The San Francisco Experience

By Jim HerlihyNews News Commentary

The San Francisco Experience episodes

November 26, 2020 Alt Tech meets the Free Speech Network: Social Media turns right.
Twitter, Facebook and the other big social media companies moved toward a curated speech, censorship model during the 2020 campaign. As a result an Alt Tech social media ecosystem has grown up emphasizing the importance of Free Speech in social media. There are now a host of social media companies like Parler that are Free Speech oriented. While they are far smaller than the established players it remains to be seen if they can scale up and compete.
25 min
November 22, 2020 JFK Conspiracies: Fact, Fiction or Fantasy ?
November 22, 2020 marks 57 years since the assassination of the 35th President, John F. Kennedy. Yet key documents remain hidden from the public including 300 pages of files on George Joannides, a CIA operative who managed the Cuban student group DRE that Oswald tried to join. And most historians and scholars are reluctant to write the history as so many of the facts of the assassination are as murky as they were over 50 years ago. The passage of time has not cleared up the morass of the Kennedy assassination. The Warren Commission in 1964 ruled that Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone. But the House Select Committee on Assassinations in 1978 held that the President probably died as the result of a conspiracy. Where do we stand and will we ever learn the truth ?
36 min
November 17, 2020 President Kamala: Debunking a Myth
A popular conspiracy theory in right wing circles is that Vice President elect Kamala Harris will soon take over from an incapacitated President elect Joe Biden. When you repeat such a theory you are giving it oxygen some argue, even if your intent is to dismantle and reject it. In today's podcast I will explain how this myth has materialized, its roots in American History and why it is never likely to come to pass.
24 min
November 10, 2020 Covid 19 Vaccine: The Cure at last ?
Pfizer and its' German partner Biontech, announced on Monday November 9, 2020 that their vaccine has a 90% effectiveness rate in preventing Covid 19. This announcement is the first ray of hope that the Covid 19 pandemic which began in China and has swept the globe in 2020 can be stopped, vanquished and extinguished. Public euphoria was best summed up in the stock market as the Dow Jones surged 1300 points on the news reaching new highs. Pfizer will seek emergency use approval from America"s FDA next week. To paraphrase Sir Winston Churchill: "It is the end of the beginning ," of the Covid 19 pandemic.
20 min
November 07, 2020 Trump’s new conspiracy theory.
President Trump, in his 16 minute electoral fraud diatribe from the White House Briefing Room, Thursday November 5 has launched a Conspiracy Theory of a stolen election, before the American people and a global audience. His obvious motivation was anger at seeing his early lead in the election returns slip away in favor of Joe Biden. He has let the conspiracy genie out of the bottle publicly giving his 70 million voters a rallying cry, much like Hillary Clinton's supporters slogan " Resist". His successor as President and the American electoral process is damaged as a result. Since there appears to be no evidence of significant electoral fraud to effect the election outcome, he seems to be laying down a grievance marker for his followers to rally around for years to come.
23 min
November 03, 2020 Harry Truman's upset win in 1948
72 years ago today, November 2, 1948, President Harry Truman defied all expectations and won re-election, when the national polls had him down 6.5% versus Governor Tom Dewey. His come from behind win was a shock to the nation. Not only did he confound the pundits, but the Democrats recaptured the Congress with healthy majorities. How did he do it ? Are there lessons to be learned for Donald Trump and Joe Biden in tomorrow's election ?
24 min
November 01, 2020 Gray Wolves: Predator or Victim ?
The gray wolf, one of America's iconic symbols of the Old West, is to lose its' endangered species status. The Trump Administration argues that 45 years of protection has seen its numbers grow six fold to 6000. But conservationists contend that the wolf is not firmly re-established in America. The Pro and Anti wolf lobbies bring a visceral passion to the subject that some have compared to the Abortion campaign. Will the opponents succeed in overturning this delisting action ?
19 min
October 28, 2020 Violence Post Election: Burn Baby Burn
2020 has been marked by extreme political polarization in the United States, and civilian unrest in most American cities. 56% of Americans polled expect political violence to follow the November 3rd presidential election regardless of who wins. While we have seen political violence in our past - 4 Presidents were assassinated and 18 out of the 45 Presidents were threatened with assassination - our elections and their results have been peaceful. Until 2020.
23 min
October 23, 2020 Gun Sales Sky Rocket as Election Approaches.
Gun sales in June surged to 3.9 million weapons, an 80% increase over the same month last year. More than 20 million new firearms have been purchased in 2020, fueled by national apprehension over the pandemic, unemployment, economic uncertainty, racial tension and political uncertainty. With more than 400 million weapons already in circulation in this country, there are enough firearms for every man, woman and child and then some. Are people fearful of losing police protection and turning to self protection ? And what about the criminal element which largely operates its gun operations outside of the law ? And why do states with the strictest gun laws like California, New York and Illinois have the most gun crime and biggest prison populations ?
23 min
October 19, 2020 Kanye West High School: San Francisco eyes re-naming its' schools.
San Francisco is looking to re-name 44 of its' 114 schools. The move was prompted by a review of existing names for slavery links, genocide perpetrators, colonialists, white supremacists etc. 9 US Presidents' names would be stripped from our schools including, Washington, Lincoln and Roosevelt. Even Senator Dianne Feinstein would lose her place of honor and our Spanish Colonial historic roots expunged. But San Francisco's schools are still closed to in person learning and many, even in woke San Francisco, feel this is a bridge too far. Has the cancel culture run in to a brick wall in the City by the Bay ?
21 min

About The San Francisco Experience

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We are a "deep dive" news podcast, for Americans who get their news from the Internet. Our mission is to give the listener succinct, fact based analysis both non-ideological and independent from a California, Silicon Valley perspective.