And remorse starts to show itself....

[Wahoo Redux]

God, please give me the Pacific Northwest or a California city. I've seen a lot of other places.  I don't want them. I can deal with the homeless.  They have migrated to the relatively warm coastal states where people try to help them.  Maybe I could even help them myself----I'll leave those Christians who condemn the homeless in Trumpistan. 

Oh yeah.  God, if you felt like it, maybe it is time for the west coast, Chicago, and the north east to secede and join Canada----just give my wife and me time to go west.

[marshwiggle]

From The Brookings Institution

Stark regional variations in the prevalence of homelessness across U.S. cities and regions also matter significantly for policymaking. As Table 1 demonstrates, cities on the West Coast have higher homelessness rates than other regions—representing seven of the 10 cities with the highest total homelessness rates per capita. San Francisco, for instance, has a total homelessness rate that is nearly 20 times higher than Houston's. West Coast cities also stand out for higher shares of their homeless population living without shelter. In addition to Seattle, West Coast cities including San Francisco; Long Beach, Calif.; Los Angeles; Portland, Ore.; Oakland, Calif.; Sacramento, Calif.; San Jose, Calif.; and Fresno, Calif. all have unsheltered homelessness rates above 50%.

What point do you think you've made there, Marshy?

From CoStar news:

The retail vacancy rate across Union Square, the city's premier shopping district, soared from 9% in 2019 to roughly 22% today, according to CoStar data, making it one of the hardest hit neighborhoods in San Francisco following the pandemic. That's more than five times the nationwide vacancy rate of just over 4%.

The big department stores that once drew shoppers from around the Bay Area to Union Square aimed to make shopping convenient for the middle class, but in recent years, few regular San Franciscans shop there. The result is that "for lease" signs dot the storefronts of downtown, a sign of financial distress in an area that has yet to regain the bustle of office workers that filled the streets before the pandemic.

Much of Union Square is also now dominated by empty storefronts, as global forces such as e-commerce have combined with local concerns about rising crime and disorder, forcing the closing of businesses ranging from locally owned sellers of t-shirts to national department store chains. Macy's Inc. announced in early 2024 that it would close its Union Square store but did not say when.

[ciao_yall]

Yes. Many shopping districts and malls were slowing down dramatically around the world with the rise of online shopping.

The pandemic accelerated this trend and WFH hit them even harder with the decline in daytime foot traffic.

So... your point?

[marshwiggle]

Yes. Many shopping districts and malls were slowing down dramatically around the world with the rise of online shopping.

The pandemic accelerated this trend and WFH hit them even harder with the decline in daytime foot traffic.

So... your point?

Obviously you missed this.

Much of Union Square is also now dominated by empty storefronts, as global forces such as e-commerce have combined with local concerns about rising crime and disorder, forcing the closing of businesses ranging from locally owned sellers of t-shirts to national department store chains. Macy's Inc. announced in early 2024 that it would close its Union Square store but did not say when.

And "rising" means it's getting worse.

[Wahoo Redux]

Yes. Many shopping districts and malls were slowing down dramatically around the world with the rise of online shopping.

The pandemic accelerated this trend and WFH hit them even harder with the decline in daytime foot traffic.

So... your point?

Obviously you missed this.

Much of Union Square is also now dominated by empty storefronts, as global forces such as e-commerce have combined with local concerns about rising crime and disorder, forcing the closing of businesses ranging from locally owned sellers of t-shirts to national department store chains. Macy's Inc. announced in early 2024 that it would close its Union Square store but did not say when.

And "rising" means it's getting worse.

Before you get your head stuck even farther down the rabbit hole, Marshy, check out the various crime statistics per city.  Each collumn will give you a ranking based on that particular crime. 

You can see that if most cities were like Portland and San Francisco we'd be much better off.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_crime_rate

Remember, conservative news and talking points are often lies.  Don't necessarily believe them.

[spork]

Expect a sharp drop, of ~ 40%, in Chinese cargo arriving at U.S. West Coast ports next month.

[Sea_Ice]

Saw a billboard today that at first glance seemed to be advertising a regional, and major, National Park.  Until you read the part correctly crediting DOGE with the closure of six campgrounds.