Demographics

I have often thought that if we lived in a society in which anyone, including those of only average or even below average ability, who works hard and plays by the rules could realistically look forward to a rich and fulfilling life, then much of the cultural and racial conflict that is currently dividing our country would simply disappear.  read more »

When my Gen Z students graduated a few months ago, I noticed something unusual about their post-baccalaureate plans. For most of my teaching career, many of my students would move to New York City or other large cities to be at the center of the cultural zeitgeist and be connected with others.  read more »

Appalachia has been a byword for American underdevelopment and dysfunction for over a century.

The region has been the target of many government actions over decades attempting to improve its performance. While some of these have produced results, the region remains an underperformer relative to the rest of the country.  read more »

“Politics is really downstream from culture.” Andrew Breitbart’s assertion, echoing the ideas of the Marxist philosopher Antonio Gramsci, has become a watchword both for the Right and Left. This culture-first approach has fostered a politics  read more »

This new report examines the housing crisis in California and strategies to create more housing at affordable price points. Below is a summary and a link to download the full report  read more »

Driven, at least in part, by the huge increase in the potential for remote work, US residents moved in large numbers to states with lower urban densities  read more »

I try hard to give people insights into trends affecting our world. One of them is the way that declining birth rates will ultimately translate into shrinking cities.  read more »

Over the weekend, the publisher Puffin announced that it had scrubbed language deemed “insensitive” and “non-inclusive” from the works of Roald Dahl, the classic children’s book author  read more »

The state of California Department of Finance (DOF) has issued interim population projections indicating that in 2060, there will be 39,508,000 residents in the state.  read more »

Not so long ago, the West was captivated by visions of the ‘end of history’. Francis Fukuyama, Thomas Friedman, Kenichi Ohmae and others envisaged the permanent triumph of a global neoliberal order.  read more »