The Streets of San Francisco

Wonderful evening last night in Denver at the annual Founders’ Dinner for the Independence Institute, the conservative think tank of Colorado. It was great to see some Power Line readers and old friends from my time as an inmate at Boulder. The Institute’s president, the colorful John Caldara (other adjectives in addition to “colorful” come to mind when you think of John) invited me to participate in the program to help warn Colorado against becoming “Californicated” by all the California liberals who move to Colorado and bring California’s bad ideas and practices with them.

I noted that Colorado is correct to be worried about the California Diaspora, because California is not sending its best: it’s sending hipsters, trust fund punks, Silicon Valley and Hollywood trash, and surfers re-gendering themselves as snowboarders. And some, I assume, are good people.

John asked me to describe what Colorado would look like in 10 or 20 years if it continues to Californicate. This is easy: gasoline at least $1 a gallon more expensive than the national average; high-speed rail to nowhere, housing prices beyond the reach of the middle class (already starting to be a problem in Colorado), etc. But most especially the exploding urban disorder of homelessness, rising crime and visible decay.

Like the photos out today of the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) station at Civic Center—Civic Freakin’ Center!—that has been overrun by homeless drub abusers, along with the local neighborhood. I’ve written previously about San Francisco’s famous online “poop map,” but here are some of the new pics:

This, from the story:

Earlier this month, Joe D’Alessandro, head of San Francisco’s visitor bureau, begged city officials to clean up the streets. “The streets are filthy. There’s trash everywhere. It’s disgusting,” D’Alessandro told the San Francisco Chronicle.

‘I’ve never seen any other city like this – the homelessness, dirty streets, drug use on the streets, smash-and-grabs.” Mohammed Nuru, Director of the San Francisco’s Public Works Department, told NBC Bay Area he estimates $30 million – nearly half of the city’s $65 million street cleaning budget – is aimed at cleaning up needles and feces from sidewalks and homeless encampments.

A city run by, of, and for rich liberals.

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