Tremendously well-written piece. Just one small quibble:
Kenneth T. Jackson notes, in his classic study The Crabgrass Frontier: The Suburbanization of the United States, that before 1860 most houses had no front yard; they “nestled up to the street, with a prominent front door that invited entrance.”
That should read “most urban houses”. Until very recently “most houses” have had a “lawn.” I.e., until very recently most folks lived in rural areas (with acreage). As has my family. And as I still do today. In fact, in 1860 the USA had been experiencing massive urban growth, but 65% to 70% still lived in the countryside by then.
This phenomenon of crazy obsession over sterile plastic-looking lawns has crept into rural areas as well, unfortunately. Really only to the pseudo-rural (i.e., suburbia with extra large lawns).
The irony… all these folks never leave their houses. And when they do, they simply do that to walk to their car. Maybe they’ll grill out back a bit. I suppose it is then that they survey their astroturf, but will rarely leave their deck. And if they go running or biking, they keep to asphalt or concrete and probably have headphones on.
I.e., There is an obsession here with “control” and it is further indicative of man distancing himself, not from each other, but from nature.
