There's probably a social critique to be made about how Google is going all the way to Canada to build a city when there's so much that could be done to improve the urban situation in Silicon Valley. If they're going to do the Omnicorp Detroit thing, they could at least benefit the communities where the bulk of their employees work and live.
Yes, yes, the Bay Area's politics are inherently intractable and Google has been active in shaping the future of Mountain View. But it still looks like that they chose Toronto because it'll give the highest chance for squeaky-clean marketing graphics, instead of doing something really bold and trying to disrupt an urban crisis.
You mean something bold, brave, and disruptive, that would benefit the communities their employees actually live and work in, like trying to build housing in Mountain View?
I'm reasonably certain Google is already working on that one.
Yes, yes, the Bay Area's politics are inherently intractable and Google has been active in shaping the future of Mountain View. But it still looks like that they chose Toronto because it'll give the highest chance for squeaky-clean marketing graphics, instead of doing something really bold and trying to disrupt an urban crisis.