3 ms·

The problem is bigger than a market inefficiency. San Francisco has been pushing a hard line anti-car agenda, while making no noticeable improvements to transi

by dsl 12y ago

The problem is bigger than a market inefficiency. San Francisco has been pushing a hard line anti-car agenda, while making no noticeable improvements to transit. MUNI is a disaster being held hostage by unions. Bending to environmentalists to not address legitimate need for parking. Inefficient responses to groups like Critical Mass that breed resentment against bikes. Refusal to address the vagrant problems resulting in crap covered sidewalks. etc.

deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
r00fus 12y ago
While it's easy to demonize "environmentalists", it's pretty clear in the SF Bay Area that environmentalists and property owners are in collusion (or property owners are using the environmentalist label to limit supply). Ultimately, the best way to root-cause a policy issue is to follow the money. Someone is making money from a lack of governance.
- dsl 12y ago
  It is not so much money as it is power. San Francisco has a reverse-Tea Party problem. When all viable candidates for a position are already left of center, the only way to shine is to seem more-progressive and out liberal the other guy. As evidenced by the problems on the right currently - the biggest danger is that as we keep creeping to the extreme left, the "far out nutjobs" are only a tiny step away and seem almost reasonable by comparison.
  - pessimizer 12y ago
    The 'left' has vary little presence in current US government (including in San Francisco) on any level. 'Far-left nutjobs' in the modern context refers to anyone to the left of Nixon.
thrownaway2424 12y ago
This is a quite liberal interpretation of facts in evidence. "a hard line anti-car agenda" Seriously? The city has almost half a million parking spaces, nearly all of which are free of charge. There are no congestion charges. "Inefficient responses to groups like Critical Mass that breed resentment against bikes" As opposed to the Critical Mass that the car drivers stage every single day at 4:30pm? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAO20jJHNuI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAO20jJHNuI

by dsl 12y ago

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

r00fus 12y ago

While it's easy to demonize "environmentalists", it's pretty clear in the SF Bay Area that environmentalists and property owners are in collusion (or property owners are using the environmentalist label to limit supply). Ultimately, the best way to root-cause a policy issue is to follow the money. Someone is making money from a lack of governance.

dsl 12y ago
It is not so much money as it is power. San Francisco has a reverse-Tea Party problem. When all viable candidates for a position are already left of center, the only way to shine is to seem more-progressive and out liberal the other guy. As evidenced by the problems on the right currently - the biggest danger is that as we keep creeping to the extreme left, the "far out nutjobs" are only a tiny step away and seem almost reasonable by comparison.
- pessimizer 12y ago
  The 'left' has vary little presence in current US government (including in San Francisco) on any level. 'Far-left nutjobs' in the modern context refers to anyone to the left of Nixon.

thrownaway2424 12y ago

This is a quite liberal interpretation of facts in evidence. "a hard line anti-car agenda" Seriously? The city has almost half a million parking spaces, nearly all of which are free of charge. There are no congestion charges. "Inefficient responses to groups like Critical Mass that breed resentment against bikes" As opposed to the Critical Mass that the car drivers stage every single day at 4:30pm? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAO20jJHNuI https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eAO20jJHNuI