"San Francisco Values" used in attack TV ad (Berkeley: home, living in)

[Joe_Ryder]

In over 20 years here, I've only seen one publicly naked person whereas topless women and fully naked are not an uncommon sight in Texas. Heck I used to sunbathe in my birthday suit in Galveston and also at Hippie Hollow in Austin. I honestly find Californians to be sort of prudish. They're way different than what I expected to find here.

It's kind of ironic that a republican leaning libertarian redneck from the south thinks Californians are a bit uptight, huh? Of course it's considerably cooler here so naked days are far less common.

People tend to base opinions on what they saw in a movie. When I came to CA, I expected chaos in the streets, wild orgies, devil worship, and all sorts of deviant fun. Boy was that ever a letdown!

I hear people in the North constantly talking about the lack of culture and history in the south yet the two oldest western cities in the US are in Florida while the South had well established Spanish shipping ports 80 years before the Brits started any successful colonies up north. A well educated acquaintance (college professor) recently landed a position at a well known southern University and said he was surprised at how well educated and well spoken southerners as a whole were when according to the information he'd gleaned from years of media bombardment, all southerners were a bunch of inbred banjo-playing hicks with teeth that would make a Brit cringe (another incorrect stereotype). He had feared that he was going to be trapped on campus for fear of the general populace.

The bottom line is that the media can't be trusted. They are in the business of selling advertising and will exploit any angle to get you to watch. These same people are the one's making political ads. These ads are tailor made for the prejudices of the local population. People in Iowa or wherever see Californians as total nutjobs. The only real problem is that people actually take this stuff seriously.

When I was a young man, I took a trip to New York city. I expected people to be rude, obnoxious and I completely expected to be exchanging punches with muggers and bums on every corner. I was pleasantly surprised to find people who opened doors for ladies, said "Please" & "Thank You." I was shocked because they acted the same as me except they had funny accents! Then in California I found people who were nice and polite though a little bit uptight and again they had funny accents.

People aren't all that different but the spin doctors and politicians like to drive wedges between us for their own ambitions.

[HIGH!Lonesome]

I had my first introduction to San Francisco values hundreds of miles away from here at a movie theater back in the late 60's when I first went to go see the movie Bullit with Steve Mc Queen, my first impression of San Francisco was, WOW and WILD.

Then my first life experiance with San Francisco values was when I first landed at SFO in 1976 to start my four year hitch with the Navy, I thought to myself as I took two long Greyhound bus rides to downtown SF and then to Oakland, I thought (%$#@*) I have to live here for the next four years, God help me.

Now San Francisco is home, it's not as wild as it use to be, we dont have snipers atop downtown buildings like we did in the seventies, theres not much purse snatchers anymore but there are still some.

But as for today's San Francisco values, it's mostly people that dont live here or never been here that have issue's with it, you would have to dig not to deep deep into the San Francisco surface to find these so called San Francisco values if one was looking for them, attending Bay to Breakers where they have their nude contigent of runners, I've seen one old lady change her cloths at the bus stop at Geary and Divisadero, and I've have seen some naked gay dudes exposing their privates parts in public as if nothing, plus theres also that gay nude event that takes palce everyear south of market.

I think that San Francisco is different and weird, you know that the CIA did conduct biological experiments off the coast in the 50's to see if the inland draft would carry these so called germ pathegens into the city to see how and if it would affect the locals.

Beileve it or not in the late seventies I could only count one homeless person, it was the same guy beging for quarters in front of the Mc Donalds on Mission and 16th st, however their was alot of crazies roaming around, but then they wer'nt really crazies, they were the mentally ill people that Governor Roanld Reagan dumped out in the streets from the mental wards when he ordered the state to shut them down.

I think that San Francisco is still kinda wild, values or not, but I also think that they are trying to price out alot of us out of the city and that is a San Francisco value that I dont like that the city wants to treat everyone as to your rich, Whats in your wallet.

[TheseGoTo11]

Originally Posted by gizmo980

to ME it stands for social consciousness, liberalism, open-mindedness

maybe social consciousness and liberalism, but SF does not stand for open-mindedness

I'm in favor of gay marriage, abortion rights, and Iraq withdrawal, but I'm also against gun control, and very unconvinced about "climate change", "global warming" or whatever this week's name for it is

in DC, liberals like to debate, and are eager to probe, especially with someone like me who is not pulling either party's line, but in SF there is less tolerance for debate, there's conformity about certain issues and if you don't agree you're labeled an "ist" of some kind

SF suffers from a lack of diversity, in terms of opinion and thought. The SF values that many of us find sad have nothing do with gay rights or abortion.

[wanderlusting]

SF is not a diverse community at all. If you are a conservative, you will find yourself in very hostile territory indeed. SFciscans pride themselves on their open-mindedness and tolerance but it only applies to those who think and act like they do.

[Huckleberry3911948]

Originally Posted by HIGH!Lonesome

People need to leave San Francisco alone, so were a little different than evryone else, at least were not boring, San Francisco Values to me spells FREEDOM!!!

i left my heart in san francisco. i love it.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by TheseGoTo11

maybe social consciousness and liberalism, but SF does not stand for open-mindedness

I'm in favor of gay marriage, abortion rights, and Iraq withdrawal, but I'm also against gun control, and very unconvinced about "climate change", "global warming" or whatever this week's name for it is

in DC, liberals like to debate, and are eager to probe, especially with someone like me who is not pulling either party's line, but in SF there is less tolerance for debate, there's conformity about certain issues and if you don't agree you're labeled an "ist" of some kind

SF suffers from a lack of diversity, in terms of opinion and thought. The SF values that many of us find sad have nothing do with gay rights or abortion.

For the record, I'm not really in favor of gun control either... we do have some diversity in thought here, even if the majority is fairly loud.

[Joe_Ryder]

Gun Control means hitting your target.

I have to completely disagree with wanderlusting. What he says is true on the forums because people tend to be a lot more aggressive and...uhm..."outspoken" on forums but are generally a lot more civil in real life.

I have a friend who's picture is used in the dictionary under "liberal" who has never held a firearm in his hand. He votes democrat regardless of what the candidate has to say or their record. Other than that, he's a likable guy. I'm sure he'd blast me and my libertarian (bordering on anarchistic) views, particularly on gun control, embracing the safety and anonymity (perceived) of the internet but is quite civil and open to rational discussion here in real life.

[floorology]

Originally Posted by Taboo2

Besides I prefer "San Francisco Values" instead of "Hillbilly Values"that many cities in many states have.

SFV- open mindedness towards people who are different than you, global awareness, Education is not just book smarts but street smarts as well, Good hygiene is imperative in finding a stable job, poverty awareness, families come in all shapes and sizes.

HBV- Cousins are there for marrying, Chaining your dog to the truck and having him run besides it is just exercise- not animal abuse, Teeth are optional as is deoderant and brushing your hair, A nuclear family with mom dad and 7 kids is the only way to go. Girls should marry at 15- by 16 they are too old.

bet you like the homeless sometimes defacating on the street.
Moderator cut: Offensive and off-topic

[Taboo2]

Originally Posted by floorology

bet you like the homeless sometimes defacating on the street.Moderator cut: Orphaned

That happens in Seattle, LA, Chicago, NY, Houston and every other large city in the country. Hardly a SF thing.

[gizmo980]

Originally Posted by wanderlusting

SF is not a diverse community at all. If you are a conservative, you will find yourself in very hostile territory indeed. SFciscans pride themselves on their open-mindedness and tolerance but it only applies to those who think and act like they do.

Yeah, sure... people always use that line against us, even though it's kinda ridiculous. I agree that the liberal majority here is loud, and conservatives might feel somewhat out-of place. But I guarantee they'd be more welcomed than a super liberal San Franciscan in rural Mississippi. I have plenty of friends and acquaintances who are conservative (or middle-road), and they've never met hostility that I've noticed... confusion and debate, perhaps, but you don't hear much about burning crosses (or peace signs, LOL) on people's yards out here. If you think we're intolerant, I challenge you to be an interracial gay couple in the deep south. Trust me, I've been all over the world, and experienced discrimination in places just for being Jewish.