[aksss]

The longevity of a city's sad state doesn't seem to have any bearing on the dynamic of "bad policies delivering bad outcomes". I feel like this is the third time saying it so don't worry about a fourth, but the comparison was limited strictly to that equation.

The character of the bad outcomes certainly changes with longevity, such as entrenchment, as you mention. The fixes must also be different. I'm not disagreeing with you that these cities and their situations are entirely different.