Justin Phillips, the Sunday columnist at the San Francisco Chronicle, continues his “Black people can do no wrong” theme in his most recent op-ed, headlined (in the paper edition) “Forces stoking division target Asian Americans.”

As we saw last month, a Federal judge, William Orrick, prohibited Caltrans from removing homeless people from Caltrans’ property along the notorious Wood Street encampment. Caltrans needed to clear the area because the homeless people were a threat and a danger. Earlier in July, one of the scores of fires they’ve started over the years forced the closure of the 880 freeway and damaged supporting pillars.

Dear Citizen, I am a politician running for office. I know we politicians are supposed to have plans for homelessness. But the truth is, I have no plan, and even if I did, there isn’t any money to pay for it. Never has been, never will be. And none of my fellow politicians has a plan. All we can do is nibble away at the edge of the problem and tell you we’re working on it. We’ll pretend to have a plan, and you, gullible Citizen, will pretend to believe us.

Sheng Thao, who’s running for Mayor, has a new idea for solving homelessness: creating an Enhanced Infrastructure Funding District, or EIFD. “That is not a new tax,” she declared at a campaign event. “It’s not a new tax on businesses or property owners. It’s paid back through tax increments. It’s kind of like redevelopment, but better.”

Downtown Oakland has a split personality. On the street level, it’s pretty beat up, as it has been ever since 1989’s Loma Prieta Earthquake. Lots of empty stores, boarded up or broken windows, graffiti (some of it interesting), and not much retail above the mom-and-pop level of a nail parlor or grocery store.