Posted on 05/06/2012 1:34:50 PM PDT by DogByte6RER
Jim Jones’ sinister grip on San Francisco
How the Peoples Temple cult leader ensnared Harvey Milk and other progressive icons
“Season of the Witch,” the new book by Salon founder David Talbot, tells the story of the wild and bloody birth of “San Francisco values.” The following excerpt – Part 1 in a three-part series -- recounts one of the darker dramas before the ultimate triumph of those values.
Jim Jones, the strange and charismatic leader of Peoples Temple, proved a master at politically wiring San Francisco in the mid-1970s. The driven preacher had begun his climb up the political pyramid by planting roots in the Fillmore district, the city’s devastated black neighborhood. Jones moved into the Fillmore at its most vulnerable moment. Urban renewal czar Justin Herman – the Robert Moses of San Francisco — had “literally destroyed the neighborhood,” observed community activist Hannibal Williams, “[and] people were desperate for solutions, something to follow. Jim Jones was another solution. He had a charismatic personality that won the hearts and souls of people. And people followed him to hell. That’s where Jim Jones went. That’s where he took the people who followed him.”
Jones’s flock, ignored and scorned by society, was electrified by the preacher’s vision of a new Eden. Everybody was exalted in his services, even the lowliest recovering drunks and addicts. “He made us feel special, like something bigger than ourselves,” said one temple member. “Total equality, no rich or poor, no races,” said another. “We were alive in those services,” testified one more. “They had life, soul power.”
Jones — an oddball and renegade his entire life, someone who never felt at home in his own skin —
(Excerpt) Read more at salon.com ...
Vote fraud is a San Fran value?
““We loaded up all 13 of our buses with maybe 70 people on each bus, and we had those buses rolling nonstop up and down the coast into San Francisco the day before the election,” recalled Jim Jones Jr. “We had people going from precinct to precinct to vote. So could we have been the force that tipped the election to Moscone? Absolutely! Slam dunk. He only won by 4,000 votes. I’m sorry, but I’ve got to give my father credit for that. I think he did the right thing. George Moscone was a good person; he wanted what was best for San Francisco.””
I think he's still dreamy!!!
He’s still good-looking! He looks pretty good for a man in his 60’s.
He’s underused as well.
He’s underused as well.
He starts off as being a sincere individual (Or at least he pretended to be sincere) and turned into a raving lunatic.
He pulled that transition off really well.
I wonder if Jones actually cared about those people at first. He was an outsider for most of his life and seemingly wanted to help other “outsiders”,like drug addicts and prostitutes.
It really is scary how he pulled people in with his charm and charisma. I just don’t understand why a woman would want to be with him,though.*shudder*. He was far too creepy.
It’s the voice...
Jim Jones was an oddball? Ya think?
I know he sold monkeys door-to-door.I think they were capuchin monkeys.
I had no idea Jane Fonda supported Jones. He was a Commie and so is she so it really should not come as a surprise.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.