3 ms·

Economical progress is certainly no guarantee of happiness, and hardships do often foster a sense of camaraderie that brings people closer together. Soldiers wh

Economical progress is certainly no guarantee of happiness, and hardships do often foster a sense of camaraderie that brings people closer together. Soldiers who have been in combat, for example, find that they miss the foxhole, even though getting shot at is no one's idea of a happy time. > People don't really enjoy their evenings chatting to each other because benches have been removed and kid playgrounds have been moved blocks away and everyone is sitting in their bunkers There's nothing about economic growth and material wealth that requires this to happen. Something else must have changed. > It was miles better when I was a kid in Poland. Most things are better as a kid, without the worries of adulthood, let alone parenthood. I'd imagine the outlook for your parents raising you in the People's Republic may have been different.

Symbiote 3y ago
It's OK for some things genuinely to have been better for some people in some of the planned economies. City planning looks to be better for children and perhaps average families for the reasons given. Similar projects were also built in the west, e.g. in the UK, but since they were only for poor people they suffered from inadequate maintenance, security and so on. Those either get demolished, or the green space filled in with more buildings. > Something else must have changed. Cars, that was the point. A one-lane access road was originally enough for deliveries, maintenance and waste removal; it would later be widened, then cars parked (legally or not) along the sides of the road or sidewalks. No one wants to sit on a bench and stare at a parked car, and the cars (parked and moving) make it more dangerous for children to play unsupervised.
331c8c71 3y ago
> There's nothing about economic growth and material wealth that requires this to happen. Something else must have changed. Agreed. When I was a kid we used to just roam outside (let alone walking to school and extracurriculars by ourselves). That's no longer normal at exactly the same places even if objectively it is safer now. The perception of risk must be one thing that has changed but I think there's more to it...
- david-gpu 3y ago
  > That's no longer normal at exactly the same places even if objectively it is safer now Safer in terms of having less crime, perhaps? What about the danger of being run over by a car on the way to those places? Nowadays we typically have more cars, with lower visibility, driving faster than before because the roads are wider, straighter and with more lanes. It is an environment that is plainly hostile to pedestrians and children in particular.
  - 331c8c71 3y ago
    Probably... Haven't witnessed or heard of any pedestrian/car accidents in my home town to facilitate such a change. On the other hand, biking would be definitely less pleasurable and more dangerous for smaller kids now. Even as adult I don't enjoy biking with many cars around.

Symbiote 3y ago

It's OK for some things genuinely to have been better for some people in some of the planned economies. City planning looks to be better for children and perhaps average families for the reasons given. Similar projects were also built in the west, e.g. in the UK, but since they were only for poor people they suffered from inadequate maintenance, security and so on. Those either get demolished, or the green space filled in with more buildings. > Something else must have changed. Cars, that was the point. A one-lane access road was originally enough for deliveries, maintenance and waste removal; it would later be widened, then cars parked (legally or not) along the sides of the road or sidewalks. No one wants to sit on a bench and stare at a parked car, and the cars (parked and moving) make it more dangerous for children to play unsupervised.

331c8c71 3y ago

> There's nothing about economic growth and material wealth that requires this to happen. Something else must have changed. Agreed. When I was a kid we used to just roam outside (let alone walking to school and extracurriculars by ourselves). That's no longer normal at exactly the same places even if objectively it is safer now. The perception of risk must be one thing that has changed but I think there's more to it...

david-gpu 3y ago
> That's no longer normal at exactly the same places even if objectively it is safer now Safer in terms of having less crime, perhaps? What about the danger of being run over by a car on the way to those places? Nowadays we typically have more cars, with lower visibility, driving faster than before because the roads are wider, straighter and with more lanes. It is an environment that is plainly hostile to pedestrians and children in particular.
- 331c8c71 3y ago
  Probably... Haven't witnessed or heard of any pedestrian/car accidents in my home town to facilitate such a change. On the other hand, biking would be definitely less pleasurable and more dangerous for smaller kids now. Even as adult I don't enjoy biking with many cars around.