Fair enough - not everyone thrives in the same environment. I have lived in the Berkeley area for years and have not personally felt unsafe here, but I am used to urban environments and they generally suit me better than suburban/rural areas. I’m OK with the trade offs that go with that. Not everyone is.
But of course the Bay Area is far more than Berkeley and SF. Those are just two cities. There’s Orinda, Albany, Walnut Creek, Santa Clara and all kinds of places that are generally low crime/high wealth areas. Not everything here is Berkeley and Oakland. There is a lot of diversity in living environments, some very much suburban and some even a bit more rural (like CrocketT maybe).
And a lot of people seem to like a certain college in the Palo Alto area- and it seems safe enough there.
So sure, it’s not for everyone perhaps. But the people who live here tend to really enjoy living here. That’s why we keep living here despite things like high rent/prices and other possible downsides (also with exceptions, there are no absolutes).