The American dream is on life support in the Bay Area
I think most of these backwards policies come from simplistic “luxury beliefs” of the rich that are disconnected from reality (<a href="https:&#x2F;&#x2F;nypost.com&#x2F;2019&#x2F;08&#x2F;17&#x2F;luxury-beliefs-are-the-latest-status-symbol-for-rich-americans&#x2F;" rel="nofollow">https:&#x2F;&#x2F;nypost.com&#x2F;2019&#x2F;08&#x2F;17&#x2F;luxury-beliefs-are-the-latest-...</a>).<p>A popular luxury belief is that police brutality and mass incarceration are the biggest problems in the judicial system nationally, so the solution is to virtually stop catching petty thieves who steal from cars and shops.<p>A popular luxury belief on housing in San Francisco is that allowing developers to add housing supply <i>harms</i> poor people. So they delay and add costs to new housing in the name of helping the poor and ignore the fact that these very restrictions ratchet up the rent.<p>A popular luxury belief in education is that black and brown people are less prepared for academic tests so it is racist to use tests to make decisions. This ignores all the poor people who benefitted from the incentives to study. Hence the decision to eliminate admissions requirements to the magnet school Lowell.<p>Another luxury belief not mentioned is that vaping is just as immoral as smoking. So even while we loosened marijuana restrictions, San Francisco increased taxes and restrictions on vaping to match the restrictions on smoking.<p>By the way, although the decision to make Lowell High School a normal lottery-based school was reversed on procedural problems, the superintendent has vowed to bring back the resolution the first thing in January. So we&#x27;re still going in the wrong direction there <a href="http:&#x2F;&#x2F;go.boarddocs.com&#x2F;ca&#x2F;sfusd&#x2F;Board.nsf&#x2F;goto?open&amp;id=C9K2DW81DDA7" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;go.boarddocs.com&#x2F;ca&#x2F;sfusd&#x2F;Board.nsf&#x2F;goto?open&amp;id=C9K2...</a>