[URBANTH-L]RE: Sex and the City

[Angela Jancius]

From: "David Babson" <DBabson at maxwell.syr.edu>

Fascinating analysis.  I have often looked at the post-World War II 
transformation of U.S. society from the perspective of technological and 
social history--specifically, the transition from mass transportation based 
upon railroads to individually-oriented transportation based upon 
automobiles as driving many of these effects--perspective of an 
archaeologist, who would emphasize material culture.  That may be, more, the 
technical aspects of the story--this desire to move to the country, to have 
more space to have a family and to better fit into a cultural pattern that 
would "allow" a larger family, may be more of a direct, cultural cause. 
And, this in reaction to the unprecedented destruction of World War II, and 
the nuclear confrontations of the Cold War.  The information on the 
different course taken by Europe and Japan were new to me, but they make 
sense--as a technological coda, to that, I have read that intercity 
passenger transport in Europe, today, is largely by rail or air, while 
freight transport is by truck and road, exactly the opposite of the 
situation in the U.S.  Great and far-reaching world effects of these 
differences--global warming, and the current series of wars over oil, also, 
perhaps, why the Europeans and Japanese are much more reluctant than is the 
U.S. to fight for oil, thus avoiding disasters like the present war in Iraq.

Has Dr. Sriram Khe published this work? [Moderator's Note: Does anyone 
know? Reply to Babson. The interview was published in Planetization.]

D. Babson.