[Reader-list] American Builds A Dream World -- And Moves Into It

[t byfield]

areflagan at artpanorama.com (Tue 01/14/03 at 02:20 PM -0500):

> Re: 1/14/03 12:35, "t byfield" <tbyfield at panix.com>:
> 
> > america's west is a myth, to be sure, but it's also stunningly beautiful.
> 
> Which goes a long way to explain why the fastest growing city in America is
> Las Vegas...and why the Hoover dam now looks like LANDmark on both sides
 <...>

no offense, are, but this kind of caffeinated dystopian rant is (imo) 
maybe not quite as useful as, say, a well-though-out book like jackson 
lears's _no place of grace_, which puts this question a rather calmer
historical perspective. i don't need to be happy with the way the US 
is headed on a macro or micro scale to point that out.

yeah, what you talk about goes on adn is true. but it's not the whole
story: for example, only a slender and not even very high mountain
range separates silicon valley from an awfully beautiful and secluded
coastline. somehow, the umpity billions 'created' by 'new paradigms'
and 'revolution' wasn't enough to put an end to that anomaly. there 
are lots of other examples on both sides; it's a complicated place.

anyway.

cheers,
t