Further, he says, don't prop up losers (car companies); that's investing in the old economy. Invest in the new economy with infrastructure, primarily rapid mass transit between and within cities, and in so doing increasing good things, like the speed of mobility and urban density. Things you need and want (your job, your friends, culture and entertainment) will all be closer and you will be happier for it.
And stop subsidizing home ownership; follow those prudent Canadians and don't allow mortgage-interest payments to be tax-deductible. At the city level, Florida sees government as the partner of non-governmental organizations and citizen-led initiatives, not the sole actor. No more new roads or freeways in cities; build them and they will lead to more congestion and more unhappiness. Transit and telecommuting are the only rational ways forward to sustainable cities and productive economies.
He also urges the culture to move on from the conspicuous consumption that emanates from too much emphasis on suburban home ownership and cars to the postmaterialism of seeking experience, learning and spiritual growth. Sounds utopian, but the research he sees says such a cultural revolution may be in the making. (My own research also points in this direction in Canada, but for different reasons, such as the aging of baby boomers. We also see strong countercurrents as immigrants and their offspring tend to embrace – not transcend – the materialism of their new society. As with those of us who were born in Canada, it takes a couple of generations to get bored with the material and focus on the post-material.)
Although Florida is happy to talk about Canada and Toronto in Canadian newspapers and magazines, in this book his new city gets only a few pages. Like many Canadian novelists born abroad, such as Rohinton Mistry, M.G. Vassanji and Anar Ali, Florida's imagination is drawn to his homeland. But as a narcissistic Torontonian, I would have loved more from him on the way forward for Canada's largest city (fourth largest in North America).
Indeed, I closed Florida's immensely stimulating book with a sigh as I reflected on what seems to be a poverty of ideas in the political marketplace in this country at all levels. Are we destined to muddle through in self-satisfied complacency, assuming that our beloved banks and natural resources will see us through? Will we ever again debate, implement and ultimately celebrate big ideas that matter?
Michael Adams, president of Environics, walks to and from work when not on his Vespa and is author of a soon-to-be-released book on baby boomers, Stayin' Alive.
