The Generational Difference in Optimism: A Video Look
Older People Moan, Younger People Hope
Town: California
112 posts
Is America in a Boiling Fury About Immigration?
Not the America I Have Seen
And Now for Something Saner and More Positive: Fresno, Erie
Not to over-personalize, but I feel as if my life in the past few weeks recapitulates the argument my wife Deb and I have been making in our American Futures travels.…
A Good Start: Bobby’s Story
One of my favorite features of our American Futures project is the occasional serendipity of crossing the path of some surprising, remarkable person. Like Jerrie Mock, the Columbus, Ohio, housewife who was the…
Deb Fallows at the University of Redlands
During our West Coast travels for American Futures reports in the winter of 2014-2015, my wife Deb and I were based at the University of Redlands, in southern California. From…
From Fresno to Duluth to Allentown, with Montana in Between
Here are some generally positive developments from places we’ve visited in our travels. Fresno: This evening Fresno, California, held its big “State of Downtown” event. You can see the details here.…
Talking About a Second Gilded Age, With ‘On Point’ Listeners
Two updates today: 1) On Point. I spoke today with Tom Ashbrook of WBUR and his On Point audience, about my contention (in the current cover story) that even in this time of wage…
How America Is Putting Itself Back Together
Most people in the U.S. believe their country is going to hell. But they’re wrong. What a three-year journey by single-engine plane reveals about reinvention and renewal.
Pitching in to Save a Library
In San Bernardino, one way to help save the city is to save its library.
Welcome Our Newest National Monuments!
Often it seems that modern presidents can't do anything — except wage war. Here's a heartening exception.
Wondering Why We Like Fresno?
Some people are smug about the coolness of New York or San Francisco. Those places are nice, but Jim Fallows much prefers "the kick-ass spirit" of Fresno.
A Library Writes Its Own Story
A California library becomes a living legend.
Why an F-16 Hit a Cessna, and Some More-Upbeat Updates
Sobering news from the NTSB, but encouraging news from Maine to California
The San Bernardino Story: Fire Fighters Weigh In
Who is to blame when a struggling city runs out of money? A public-safety worker says it's unfair to point the finger at him and his colleagues. Plus, a young resident of the city discovers reasons to hope.
Building for the Future, In California’s Famously Failed City
The Los Angeles Times has a big, new demonstration of how bad things have gotten in the city of San Bernardino. Here’s a look at people doing their best, despite those odds.
American Futures Updates, from MS to AZ to CA
NPR conveys the sound of an innovative school in Mississippi, plus other news from the road