Tumbleweeds in the valley?

garret points to this CNet article, When a city’s cost is bad for business, which suggests that many companies are considering leaving Silicon Valley due to the high cost of doing business here. Of course, the only source for the article is the head of a company that makes a living helping companies relocate. No conflict of interest there, eh buddy? I would suggest that this article is on the same level of use as the one by Frank Moss, also from CNet, which I discussed in the previous log entry. I can’t find the article online but I did read in the last day or two a similar article in the (still unlinkable) San Jose Mercury News which had other sources of information and refuted Boyd’s claim by pointing out that productivity is far higher here than other areas, more than making up for the difference. Also, there have been a number of articles delving into the Why Sillicon Valley Can’t Be Replicated question and the answer generally comes down to two key factors: top academics (mainly, but not only, Stanford and Cal) and mission critical density of brainpower and money.