A monoculture, on the other hand, offers no internal defenses against an outside threat. Once the infection is inside the walls, there is nothing to stop it. Richard, the real-estate agent who knew Poplar Grove as well as anyone, understood this. He chose to live and send his daughters to school in neighboring Annesdale, the town that so many Poplar Grovians disdained. “It was a parenting decision,” he said. I felt like it was more “real world.” And there wasn’t as much pressure. [Poplar Grove] is notorious for this high pressure to be extraordinary. Be the best in the band. Be the best
...more
