Maybe the Amish Are Onto Something

Sure the Pennsylvania Dutch Amish and Mennonites seem behind the times. For just a moment ignore the authoritarian and quaint aspects of their societies. Instead consider the richness of their lives.

We travel on freeways and past stoplights for 30 minutes to a desk job. We eat frozen dinners and fast food alone or with just our immediate families. We maintain our pretty little homes for people to look at whom we don't even know.

The Amish know each other. They have neighbors. They help each other. They work together within walking or horse-travel distance of where they live. They have a community. They eat real food. They are "real".

Maybe instead of considering the Amish backwards or weird, we should copy the "realness" of their lives, just a little, to reconnect ourselves to each other.

Best Places to Live in US

For people not pursuing New York or California high-life, the nice places to live is a short list. I conclude that people looking for good community, jobs, and reasonable affordability would come to find the following the best choices:

1. Columbus, diverse people, affordable
   
2. Pittsburgh, cool neighborhoods
   
3. Cleveland/Akron, artsy but a bit too spread out
   
4. Baltimore
   
5. Cincinnati
   
6. Portland, more expensive
   

Communities

I am reading Deep Economy by Bill McKibben. It makes me think about the relationship between "the economy" and an enriching community.

Beyond the first $10,000 in income, more money doesn't add to happiness. Look at the Amish. Look at Chinese farmers and factory workers. Americans have accomplished an astounding amount of apparent economic growth in the past 100 years, but we have gone far beyond what we need.

During the same time period, we have lost the vibrant communities and interconnections we once had. We live isolated from each other. We have cars and big houses, but we have few friends. Is it worth it?

Wouldn't we rather have stronger communities than more money?