"conducive to"

[Arnold M. Zwicky]

On Apr 23, 2008, at 1:38 PM, Alison Murie wrote:

> on 4/23/08 1:42 PM, Arnold M. Zwicky at zwicky at CSLI.STANFORD.EDU
> wrote:
>
>> in a NYT story today about the Union Park development planned for Las
>> Vegas, a quote (p. A14 in the national edition) from Dave Hickey,
>> culture critic for Vanity Fair:
>>
>> "The idea is that they're going to put in these public buildings and
>> this is going to make a respectful downtown for Las Vegas without all
>> the glitz and glamour, I guess, but I think it'll be a ghost town,"
>> Mr. Hickey said.  "I don't see how the comings and goings will be
>> facilitated.  And those open spaces that landscape architects so love
>> are not really conducive to the desert climate."...

> ... The "not really
> conducive" mispick is harder to correct, since the intention is
> obscure.
> "Compatible" doesn't seem to me to work since it contradicts the "not
> really" part. Maybe he meant  they weren't really inviting &
> "seductive" was
> lurking in the back of his mind.
> Lovely examples of hot air.

the speaker's intention is, it seems to me, pretty clear: having lots
of open spaces through which people will walk is not a good idea in a
desert climate (who would want to stroll there?)

arnold

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