In Ramsey County, 716 people were arrested in RNC-related incidents this week, according to a preliminary tally from the Ramsey County sheriff's office. With the 102 arrests in Minneapolis on Wednesday, the total number of people arrested stood at 818.
On Thursday, 396 people were arrested, with 90 percent of them misdemeanors, according to the Ramsey County sheriff's department. However, some of those arrested Thursday had guns or other weapons, Harrington said.
On Thursday, the anti-war demonstrators, facing their last chance at a national audience before the elections in November, finished with a flourish.
The day's events began with police closing the High Bridge at 9:45 a.m. because of the high volume
A lot of people were arrested last night, due to marching after the "permitted" time. They had a protest permit that expired at 5PM.
First of all, protest permits are bullshit. If you are protesting government action, getting a permit for the protest is kind of silly. Civil obedience while committing civil disobedience? I don't get it.
However, if your actions, your "right of the people peaceably to assemble", or your "freedom of speech" is designed solely to disrupt someone else's right to peaceable assembly, or their right to freedom of speech, you are no longer protesting, your are criminally violating another person's civil rights. Your rights do not, can not, conflict with mine or they are not rights. Rights are not mutually exclusive and do not convey a positive obligation on another.
Your freedom of speech does NOT give you the right to be heard. It does not convey upon me an obligation to pay attention. I am perfectly in my rights to ignore you for the idiot you obviously are.
If your idea of the right to peaceably assemble includes brick-throwing, window-smashing, dissenter-stomping, urine-throwing, poop-smearing, car-torching, or any number of other violent activities, your assembly is not peaceable and is a ripe target for justified police action.
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