As upper-middle-class professionals we tend to assume that city institutions are here to serve us, and that the things we find unpleasant must be failures. The

As upper-middle-class professionals we tend to assume that city institutions are here to serve us, and that the things we find unpleasant must be failures. The ability to pitch a tent almost anywhere, free from police harassment, is pretty great if you’re homeless. Likewise the public transit system is pretty great if you’re a transit worker, or someone who wants an indoor third space but whose appearance/behavior/smell would tend to get you thrown out of Starbucks, or if your best alternative is to walk. San Francisco isn’t failing. It just values these people and their needs a lot more than it values the comfort and convenience of tech workers. If you don’t like it, vote for a moderate instead of a progressive in your next BoS election.