San Francisco

I left San Francisco just in time — at the end of 2016. Sure, I saw the occasional junkie shooting up in public when I still worked in the city. And yes, I saw men use the sidewalk at the intersection of 5th and Market Streets as a toilet. But I never saw swarms of shoplifters emptying pharmacy shelves. If I needed new shoes, I could pop over to Nordstrom at the Westfield San Francisco Centre at 5th and Market. The number of friends who had stopped going into the city entirely — and switched to shopping in suburban malls — was unsettling, but tourists could help fill the gap. This week, sadly, Nordstrom announced it won’t renew its lease Read More ›

This is Portland @RJBalpha continuing his journey throughout West Coast/PNW. He says sweeps continue under @tedwheeler in #Portland, but homeless encampments continue to spread further out from Downtown core. Similar pattern developing in #Seattle. San Francisco is Dystopian @RJBalpha was also in Tenderloin neighborhood. Bay Area is one of wealthiest regions in America and epicenter of Big Tech. Yet this is what’s being allowed. Greetings from Los Angeles Homeless crisis is out of control on West Coast. @RJBalpha driving through parts of California this week and documenting. These are truly America’s slums. It looks like a war zone.