It'll All Work Out (Maybe)

I can’t make up my mind on Jane Jacobs’ Dark Age Ahead. Many of the things Jacobs says are insightful. On the micro level her perceptions are sharp and important. She clearly understands what makes a city or town livable. Her comments about the damage caused by an automobile-based transportation system resonate with me: "One can drive today through miles of American suburbs and never glimpse a human being on foot in a public space, a human being outside a car or truck… This is a visible sign that much of North America has become bereft of communities. For communities to exist, people must encounter one another in person. " And: “Not TV or illegal drugs but the automobile has been the chief destroyer of American communities. Highways and roads obliterate the places they are supposed to serve…"

I like Jacobs’ comparison of "organic" urban boulevards to destructive freeways. Her espousal of Brian Donahue’s idea of preserving at least one working farm in every suburb so that people do not become totally divorced from primary production makes a great deal of sense. But… I’m not sure that it all holds together at the macro level. Do all the problems Jacobs points out really lead to a dark age? I don’t think she ties the threads together and fully makes the case. I worry that she’s right but I’m not totally convinced. I do recommend this book to everyone.