The San Francisco Chronicle this week printed a few stories that reinforce my current thinking to find a different city to live in, certainly before David starts school.
1. San Francisco is a pig heaven for criminals: S.F. cops give up on some crimes; Investigating all called too costly
The San Francisco Police Department wants to investigate every violent crime but doesn't have enough inspectors to get the job done, the department's top brass conceded Wednesday2. The public schools are a disaster and assignment of children to schools is governed by a time-consuming and bizarre spoils system
Last year was the first time the district used a so-called diversity index to assign students to schools, and the process was not without its problems -- and detractors.3. Our elected officials are idiots S.F. may soon see psychics regulated; Pioneering proposal would ban trickeryThe index does not consider race but diversifies schools by looking at family income; preschool experience for incoming kindergartners and standardized test scores for others; mother's education level; language status; and the academic ranking of a prior school.
When the district mailed its enrollment results, hundreds of students were designated as "unassigned," and many siblings were assigned to the wrong schools. And as students entered school for the first day, about 100 students -- some of whom had appealed their placement - still hadn't received an assignment.
The proposed law, which comes before the Board of Supervisors next month, covers fortune-telling by not only crystal balls, tarot cards and astrology charts, but by "sticks, dice, tea leaves, coins, sand and coffee grounds" as well. Fortune-tellers would be required to post rate cards and a phone number for complaints. Police say requiring permits would make it easier to keep tabs on swindlers.(I wonder how the law would treat other purveyors of worthless nonsense, such as TV preachers, stock analysts and politicians who think that laws can protect people from their own stupidity)
...
Peskin said fortune-telling is an "age-old industry that is welcome in San Francisco" and said he did not want to discourage legitimate, modestly priced psychics, seers, tarot card readers or sellers of fortune cookies
What? No reason #4: the Great Highway flooded for a week because the City doesn't have enough money to deal with the streets?
Last Sunday marked the one-year anniversary of the day that my husband and I, with our 3 young ones in tow, left S.F. (after 14 years of Sunset District living and Financial District working) for Madison, Wisconsin. We haven't looked back since.
I could be flip and say that the experience that seemed to capsulize it all for me was stepping over excrement (decidedly non-canine) on the sidewalk while walking to lunch at Stars. Seriously, though, I have to say that concern about our kids' education was foremost, the S.F. public school system being fubar and the private school alternatives being abnormally stratified (even without getting into the issue of the ridiculous costs). Throw a child with a learning disability into the mix, and fuggedaboutit.
Here in our new environs, our kids walk (sometimes even by themselves!) to their excellent neighborhood public school, where the principal knows them by name and dons a safety vest every morning and afternoon to help kids on and off the buses. Their classmates range from kids who live in high-end homes with granite kitchen countertops to kids who live in working-class subsidized rental apartments, and they all play together. My 4th grader takes Mandarin Chinese classes on the weekend at the University, she and my kindergartener recently enjoyed a full-length performance of "Macbeth" done by kids in Madison's Young Shakespeare Players' troupe, and I got to attend this year's international Ford Madox Ford conference. We live 5 minutes away from 2 great Indian restaurants with parking right out front. We can frequently drive to places 30 minutes away, and get there in not more than 30 minutes.
Without sounding too much like a chamber of commerce plug for our new home, my husband and I continually marvel at how much our family's life has improved after leaving the City. But in many respects we are sad that it got so bad that we had to leave. A few weekends ago I was on Madison's State Street (sort of like Telegraph Avenue but a million times cleaner) on a quiet Sunday after Thanksgiving and walked past a young and able-bodied panhandler with a cute (he thought) spiel for a handout. I wanted to deck him.
Posted by: chan on December 21, 2002 06:29 PM