[TaylorAlexander]

I grew up in the Bay Area my whole life. I simply wouldn't want to live anywhere else. The natural beauty, the politics[1], the community, the employment options.

I agree with the article on niche interests. I am a queer polyamorous trans woman and Oakland (which I consider basically "SF" for the purposes of this discussion) is a hell of a place for people like me. I think there are very few places where I could find the kind of queer community I have found here. I also recently joined an artists collective and I have been helping work on burning man art as a group, that is really cool to work with others on something like that! I can't say which city is best if you are a straight white dude working remote for a FAANG company, but for the kind of community I want, this place is a dream.

[1] On politics - I actually do not really want to talk about "SF politics" on hacker news because it is instant flamewar territory, but all I will say is I am NOT talking about the specific decisions of San Francisco politicians, which seems to be a HUGE mess and very wrapped up in special interests. I am talking about the political ideologies of regular people. As a trans woman I can walk around here and feel perfectly confident that NO ONE is going to be weird or threatening to me because of my identity. People can be gay or trans here and no one gives a shit. I can get the health care I need without issue. If I lived in London it would have been extremely hard to get the healthcare I need. And then there are other things, like the guy I saw today wearing a "#schoolsnotprisons" t-shirt. YES! I very much agree with this. And then Oakland decriminalized mushrooms (and Santa Cruz, and maybe SF did too) and there is a big push to legalize more drugs here. These are the kinds of things I mean when I say SF politics - the politics of the regular people.

[burner_16913678]

The politics in particular are why SF is such a gross place. It shouldn’t matter whether you were born in the place you live or not, trans or not, white or not, or work for a FAANG or not.

If you’re not originally from SF, and you work in tech, and don’t have some interesting combination of race, gender, and/or sexual preference, the incumbent residents will never forgive you for it.

Unlike some parts of the US where people may secretly hate you but at least act polite, or other places where people are quick to get into confrontation, but at least they’re genuine and pretty much alright, in SF people are shitty and overtly rude.

25 years after the dot com boom, still expect people to roll their eyes or talk shit to your face for being an engineer.

Bonus points: live here long enough and you’ll encounter even grosser fringe stuff like using anti-Israeli policy as an excuse for straight-up antisemitism. Using anti-racism as an excuse for pro-car anti-pedestrian policies. Using the of environmentalism as an excuse to protect gas stations and parking lots and prevent construction of housing.

The weirdest bit is the very few people I know who were actually born here are great. The vast majority of the people using the cudgel of “oh yeah? How long have you lived here?” may only outrank you by a few years.

[8f2ab37a-ed6c]

SF also seems hostile towards its African-American population. There's a great first-hand report from many Black SF residents from earlier this year that was eye-opening to people not close to the issue: https://www.reddit.com/r/AskSF/comments/104qo9k/black_people...

[sharts]

Huh? The bay is the most racist place I’ve ever lived. For a supposedly “diverse” region everyone seems to self-segregate (compared to SoCal, for example).

As for FAANG and what not, the hate is understandable. It’s like building McMansions in historical neighborhoods.

[burner_16913678]

Tech, is the best part of the city, without it all you’d have is the views, and the trash culture you’re alluding to.

Nothing in California is historic. If you consider 100-250 years old historic, spend some time in Europe, Asia, or even the eastern US.

[et-al]

> Tech, is the best part of the city...

And not the byproduct of the Beat culture, Suicide Club, the large queer community, and all the countless artists from SFAI/CCAC?

I'm just gonna assume this throwaway account is trolling. Ask any longtime resident and they'll tell you the city took a dive when Ed Lee handed out those Twitter tax breaks for Mid-Market.

[jmye]

> If you consider 100-250 years old historic, spend some time in Europe, Asia, or even the eastern US.

Lame, judgy gatekeeping. When someone in CA calls something historic, you might, as not actually a robot, assume that there’s some context behind it, and not just sneeringly judge them because you have something slightly older at home in Europe.

But why argue with someone who’s so terrified to put their opinion on their actual username, and had to create a throw away just to rag on SF, right? It can’t be that you plan to say anything insightful.

[burner_16913678]

Unless you’re alleging I somehow control what’s deemed historic and what isn’t, I don’t think you’ve used the term “gatekeeping” properly.

The context of historical preservation in California, is self importance and a very successful power grab by shitty people wishing to control others.

That’s not unique to SF, but it’s a little rich when in a liberal city they’re preventing the construction of energy efficient housing, or even basic green retrofits.

Why would I want to tie my poor life decision to put roots in SF to my online persona?

[jmye]

I think I’m using “gatekeeping” exactly as colloquially used.

None of your complaints about the prevention of development have any bearing on the specific fact that the initial complaint was that “some things in other places are older.”

And lastly, because throwaway accounts are a way to disingenuously say things you’d never say with your own name tied to them. So, aside from pointing out technical inaccuracies, there’s little point in discussion - nothing said can be considered earnest or honest.