Editor:
I am writing in response to Julie Pitta’s risible “Billion Dollar Baby” hit piece on Marjan Philhour’s candidacy for D1 Supervisor. Julie’s arguments there, and in her more recent “Lies, Damned Lies and Statistics” commentary, conjure a “class war” narrative in an attempt to blur important electoral choices SF residents have in the year ahead.
As a resident of the Richmond, where we are raising young children, and hoping for a clean and safe city and neighborhood, Julie’s arguments in defense of our incumbent Supervisor Connie Chan ring hollow. One need only watch longtime local businesses fall victim to rampant shop-lifting and break-ins and close (just one example, Apple Land Produce on Clement and 10th) and see all the vacant storefronts in our neighborhood to surmise we are on the wrong track presently. There has been a marked increase of unsafe individuals on our streets and sidewalks, with open use and/or detritus of drugs and other waste in spaces that are intended for public use, including a particularly obnoxious encampment across the street from Star of the Sea school on Ninth and Geary, with large signs advising passerby of “Free Fentanyl for First Time Users” and to “F**k the Police” directly across the street from Star of the Sea elementary school (and next door to our local SFPL branch).
I beg to differ with Julie that “The tech and real estate industries are largely responsible for the massive inequity that has led to the pain all too evident on city streets.” Rather, I believe it is policies that empower and enable bad behavior that have made SF a magnet for criminal behavior, open air drug dealing/addiction and tent encampments. SF is a compassionate city, and invests heavily to make treatment and housing available to those in need. But in the words of Mayor Breed, we are tired of being taken advantage of. We cannot solve our housing and behavioral health crises with a “carrots only” approach. We need a course correction from a weakened and under-resourced SFPD and law enforcement that Connie (and Chesa Boudin, who Connie supported) champion.
Rather than responding to constituent concerns on public safety and quality of life issues (I know – I and other D1 residents have tried on many occasions) or supporting Mayor Breed’s common-sense Proposition F (which would require public benefits recipients to be drug tested and if positive participate in treatment), Connie Chan and her campaign surrogates are content with the status quo.
We will not address the challenges in our district and city by mis-characterizing legitimate voter frustration with progressive policies as “war on the poor.” We all deserve a clean, safe and livable San Francisco, and accountability – as opposed to finger-pointing – from our elected officials.
It is disheartening that the Richmond Review has allowed a series of pure attack pieces to be run in the guise of op-ed commentary. Rather than Julie’s purported credentials as a journalist (which misleadingly suggest a patina of objectivity), I respectfully request the Richmond Review require Julie to identify her relationship/affiliation with Connie Chan’s re-election campaign.
Nathaniel Weiner
Categories: letter to the editor
Richmond Review/Sunset Beacon 
Mr. Weiner can climb down from his “common sense” pedestal.. Striving in the most unctuous manner to come across as a concerned neighbor. Mr. Weiner is engaged full blast in his own “attack piece” disrespecting a journalist with whom he disagrees. Since Mr. Weiner questions Julie Pitta’s allegiances it’s fair to ask, “How much and to whom has Mr. Weiner contributed in the current election cycle?”
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I am not on Supervisor Connie Chan’s campaign staff. I do support her as I’ve made clear in my column.
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My objection is more about Connie Chan’s failure to support public safety and quality of life in our district than how I feel about Julie. But since you have joined the discussion, what solution(s) do you support for our current street/safety and quality of life conditions? And which “advocacy” groups and special interests are you involved with?
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Thank you for clarifying that you are not on Connie’s paid campaign staff. And thank you for helping illustrate the choices D1 voters face in this year’s elections.
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You must be making some good points Nathaniel because you got criticized by Lee Heidhues!! Well done!!
Maybe the Richmond Review is being paid to run Ms. Pitta’s monthly “Racist tech billionaire developers are out to get us!!” articles. Maybe she has incriminating photos. 😉 Whatever the reason, these divisive Pitta political pieces tend to cut against the Richmond Review’s mission to be a positive unifying force in the community.
The average Richmond voter knows that the current leadership – a leadership that has been in power for decades thanks to the support from the Pitta/Heidhues coalition- bears some responsibility for the state of our District.
Thank you for politely advocating for positive change and good governance. Nothing unctuous about that.
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We normally don’t reply to comments, but it is important to correct any misconceptions readers of your comment may take away. We neither pay for nor are paid by columnists to run their opinion pieces. No blackmail involved, either. ;o). The mission of the Richmond Review is not the impossible task of being a “unifying force in the community,” but we would love for that to be the byproduct of our work. Our mission is to share facts and stories as well as opinions – from all sides – with our readers. We hope hearing different points of view and learning more about our neighborhood will broaden the thinking of the members our community and increase tolerance of those who see the world in a different way. Thank you for being a loyal and involved reader.
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Thank you for clarifying. We truly believe in the mission of the Richmond Review and appreciate your hard work!
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Oh come on.
The Alexandria has been vacant long before Connie Chan was remotely close to being supervisor. Vacant businesses have more to do with the reasons those businesses are vacant than with whatever a current or past supervisor can do because the supervisor is not on the board of the corporate LLC’s that jack rent and sit on vacant properties. Connie Chan is on the Board of Supervisors.
All politicians or political incumbents want to find some angle to pose as being a halcyon of better days, but not discussing root causes and using simplistic arguments is not a political philosophy. It’s a pretense.
Marjan does nothing for 3+ years, and then starts showing up and acting like she isn’t an ambitious politician who used to be a political consultant.
Billionaires are floating political action groups pushing dubious agendas and being dishonest with their funded mailing brochures and local adverts. That is true. I’m not sure how “racism” or “conspiracy” got involved. I don’t recall that ever being mentioned except by someone who appears to want to use controversy in order to employ empty criticism. You don’t have to be racist to be an arrogant exceptionally wealthy person using their wealthy for dubious purposes. And it’s not a conspiracy when billionaires are being quite open about what they are doing. Indeed, they are quite vain and proud of their efforts.
But you do have say “racist” and “conspiracy” when you have no real substantive argument and don’t want to accept the truth of what someone who is not you is saying.
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Hi Gino, thanks for engaging in this discussion. I don’t recall using the terms racist or conspiracy here and am scratching my head why you are choosing to attack with slogans. Perhaps you share the obvious worry gnawing at “progressive” interest groups that their pet causes and candidates will be on the ballot this year.
Instead of throwing verbal spitballs, I am going to work to help educate our neighbors on the choices we have before us. I am confident Marjan (who came within 150 votes last time) is a superior choice over Connie Chan.
You are welcome to disagree, but I ask you to ground your opinions in facts, not attacks. Good day, neighbor
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I Quote From outer Richmond comment above:
“Maybe the Richmond Review is being paid to run Ms. Pitta’s monthly “Racist tech billionaire developers are out to get us!!”
That is a quote directly from what was posted.
By the way, your stated “confidence” is not the same word as truth, and in fact the word “confidence” obscures the truth of Marjan being a political consultant and now going around acting like she is a community activist, because political operatives are very fascinating both in how they choose to respond and what they choose to highlight.
But thank you for welcoming me to disagree. Peace.
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Thanks jonsdarc for clarifying that Gino was attacking someone else’s comments and not mine. But, my comment stands that “progressives” and Connie Chan supporters continue to rely on name calling and dubious smears. Instead of providing factual/substantive responses or solutions. Voters won’t be fooled.
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It is not name calling when you state that Marjan Philhour was a political consultant. While at “Philhour and Associates” she fundraised for Carmen Chu, Katy Tang, Vicki Hennessy and London Breed.
It is also a fact that Marjan has done nothing in the last 3 years to make the claim that she is a “community advocate” beyond showing up and getting pictures taken.
It is not a dubious smear when you state facts and what is and has been true.
This has nothing to do with being “progressive” unless you need to hide behind false labels while making dubious claims about what is actually factual and substantive — like the facts that I have been stating and restating.
And please, stop claiming that you speak for “voters” as an aggregate voice. You speak for yourself, sample size of N equals one.
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Thanks Jons, I’m not sure why Marjan’s background as a political consultant would be a mark against her, she has also been an active and vocal community member and business owner in the Richmond. Connie Chan’s qualifications are… previously a legislative aide, and hand picked successor of our previous D1 BOS member Sandra Fewer?
Connie’s accomplishments for D1 have barely been beyond showing up for the occasional photo shoot – and the policies she champions will lead to continued deterioration of our safety and quality of life. The screamy and demeaning tone “progressives” continue to take in trying to obfuscate the choices before D1 voters probably won’t work – but keep trying and let’s see what happens!
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That building on 6th and Geary got there because of Sandra Fewer. The SFMTA made changes to the Geary improvement project because of Connie Chan’s intrusion after communicating with Richmond district businesses about the impact of the project. She negotiated a compromise with the great highway and has interceded to help seniors not get evicted so that LLC landlords can jack up the rent. None of these actions was about photo ops but about doing real things with real people.
Name one thing Marjan has done since 2012. Before you do, realize even Marjan herself couldn’t list one thing on the 11 page Biography she posted on cloudfront.net.
https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/harveymilkclub/pages/231/attachments/original/1595559579/D1_Supervisor_-_Marjan_Philhour__Policy_Positions.pdf?1595559579
You might also remember the gerry-mandering that Marjan’s friend London Breed did behind closed doors with the new district voting lines that received justifiable criticism because of the secrecy and dubious intent. You might also recall that Breed meets secretly with developers and than deletes all the correspondences. Marjan was part of the political consultant group that met with fund raisers, so you are voting for a cut-out that will do the bidding of these political interests — not the community. That’s how this works. Don’t brush that reality aside so casually.
You appear to love hanging demeaning adjectives and using the word “progressive” like a cudgel. I’m just stating facts. I’m not screaming. I’m not being demeaning. You however appear to be obfuscating my words and making simplistic narratives. Please re-read everything I have said prior, because your ji-jitsu with what I actually say is beginning to be borderline projection
This is not a progressive vs. non-progressive thing. It’s about someone who will fairly represent the interests of the Richmond district, and some one who will talk the talk but actually represent those interests she worked for as a political consultant, the intermediary between those who fund politicians and the politicians themselves.
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Thanks Jons for lowering the temperature in this discussion – and it is not Marjan’s record of accomplishments on the ballot, but Connie Chan’s.
I have met with Connie to discuss neighborhood safety and quality of life concerns, and been watching with interest her communication and follow through. Which have unfortunately for all of us been lacking and deflecting. Many other residents of D1 have experienced the same thing, which I am giving voice to here.
The examples you cite of things Connie and her predecessor have accomplished are nice points. They do not outweigh Connie’s advocacy to shift resources away from our police, or her coming out on the wrong side of the well-deserved D.A. and school board recalls. Connie has used “war on poor” messaging to oppose common sense accountability measures Mayor Breed is working hard to advance to make this a safer and more livable city for all of us.
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