This is the critical element here. Suburbanism is what has killed the bustling city center. People used to go into a city for their entertainment and such, but clever entrepreneurs brought those things out to where people actually lived; though these new businesses did so in strips and swaths (not centers) because there were no suburban centers to occupy. This encouraged the spread of franchises over individual businesses, and--once you had large chains--the chains could out-negotiate mom and pop stores on costs. Prices were lower, and, therefore, most Americans pursued low cost items and one-stop shopping over going to mulitiple mom and pop locations scattered around a metropolitan area.
The OP has missed the point that bustling cities may be something some people like, but others hate them. They are hardly a universal good in and of themselves. It is consumer choice that created shopping malls, then removed shopping malls from favor and created large chains and now is favoring online shopping over shopping at chains. This consumer choice is hardly the decline of a culture. But if it is, it is the world that WE have all created, not one political side or another.
Absolutely, look at all the shopping malls built from the late 60's and even into the 90's....all in suburbs where the people escaped to for a better life for themselves and better schools for their kids. Ain't rocket science.
This is the critical element here. Suburbanism is what has killed the bustling city center. People used to go into a city for their entertainment and such, but clever entrepreneurs brought those things out to where people actually lived; though these new businesses did so in strips and swaths (not centers) because there were no suburban centers to occupy. This encouraged the spread of franchises over individual businesses, and--once you had large chains--the chains could out-negotiate mom and pop stores on costs. Prices were lower, and, therefore, most Americans pursued low cost items and one-stop shopping over going to mulitiple mom and pop locations scattered around a metropolitan area.
The OP has missed the point that bustling cities may be something some people like, but others hate them. They are hardly a universal good in and of themselves. It is consumer choice that created shopping malls, then removed shopping malls from favor and created large chains and now is favoring online shopping over shopping at chains. This consumer choice is hardly the decline of a culture. But if it is, it is the world that WE have all created, not one political side or another.
Absolutely, look at all the shopping malls built from the late 60's and even into the 90's....all in suburbs where the people escaped to for a better life for themselves and better schools for their kids. Ain't rocket science.