Civic Realism Limits Social Engineering

Banfield’s revived book argues that many urban 'crises' are misdiagnosed—they stem from persistent cultural patterns, rising expectations, and coordination problems that are not easily fixed by top‑down policy. The useful policy implication is a precautionary principle: elites should restrain interventionist drives and focus on feasible, institutionally robust fixes rather than moralized overhaul. — This reframes urban policy debates from activist technocratic solutions to a realism about limits, which matters for spending priorities, policing, housing reform, and the politics of elite intervention.