I read a story in the last couple of years about small towns that shot themselves in the foot by keeping out the big box stores - I wish I could find it again.

I read a story in the last couple of years about small towns that shot themselves in the foot by keeping out the big box stores - I wish I could find it again. The theory was that the traditional small downtown couldn't meet 100% of everybody's needs, so they started shopping at places like Amazon. And once you start shopping at Amazon, it just becomes convenient to do more and more of your shopping there. Suddenly instead of your downtown being killed by the big boxes a mile out of town, they're being killed by someone much bigger and farther away and harder to fight back against.