KunstlerCast - Conversations: Converging Catastrophes of the 21st Century

At the suggestion of a listener caller, James Howard Kunstler gives a virtual walking tour of Detroit, Michigan using Google Street View. Google Street View is an interactive photographic map that allows users to view photographs of streets and buildings in many cities throughout the world. Users can follow along with this program using the embedded Google Street View windows in the show notes for this episode at http://kunstlercast.com. During this "walking" tour, Kunstler examines the Michigan Central Depot Train Station, Tiger Stadium, the Renaissance Center, the People Mover, The Joe Louis Arena (aka the Aztec Mall of Death), The Grand Circus, the Fillmore and Fox theaters, and the Detroit waterfront.

James Howard Kunstler talks about two former industrial cities undergoing massive contractions: Flint, Michigan and Youngstown, Ohio . The local governments in both cities have adopted policies to manage the contraction to reduce public safety issues caused by large abandoned areas within their borders. Kunstler then responds to a listener call from suburban Chicago about the prospects of farming in the post-cheap oil suburbs. The conversation then turns to the future of former city farms. Sponsorship for this podcast comes from Audible. Visit http://audiblepodcast.com/kunstler for a free audio book download and 14-day trial. Music supplied by IODA Promonet.

James Howard Kunstler responds to a listener call about the 10 "high speed" rail corridors the Obama administration is seeking to restore in the U.S. The phrase high-speed rail is a little misleading, though, because what Obama is looking to do with rail in this country is actually just bring it back up to "Bulgarian" standards. These passenger rail upgrades and restorations will service trains that travel around 100 miles per hour, not nearly as fast as the high speed trains in Europe or Japan. Sponsorship of this podcast comes from the Congress for the New Urbanism. www.cnu.org

James Howard Kunstler talks about the recent outbreak of swine flu and the increased attention to modern-day pirates. Several bloggers have noted some similarities between current headlines and the scenario in Kunstler's novel, World Made By Hand, in which a severe economic downturn is followed by a deadly Mexican flu epidemic. A few years ago, Kunstler took some heat from critics for his chapter in The Long Emergency that addressed the potential threat of Asian pirates in the Pacific Northwest. Now that piracy is in the news, some people are going "hmmmm." The show closes with a listener call responding to the KunstlerCast about bad behavior and urban policing. Sponsorship for this podcast comes from The Congress for The New Urbanism, www.cnu.org

Host Duncan Crary has been taking James Howard Kunstler's ideas about water transport seriously. This Spring, Duncan is bringing back passenger riverboat commuting service to the Hudson River in Albany. On May 13, Duncan is hosting a day where people can commute to and from work on board the Dutch Apple between the cities of Albany and Troy NY. Kunstler talks with Duncan about this project. People take ferries to work every day in other regions and it's a rewarding experience that can be replicated. On the topic of alternative commuting, Kunstler addresses the notion that telecommuting will solve our impending energy woes. Kunstler doesn't think that telecommuting will save us, but a combination of alternative commuting that includes some telecommuting might help. Support for this podcast comes from the Congress for New Urbanism, www.cnu.org, and Audible http://www.audiblepodcast.com/kunstler,

James Howard Kunstler often advocates for a return to urban living arrangements. But urban living often bring residents into close proximity to bad behavior. The situation can be especially frightening when people inhabit cities that aren't fully repopulated yet. Suburban style "car cop" policing causes additional problems because car culture can foster bad behavior from the police themselves. Kunstler believes that police on foot and horse would lead to more productive policing and would also allow citizens to police the police. Later Kunstler speaks about the "Broken Window Theory." Host Duncan Crary asks Kunstler about the obligation of citizens to address and correct bad behavior when they encounter it. In his response, Kunstler touches upon the underlying racial issues that are sometimes present in these situations. Finally, Kunstler muses on the future of community policing after insolvent municipalities can no longer afford to pay for overwhelming vehicular policing styles. A listener caller from Portland, Maine ends the show with thoughts on "driving" bicycles on the street. This episode is sponsored by the Congress for the New Urbanism. Learn more at www.cnu17.org

James Howard Kunstler responds to a listener who doesn't understand why Jim sounds kind of down on bicycle transportation. Kunstler clarifies his position on bicycles -- he's a big supporter of bicycle use, but he doesn't know if Americans will support bicycle projects with so many highways and bridges in disrepair. While places like Amsterdam have excellent bicycle facilities that are integrated into their urban fabric, Kunstler believes the most successful bicycle facilities in the U.S. are separate from the street pattern. He also warns of overly ambitious, high tech plans regarding bicycle trail projects. Lastly he discusses New York City's recent plans to turn a portion of Broadway into a bicycle/pedestrian way, and the bicycle sharing program in Paris. A listener call from a former student of Frank Lloyd Wright defends and clarifies Wright's feelings about cities. Sponsorship of this podcast comes from The Congress for New Urbanism.

James Howard Kunstler reports on two recent trips he took. First he talks about his appearance at the annual Aspen Institute Environmental Forum, where talk of alternative fuel, and other ways to keep our happy motoring scene running, dominated the talks about peak oil. For the remainder of this program Kunstler reports on his recent trip to Johannesburg, South Africa, where he inspected a 35-acre new urbanist neighborhood project. Kunstler describes his urban planning and cultural observations of this region of the world.

In this short podcast, James Howard Kunstler returns briefly to the topic of New Orleans. This time he discusses the future of the Port of New Orleans. In the second half of this program, we hear from listeners around the country. One listener from New Orleans doesn't think Jim gave her city a fair shake. She says New Orleans is everything new urbanists want in a community -- street cars, walkable streets and places worth caring about -- except it's old urbanism, not new urbanism. Other listeners respond to the virtual tour of Paris, healthcare and population decline, Jim and Duncan's encounter with the Mayor of Troy, finding meaningful work in the new economy and the recent space shuttle blast off.

At the suggestion of a listener caller, James Howard Kunstler gives a virtual walking tour of Paris, France using Google Street View. Google Street View is an interactive photographic map that allows users to view photographs of streets and buildings in many cities throughout the world. Users can follow along with this program using the embedded Google Street View windows in the episode notes for show #56 at KunstlerCast.com. Music provided by IODA Promonet.