☆ 009 ; empty cities

Just wanted to share an interesting story--

America's Emptiest Cities

Las Vegas edged Detroit for the title of America's most abandoned city. Atlanta came in third, followed by Greensboro, N.C., and Dayton, Ohio.

I'm surprised to see Greensboro so high, but only because you'd think there were cities more abandoned. But these numbers aren't absolute; the statistics are percentages, naturally, but if you think about it, and the article states this, Las Vegas has 2 million people. Greensboro has around a quarter million, maybe? And just recently I read somewhere about Las Vegas being America's fastest growing city; I guess the two can go hand in hand, the city can be overbuilt and grow fast, the rates must be that different, though. I think it's indicative of the switch in America's economy-- Detroit, a manufacturing center, is rotting, while Las Vegas, a service economy centered city is growing.

Greensboro is much like Detroit in that light, its location strategic for the shipping of such manufactured goods. It's not called the Gate City for no reason! If you just look out the south window of the studio you'll see why. Plus we got the airport. I'm not sure if the deal was finalized or not but I think PTI was supposed to become a hub for FedEx or some such company, which means high-quality goods from places like Europe would come through Greensboro and not other places like New York or Philadelphia. That means jobs. And prestige.

But I digress, a little bit. If this is the case [Las Vegas becoming the quintessential American city] then what are the implications? I think it gives us a false identity because the rest of America is not at all what the surface Las Vegas is. Las Vegas has connotations that it's never going to shed and those connotations don't apply to elsewhere. But the fact that it highlights a tertiary economy is important. This shift means a lot for us getting an education, and lucky for us creatives we're on the right [haha pun intended, read on!] side of what's happening-- a service and information oriented economy requires more creative thinkers, right-brainers. I would recommend reading A Whole New Mind: While Right Brainers Will Rule the Future by Daniel Pink [if you follow this link there are pictures of Obama cupcakes. OBAMA CUPCAKES.] for more insights on this idea.

I wonder what these empty cities, especially Detroit, will look like in 100, 200 years. Manufacturing ghost town? Architecturally, that would be neat. Like an outdoor museum, a snapshot.