Originally Posted by schiavonec
man is rich in proportion to things he can AFFORD to leave alone.
This may be an assumption on my part, but I am curious as to how many of the respondees are:
- not in profession careers where appearance matters (this isn't a dig, but some folks have to wear suits 5 days a week - thankfully not me);
- married
- with children (a whole host of 'crap' comes along with the lil ones);
- business owners;
- pet owners (larger than 10lbs);
- caring for parents or elderly family members;
- property owners
- business travelers (not always a bus available when you need a 4:30 am red eye flight)
- coaches for traveling sports
- dependent on medical devices for basic health maintenance
None of these are digs by any means though, just aspects that make simple living not so simple. Overall, it may be easiest to live simply when young (18-28 and single, or older (65+ and single). I applaud anyone that can live simply and raise a family: it is a cummulative triumph for them.
These are good points, and everything you mentioned would make it more difficult, maybe almost impossible, to be carfree.
BUT:
People who live without cars choose where they live with these issues in mind. We have learned to "think outside the cage," as I say in my sig, to solve these dilemnas. If they cannot be solved, buy a car if you must, then use it little as possible as you continue to search for better solutions.
Also, many of these issues would not have been problems 75 years ago, before we simultanously dismantled our public transit system and began the migration to the suburbs. Believe it or not, salesmen used to travel on trains and so did athletic teams. People had schools, stores and other needed services a couple blocks from their homes. and delivery servies were also more common.
Many carfree people are strong political advocates for better transit and more livable cities. Working to improve the infrastructure is just one more way to think outside the cage.
I suggest that you scroll through this forum to discover some of the creative solutions that we have come up with. We are starting to get a pretty good data base here that might be useful or interesting to you.
BTW, I was reminded that even in the 1960s, American family life was a lot simpler than it is now. We had one car, but school and youth activities were available in the neighborhood, and the soccer mom was definitely far in the future.