#371 Do Not Gird for War on Your Own People Without Strong Cause (and you didn't have it in Oakland, Mayor Jean Quan)

American. Marine. Hero. Victim.

So the whole world has now seen what an insane and over-reacting idiot Oakland Mayor Jean Quan is by sending in officers in full riot gear to break up an Occupy Wall Street protest in Oakland. The protesters were peaceful, the protest was organized and yet the cops came in like stormtroopers, firing tear gas, flash bang grenades, rubber bullets and behaving like the protesters were rioting and looting when they very, very clearly were not.

And, as a result of the extreme police over-reaction, an American hero got his skull fractured by some projectile fired into the crowd. This young man, Scott Olsen, is a two time Iraq tour Marine veteran and a hero. He was there exercising his CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHT to peaceful assembly when he was violently and wantonly assaulted along with the others.

Scott, along with thousands and thousands of other Americans tired of the corporatization of America and the wholesale raiding of our finances by those same companies entrusted with caretaking them, took BART out to Oakland to lend support there for the Occupy Wall Street protests.

After he was hit in the head with the tear gas grenade, other protesters tried to provide assistance to a clearly injured man when the police apparently tossed another grenade and fired some rubber bullets at those helping this man who had been seriously injured.

In other words, the police assaulted this man and then continued to assault people trying to help him. The police amped up the protest and nearly turned it into a full on riot by their attire, demeanor and actions. The protests, in no way, called for a full riot response from the police.

And I will join in the chorus of voices calling for Jean Quan's resignation for her shockingly poor handling of this pivotal moment in American and World History. She has chosen her side, she is not one of the 99%, she has chosen to join the 1% and be on the wrong side. She is not fit to lead.

Rule #371 is Do Not Gird for War on Your Own People Without Strong Cause (and you didn't have it in Oakland, Mayor Jean Quan)

#350 Do Not Become an Ironic Footnote

Motorcyclist dies in crash while protesting helmet laws

Philip Contos liked to ride his motorcycle and he liked to ride his motorcycle without wearing helmet. In the pursuit of his passion, he joined a protest ride of other motorcyclists who also don't like wearing helmets when they ride.

I wonder if they like to wear helmets when they crash? Because Philip crashed, smacked his head on the ground and punched out of this mortal coil.

I am a motorcyclist (and cyclist). I've been doing both for well more than 20 years now. I've crashed on both, three times on my motorcycles and too many times to count on my bikes. And you know what? I've been wearing my helmet in each and every one of them. If I'd gone down on my motorcycles without my helmet then there is zero chance I'm sitting here typing this.

People who protest helmet laws have a point but its not a very good one. Motorcycles are big, fast, heavy and dangerous machines. You may like the feeling of the wind in your hair and feeling like a badass chewing up tarmac. But when (note, not IF) you go down, if you're not protected then you are ended. Simple as that.

An easy way to think about this is to consider your skull an eggshell. At the speeds you crash on a motorcycle (or bicycle as I've hit 45+ on my mountain bike) your skull presents about the same protection on its own. Remember those high school science projects where you have to construct a way to drop an egg from the second story safely? Yeah, your head is the egg, your helmet is your protection. Use it and have a much, much better chance of living. Don't use it and, well, splat.

Sorry to Philip's family for his loss. It very obviously could have been avoided.

Rule #350 is Do Not Become an Ironic Footnote