Tocqueville would say he'd told us so. For, he argued, democracy lowers all to the lowest common cultural denominator and in such a society, wealth is the primary way to express individual worth. The problem, of course, is also ecological. Houses of normal size are inefficient enough to build. Today, windows, doors, and roofing are industrial products, too, but the average house as a whole is still a custom item, and likely to remain so.
Gigantic houses eat up materials as well as land.
As an architect, I want to feel friendly toward new buildings. When I see a new house or addition going up, even a tract villa, I tend at first to be optimistic. I'm a little surprised when any house ends up taking more than it gives. So I am almost ready to say if builders and owners can't show any sense of responsibility, then by all means downsize the zoning, keep the monsters out. But I feel torn.