I always smile when I read an article in the New York Times that propagandizes in favor of a minimalist lifestyle.  Give up meat, use less electricity, get rid of your car, and so on.  But one of their favorite topics is the joy of living in tiny apartments not much bigger than jail cells.  They seem to like it so much that I am certain the top editors and publisher of the NYT practice what they preach and also live in micro-apartments.

My Micro NY, the city’s first micro-apartment complex, at 335 East 27th Street, with 55 units ranging from 260 to 360 square feet. The building will begin leasing studios this summer for around $2,000 to $3,000 a month.

What a deal!  Three hundred sixty square feet for $3,000 a month, on the far eastern edge of Manhattan, about a half0mile from the nearest subway line.  Did you ever imagine that such bargains existed?

To help make living in a small space more palatable, tenants will have access to storage units and common spaces scattered throughout the building.

Isn't that great?  They can store their possessions in different corners of the building; if someone is getting dressed for work and needs a different pair of shoes, he can walk three floors down, two corridors down, and simply get what he needs.  And there are common areas!  For $3,000 a month they get to share generic living rooms with complete strangers.  It's like a virtual apartment!

Kelli Okuji, 27, a graduate student at Columbia University, lives in one, a newly renovated apartment of 313 square feet  which comes with high-end finishes and appliances, and a Murphy bed that tucks into the wall 

Isn't that great?  It may be a tiny apartment, but Ms. Okuji has high-end finishes and appliances.  I would rather have a tiny apartment with high-end finishes than a big apartment with low-end finishes.  It's the finishes that make all the difference.

And she also has a gym and a rooftop lounge – a lot of big, open spaces to go to if she wants to forget that she lives in a sardine can (albeit a sardine can with high-end finishes).

Rent is $2,600 a month, so Ms. Okuji knew she would not be saving money so much as buying the privacy she needs to complete her master’s degrees in business administration and international affairs.

I hope she's not also getting a degree in economics.  Or common sense.

“I was really impressed with how everything is configured,” Ms. Okuji said. “I think it is great that the bed can go up; it really opens up the space.”

The apartment actually only feels full when she's inside it.  Walking around inside it must be like playing human Tetris.

“The dishwasher looks like a regular drawer, and a mini-oven doubles as a microwave,” she said. “The only drawback is the size of the bathroom: The sink is tiny. But having amenities in the building were icing on the cake.”

Amenities are the icing on the cake...if the cake is a cupcake.

The architects are hoping that sliding glass doors, high ceilings, lots of natural light and Juliet balconies will help alleviate any feelings of claustrophobia.

I think these apartments are perfect except for the claustrophobia.  Doesn't this whole article look like a paid press release?  Given its declining ad revenue, do you think the Times has been successful in finding other, more creative sources of income?

Mayor Bill de Blasio emphasized affordable housing and sustainable density. Expanding the availability of compact units -- or micro-apartments -- beyond the pilot phase is part of his plan to bring down housing costs. 

I was wondering when the arch-villain would make his appearance.

Jack and Linda Sproule, both in their late 60s, have lived in a 300-square-foot apartment on Central Park West and 83rd Street for almost 13 years. “We were won over by gorgeous views of the park, and an elevator,” said Ms. Sproule.

That's 150 square feet per person, not counting furniture and possessions.  I think that's worth it to have views of a park, as well as an elevator, don't you?

This is all part of the NYT propaganda to make people happy living in smaller and smaller spaces like cattle.  They call it "sustainable living"; you and I simply call it "lower standard of living."  The most ridiculous part of the article is that people are paying sky-high prices to live like this.  The only bright side I can see is that for once they're doing it with their own money, and not yours or mine.

If you haven't already done so, read about what life is like living in de Blasio's New York.

Pedro Gonzales is the editor of Newsmachete.com, the conservative news site.