Planning is nothing more than built politics. In that light, cities are a kind of fossil record of all the arm-twisting, back-scratching and sheer chutzpah that has brought about the creation of cities through time. Give me the map of any major city, and assuming I have adequate knowledge and discernment, I will show you the major landowners, the political donors, the power cliques and the philanthropy that are responsibility for that city's built form.
