Both sides claim victory in the federal class action lawsuit involving the arrests of hundreds of demonstrators during the WTO protests in Seattle seven years ago. Who do YOU think won?
7 Comments
JW said:
Unfortunately, this is a no-win for everybody involved. I sympathize with both sides. Keep in mind that the SPD is trying to protect a growing and complicated city while staffed at disasterously low numbers-- the number of Seattle officers hasn't changed since the 1970's, and many have been pulled off the streets to desk jobs analyzing new concerns such as national security. Seattle citizens should be concerned about our lack of protection! Large protests work best when the crowd management strategies are supported by healthy numbers of officers, and those in charge can make safe decisions for all concerned. Before that protest it was determined that there were out-of-state gangs coming here not to protest WTO but to take the opportunity to inflict incredible violence in Seattle, with plans to undermine the efforts of our citizens and police. What we don't hear is how some of these violent groups were stopped and potential disaster was averted. Yes, there were mistakes made on both sides; passionate feelings can lead to passionate behavior and incredible tension. I'm hoping the lawsuits & finger-pointing resolves soon so we can direct our energy more productively to focus on how to avoid problems in the future.
jean Welch said:
Yes,We sure wouldn't want to take thier rights from them to break windows and loot stores. Also I guess it was alright to set fires in the streets. This was a peaceful demonstration. You got to be kidding.
JW said:
I find it ironic that violent anarchists are seeking the protection of the court. Protests don't cause social change any more than a bumper sticker will free Tibet. They amount to a group self-gratification at the expense of others, without effecting the change they seek.
Meno said:
The only ones who won are the lawyers. When innocent store owners are looted and vandelized by out of state groups and others for the sole purpose to create turnoil and NOT for change. The store owners rights were denied.
johanna huft said:
One of my most beloved quotes is "I MAY NOT AGREE WITH WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY,BUT WILL DEFEND WITH MY LIFE YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT." but in this case if my store was being looted i would have stood on the roof picking off anyone who came within two feet of it....Because defending my right to stay in buisness is just as worthy.
roger said:
Nobody won - Seattle lost big time! The luddite WTO protestors made our city look like it's run by a bunch of uncontrolled adolescent jerks.
es said:
i spent a week at the WTO demonstrations. out of the tens of thousands of people who attended there were a small % who broke windows and set dumpsters on fire. unfortunatly this is what the public remembers and not why we were there
like trying to stop our factories from being shut down and our good paying jobs going over seas to sweat shops and child labor issues and things like everyones right to know if they are eating genetically engineered foods.
finally i gave up on talking about such things and figured the vandals got a thrill from breaking some windows and the rest refuse to see anything but the negative. you get what you deserve.
Unfortunately, this is a no-win for everybody involved. I sympathize with both sides. Keep in mind that the SPD is trying to protect a growing and complicated city while staffed at disasterously low numbers-- the number of Seattle officers hasn't changed since the 1970's, and many have been pulled off the streets to desk jobs analyzing new concerns such as national security. Seattle citizens should be concerned about our lack of protection! Large protests work best when the crowd management strategies are supported by healthy numbers of officers, and those in charge can make safe decisions for all concerned. Before that protest it was determined that there were out-of-state gangs coming here not to protest WTO but to take the opportunity to inflict incredible violence in Seattle, with plans to undermine the efforts of our citizens and police. What we don't hear is how some of these violent groups were stopped and potential disaster was averted. Yes, there were mistakes made on both sides; passionate feelings can lead to passionate behavior and incredible tension. I'm hoping the lawsuits & finger-pointing resolves soon so we can direct our energy more productively to focus on how to avoid problems in the future.
Yes,We sure wouldn't want to take thier rights from them to break windows and loot stores. Also I guess it was alright to set fires in the streets. This was a peaceful demonstration. You got to be kidding.
I find it ironic that violent anarchists are seeking the protection of the court. Protests don't cause social change any more than a bumper sticker will free Tibet. They amount to a group self-gratification at the expense of others, without effecting the change they seek.
The only ones who won are the lawyers. When innocent store owners are looted and vandelized by out of state groups and others for the sole purpose to create turnoil and NOT for change. The store owners rights were denied.
One of my most beloved quotes is "I MAY NOT AGREE WITH WHAT YOU HAVE TO SAY,BUT WILL DEFEND WITH MY LIFE YOUR RIGHT TO SAY IT." but in this case if my store was being looted i would have stood on the roof picking off anyone who came within two feet of it....Because defending my right to stay in buisness is just as worthy.
Nobody won - Seattle lost big time! The luddite WTO protestors made our city look like it's run by a bunch of uncontrolled adolescent jerks.
i spent a week at the WTO demonstrations. out of the tens of thousands of people who attended there were a small % who broke windows and set dumpsters on fire. unfortunatly this is what the public remembers and not why we were there
like trying to stop our factories from being shut down and our good paying jobs going over seas to sweat shops and child labor issues and things like everyones right to know if they are eating genetically engineered foods.
finally i gave up on talking about such things and figured the vandals got a thrill from breaking some windows and the rest refuse to see anything but the negative. you get what you deserve.