EXACTLY!  I don't see what the big deal is either.  If he appeared at any point during the week long man-hunt with his arms raised in surrender and then he was killed by the police, that would be one thing.  But he had literally just murdered ANOTHER cop and was still shooting.  When the fire started, he still could've come out, hands raised and surrendered.  But he chose to kill himself or die from smoke inhalation (which is how most victims die in a fire).

Dorner was still taking shots when he could get them off, still trying to kill. 

Again, they didn't bomb the house, they "accidentally" lit a fire with tear gas, and he most likely could've left the house to escape the fire.  He chose not to.  How is that different than waiting for him to present himself for a sniper?

I can't answer any of the questions in your first paragraph since I was not on-scene and I'm not a police officer in one of the departments that were there.

As for your second part, that "The operating assumption going in had to be that he would die"?  Are you a part of one of the departments on scene?   How do you know that?  What if, at the time he crashed the white truck he would've held up his hands?  Would the officers chasing him have shot him?  I don't know, and neither do you.  The truth is that after he crashed he killed another officer, who had two young children and a wife.

Also, we still don't know that he didn't kill himself.

Everyone is saying "the police burned him alive", etc.  No, he stayed in a cabin that had been lit on fire.  An RPG or bomb is completely different than a slowly moving fire started by tear gas. 

If I'm in a house that catches fire, I'd try to put out the fire or leave the house.  An RPG or bomb is instant death.  Tear gas fire gives you a chance to escape the suffering.

Also, there were reports that a single shot was heard from inside the cabin.  He could've very well killed himself before the fire got to him.  Which I assume will come out in the coroners report.

In other words.... Dude's nuts.

You forgot to add the doubling-down legislature. 

The great people of our state just voted (VOTED!) for more taxes in the last election.  It's fun stuff. 

I truly see no hope for California aside from the possibility that it eventually becomes such a horrible, broke, socialistic state that the only alternative is to let the right wingers have a shot at fixing it.  Although by that time I will probably have fled the state.

I don't think Rob's assessment on the abortion issue is accurate.  He says that America elected the most pro-abortion president ever, and while that might be true, I don't think it's the correct correlation to make from the 2012 election.

A huge number of voters checked Obama's name because they're tied in to some sort of welfare and they want more.  Or because he's black.  Or because of "hope" and "change".  Etc, etc.

Just because Obama was elected, doesn't mean everybody that voted for him thinks late-term abortions are awesome.  Especially with the "low info" voters, they may not even have known where he stands on abortion. 

So don't let Rob's negativity get you down, Mollie.  I tend to be more optimistic, like you.  Small victories are still victories.  Keep it up.