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| -Land of the Free |
| Millions Flee The Cities, But Will They Ever Return? |
| 2020-08-03 |
| [American Conservative] For years, it seemed everyone was predicting the doom of small town USA. As manufacturing declined and smaller farms were made unprofitable by large-scale agriculture, cities—the seats of power and influence—became the be-all, end-all of our economy. The young were fleeing to them, companies were settling in them, and the small towns of flyover country were shrinking day-by-day. COVID-19 is changing that. Cities are no longer the shiny cosmopolitan playgrounds they once were. Not only are densely-populated cities a nightmare for virus spread, but urban areas were also hit harder by unemployment, and many of them have become ghost towns as inhabitants comply with social-distancing rules. Today, many seek new places to live, and, as it turns out, the American countryside has a lot to offer. Over the years, technological advances in communication and collaboration have prompted many predictions that the popularity of high-density urban living would one day decline, but these predictions never came to pass. Although the internet and other technologies made remote work possible, and although the cost of living in the biggest U.S. cities continued to rise, it seemed that the physical and psychological benefits of big cities continued to outweigh the negatives. Enter the pandemic. The COVID crisis stripped cities of all their benefits and heightened all their hardships. Due to high population density, health and safety concerns skyrocketed and mobility took a nosedive. Meanwhile, COVID-related unemployment made the already high cost of living unbearable. Over the past few months, job loss forced many to leave cities and return to family homes. It’s estimated that nearly 3 million adults moved back in with parents or grandparents in March and April. After all, city living quickly loses its luster when you can’t socialize over drinks after work, enjoy dinner at the hottest restaurant, or attend the coolest gallery opening or music event—especially if all your friends have already left. |
| Posted by:Besoeker |
| #17 /\ Imagine Europe (or Asia)! |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 22:02 |
| #16 The Sierra Nevada foothills are getting inundated with people fleeing Sacramento and the bay area. Funny how you can tell just by looking at people that they're not from here. |
| Posted by: AuburnTom 2020-08-03 20:58 |
| #15 Berlin protest numbers understated by media/gov't. |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 20:25 |
| #14 If they shut down the Biergärten, I think there would be an up-roar, possibly worse than when Andechs quit selling Starkbier on weekends years ago. |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 20:23 |
| #13 Oans, zwoa, drei, g'suffa |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 20:17 |
| #12 They (almost) do indeed. |
| Posted by: European Conservative 2020-08-03 19:53 |
| #11 Bavarians grow beer in their gardens? How ingenious. |
| Posted by: Matt 2020-08-03 19:40 |
| #10 Munich is still very nice, and the beer gardens thrive. |
| Posted by: European Conservative 2020-08-03 19:29 |
| #9 They will return one day. Everything goes in cycles. |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 17:26 |
| #8 ..and the Tammany Hall political machines. |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2020-08-03 09:09 |
| #7 COVID helped business realize they don't need an expensive building and most white collar work can be done remotely. Cities will shrink as the white collar people leave. Only blue collar, low density and lower wage will remain. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2020-08-03 08:31 |
| #6 What, not "patroning" Chinese place? No excuse. AOC says that is racist. /sarc |
| Posted by: Clem 2020-08-03 08:01 |
| #5 ...you mean they haven't taught the illegals to make that yet in your neck of the woods? |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2020-08-03 07:40 |
| #4 2 years ago we retired to small town America and got our log cabin in the woods with a great view. Bezos is an ass in a lot of ways but Amazon has made the move to the country totally painless, except for the lack of good Chinese food. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2020-08-03 07:27 |
| #3 The problem is that they will vote and act like city-dwellers in their new environs. |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2020-08-03 07:22 |
| #2 Density is death... |
| Posted by: Bright Pebbles 2020-08-03 06:49 |
| #1 Maybe if they reinstated the police it might help. |
| Posted by: gorb 2020-08-03 04:21 |