Town Square

Today's must read, from Demitri and Constance at Terra Nova. Are MMOs the town squares of tomorrow?

We need time out from our daily grind (oh, the irony), and a chance to meet new people and hang out with the regulars. In a healthy society, these places form the building blocks of good communities and civic life. Classes and ages mix, ideas are exchanged, and the pace of life is moderated. Think the Spanish town square, the Italian piazza, the Greek taberna and the American, err, umm. Ok, America just has the mall, which is pretty sad. The idea we toss out there is that MMOs, and other online spaces, are beginning to take on this key function.