Part of the reason we have embraced the car is out of fear of each other. Thankfully, over my lifetime, people seem to have become more comfortable with (perceived) differences (of race, national origin, sexuality). We need our behavior to catch up with this change. Lose the fear, get out of the car, live near each other!The Kennedy Expressway, heading towards the Loop in Chicago (see photo above) presents a beautiful and disheartening view. Masses of buildings, which allow us to see each other face-to-face, which allow us to travel by foot, contrast with the atomization invited into the city with the highway.
Volumes have been written by people at least as smart as me about whether Americans like cities. It almost doesn't matter. If we want a healthy (fill in the blank -- body, environment, social life, etc.), we need easy to navigate, experientially-rich urban (at all scales) communities.
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