I have never lived in NYC, but did spend time in SF in 2015. I'm fascinated by these descriptions of pre-2000 NYC because they are so close to my experience in

I have never lived in NYC, but did spend time in SF in 2015. I'm fascinated by these descriptions of pre-2000 NYC because they are so close to my experience in SF. I experienced several close calls and situations I would have never gotten close to in DC. One day I decided to take a stroll from Powell to 16th St. Mission and it was more like stumbling through a refugee camp. I heard ubiquitous stories of muggings, assaults and even one murder from friends and coworkers in the span of just a few months. One story that sticks in my mind is a coworker watching an elderly man being badly beaten in Oakland near where I was living at the time. Everything I have read and heard tells me SF has gotten worse in the past 5 years.