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American Cities In CRISES | PIRATE WIRES EP#16 🏴‍☠️

Pirate Wires

Fri Sep 29 2023



San Francisco's Millionaire Marxist, Dean Preston:

  • Dean Preston is a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
  • He brands himself as an advocate for the poor and dispossessed but has consistently opposed affordable housing in the city.
  • Despite his claims against capitalism, he owns millions of dollars worth of stocks in tech companies and lives in a multimillion-dollar house.
  • Preston has blocked thousands of proposed affordable housing plans by supporting restrictive zoning laws.

The Decay of Philadelphia - How An Influencer Named Meatball Started A Riot:

  • After a police officer was acquitted for shooting and killing a man with a knife at a traffic stop, protests turned into looting led by an Instagram influencer named Dejia Blackwell, also known as Meatball.
  • Meatball livestreamed herself inciting a riot and leading teens to break into stores like Apple and Lululemon.
  • She was later arrested outside a liquor store with stolen property and is now facing multiple charges.

GOP Debate: Immigration Reform & Crime:

  • Trump's absence from the debate allowed candidates to focus on other issues, including immigration reform and crime.
  • Topics discussed included fentanyl overdose problems linked to immigration across the southern border and crimes committed by illegal immigrants.
  • Vivek Ramaswamy proposed revoking birthright citizenship for children of illegal immigrants, although questions were raised about the legal mechanism to accomplish this.

San Francisco's Housing Crisis:

  • San Francisco has some of the most restrictive zoning laws in the country, making it difficult to build new housing.
  • Dean Preston has been a consistent opponent of affordable housing projects, blocking around 50,000 proposed plans.
  • The high cost of housing has made it unaffordable for both rich and poor residents, contributing to sameness in demographics.

Elon Musk vs. Dean Preston:

  • Elon Musk expressed support for an anti-Dean Preston campaign financially, which Dean used as an opportunity to portray himself as being attacked by billionaires.
  • The clash between billionaires and millionaires highlights their different interests while disregarding the working class affected by their policies.

The Failure of California's High-Speed Rail Project:

  • California's high-speed rail project, approved in 2008, has faced delays and budget overruns with no track laid after spending $9.8 billion.
  • This failure has created a perception that America cannot build high-speed rail when it primarily refers to California's struggles.

California's incompetence in building infrastructure projects:

  • California has a history of lying to people about the construction of big infrastructure projects.
  • Most countries with high-speed rail have government-built systems, such as France's nationalized rail system.
  • French advisors who were helping California with their high-speed rail project eventually left and helped Morocco build a high-speed rail system in just a few years.
  • California's problem lies in its politics of endless inclusion and limitless deference, where they prioritize serving and pleasing everyone rather than focusing on completing major projects like connecting San Francisco and LA.

The inefficiency of California's governance:

  • California's governance is characterized by an incoherent system that tries to include and please everyone, resulting in ineffective decision-making.
  • The state's approach to issues like homelessness involves giving money to numerous NGOs without a coherent plan or strategy.
  • This inefficient governance would likely collapse if it occurred in any other place that wasn't as wealthy as California.
  • Comparisons can be made between the absurdity of Soviet bureaucracy and the inefficiency of California's construction processes.

Challenges faced by building high-speed rail:

  • Building a high-speed rail from one location to another will inevitably make some people unhappy due to various reasons such as aesthetics or environmental concerns.
  • Towns along the route may object to having the train pass through their area, while towns not on the path may feel left out.

Comparison between Florida's Brightline project and California:

  • Brightline is a private company undertaking an ambitious infrastructure project, while California relies heavily on public funding for its projects.

Unintended consequences of biting the hand that feeds:

  • California's policies, such as high taxes on executives and ultra-millionaires, can lead to capital flight and people leaving the state.

The future impact of driverless cars:

  • The rise of driverless cars could displace truckers and lower-skilled drivers.