It's really time to think about a "Great Reset" of our cities

and our suburbs too. They are not going to get any better without our help

There are a lot of people, many of them being good friends of mine, who would never consider living in a city or an inner ring suburb. They like having affordable housing on lots of land, little to no traffic, low crime rates, and the peace and quiet that one encounters in our exurban and rural areas. They accept the trade off of having a longer commute to their job in the city.

Then, there are those like me, that love the idea of living in a city. We love the vibrancy. We love the symphony. We love the opera and the ballet. We love the restaurants, ranging from the mom and pop “hole in the wall” kind of places, where you can get a good-solid, nothing fancy and reasonably priced lunch or dinner, where as the lyrics from the theme music of the former TV show, “Cheers” stated, “…everybody knows your name.” We love the museums; the Smithsonian Museums in DC are free, (unless you are a taxpayer). We like the idea of not having a big yard to mow (that’s me in a nutshell. I hate any kind of yard work. I’m glad I can afford a landscaper). We like getting around by public transportation; we love the idea of only needing a car on limited occasions. For most city dwellers, you can get away with having one car, or even no car, using one of the carshare programs like Zipcar, or Car To Go, when you absolutely need one. 95% of your travel can be done by bus or Metro (bus being my most practical choice, because it involves less transfers, and is cheaper). Once in a while you can spring for an Uber or Lyft if need be; those trips with a lot of luggage to the airport come to mind.

Yes, there are times when there is no substitute for a car. It’s a face of life, because the US has built its people moving infrastructure around roads and the Interstate Highway System. Unfortunately, ever since the 1950s, when we had a passenger rail system that was one of the best in the world, the move has been toward a pavement based primary infrastructure. Even growing up in the Hartford, Connecticut suburbs, there was good bus service into Hartford. Also, in Hartford, there was a train that ran to New Haven, where you could pick up the Northeast Corridor’s main line, or get a direct line train to Grand Central Station in New York City from Hartford. Some trains went through Pennsylvania Station in New York City, to Washington, DC, and points south of there and west I miss those days.

I am not one of those urbanists, who feel that no one should be allowed to own a car. What they really mean is that anyone that they don’t approve of, should not be allowed to own an car. Most urban issue activists, are dyed in the wool Marxist Socialists. After all, Socialism means they get to be the established ruling class, ruling over us lesser peons. Because, they believe in the right “woke” beliefs, the rules that they want to apply to us mere mortals, won’t apply to them. Regardless of their behavior, their beliefs grant them immunity from having to practice what they preach. They used to keep a lot of it under the radar. The hypocrisy is no longer clandestine. It’s right there in the open, and they don’t care. Why should they? The Marxist are now in charge. Gramsci’s Long March through our institutions has succeeded in creating the fairness of a ruling class and a ruled class. They look down their noses from their rarified air onto the unwashed masses, the Proletariat, and the White Lumpenproletariat, both groups having been designated as the proverbial, sacrificial lamb. What are you going to do about it? How many Social Credits or Social Demerits are being thrust on both the US and/or most of Western Europe? I’m one of those that they wouldn’t approve of, and I’m proud of it. I’m one of those white, lower middle class, non-college degreed Deplorables. And yes, I voted for Donald Trump. Twice! If he runs in 2024, I’ll vote for him again. If not, I’m voting Republican regardless.

Do cities offer affordable housing on lots of land? Nope. Little to no traffic? Nope. Low crime rates? It depends on which neighborhood you live in, but except in the most exclusive parts, nope. Peace and quiet? Nope and nope. So then, what is the attraction that people like myself have when it comes to the idea of living in a city? I know what attracts me to cities. I’m going to touch on each of those reasons, and go into depth with them on subsequent essays.

First of all, there is the convenience factor. Everything you need is either within walking distance, or a short public transportation ride. Then there is the music. You have lots of outdoor street festivals, and most of the time there are good local bands playing at those festivals. There are also the big shows that come to the larger concert venues, and there is the symphony and the opera and or ballet for those that like the classical arts. There are the museums and restaurants. Also, don’t forget the sports teams that play in those arenas, as well as their stadiums; venues that you can take the Metro or a bus too, and if worse comes to worse, a reasonable fare carshare ride. Along with the pros there are also the cons.

There are basically four obstacles to a good urban quality of life. Here’s what is lacking: affordable housing, quality public education, affordable and convenient public transportation, and effective means of dealing with crime. There is a lot of overlap between these issues. That’s what makes things difficult when trying to fix them. We are not going to solve these problems overnight. These issues that are destroying parts of our cities, as well as a lot of the inner ring suburbs, need to be addressed, and they need to be addressed hard! This “Great Reset” is a perfect time to “Reset” our urban areas into places that are very desirable to live, work and play. The Left is bound and determined to make this Great Reset into their Utopia of fairness, by creating a two-tired society (actually, they already have). Their definition of fairness, means an educated ruling class and a less educated and functionally illiterate ruled class. The Right knows that this Great Reset is going to happen one way or another. A majority of conservatives have given up, and said, “What’s the use? They own us.” We have to make sure that as this Great Reset occurs, it receives a lot of pushback and if necessary massive amounts of civil disobedience. They can’t throw everyone in jail. There are not enough jails. Yes, there is going to be a Great Reset, but we have to make sure that a lot of this Great Reset is done according to our terms. More to follow…