
Living under a tarp next to Facebook HQ: 'I don't want people to see me' - kafkaesq
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/mar/31/facebook-campus-homeless-tent-city-menlo-park-california
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erentz
I spent the morning talking with a guy who was telling me about growing up in
San Jose during the 60s and how amazing it was playing in all the orchards
(hoping the sherif didn't catch them). Anyone who looks around and likes what
the valley has turned into is suffering some kind of cognitive issue. This is
a disaster of urban planning. A sea of parking lots, 8 lane streets, freeways,
and warehouses. There is no shortage of space. We could have had a chain of
interconnected walkable towns with high frequency rail connecting them up and
down the peninsula catering to three times the capacity it caters to today.
The amenities and quality of life would be better for everyone. It's not
infeasible to get there now but at this point it requires serious leadership
to get us there and Google, Facebook, et al. need to start spending money to
make that happen.

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dukeluke
Why would it make any sense for them to do that when they can just open up
offices in different cities?

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aanm1988
They have invested huge amounts of money in the bay area. Reducing costs and
making it more livable is a pretty smart decision. You don't lose employees
who can't stand the commute, or want to be able to afford more than a tiny
apartment at some point. You can improve your public image. Homelessness can
be reduced. It's good for the environment. Etc...

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hyperliner
I am sure a FB employee will invite her to stay at their house. I saw some of
them protesting at the airport when the travel ban happened, and they looked
like they really wanted to make a difference in the world. I bet this will
happen, they had #resist signs and stuff, I am willing to hold my breath.

(Starting now)

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adamredwoods
If homelessness continues and we need temporary measures, should we be
building public fresh water wells in key encampment areas?

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Hydraulix989
Anywhere there is tremendous wealth, there is going to be a bigger disparity
in income inequality. The Bay Area has a housing supply problem right now (and
no, starting a company that is cramming five+ millennials into an empty luxury
apartment is not a viable solution) that needs addressed, and I don't think we
should conflate it with the homeless problem.

The homeless across the nation all congregate in California because of the
weather, and its a much harder problem to tackle that requires more than just
the involvement of a private tech company to solve. The solution needs to be
the government creating more of a safety net for mentally ill, not private
companies somehow equalizing them in wealth (read: redistributing) with some
of the smartest, hardest working people in the world. I got the impression
that this article is pointing the blame finger at Facebook, and I don't see
how Facebook has any more responsibility than anybody else for helping the
homeless. Facebook shouldn't feel compelled to offer software engineering jobs
to skid row, that's not the solution. There are many actors here, it's hard to
point the blame at just one.

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sprafa
I think Facebook is here used as a way of illustration and contrast. It's a
good way to visualise income inequality.

