Why Britain and the USA must be united

摘要

It's a familiar story. A factory, mine or industrial plant opens in an area and a thriving community builds up around it. The business moves or closes, depriving the community of its economic rationale. Mass unemployment follows and whole streets of houses are left abandoned as people move out in search of work. Although this is a tale that could be told of almost anywhere in Britain's industrial heartland, the UK is not alone in sufferingthe effects of deindustrialisation. 'Low demand has become endemic in parts of the USA,' says Alan Mallach, research director at the US National Housing Institute and a founder member of the US Vacant Properties Campaign. 'The worst places are the old industrial cities, such as Detroit and Buffalo, where the manufacturing base has either disappeared or been drastically reduced.'