James Howard Kunstler: The tragedy of suburbia

Conventional zoning does a lot of damage, but professional planners weren't destroying the Traditional Urban Development by accident. They were doing it because public policy leaders told them, and because the general public generally preferred the new suburban sprawl to the crime that resulted from the anonymity of the urban form. The truth is that different people want different things. Before zoning, developers had to create the right combination of mixed use, pedestrian friendly cities etc

Yeah the American way of life will kill the planet.
The real problem is ,they're the example that everyone try to follow. And thats wrong.
Some say the European way is that everyone should to copy.
I dont know its sound a bit hypocrite
Here also (almost) everybody owns a car especially in Western Europe and people try to make their dreams true which is nearly the same as American( 1or2 cars ,big house etc)
At least we realized where this all driving to
The question: is it too late or not yet?

Great stand-up act.

@Videomanjohn, oh really videomanjohn, where do you live that's just so great you and all your family and friends just want to walk around and interact with other human beings? The Costco parking lot maybe?

Everyone wants a big house and a big yard, yet wants to be close to everything. Everyone also wants to be around people like themselves, especially economically. No one cares about the environmental consequences of this though.

My home town of Hooksett, New Hampshire has been struggling to find a center for over a decade. There was once a town center, but that was abandoned at some point and shifted closer to the nearby city. As a result, we have one busy, unwalkable, ugly street with struggling retail stores, car dealerships, gas stations, etc.
What was once the town center is still quaint, but there's not much there, town hall even left. It's a dilemma that needs solving and it would improve quality of life.

Riverside, California.

More than unsustainable, the way of life in urban USA is unlivable. The "places" we have created in the usa are among the ugliest on earth.

Hi 303playa from the UK. I have visited your beautiful country and I wholeheartedly agree with you. I have lived it two major US cities and visited dozens of smaller ones and you are absolutely right - these places have no soul and their structure makes it expensive and inconvenient to be social. I'll be leaving as soon as I can. But at the same time I'll be working toward positive change while I'm here.