San Francisco a Great Place?

[larenzo]

I am Considering in The Near Future Relocating to San Francisco to Pursue Either a Career in Law Enforcement or Retail Management (Most Likely, Law Enforcement)

I am Wondering if San Francisco is a Good Place to Move if Your a Single and Straight Guy

Is it a Great Place to Raise a Family

[cruz50]

Lots of gays out there

[gofraidh34]

That depends. Look up "Heather Fong" on the 'net, that will probably give you an idea how the department is run (she's gone now, however). As a Conservative, living elsewhere, seems like a bad joke to me, but they are serious. Ditto how the spineless mayor of Oakland handled the Occupy bums when it all got out of hand last fall, then finally had them all cleared out under pressure after at least one murder and various assaults. If that’s the way you roll, as a compassionate LEO, it may be the place for you. But if you’re New York style, forget it: that dog won’t hunt. I watched mounted NYPD rousting vagrants and shady characters in Times Square just this past December, and that just would not happen same way in SF. For better, or worse.

I personally think SF is one of the most beautiful places in North America, if not the world. There are limitless recreation possibilities. I lived eastside (East Bay) for seven years in the 1990s and turned up in SF whenever feasible. There are things for straight men to do, and if it amuses you arrive to Castro District and hang out on a warm evening: just a bunch of people walking around, living life, minding their business. My heterosexuality survived, yours would too.

My issue w/California was largely economics, and opportunity in my field, otherwise I'd still live there despite the freak-out political climate. It is crazy-expensive to live there, with all the taxation and massive mismanagement on a State level. Pundits predict their crash periodically; I cannot determine if that is hype or an ominous portend for what might actually happen. Making, at the time, tolerable though not great money as a professional scientist, I was making zero headway. Moving away to another state, I was able to buy property and have a more laid-back quality of life with excellent career prospects.

SF is fun for people in their 20s, no doubt about it. Unless you have money, I am personally a bit skeptical it is tolerable for older folks who want to settle into a career and family. Insane Liberal politics give preference to vagrants, bums, the mentally ill, and others who shouldn't really be on the streets. As a LEO, that would (to me) be utterly heart breaking because busting vagrants is zero-sum for everyone involved (no-win, screwed no matter what you do).

If you can, visit SF for a week. Stay somewhere nearby, where you think you could live on a police salary. Walk the streets, during the business day, weekend, etc. Get a feel for the sights, sounds, and air. If it grabs you in a positive way, you will never want to leave. If you think, "meh!", problem also solved.

Good luck.

[ardwyad]

San Francisco is a great place to live, period. The weather is fine - it gets cold but never terribly cold and it never gets really, really hot. It rains and never snows. It's not cheap, but the farther you get from the city the less housing costs, in general. There's good public transportation and great food all around. Plus it's just plain beautiful. The gay thing is WAY overstated both by gay people and outsiders. Just walking around it's no different from any other city as far as dating and such. It's not a "gay city" by any means, it just has a friendly atmosphere. Plenty of single women around looking for someone just like you....