Saturday, November 22, 2014
The demand for web developers and "techies" is high. The demand for San Francisco housing is arguably higher. One of the issues I've noticed since moving to San Francisco is the hostility against people who work in the tech industry. Locals are angry that they are being pushed out, some are bitter that techies are living the life of privilege and abusing this power, and others can no longer tolerate the elitist mentalities - all of which I feel the same, although to a lesser degree. Researching about the backlash against techies popped up a recent video of startup bros (Dropbox) vs. Mission neighborhood local kids. Watching it made me frustrated. No one likes jerks, arrogrant know-it-alls, and close-minded fools. However, those fingers may someday be pointed at me since I will be working in the same industry.
The thing is it isn't fair to stereotype people who work in tech with the bad bunch of techies, just like how you wouldn't stereotype others for their race, sexuality, religion, etc. It's easy to target people in tech industry because some of them blatantly show off their wealth and are ignorant, but jerks exist everywhere. It just so happens jerks tend to be more prevalent in big cities and when they are together, they are just....unbearable. The thing is people forget that there are plenty more humble people who care and give back to the community compared to the outlier of jerks.
As a transplant from San Diego, it has always been my dream to live in San Francisco, just like how it was for other transplants, immigrants, and emigrants. So, who is to say that the techies shouldn't be allowed to move here? San Francisco is an amazing city, it's only expected that many people want to and will move here. It won't be slowing down or stopping anyone any time soon. If it isn't the techies, it will be someone else.
Possible solutions? Find the root of the problem, fix it, nip it in the bud, and everything else will fall in place. The startup guys in the video were rude and insensitive but in their eyes, the "legality" of that paper is a concept they have been used to to their whole life. The locals were upset and defensive because things are changing, people are just "buying" public spaces that they have had access to to their whole life. But in the end, who is really to blame? Parks and Rec for not regulating their policies, the wack app that they purchased it from, and the city for allowing this kind of mishap to even happen in the first place.
I do think huge companies like Facebook and Google with their commuter buses are taking advantage of the city and robbing the people of their time, patience, and effort in commute, but I personally believe people's anger should be directed towards the companies themselves, rather than the people who work for them. Companies should give more of an incentive for employees to live near their headquarters in Silicon Valley or Bay Area in general. Another solution? Give back to the city tenfold: pay taxes for bus loading, donate money to help out the people in the Tenderloin, provide housing with rent control for the low-income, educate their staff members (however sometimes jerks will be jerks so...)
The funny thing is after I typed that previous paragraph out, I decided to do more research. It looks like Google funded $100,000 to Lava Mae, a community project that converts old MUNI buses into showers for the homeless in Tenderloin. Google, along with Oracle and LinkedIn, are working to improve Caltrain. So, hey that's a good sign for everyone.
