For some reason, I felt a bit perturbed by Solnit's article on Teddy Cruz and his architecture. My main concern was with the value judgments that seemed to be being placed on the perceived "openness" of residential space in particular and the idea that such an openness is superior. I wonder where such a judgment has sprung from. The phrase "good fences make good neighbors" comes to mind (and have fun applying that one to the U.S./Mexico border)- certainly not an idiom Cruz would agree with. So- now that we, as a culture, have moved to more separate residential existences as a whole, what makes the possibility of greater connection between neighbors appealing? Is it some sort of valorous fight against the compartmentalization of our social lives a la Facebook? Or is it some philosophical idealism attaching a value judgment to a practice that really doesn't have much positive effect on the lives of those affected?
(Personally, having dealt with rabid, shrieking football fans on all sides of my residence today, I'd like to be as far from my neighbors as possible. But I guess that's neither here nor there.)
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