Jackson of the Globe: Don't Taunt Terrorists With Tall Towers

Remember as a kid trying to build the tallest building you could with Legos, or whatever it was in your day? Derrick Jackson doesn't. Judging by his column - High and Mighty - in today's Boston Globe, young Derrick built one-story affordable units, maybe even buried them underground in his backyard - just to be safe. Jackson's op-ed is a condemnation of proposals to build or rebuild towers in major cities, including his own Boston.

Jackson's anti-tower argument is four-fold:

• Tall buildings taunt terrorists.
• Towers are a cruel reminder of class differences.
• Contrary to what politicians claim, there is no symbolism or inspiration to be had in a tall building.
• It's a disgrace to spend money on big buildings while not everyone has healthcare and other government goodies.

Excerpts:

"Terrorists knock our tallest buildings down, and we plan to stick even taller ones back up in brazen machismo."

"In the immediate aftermath of 9/11, many architects urged caution about how much ego should be poured into iconic towers. Eric Darton, author of a history of the World Trade Center, told National Public Radio that he hoped whatever replaced the twin towers would have an architecture that would build bridges between people."

"Most towers merely accentuate the disconnect between big business and ultra-wealthy condo dwellers and the rest of us."

"What exactly do their leaders mean when they say a single building inhabited by the entitled makes [a city] great?"

"Putting . . . ego into a building may only make it an even bigger bull's-eye."

You know, come to think of it, Derrick, maybe if we built modest, affordable housing and invited the terrorists to come live in them, perhaps sweetening the deal with free healthcare, we could solve this whole mess that capitalism has brought about!