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A Great Good Place

Ray Oldenburg's book explores the various psycho-social reasons for the attraction people have for the "third place"; most often represented in the bars, coffeehouses, and other places of social gathering where people go to find comraderie.

Oldenburg's study is not a theological study, and so he does not question the idea that part of the attractiveness of the third place is it's "non-threatening" atmosphere, where certain uncomfortable subjects do not arise. While there is certainly much importance to the quality of a place which welcomes and makes one feel wanted, there are times in which we want to be challenged, and some instances where we want to experience some strtching of our boundaries, and some may even seek out such places.

The third place often suffers and gets phased out in the typical urban setting, edged out of existence by "safe" chain restaraunts and stores. The return of some "socializing" atmosphere has been brought in by the large bookstore chains planting "coffeehouses" in the store (Borders)

Intersting Quotes in A Great Good Place

"Where the interesting diversity of the neighborhood reduces one's reliance on television." (GGP, p.210)

Many homes have no sidewalks out front. People are expected to come and go in the privacy of automobiles. (p.210)

While the average American enjoys a better immeiate or individual environment than people in most other nations, our public environment is of "disturbingly low quality" (p.210)

Around the core word street --the most public of all places ---a disturbing vocabulary continues to grow (p.213) "keeping kids off the street", "stretwise, streetsmart, street price"

More money would be spent in a nation where every household tries to own what a community once provided for all (p.214)

• I observe this in the rise of "at home" oriented products such as "Home quarters" and "Builder's Square" for adding more area to the home, in adition to the rise of home-centered recreational products (pools, rec rooms, and hot tubs) and the "Home Entertainment Centers" where "Home Theater" has become a hot market item.

The bottled spirits of the remote lounge are more of an emblaming fluid than a lubricant to lively conversation (p.217)

• Oldenburg observations about how all bars are not "third places" by virtue of their beverages