The latest mainstream meme cloaked as intelligent thought is, “CITIES ARE DEAD!!!”. It was the obvious, easy conclusion to make post-COVID. But like any good meme it needs to go viral to really become mainstream. We can (partly) thank James Altucher and his article, “NYC IS DEAD FOREVER. HERE’S WHY“.
James didn’t spare the caps lock key for his title… intentionally.
If you’ve ever read anything by James Altucher with at least one open eye (metaphorically here), you’ll know he’s more interested in producing content that’s jarring and controversial than actually accurate and substantive.
Why?
Because it gets attention. It’s the same reason our president lies and embellishes at every opportunity. It’s brand building in the most simplistic, ugly form of the word.
And it works.
And the result?
Every Tom, Kevin, and Sally regurgitating a meme that was more designed for virality than actual thought-provoking ideas. It makes sense on the surface because it’s easy to understand and explain (ironically, these reasons are also why it’s far more likely to be wrong). It also plays into the doomsday “everything is going to shit” narrative that, disgustingly, society happens to be enamored with.
It makes them sound intelligent to their friends as they nod along in thoughtless agreement. And any piece of news they can point to, exclaim “LOOK HOW RIGHT I AM!!!!” is a feel good moment constructed of artificial reinforcement.
Kevin and I are in the same real estate investing facebook group. He posted this article about some commercial space being listed for sale but spun it into an opportunity to say how screwed downtown is. He led with how smart he is because he’s been saying this “since the beginning of Covid”.
Kevin believes this narrative is his own, original thought. How cute.
And he largely received the accolades, reinforcement, and social kudos he was craving. But here was my take:
It’s simple. Cities won’t die. They will thrive.
I understand that isn’t interesting to most people. It’s easy to glance at the state of things and conclude that everything is fucked. But the easy, thoughtless way is almost always the wrong way.
It’s far more difficult to consider all the reasons why cities will be better, richer experiences than ever before.
Like I said above, I believe in progress and ingenuity. I believe that when you remove the people from cities and downtowns that aren’t forced to live there for their jobs (the true impact from a work from home culture) it clears the way for those that do want to live there for the culture, diversity, walkability, etc. Those people are far more likely to be involved in their communities and make it even more desirable.
If you believe the success of something is dependent on people, or something, that’s forced to be there… well, that’s just low-level thinking.
Instead of worrying about how bad things could get try using your imagination to consider how great they might be.
It’s a far more pleasant way to live your life. I promise.