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How is blaming Google employees any more righteous than blaming gays for wanting to live in Oakland and driving up prices? How is bullying in general a better s
by gbelote 13y ago
How is blaming Google employees any more righteous than blaming gays for wanting to live in Oakland and driving up prices? How is bullying in general a better strategy than attacking the root of the problem – conservative zoning policy?
It seems clear that the issue here is that more people want to live in Oakland than places to live and this drives rent up. If you want to bring prices down you need to build more housing, specifically denser housing.
Some people oppose this because it changes the character of the neighborhood, and that's a valid criticism. But the consequence of that stance is constrained supply which drives prices up, gentrifying the poor. Doesn't it make more sense to blame those who oppose high-density zoning?
Unless you want everything - strong local economy, low density, low prices – then I don't know what to say, that seems pretty naive.