I am quite optimistic about Oakland, actually. But, I am cautious and therefore am ready to leave if fiscal danger comes.

My optimism has nothing to do with public policy or antipoverty programs. It simply relates to Oakland’s proximity to San Francisco and its continuing gentrification. Take a look at the census data from 2000 and 2007 and you’ll know exactly what I’m talking about.

In some ways, our leaders’ failures are helping this process along. Their pet projects require money. To get that money, they allow market-rate condos and housing. That brings in higher income residents.

1. You mean that since I’m a blogger I’m poking fun at myself. If this is what you meant, my response is simply that my goal as a blogger is not to influence the political process. It’s to enlighten individuals. The political process is beyond repair.

2. You mean that “obviously bloggers have a huge impact — look at Obama!” This belief will be challenged and destroyed when McCain soundly defeats Obama in November.

Then Oaklanders can celebrate by throwing even more garbage in the streets and lining up for their turn at getting shot in the head.

Lovely!

In our future: More lies. More taxes. More self deception.

Oakland wasn’t built to be a slum and a ghetto. Yet the current approach of the people elected guarantees that is what we will be. Let’s pass more laws that are not enforced. Let’s spend more resources to take care of people who won’t take care of themselves. Let’s enact more taxes to pay for all of this. Then everyone who has initiative and doesn’t work for the government will move away and this place will just sink in to the bay.

With the same people in control of a city with $1 Billion in annual spending, and at the same time the most dangerous city west of the Mississippi, you would have to meet the classical definition of insanity to expect things to be different in the future.

You are right, there is no hope to make this city safe enough to live in. And with rent control clearly entrenched, the city will continue to lose population (decreased 5% from 2000-2006) and lose rental units (decreased 7.8% in the same timeframe). They will continue to attempt to legislate to ban gravity: we DO have a housing policy in Oakland, and it’s called rent control. And the decline in available units will continue unabated, because the city will continue to punish landlords for being landlords. And so there will be fewer and fewer people willing to do that, and only the vultures with iron stomachs will provide rental units.

It is easy to see what Oakland will be like 10 years from now. Wonder whether “Mandela Food Co-op” will have opened by then (and how much taxpayer’s money will have been poured down the drain). I, too, am planning my leave. Just need a decent housing market and I’m out. I can see what’s coming and it ain’t pretty.