[everdrive]

In practice I'm looking to do exactly this.

I think there's a big difference in this case between what I should practically do to meet my goals and the philosophical argument at issue. In other words, even if I always lose the philosophical argument, I can simply try to buy some large plot of rural land as you suggest.

Philosophically, I worry about what happens when density is the only choice left for people, and a large majority of them don't or won't understand why that might be so unpalatable for a significant minority of people.

[novok]

Move to a rural place where everyone is moving out and you'll find a place that is not densifying over time, but the opposite. And buying land & housing there is incredibly cheap, probably less than the cost it would be to build it! This is pretty much happening in every small-ish town in japan for example.

Your social life and neighbors will more skew towards the grey haired spectrum, but that is the sacrifice you will need to make!