[lug] Anyone else hate to get rid of old equipment?

[Maxwell Spangler]

On Wed, 2010-05-26 at 13:19 -0600, Nate Duehr wrote:

> Our current generations are starting to think the automobile is an 
> "ecological disaster".
> 
> What we have to realize is that the horse as transportation was also 
> considered an "ecological disaster" in big cities at the previous turn 
> of the century, and the automobile was the "advanced tech" that saved us 
> from piles of horse manure 2 stories high in New York City, and rotting 
> horse corpses in the street, where they fell.

You can count me as someone who paradoxically loves to drive (18,000+
miles on a road trip last year) and yet I would love to give up my car
and live in a proper city.

When I visited France (Paris, Nice, Cannes) a few years ago I had no car
and used my feet and public transportation to move around.  I absolutely
loved it.

What I observed is that those cities were built before the automobile
and therefore are centered around human beings moving about naturally.
It was comfortable, enjoyable and healthy for me to do so.

American cities, on the other hand, have been going through a fifty year
period of decline as we use access to credit to buy automobiles and land
in the suburbs and left the cities to follow our dreams.  Now our
suburbs require us to drive everywhere, robbing us of opportunities to
use our feet to exercise, see our neighbors, slow our lives down and
live more healthy.

Other than personal preference the reason I consider this important is
that I think European cities will endure over time and our suburbs will
not.  If gas prices rise (and how can they not in the long run?), the
cost of living in suburbs will rise and cause inflation to our overall
economy as employees demand more money just to get to work and have
their previous standard of living.  Whereas cities based on walking and
electric-based public transportation will be less impacted and may
actually thrive if they are maintained well.

-- 
Maxwell Spangler
========================================================================
        Linux, Unix and Database Administration
        Currently: Boulder, Colorado
        LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/in/maxwellspangler