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Thursday, August 25, 2005
Creative Class my ass, redux.
 Lots of criticism on this post, with the most specific being:1. Espresso is not locally owned.Well, I addressed the first two in this response, but here are some basic sources for creative class criticism (an illiteration!): City Journal - Winter 2004: ...A generation of leftish policy-makers and urban planners is rushing to implement Florida’s vision, while an admiring host of uncritical journalists touts it...Sound familiar? ...But there is just one problem: the basic economics behind his ideas don’t work. Far from being economic powerhouses, a number of the cities the professor identifies as creative-age winners have chronically underperformed the American economy. And, although Florida is fond of saying that, today, “place matters” in attracting workers and business, some of his top creative cities don’t even do a particularly good job at attracting—or keeping—residents...A great read, that one. Here's another: Metropolis Magazine - Feb. 22, 2005: [...] Maybe Florida bugs me because I lived for a time in 3 T's central, San Francisco, from the pinnacle of the dot-com boom to the bottom of the bust. I lived in a place that was so perfectly attuned to the needs and desires of a particular creative class that hardly anyone else could stand it (or afford it). [...]Turns out this theory isn't very good for real artists either: The Stranger (Seattle) - Sept. 3-10, 2003: Presumably he (Florida) would argue that economic prosperity bolsters the arts. But we saw in Seattle's boom years that this wasn't true, at least not on the street level Florida so admires. Lots of new building was initiated--the symphony, the new opera house--but very little of this money trickled down to artists, largely because the dot-commers who came to Seattle to make their fortunes weren't buying art. "Investment in the arts" tends to mean investment in institutions, not in the things artists really need to survive: affordable studios, for example, and health insurance.And even some in good ole' Cinncinati are having problems with this theory: Cincinnati City Beat - Dec. 31, 2003: [...] However, what some call "repopulation," others call "gentrification." While the Urbanists meet to passionately discuss ways to celebrate and revitalize Cincinnati's urban core, some activists worry that rising prices will displace Over-the-Rhine's lower-income, mostly African-American residents.I doubt these articles will make much of a difference (there is money to be made here), but I thought a brief analysis of some of the criticism of the creative class would be in order. From basic economics, to racial and class issues, to the exploitation of artists and hipsters, the notions behind creative class development are dubious, at best. Will we see any of this criticism in the Hub anytime soon? It would indeed be high journalism to print rebuttals of the economic theories behind one of your investor's big projects. I wonder if the Hub is up to it?  
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3 Comments:
Sir or Madam,
At a press conference held earlier today in the lobby of the soon-to-be-completed "Friends of Mr. Sokolski Mensa Meeting Center And Delicious Starbucks Coffee MegaStore" in Downtown Champaign, Mr. Gerard issued an official statement regarding his article in the Hub covering developments in Campustown and downtown Champaign.
The statement is - in its entirety - as follows:
"I stand by my story."
Concerning Mr(s). Foleyma's complete failure to even remotely provide a
shred of evidence regarding Mr. Gerard's nomination as "worst reporter this town has ever seen" I wholeheartedly welcome Mr(s). Foleyma to consider coming on board as a client of Bottom of the Barrel Talent, Inc., Boise, ID.
And, if you happen to have that Fein guy's number please pass it along.
I can't believe with his weekly public affirmation of possessing the
intellectual agility of a traffic pylon we have not yet secured a deal with him. He will, however, have to get a haircut. We do have some standards.
Most Charmingly Yours,
Wally "the Fen" Fenwick
P.S. I wonder if Paul Westerberg reads the Becker-Posner blog.
"Bottom of the Barrell Talent" eh? Did you come up with that one yourself? My goodness.
Not that I would expect much more from the folks who chose to post last week. I re-read the comments the other night and was honestly surprised to find little argument against my original criticisms of the creative class index: it's bogus economics, it's classist and racist, it's about making the investors wealthy, it exploits artists.
Perhaps you'd care to take a shot? I know it's easier to insult than to debate (perhaps you're a Rove pupil?) but maybe you should give it a try. It'd be more than Mr. Gerard tried to do, and it would definitely be an improvement over your attempts at humor.
Wonder what The Hub IS up to these days? I am frankly sick of watching it decline from something that accepts or rejects these creative class issues into something that would seemingly never address anything at all.
see: http://champaignamerican.blogspot.com/2005/10/hub-has-refused-to-run-my-article.html
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