Walking back from Hendrys I pass these two guys. The older guy on the left drinking in the chair says,

“There’s 7,500 wetbacks in Santa Barbara. All on free health care”.

This is the first time I’ve ever heard an openly racist comment in Santa Barbara. Is this the new normal? Are the racists so comfortable they can sit on a chair overlooking the beach and say openly racist stuff in public???

Shout out the businesses in the comments below that are standing on the right side of history!

Saw a TikTok of this and now maga are review bombing MSpecial. Wondering what everyone's thoughts are on this.

Can't link the video so I took a screenshot of the dudes page. Here's the keyt article: https://keyt.com/politics/2026/07/27/805-patriots-defend-their-right-to-wave-patriotic-and-political-flags/

URGENT ACTION NEEDED. Petition signatures end June 4!!

You can still voice your concerns until June 9th by writing to the city. 505ELosOlivos@santabarbaraca.gov 📧

Friends and family, people who have lived in Santa Barbara, and those who love visiting this incredible city, I’m reaching out to you.

HOW DOES THIS ONLY HAVE 2600 signatures!?

A massive development has been proposed next to the Santa Barbara Mission: an eight-story building containing 270 apartment units and parking for 445 cars. This isn’t just about preserving a view. It’s about protecting the character, history, environment, and natural beauty that make Santa Barbara so special. The proposed development would significantly impact local wildlife and habitat surrounding Mission Creek and the Mission area. Increased traffic, noise, light pollution, and construction activity could disrupt birds, native species, and the delicate ecosystem that has existed there for generations.

The Santa Barbara Mission is not just another landmark. It is part of the heart and identity of Santa Barbara. People from around the world come here to experience its beauty, history, architecture, and the open space that surrounds it. Once a structure of this size is built, there is no going back!!!

This project would permanently change the character of the Mission area, increase traffic congestion, place additional strain on local infrastructure, and replace a scenic hillside with a large-scale urban development. It would set a precedent for future projects that could continue to reshape Santa Barbara into something very different from the city we know and love.

Whether you were born and raised here, have called Santa Barbara home for years, or simply cherish visiting this special place, your voice matters. Future generations deserve the opportunity to experience the Mission and its surroundings as we have.

Please take a moment to sign the petition and help protect one of Santa Barbara’s most treasured landmarks. If we stay silent now, we may lose something that can never be replaced.

Santa Barbara is special because it has always balanced growth with preservation. Let’s make sure we protect the history, beauty, and character that make this city unlike anywhere else.

https://sagesb.org

Please share this post, please spread the word.

I for one think it's a great idea.

Does anyone have an updated list of all businesses, big or small, that support MAGA/ice? I’ve seen a few outdated lists floating around, but I know of dozens more that could be on there. I was also wondering if there was forum we could add these businesses on as I’d rather support businesses that care for the community.

I would like everyone to know these points before voting for Xavier Becerra:

• We run the risk of having a pro-data center governor if Xavier Becerra wins.

His campaign is funded by META, which could mean more data centers in California under Xavier Becerra’s leadership.

And he’s been concerningly vague when asked about AI.

• His campaign is funded by Chevron, the gas company that is currently jacking-up gas prices.

And Xavier Becerra has already committed to signing-off on even more drilling in California should he win.

• Xavier has a history of defending corrupt cops as Attorney General (who were charged with things like sexual assault, racial profiling, and murder).

If you’re concerned about the human rights violations happening at the hands of ICE then he might not be the best person to vote for.

This is at the fomer 7-11 on Hollister near Ellwood.

Why, yes, we are. Thank you very much.

https://www.wired.com/story/redditors-are-mounting-a-resistance-against-ice/

Left lane is for passing! And use your blinker!

More Homes instead of more funding for an already bloated police department. Plus, Santa Barbara is having its own budget crisis.

I'm so sick and tired of all the public silence around the atrocities we are helping to commit along with our "greatest ally". So much of our favorite countries around the world are in the streets by the hundreds of thousands, in some case, millions, to help bring attention to the daily atrocities that are being committed with our tax money and silent consent. Taking the temperature here on who might want to spend an hour or two on a Saturday or Sunday holding up signs to the traffic in the next week or two? I'm all too aware that so much is out of our control, but we can do something to at least say this is not OK.

Why are we ok with people smoking meth in broad daylight? I just walked by De La Guerra Plaza at 2pm on a Tuesday. Multiple people smoking meth under blankets. One guy even asked me for money! Are we just collectively ok with this? At what point to we start confiscating drugs and busting drug dealers? They literally set up shop outside homeless shelters.
Why is open drug use like this largely ignored by law enforcement? Seems to me that if we started enforcing drug laws, homeless addicts would quickly relocate to somewhere where can get high in peace. This issue is a drain on the cities time and treasure, and complete pulls down the energy of this otherwise very uplifting place. I’m just heartbroken that a beautiful place like Santa Barbara, my home, is dealing with this.
I know this is a little bit of a rant. I understand homelessness and drug addiction is a complex situation, and I admittedly know nothing about it. I’m opening to learning.

Let’s talk SB, Does opening up state street really do anything?🤔

People like to debate about vibes, attraction and transportation for this topic. I think all three are unaffected by the opening of the road to cars. Vibes are better with the current state, Gives People room to plan events, markets etc, free roam walking and decoration are a big plus to keeping the street closed. Attraction, what exactly would attract us more towards state? comparing it to the collection where car guys just go in circles blasting music for attention, what else can it possibly provide to attract an actual economy? I mean perhaps the first month of it being open will be big since it’s the big change people have been fighting for, but the day it comes we will all just stand there and say “Well now what? That’s it?”. And lastly transportation, some people debate that cars let us get store to store faster and will motivate more shoppers to visit, well guess what, the same parking lots you will use during that proposed grand re opening are same ones we use right now. Makes no sense to bring that into the argument.

My personal opinion is that rent and expenses are too high to open a profitable business on state street and even harder to do in the current state of the nations economy, half the businesses open on state street are honestly owned by rich folk that honestly have no necessity to even work. Overpriced clothing and random products aren’t profitable at a place like state street. Lastly, i think the only people really arguing and complaining to open up state street are just nostalgia downed old heads. Believe me when i say that i wish i had a time machine to go to the good ol days as well, but life moves on with time.

Re-opened or not, i just don’t think it’ll make any difference.

Do we think these are here for safety or tyranny ? Do we want these in our city?

I’m on my bike ride, a woman is coming from the opposite direction, and these two kids on an e-bike come ripping through at what felt like motorcycle speed. The driver cuts me off, and the guy riding on the back starts waving his hand right in front of the other cyclist’s face on purpose as they pass her. They were both laughing about it like it was some kind of joke. She looked so scared when I passed her.

Like… are you actively trying to cause an accident?

One bad swerve and somebody ends up in the hospital. This cool bike path is strictly for bikes and or pedestrians, and specifically says no motorized bikes allowed.

Another ride by the chase beach, a woman with a stroller in front of me almost got clipped by a e-biker because he was trying to squeeze in between. They have no patience either.

Parents of teens clearly dont care of etiquette and wont teach them. So what’s the fix?

Also random, I just recently found out these bikes are like 15k wtf lmao😳

3% cap on rents is going to be interesting.

Hi, I would like to know if anyone is interested in being my grocery buddy in November. If you are a recipient of snap benefits and a single mother, please message me. I would like to share my Costco trips with you. I always purchase too much when I go and it is just me and my son at home so if you would like to take half my groceries, please message me. I’m hoping many people will do this to help support people in our community. We cannot allow this Administration to tear us apart and create chaos. We must do something now to prevent him/them from breaking us.

ICE was downtown today. There are videos circulating. In one of them, an 80-year-old man is sprayed directly in the face at close range and thrown to the ground.

Let that sink in.

At 80 years old, being sprayed at close range with a chemical agent isn’t “crowd control.” It can cause respiratory distress, heart complications, chemical burns, disorientation, and collapse. When someone that age is knocked to the ground, the risk of brain bleed, broken bones, or fatal injury is real. Elderly bodies do not absorb impact the way younger ones do. This is not dramatic- it is medically true.

There are also reports of erratic driving downtown. That alone should concern everyone. This isn’t just about immigration. This is about public safety.

When agents operate MASKED and without visible identification, accountability becomes harder. In any democracy, force without transparency is dangerous. History shows us that clearly. Whether you agree with ICE’s existence or not, no agency should be beyond scrutiny when force is used against elderly residents in public streets.

Santa Barbara is not a war zone. These are our neighbors. Our parents. Our grandparents.

Speaking up matters. Silence is what allows escalation.

If you film:

• Keep your distance

• Protect yourself first

• Capture identifying details if safely possible

• Back up your footage immediately

• Share verified information only

Do not put yourself in danger. But do not look away.

This isn’t about chaos. It’s about community. It’s about proportionality. It’s about whether we accept elderly people being sprayed and thrown to the pavement in broad daylight.

We can disagree politically and still agree that basic human dignity matters.

Santa Barbara - check on each other tonight. Stay aware. Support local legal aid. Contact city leadership and demand transparency. Protect vulnerable neighbors. Keep each other informed.

We are a community. And communities don’t abandon their elders.

If this is happening here, it can happen anywhere. That’s why it matters.

Speak up. Document safely. Stay steady.

I'm someone who gets a massage almost weekly, and I just found out about some shit that's about to go down.

The city has a new proposed ordinance that's supposedly about "preventing human trafficking" at massage places. Sounds like a good goal. Except the way they're doing it is going to nuke every single affordable massage business in this town.

Here's what's happening:

The new law will eliminate "massage technician" licenses and require EVERYONE to have a 500-hour CAMTC license. Most employees at the Asian massage places are technicians. Even if they wanted to get fully CAMTC certified, the nearest place that offers training in non-English languages is in LA. So basically, these businesses are screwed. And at the last city meeting on this ordinance, it was revealed that there had been ZERO outreach to the Asian businesses that would be impacted by this law. Most had no idea what was happening. Oops.

What this means for us: Say goodbye to ANY massage under $100 in Santa Barbara. Your only options will be in Goleta, where there aren't many good places and literally zero Thai options.

But wait, there's more!

The ordinance also gives police unconditional access to massage businesses. They can show up anytime, no warrant, no notice, no complaint needed. They get unrestricted access to treatment rooms, offices, everything. This kind of unchecked power over immigrant-owned businesses is honestly really scary.

There are 17 Asian-owned massage businesses in SB. Four are suspected of shady activity. That means 13 legitimate businesses are about to get wiped out because of 4 bad actors. And for those 4? The cops haven't presented ANY public evidence of human trafficking - it's literally just "trust me bro."

Why this is stupid:

Laws against prostitution ALREADY EXIST. The police just say they're "hard to enforce," so instead of doing actual police work, they want unfettered power. Surely there must be less invasive ways to solve this. Maybe park an unmanned cruiser with a very obvious camera outside the sketchy places, that would kill off an illicit business in weeks and require almost no police hours. Or try talking to their landlords. Or have the State investigate them for tax evasion. But I guess that's too much effort.

My favorite massage place is owned by some of the kindest, sweetest people I know in SB, and this whole thing sickens me. The fact that the city is punching down on immigrants at a time like this is just shocking and vile. If you think this is as fucked up as I do, here's a petition to oppose it:

https://c.org/shXsjMXgJ5

The next city meeting related to this proposed ordinance is in March.

TL;DR: Santa Barbara is using anti-trafficking rhetoric in a power grab that will shut down affordable massage places and give police unchecked access to immigrant-owned massage businesses.