gtfo that is cheap as ****

1br here is probably half as big and for 3k you are living in ****ing Alphabet City or some other place way out of the way

the reason that's the only part left where it's 100% true is that Friedman already persuaded the liberals that they were wrong on all the other. The first level thinkers won on everything and Clinton/Obama/Blair/Schröder are the proof.

There was a book I read far too long ago to remember the name of, or which respected university the author taught at, but the gist was that he took a quasi-scientific look at "golden age" cities throughout history and looked for patterns. What he found was that, in terms of meaningful, lasting cultural impact, one of the most prominent characteristics was cities that were slightly unstable. The greatness is rooted in the transience and uncertainty of a place in flux.

If you want to define culture as a comfortable life for yourself, then a well gentrified place with lots of tapas bars will certainly fit the bill. I am absolutely in no way criticizing that as a personal choice. But if you want to judge cities by their potential to make a major mark on the world stage, you need better metrics.

It isn't about personal preference, and it isn't about idealizing poverty or oldness or whatever. It's about trying to take an honest look at what a city has to offer at any given time and see which way it is going. I don't think it is unreasonable to say that as a touchstone of culture, SF is probably on the down slope. Its future, while almost certainly pleasant and comfortable for residents, seems unlikely to be an interesting one. It is only reaping the rewards of its past greatness.

If the protestors are really worried about culture, they should be trying to run off all the old people.

How many octogenarians were at the last steampunk furry orgy?

Lol at Sili Valley having a culture. Yeah let's make the whole world into sterile office parks. There's a reason they don't ****ing live in Sili Valley - it's boring as hell. But you get enough critical mass of them you turn SF into the same thing.

Someone asked for the cliffs of what SFers are pissed about and I replied. I get why they're pissed. Furthermore I think squatting on Google buses is pretty funny and a good illustration of the price of doing business in SF. You get the good weird and the bad weird. Deal with it or leave.

Do I think the govt should take some kind of action or that protests should go beyond harmless awareness raising stuff to remind boring un-self-aware options-obsessed automatons that they aren't 100% welcome? No

What neighborhoods would I fill out on Manhattan craigslist to do a comparison search for where people would want to live?

Pretty clear the liberals are pissed about WEALTH INEQUALITY when those Google elites get to ride in air conditioned wifi and block the bus stop for 2 minutes while the shlubbos have to wait and sit on hot plastic seats covered in some naked guy's sweaty ballbag stain. einbert will be along shortly to explain further.

Tax moneyz paying for private enterprise. Isn't that something you fiscal conservitards are meant to oppose?

No wai. I am down with defense contractors cashing in big.

I just found SF's new motto

huh

what tax moneyz are being consumed here?

The hilarious thing is that Google is like "oh yeah, we should probably be paying to use public bus stops, good point. We'll negotiate some sort of deal with the city".

If a regular guy stops in a bus stop for a minute or two to pick up his friends there's a real good chance he gets a ticket.

Gotta justify that military budget somehow. Haters gonna hate. #yolonapalm

I kinda agree on rent control, but zoning is pretty necessary for any mid- to large locality, it's one of the few controls against a tragedy of the commons situation where developers try to maximize revenue with little thought for the stresses they may be putting on the common infrastructure.

Did this guy just sneak in to get a better seat? Or was he actually the hired sign language guy for Mandela's funeral? BI Link

Not in any city I've been in.

And even if that's true, lol at that being some sort of catalyst to build your revolution around. So if the google bus just rolls 20 more feet before stopping everyone goes home happy?

Next time you're in Boston, NYC or San Fran give it a try

Well no, they can't stop there either. That's the middle of the street yo. I know in your neck of the woods the bus could just roll into the nearest mega Wal Mart to disgorge their average 60 BMI passengers but in a real city...

Are Google buses really the rallying point? It would seem there are more douchier aspects to the tech boom than a shuttle bus.

And yes it's customary for companies to have their own bus stop areas, though it could be an additional revenue stream for the city to let companies use them for a small fee.

OK so everyone is happier if google shuts down the bus and there are now like 4000 more cars on the road?

because currently there doesn't appear to be any kosher process for running the bus.

Of course there is, pay a fee to the city to get a permit to use the public bus stops.

the stories I read indicated there's no process to do that currently.