4 ms·
You are replacing one scapegoat - techies - with another - restrictive building codes. You're complaining about people adopting one-sided, myopic viewpoints whi
by objclxt 13y ago
You are replacing one scapegoat - techies - with another - restrictive building codes. You're complaining about people adopting one-sided, myopic viewpoints whilst putting forward one of your own - that the tech industry is great, and wonderful, and has no downsides whatsoever.
You talk about how tech gets vilified, but at the same time label people who object to tech as "jealous". I think we would get a lot further if people would acknowledge things like the housing situation in San Francisco are not the fault of either techies or building codes, but the result of a complex melting pot.
For the record, I work in tech, and I live in SF. I would like to think I'm able to see that tech has brought many benefits to SF, but at the same time has indirectly contributed to various pressures that any financially successful city will eventually encounter. London and New York both have equally crappy housing situations - different causes, different symptoms. I do, however, see how people living in SF could come to the conclusion that tech is causing these issues.
I think rather than simply turning their argument around ("you're jealous") it would be better to engage in rational discourse about how best to solve these problems in a way that leaves everyone better off. Sadly, people on both sides seem to be entrenched to the point where this is very difficult.
- alaskamiller 13y agoBoth sides spout bullshit. Fascinating how human interactions work at scale.
- impendia 13y agoRestrictive building codes are not a scapegoat. They are a public policy decision which directly explains why the price of housing is so high.
- objclxt 13y agoBuilding codes contribute to the problem. So does tech. Building codes are a scapegoat in the sense that SF would still have housing problems even without the building codes.