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I think the author has got it mainly correct. There exists a perfect analog to this 'genius problem' in plain sight: Architecture. Back in the day, especially t

I think the author has got it mainly correct. There exists a perfect analog to this 'genius problem' in plain sight: Architecture. Back in the day, especially the art-deco era, buildings were adorned with beautiful facades and friezes and carvings. They had style and substance and actual design. Today, all you get are construction companies shitting out glass-paned bricks with shoddy materials, poor usability considerations, zero design considerations, etc. "Luxury" apartments slapped together so poorly I'd sooner bet on the structural integrity of a literal popsicle-stick house, are now the norm for new construction. It's a classic case of quality-vs-quantity, and this too the author pointed out. Everything about America and its culture is tuned ferociously towards maximum effficiency, reproducability, and simplicity. There is next-to-no room in American for focused, well considered, small-scale solutions. Not unless you are the ultra-wealthy. Normal people cannot afford craftsmanship anymore, because quality itself is now a luxury. In the same way, "Geniuses" (in the way the author describes) aren't produced here anymore. The reason is simple: America has, for decades now, sacrificed quality (with brutal zeal) at the altar of quantity.

gr1zzlybe4r 5y ago
Potentially - but the quantity focus that you're talking about is a direct result of the construction and development that we allow. We basically prohibit people taking risks in architecture and design because it's impossible to build a lot of "interesting" stuff due to zoning (which is what you can build) and structure (which is how you can build) regulations. All of the pretty architecture that you're talking about was built when the legal handcuffs for doing it didn't exist. Tl;dr - I get what you're saying but can't ignore the structure of what we've set up that encourages/enables it.
- wcarron 5y ago
  Yes, the legal structure is dumb. We as a nation traded quality for standardization and accessibility. Poor choice, in my opinion. I'd rather have fewer, riskier, smaller, beautiful buildings than the mass-produced, nondurable, ugly, no-risk construction we have today; and same with education.
lkrubner 5y ago
Back in 2010, I was invited to a party in a building down at the south end of Manhattan. We were 4 blocks from Wall Street. It was a new building, my friend had just moved in. The building was for the "$400,000 a year working stiffs" of Wall Street, but that line is from 1987 (the movie Wall Street) and nowadays they all make a few million a year. I was surprised by the relatively poor quality of the building. All the walls were covered with carpeting, but the carpeting was falling off in some places. Some of the light fixtures hung awkwardly slanted from their slots. The door knob (of the apartment) was very cheap and was already showing signs of wear. Keep in mind, this was a new building, built for wealthy people. Something feels broken about this culture, where even the rich cannot buy nice things any more.
- molopolo24 5y ago
  It's just the illusion that the West is rich. Like, have you ever asked a Scandinavian about their country? People living like in identical dwellings, having identical tastes, going to the same bad food places and persisting on OMGZ we have the best countries!111 I once heard someone say the food he ate growing up in the SU was way fresher than anything that could be bought in a store or restaurant. The US is all about the pretension of "I can't believe its not Butter." "I can't believe it's not a luxury Apartment building."
- JJMcJ 5y ago
  This is a standard complaint about McMansions out in the suburbs. Appallingly poor workmanship, and everything looks like it was bought on sale at a second tier do it yourself store. And who would glue carpet to a wall and call it luxury?
- bcrosby95 5y ago
  Here's a joke an Urban planner once told me: what's the difference between condos and luxury condos? The price.
- majormajor 5y ago
  The vast majority of people buying expensive houses and condos are paying for prestige, location, and square footage, not quality of fit and finish. You can get stuff done better, it just costs even more, since the skills are rarer (as they are no longer needed for many projects, thanks to mass production and power tools). Unless you're self-managing your project, the people actually doing the work for your contractors are generally coming from pretty similar places/skillsets for multi-million dollar places as for "basic" ones. There's a reason "want something done right, do it yourself" is hardly a new aphorism.

gr1zzlybe4r 5y ago

Potentially - but the quantity focus that you're talking about is a direct result of the construction and development that we allow. We basically prohibit people taking risks in architecture and design because it's impossible to build a lot of "interesting" stuff due to zoning (which is what you can build) and structure (which is how you can build) regulations. All of the pretty architecture that you're talking about was built when the legal handcuffs for doing it didn't exist. Tl;dr - I get what you're saying but can't ignore the structure of what we've set up that encourages/enables it.

wcarron 5y ago
Yes, the legal structure is dumb. We as a nation traded quality for standardization and accessibility. Poor choice, in my opinion. I'd rather have fewer, riskier, smaller, beautiful buildings than the mass-produced, nondurable, ugly, no-risk construction we have today; and same with education.

lkrubner 5y ago

Back in 2010, I was invited to a party in a building down at the south end of Manhattan. We were 4 blocks from Wall Street. It was a new building, my friend had just moved in. The building was for the "$400,000 a year working stiffs" of Wall Street, but that line is from 1987 (the movie Wall Street) and nowadays they all make a few million a year. I was surprised by the relatively poor quality of the building. All the walls were covered with carpeting, but the carpeting was falling off in some places. Some of the light fixtures hung awkwardly slanted from their slots. The door knob (of the apartment) was very cheap and was already showing signs of wear. Keep in mind, this was a new building, built for wealthy people. Something feels broken about this culture, where even the rich cannot buy nice things any more.

molopolo24 5y ago
It's just the illusion that the West is rich. Like, have you ever asked a Scandinavian about their country? People living like in identical dwellings, having identical tastes, going to the same bad food places and persisting on OMGZ we have the best countries!111 I once heard someone say the food he ate growing up in the SU was way fresher than anything that could be bought in a store or restaurant. The US is all about the pretension of "I can't believe its not Butter." "I can't believe it's not a luxury Apartment building."
JJMcJ 5y ago
This is a standard complaint about McMansions out in the suburbs. Appallingly poor workmanship, and everything looks like it was bought on sale at a second tier do it yourself store. And who would glue carpet to a wall and call it luxury?
bcrosby95 5y ago
Here's a joke an Urban planner once told me: what's the difference between condos and luxury condos? The price.
majormajor 5y ago
The vast majority of people buying expensive houses and condos are paying for prestige, location, and square footage, not quality of fit and finish. You can get stuff done better, it just costs even more, since the skills are rarer (as they are no longer needed for many projects, thanks to mass production and power tools). Unless you're self-managing your project, the people actually doing the work for your contractors are generally coming from pretty similar places/skillsets for multi-million dollar places as for "basic" ones. There's a reason "want something done right, do it yourself" is hardly a new aphorism.