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Consider that 90 percent of GDP comes out of metropolitan areas. And yet somehow some people think that we don't need cities. Not only do we have to open our borders, we have to strengthen our cities massively because they're the cornerstones of our ability to compete for talent. But for the past four years the Bush administration has done everything to prevent that, from huge decreases in infrastructure spending to drastic cuts in block grants.
And now most cities aren't equipped to compete anymore. The only policy we seem to have to revive our cities is to build another stadium. What does that have to do with attracting foreign talent? Who cares? No one cares. I've never met one foreign-born person that said "a new stadium" was an important factor when deciding where to live and work. The national government is clueless and our cities would rather be distracted by sports mania instead of paying attention to more serious issues.
My anecdotal evidence suggests that this is already starting to have a big impact. In terms of conversations and interviews I've had all over the world, it's quite clear that the competition for talent isn't just U.S. cities against other U.S. cities, it's the world. When I talk to people around the world, they might say, "Oh, New York is my favorite city." Or maybe they have one or two other U.S. cities -- "Ah, I like Chicago a lot, I like San Francisco a lot," or "I like Boston a lot and I like D.C. a lot." And then you start to hear a bunch of foreign cities. And now when you talk to young Americans graduating college, when you ask them where they want to move, after they get through their four or five top U.S. cities, it's quickly "I'll move to London or I'll move to Dublin or I'll move to Sydney or I'll move to Melbourne."
- Richard Florida, "The gay/hipster index," interviewed by Christopher Dreher, salon April 21, 2005 (via andy's chest: creativeclass.org: recent reviews)
posted May 14, 2005 in art, politics, print, speech. 200220012000