"Congress shall make no law ... abridging ... the right of the people peaceably to assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances." First Amendment.
The word peaceably is important. Peaceably means marching a route coordinated with local authorities. It means carrying signs and flags and banners. It means singing and chanting and speech making. These days it means TV coverage. And dispersing when the demonstration is over and going home. First amendment requires government to permit these peaceable assembles.
Then we have riots. Setting fires, beating people up, smashing shop windows, and looting. Riots ought to be suppressed, rioters arrested, and held in arrest until all the paperwork is completed. Use non-lethal weapons, tear gas, water cannon, pepper spray, tasers to break them up. Start breaking up the riot as soon as possible to prevent it from getting bigger. Many of the stores and businesses we see burning on TV belonged to people who had put everything they owned into starting the business, and keeping it going. Burning the place down ruins those small business owners. They expect law enforcement to protect their shops and businesses from being burned to the ground by rioters.
And I have to wonder about the lack of common sense among the voters, who elected mayors and governors who permit riots to grow large and refuse offers of federal aid to suppress them. Let's hope the voters have learned something over these last few weeks and make better choices this November. At least they ought to vote the incumbents who have permitted this rioting out of office.
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