[e73u3hdjfu]

It's not clear to me why this is actually true. Food is cheap if you don't waste a bunch of time on anti-science regulations like the EU. California and New York aren't short on space, building is simply heavily regulated with anti-poor laws masquerading as environmentalism because people would rather protect their swamps and property values than see a construction boom. Water isn't scarce, if it was you wouldn't have booming agricultural industries in drought prone regions. And electricity is only expensive because people would rather tear down oil, nat gas, and nuclear now rather than after green energy has become not terrible. The idea that society isn't thriving because the billionaire class has most of the wealth ignores that in many developed countries the cost of living could be much lower if not for the regulatory environment. People have simply been convinced that there are more important issues than helping the poor.

[triceratops]

Darned regulatory environment, inflicting clean air, water, and food upon the poor! How dare they!

(I agree with you about the property value stuff tho)