Capitol arrests are bad politics

"U.S. Capitol Police arrested 10 people this afternoon after the Capitol Hill Tea Party crowd stormed Congressional office buildings. Sgt. Kimberly Schneider, public information office for the Capitol Police, told TPMDC the arrests happened in the Cannon House building as tea partiers attempted to protest Speaker Nancy Pelosi about health care. They were charged with unlawful entry (entering a Congressional office and refusing to leave when told to do so) and/or disorderly conduct (yelling in the hallway outside an office) at Room 235 in the Cannon House Office Building. Room 235 is Speaker Nancy Pelosi's office for district business, not where she conducts her duties as Speaker. That's handled at an office in the Capitol building."

http://tpmdc.talkingpointsmemo.com/2009/11/strange-scene-10-arrested-as-tea-party-watchers-heckle-police.php?ref=fpa

From a purely public relations standpoint, arresting people for peaceful non-violent sit-in type protests in non-essential offices is actually a pretty stupid thing to do.

You would think that the "community organizer" in the White House would tell Pelosi that you defuse non-violent protesters with humor and dialogue, not by calling in the cops. Generally, the protesters want to be arrested and thereby become martyrs. When you arrest non-violent protesters, they win.

By the way - - remember when dissent and protest were the highest forms of patriotism, i.e., when Republicans were in charge? Evidently, no more. Here's what one of the leading "progressive bloggers" on one of the leading "progressive blogs" had to say about today's protesters:

"Leave it to the right to try and intimidate Congress with a plebian mob."

http://www.mydd.com/story/2009/11/5/14516/4930

Do you know the definition of "plebian" aka plebeian?

"One of the plebs, or common people of ancient Rome, in distinction from patrician. . . . One of the common people, or lower rank of men. "

http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/plebeian

Did you ever think you'd see progressives sneeringly dismiss non-violent working class protesters (of whatever ideology) as "a common mob"? That's something I'd expect from Leona Helmsley, not Nancy Pelosi and friends.

Have the "progressives" forgotten that the Democrats are supposed to be the party of the "common mob"?