Ah...the good old Seattle WTO riots. Yes, I was there.
I had just got back from vacation in Cali. I could not get to work because of the downtown situation. So I went to a bar instead. Sat down, had a
drink. (was at Zaks 5th Ave, you know, that little dump near the space needle...)
Anyway, I at first, had the inclination to join in the protests. I had been thinking of it for a while. But alot of those fools out there were bored
college kids with too much time on thier hands. I cheered the guys from the unions on tho, they were out there marching orderly and constructivly
without looking or sounding like fools. Unfortunately, no one noticed.
Overall, despite the dreadlocks, tie die, and patchouli stink, generally, the protesters were being relatively behaved. Some were being disruptive,
like blocading roads and refusing to move, disrupting traffic. There were lesbians wrapping themselves in duct tape. It looked like a circus.
Anyway, I dont know exactly when it happened.. But eventually, I noticed the streets emptying out you could hear shouting, glass breaking, ect. Cops
and bullhorns. I figured it had gotten ugly. Next thing you know, they were closing of streets, and we were kicked out of the bar, told that everyone
had to leave. I ws pissed. The protesters were getting tear gassed. (some of the stuff was blowing around, giving non protesters reaction. It didnt
bug me, cuz in the army, they tear gas us for fun, we get used to it).
Anyway, from what I saw, the protesters, a few, were egging the cops on. Like, I saw them show it on the news, but I remeber, some of them walking
within a few feet of a police line and playing hackey sack in front of the cops. If they dont want to get thier asses kicked, thats a dumb way to
avoid it.
Anyway, we went home, but watched the rest on tv. I went back the next day to work...still a mess, downtown seattle under martial law. What really got
ugly was the third day, when they drove the protesters up to capitol hill, and from there, they went hog wild on anyone who walked. Friends of mine
who simply woke up and looked outside thier windows had cops pointing guns in thier faces and telling them to go the # inside. People who had noting
to do with the riots were getting capped at by national guard and cops with rubber bullets. One guy i used to hang out with had to go to the doctors
because the the rubber bullet he was hit with. His crime was riding his bike home from work at Hollywood video.
There was indeed police brutality that we all saw. The cops were attacking people who were eating in restaraunts, having drinks, or driving home.
National guard was there too. It was a mess! couldnt go downtown to party the whole week, it was all locked down. ID checks if you were in the zone,
to confirm that you live there.........
As for the anarchists, its hard to say. I seen a couple of em, they looked like typical Central Oregon riff raff. Seattle does have ssholes like this,
who basically go around starting # for no reson, simply to start panic and chaos. For example, new years eve that year, Y2K, some asshole was alking
down the street at 12 midnight. we smiled, said hapy new year.the dude stopped, deliberately rammed himself into my friend, and said, # you #. My
buddy, stunned, was like, huh? The instigator was not drunkor high either, he kept telling my friend, hit me mther #r comon, hit me......this is
actually prety common in whats called capitol hill.
Anyway, its plausible the anarchists were ffrom eugene, were your typical riff raff, they didnt look entirely odd to me, the few that i saw. Looked
like punks.