The People Disappoint Again

Baker Beach, SF, on Saturday (Chron)

For all their talk of caring about others, many San Franciscans showed it was just talk. In the first weekend of sheltering in place

The crowds that swarmed Bay Area beaches, parks and other natural areas over the weekend created fury among residents and others fearful of the fast-spreading coronavirus, prompting some parks to issue closure orders while local leaders wondered how to keep people away from one another.

Dolores Park after City parks were closed Monday (Chron)

Closing playgrounds and parks would just move the problem elsewhere:

“Being forbidden to go to your neighborhood park seems draconian, especially for people who have children,” said Leslie Alden, co-founder of Marin Climate Action Network in Corte Madera.

“If our parks are closed, the question would be, doesn’t that then push more people into smaller recreation spaces, whether on streets or on multi-use paths? I don’t have an answer.”

The answer for many, after this is over, is to move to the suburbs, where you can drive your car rather than ride a filthy train, live in a townhouse with safer social distancing, and walk or jog without fear of bumping into someone else.

Because there will be a next time.