Changing Urban Trends : Cultures of Decency and Well-being From the Premodern to the Postmodern

The local public sector is deeply steeped in history. Studying the historic patterns of urban settlements helps us to understand the development of local priorities: zoning to separate residential areas by class and race, establishing police and fire departments to protect lives and property, building roads and canals to make transportation more efficient, and setting up school systems to educate students for work and adulthood. In this new book, the reader is guided through premodern conditions in order to identify paradigmatic changes that differentiate the premodern age from the modern age. The well-known contours of that transformation are then used to highlight trends that signal movements toward postmodernity. A great variety of books cover politics, policies, and governance at the local level. This book invites a more comprehensive look in that it structures the analysis around six basic themes: economics, politics and government, organization of work, education, human nature plus related practices, and criminal justice; the book invites a historical perspective by using the six themes to clarify paradigmatic shifts from premodernity to modernity and now postmodernity. The paradigmatic changes are examined to ask important questions: What can local governments learn from premodernity and modernity to promote desirable developments and avert unfavorable trends in postmodernity? What are progressive and regressive strategies? What social, cultural, and economic principles and practices are worth promoting and which ones to discourage? The broad nature of the book makes it relevant to students, scholars, and experts of urban politics and policies, as well as city planning, economic planning, ethics, and related fields. Our Contemporary Public Sector Is Deeply Steeped In Its History. Examining The Historic Patterns Of Urban Settlements, For Example, Can Teach Us Much About The Development Of Our Public Sector Interests: Zoning (separate The Slaughterhouse From The Residences), The Creation Of Public Police And Fire Departments (protection Of Industrial Assets), Building Of Roads, Canals And Highways (suburbanization), And Public School Systems (the Need For An Educated Knowledge Workforce). In This Unique New Book, The Reader Is Guided Through Premodern Conditions In Order To Identify The Paradigmatic Changes That Differentiate The Premodern Age From The Modern Age. The Well-known Contours Of That Transformation Are Then Used To Highlight Trends That Signal Movements Toward Postmodernity In The Public Sector And Beyond. While Many Urban Politics Books Cover Economic, Government, And Housing Issues Throughout History, This Book Digs Deeper, To Investigate Changes In Urban Settlements, Political Systems, Work Organizations, Educational Policies, Views Of Human Nature, And Religious Practices. Those Paradigmatic Changes Are Then Examined To Ask Important Questions Such As: What Can Local Governments Learn From Premodernity In Order To Promote Desirable Developments And Progressive Trends? Exploring Progressive And Regressive Strategies As Well As Mainstream And Critical Social Theory In Order To Find Possible Answers To These Important Questions, This Book Will Be Of Interest To Students And Scholars Of Urban Politics And Policy, As Well As Those Interested In The Ways In Which Our History Shapes Our Contemporary Public Sector.