San Francisco used to be a pretty interesting place.
Well, to be fair, it’s still an interesting place. It’s just no longer interesting in a way that makes it worth visiting. These days, it’s a reliable dystopian hellhole littered with feces and used heroin needles. But it should be a progressive paradise on earth, no?
Actually, that’s exactly what it is. San Francisco is the logical outcome of decades of progressive policies. So, when self-described “lifelong liberal” and repeat critic of San Francisco’s descent into hell Michelle Tandler wonders aloud how the city got to where it is, she can thank progressivism.
Here is what still confuses me about San Francisco.
We have the most liberal, left-wing government and population in the country.
We have a $13B budget.
And we will have 8,000 people sleeping in the cold and rain this week.
Can someone please explain this to me? pic.twitter.com/JyBOpklvZd
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
who wants to tell her? https://t.co/6pRPEizFEM
— Brad Polumbo 🇺🇸⚽️🏳️🌈 (@brad_polumbo) December 27, 2022
“We have the most liberal, left-wing government and population in the country.” There’s your explanation, Michelle.
Many of you will be reading this from the warm enclaves of your homes, families and vacations.
I apologize in advance for the pain that this thread may bring.
But I think it is important that we bear witness to the humanitarian crisis festering in the streets of San Francisco.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
No need to apologize, Michelle. Any pain that is caused by your thread will be the truthful kind.
San Francisco – from what I can tell – has strategies in place that not only do not help those in need – but actively hurt them further.
We decriminalize drug dealing.
We give addicts cash, hotel rooms and free reign.
We make it difficult to enter shelter or treatment.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
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Our city is run by Progressives.
What do Progressives stand for, exactly?
I thought it was about helping those in need. Standing up for the little guy. Making the world a better place.
San Francisco, to me, seems like one of the least compassionate cities in the world. pic.twitter.com/d9Rvez9ECB
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Most cities on the East Coast have a Right to Shelter Law.
New York City spends billions sheltering 65,000 people a year.
San Francisco has ~2,000 shelter beds. Our strategy is "housing first". So we don't build shelters.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
In our quest to provide everybody with their "housing as a human right" our leaders hem and haw over housing policy while thousands of people wither and die in the streets.
This is what government failure looks like. pic.twitter.com/EG5j95cKRV
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Progressive government looks like failure. Because progressive governance inevitably results in failure.
Recently I've been taking drives through San Francisco. It has never been this bad.
Yesterday I saw thousands of people without shelter. Hundreds of tents. Piles of garbage strewn everywhere. Dozens of people clearly in distress, wandering around, mad. pic.twitter.com/cx7RWU2zv6
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Why is this happening…?
California's economy is the largest in the nation. GDP of $3.37 trillion. If we were a country, we would be the #5 richest in the world.
We have 161,000 homeless people living in this state.
What is Gavin Newsom doing all day, exactly? pic.twitter.com/Shn9mGe7kN
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Newsom’s working on his 2024 Democratic presidential campaign. At exclusive high-end restaurants, no doubt.
There is this saying, "tell me how you spend your time and money, and I'll tell you what you care about."
How are our leaders spending their time and money?
This is Mayor Breed's Instagram page.
What is she focused on? pic.twitter.com/bzZSEOd92A
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
London Breed is, as she ever was, focused on maintaining an active social life.
Last year I read Nancy Pelosi's book, "Know Your Power."
She writes about her first speech to congress, where she said, "I came to fight against AIDS."
She had promised to mention it in her first speech. It was her priority. pic.twitter.com/aHeR3akX15
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
A promise from Nancy Pelosi isn’t even worth the paper it’s printed on.
What is Mayor Breed's priority?
What is Gavin Newsom's priority?
What are the priorities of our Progressive-dominated Board of Supervisors?
It is completely unclear to me, and I follow SF news & politics as much as anybody I know.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Shouldn't our leaders be in Washington DC lobbying for FEMA to come in and help?
Where is the outrage? Where is the urgency?
Do we not care about the thousands of people who are on the brink of death from drugs, cold, and lack of healthcare?
What do Progressives care about?
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
People accuse me of being a shill for the right-wing.
Nothing could be further from the truth.
I'm a lifelong liberal who is horrified — *horrified* — at the values & ineptitude I see on display in my hometown.
How could I not speak out?
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Local journalists have attacked me for my advocacy.
They say I'm "anti-SF", spreading lies, and just seeking engagement.
You better damn well believe I aim to engage!
What, exactly, are you trying to do, @hooleil @gilduran76, @sfexaminer, @sfchronicle? pic.twitter.com/KWwSdHYuKV
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
If anybody is a shill for anybody, it's these newspapers for our corrupt and incompetent local government.
I reached out to @sfexaminer, sharing that dogs are indeed getting sick from drugs, that I'm not "anti-SF", nor am I a conservative.
This was their response. pic.twitter.com/TWLQyHFUxO
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Sounds about right for progressive “journalists.”
No matter that dogs are getting sick left and right.
No matter that other newspapers are covering it.
What really matters is that San Francisco maintains its reputation.
G-d forbid that conservatives use our failures to defend their beliefs.
Source: https://t.co/rWCZFJcRrC pic.twitter.com/N885KTwblG
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Is this what Thomas Sowell meant when he wrote Vision of the Anointed?
Is this how battle is waged in the modern era?
Have your food writer pen a nasty hit piece against your local critic of the government and slap your paper's SEO against it?
I refuse to acquiesce.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
I will not stop writing until San Francisco's rulers start to take the humanitarian crisis in our streets seriously.
Soleil Ho may feel comfortable stepping around bodies on her way to prix fixe, 4- and 20-course dinners.
I do not. pic.twitter.com/l7ym2L0C9z
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
I do not feel comfortable because I believe it's morally wrong.
I believe that it is morally wrong to turn a blind eye towards what is happening in this city.
I believe it is morally wrong to support our politicians & their policies – and use your paper's platform to do so.
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Last week I watched a movie, The Post, and this scene brought me to tears.
A Post employee shares the verdict of the trial. She quotes Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black,
"The press was to serve the governed, not the governors."https://t.co/wPhYlm8dGB
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Who does the San Francisco press serve?
The governed…? Or our governors?
Who, exactly, at SF Examiner or SF Chronicle is waking up every day and writing their tail off about the problems & suffering unraveling before our eyes?
Anyone? Anyone? https://t.co/O2n1w7w1c3
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
I thought journalism was supposed to be about independent thought, critical analysis, investigatory work & truth.
Yet, it seems to me that most of our local writers want to double down on our current approach.
Is there even a single conservative journalist in this town…? pic.twitter.com/vp3Xx9E7w2
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
Conservative journalist? In San Francisco? Isn’t that against the law or something?
Is San Francisco so entrenched in its tribal identity that we simply cannot consider that we might be wrong on some things?
As the fog rolls in on this chilly morning after Christmas, that is the question on my mind.
I'm going for another drive…
Thank you for reading. 🙏 pic.twitter.com/Tq3McMuyBL
— Michelle Tandler (@michelletandler) December 26, 2022
The answer to Tandler’s question is an emphatic “Yes.” That’s why San Francisco will not improve, but rather continue to degrade itself further for the foreseeable future. In fact, at this point, Tandler and any other liberals who see what she sees and believes as she believes are probably better off just abandoning the city to its inevitable doom. Some things are just beyond saving.
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