The drifting of the "City"... | 62 comments (62 topical, editorial, 0 hidden)

Re: The drifting of the "City"... (4.00 / 3)

But why did all those people shed their local origins to join the "Big City" ?

One of the great dilemmas for rural communities, at least in my country, has always been the great brain drain to the cities. The general decline in the agrarian economies has meant diminished opportunities for young people. At the same time, the lure of (at least perceived) greater opportunities in industrial or professional careers in urban centers has led many if not most rural youth to move away. And it always seems that the best and brightest are the most likely to go.

My job used to involve a lot of driving, all across western and southern Oklahoma. A common and depressing aspect of that was the many, many small towns in rural Oklahoma that were and are in obvious decline. Closed businesses, abandoned or poorly maintained housing, general signs of neglect and decline were all too common. On the other hand, the larger urban centers of the state like Oklahoma City, Tulsa, and Norman, are thriving. New business activity and new housing developments are the rule in all of our larger urban centers. The contrast with rural areas is striking.

Over time it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy. As more and more of the younger generation moves away, general economic activity declines, resulting in further diminished opportunities for those who stay. That seemingly inexorable trend has been a reality for most rural communities for a couple of generations now, at least, and probably much longer than that.

I suspect that none of the above is unique to my country or my state.

We all bleed the same color.

by budr on Sat Feb 24th, 2007 at 03:22:39 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The drifting of the "City"... (none / 1)

It's the consequence of the "de-sacrilizing" of the agriculture... The shift of values. It happened everywhere...!

The trouble is that the City needs this countryside ! While in the 19th century many small experiments were done with the relationship between the Big City and the countryside, none survived through the pressure of industry... And war!
Let's not forget that it's the 14-18 war that shifted France in the industrial time by killing most of the farmers. Society was definitely changed.

This one of the reasons I started these sort of diaries... Because we start a, so called, environmental era. That is still felt as fashion for most or as a nice motto for politicians.
One one side the "greens" that refuses any pragmatical project that doesn't serve their direct agenda, on the other the power of politics and wealth that will speak a lot but won't start the action... In the middle, most of us !

The era is a bit radicalized! There have been, there are, there will be, possibilities to think, and design a better territory... As a whole!
Not by peppering projects here and there, just to calm some voicing group. It's counter productive !

It is sad to say, but on such overall projects, people in Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and even Israel are much more attentive... Even if they don't have the capacity to start them.. Yet!

"What can I do, What can I write, Against the fall of Night". A.E. Housman

by margouillat (hemidactylus(dot)frenatus(at)wanadoo(dot)fr) on Sat Feb 24th, 2007 at 06:29:37 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The drifting of the "City"... (4.00 / 3)

What comments!

I don't know if it's sad to say that at least someone's beginning to (try to) do it. Best practice and all that. There maybe--somewhere--a generation on the rise (connected by...the internet! among other things--shared interests, approaches)...who can play the game...get voted back in.

I'm not an expert on the Green party, but as far as I understand its agenda it is all for sensible town planning among other things. It's frustrating for me to see that when people come to choose, they refuse what they think might work--because it probably won't! Vote for what you know! So then it takes huge damage done by a party (Black Wednesday in the UK)...and then the voters think...hey, there's this other lot. And all the other parties (and voices) shout:

No, no! Over here!

Including the small nationalist parties, the racists, the revolutionaries, the single issue groups--

Well, I really don't know enough about the Green party. Round our way they come over very reactionary...I think because they want to be seen as "listening to the people", though it seems the people are conservative with a small "c". When they could be agitating for getting local farmers to supply produce direct to the area's schools, hospitals, care homes, council offices...

But they'll complain about the new parking regulations...

...as if they too care about the issues of car drivers...

coz they're so caring!

So local individuals make a difference, sometimes a big difference...

...so, yeah. Yeah! Some nations (oh how I don't like the concept of the nation...such corrupted routs)...

well, cough!

I like the concept of the city state, city states, cities as centres, as support to the...areas between...coz there will always be areas between...

It'll take the public wanting real change that will push real change. Seen already in wind power. But also seen in the sense of injustice among english (british?) car drivers....because the govt. has it in for drivers.

No! For driving...too much...unnecessarily. And then we're back to town planning.

I'm waiting for someone to build the boom housing....called...I dunno...a...homesite? All eco-housing, all wired up and electricity supplied by wind/solar/water/other renewable source. The houses capture rain water, there's agricultural land...

...build 'em (with perhaps many grants available?), then decide to...

...sell them to the wealthy (lotsa cash!)
...give them to...people chosen out of a hat!
...lease them to co-operatives, using an LLP (Chris Cook!) to maintain the houses, and maybe getting leasees to sign agreements (a la "no domestic animals, no visitors after 10 pm" in the laws around here [well, used to be, maybe they've changed])

But yes, all kinds of tensions rising, but also all kinds of old tensions maybe being dissipated (between the old and the young perhaps...also...and between men and women...perhaps...in some ways...

...The age of Aquarius!

according to the Arabs, is a constellation associated with the rainy season of the ancient middle east. Persian, Syrian and Turkish languages call it the Water Bucket. The Egyptians associated these stars with Khnum, their god of water, who caused the Nile to overflow when he dipped his water bucket into the river. Remember the importance of the overflowing Nile as it brought nutrients and fertility to the crops. The Egyptian heiroglyph for water is the same as the sign used by astrologers for Aquarius, a pair of wavy lines suggesting the surface of a river. At times the constellation has been depicted as an ass carrying two water lugs on its back.

The Greeks held to this same idea, but named the constellation for Ganymede, the Trojan boy carried off to Mount Olympus to serve as cup-bearer to the gods.

Aquarius is the first sign of the zodiac in India, where its patron saint is Varuna. This ancient god was originally the all-powerful lord of all the heavens and creator of the stars. But later he was looked on as just god of the water who looked down on the Earth through the thousand eyes of the stars. From his throat issued the seven streams of heaven. Varuna patrols his realm on a fabulous steed, half crocodile and half bird. So he is quite able to patrol both the air and the sea.

http://www.eastbayastro.org/2000/0900/r0900-2.htm

...you know, I'm presuming on your diary...on yer goodself, margouillat!

Don't fight forces, use them R. Buckminster Fuller.

by rg (leopold dot lepster at google mail dot com) on Sat Feb 24th, 2007 at 07:58:02 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Re: The drifting of the "City"... (4.00 / 2)

If it can help for a good sleep without nightmares... I know quite a lot of students who learn to design those "urban" eco- social housing in historical cities at school.... :-)

So do not abandon all hope, the Aquarius (Hair's music) might be there still :-)

"What can I do, What can I write, Against the fall of Night". A.E. Housman

by margouillat (hemidactylus(dot)frenatus(at)wanadoo(dot)fr) on Sat Feb 24th, 2007 at 08:14:35 PM EST
[ Parent ]

The drifting of the "City"... | 62 comments (62 topical, 0 editorial, 0 hidden)

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