[DougB]

Originally Posted by 2BNTV

I finally decided to read "Leisureville" be Andrew Blechman and these are my impressions.
1. Andrew Blechman seems to be a bright man who has young children and his own lifestyle in Massachusettes. However, he seemed to me to come across as slightly more than miffed, that his next door neighbors that he admired, wanted to move to TV. Therefore, he had a built in bias not to like TV, as much as he may protest, that he was objective.
2. I don't think he really did a lot of research into TV as oppossed to other communities that he labels, "age restricted". I found that lumping all communities into one big pile, to be shortsighted. He will never rival Doris Kearns Goodwin, Pulitzer Prize winner for "Team of Rivals, The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln), for doing the research necessary, to get things right.
3. Hanging with Mr Midnight, and a couple of other people didn't give him a proper perspective of how all of the others villagers live their lives. He tends to view TV, as a Sodom and Gomorrah type place. Three stories that are indicative of all villagers, NOT!!!!!
4. Wanting to interview Gary Morse and not getting the chance, as Gary is reclusive, seemed to bend his nose out of shape. He is not a fan of the developer and expounds on chapter 190, and his control of the media. States that only Republicans, can elected in his form of goverment... blah, blah,blah.....
5. Blechman can not see or agree with a community that does have a mix of ages and expounds that is it dicriminatory for anyone over the age of 55, can really do this legally. There are many young people in the villages, as they need to work in retail establishments, Is it a 50/50 mix? NO!!!
6. He faults all the other developments that didn't support schools, and didn't want to pay taxes for that purpose, as their children were grown. I don't know if TV High School was built when he visited but he missed the mark on this
issue. He failed to mention that TV residents do a lot of charity work and support all of our grandchildren in their visiting and enjoying TV. He painted other communities that were built in AZ, with mean spirted people and again lumps villagers into the same pile.
7. Being in his 30's or 40"s, he cannot imagine a world without children. On this point, I heartily agree with him.

I found this book filled with vitirole, and was basically mean spirited. Since a friend of mine had a copy, I read it, but would never keep it in my house. I'd rather throw it the garbage, where it belongs.

Makes a good paperweight and or door stop if one is a saver of all books bought.

I'm waiting for the movie to come out.