mission accomplished, I'm sure the bombs will stop tonight. Hamas got the FAAFO treatment, maybe rape, kidnap and kill to begin with?

"don't"

I am a nurse at a health care facility on Madison, several blocks from I-5. Working back-to-back 12-hour shifts, it important for health care providers to get home and to bed ASAP in order to get up at 4 am the next morning and continue to care for sick patients. But the night shift nurses were hours late because they were commuting from the south end. And they work back-to-back shifts as well.

Keeping nurses stuck in traffic, short on sleep, and unable to care for sick patients does nothing to help anyone in Gaza. It only harms people--sick people and health care workers and thousands of other workers with families--here in Seattle.

If you are a post-adolescent loser who still has mommy and daddy issues which make you want to lash out at authority figures, there is no need to use Israel or working citizens of Seattle as proxies for the unjust authority of mom and dad mmmaaaaannnn. Get a life, losers.

@3 you speak truth. Crickets from Hannah.

Antisemitism run amok (I especially like the targeting of Starbucks which has nothing to do with the conflict).

If these folks want to stop the war machine, why not block the Boeing sites that produce weapons (they’re just down I-5)? But I forget, this is merely performance art - keep trashing business on the hill and blocking traffic in Seattle (that will stick it to the man).

What privilege.

Israel sucks but this is nothing but performative bullshit from privileged white folks with literally nothing better to do on a Saturday.

end the Genocide
end the War Crimes
Free Palestine & Free Israel

and send
BiBi Packing.

Who knows?

perhaps he
& El trumpfster
might become Cell
as well as Soul Mates

oh & Fight Fascism
Wherever you
Find it.

speaking of Protesting
nyt:

American Unions
Long Backed Israel.
Now, Some Are Protesting It.

The shift reflects a broader generational change, and has exposed philosophical rifts in the labor movement about what the purpose of a union ought to be.

Now, many activists are eager to see their unions seize on the momentum of this period by taking bold stances on progressive issues, which they see as part of a history of American labor’s involvement in national and international politics. (Labor unions helped organize the 1963 March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom, which tied demands for fair wages and civil rights.)

“This is being generated by social-movement young people, Gen Zs, millennials,” said Seth Goldstein, a labor lawyer who has worked with the Amazon Labor Union. “ I don’t think they’re anti-Israel, necessarily. But what they’ve seen in Israel is the Netanyahu government.”

by Emma Goldberg and Santul Nerkar
Jan. 7, 2024

tonnes More:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/07/business/american-unions-long-backed-israel-now-some-are-protesting-it.html

“But what they’ve
seen in Israel is the
Netanyahu government.”

BINGO:
End Fascism NOW.

Tired old baby boomer protest tactics don't win hearts and minds.

These "protesters" are just self-important bores. Why did the cops let them keep the interstate closed for five hours? They should have all been hauled off and arrested. If you aren't willing to be arrested for your cause, it's not really your cause.

Figure out a new tactic, kids. Stop letting the old people drone on about the 60's.

The cops should have arrested them immediately.

I’m positive that not a single person was persuaded to support ending the invasion. Quite the opposite, in fact.

As someone who wants the conflict to end, and is extremely critical of the right wing Israeli government and the Hamas terrorists, these protest tactics are stupid and counterproductive.

@10, Yes let's end the genocide. Let's end groups calling for elimination of everyone but Hamas between the river and the sea.

Let's call this what it is, a call for an end to the right of self-defense for Israel and other nations that are attacked.

Imagine 40,000 people are killed in America by a surprise attack (how many Americans would be killed in an attack proportionately the size of the one on Israel). Now let's imagine that the attackers surround themselves with civilian houses, infrastructure, and people. So because of that America takes the pressure off those sheltering behind civilians. It's people just have to wait for the attackers to regroup, rearm, and reorganize to perpetrate the next surprise killing of 40,000 more Americans (or more, because next time our attackers acquire and use WMD).

We don't have to imagine it.

Kristo is calling for that proportionate level of killing of Israelies, at the time and choosing of Hamas. He is calling for a second Holocaust.

@12, No, they are calling for Israel to unilaterally sit and wait for the second Holocaust, just like Kristo.

so: general tS commentariat consensus?

'these protest tactics are stupid and counterproductive.'

23,000 Dead Gazans later
70% of their Homes GONE
rampant Disease & Starvation
virtually Zero to NO Medical Care

ok.

so: how DO we
(the World)
END This?

ah.
There
you Are
Wormtongue:

"Kristo is calling for that proportionate level of killing of Israelies, at the time and choosing of Hamas."

Ceasefire
does NOT Equal
the Genocide of Israel

Fuck You oh and
BiBi Nutnayahoo too.

@16, With a ceasefire, Hamas will rearm, reorganize, and re-attack. How do we know this? They have said so? How do we know they mean it, and its not just empty rhetoric, because their actions on 10/7, and since 10/7 have been consistent with that. There actions during the brief ceasefire since 10/7 were consistent with that.

So it equals what you say it doesn't and you know it does. Yet you call for that anyway. So you are supporting Hamas developing more capacity toward their genocidal aims.

@18, If you weren't supporting Hamas you would be calling not just for a ceasefire, but for the U.N. to create a force to do to Hamas, what the U.N., and a coalition of the willing did to Iraq in 1991.

But you aren't calling for anything that will destroy Hamas and prevent them from re-arming, re-organizing, and re-attacking, at their time full ability to choose when they will break the ceasefire. You are calling for a only for a ceasefire that will preserve Hamas's agency, while eliminating Israel's.

I'll take you seriously when you are calling for a U.N. resolution to disarm and destroy Hamas, and the formation of a U.N. force with the military means to do so.

sorry, Cap'n
you Lost me at

"If
you
weren't
supporting
Hamas you would be... "

again,
with the putting
of words and\or Demands

End the
Fucking
Genocide.

THAT's
my demand.
fuck you

ok.

you're
tentsies'
afuckingi

why didn't ya
just Say so?

The failure here isn’t with the protestors. As has been noted many times these “protestors” are the same group of trotskyites that show up to any protest. I would bet a good many of them can’t even tell you which river and which sea as they mumble the words. They only care about disruption and anti capitalism which is why Starbucks inevitably is vandalized every single time. The real issue is with the tepid response by state. Blocking an interstate highway or an airport as they have done in the past is both dangerous and harmful to the community. It goes beyond “disrupting the status quo” to borderline terrorism. As Catalina noted they should have been arrested as soon as they stepped foot on the highway, processed and released. I think a $1000 fine or 50 hours of community service cleaning up graffiti would be perfect. As for the dipshits who left their cars to get impounded I hope they enjoy those fees as well. Until there is some consequences for these marches they are going to continue.

we
need
a way to
shut it down

only a General
Strike'd do it
it appears or
maybe nuk-
ular War

brought to us
by war mongers
& their psycophants

armageddon
or bust?

By the way, at least 8,000 of the 22,000 (Hamas-reported) dead have been Hamas militants. The rest have been non-combatants amongst whom Hamas militants are sheltering themselves, in blatant violation of the laws of warfare.

I'm sure I must have missed the part where those protesters, in addition to calling for a cease-fire, also called upon Hamas to release every last hostage; to surrender any surviving militants who are suspected of crimes against humanity in the October 7 attacks; and to cease using civilians as shields in contravention of established international law. The protesters do want all that to happen to, right?

*too

Were
YOU
one of the protesters
on the I-5 freeway
yesterday
@kirstofarian?

26 had I been
dewey would
you have just
Loved to spit
upon me? ;~)

or - just claim
since I wasn't
There I'm no
True Believer

we Support
where we
can.

Let's put all those unused snow plows to good use!

Yes, D13Refugee, these "protesters" are hostage-takers who need to be arrested immediately. Like #6, I am horrified that an ambulance was taken hostage, and apoplectic at the response of the hostage-taker (claiming to be an) EMT:

'An EMT among the protesters didn’t seem worried. “There are other ambulances,” they said.'

If you are a cardiac patient taken hostage, all the other ambulances in the world can do nothing to swoop in and deliver you to the ER. It's amazing the half-assed rationalizations that entitled pricks will use to excuse their anti-social behavior. A weekend in jail just might be the reality check the doctor ordered.

False imprisonment is a crime. But for five hours law enforcement enabled the adolescent temper tantrum by shutting down the freeway and letting the criminals go scot-free. Why isn't the law being enforced?!

Wait - there’s a genocide happening?

I had No Idea until these protests raised my awareness! Thanks!!!

Meanwhile, I used to be opposed to cops tear-gassing peaceful protesters, but I’m starting to change my mind…. And I wasn’t even stuck in that traffic.

You’re doing a heck of a job, Brownie

@27: Aww, I would have had hot chocolate droned in -- but only for you.

kristofarian dear, I think a first step is to educate people on the history of the region and the people, and all of the paradoxes and complexities it encompasses. The things most Americans know about the middle east is cobbled together from bible stories and our various wars in the region. They know that Israel is generally our ally in the region, and they're always fighting with the Palestinians. That's it.

Enter the Activists, who do nothing but scold and disrupt. This was no way to protest a truly horrific situation that exists in Gaza. This is just political masturbation for unserious people like Our Dear Hannah, and it serves no legitimate purpose. Indeed, it just aggravates the people they are affecting with actions like this. It very much reminds me of the protests surrounding Mumia Abu-Jamal, which never explained the activist's side of the story, and made no sense to the uninformed.

I personally hear interviews on all sides of the conflict, and my bullshit meter goes off the charts. There are no clean hands in this conflict, only innocent people who are dying, mostly on the Palestinian side. That's what needs to end, and end soon. All the hysterics on the political side can be sorted out later. But support for a cease fire will not be won by this juvenile "protest".

I’ve got an earnest question as someone who’s only read the Stranger for a few years: is this story and others by the author consistent with the editorial tone that’s always existed? I was really excited when I found a lefty source for local news that was producing some deeply reported stories and giving a lot of historical context. But the fact that the lead reporter is so squarely in the “everything sucks/burn it down/agree with me or you’re a corporate shill” hole makes a lot of the stories just unreadable. Like, I can’t imagine that even a fraction of the readers (to say nothing of Seattleites in general…) have an opinion even in the ballpark of this piece’s celebration of the heroes of the revolution? So my question is, is this how it’s always been and I’m just too much of an establishment shill to read the Stranger, or is this author a deviation?

'just a stupid
"focus group"!'

--@gee dubya bush
on the eve of his little War
on the Afghaniis when facing the
LARGEST PROTESTS IN EARTH'S HISTORY

we Invaded Anyways
them silly Protesters
(Planet-Wide!) be
Damned.

that it didn't work
then Doesn't mean
it cannot Work Now

or is the Planet's
slide into Global Facism
utterly Unavoidable? will it come
to Nukular War before this land grab
of Nutnyahoo's is Finally Finished? with
what 500,000 Dead from plagues starvation
and two thousand pound Bunker Buster Bombs*

*all Stamped with
'Proudly Made in the USA'

& 'Satisfaction Guaranteed
or DOUBLE your Money Back!'

End the
Madness:

"There are no clean hands in this conflict, only innocent people who are dying, mostly on the Palestinian side. That's what needs to end, and end soon."

fucking BINGO
Catalina. and
Thank You.

Don't you hate when you're trying to get to your exit on the freeway and your way is blocked by four lanes of fatuous sanctimony?

bingo
who don't
Love them a
good Genocide

This is
Nutnyahoo
& El trumpfster's
Plan for the fate of
the entire Planet. sorry

I'm not
on Board.

@CBGB, established in the early-90s, the Stranger was a wonderful and cherished alt weekly for a quarter-century. It was lefty without being PC/woke, a regular source of rambunctious fun as well as some good news reporting. Its decline came quickly in 2020 with COVID and the cessation of hard-copy circulation. Facing the overnight evaporation of its restaurant/bar/music venue advertising, it was forced to downsize to a skeleton staff. Unfortunately, it fired the most senior, talented, mature writers and editors. And retained a handful of immature, woke, bomb-throwing, millennial hacks. The remaining good writers and editors fled a sinking ship. It's sad to watch a formerly cherished institution descend into mostly irrelevant online rag status. RIP the Stranger, it was great fun, and frequently informative, while it lasted.

Hey Kristo, did you read about how an Iranian woman who received 74 lashes with a whip for refusing to wear a hajib? Things like that will go into high gear if Hamas, et al, ever take over. But maybe something good will come out of all, maybe Boeing, Microsoft, and Google will leave Seattle, and its vicinity, for good. Throw in Starbucks too while you're at it.

Whatwhereami, thank you for demonstrating so nicely the hysteria I cited in my post.

I agree with you that Hamas is a horrible organization. I also think the Israeli government is playing right into their hands with their heavy-handed response. It reminds me of the USA's behavior after 911. And just like there were Americans who were very much opposed to the war and protested mightily, there are Israelis of good intention who also oppose their government's actions in this case - and Palestinians who don't feel represented by Hamas.

The problem, at the end of the day, is political. They need better politicians. but hasn't that always been the case?

"Also Persians are not Arabs no more than Hamas* is the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.* Both are deeply unpopular with their people and use brutal oppression to keep them under control."

*they're
fucking
Fascists
Garbby

what Else might
one Expect?

@43.....Catalina, there is no such thing as a better politician. In anticipation of being that anyone is better than Trump, understand that politicians harbor their self-interests and will betray anyone if needs must.

I just re-read the article and noticed the signs on the Starbucks (decent people don't use Twitter, Hannah dear).

For years, my religious crackpot sister-in-law wouldn't go to Starbucks because her Pastor told her that it was "leftist" (meaning Jewish. He would have said "woke", but that was before the halfwits discovered it). Then she discovered the app, and points won out over theology. But it just goes to show how someone is always mad about something some company did.

@20, The ceasefire you propose, and you know this, has no mechanism that forcibly will make Hamas not use it to re-arm, re-group, and re-attack. So the ceasefire you propose just has Israel waiting to be attacked again with the same, or greater, loss of life, when Hamas chooses again, as they have every time before, to launch another surprise attack.

If a proportionate attack to the one on 10/7 had been perpetrated on the U.S., the loss of life would be 40,000, adjusting for our larger population size. So you are advocating for is to give Hamas a free hand to make a future surprise attack of that scale or greater, until Hamas achieves their goal of a second Holocaust. Hamas gets better and more lethal with every new attack.

So your position is pro Hamas, since it only stops Israel from attacking, but not Hamas. It's pro-genocide, against one-side, 1,400 at a time if necessary, not anti-genocide. If it were anti-genocide, it would contain an international army to enforce the ceasefire by forcefully disarming Hamas, or at least forcibly separating them from their weapons stores. Your ceasefire is one-sided.

@42, That beats leaving Hamas free to re-arm, re-organize, and re-equip for an even more successful attack next time, until their goal of a second Jewish holocaust is made real.

Hamas has successfully created a strategic environment where Palestinian children lose their lives or Israeli children do. It's a zero-sum game.

"there is no such thing as a better politician."

Bertha dear, shame on you - that's a lazy and disingenuous thing to say, and it flies in the face of four thousand years of human history. It makes you sound like some sort of MAGA nitwit.

Stop sugar coating it as pro-Palestinian.
They were pro-Hamas.

Catalina, I am no MAGA; I think Trump is an idiot and hope he dies of some sort of natural cause soon ( I would not dance on his grave though; not for him or any other), I am also pro-abortion and anti-religionist. Regardless of all that I have yet to find or hear of any politician who will answer straight-up to questions put before them. I regard politicians as more than just elected or appointed government leaders. They are leaders from all walks of society; your bosses at work, union bosses, civil service bureaucrats, judges, the list goes on and on. Surely you must have dealt with people of authority who have spoken out of both sides of their mouths.

@52
Jewish
Justice
for Peace is
"pro-Hamas"?!*

gosh!
and those
Jewish For Justice pro-
testers're anti-Semites as well?

they're also
Anti-Nutnyahoo

does that then
make them
Nazis?

(Orwell
&) Goebbels
gotta be Enjoying
this Genocide\Ethnic
Cleansing cum Ministry
of Propaganda massacre

*on
what
Planet?

Bertha dear, I did not say that you were a MAGA idiot. I merely said that your comment made you sound like a MAGA idiot.

And yes, I have encountered people who speak out of both sides of their mouth. After all, I am an adult who leaves the house from time to time. But I still don't get your point.

the point is
I believe that
the "d"nc removed
Bernie thru Chicanery
& if they Hadn't we'd all
be riding Unicorns in the Desert

& Hamas'd
be lunching
with the Pope

& bibi
some Long
forgotten dis-
tant Memory and
El trumpfy in a Home
somewhere where he could-
n't Hurt anyone . with his kids

“Starbucks became a target of anti-zionist boycott when the company sued its workers’ union for using its logo after the union posted in solidarity with Palestine.”

So, Starbuck’s attempted to prevent misuse of their intellectual property, and this somehow justifies hate-tagging their Roastery with libelous accusations of Starbuck’s harming children?

This explains how blocking an ambulance on I-5 will obviously improve the situation in Gaza, no doubt.

Insolent children.

@34 -- The Stranger actually won a Pulitzer once. The article was about a horrific rape and murder in Seattle told from the perspective of the surviving victim, whose partner was raped and murdered in front of her. It was truly amazing writing about an unimaginable tragedy that was incredibly sympathetic to the victims of a horrendous crime. It talked at length about the prosecution and what the victim went through during the event and the subsequent trial.

Read it. It deserved all the praise it got.

www.thestranger.com/features/2011/06/15/8640991/the-bravest-woman-in-seattle

There is no way an article like that -- one that shows what it is like to be victimized, what it is like to be raped, what it is like to watched your loved one be raped and murdered -- would ever be published in the current version of The Stranger.

good ole Howie Schultz
burnt coffee magnate cum
Unionbuster Extraordinaire

vs

tentsey's "insolent children"
trying to stop a
Genocide

damn.
Tough call.

From
Lebanon
to the Red Sea, a
Broader Conflict With Iran Looms

With its proxies attacking and its nuclear program suddenly revived, Iran is posing a new challenge to the West — this time with Russia and China on its side.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/01/07/us/politics/iran-us-israel-conflict.html

damn those spoilt
petulant Insolent
Children! don't
they Know the
adults've got
this Handled.

@60: If blocking the ambulance had contributed to the death of the passenger, that would have been acceptable “collateral damage,” because of how blocking I-5 just so obviously improved the situation in Gaza?

“Collateral damage” of innocent civilians is perfectly ok if your side does it, right?

Still wondering how Starbuck’s Roastery fits into all of this… no doubt the workers inside enjoyed having an angry, vandalizing mob accuse them of child-killing. Solidarity!

@56.....Catalina, though I should know better than to go head to head with you, I'll tell you what my point is; there is no better politician. They are all liars in varying degrees. Like I wrote before they never really give a straight answer to any question and just about everything is done behind closed doors. Please keep your hostilities toward me to a minimum.

Anyone who thinks the IDF, and the Israeli leadership is going to cesse and desist what they see as self defense from an existential crises, might want to do their own reality check.
Yes, their response is less that rational. Yes, this is what Hamas wanted to (yet again) claim someone other than themselves have not only pegged but bent the meter on inhumane activity.
Yes they are a genocidal group in birth, growth, policy and practice.
Yes, they have been able to misrepresent themselves (Hamas, NOT Palestinians writ large) as victims.
Yes, a lot of younger Americans think that is all that matters.
Glad none of the protesting folk didn't need emergency medicsl assistance. Too bad they'd blame Israel for their self-induced deaths. Much like Hamas has done for decades.

To Hannah and those who blocked the I-5 traffic Saturday afternoon,

Please consider what disrupting "business as usual" might mean to the thousands of folks who were stuck on the highway. Take my best friend who, now struggling with recurrent breast cancer, had a rough week after her last round of chemo. Symptoms were so bad she needed hospital administered IV infusion as her digestive system was simply not working. We tried for a Saturday appointment, but to no avail. We did get her in Sunday afternoon. She is OK tonight.

I could spin a tale and say we were delayed by the protest, but luckily, we were not caught up in the action, but only because we couldn't get her in Saturday. But lets imagine if her appointment had been scheduled at 3 pm Saturday? As her friend trying my best to support her, consider the ethical dilemma I would face as I received my flier explaining the important historical contribution I was making by sitting idly in my car amidst chants and speeches as she vomited into her bucket. I suppose we both dodged a situational bullet this weekend. Lucky us, but not so lucky for the many that actually were trapped, some of whom might have had similar, perhaps dire time sensitive needs. I suppose the protesters must have concluded that causing additional harm in the world, right here in our cozy 206 zip code, is a price worth paying for their project. Disrupting "business as usual" must be easy to rationalize when you don't really think, or care, about our community members "business."

Vandalize Harbuck’s
???
Ceasefire!

@38: They weren't blocking traffic.

@48, And Hamas could never muster the communications, command and control, vehicles, barrier breach, and weapons quantity to carry out the 10/7 slaughter. They could never muster enough rockets to saturate and overwhelm the Iron Dome rocket and artillery defense system. So went the intelligence analysis. It was beyond their capability, even with their aspirations clearly spelled out.

The intelligence data was incomplete (Hamas exercised fantastic weapons acquisition and manufacture creativity and even better operational security). So what better intelligence do you have that Hamas can't acquire WMD and deploy it because its beyond their aspirations? They can get three shooters to a Jerusalem bus stop undetected. Why not WMD in a similar sized car?

You give the Mosad, et. al., too much credit. There is likely an element of racism in your (the IDF's , the CIA's, et. al.) assessment too. Those backward Hamas, Muslim hyper-nationalist, couldn't possibly ....

Hamas gets a vote too. They have strategically out-thought and out-shaped the current conflict. They have tactically come up with a scheme that largely mutes the IDF's technological advantage by using dense non-combatant populations and infra-structure, together with extensive underground networks, tactics that minimize the need for tons of communication, and very secure communication when they do. They have kept Israel, Western, and even Arab states on their back foot in the information and intelligence space throughout. They have shown themselves quite intelligent and capable, in spite of having the most meager resources.

So assuming you are correct for the sake of argument, and Hamas can't commit a second holocaust, how many casualties must those they attack endure, because Hamas surrounds themselves with human shields? The equivalent of 40,000 Americans (adjusting for population differences of the U.S. and Israel) every month, every 7 years, every decade? How many Israeli casualties must Israel involuntarily take to spare the civilian shields Hamas puts up? Quantify that restriction on the right to national self-defense, for Israel and the rest of the world. Let's put that in an updated treaty on the Laws of Armed Conflict.

Thank you, protestors, for your heartfelt note to all the people whose lives you disrupted — and some you threatened.

That said, go fuck yourselves.

Anything that cuts fossil fuel use is a good thing.

It starves the terrorist nations like Russia, Iran, Saudi that fuel the "palestinian" terrorists, so it's win win.

Take the nationwide high speed train that every 1st and 2nd and 3rd world nation has ... oh, wait, are you in some backwater without one?

@71: “Anything that cuts fossil fuel use is a good thing.”

How many cars idled for how long, awaiting the freeway to clear? How much traffic was diverted from efficient, high-speed freeway to secondary highways or surface streets? As an engineer, I’d be willing to place a bet on this stunt temporarily increasing fossil-fuel use, rather than reducing it.

Then turn off your engine when you're gridlocked. Geesh, don't they teach you anything at school? @72

@73: My point was merely that it probably took awhile for drivers to understand it wasn’t just normal traffic, but an intentional blockage, and so it would’ve taken awhile for them to shut down their engines. Then re-start and complete the trip/go elsewhere… I don’t doubt there was a lot more fossil fuel used than without the blockage.

I remember when Starbuck’s bought the old building the art-supply shop had occupied, and started creating their Roastery. I still lived in Pike-Pine back then, and welcomed the additional foot traffic for the little independent places in that burgeoning retail/restaurant district. Of course, now these insolent children “protesters” have ruined that as well. I’m really glad I no longer reside in Seattle anymore.

engineers
with tunnel
vision are not
as bright as they
may seem. see: @72

Hannah, are you from California? We don't refer to our major freeway as "the I-5." It's just "I-5." Do you also call our historic market "Pike's Place?" Please just stop!

@16, @21: I don’t run sockpuppets, and never have. If it makes you feel better to tell yourself you don’t have several commenters here independently debunking your nonsense, then I guess you’ll just continue to claim we’re All. One. Guy. (You’re not even the first person to make that claim against me, so originality easily evaded you, yet again.)

Please tell us all about how blocking an ambulance on I-5 in Seattle did a goddamned thing to help anyone in Gaza, because the Stranger seems to have missed making that connection.

Oh sure. You're gonna turn off your car when stuck in traffic and the outside temp is 45 degrees.

A young couple with an infant was waiting out the traffic at my local brewery. They were out of formula and breastfeeding wasn't an option (I couldn't help but eavesdrop). The poor kid was hanging in there, but clearly getting hungry and upset. I'm sure there are dozens and dozens of similar stories from this protest.

I take delight those protestors who abandoned their cars are racking up their credit cards with charges to Lincoln Towing. I also take delight that Dave Reichert is seizing on this freeway shutdown for his political campaign.

@78: You would if you're running low on gas. What a nightmare.

If they want a cease-fire in Gaza, all they have to do is stop shooting innocent civilians.

Simple as that.

The “ no better politician” line isn’t MAGA idiocy. It’s Ralph Nader/Jill Stein/libertarian idiocy. And it gets Republicans elected pretty regularly. Because apparently only Dems/leftists are delusional enough to follow it and throw their votes away because someone promises unicorns and socialism. Say what you want about the pigfuckers in the GOP, but they at least can think clearly about the reality that the perfect defeats the good.

Dave Reichart is still alive?

Pity....

New York figured it out, they arrested over 300 who were blocking the major tunnels and bridges today

https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/pro-palestinian-rally-shuts-down-brooklyn-and-manhattan-bridges-holland-tunnel/

I'm sure the Trump campaign is appreciative of the assistance these narcissistic morons have provided.

@84, He is alive, and leading in the poll for the upcoming governors race that the Northwest Progressive Institute did of head-to-head match-up vs. Ferguson.

This state hasn't had a Republican Governor since 1985. Never say never apparently.

Ferguson has good name recognition as AG. Reichart is old news and not that popular. So I suspect Feguson's hyper-progressiveness is making people think of him negatively (e.g. the last Seattle election, the centrists won). IDK.

Seems out of step with Washington's progressive reputation and gains in the last three legislative sessions by Democrats and progressives in particular.

Ahab dear, I would love to have a competent GOP candidate for governor, but the party simply cannot attract anyone with anything on the ball anymore. Reichart was a horrible Sheriff (although kinda dishy back then), a non-entity as a Congressman, and apparently can't find a job in the private sector - which is a real accomplishment these days - so he's back at the government teet.

Eastern WA will vote for anything with an R next to it (except for maybe that black guy), but I suspect that anyone on this side of the mountains will find that the more they get to know Dave, the less they like him (except for simps like Our Dear Raindrop).

Or who knows? Maybe he will become the next Governor, and he will be eaten alive by all the normal people in this state.

@88: You think that's bad, Western WA will vote for anything with a D next to it. Bubble meet Bubble.

Ferguson is bad news, dangerous even. All the can think about is litigation and controlling people's lives, along with his vanity of course.

Catalina @ 88:“Eastern WA will vote for anything with an R next to it (except for maybe that black guy)…” I was wondering if you’d ever have a wrong take, and there it is. Semi Bird will be the Republican nominee, voted by the same MAGA heads that put Culp up. Reichert will be named a RINO. The Trump Flavor-Aid runs deep.

@85: Intentionally blocking the bridges and tunnels which connect Manhattan to the mainland is hostage-taking on a grand scale, and the NYPD responded appropriately. Hopefully SPD finds some backbone by this example.

Teslick dear, you'll notice I put a condition on that E Washington Vote. I've seen a lot of Bird signs over across the mountain, and even here in Seattle. Only one Reichart sign so far.

But that Bird guy is a real mess. All military and Jesus. A black Joe Kent. I hope he gets the nomination so that we can call his supporters Birdbrains :-)

@3 the nurse, hear, hear. I, too, saw an ambulance in photos, and heard all kinds of stories - like a person with an infant who needed formula and was crying, elderly people who needed to use a bathroom - or people needing medicine or food - or sleep - or have to get to a job interview, or possibly get fired.

I'm supportive of the protesters' concerns about Gaza but I strongly disagree with this tactic; I think it's dangerous, it's violates people's civil rights, and it's a form of bullying and holding people hostage. It's a major freeway, kids - with thousands of people traveling - whose lives and issues you know nothing about. You're attacking and harassing "the working class" and showing that you do not share other people's concerns and interests. Maybe you're just a bunch of rich, spoiled brats? And maybe that's why they didn't arrest you? Someone's Mom or Dad in high places?

I'm appalled police didn't give an immediate order to disperse or protesters would be (respectfully but quickly and firmly) arrested. Though I certainly do not support post-demonstration arrests. That is a violation of people's civil rights. I think the police had their chance and blew it.

If these protesters were "for real" and were really putting themselves on the line - get over to a weapons base or where they're shipping them out - and where you'd really get arrested. That would impress me. But this? This is narcissistic bullshit.

Plus you had a impressive sized group on the overpass - where you weren't putting other people at risk - but no one noticed (I just happened to see an odd photo) because everyone had to deal with your small group of show-offs instead. So you destroyed the larger demonstration with your stupid stunt.

And what's further amazing - Sarah Nelson, as her first act, wants to give police a raise? When they allowed these people to do this?

Idiot Central!

Why don't you protesters go over to Boeing or Lockheed Martin - and stop their employees from entering the building? That's where the United States makes the bombs that they drop on civilians in Gaza !! Or do some of your wealthy parents work there ?? (The reason why the police didn't arrest you??)