America’s development pattern looks like growth, but often doesn’t pay for itself. Urban planner and civil engineer Chuck Marohn of Strong Towns explains the growth Ponzi scheme, why places like Buffalo and Jackson, Mississippi have more infrastructure than wealth, and why he favors thickening neighborhoods over endless outward expansion. Also: how his view differs from the abundance movement, the limits of local government on big industrial projects, and what a successful Strong Town would a...
Civility is not politeness, compromise, or “finding common ground.” In a polarized country—where fights over immigration, gender, public meetings, and online pile-ons feel existential—Aaron Renn talks with Carmel, Indiana city councilor and civic leader Jeff Worrell about what it actually takes to disagree hard without destroying the relationship. Worrell, founder of Project Civility, argues that it's possible to "bring the heat," but not burn the house down. They cover internal posture (goo...
Aaron Renn talks with technology and media writer James Poulos about Human Forever — and why the real digital disaster is not a future AI apocalypse, but a transformation that has already happened. Poulos argues that the print-and-television age ran on imagination (“if you can dream it, you can do it”). Computational technology flipped that. Machine memory now dominates: infinite archives, permanent records, surveillance, and a culture of searching and scrolling instead of dreaming. Tha...
Is local leadership declining, even in America’s fastest-growing cities? Aaron Renn sits down with Mark Barbash, a longtime economic development professional in Columbus, Ohio, to examine the quiet crisis of civic and corporate leadership. They discuss how generational change, corporate consolidation, shifting philanthropy, and a K-shaped economy are weakening the institutions that once held cities together—while headline growth continues. Using Columbus, Ohio as a case study, they ...
In this week's episode, I'm sharing an appearance I made on Faithful Discourse with Chris Henry, the senior pastor of Second Presbyterian Church in Indianapolis. For more about this church and our conversation, you can see the write up I did on my web site: https://www.aaronrenn.com/p/the-reckoning-is-here