Mediocrity

One of the frustrations of this extended Chicago trip is the feeling of being surrounded by sleepwalkers. The drivers are the most obvious, and the most dangerous manifestation. Thoughtless me-first behavior abounds, and almost every day I witness things on the roads that would make me laugh if they weren't potentially deadly.

Then there's the traffic itself. Some of the highways... I-94 is a prime example... Are gridlock more often than not. There's talk of finding ways to get people out of cars, but no real action. The sheep just return to the traffic jam day after day. Now, even travel in off hours doesn't seem to help any longer.

Then there's the construction, with alternates blocked at the same time as main routes, and the mindlessness of things like street fairs shutting down major arterials on Friday evening rush hour with no attempt at early warning signage to allow detours and avoid traffic jams. Basically, one learns the reason for the jam up at the verge of the event.

There are other things, but the commonality is a tolerance of mediocrity that seem to me to begin at the level of state and city government.

What a waste of what could have been a world class city.