Moving Out of Harm's Way

USA TODAY's recent piece, "'Exurbs' flourish, but is this really what we want?" says it all. People are making choices that their betters do not like. And the folks who Tom Sowell loves to call "the anointed" say all sorts of things to make their point. Brookings' Bruce Katz is quoted as saying that this sort of settlement is just too costly.

The problem is that he has no evidence for this and he presumes that cost-minimization is a worthy goal.

Others cite surveys that show that people really do not want to live the exurban life style. They want something no one offers them. I would like London out my front door and Santa Monica out my back door when the pollster calls.

USA TODAY writer Ben Brown sums up: "In the age of decentralization, communities may find an advantage in re-aggregating in regional authorities to plan and regulate growth."

Not really. In the dreamworld of re-aggregated regional authorities, people would move out of harm's way even faster.