My mind has been many places lately...but not here.
Our weird neighbor is singing "The hills are alive...with the sound of music..." at the top of her lungs today. Mmm-hmm.
A few words on gentrification:
  • The current economic slowdown, which could last up to three years, will likely do wonders to keep attractive older, lower-income, inner-city neighborhoods from becoming yuppie-havens. It's a simple cash flow issue.
  • I think I have a truly feasible idea to help solve the gentrification problem in many American cities. It probably won't work in NYC because of historic rent control issues, but it should work most metropolitan areas whose economies have not been skewed by ubiquitous rent control. The idea has to do with home equity refinancing, the condominium ownership structure, and community-based education of basic financial concepts.
More to follow, as I develop this idea and subject it to criticism...