Journalist describes how terrible SF homeless problem is. Some highlights:
The city relentlessly sends the message that drug use is not only acceptable but fully expected. Users dig for veins in plain view on the sidewalk; health authorities distribute more than 4.5 million syringes a year, along with Vitamin C to dissolve heroin and crack, alcohol swabs, and instructions on how to best tie one’s arm for a “hit.”
They get free food:
Free food is everywhere. Outreach workers roam the city, handing out beef jerky, crackers, and other snacks.
And they spend a lot of money on it:
Its main homelessness agency...commands a $285 million budget... Add health services and sanitation, and you get a $380 million annual tab for homelessness ...that works out to $47,500 a year per homeless person.