October 22, 2014 at 4:23 PM
Happy cities: We’re disconnected from each other
The column by Jerry Large “Evangelist on creating a happy city” [Local News, Oct. 20] was eye-opening and made a strong argument for face-to-face interactions being part of a happy city.
I have not read Charles Montgomery’s book, “Happy City: Transforming Our Lives Through Urban Design.” Reportedly, one point he makes is that we might be more inclined to deal with inequality if we live in a more connected environment.
What I see today is how disconnected we have become from others. We socialize on Facebook; we tweet and text. We walk down the street or sit at a table with our dining partner and fail to speak because we are busy with our electronic devices.
Face-to-face seems to be a thing of the past. We need to return to human interaction before we can create a “connected’ environment.
Carole Martens, Seattle
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| Topics: Carole Martens, Charles Montgomery, cities
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