--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Ever-busy, ever-building, ever-in-motion…" description: "\"Ever-busy, ever-building, ever-in-motion, ever-throwing-out the old for the new, we have hardly paused to think about what we are so busy building, and..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/james-howard-kunstler-2886_about_ever-busy-ever-building-ever-in-motion-e_695077.jpg" --- # Ever-busy, ever-building, ever-in-motion… ![“Ever-busy, ever-building, ever-in-motion, ever-throwing-out the old for the new, we have hardly paused to think about what we are so busy building, and what we have thrown away. Meanwhile, the everyday landscape becomes more nightmarish and unmanageable each year.” quote by James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/james-howard-kunstler-2886_about_ever-busy-ever-building-ever-in-motion-e_695077.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/james-howard-kunstler-2886_about_ever-busy-ever-building-ever-in-motion-e_695077.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6c1/james-howard-kunstler-2886_about_ever-busy-ever-building-ever-in-motion-e_695077.jpg) > “Ever-busy, ever-building, ever-in-motion, ever-throwing-out the old for the new, we have hardly paused to think about what we are so busy building, and what we have thrown away. Meanwhile, the everyday landscape becomes more nightmarish and unmanageable each year.” [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Rapid, unchecked development erodes cultural and environmental stability, leaving societies overwhelmed by chaotic change. **In simple terms:** Fast growth harms community and environment. Key Takeaway Pause, reflect before building more. Themes urbanization environment culture change overwhelm Mood anxious critical reflective Type observational cautionary When to use this quote - city planning - community activism - personal lifestyle choices - policy making Key Concepts sustainability loss of heritage complex systems Questions to Reflect On - What are we sacrificing for new development? - How can we balance growth with preservation? A Different Perspective Rapid progress can ignore long‑term consequences and human well‑being. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [About](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/about/) [Away](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/away/) [Becomes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/becomes/) [Building](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/building/) [Busy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/busy/) [Each](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/each/) [Everyday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everyday/) [Everyday Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/everyday-landscape-5349985/) [Hardly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hardly/) [Landscape](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/landscape/) [Meanwhile](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/meanwhile/) [More](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/more/) [New](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/new/) [Old](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/old/) [Think](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think/) [Think Busy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/think-busy-972292/) [Thrown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrown/) [Unmanageable](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unmanageable-785047/) [Unmanageable Year](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/unmanageable-year-5514293/) [Year](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/year/) ## Related quotes > [“You will never forget what happened but it will become part of your everyday landscape.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-turrisi/you-will-never-forget-what-happened-but-it-will-become-part-of-your/) [Kim Turrisi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-turrisi/) > [Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/of-all-the-animals-the-boy-is-the-most-unmanageable/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [It is clear to me that my life has become completely unmanageable because I am addicted to alcohol and drugs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lindsay-lohan/it-is-clear-to-me-that-my-life-has-become-completely-unmanageable/) [Lindsay Lohan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lindsay-lohan/) > [“Thomas Friedman captures the twin tasks when he says: “Avoid the unmanageable and manage the unavoidable.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-christina-wood/thomas-friedman-captures-the-twin-tasks-when-he-says-avoid-the/) [Mary Christina Wood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-christina-wood/) > [My hair is so unmanageable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/justin-timberlake/my-hair-is-so-unmanageable/) [Justin Timberlake](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/justin-timberlake/) > [“If your schedule is unmanageable and overwhelming, it's likely your priorities are in the wrong place.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/glynnis-whitwer/if-your-schedule-is-unmanageable-and-overwhelming-it-s-likely-your/) [Glynnis Whitwer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/glynnis-whitwer/) > [Of all the animals, the boy is the most unmanageable, inasmuch as he has the fountain of reason in him not yet regulated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/of-all-the-animals-the-boy-is-the-most-unmanageable-inasmuch-as-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [“I hear it when he talks about you. I think, sometimes, when he’s busy loving you, he forgets to hate himself.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-v-brett/i-hear-it-when-he-talks-about-you-i-think-sometimes-when-he-s-busy/) [Peter V. Brett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-v-brett/) > [Do not think that you are too busy to study the gospel.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-russell-ballard/do-not-think-that-you-are-too-busy-to-study-the-gospel/) [M. 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I don't give a hoot.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/cyndi-lauper/i-m-not-gonna-worry-about-what-people-think-about-me-i-m-too-busy-i/) [Cyndi Lauper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/cyndi-lauper/) > [I think that I'm busy in the present, and I don't want to go back. Well, there's been an unauthorized biography, and you can't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/albert-finney/i-think-that-i-m-busy-in-the-present-and-i-don-t-want-to-go-back-well/) [Albert Finney](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/albert-finney/) > [If you want to conquer fear, don't sit home and think about it. Go out and get busy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dale-carnegie/if-you-want-to-conquer-fear-don-t-sit-home-and-think-about-it-go-out/) [Dale Carnegie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dale-carnegie/) ## More by James Howard Kunstler > [ The ideas of \[ Le Corbusier \] that actually found their way into practice were deeply destructive - for instance, the tower-in-a-park, which mutated… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/the-ideas-of-le-corbusier-that-actually-found-their-way-into-practice/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [ “On my way out of \[Atlantic City\] at quarter after seven in the morning, a young pump jockey at the gas station \[...\] mentioned… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/on-my-way-out-of-atlantic-city-at-quarter-after-seven-in-the-morning/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Ahead now, I think you'll see the big nations shrink back into their own corners of the world. 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And they don't know how to do it anymore…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/we-re-living-in-a-culture-that-doesn-t-believe-in-decorating/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Because I believe a lot of people share my feelings about the tragic landscape of highway strips, parking lots, housing tracts, mega-malls, junked cities,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/because-i-believe-a-lot-of-people-share-my-feelings-about-the-tragic/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [No amount or combination of alternative fuels is going to allow us to continue running what we're running, the way we're running it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/no-amount-or-combination-of-alternative-fuels-is-going-to-allow-us-to/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Everything we do these days - our lust for ever more comfort, pleasure, and distraction, our refusal to engage with the mandates of reality,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/everything-we-do-these-days-our-lust-for-ever-more-comfort-pleasure/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [There's a lot of wishful thinking that somehow we'll replace fossil fuels with alternative energy sources, but they remain far from reality. We're not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/there-s-a-lot-of-wishful-thinking-that-somehow-we-ll-replace-fossil/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [Our twenty-first century economy may focus on agriculture, not information.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/our-twenty-first-century-economy-may-focus-on-agriculture-not/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [I think that Obama's failure to reestablish the rule of law in money matters is the most damaging thing that he's done - and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-howard-kunstler/i-think-that-obama-s-failure-to-reestablish-the-rule-of-law-in-money/) [James Howard Kunstler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-howard-kunstler/) > [I'm not against Kyoto. 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