As Mumford said, the decision that we face globally is whether to devote ourselves to the development of our own deepest humanity, or to surrender to the almost automatic forces we have set in motion and yield place to our de-humanized alter ego, ‘Post-historic Man’. “That second choice will bring with it a progressive loss of feeling, emotion, creative audacity, and finally consciousness.”
Montgomery places himself squarely on the side of improving quality of life: “… cities must be regarded as more than engines of wealth” he emphasizes; “they must be viewed as systems that should be shaped to improve human well-being.”