I sometimes ask myself if there is a “libertarian architecture” when thinking about what a purely libertarian culture — one that has been free from government intervention long enough to flourish — would look like. Not something I can answer in several hundred words, but let me begin.By … [Read more...]
Urban Mass Transit Out Of Suburban Sprawl
The economist F.A. Hayek explained why it’s impossible for human reason to successfully design complex systems such as markets or language. One can’t simply say, “Hey, I’d like to invent a Germanic language that does away with those troublesome genders and inflections but has plenty of Latin- and … [Read more...]
China’s “Planned Capitalism” Kills Wealth
Sometimes, prosperity is an illusion. The massive building boom in the People’s Republic of China is creating outer signs of affluence, but there isn’t enough demand to put residents in the new homes.As in many similar urban projects across the country, the Chinese government has been … [Read more...]
Private Neighborhoods And The Transformation Of Local Government
Urban Institute Press • 2005 • 494 pages • $32.50 paperbackIn Private Neighborhoods and the Transformation of Local Government, Robert H. Nelson effectively frames the discussion of what minimal government might look like in terms of personal choices based on local knowledge. He looks at the … [Read more...]
The Urban Origins of Liberty
In The Road to Serfdom, F. A. Hayek tells us that intellectuals and governments in the twentieth century tragically abandoned the road to liberty in pursuit of collectivist utopias. That road stretched at least as far back as the democratic polis of ancient Greece, but it was not always straight … [Read more...]
The Psychological Consequences Of Rent Control
The University of Chicago Press has published a “definitive” edition of F. A. Hayek’s The Constitution of Liberty under the editorial guidance of long-time Hayek scholar Ronald Hamowy. Given my interest in urban issues, it’s a good time for me to focus on chapter 22, “Housing and Town Planning.” It … [Read more...]
Preservation At The Expense Of Liberty
“Everything passes. Nobody gets anything for keeps. And that’s how we’ve got to live.” –Haruki Murakami I feel lucky to live in Brooklyn Heights. It’s been called New York City’s first suburb. It offers easy access to most parts of Manhattan, thanks to the convergence of several … [Read more...]
The Great Mind And Vision Of Jane Jacobs
Jane Jacobs (May 4, 1916 – April 25, 2006), one of the most important and influential public intellectuals of the twentieth century, died a few days shy of her ninetieth birthday. The intellectual legacy she left for social theorists is as significant as that of anyone else of her generation.She … [Read more...]