Comments

2

Don't let up. Don't compromise. No reform is better than bullshit reform, and if you compromise with the Durkans and the Bests, all you will get is continued bullshit reform. Don't do it. Defund the police.

5

Loony left feigning righteous indignation to do an end run around dutifully elected pragmatic left. Sorry kids, Moony Tunes lost by 10 points. The city doesn't want to experiment with Socialism (outside D3, of course). I hope Durkan embraces and leads around broadreformsin SPD.

6

This has been an incredibly painful week for our City and our country. One that is shining a light on hundreds of years of racism and systemic injustice that haunts our past and our present. It is a moment that summons all of us - including me - to do more and to do better.

We as a City need to come together to reject violence in the strongest possible terms. Last night, the Seattle Police Department once again used chemical weapons to disperse a crowd of protesters exercising their rights to assembly and speech. This action was contrary to the spirit of the ban on tear gas I ordered only days previously, and I was not consulted on its use in advance.

First of all, I want to apologize to the people of this City who have been injured by the actions of the Seattle Police Department: both those who were protesting and the residents and business owners in Capitol Hill who have had to endure a week of intolerable conditions. Second, I want to apologize to the people who have had their faith in the City's ability to keep them safe shattered over the past week. If nothing else, these protests have exposed to all of us the trauma of violence at the hands of those who have sworn to serve and protect you. Finally, I must apologize to all of you for my role in failing to prevent these actions. As Mayor, it was my responsibility and duty to ensure your safety above all else, and I have failed in that duty.

We must move forward now and build the future that we want for ourselves and our children. A future where any person in this City may ask for help from its public servants without fear of suffering violence. As much as I would like to, I understand that I cannot be the person to lead us into that future. We need to stand united, but I fear my presence will be a divisive distraction in this critical time.

Therefore, I am submitting my resignation as Mayor of the City of Seattle, effective immediately. I thank all of you for allowing me to serve this great City, and I hope to one day regain your trust to have another opportunity to do so.

7

@6: That was pretty good.

8

I call for the resignation of Donald J. Trump, for the abdication of all job duties. Effective immediately.

9

@8: He'd love to do so in a 5th Avenue second if he and the entire Trump family had total and irrevocable pardons.

10

Seattle is becoming ungovernable. At first, we couldn't get a mayor who could get reelected to a second term. Now we can't even get mayor who can even serve one term without people demanding their resignation.

11

@Catalina Vel-DuRay
My legacy will doubtlessly be clouds of tear gas wafting over rainbow sidewalks while the sounds of screams mingle with the march of boots, but by God, at least I made the snowplows run on time!

12

@10 wasn't the last mayor a pedophile?

13

Strauss was not insinuating Sawant was provoking the Police. He insinuated she provoked the protestors to force a confrontation, which is true. The council is encouraging the more violent protestors to invoke confrontation. It is what it is. Hope they are right about removing the police force. If not hope people have the ability to protect themselves.

14

@12 Yes the last mayor was a pedophile, apparently that was ok because it helped weaken him politically.

15

I demand the Seattle police be disbanded and replaced by a Committee of Public Safety. Also, Sawant to face the guillotine for her many crimes against the people. The Mayor shall remain, as an administrator of the change, but subject to review by the Committee.

16

@11 This is sad news. No one could have managed any better given the absurd number of adversities currently afflicting us. And although I completely respect the gracious tone of your resignation letter, Jenny, please know I think you should have stayed and some of the sanctimonious loudmouths on the council should have resigned. That's just my opinion, and, again, I understand graciousness is best at this time. But none of those calling for your resignation could have done better. All best wishes to you.

17

@6 @11 this is fantastic in both concept and execution. Please continue.

Trolls and supporters of deploying chemical weapons on civilians. Don't you ever think about what lines you are crossing? How far down the authoritarian hole are you willing to go? Your posts are just sad and pathetic now. And those supporters of deploying chemical weapons on civilians who are trying to sound reasonable... you are the definition of the banality of evil. Think about that when you post.

19

Funny thing..."tensor" hasn't has a thing to post in this thread.

21

I'm looking for confirmation of this resignation on every news site I can find--and I'm not seeing any. Not one story yet on the "resignation." Perhaps the sites are a bit behind schedule... and perhaps... there is no resignation. Yet, at least. I'll be patient and wait before assuming. Anyone with a link to a confirmation, feel welcome to post it.

22

@19 Sawant's reelection completely destroyed him. He hasn't been seen around these parts since she pulled ahead in the ballot count.

23

Message #6 above was posted at 3:15 p.m. I just read various stories on local news websites posted at 4:30 p.m. and later, and Jenny Durkan was still referred to as the mayor, and there is not one hint--anywhere besides the message above--of any "resignation." Looks like this is a prank--but I'll wait a bit longer to make sure. Looking like a prank, though; Jenny Durkan seems still to be mayor. Whoever is mayor of Seattle: it's a tough job. Wish you the best.

24

@21 I don't think the city's local media have the manpower right now to put anyone on the desk that covers blog comments posted by parody accounts.

25

@10,

Portland's been in the exact same boat with a string of single term mayors dating back well over a decade. And my family in Baltimore relays that they've had a rotating cast there as well. I think cities in general are in practical terms nearly ungovernable. They're just critically underfunded relative to their needs. I like where I live, in one of the most densely populated neighborhoods on the entire west coast (at least it was a few years ago; may have changed since then) but I sure as shit wouldn't want to be in charge of maintaining it.

But then to expand on that, I think the human condition itself just doesn't really lend itself to the idea of self-governance. We're just too goddamn selfish, unpredictable and ignorant. Had been thinking this for a little while, though these past 3+ years have really crystallized it for me.

For the record, I think Durkan probably kinda sucks, but then so would whoever would succeed her (see above.)

26

@24 I'm sure you're right. And this is a parody account, as you rightly call it. Well, it definitely is a prank. The prankster took a Twitter comment Durkan recently made and used it as the first paragraph of the bogus "resignation" letter. I've seen absolutely nothing to suggest Durkan has resign or will resign. She's still mayor, like it or not. And if she can see through this, don't ever expect any resignation from her, unless she accepts a position in a Biden Administration. Otherwise, you either vote her out or she's staying.

27

@26 Maybe instead just admit you got punked and have a laugh at yourself?

Right now you're the guy who fell for a cut-n-paste Onion article on Facebook, and is desperately explaining why a totally smart and thinking person would have believed the thing but also you totally weren't fooled because you saw the hidden Illuminati symbols in the accompanying stock photo.

28

A more adequate title for this article would have been “Theresa Mosqueda formally kicks off her campaign for mayor in 2021”.

29

@27 I'm more than happy to admit it! I got punked! I noticed quite a few people were reacting to it as if it were real, so I thought I would look around and report back. No evasion intended. Absolutely: I got punked. It's been an intense week, and you just don't know what's going to happen next. Thanks for keeping me honest.

30

@28 Nothing's stopping you from running against her for that job, tiger.

31

@29 Could you point out the other people who got punked that sent you off on your fact-finding mission? I didn't check every corner but it looks to me like you're the only one in the room who thought it was real.

32

I would tend to agree with Catalina that Seattle is currently ungovernable. Too many activists and not enough leaders. It’s easy to be in charge when times are good and money is rolling in but as we are seeing now when shit gets real and you have zero leadership at any level we all end up asking where are we going and why are we in this hand basket.

33

@29 #10 and #17, and some others seemed to (#18). But you know, Robotslave: I'm fine if I am the only one who fell for it! If no one else did, then all power to you and them. So, have a good laugh at my expense!

34

@33 what was that old recurring bit on Slog..."Credulous something something"...well, whatever it was, you're the winner!

35

@34 Whoopeee! I'm a winner! Thanks, Jubilation! What a great day! I get to go have dinner, and you get some good laughs at my expense. Everybody's a winner at The Stranger! Ain't life sweet?

38

Who’s in line if the mayor is 1) impeached or 2) resigns?

Also, can people from Snohomish county Please find their own comment forum?

42

Re sawant "she was in bed with a debilitating headache"- she should have that looked at. A tumor might explain alot of the shit that comes out of her mouth.

44

It's not literally going to be the complete abolition of police.

It would be more like this:

1) Have the police focus exclusively on violent crimes-murder, rape, kidnapping.
2) Decriminalize drugs which will sharply reduce MOST crime and will end the illegal and violent drug trade as we know it, while treating the question of drug use as a social and public health issue, which is always going to be most effective way of helping those who wish to recover from substance abuse to do so, while imprisoning people for possession for personal use has always been the least effective approach;
3) Train ordinary citizens in de-escalation techniques-many violent situations could be quickly defused if only ordinary people, along with the police, are trained to talk people down from confrontational mode;
4) Sharply reduce those property crimes which would not be reduced through decriminalizing drugs by redirecting a significant number of funds currently dedicated to policing towards jobs programs and towards helping the people of impoverished areas economically revitalize those areas by setting up worker co-ops to employ themselves in providing the goods and services their community needs but which "market economics" will never provide, due to the fact that those in charge of what "market economics" does-the wealthy-do not believe it to be in their interests for those areas to be economically viable under community control.
5) Use some more of the funds needed to provide fuller creative expression for those living in the communities, as crime is, in more cases than conventional society would like to admit, far likelier to occur in areas where expressions of the best of the human spirit are discouraged or made impossible.
6) Get those components of the police which remain necessary to let go of the "warrior elite" myth and the assumption that they, the supposed "warrior elite", are in some sort of battle to the death with most of those around them. Train the police to remain in touch with the reality that most people, in ALL neighborhoods are basically good people and are much more likely to live their best lives if valued and treated with respect.

And this related step:

Get those pro sports leagues which have drained municipal coffers everywhere, forcing massive cuts in the services which do more to reduce crime than any others-education and housing in particular-by forcing our country's largest cities to build them massive palaces to their team owners' egos, palaces whose construction has brought little if any gain to the cities who built those palaces on the municipal megadollar, to reimburse the cities for these massive expenditure, so that at least some of the funds handed over to them will finally serve some measure of the public good.

45

I demand CM Mosqueda resign, due to the well-deserved F minus she just earned in Recent Seattle History. SPD has been wearing pseudo-military gear, and attacking protesters with tear gas and concussion grenades, since WTO, over twenty years ago. That has been bog-standard SPD response to any demonstration downtown or on Capitol Hill ever since, over which time we've had several different mayors. And yet, demanding the mayor resign takes precedence over CM Mosqueda actually doing her job properly:

"The tools they’re using aren’t illegal," Mosqueda said. "The riot gear has been paid for by us. We have allowed [SPD] as a city to grow into the entity that they are today. We have continued to invest in the very system that is being criticized and we have continued to fund them. How are we going to take ownership over the budget? Let’s do that beginning on Wednesday."

If a legislator is asking how take ownership over a budget she controls, that's an admission of total failure in her core competency, right there.

Resign, CM Mosqueda, resign! Show some leadership at last.

46

@45: It's gonna be challenging to see how you can still defend the idea that Durkan is intrinsically superior to anyone else who could have been mayor, given what is going down.

Also, the fact that the gear has been used since the WTO rising (which was another example of the police acting with excessive force to legitimate public protest) doesn't mean it's ok that Durkan didn't get rid of it. There was never any valid reason to militarize the SPD in the first place.

Here is the reality- in the present situation, NONE of the things you've supported or appear to supported- from hardline policing to cuts in public services in order to facilitate giveaways to people like Bezos and Schultz to the perpetual increases in residential rents which have turned much of the city into milliionaires-only zones have solved any of Seattle's problems OR can solve those problems.

You are going to have to accept the fact that too much money and deference have been given to those at the top of the heap, and that they are going to have to give a big chunk of it back-that none of the problems Seattle has can be solved by socialism for the rich and austerity for the many.

You are fully aware of this, I think.

And it is sadly telling you have nothing to say in response other than to lash out at Theresa Mosqueda for telling the truth.

47

That should have read "which was another example of the police acting with excessive force against legitimate public protest". Put in an edit function already!

48

@46: I was fun, watching your ignominious failure to understand I'd actually written the exact diametrical opposite: the occupant of the Mayor's Office does not matter. (But hey, nice attempt at erecting a straw man; too bad for you it kinda just sorta flopped over immediately like that...)

"Also, the fact that the gear has been used since the WTO rising (which was another example of the police acting with excessive force to legitimate public protest) doesn't mean it's ok that ... CM Mosqueda repeatedly voted to give war toys to known abusers." (Fixed that for you; you're welcome.) Do you agree with me, should she resign for her part in sending concussion grenades, tear gas, and pepper spray against peaceful protestors? A simple yes or no will suffice.

Let's quickly burn away the rest of your straw men, shall we? Having myself been a demonstrator at WTO, I don't have to waste my time asking you for my quote(s) supporting "hard policing," but "cuts in public services" will need quotes. I'll ignore your tiresome Bezos-baiting, since we both know you've never, ever supported any of your attempted smears on that score. Does a more prosperous city see rising rents? Yes, but the Seattle politician who most heavily used public money to subsidize Amazon was then-Mayor Paul Schell, for whom I did not vote. (Perhaps you can berate him during your next seance.)

"And it is sadly telling you have nothing to say in response other than to lash out at Theresa Mosqueda for telling the truth."

Again -- yes or no? Simple question.

Oh, and finally-- our demonstration against the WTO in 1999 was not in any way any kind of "rising," but rather groups of economically privileged persons telling the powers-that-be how the WTO was not the best possible guarantor of our continued prosperity.


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