Homeless San Francisco Man Says He Came to City For Drugs
Author Michael Shellenberger interviewed a homeless man Wednesday who bragged about how easy it is to thrive while also being addicted to drugs in San Francisco.
Shellenberger is a lifelong environmental activist. He found favor with conservative media last year when he authored an opinion piece in which he decried climate alarmism.
“On behalf of environmentalists everywhere, I would like to formally apologize for the climate scare we created over the past 30 years,” wrote Shellenberger in a 1,700-word article.
Shellenberger also released a book called Apocalypse Never: Why Environmental Alarmism Hurts Us All.
The book was criticized by fellow environmentalists. Media Matters has labeled Shellenberger one of “right-wing media’s favorite climate contrarians.”
Shellenberger has now taken on a new cause: San Francisco’s homeless problem and drug epidemic.
The author has posted about the issues with an increased frequency recently. Wednesday, one of those interviews went viral.
Shellenberger posted an interview with a man named James, who said he fled Texas and Louisiana for the San Francisco Bay area in order to capitalize on the city’s giving nature and lax drug policies.
People say lack of housing forces local residents into the streets, but James says he came from Texas to San Francisco for the drugs, the non-enforcement of anti-camping laws, and the $820/month in welfare & food stamps. James says he sold fentanyl, 2 weeks ago, to a 15-year-old. pic.twitter.com/5qMr6tmlWs
— Michael Shellenberger (@ShellenbergerMD) February 9, 2022
“If you’re gonna be homeless, it’s pretty fuckin’ easy here” James said. “I mean if we’re gonna be realistic, they pay you to be homeless here.”
Shellenberger asked, “When you said that San Francisco pays people to be homeless, what did you mean by that? Do you mean that literally?”
James bragged he thrives off of SNAP benefits and a monthly stipend. He also enjoys a free mobile phone, which he uses to stream premium entertainment:
A fuckin’ phone call, bro. A fuckin’ phone call. $200 food stamps and $620 cash every month. Forget about it, why wouldn’t I do it, you know? It’s fuckin’ free money, dude. This right now is literally by choice. Literally by choice. Like, why would I want to pay rent? I’m not doing shit. I got a fucking cell phone that I have Amazon Prime and Netflix on.
James told Shellenberger that since arriving in California, he views police officers as friends, as they don’t hassle him.
The man claimed he recently sold fentanyl to two teenagers, and explained to them that the amount was enough to kill six people:
I was like, “I’m keeping your money and now I’m going to teach you how to save each others’ lives, because you’re not gonna fucking stop. I can’t steer you away from doing it, but the best thing I can do for you now is give you real drugs and show you how to do it properly and show you how to save your friend’s life.”
James said he instructed the teens, who he said were both 15, about how to use Narcan, and explained he sold the drug to them because he was in need of cash.
