The problem is that these Peoples Temple individuals went around dressed nicely and aggressively campaigning. They were kooks, but LOOKED like nice, normal people. Jones had "street cred" for helping the poor and supporting integration. They just looked like liberals, but were covering up something far more dark and sinister, but was not exactly totally hidden. The real evil didn't start until Jones led them all down to Guyana so he could build their perfect Communist utopia. Even the SF liberals were growing concerned by then. Politicians were being inundated with reports from families that their loved ones were down in South America and could not contact them. That's when Congressman Leo Ryan went down with his staffers, relatives of the Jonestown people, and some media. He had no inordinate reason to worry about personal safety, since after all, most of them had all known the same politicians, been involved with the same liberal causes (Jones had supported Jimmy Carter, for instance). They thought of him as a charismatic preacher for social justice..., however Ryan had specialized in concern over cults, which was a MASSIVE problem in the '70s. Remember the scene in "Airplane !" with all the religious kook solicitors in the airport ? That's exactly what it was like, I remember that as a little kid frequently going through airports.
After reading some accounts, Ryan really was bold in going down there. Carter and the State Department didn't want him to, they claimed it would cause a problem with the Guyana government. Worse than that, the State Dept. was telling Ryan "there's nothing wrong" down there. Ryan knew that was a load of crap, since he had concerns from people that had left the temple (I wonder why Carter and his people were so anxious to keep the secret -- I'm thinking perhaps given it was right up against the midterms, if it became national knowledge Jones had supported Carter, a psychotic, that might harm the Dems. Of course, Carter has long since established himself as the friend of those that committed horrendous evils. He probably would've had lunch with Hitler if he could've, and they both could've discussed how Jews were ruining the world). Freshman Congressman Dan Quayle, who was apparently on friendly terms with Ryan, almost went down there with them, but was unable to do so.
When Ryan got to Guyana, it took him a few days to make arrangements to finally get to the camp. The government and Jones's people were giving him the run-around (I'll add that at the time, Guyana was being run by a Black Marxist government led by Forbes Burnham). But he made his intentions clear, anyone being held against their will, he was going to free them and bring them home. The last two days were the proverbial fiasco. Got to the camp, everyone there was putting on a happy, friendly face, but they started having people tell them and the media crew they wanted to escape. The scene slowly turned chaotic. Jones, who was now completely insane and drunk with power supposedly ordered one of his followers to pretend to be someone who wanted to leave and go with Ryan's party. This was deliberate. Jones had no intention of letting them get away. This place was like Apocalypse Now Summer Camp.
At one point in the camp, Ryan was almost knifed, at which time, the State Dept. official at the embassy told him to leave because they feared for his safety. Ryan didn't want to go until he got as many people out as he could, but he had to follow instructions (as he was on government business), and was planning on coming back. He never did. They got to the airstrip and later boarded the planes. Jones's "plant" shot the people inside the plane, and another group of ambushers came out and started trying to kill the rest, wounding almost everyone else (including Jackie Speier, the new Congresswoman from CA now occupying Ryan's seat). Ryan was specifically targeted and pumped full of bullets, and even after he was probably dead, they continued to shoot him in the face. Someone, probably another one of Jones's flunkies, phoned SF to tell the wife of Ryan's aide that they'd had "taken care of him." Within 24 hours, Jones ordered the mass suicides (mass-murder), and the Guyana military discovered the grisly scene a day afterwards.
One has to imagine the chaotic situation in San Francisco that in the course of 10 days, a prominent area Congressman was brutally assassinated, almost 1,000 people dead, mostly SF residents in Guyana, and now the Mayor and high-profile Supervisor were also assassinated. BTW, I read that psycho flunkie of Jones's was convicted of conspiracy to assassinate Ryan, he was released from prison back in 2002.
"What was it about San Fran that caused the kook migration? They’ve destroyed an historic city."
I don't know. It's the problem that has befallen a lot of urban areas. I mean, a lot of the West Coast cities were Republican for a long time. Los Angeles, SF, Seattle, Portland. SF had problems with Communist Union agitators in the early part of the 20th century, but they weren't able to make much headway with toppling city government. SF had lots of families with children and normal people, a safe and stable place. How gays started to come in was because during WW2 and afterwards, when gays would be discharged from the Navy, they'd be mustered out in SF. Urban areas were more conducive to gays, since they could be around others like themselves and not have to be alone elsewhere, which makes sense. But they didn't start to have much of a political effect until the '70s. With the college radicals, Civil Rights movement, and the Hippies all coming in to form a critical mass in the mid '60s and onwards, that's where it went downhill. Couple that with urban outmigration, SF's population had fallen from a peak in the 1950s, families were leaving, the city was becoming polarized between what family neighborhoods left, the ethnic neighborhoods and the newcomers. By the 1980s, most of the folks that made up the stable and non-radical areas had left or were in the decided minority. Telling was looking at the voting numbers over that period. They went from voting Republican for President at slightly over 50% in the '50s, got to around over 40% in '72 and '76, 31-32% in '80 & '84, down to 18% by '92. McCain hit the lowest figure ever, down to 13.6%. In raw numbers alone, Ike got just under 200,000 votes in 1952. McCain got 40,000 in 2008. That was down from 54,000 that Dubya got in '04, and here McCain was supposed to be more "moderate" and more appealing. So much for that.
"And that moonbat Newsom, to the right of the green he beat. I would have to had voted for him if I lived there. Eww."
When it's a contest like that, I'd have voted for the moonbat just to watch the fun. Of course, I'd have to be f'ing insane to live in SF these days. It's amazing some of my family still actually lives there, two of my cousins, the one who just got married. She's pushing 40, so I don't know if she's going to have kids or not. But that's no place to raise children. Of course, my half-sister has raised hers in Berkeley, and nobody raises kids there.
"That could be the future of liberal RINOs versus total whackjobs if we aren’t lucky."
There aren't even any RINOs left in SF. Not enough votes to elect them. Some of those in the '70s and '80s that still were that had to maintain their viability in elective office, like Milton Marks, who gave Phil Burton a scare in '82 for Congress, had to become a Democrat.
"I didn’t know Milk sassed him either, I figure he was gonna get shot anyway at that point. What was there to talk about?"
Well, Milk didn't know White had just killed the Mayor. I'm figuring he wouldn't have grinned and taunted him about his failure to get reappointed. Figured he was just sticking it to an opponent in a way we'd do with a Dem if we just got him to resign. We wouldn't necessarily think they had intention to kill us. But, again, Milk wasn't killed because he was gay, he was killed because White blamed him for stopping his reappointment.
"The far left hates DiFi still. DUmmies."
I don't know why, since her voting record is so close to their desires. Of course, even when Lieberman scored a goose egg from the ACU, that wasn't good enough for 'em.
"Yes, you can always find someplace else for that mini-mall you don’t need to destroy a piece of history."
In this case, they destroyed it for a high rise. And high-rise construction in the '60s and '70s is rather notorious for their ghastly ugliness, with little exception (the Transamerica Pyramid being an exception, though a lot of folks opposed its construction. It's now a city icon).
Oscars are now judged in three catagories.
Gay
Retard
Period Piece
Wow Speier was shot 5 times. I knew she was an aide to Ryan but not that she was there.
Well, Milk didn't know White had just killed the Mayor. I'm figuring he wouldn't have grinned and taunted him about his failure to get reappointed.
But with him already have killing the mayor and ending his chances for reappointment why even confront Milk unless he was gonna kill him regardless? Although I guess Milk could have pleaded and saved himself. White snapped as opposed to being a monster.
Remember the scene in "Airplane !" with all the religious kook solicitors in the airport ? That's exactly what it was like
Glad I've never seen such airport freaks in my time. Maybe there were still present during my visits to Hawaii and Alaska (and a Cali airport) as one too young to remember in the mid-eighties?
When it's a contest like that, I'd have voted for the moonbat just to watch the fun. Of course, I'd have to be f'ing insane to live in SF
If I was trapped there for some reason I'd probably go least crazy. Hahn over Villar in LA in 2001 as well. But say I was in Arkansas, I'd vote the Green in over Pryor for Senate.
Of course, my half-sister has raised hers in Berkeley, and nobody raises kids there.
Last season the OC it was revelated the Cohens used to live there and they moved back cause the conservative mom thought the OC with it's awful vapid housewives was no place to raise her new baby. Ridiculous. Stupid liberal writers.
I don't know why, since her voting record is so close to their desires. Of course, even when Lieberman scored a goose egg from the ACU, that wasn't good enough for 'em.
They probably say the same thing about us and Lindsey LoGraham given his good ratings. She wasn't anti-war enough early enough or something and was in the "evil" DLC. No room for dissent on that, not even for solid leftists like her and Joe.
How gays started to come in was because during WW2 and afterwards, when gays would be discharged from the Navy, they'd be mustered out in SF.
Oh beautiful thanks Uncle Sam.
Urban areas were more conducive to gays, since they could be around others like themselves and not have to be alone elsewhere, which makes sense
Of course, much wider boyfriend pool.
I read that psycho flunkie of Jones's was convicted of conspiracy to assassinate Ryan, he was released from prison back in 2002.
I'd have let him get "lost" in the system. Like in a mental ward or gitmo.
Where is the "far-right" equivalent of this? Media? 'sides maybe the Klan the 50's and 60's if want to call them "rightwing" which I don't, didn't exist. There is no rightist analogue to the leftist radicals today. Which really illustrates the foolhardy nature of fauxcon rats and conservative voters voting for the same party that accepts such members.