James T.
@jathaj.bsky.social
Public librarian. Erstwhile historian. Personal account - posts do not represent the views of my employer.
You’re right, there’s definitely room for improvement. Mea culpa.
November 25, 2025 at 7:11 PM
You’re right, there’s definitely room for improvement. Mea culpa.
You need confiscatory taxation on SFHs in areas zoned for apartments and a prohibition on new construction that reduces the number of units on a parcel.
November 25, 2025 at 5:47 PM
You need confiscatory taxation on SFHs in areas zoned for apartments and a prohibition on new construction that reduces the number of units on a parcel.
Most of these areas are zoned fine. The problem is that the parcels are owned by people so wealthy that it doesn’t matter to them if their land is being used inefficiently. They value having a mansion more than any rent they could obtain from a building with multiple units.
November 25, 2025 at 5:43 PM
Most of these areas are zoned fine. The problem is that the parcels are owned by people so wealthy that it doesn’t matter to them if their land is being used inefficiently. They value having a mansion more than any rent they could obtain from a building with multiple units.
We spend over $20k a year for one 3-year old to attend daycare just three days per week. It’s rough out there.
November 24, 2025 at 5:35 PM
We spend over $20k a year for one 3-year old to attend daycare just three days per week. It’s rough out there.
Somehow Waymo will get you all the way to Bodega Bay but not Santa Cruz🫠
November 24, 2025 at 5:16 AM
Somehow Waymo will get you all the way to Bodega Bay but not Santa Cruz🫠
I can’t believe it’s still like this. IIRC, this plus no sales tax on clothing and gas results in a sea of irritable New York humanity (my parents included) materializing every Saturday. When I was a kid it could take over an hour to traverse Paramus during the holidays.
November 23, 2025 at 7:00 PM
I can’t believe it’s still like this. IIRC, this plus no sales tax on clothing and gas results in a sea of irritable New York humanity (my parents included) materializing every Saturday. When I was a kid it could take over an hour to traverse Paramus during the holidays.
As bad as things have been trending in the US lately the American Revolution was not a mistake.
November 20, 2025 at 4:16 PM
As bad as things have been trending in the US lately the American Revolution was not a mistake.
Gonna need to dust of the ol’ IOU printer.
November 20, 2025 at 4:20 AM
Gonna need to dust of the ol’ IOU printer.
In other words, it was a typical Argument article.
November 20, 2025 at 1:06 AM
In other words, it was a typical Argument article.
I’m making a joke, just in case it wasn’t apparent.
November 19, 2025 at 9:26 PM
I’m making a joke, just in case it wasn’t apparent.
But Sam, since not *every* American lives in one of these places it *can’t* be an issue of national importance.
November 19, 2025 at 9:23 PM
But Sam, since not *every* American lives in one of these places it *can’t* be an issue of national importance.
As it is it’s just hard to say if this is just old, very real educational equity issues manifesting or if it’s “Kids These Days” or too lenient parenting like so many of the commentators seem to be rooting for.
November 19, 2025 at 7:33 PM
As it is it’s just hard to say if this is just old, very real educational equity issues manifesting or if it’s “Kids These Days” or too lenient parenting like so many of the commentators seem to be rooting for.
It’s just hard to say there’s an across the board issue unless we know more about the 900+ remedial math students. Are they all from poor families from the Central Valley or are there some from rich families in Palo Alto too? If it’s the latter I’ll believe we have a bone fide math crisis.
November 19, 2025 at 7:32 PM
It’s just hard to say there’s an across the board issue unless we know more about the 900+ remedial math students. Are they all from poor families from the Central Valley or are there some from rich families in Palo Alto too? If it’s the latter I’ll believe we have a bone fide math crisis.
My son is the same age. I’ve been introducing him to Eyewitness books. He loves the Crystal & Gem one in particular because it has lots of pictures of what he calls “boulders.”
November 19, 2025 at 5:54 PM
My son is the same age. I’ve been introducing him to Eyewitness books. He loves the Crystal & Gem one in particular because it has lots of pictures of what he calls “boulders.”
Ugh, >50 SPF. Been doing this since my early 20s and my face is more or less wrinkle-free as I near 40.
November 19, 2025 at 2:48 AM
Ugh, >50 SPF. Been doing this since my early 20s and my face is more or less wrinkle-free as I near 40.
Drugstore brands like Olay are fine. Go with a non-comedogenic sunblock on your face and neck that is >= 60 SPF. Apply daily, even if winter/overcast. Re-apply midday if you are active/sweat. Every other night apply a retinol product. Apply a moisturizer like Cerave day and night. Wear a hat.
November 19, 2025 at 2:47 AM
Drugstore brands like Olay are fine. Go with a non-comedogenic sunblock on your face and neck that is >= 60 SPF. Apply daily, even if winter/overcast. Re-apply midday if you are active/sweat. Every other night apply a retinol product. Apply a moisturizer like Cerave day and night. Wear a hat.
The federal gov’t definitely bears a lot of responsibility for present patterns of land use, but it’s going to require state and local action in most cases to roll things back. I could be wrong, but I don’t think it’s the feds holding back, say, Scarsdale, NY from up-zoning.
November 19, 2025 at 12:26 AM
The federal gov’t definitely bears a lot of responsibility for present patterns of land use, but it’s going to require state and local action in most cases to roll things back. I could be wrong, but I don’t think it’s the feds holding back, say, Scarsdale, NY from up-zoning.
Exactly! It’s reasonable not to want to uproot yourself as soon as you become an adult. It’s also reasonable to be dissatisfied if not uprooting oneself means living with your parents into your thirties.
November 18, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Exactly! It’s reasonable not to want to uproot yourself as soon as you become an adult. It’s also reasonable to be dissatisfied if not uprooting oneself means living with your parents into your thirties.
It’s also just not purely a matter of choice. Where one lives isn’t solely a function of one’s consumer preferences. Some people are just born in dense urban places. Some of them might actually prefer the bundle of locational goods available elsewhere but moving is not costless.
November 18, 2025 at 11:22 PM
It’s also just not purely a matter of choice. Where one lives isn’t solely a function of one’s consumer preferences. Some people are just born in dense urban places. Some of them might actually prefer the bundle of locational goods available elsewhere but moving is not costless.
For good or ill, the fate of the Nashville, Phoenix, Kansas City, insert your favorite non-star metro here, is tied to what happens in the weird places in an asymmetrical way.
November 18, 2025 at 10:42 PM
For good or ill, the fate of the Nashville, Phoenix, Kansas City, insert your favorite non-star metro here, is tied to what happens in the weird places in an asymmetrical way.
They point isn’t really that they are typical, but that they are large and interconnected with the rest of the country. If one of them just suddenly dropped off the map the rest of the country would feel the impact.
November 18, 2025 at 10:39 PM
They point isn’t really that they are typical, but that they are large and interconnected with the rest of the country. If one of them just suddenly dropped off the map the rest of the country would feel the impact.
TBH, I don’t actually think there’s much that can be done at the national level to affect this crisis. Until it’s easier to build housing in these places fiscal stimulus from the federal government would mostly serve to enrich incumbent landowners. But it’s still a national problem.
November 18, 2025 at 10:28 PM
TBH, I don’t actually think there’s much that can be done at the national level to affect this crisis. Until it’s easier to build housing in these places fiscal stimulus from the federal government would mostly serve to enrich incumbent landowners. But it’s still a national problem.
SF metro pop. ~5 million
LA metro pop. ~20 million
NY metro pop. ~20 million
Boston metro pop. ~5 million
Yes, they’re just obscure weird places full of online randos whose problems don’t constitute a crisis affecting the rest of the country.
LA metro pop. ~20 million
NY metro pop. ~20 million
Boston metro pop. ~5 million
Yes, they’re just obscure weird places full of online randos whose problems don’t constitute a crisis affecting the rest of the country.
November 18, 2025 at 10:25 PM
SF metro pop. ~5 million
LA metro pop. ~20 million
NY metro pop. ~20 million
Boston metro pop. ~5 million
Yes, they’re just obscure weird places full of online randos whose problems don’t constitute a crisis affecting the rest of the country.
LA metro pop. ~20 million
NY metro pop. ~20 million
Boston metro pop. ~5 million
Yes, they’re just obscure weird places full of online randos whose problems don’t constitute a crisis affecting the rest of the country.