CA Gov. Gavin Newsom hosted the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) meeting in San Francisco and to present a better image to his guests, had the city cleaned up, its homeless temporarily relocated elsewhere and the city cleaned. The feces, tents, debris and hypo needles littering the sidewalks and streets disposed of.
Newsom admitted on TV he did it because “fancy politicians” were coming. His seeming attitude: "Who hasn’t done some tidying when company is expected?"
However, now Californians have a right to demand he keep the newly cleaned streets cleared of campers and vagrants. Earlier protestations that various laws prevented him cleaning up the prior disorder have obviously been shown to be (a) bald-faced lies or at least (b) rules he can break with impunity.
What is very clear is that CA has the now-demonstrated ability to properly manage city sanitation and public order. It has long chosen not to do so, and lied about it to blame others for choices city politicians made.
The residents of CA’s cities should demand that their day-to-day urban experience be no worse than the "Potemkin village" display put on for foreign dignitaries who neither vote nor pay taxes in the city.
Herb Caen's "Baghdad by the Bay" was once a showplace, and could be again, with proper management. Dead now 25 years or so, he must be turning over in his grave at the degradation SF has suffered.
