December 2023 - Beyond Chron

San Francisco’s Activist and Political Heroes in 2023

Posted December 9, 2023 by Randy Shaw

Honoring Those Taking on Big Challenges 2023 was a tough year for San Francisco. But every year has its political and activist heroes. Here are those I saw as particularly impactful on the city. Activist Heroes JJ Smith, Tom Wolf Read More »

San Francisco Schools 2023: A Lost Year

Posted December 9, 2023 by Laurance Lem Lee

“I really don’t want to spend my time as a [Board of Education] Commissioner, now at 10:30 [pm] on the first item pretty much, if we don’t have solid timelines and deliverables of how we’re implementing and delivering. We’ve spent Read More »

The Holiday Season: From Baghdad By The Bay To Valley Of The Sun

Posted December 9, 2023 by Sebastian

Season Greetings from Scottsdale, AZ. No single police officer is guarding the Townsquare, Apple, Gucci, and Louis Vuitton stores like in San Francisco’s Union Square. I invited 20 fellows San Franciscans who are snowbirds and who have migrated to AZ Read More »

San Francisco 2023: The Year in Review

Posted December 4, 2023 by Randy Shaw

A Tough Year for The City Two words capture San Francisco’s mood in 2023: diminished expectations. Hopes faltered that 2023 would mark a return to pre-COVID San Francisco. Businesses closed, downtown and Mid-Market office buildings stayed vacant, and open-air drug Read More »

Photo shows Mayor Sheng Thao, DA Pamela Price, A's fans pushing for sale

Oakland 2023: The Year in Review

Posted December 4, 2023 by Randy Shaw

A Great City in Crisis Let’s not beat around the bush: 2023 has been a nightmare for Oakland, California. Public safety concerns are off the chart. Car and restaurant break-ins are routine. Babies have been shot while being driven down Read More »

Op-Ed: Will It Take A Conservative To Fix SF?

Posted December 4, 2023 by Sebastian

After being wined and dined during APEC, “fancy foreign leaders” jetted off out of San Francisco. And in the town where people always look down (looking out for needles and feces), life is back to normal again. Homeless encampments, drug Read More »

Reviews From Another Hole In The Head Film Festival 20

Posted December 4, 2023 by Peter Wong

What do you call the cinematic collision of Jean Cocteau’s “Orpheus,” Todd Haynes’ “I’m Not There,” and a low-budget adaptation of a Robert E. Howard sword and sorcery tale? In more than a few hands, the results would be an Read More »