There is a perfectly valid reason for this: overdevelopment, particularly in the Californian style of &quot;chew up green space for tract homes&quot;, sucks.<p>There was a time when new development was viewed as a good thing.  We built high quality buildings and established new towns.  Now we chew up land to produce this:<p><a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;farm4.static.flickr.com&#x2F;3264&#x2F;2643280748_7799215dc3.jpg?v=0" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;farm4.static.flickr.com&#x2F;3264&#x2F;2643280748_7799215dc3.jp...</a><p>What human can look at that, even if they are forced by circumstances to live in it, and not want to hoist the black flag and begin slitting throats?