<p>Someone disagreed with my post comparing San Francisco and Chicago.
S/he posted some statistics, but ignored that San Francisco seems to ME less safe than Chicago. I made a point of it being MY perception. This is how it seems to ME.</p>
<p>I did not look up the stats. I do have long experience and knowledge of S.F. (and follow local news closely) and limited experience with Chicago.</p>
<p>Perhaps I went into Chicago with the mindset of it being a “big city” and have been pleasantly surprised at how mild the panhandlers have been, how pleasant my experiences have been on public transportation, etc. I will still be careful. No, I have not ventured into known heavy crime areas - I have no reason to.
On the other hand, I’m not sure I would trust any crime statistics coming out of the city and county of San Francisco. It is a notorious city for being a so-called sanctuary city. There is a sense that government is sympathetic to criminals. District attorney who is weak (there is a new one I have not followed). I am pretty sure though for many years, news reports have noted low conviction rates (and I am guessing, low arrest rates) while there are plenty of unpleasant crimes. Panhandlers are VERY aggressive in San Francisco and they can be super scary.</p>