I don't think there's any kind of mysticism or Orientalism in saying that we can't just copy what we like about tiny businesses in Tokyo, and it's because we can't just copy the fact that rent there is lower. I'm no expert here, just an interested observer, but if there was any kind of policy change that could lower rents in US cities I presume we'd already have done that, because it's a problem! In fact, given what I'm hearing people in Tokyo say about rising residential rents, I'm wondering and worrying whether this is going to start affecting those kinds of businesses too.
I've often wondered if America's high cost of living (which I argue is due largely to zoning and transportation policy) is why we're no longer competitive on the world stage. When it costs your average person tens of thousands of dollars just to live, a lot of jobs just aren't productive enough to cover that cost.
That and a lot of productivity in a regional economy just gets captured in rents due to those places having a high demand to live there, with the resulting wealth just funneling up into the pockets of wealthy landowners, which makes those marginal jobs even less viable.
I don't think there's any kind of mysticism or Orientalism in saying that we can't just copy what we like about tiny businesses in Tokyo, and it's because we can't just copy the fact that rent there is lower. I'm no expert here, just an interested observer, but if there was any kind of policy change that could lower rents in US cities I presume we'd already have done that, because it's a problem! In fact, given what I'm hearing people in Tokyo say about rising residential rents, I'm wondering and worrying whether this is going to start affecting those kinds of businesses too.
I've often wondered if America's high cost of living (which I argue is due largely to zoning and transportation policy) is why we're no longer competitive on the world stage. When it costs your average person tens of thousands of dollars just to live, a lot of jobs just aren't productive enough to cover that cost.
That and a lot of productivity in a regional economy just gets captured in rents due to those places having a high demand to live there, with the resulting wealth just funneling up into the pockets of wealthy landowners, which makes those marginal jobs even less viable.