I don't see how the "money should trump everything" argument is less entitled. Of course I'll think this will change if the fortunate side becomes reserved for the very fortunate, like has happened in some other cities.
There are currently a host of policies that keep people from doing what they would otherwise very much like to do, which is building new higher-density housing and living in it. That would result in net gains, whereas arguing about who gets to live in SF is pretty much zero-sum. Yet people really seem to like to argue over the latter, and are weirdly quiet about the former.
> Rent control in SF has had perverse consequences for tenants. Don't go in for rent control.
and your conclusion is
> Maybe we should go in for rent control.
I'm not sure what else to say.
You shouldn't be worried about rent control failing to function as a price ceiling-- you should be worried about it functioning exactly as a price ceiling.