Because the American way is to put a big ol' parking lot where that square would go.

We're fairly business focused, so when someone goes man I wish there was a way to meet people, they create a .com to help people meet (filled with bots) instead of trying to actually meet people.

At any rate, bars DO exist in the United States and last I heard they didn't all go out of business in the last week.

Because we have mainstreets, buildings, blocks, community centers, parks, American-style squares, and so on. The sense of community that Americans are hungry for is ultimately the post war sort that has been dying out in recent decades; the ideal. We are a country in transition but the transition will probably not be shortened through planning, that is a bit too close to the dying post war ideal. Growing pains, we are still young.

Because we can and do sacrifice everything for car culture - starting with childhood.

We have something similar in major cities. We have them here in Chicago.

People will say they want these things and then move to some far flung enclave of a suburb neighborhood, vote against transit and bike lanes, vote to widen highways, and fight removing parking minimums.