General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Here's video of police shouting "burn that motherfucker" and "burn him out" as Dorner was trapped. [View all]marions ghost
(19,841 posts)I have no sympathy for the murderer but there is a question of process. Right now it appears that they torched the place in order to avoid having to wait it out. On the other hand I don't think he planned to come out alive or he would have surrendered (I'm assuming they gave him that chance, but it's unclear). So people probably say "what's the difference?" Burn him or shoot him. Burning him seemed safer and more expedient obviously.
I agree with those who say this is not how these things should be handled, but when you have a guy with a high-powered rifle that can control an area for a mile or more...possibly for days...still the fire bombing method used is like what they do in a war zone. Not a great precedent. I wonder if this will stimulate weapons sales even more...