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Racism and the Working Class
When I tell other middle-class professionals who don’t know me well that I’m writing a book about working-class culture, it’s amazing how often they respond approvingly that “white racism” is an...
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The Urban Project: Urbanization, Urbanisms, and the Virus – A Historical Take
Observing and writing 20-some years before the oil embargo (1974) and 30 years before the stern Brundtland report (1987), Jane Jacobs (1961) resolved that density comes in “good” and “bad” varieties....
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Neo-Feudalism in California
From the beginning, California promised much. While yet barely a name on the map, it entered American awareness as a symbol of renewal. It was a final frontier: of geography and of expectation.—Kevin...
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Employment by CIty Sector, Challenges Ahead for Downtowns
New Census Bureau employment data indicates that most job creation in the nation’s 53 major metropolitan areas (over 1,000,000 population) continues to be in the suburbs and exurbs. This article...
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The Green Civil War
Like many contemporary social movements—#metoo, Black Lives Matter, the Women’s March—the environmental lobby has tended to create an atmosphere of unanimity. In its struggle to win public and elite...
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Feudalism and Stagnation in South Africa
As I am writing this article, South Africa is predicted, following the coronavirus crises, to have an unemployment rate of 50% i.e. 1 in 2 working adults .The country’s lockdown has now been longer...
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California's Forecasted Budget Deficit Decades in the Making
For decades, the state that has been dominated by one-party that has been laying the foundation for a budget catastrophe. The concept of having the wealthy bear the responsibility to fund most of the...
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The Disparate Impact of California Climate Policies
To the detriment of those that can least afford expensive energy, California climate policies have driven up the cost of electricity and fuels to be among the highest in the country. The cost burdens...
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CHAZ, Christiania, and the Autonomous Zones We Really Need
The dream that was CHAZ, the Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone, in Seattle has evaporated nearly as quickly as it originated. After three shootings leaving one man dead and three wounded, the experiment in...
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Demographia World Urban Areas, 2020: Tokyo Lead Diminishing
For the first time in more than six decades the world’s second ranked built-up urban area has reached within 10% of leader Tokyo. The 2020 edition of Demographia World Urban Areas reports that Jakarta...
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The Cloud Over America’s Downtowns
My latest column is online in Governing magazine. It’s called “The Cloud Over the Future of America’s Downtowns” and is about the particular challenge coronavirus related shutdowns pose to the American...
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What's So Magic About $1 Trillion
News reports say that the Trump Administration is going to propose a $1 trillion infrastructure plan to “boost the economy.” One writer says it will not only promote recovery but also help the...
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The Downwardly Mobile: How Some People Lose Class Privilege
We have two narratives about class in this country. Perhaps the most prominent is the American Dream – the idea that hard work and moral fortitude can lead people from rages to riches. The second is...
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Triumph of the Oligarchs
A new class of overlords are making their bid for world domination.The Coronavirus has trammeled the prospects of most Americans, particularly low-income workers. But for one small group, the pandemic...
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On Behalf Of Environmentalists, I Apologize For The Climate Scare
On behalf of environmentalists everywhere, I would like to formally apologize for the climate scare we created over the last 30 years. Climate change is happening. It’s just not the end of the world....
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State of the Nation on July 4 and How It Has Changed Over Time
Coronavirus, a shattered economy, racial tensions, deep partisan polarization. Is it any surprise that Americans are down in the dumps? How could it be otherwise? Putting today’s sentiments in...
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Virtual Town Hall – California Fedualism: Addressing California's Inequality...
Join us for a presentation on Kotkin and Toplanksky's research brief titled, California Fuedalism: A Strategy to Restore California's Middle Classdiscussing inequality in California and how a change in...
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How the Virus Is Pushing America Toward a Better Future
Pessimism is the mood of the day, with 80 percent of Americans saying the country is generally out of control. Even before civil unrest and pestilence, most Americans believed our country was in...
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Urban Blues
On the surface, progressive “Blue America” has never appeared stronger. President Donald Trump’s leadership failures exposed by the pandemic and the recent disorders, is sinking him in the polls. His...
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Storied Cities
Athens is the birthplace of Western culture, with the physical ruins of its classical age still visibly present as a perpetual reminder. Virgil composed his epic poem, The Aeneid, recounting the mythic...
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