Idk what the truth is. But I visited SF and went into a Walgreens. The shelves were mostly empty and there were a number of people just sweeping stuff off the shelves into their backpacks. It was bizarre to see.
A lot of the arguments about whether SF crime statistics say X or whether stores leave for reason Y miss the point entirely: There's simply a lot of human misery and complacency towards it out in the open in SF (and in nearby areas like Oakland and Berkeley). When you've experienced it firsthand, apologists' arguments sound just like "who are you going to trust, me or your lying eyes?"
When you need to board a plane there's a ton of security you need to go through and you need to be thoroughly investigated. So obviously criminals causing issues on planes is a big problem. It's all security theatre. Theft does exist and happens, but it becomes an excuse by management to lock up toothpaste behind glass cases so that they can pretend their store isn't falling apart.
Why would they need to lock up items to keep the store looking good? What is making those products move and leave the store without payment except social disorder? I was just in (bigger) US city where the pharmacy was picked over for what I wanted but none of it was locked up except the razor blades or whatever you'll find locked everywhere. They didn't feel the need to put plastic barriers up. They also didn't have…
I’ve seen razors and even underwear locked up in a walmart in Irvine, CA, one of the safest cities in the entire country. There is nothing particularly exceptional about SF’s crime, nor is there any data to support claims like this. Just anecdotes and a lot of “trust me bro.”
Safeway, Target, CVS all have extra security precautions in place only in SF than these retailers aren’t implementing in the surrounding Bay Area. CVS in Palo Alto doesn’t lock up goods. Target in EPA doesn’t lock up drugs or formula. Etc. SF city has a theft problem that is clearly worse than other Bay Area towns.
Excuse me - CVS in San Jose does lock up goods. Your assertion doesn’t hold.
How would you know it's a "genuine anecdote" on the internet? Seems like it's only garbage in.
That's literally restating the point I made in the very first line of my comment... If you want to gather genuine anecdotes you've basically ruled out the internet as a source of data. You also can't do a townhall or call an assembly as you'll have people being bussed in (I remember a video of a Florida school board meeting in which literally every speaker had a different regional accent) You basically have to canvas…
Sorry, didn't mean to misinterpret. Your last sentence seemed to go the other direction.
Not just SF: "Target says it will close nine stores in major cities across four states because of theft and organized crime" * https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/26/business/target-retail-theft-...
It's become a convenient lie for stores to make up politically charged reasons for their store closures. For example one of the stores being closed is in the UDistrict here in Seattle. It's one of the worst targets I've ever gone to, with the store consistently having nothing on the shelves, the layout being awful and generally poorly managed. It's incredibly bad compared to the Safeway or HMart a block away and that…
A friend of mine works in a retail shop in Kirkland, and the shoplifting is rampant. She is often depressed at the end of the day for seeing their work stolen right in front of their eyes and being unable to do anything.
Why would they need to lock up items to keep the store looking good? What is making those products move and leave the store without payment except social disorder? I was just in (bigger) US city where the pharmacy was picked over for what I wanted but none of it was locked up except the razor blades or whatever you'll find locked everywhere. They didn't feel the need to put plastic barriers up. They also didn't have…
I’ve seen razors and even underwear locked up in a walmart in Irvine, CA, one of the safest cities in the entire country. There is nothing particularly exceptional about SF’s crime, nor is there any data to support claims like this. Just anecdotes and a lot of “trust me bro.”
I think you made a surprisingly good point on an unrelated topic.
I think this particular observation is related to rising costs and some people struggling to afford things. These are probably younger people doing the thefts or outsiders going into Irvine to steal. I noticed a combo package with a razor and separate blades and someone ripped out the blades from the package because the back of the package was cardboard. I thought it looked really weird at first and then later realized someone probably stole the blades out.
Why would they need to lock up items to keep the store looking good? What is making those products move and leave the store without payment except social disorder? I was just in (bigger) US city where the pharmacy was picked over for what I wanted but none of it was locked up except the razor blades or whatever you'll find locked everywhere. They didn't feel the need to put plastic barriers up. They also didn't have…
I’ve seen razors and even underwear locked up in a walmart in Irvine, CA, one of the safest cities in the entire country. There is nothing particularly exceptional about SF’s crime, nor is there any data to support claims like this. Just anecdotes and a lot of “trust me bro.”
Yep, some items are locked up almost everywhere, as the post you replied to said. What's unique to SF is the amount of uniformed security and amount of items locked up versus what you'd see in the same store in Manhattan, for instance. You can discount the anecdotes all you want, but what's going on in SF is not the same as other urban areas. Perhaps it's a west coast contagion, since the apologists mostly point to other west coast cities, which are suffering similar issues?
I’ve seen razors and even underwear locked up in a walmart in Irvine, CA, one of the safest cities in the entire country. There is nothing particularly exceptional about SF’s crime, nor is there any data to support claims like this. Just anecdotes and a lot of “trust me bro.”
Yep, some items are locked up almost everywhere, as the post you replied to said. What's unique to SF is the amount of uniformed security and amount of items locked up versus what you'd see in the same store in Manhattan, for instance. You can discount the anecdotes all you want, but what's going on in SF is not the same as other urban areas. Perhaps it's a west coast contagion, since the apologists mostly point to o…
A West Coast contagion, right. I've seen these same carbon copy posts in about every city I've lived in across the US. Usually from people that live outside of the city or have never gone into it.
It's become a convenient lie for stores to make up politically charged reasons for their store closures. For example one of the stores being closed is in the UDistrict here in Seattle. It's one of the worst targets I've ever gone to, with the store consistently having nothing on the shelves, the layout being awful and generally poorly managed. It's incredibly bad compared to the Safeway or HMart a block away and that…
A friend of mine works in a retail shop in Kirkland, and the shoplifting is rampant. She is often depressed at the end of the day for seeing their work stolen right in front of their eyes and being unable to do anything.
Kirkland? Really you say, what neighborhood exactly?
Yep, some items are locked up almost everywhere, as the post you replied to said. What's unique to SF is the amount of uniformed security and amount of items locked up versus what you'd see in the same store in Manhattan, for instance. You can discount the anecdotes all you want, but what's going on in SF is not the same as other urban areas. Perhaps it's a west coast contagion, since the apologists mostly point to o…
A West Coast contagion, right. I've seen these same carbon copy posts in about every city I've lived in across the US. Usually from people that live outside of the city or have never gone into it.