Why suburbia sucks (Atlanta, Chamblee, Glenwood: estate, commuting, financing)

[abalashov]

Or in sum: it seems that when I have these discussions with Americans, a lot of them impute unto me a despotic view in which everyone must live in a small apartment above a thumping nightclub (enjoyment of this mandatory), and there are no quiet places, outlying places, or freestanding houses with yards.

That is patent nonsense. As it happens, I do prefer city apartments myself (not above thumping nightclubs), but it's not for everyone. The real issue is about the need for a meaningful public realm, about human-first rather than car-first environments, and of course the economic and ecological questions surrounding how we develop and use space and go about our lives.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by sstsunami55

What else is there to discuss? I think people like me and abalashov have made our points pretty clear. We're not trying to take away anyone's rights. At this point, people are just nitpicking.

Isn't that what online forums are for?

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by abalashov

Or in sum: it seems that when I have these discussions with Americans, a lot of them impute unto me a despotic view in which everyone must live in a small apartment above a thumping nightclub (enjoyment of this mandatory), and there are no quiet places, outlying places, or freestanding houses with yards.

That is patent nonsense. As it happens, I do prefer city apartments myself (not above thumping nightclubs), but it's not for everyone. The real issue is about the need for a meaningful public realm, about human-first rather than car-first environments, and of course the economic and ecological questions surrounding how we develop and use space and go about our lives.

Well, houses with yards are not really urban. I do agree that a community which is well planned with parks and other amenities within easy access could be arguably superior (in my point of view) from a community that doesn't have those things, but my viewpoint has changed during my lifetime at least once already. It could change again. We all view the world through the lens of our own experiences and priority set, right?

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by abalashov

I'm pleased to hear that you cultivate a benign Dictatorship of the Proletariat. :-)

I'm not the only one to have drawn a connection between the archetypal spectre of Soviet despotism and HOAs, though: The Tyranny of Homeowners Associations - CityLab

And that by no means makes you right. It makes you a follower and not a leader.

[arjay57]

I am okay with blasting the suburbs but the vast majority of people still seem to like them.

[arjay57]

Originally Posted by wasel

I'll chime in on that one, too. I think the strict adherence to Euclidean zoning has done as much harm as good.

[abalashov]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

And that by no means makes you right. It makes you a follower and not a leader.

Touché. I will subscribe to your quarterly newsletter, attend your biannual leadership seminar, and, of course, the platinum elite leadership retreat.

[wasel]

Originally Posted by arjay57

I'll chime in on that one, too. I think the strict adherence to Euclidean zoning has done as much harm as good.

I wasn't referring to the zoning. I was referring to couching of it in terms of ghastly tragedy. The latter describes the Orlando club shooting, not SFHs.

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by abalashov

Touché. I will subscribe to your quarterly newsletter, attend your biannual leadership seminar, and, of course, the platinum elite leadership retreat.

You would receive much more respect if your observations omitted the disparaging comments. You are potentially offending the vast majority of us who love and call the metro our home. There is simply no place for that.

[BR Valentine]

Originally Posted by abalashov

I'm not the only one to have drawn a connection between the archetypal spectre of Soviet despotism and HOAs, though: The Tyranny of Homeowners Associations - CityLab

No, you're just a bourgeois fart huffer.

Signed,

В.И.Ленин, Н. Букхарин, Лев Давидович Троцкий, и призраки всех старых советов.

Originally Posted by abalashov

Or in sum: it seems that when I have these discussions with Americans,

Poseur.