Sprawl is the Best of America

“The idea that compact cities are somehow preferable to sprawling suburbs lay behind one of the most pointless engineering feats in human history, the Los Angeles subway, which has cost billions of dollars (not to mention the lives of several construction workers) but which is almost irrelevant to the needs of a city without a core. Now Al Gore, the Democrat seeking the presidency, wants to start a crusade against ‘sprawl’. An odd idea when you consider that most of his potential electorate now lives in that sprawl, and seem to like it; and a dangerous one, once you acknowledge that sprawl is now the home of almost everything that is most vital and daring, if not most beautiful, in America.” THE ECONOMIST March 25-31 2000