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I live in London, visited LA (not SF but kind of similar?) The wealth inequality was massively more visible in LA. Far more homeless people. Neighbourhoods wer

I live in London, visited LA (not SF but kind of similar?) The wealth inequality was massively more visible in LA. Far more homeless people. Neighbourhoods were either rich or poor, there wasn't any mixing. OFC London has similar problems, you're going to see more luxury cars than homeless people in Chelsea and vise versa in Brixton, but LA felt like it had gone a lot further. The projects in LA are also far more run down than council estates in London, at least from outward appearances. Agree with what the other comment says too: there isn't really much of a middle ground, it all felt like everyone either has a six figure trust fund or is almost homeless. I've been saying this in various places for a while, but the predominant difference between the UK and the US is the size. Since it's a much bigger country and they have more space, everything is spread out far more. In London I live in a mainly working class (stabby) neighbourhood, but I walk ten minutes and I'm surrounded by houses all worth £1m+. Same thing in every flat I've had in London. In American cities you walk ten minutes and you're still on the same street. It leads to huge buildups of either run down or expensive neighbourhoods which keep themselves very, very isolated from each other and it shows. SF is a bit more walkable from what I've heard but the general problem is still there.

pdfernhout 8y ago
Another difference between the UK and the USA besides size is wealth of the country; see: https://www.greanvillepost.com/2011/08/12/generation-fcked-how-britain-is-eating-its-young/ https://www.greanvillepost.com/2011/08/12/generation-fcked-h... "British children have the most miserable upbringing in the developed world. Is it a coincidence that the US and Britain are now the two developed nations with the most savage and cynical capitalism and deepest class fissures? ... “The reason our children’s lives are the worst among economically advanced countries is because we are a poor version of the USA,” he said. “So the USA comes second from bottom and we follow behind. The age of neo-liberalism, even with the human face that New Labour has given it, cannot stem the tide of the social recession capitalism creates.”" As I suggest here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vK-M_e0JoY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vK-M_e0JoY alternatives include some culturally appropriate mix of: * improved subsistence through developing and distributing better tools and know-how for off-grid living like solar panels, 3D printers, mobile microhouses, composting toilets, and gardening robots * expand the gift economy for both physical and digital goods * soften capitalism's exchange-based social harshness with a basic income * better democratic planning to insure public infrastructure to meet everyone's needs (e.g. convert prisons to artist dorms; ensure free food and water is available eveywhere; better automated clean public bathrooms; expanded libraries and health services)

pdfernhout 8y ago

Another difference between the UK and the USA besides size is wealth of the country; see: https://www.greanvillepost.com/2011/08/12/generation-fcked-how-britain-is-eating-its-young/ https://www.greanvillepost.com/2011/08/12/generation-fcked-h... "British children have the most miserable upbringing in the developed world. Is it a coincidence that the US and Britain are now the two developed nations with the most savage and cynical capitalism and deepest class fissures? ... “The reason our children’s lives are the worst among economically advanced countries is because we are a poor version of the USA,” he said. “So the USA comes second from bottom and we follow behind. The age of neo-liberalism, even with the human face that New Labour has given it, cannot stem the tide of the social recession capitalism creates.”" As I suggest here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vK-M_e0JoY https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4vK-M_e0JoY alternatives include some culturally appropriate mix of: * improved subsistence through developing and distributing better tools and know-how for off-grid living like solar panels, 3D printers, mobile microhouses, composting toilets, and gardening robots * expand the gift economy for both physical and digital goods * soften capitalism's exchange-based social harshness with a basic income * better democratic planning to insure public infrastructure to meet everyone's needs (e.g. convert prisons to artist dorms; ensure free food and water is available eveywhere; better automated clean public bathrooms; expanded libraries and health services)