In spite of numerous prepared-in-advance reminiscences, special web features and even a KCTS documentary, the 10th anniversary of the WTO “Battle in Seattle” with its clashes between police, demonstrators, and rioters has justifiably taken a backseat to the violence over the weekend in Lakewood and the continued manhunt today.

It’s difficult to recall a similar instance of deflated and deflected looking back at the city’s past. Seattle’s sesquicentennial celebration in 2001 — which kicked off just two weeks after 9/11 — was far less controversial than the various scheduled commemorations of the WTO events, and in some ways offered reassurance during an uncertain time. Given the death less than a month ago of Seattle Police Officer Timothy Brenton, and the raw emotion still felt by those who were here in 1999, it’s unclear how the WTO commemorations this week will be shaped by the officer deaths in Lakewood.