The audio cuts off about a minute before the end so I couldn't get the final thought, but I think Bourdain's cynicism is bullshit. I grew up in Portland, Oregon and believe it or not, the city wasn't doing so hot in the mid-to-late 90s. The area where they filmed "The Real World" was once a slum, and most of my neighborhood (ironically, the Brooklyn neighborhood) was not a place you wanted to walk around alone in, day or night. There were much more dangerous areas in the town.

People were moving away, not moving in, mostly flocking to Seattle or San Francisco. When I moved to Wisconsin for college, I saw steady growth in Portland every time I came back, not necessarily because of Intel or Xerox, but because of the DIY community spirit that exists in artists, culinary folks, musicians, writers, etc. I'm not comparing the two with regards to the gravity of the current situation, but a city can rebuild itself.

I like how it was mostly black people until he got to the hipsters and the posh pop-up gourmet restaurant.

It's good to know that even in Detroit rich white people have a place to be themselves and not be around poor minorities.