Category: Writings

At one point, Silicon Valley had an extensive privately owned and operated streetcar system. Where did it go, and is there still hope for re-building transit oriented developments in a smart, forward-thinking way? … Continue readingDeath and Life of the Silicon Valley Streetcar

Besides gaining ultra-buff legs, many ‘part-time’ bike commuters end up with an extra  $12,400 at the end of the year. Earlier this month, I wrote a piece about how Rush Hour can Save you Money, it compared a typical Silicon Valley commute using a car, and the same commute using a bicycle. At the end […] … Continue readingDoes Car + Bike = A Good Thing?

Congress granted its right to create money to the Federal Reserve, and as a result has no direct accountability, and little to no influence over what the Federal Reserve does. What would happen if a few more congressional responsibilities were handed over as well? … Continue readingThe Fed: When Congress Gets Lazy

What if our path to saving money and becoming more healthy could be as simple as applying some math and logic to our daily commutes? Well, it might take a little bit of physical effort too, but we’ve cooked up a plan that just may be the cure to that pesky post holiday “fund-drain” and “weight-gain” duo. … Continue readingCan “Rush Hour” Save You Money?

Why are there more obese, diabetic, just plain sick Americans than ever before? What causes us to be sick, and why do we pay so much compared to other nations to get healthy again? Well, we’re not only paying more to get healthy, we’re also paying more to get sick. Confused? Follow along with the illustration […] … Continue readingThe American (Fooled and Drugged) Economy

Let’s cut to the chase and be brutally honest about what our stereotypical “bum” is: a dirty, drunken, frightening, socially inept creature of the urban environment, someone who has ‘fallen off the cart’ so to speak, and makes a living, well, by living off of the hard work of other people who have chosen to […] … Continue readingDirty Useless Bums, or Eco Heroes?

Like Many U.S. cities, the San Jose, California is in damage control mode, struggling with crippling budget shortfalls and making cuts in multiple areas. At an economic development meeting this week, it was said that although the police force lost over 60 officers to layoffs recently, the city still has over $3 million on their […] … Continue readingThe Dark Future for America’s Brightest City

“A 3,000-kilo SUV traveling 55kph beside a 10-kilo bicycle traveling 15kph? Are you Americans fucking nuts?” Take a look with us, at the current misgivings of the U.S. bicycle infrastructure, and how it can be fixed. … Continue readingWhen Cycling is a Crime

Through a combination of advertising onslaughts — and according to one Dr. Robert Lustig, through the prevalence of sugars and high-fructose corn syrup in our diets — we’ve lost the ability to control our eating habits. … Continue readingWhy We Need an Unhealthy Population

Planetizen recently released their list of the Top 100 Public Spaces in the U.S. and Canada (Liberty Suquare / Zuccotti Park was absent from the list) and we’d like to reflect on what the meaning of public space really is… … Continue readingWhat Public Space Must Be: Public

In Japan they have a big, ugly, imposing government building — as most of these buildings tend to be — called the National Diet Building. This building is not home to some special “Diet Ministry,” it houses the Japanese legislature, but seeing it in a recent Tweet by @MarketUrbanism reminded me of the several months I […] … Continue readingDoes America Need a “National Diet?”

This Saturday in Changwon, Bernhard Ensink, Secretary General of the European Cyclists’ Federation claimed that the attitude of young German adults is changing, that they are less inclined to feel the need or even ‘want’ for a personal automobile, and more inclined to want the latest iPhone. According to Ensink, a staggering 80% of young […] … Continue readingChangwon: Why the Bicycle isn’t About “Saving the Planet”

Despite a heavy downpour of rain, and with their fate still resting on a court ruling November 9th, it was mostly smiles and celebration in South Korea’s Dumulmeori farmland this weekend as hundreds came to watch 25 bands play on 3 stages. The Dumulmeori Music Festival is part of a bid to create awareness for a new […] … Continue readingSouth Korean Four Rivers Project gets “Organic Education”

There has been much talk recently of corporations being treated as ‘persons,’ in many respects, this article takes a look at the process of one corporation buying another… using people. … Continue readingThe Corporation: When Jim Buys Janet

The average person in the average city or town still has little opportunity to see what is really in their food, let alone where it comes from… in a market dictated by shiny marketing messages, how do we re-connect with our food sources? … Continue readingIf Humans Had Roots to Eat By

In a move echoing that on New York City’s Wall Street, a small yet international group of people stood their ground outside the Bank of America Building in San Francisco today. It was the sixth day of their financial district ‘occupation. … Continue readingGroup “Occupies” San Francisco Financial District

Take a look at how low-income housing is working in San Jose’s “Martha’s Garden,” a half-industrial, half-bungalow neighborhood on the verge of gentrification, put on hold by city and developer economic concerns. … Continue readingMartha’s Gardens: The Half-Gentrified Gem

While San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed bicycle plan calls for about 250 new miles of bicycle routes, they mainly consist of painted lines on shared roads. Sociecity would like to present a slightly more ambitious vision… … Continue readingAlameda Bicycle Boulevard