Sodoma & Gomorra and San Francisco. AI Generated

Hey there, lovely readers! I’m so glad to have you back here with me!

Today’s topic might raise some eyebrows, especially if you’re from San Francisco or currently call it home. But before we dive in, let me assure you: this isn’t about pointing fingers, judging, or condemning.

I aim to explore this topic from a sociological perspective, comparing two fascinating places separated by 4,000 years yet sharing striking similarities.

This discussion is rooted in thorough research, my personal experience of four years living in San Francisco, and countless conversations with both locals and newcomers from around the world. It’s a blend of observation and analysis, not a hot take designed to provoke.

That said, I understand this might not be everyone’s cup of tea. If you’re already feeling uneasy, no hard feelings, feel free to skip this one. But if you’re curious, open-minded, and ready to learn, I invite you to stick around and join the conversation.

San Francisco's comparison to a modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah extends beyond its openly liberal attitudes toward sexuality. My perspective delves deeper into the city's historical and cultural context: an emblematic hub where people converge to pursue wealth, ambition, and opportunity. However, alongside this drive, the city has also cultivated a reputation for moral decadence and ethical challenges, reflecting a broader narrative of societal excess and complexity.

Let’s jump in!

A Brief History of Sodom & Gomorrah

Sodom and Gomorrah are cities mentioned in the Bible, primarily in the first book of Genesis. They have been studied through historical, sociological, and archaeological lenses to explore their possible existence and cultural context.

Some scholars suggest that the two cities were located in the southern region of the Dead Sea, a highly arid area in present-day Israel and Jordan, while others believe they were situated in Syria.

Historical records suggest this region was rich in resources, particularly bitumen (asphalt), which was used in ancient construction and trade. The cities thrived economically due to their strategic location near trade routes, making them hubs for wealth and opportunity.

One common trait among wealthy cities is their abundance of resources and strategic location, which foster prosperity and economic growth. As a result, people from other regions are drawn to these cities in search of work and fortune. But with wealth often comes moral corruption.

Sodom & Gomorrah celebration. AI Generated

Sodom and Gomorrah, much like other ancient cities that prospered, became places of excess where people sought pleasure beyond material wealth. Money alone could not satisfy deeper human needs, so people turned to indulgence and excess in search of fulfillment.

Wealth and the Rise of Sodom & Gomorrah

Sodom and Gomorrah were not just infamous for their moral corruption but also known for their economic prosperity. Because of its bitumen (asphalt) deposits, this valuable resource was used for waterproofing ships, construction, and even Egyptian mummification.

The cities' prime location along trade routes made them major hubs for commerce, attracting merchants and fortune-seekers eager to profit. However, with great wealth came unchecked materialism and greed overshadowing ethical values.

Asphalt production in Sodom & Gomorrah. AI Generated

There is the theory that the same bitumen deposits that fueled their prosperity may have also contributed to their destruction. The biblical account describes “fire and brimstone” consuming the cities, which some interpret as an earthquake igniting underground pockets of bitumen and sulfur, leading to catastrophic fires. If true, it would be a striking irony that the very resource that built their success may have led to their downfall.

The Biblical Story of Lot: A Reflection of Moral Decay

The biblical story of Lot, Abraham’s nephew, further illustrates the city’s moral collapse. When two angels visited Lot’s home, the men of Sodom and Gomorrah, consumed by depravity, demanded to have sexual relations with them “too”, drawn to the allure of new faces in town. I put the “too” in quotation marks, because they were assuming that there was a possibility that Lot was a pervert too. If the reputation of Lot would have been different, the inhabitants of the city would not have used that adverb!

The visit of the 2 angels to Lot from the Bible. AI Generated

Lot, who was very wealthy man and had so deeply assimilated into the culture of Sodom and Gomorrah. He refused the demand of the men of the city, but shockingly offered his virgin daughters to the people instead! This is so sick… This disturbing narrative highlights how extreme immorality can become normalized in a society consumed by excess and perversion.

The biblical narrative describes these cities as being ultimately destroyed by fire from the sky as a divine punishment for their wickedness. And when I think of true evil, I can say I truly understood the meaning of the word when I moved to San Francisco in 2018. To me, it felt like a place where the ruthless, the opportunistic, and the morally bankrupt had all chosen to gather. This was exactly how I described the city to my family.

In case you did not know, in 1980, The Washington Post published an article claiming that Sodom and Gomorrah had been discovered. The report referenced Italian scholar Giovanni Pettinato, who stated that clay tablets were found in the previously unknown Kingdom of Ebla, located in present-day Syria. These texts referenced cities bearing the names Sodom and Gomorrah, giving credibility to their historical existence. If you want to know more about the archeological discovery click here.

San Francisco: The Modern Sodom & Gomorrah

San Francisco is often compared to Sodom and Gomorrah, and for good reason. Like its ancient counterparts, the city is a magnet for people seeking wealth, ambition, and opportunity. It has thrived as a center of commerce, innovation, and cultural revolution, drawing fortune-seekers from all over the world. But just like Sodom and Gomorrah, it has also become a place of perversion, where extreme wealth and moral decline often go hand in hand.

San Francisco has witnessed waves of economic prosperity, from the Gold Rush of the 1800s to the modern tech boom. Each era has brought its own version of hedonism: the lawless gold-mining camps of the 19th century, the free-love movement of the 1960s, and the uninhibited digital revolution of today, where wealth and privilege coexist with stark inequality.

The Gold Rush in San Francisco, CA. 1855

With money often comes moral corruption. As seen in history, when people have excess wealth, they tend to seek out extreme pleasures, constantly pushing boundaries in search of something more satisfying.

Living in San Francisco was a very interesting experience, it was like stepping into a futuristic experiment where money is king, sex is casual, and deep conversations are, well… rare. Don’t get me wrong, the city has energy, but beneath the tech glamour and avocado toast, I noticed something strange: a society where status is measured in dollars, not in intellect or integrity.

In the Bay Area, people don’t ask who you are, they ask “what do you do”, and by that, they mean how much you make. Social workers? Writers? Historians? Human Sciences? Meh. But if you know how to flip crypto or talk stocks, you’re instantly respected. I rarely saw anyone reading a novel for fun, but finance books? Sure. Philosophy or history? “What’s the ROI on that?” hahahahah

The tower of Salesforce. Salesforce is the world's leading customer relationship management technology

Careers aren’t about passion; they’re about cash flow. As a foreigner, that was wild to me. I studied Political Science because I actually care about society, not because I wanted to buy a Tesla or become a billionaire, not because money is bad by itself but because that has never been my primary motivation. But in SF, it felt like choosing a job was more about securing the biggest paycheck than doing something meaningful. That was so frustrating for me, you have no idea how much time I spent analyzing people there, they were alliens to me…

And dating? Forget about it. If you're looking for commitment, you might as well be searching for a unicorn. Open relationships, polyamory, and casual flings aren’t just common; they’re basically the normal. Sex has lost its meaning, its value and it’s just another transaction, stripped of intimacy or connection. Much like the ancient cities of Sodom and Gomorrah, it’s all about sexual liberation and momentary pleasure with no regard for the soul.

What shocked me most was the number of men who were bisexual, confused, or still "figuring themselves out." And while I fully respect people’s sexual orientations, I simply wasn’t interested in signing up for that. It didn’t take long before I decided that dating in San Francisco wasn’t for me.

A City of Flesh, Not Souls

But the problem runs deeper than just modern dating trends. San Francisco is a city where people don’t just chase money, they sacrifice their humanity for it. In the relentless pursuit of wealth, human connections have become purely transactional. People work endlessly, yet they are some of the loneliest, most disconnected souls I have ever encountered. And with no real moral boundaries, sexual depravity thrives unchecked.

Orgies are commonplace, as if people have forgotten that intimacy is meant to be sacred. Fetishes that should remain behind closed doors are flaunted openly. The city is home to bars dedicated to sadomasochism, swingers, sex clubs, where all kinds of sexual experiences are displayed for an audience.

Let's do not forget that the Hippie Movement started in San Francisco with the Summer of Love in 1967, and it was the start of the sexual revolution and liberation that happened all across the United States. And by the way, it was not “peace and love” as everyone thinks, the idea of “free love” wasn’t always about freedom, it sometimes meant young women, even teenagers that ran away from their homes being manipulated into drug-fueled orgies where their consent was blurred by psychedelics and the pressure to reject “bourgeois” notions of monogamy.

Hippie Hill, Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. 1967

In the hippie era, the concept of “Commune” was created as an alternative society, rejecting mainstream norms in favor of collective living, free love, and shared property. However, many of these utopian experiments became places of exploitation, where charismatic leaders took control, and personal boundaries disappeared.

Communes that were supposed to be safe havens, turned into places where older men and so-called gurus took advantage of vulnerable followers justifying rape as a path to enlightenment, using spirituality as an excuse for control and abuse. Even kids were exposed to things no child should ever see.

The Summer of Love may have seemed like a revolution of peace and free expression, but its legacy of sexual immorality still lingers in San Francisco today, shaping a culture without values, where everything is permissible.

What began as an escape from traditional values quickly spiraled into uncontrolled perversion, normalizing promiscuity, and the erosion of boundaries. This era of excess also opened the door for deeper societal shifts, paving the way for the LGBTQ+ movement to emerge and thrive in an environment where sexual identity and behavior were no longer constrained by past norms.

I took this picture in the window of a house in the Castro LGTB Neighborhood. Sorry if its too graphic.

See folks, I have lived in many countries where, as a woman, I felt like a piece of meat. Places where I had to cover my skin for fear of unwanted attention. Yet nowhere have I felt more objectified than in San Francisco, believe me. In SF, people are very superficial and they are unable to see souls; they see bodies to be used and discarded. It is a city where where human beings are reduced to mere objects of pleasure. Men don’t connect, they consume. Women don’t love, they trade. And the cycle repeats endlessly.

The Party That Changed My Perspective

One night, I found myself at a house party, invited by a girl I met in a meet up group for Ux researchers. As we chatted, she casually mentioned how she and her three roommates that were in the same party, often laughed about sleeping with the same guys… The conversation took an even stranger turn when one of them opened a dating app, scrolling through her matches while her roommates were reacting and recognizing men they had slept with too. As they were laughing, they realized the 3 roommates had slept with the same 13 guys, I felt disgusted.

Back home or in the other countries I had lived in, I never encountered this kind of detachment, this level of emotional emptiness in human interactions.

In another house party, I met a woman working in tech who without shame shared that she let her female best friend sleep with her boyfriend. Why? Because her best friend was heartbroken, lonely, and, in her own words, "needed to bang". She laughed, saying, "What a good friend I am, huh?"…

Is San Francisco Doomed?

So, is San Francisco the modern-day Sodom and Gomorrah? The signs are all there. A city built on wealth, attracting people from around the world, but ultimately collapsing under its own moral failures and excesses.

Will San Francisco learn from history, or will it follow the fate of its ancient predecessors? I do not know, but no city, no matter how powerful and prosperous, is immune to collapse if it neglects the balance between progress and responsibility denying integrity…

San Francisco is a city that impacted me so much, I am one before SF and another one after. I have more articles related to the city, you are welcome to read.

Thanks for reading,

Natalia Cortes

San Francisco, January 2022

san francisco: the modern sodom and gomorrah