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naraburns  nihil supernum  1yr ago (text post)   37958 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of March 27, 2023

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YIMBY sentiment on this forum has (I think) been mostly focused on increasing the density of existing residential zones. However, it may be worth noting that there is an alternative: converting existing agricultural or unused land to low-density residential use (i. e., continuing to "sprawl"). In this article, a former employee of the libertarian Cato Institute accuses that organization of focusing exclusively on high-density housing, and of smearing as racist people who are not interested in long-term high-density living and clamor for more single-family houses. (In his view, upzoning imposed from the top down is not libertarian, because the existing owners have a sort of property right in the zoning of their neighborhood as a substitute for deed restrictions that could or should have been used instead of zoning codes.)

Urban sprawl satisfies libertarian YIMBYs. More homes, more lawns, more castles, more basement home theaters and pinball rooms, more space for your children to grow up physically and socially distant from their peers, in places without sidewalks, where mom has to deliver them to and pick them up from soccer practice or their friends house. Where you need a taxi to be able to go drink with your friends. Where getting out of your car is inconvenient and so every service, from the bank to Starbucks, is drive ‘thru’. A place where you have to drive to walk your dog in sanctioned green space nearby. Hell, a place where you have to drive to walk at all.

Isn't this hellscape exactly the product of government regulation? I.e single-family zoning (with a lot of additional bizarre rules) in the US? Doesn't sound very libertarian to me. The rest of your rant is about how the moral failings of libertarians can be disregarded based on its shoddy premise.

Single-family suburbs wouldn't dominate a libertarian economy even if people really wanted it.. because they are grossly economically inefficient if not net burdens and when there are no subsidies you either abandon your white picket dream or pay a hefty price for it, most won't consider it worth bearing that additional cost.

Japan's zoning laws are a lot less stringent than in the US, and you get more of what you consider good, not less of it.

Isn't this hellscape exactly the product of government regulation?

Yes, but a different government regulation than the one you are pointing to:

The real culprit is criminalizing racial covenants (and similar ones relating to status and income) in housing contracts. Because of this, the only way to separate yourself in physical space from the criminal poor is by making living in your general area very expensive. Thus, you need single family zoning, minimum lot sizes, and lack of public transit into your neighborhoods. If you could have a whole neighborhood where it was illegal to move in without being married and at least one spouse with a college degree, minimum income of $150k, then there would be no reason to ban duplexes.

How much of the problem do you think is caused by the racial element and how much by the other elements?

They are fairly inseparable.

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