KQED's Forum

With fires raging across Northern California and millions in the state without power, we open the phones lines to hear listeners' experiences and take their questions.

Governor Gavin Newsom declared a state of emergency in Sonoma County Friday, after the Kincade fire burned nearly 22,000 acres and remained just 5 percent contained. Meanwhile, counties around the Bay Area advised residents that PG&E may cut power to hundreds of thousands of customers in response to severe winds forecast for the weekend. We'll discuss the latest developments and join the Cal Fire press conference live.

As the Kincade Fire continues its path across northeast Sonoma County forcing thousands of residents to flee and burning nearly 22,000 acres, PG&E revealed yesterday that it had a transmission line failure near the fire's origin. PG&E is planning for more widespread shutoffs of 17 counties over the weekend as forecasts are calling for more heat and high winds. We get an update on PG&E's plans for the weather forecast over the weekend.

Cristela Alonzo's stand-up comedy often draws from her life as a first-generation Mexican-American woman. And in her new memoir "Music to My Years: A Mixtape Memoir of Growing Up and Standing Up," Alonzo provides an eclectic playlist for each chapter of her life as she becomes a comedian, actor, writer and immigrant rights activist. Alonzo joins Forum to talk about breaking boundaries in comedy and to play some of the songs from the mixtape of her life. We want to hear from you: what would be on your life's playlist?

Twenty years ago, Edward Norton learned the first rule of Fight Club in the cult-classic film. Next month, his film "Motherless Brooklyn" opens — which Norton wrote, directed and stars in. The film, based on the novel by Jonathan Lethem, tells the story of a private detective with Tourette's Syndrome in 1950s New York who attempts to solve his mentor's murder and becomes entangled in the rapacious dealings of City Hall. We'll talk with Norton about the film and his layered portrayals of intellectually complex and marginalized characters.

Goodbye Oracle Arena, hello Chase Center. In addition to a new home in San Francisco, the Golden State Warriors open their season Thursday with a transformed roster -- one without Kevin Durant and Andre Iguodala, pillars of their historic playoff run. Star Klay Thompson will also be sidelined indefinitely with a torn ACL. We'll preview the season with the San Francisco Chronicle's Ann Killion.

In the youth-obsessed 1920s, women over the age of 19 were considered past their prime -- but in colonial days when there was a shortage of women, even 50-year-old widows were sought after. In her new book, "No Stopping Us Now," New York Times columnist Gail Collins traces the pendulum-swinging history of attitudes toward older women. Forum talks with Collins about why views of older women haven't seen steady progress in history, but also how older women have been teaching themselves "to get old in the best way possible.”

On Wednesday, a group of House Republicans stormed a closed-door impeachment hearing, delaying testimony from a Pentagon official overseeing Ukraine policy. This demonstration comes on the heels of Tuesday’s explosive testimony from William Taylor, former U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, who recounted "irregular, informal" channels used by the Trump White House to conduct foreign policy. On Twitter, Trump continues to lash out at the investigation which he has compared to a "lynching."

San Francisco voters head to the polls in less than two weeks to weigh in on local initiatives addressing affordable housing, a tax on Uber and Lyft rides, and e-cigarettes. They'll also cast votes for mayor and district attorney. We'll review the ballot and we want to hear from you: how will you vote and why?

President Sebastián Piñera is continuing Chile's state of emergency, first declared last week when a subway fare increase set off ongoing protests in Santiago over economic inequality and political corruption. At least 15 people have died from the unrest, and clashes continue between demonstrators and the country's armed forces. Forum will update the latest news in Chile and discuss the nation's largest political crisis since its 1990 return to democracy.