertime affairs. Everywhere was shimmering blue water, glittering glass and steel, lush green forests and mountains. Vancouver sure knows how to get dolled up for a date, but what does she look like the morning after, in sweat pants and no makeup, during the long, wet, gray winter? Continue reading
Posted in Culture, Dispatches, Josh Grigsby, Livability, Sustainability, transit, Uncategorized
Tagged Amtrak, Bill Rees, Blandcouver, Burrard Bridge Bike Lanes, community gardens, Davie Street, Davie Village, Downtown Vancouver Hostel, East Hastings, ecodensity, ecological footprint, environmental sustainability, Granville Island, high density, Hostelling International, Jericho Beach, Kitsilano, livable cities, Mercer, Monocle, natural resources, New Urbanism, Puget Sound, roundabouts, Seaside SeaWalk, Skytrain, Stanley Park, The Economist, transit, vancouver, Vancouver West End, walkability
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