When the Democrats met in Denver for their National Convention, the word was that protesters would not be allowed near the venues. I don't remember seeing protesters in the convention itself. There were reports of some clashes with demonstrators a mile from the convention center, and the police say they arrested less than 10 people for failing to disperse. Ron Kovic, the disabled Vietnam veteran about whom the movie Born on the Fourth of July was made, took part in a peaceful protest. When he heard about the clash between police and protesters, he told the crowd, "We must remain nonviolent. We must have the high moral ground."
Fast forward to the Republican National Convention. It was common to see people inside the Xcel Energy Center planning to disrupt for their cause. Outside, the clashes with police were so close that the microphones in the convention could pick up the flashbangs being used outside. Anti-war, peace activists attacked delegates from Connecticut with bleach sprayed on their clothes and faces. Others broke windows of stores or lit a trashcan on fire and pushed it into a police car.
How sad. When protesters at the DNC acted incorrectly, people with the protesters called on them to behave. When "peace" protesters at the RNC produced violent "statements", there wasn't a word from their side that said they shouldn't have. It tells me something.
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