[inamberclad]

Agreed, the cost of housing is the primary driver of every other increased cost in the Bay Area except for the cost of gas.

High rent means high wages, which means high costs for business, which means high prices for consumers...

States like Texas keep housing low, which means lower wages for workers and lower prices for consumers, but I don't want us to artificially impoverish people in order to achieve the goal of "affordability."

Instead we have to lower rent without lowering income as much. This would cause an explosion in average spending power and therefore a much stronger middle class.

Great right? Yes it would be, except for the landlords, real estate investors, and middle aged homeowners who will do anything and hurt almost anyone to keep the value of their properties artificially inflated to preposterous levels. Unfortunately, those are the people in charge in most cities.