Where have all the flowers gone?

There was some initial interest in the blog, but people have become less interested lately. I don't know why. I think I am still as interesting as ever...:-) Most of you will never know how utterly fascinating I am because you only spend a nanosecond on the blog before moving on to something else.

Your loss.

Last week I attended a land use law conference in Austin. Many people were excited for me to go to Austin because it is the happening place in Texas. But I had a rather boring trip that way. I am honestly quite possibly the world's most boring human. Perhaps THAT'S why people don't read more of my blog...

There were a couple of things that stood out to me as I listened to the various speakers:

1. Planners are pretty arrogant. How is it that the people who are doing the planning fail to consider those they are planning for? The ends may be good, but the means corrupt. So what? Who cares? We are going to hide behind the banners of "New Urbanism" and "Smart Growth" and "SUSTAINABILITY" and use that to foist our agendas on the unsuspecting public. Developers will cower in fear of our ordinances requiring them to make all kinds of concessions to our mighty will. Resistance is futile. Besides, don't you want to leave the world a better place? You will hold hands and sing. Now. Do it.
2. As I have said before, New Urbanism works. Smart Growth works. But it begins the process of gentrification, leaving poor folks with no ability to fend for themselves. The poor have been so disenfranchised for so long that it seems like we can just forget them. They are not the ones making the decisions. They are not doing the developments. They are not even going to be able to live in the places they develop.

I don't know what to do about it. I listened to the others at the conference who, sheep-like, nodded and lapped up the bile that was being spewed. Why don't others see these issues? Don't they care? What is being done to help the poor? Has anyone even asked them?