America doesn’t need small towns anymore. There is always going to be the lingering remnant that remains in these towns; but this remnant can be divided into two contingents: those who are better than their town, and those who are not. Those who are better than their town may have stayed due to familial duties, such as an aging relative or because they’ve had children. I feel bad for them. The rest of them, those who aren’t better, are the hangers-on. The non-contributors. The ones who wake up every day and continue to exist and can’t articulate to themselves or to anyone else… why? The formation of “small towns” over time has altogether ceased. More people are moving to cities, where there exists momentum. Cities are where the cultural fabric is woven. You will enter any small town and be surprised if you find anyone other than the elderly, or those with other disabilities. All the climbers have climbed up and moved off. The industries that once built the settlement have subsided, and growth has sprung up in other places. So, what is to be done about these forgotten places in America, where quality of life has declined? I think they will become just another forgotten memory. As population centers develop further and quality of life within them increases, there will be very little left to say about small towns.