The Decline of (Local) Civilisation

Beyond pleasant hanging out with two wonderful friends in a small town in Virginia for a couple of days.

We're currently at the house of our friend Whit's very friendly parents, in a small town names Martinsville.
Small towns in The US differ from those in The UK in that although small in population, they cover a much larger area geographically. Car is king here and even if you just want to pop out for some milk, a car is the only way you can do it.

The giant chair shot above was a real bonus for me, I find genuine intrigue in America's love of weird giant things for no reason (see the world's biggest pistachio or the largest can of spinach on earth for examples).

This chair however, is there for a reason, a poignant reminder of times now past. It was commissioned to commemorate the towns textile and furniture industry, which are the whole reason the town exists at all.
But as with so many industrial towns, that industry has declined to almost non-existence in a very short space of time.
Our love of all things bargain, and the resulting outsourcing of pretty much everything to the likes of China and India, have had a detrimental effect on places like Martinsville,
A quick drive through the centre of town revealed more empty units than functioning shops, and not a human being in sight. A total lack of jobs mean the young relocate as soon as they get chance, and it's possible the town will no longer exist fifty years from now - an historic nascar track being the town's only real source of both revenue and excitement.

And so as industry gets more and more global, it will be interesting to track the fate of places like Martinsville, and countless others like it the world over.