A New Urban Paradigm for 21st-Century America
Throughout America, cities are on the rebound, thriving as they have not in generations. While successful cities have had their own special formulas for revival, they appear to have in common a clear set of principles that lead to urban health. This blueprint forms the foundation for Myron Magnet’s penetrating collection of articles drawn from the pages of City Journal, the quarterly magazine that has established a reputation for pathbreaking analytical reports on the urban scene.
The Millennial City‘s premise is a rejection of the municipal welfare ideology that led to decades of failed social and economic policies. Instead it explores new approaches to crime and its prevention; the reform of welfare to end the notion of “entitlement”; the reinvention of government to make it smaller and more effective; and new school initiatives that emphasize performance. Within these broad categories the book also takes on issues of the economy, housing, homelessness, immigrants, quality of life, and the physical environment. As Mr. Magnet points out in his introduction, more and more Americans are coming to understand that cities are not ungovernable. The Millennial City offers a good many reasons why.
Contents:
Introduction by Myron Magnet
I. CITIES
Fate of a World City by Nathan Glazer
Why Did Ed Rendell Fizzle Out? by Fred Siegel and Kay S. Hymowitz
Willie Brown Shows How Not to Run a City by Brian C. Anderson and Matt Robinson
Jerry Brown’s No-Nonsense New Age for Oakland by Heather Mac Donald
Why LA is Bouncing Back by Joel Kotkin
II. CRIME
What We’ve Learned about Policing by William J. Bratton and William Andrews
Why Teen Thugs Get Away with Murder by Peter Reinharz
How New York is Winning the Drug War by Patrick J. Harnett and William Andrews
Why the Jails Didn’t Explode by Paul E. O’Connell and Frank Straub
III. EDUCATION
How Teachers’ Unions Handcuff Schools by Sol Stern
Why Johnny’s Teacher Can’t Teach by Heather Mac Donald
The Invisible Miracle of Catholic Schools by Sol Stern
The School Reform that Dares Not Speak its Name by Sol Stern
The Schools that Vouchers Built by Sol Stern
Yes, Vouchers are Constitutional by Richard E. Morgan
IV. WELFARE
Compassion Gone Mad by Heather Mac Donald
Welfare Reform Discoveries by Heather Mac Donald
The Real Welfare Problem is Illegitimacy by Heather Mac Donald
The Teen Mommy Track by Kay S. Hymowitz
In Foster Care, Children Come Last by Rita Kramer
Putting Children First: A New Direction for Welfare Reform by Myron Magnet
V. HOMELESSNESS
Let’s Stop Being Nutty about the Mentally Ill by E. Fuller Torrey
Homeless Advocates in Outer Space by Heather Mac Donald
VI. THE ECONOMY
The Unexpected Lessons of Times Square’s Comeback by William J. Stern
New York’s Million Missing Jobs by Steven G. Craig and D. Andrew Austin
Let’s Break Up the Big Cities by Howard Husock
VII. THE PHYSICAL CITY
Why Lampposts and Phone Booths Matter by Roger Scruton
Urban Lessons from Paris by David Garrard Lowe
We Don’t Need Subsidized Housing by Howard Husock
When Cleanliness isn’t a Virtue by Kenneth Silber
VIII. IMMIGRANTS
Bombay on the Hudson by Jonathan Foreman
Why Koreans Succeed by Heather Mac Donald
IX. QUALITY OF LIFE
BIDs Really Work by Heather Mac Donald
Quiet, Please by Julia Vitullo-Martin
Toward a More Civil City by Jonathan Foreman
Endorsements and Reviews
“Even when I disagree with City Journal, I dare not ignore it.” — Bill Moyers
“The Millennial City is an invaluable record of an urban success story.” — Hilton Kramer, Editor, New Criterion
“This is the definitive forum for the best new ideas in urban government.” — John Norquist, Mayor, City of Milwaukee
“City Journal has provided a forum for some of our city’s and our nation’s most incisive thinkers, whose writings have enriched our public discourse and helped shape public policy.” — Rudolf Giuliani, Former Mayor, New York City
“City Journal is consistently the most stimulating source of reporting and analysis concerning the nation’s urban problems.” — George Will
“Sharp and penetrating … a joy to read.” — Tom Wolfe
Book Details
April 11, 2000, Ivan R. Dee
Hardback, 446 pages
ISBN 9781566632850
August 15, 2001, Ivan R. Dee
Paperback, 446 pages
ISBN 9781566633987
Buy The Millennial City
From the publisher: Ivan R. Dee