Useing chemical weapons against their own people. Saddam Hussain?

[OffWithTheirHeads]

nope! Oakland California Mayor Jean Quan.
Shame!

[pintobean]

1. How many died?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Human_rights_in_Saddam_Hussein%27s_Iraq#Number_of_Victims

[Luminous Animal]

3. None as yet but we'll be sure to let you know when someone does.

[pintobean]

6. Comparing this to Saddam Hussein is ridiculous.

[Luminous Animal]

7. Tyrants have to start somewhere.

[SidDithers]

9. Don't you love the smell of raging hyperbole in the morning...

Now, Jean Quan is just like Saddam Hussein.

:banghead:

Sid

[Luminous Animal]

2. They destroyed a beautiful camp (I was there Friday night).

It was peaceful, clean & well organized and the cops totally destroyed it.

[defendandprotect]

4. kr

[me b zola]

5. K&R

[Luminous Animal]

8. Contact info for Oakland Mayor

http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/Mayor/a/ContactUs/index.htm

[gratuitous]

10. Apparently, if the victims don't die and aren't buried in mass, unmarked graves

There's nothing to object to here. It seems a bit strange to me not to protest this brutal treatment of a peaceable assembly of citizens petitioning their government for redress of grievances, but until it gets as bad as the worst dictators, we're all supposed to just shut up about it, Pastor Niemoller be damned.

[AngkorWot]

11. I think the issue is that comparing tear gas to VX is kind of tasteless.

It's a bit like comparing farting in a crowding elevator to Hitler gassing the Jews.

[pintobean]

12. No, if the victims don't die and aren't buried in mass, unmarked graves

they shouldn't be compared to those that did and were.

[Luminous Animal]

13. There are good democratic chemical weapons and there are bad despotic chemical weapons.

[gratuitous]

14. Indeed

And until the worst happens, we shouldn't be drawing any unfair comparisons or looking down the road for any possible escalation, and it's the Worst Thing Ever to bring it to people's attention that way, even worse than the actual event. I think I got it now.

[AngkorWot]

15. You know who else didn't care about the plight of OWS?

Hitler.

[gratuitous]

16. No, no I got it

And I totally agree with you! This isn't anything like anything that's ever happened before, and any concerns about this are, like, totally inappropriate, because it's nothing like the worst of the worst excesses of Nazi Germany or the Stalinist Soviet Union or Pol Pot, so it's perfectly legitimate and all right.

Oops, shoulda PM'd this; now the thread gets kicked again. Darnie.

[AngkorWot]

17. People shouldn't kick threads.

My brother died that way.

[gratuitous]

18. I can't tell you how sorry I am to hear that

Truly.