SF tourists: "I will never step foot in San Francisco again"

There is lack of law and consequences for bad behavior. It comes from leaders that are afraid of extreme liberal backlash and outrage. Unfortunately, I'd even say there is a disdain for police officers in SF. That has to be an incredibly hard and frustrating job.

I've been in SF for over 5 years, but enough is enough and I moving out next month for Nashville, Tennessee. Downtown SF is no place to raise a family.

I think the police would like to be able to tackle public nuisance issues but the BoS are more about satisfying their little pet projects and focused constituencies at the expense of the citizenry at large.

It took years upon years and utter persistence from neighborhood groups and business groups to finally get the police to act on the vagrancy on Height street. It was what religious people might call a miracle that anything happened at all.

Part of the problem might be that many families leave the city once their kids reach school age and so their potential pressure on the BoS leaves with them and DINKs don't have as much interest, less motivated and more idealistic. Parents are less likely to put up with bullshit but the city is to far gone for many to stay and put up a fight, so special interests take over.

Beyond that, take a step back and realize that a good portion of the homeless people in SF have mental health and drug abuse issues and so, yes, it's not really possible to reason with them, but not because they are unreasonable, but because they often times aren't able to reason in the same way. It's better to direct your anger at a city that takes in high taxes through sales tax and property tax but can't seemingly help with this issue (through whatever means that would be, like affordable housing or better outreach).

You also seem to be under the impression that you’re dealing with a reasonable person. People end up in the street for a lot of reasons, but good decision-making usually isn’t one of them. Or, hell, her Mom could be dead for all we know.

In summary, when you ask “WTF is wrong with you?” remember that there might be a solid answer to what you thought was a bit rhetorical.

It's awfully easy to judge somebody's life from the comments section on HN. Much harder to actually try and understand it or empathize. I don't think you're giving this woman a fair shake.

At any rate, I'm leaving SF next month for much greeener pastures. Nashville, TN. I just can't deal with SF absurdity, hypocrisy, and the lack of accountability and action anymore.

I have lived in Palo Alto and SF, back and forth for 35 years and feel the difference.