STAY CONNECTED
Join in the conversation at
Facebook. Visit our YouTube
channel or subscribe to RSS (below)
read our latest articles.
Recent Articles
Kevin Case, Kevdia PhotographyMayoral MismatchMay 16, 2019 - 11:37 am
After Amazon: What Happened in New York Isn’t Just About New YorkMay 13, 2019 - 9:31 am
Densification Efforts Like SB50 Are The Wrong Fix to California’s Housing ProblemMay 13, 2019 - 9:12 am
The Once-Lucky CountryMay 3, 2019 - 12:10 pm
Mayoral Mismatch
/in Politics /by Joel KotkinMayors have had little success in becoming president, with only one big-city chief executive, Grover Cleveland of Buffalo, later governor of New York, actually making it to the White House. Yet this year’s running of the donkeys includes several mayors and they may yet be joined by New York’s Bill de Blasio.
After Amazon: What Happened in New York Isn’t Just About New York
/in Politics, The Economy, Urban Affairs /by Joel KotkinThe fiasco surrounding Amazon’s recent escape from New York reflects a broader, potentially devastating trend. By driving Amazon out of the Big Apple, New York’s increasingly militant progressives have created a political paradigm that could resonate in cities across the country.
Densification Efforts Like SB50 Are The Wrong Fix to California’s Housing Problem
/in California /by Joel Kotkin and Wendell CoxFor decades California’s regulatory and tax policies have undermined our middle class. Perhaps nowhere is this clearer than in SB50, a densifications drive that seeks to destroy the single-family neighborhoods preferred by the state’s middle-income households.
The Once-Lucky Country
/in Politics, The Economy /by Joel KotkinFew places on earth are better suited for middle-class prosperity than Australia. From early in its history, when it was a refuge for British convicts, the vast, resource-rich country has provided an ideal environment for upward mobility, from the pioneering ranches of the nineteenth century to the middle-class suburbs of the late twentieth. Journalist Donald Horne described Australia in 1964 as “a lucky country run mainly by second-rate people who share its luck.”
Our Suicidal Elites
/in Politics, The Economy, Urban Affairs /by Joel KotkinThe French nobility, observed Tocqueville in The Ancien Regime and The Revolution, supported many of the writers whose essays and observations ended up threatening “their own rights and even their existence.” Today we see much the same farce repeated, as the world’s richest people line up behind causes that, in the end, could relieve them of their fortunes, if not their heads.
The Twilight of America’s Mega-Media
/in Demographics, Politics /by Joel KotkinIt’s far too early to predict which party will win next year’s election, but not too early to announce the national media as a clear loser in terms of national influence and prestige.
The Unwitting Committee to Re-elect the President
/in Politics /by Joel KotkinGiven his consistently poor approval ratings, Democrats should have little trouble ousting President Trump next year. But instead, with a series of deeply unpopular proposals, they have morphed effectively into the Committee to Re-Elect the President.
Clippers Offer A Better Model For SoCal Than The Lakers
/in California, Urban Affairs /by Joel KotkinThis year’s basketball season, with the surprising rise of the Clippers, poses a metaphor for the region. The Clipper model, reflecting a culture of hard work and teamwork, relies not only on celebrity but the raising of often obscure people into prominence.
Candidate of Big Tech
/in California, Politics /by Joel KotkinFew Democratic presidential candidates are better positioned than California’s Senator Kamala Harris; she’s also the favored candidate of big tech.
The Opium of California
/in California, Politics, The Economy /by Joel KotkinTo be truly a sustainable society, California needs opportunities for carpenters, machinists, middle managers, not just for the current structure that relies on superstar coders and produces large numbers of low-paid service workers.