> but the last national convention I went to (many years ago), the cops rounded up the protestors, blocked off cross streets and then forced them into a line of

> but the last national convention I went to (many years ago), the cops rounded up the protestors, blocked off cross streets and then forced them into a line of cops with billy clubs who beat the hell out of them. FWIW, I try to ignore folks who engage in counter-protests. The reasonable alternative is to assume that their cause is wrong. Counter-protests are basically an attempt to stop someone from doing something that they have some right to do. If you're trying to persuade me, a third party, that said someone is wrong, counter-protests are, at best, completely useless. In practice, they're often an exercise in thuggery, either to make it more expensive for said folks to do what they have a right to do (have a convention, for example) or to intimidate them from doing so. I's sure that you felt that your cause was just and that those folks were wrong/evil/etc. The way to persuade me is to do your own events and make your own argument. No, you don't have a right to address an audience that someone else has attracted. You only have a right to address folks who have decided that they want to be addressed by you. In other words, pay for your microphone.