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Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

nytimes.com

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Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#61

Post by username90 »

throwawayboise wrote: post #53
majormajor wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Extreme inequality ruins things" is more of a progressive belief than a conservative one. Enter SF! How a place is governed is different from the party people run on, and the lack of accountability on results is the current failing of SF. Execution matters, not just ideas. What is it that people think the TX government is better at? What similar challenges has the government of, say, Fort Worth faced as SF, and what…

Lack of accountability on results is the hallmark of progressivism. As long as the intentions were good, outcomes don't seem to matter.

To add to this, there is little to no evidence that diversity initiatives we see today actually helps diversity. It is a big charade and they attack those who don't want to play along with it.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#62

Post by prohobo »

bastardoperator wrote: post #54
prohobo wrote: post #13

Honest question: why would any new tech entrepreneur want to move to SF? The prices suck, and if you need to improve your network you can meet the vast majority of tech people online (IRC, Discord, email, online conferences). Weather?

At least 11 of the 20 largest companies by market cap have a major office if not headquarters in the region. It's a business and money center... And that's besides great weather, history, and things to do in CA. I couldn't imagine an entrepreneur being successful without meeting people in person.

On the last part, I agree - but I think the initial meeting can still happen online. You can always coordinate to meet in-person later.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#63

Post by oceanplexian »

dcolkitt wrote: post #20
prohobo wrote: post #13

Honest question: why would any new tech entrepreneur want to move to SF? The prices suck, and if you need to improve your network you can meet the vast majority of tech people online (IRC, Discord, email, online conferences). Weather?

I recently founded an early stage startup. The only reason I can proffer is imposter syndrome. There’s a certain nagging feeling that we’ll never be a “real startup” until we have offices in the Bay Area. And sometimes that views externalized by others. You run into a scenario where you’re talking to someone who’s excited about your tech and vision. Then you mention you’re located in suburban Florida and their enthus…

I was in Miami early this year. Every one of the local coworking spaces were booked full with people working on tech and there were no COVID restrictions. The things I loved about SF seemed to be happening in Miami, lots of diverse cultures, food, bars, and people socializing. I visited SF a few weeks ago and it felt like the energy was gone. The Financial District was dead, as if it was still March 2020.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#64

Post by shuckles »

prohobo wrote: post #58
shuckles wrote: post #51

Earlier quoted context omitted.

How many enormous technology companies have been founded by people affiliated with a certain school in Palo Alto which has no plans of going remote?

That seems like an extension of the class system of universities rather than a real reason to be there though.

One person’s “extension of the class system” is another person’s “real reason.”

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#65

Post by healthysurf »

bgentry wrote: post #56
okareaman wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yes, they're nice but it's like comparing skiing in New England with skiing in the Rockies or Sierras.

I didn’t say they were comparable to the Sierra Nevada or coastal ranges, was merely trying to understand your “trapped in a flat plane of existence” line. If we want to go for some real good skiing, Utah or Colorado are short flights and will likely have much better & more consistent snow than CA has for the past decade :)

Having grown up around hill country Texas, it absolutely in no way compares to real mountains :) Only thing I miss about Texas is lower housing prices, but even those are high in desired areas in big cities.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#66

Post by healthysurf »

syshum wrote: post #44
bgentry wrote: post #14

I moved to Austin in November after 10 years in the Bay Area and a lifetime in different parts of California. Not a chance we will move back, certainly not for decades. The most refreshing part of the change is that people are genuinely nicer and more friendly around here than anywhere I lived in California (OC, SD, SF, Berkeley, Stockton for college). I really didn’t expect that, which I think was probably due to cr…

Dont worry, most of California is moving to Texas, so Texas will be just like California in no time, long before "decades", so you will not need to move back California is coming to you

Honestly I hear as many complaints living in Washington of WA natives criticizing people from Texas moving to Washington and how they're going to ruin XYZ. That was a poorly worded sentence but hopefully you get my meaning

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#67

Post by majormajor »

throwawayboise wrote: post #53
majormajor wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Extreme inequality ruins things" is more of a progressive belief than a conservative one. Enter SF! How a place is governed is different from the party people run on, and the lack of accountability on results is the current failing of SF. Execution matters, not just ideas. What is it that people think the TX government is better at? What similar challenges has the government of, say, Fort Worth faced as SF, and what…

Lack of accountability on results is the hallmark of progressivism. As long as the intentions were good, outcomes don't seem to matter.

This seems to be a statement on the level of "cruelty is the point of conservatism." It's non-serious, even if we pretend that there's never been a conservative policy enacted that didn't deliver it's promised goals. It's noteworthy for how it completely fails to give an example of a conservative city or state in the US that faced and solved similar problems.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#68

Post by prohobo »

shuckles wrote: post #64
prohobo wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

That seems like an extension of the class system of universities rather than a real reason to be there though.

One person’s “extension of the class system” is another person’s “real reason.”

May they absorb nerd-god powers from the soil.

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#69

Post by salt-thrower »

throwawayboise wrote: post #53
majormajor wrote: post #50

Earlier quoted context omitted.

"Extreme inequality ruins things" is more of a progressive belief than a conservative one. Enter SF! How a place is governed is different from the party people run on, and the lack of accountability on results is the current failing of SF. Execution matters, not just ideas. What is it that people think the TX government is better at? What similar challenges has the government of, say, Fort Worth faced as SF, and what…

Lack of accountability on results is the hallmark of progressivism. As long as the intentions were good, outcomes don't seem to matter.

Any examples you'd like to bring up? It's far more common for politicians to claim to be progressive up until the point of assuming office, only to revert to status-quo business as usual afterwards. Obama is the most famous recent example that comes to mind. Ending wars, closing Guantanamo, restraining police state spying, making college more affordable, and implementing socialized healthcare were all campaign agenda items of his that were never achieved even when his party had a super-majority (most never even mentioned again once he was in office).

Re: Tech workers swore off the Bay Area, now they’re coming back

#70

Post by renewiltord »

I live in Austin right now after almost a decade in the Bay. It's nice and I can see why people like it: it's got more of the kind of vibe which lets you raise a family - very suburban, relatively cheap (wrt the Bay Area), people will say hi on the street, stuff like that. San Francisco is a city, though, as small as it is, in a way that Austin isn't, as big as it is.

Just like London and New York City are in a different class from little SF.

The heat is kind of unfortunate, but I can tell you that sitting in an air-conditioned home looking out at a sunny day beats sitting in a heated home looking out at a foggy day for me. I wish SF didn't have the fog and was all sunny all the time.

The only thing is the politics, though. Texas politics, which leaks to Austin, is very top-down big-government. SF and maybe CA politics is more personal freedom. Lots more taxes and corruption in CA, as far as I can see, but definitely more personal freedom too (except in gun rights).

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