Posted on 09/12/2022 10:04:20 PM PDT by SeekAndFind
Known for decades as a bug hive of progressive ideology and ground zero for many socialist movements within the US, San Francisco is no stranger to instability. However, the political schizophrenia of the region was long tempered by extensive business interests and California's profit potential. Entrepreneurs helped to balance out the cultism and CA was lucky enough to see unprecedented economic fortune. Many leftist politicians to this day try to take credit for the prosperity of the state, but the days of wine and roses are long gone.
While LA lost its shining gloss in the early 1970s when crime rates began to skyrocket, San Francisco was able to hold on to its affluent image for much longer and was once considered one of the greatest cities in the US. The silicon valley revolution extended the otherwise dwindling life span of the area as major tech companies set up shop well into the 2000s, but the past decade in particular has not been so kind to the Bay Area.
This may be because the traditional dynamic has changed. The free market mentality of the business contingent used to keep the insanity of the Frisco leftist ideologues in check, but now, the corporate world has joined the cult and is engaging in activism right along side all the crazies. There is no longer any balance – California and specifically San Francisco went “full retard.”
The city is now famous for its depravity and decline. With multiple “poop tracking” apps to help residents avoid stepping in human fecal matter piled on the sidewalks as well as entire neighborhoods and street corners overrun with homeless people and Fentanyl addicts, it's very hard for the city to play itself off as a destination of dreams (though they still try). Much like LA and the city of Portland, wherever the political left takes full control these are the kinds of unfortunate scenes you are likely to witness on a regular basis in San Francisco:
Recent estimates project at least 20,000 homeless will reside in the city in 2022, and poverty levels will remain around 11.3% of the population. Previous homeless estimates date back to 2019, and surveys were skipped in 2020 due to the covid lockdowns. The Bay Area's crime rates are FAR above the national average according to FBI stats, with property crime more than double that of the rest of the US.
The social implosion along with the draconian CA covid mandates caused hundreds of thousands of people to flee the state. Progressives moved out of the major cities as well, but only about one hour away on average. The top destinations for people leaving San Francisco were Sacramento, Stockton and San Diego according to U-Haul statistics. The rumors of conservative states like Texas being overtaken by CA leftists are greatly exaggerated, but the stats do show that CA residents are indeed moving away from the big cities in large numbers and expanding into 2nd tier cities and smaller towns close by.
San Francisco saw a 6.8% population decline from 2020 to 2021. Sales tax revenues dropped by 50% from 2019 to 2020 and city officials do not expect a recovery until 2025.
The effects of the exodus along with political mismanagement by Democrats is leading to a complete implosion of California's major cities. The mainstream media and the state's PR spin teams are fond of citing their global financial standings, but what they have been hiding is the steady decline in major population centers and the fact that places like San Francisco are built on foundations of economic sand.
The most visible signals of collapse are in the real estate market for now. Residential home sales have cratered by around 30% and prices are beginning to drop. Though, a loss in home sales is happening across the country and median home prices in California spiked by at least 36% in the past two years. It's unlikely that they will fall back to previous lows anytime soon, even with the Federal Reserve raising interest rates.
The real damage is in commercial real estate. Mass office vacancies in San Francisco have not been repaired and the city's downtown recovery has ranked dead-last out of 60 US metropolitan areas. Commercial property value losses are now estimated to average around 40%. In some cases, bids for office space in downtown San Francisco are coming in at 60%-70% less than they would have in 2019.
The region's core financial support comes from the wealth activity in the city's center, and now it's crumbling because no businesses want to operate there (nor can many of them afford to operate there due to taxation). The amazing thing is, they did it to themselves.
Impractical and destructive green tech and carbon laws, totalitarian covid lockdowns and mandates, extremely high taxes and endless bureaucratic red tape have all incrementally sabotaged the cities of the Golden State. And, the worst of it began the moment business interests decided to stop caring about profits and growth and instead felt the need to virtue signal their political loyalties and push leftist propaganda. This emboldened far-left factions within the cities and gave them a free pass to implement whatever insane policies they wanted. Thus, the golden goose has been destroyed.
CA politicians and leftists will continue to deny reality, but the state is on life support and it's fading fast. San Francisco is a prime example of the obvious fall. By this time next year they won't even try to hide it, they'll only be looking for a scapegoat to blame.
All of these woes go back to the mid-1970s city elections, which various people felt were corrupted.
What were they thinking? You never “go full retard.”
I can verify based on “facts on the ground”.
Ah, but they did.
Religious mania (because that’s what it is) overrides economics.
This is just one of very many data points that refute economic determinists.
Ah, but they did.
Religious mania (because that’s what it is) overrides economics.
This is just one of very many data points that refute economic determinists.
Destroying San Fran is mostly a long term RealEstate deal.
Woke corporations and investors embrace the decline. These people are not stupid.
Drive prices down, make everyone sick of what happening then when properly fermented ....
TADA! Up steps some hero reformers for the big turnaround.
i hope they get a full blown monkeypox plague there to wipe out the degenerates..
“All of these woes go back to the mid-1970s city elections, which various people felt were corrupted.”
So true. The election of George Moscone in 1975, with an assist from Jim Jones’ People’s Temple, was perhaps the key turning point in S.F. history.
Just such a shame. The City by the Bay was once so wonderful
Uhaul is giving great specials, if you move one way (and only one way) to California.
LOL. I'm sure that was the way it started.
These people are not stupid.
No but they have hijacked the educational system to create stupid people and then imported even more immigrants that ALL VOTE so that this is not easily turned around.
I do not think the "hero reformers" capable of fixing this problem exist.
What the rest of the country needs to do is to refuse to bail them out of their budgetary issues and let them wallow in the cesspool they have created
The problem is that there will be no punishment for those who caused this mess.
“The rumors of conservative states like Texas being overtaken by CA leftists are greatly exaggerated,”.
Yep, Sure, just rumors.
I was in the Bay Area in the early seventies I left there in 1977 and it was still pretty nice... well Polk street was weird, our “tour guide” hailed from the ghetto of Berkley, which was beautiful compared to other ghettos I had seen, DC had areas ruined by the MLK riots, and stayed burned out and ravished for more than a decade.
I was back in the Bay Area in the late 80s, mid 90s, and 2000... and in 2015 for work... very sad indeed.
I like watching older movies and television series that took place in and around the Bay Area, it reminds me of the way I used remember it.
Estimates are a rebuild would cost 12 billion dollars!
Is that even possible? 12 billion dollars!
Ding Ding Ding!
During the 2nd Trump administration, a key piece of legislation that needs to be passed by Congress is a law that makes it illegal for the federal government to bail out states. We all know blue crapholes like Commiefornia, Ill-noise, New Yaaak and Joisssey are going to go belly up. They can’t possibly afford the pension promises they made to their public sector labor unions. There’s no way in hell we should ever allow them to stick the taxpayers in red states with the bill for their reckless spending. Make them eat it.
“Make them eat it.”
Yep.
Well Texas getting more purple everyday is not a good thing. Texas should have said no to any Californian.
For a while, one of the channels up in my locale had reruns of Ironside on and it was neat seeing the footage of San Fran from around that time (1968 to 1975). I guess that would fit the bill along with the Dirty Harry movies from that same time or The Streets of San Francisco, lol?
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