Are there any limits to protest? Is it reasonable to try, as some protesting the G-8 leaders' summit in Alberta this week wish to do, to "shut the city (Calgary) down," to make their point?
Is it OK to trash stores of companies you don't like because they're multinational? Or bait and then battle with police -- afterward claiming police brutality -- just because you don't like capitalism in general?
Jaggi Singh is one of the more high-profile leaders in the Canadian wing of the global movement against, among many other things, globalization. His answer is yes, and he appears to speak for many in the protest movement who ought to know better.
Asked in a TV interview whether the "diversity of tactics" he preaches included violence, Singh replied, "I am opposed to violence. That's why I oppose the G-8."
He elaborated, "If a house is burning down and there's a small child inside, it's acceptable to break a window and take out that child."
So, Singh is opposed to violence, and therefore feels it's OK to use violence against something he thinks is violent.
This is pure sophistry, and sophistry can justify any action, however evil, on the basis that another evil is worse. And the judge of what is evil and what is not? The person taking the action. It's beautifully circular, and almost totally subjective. I feel something is true, therefore it is.
It also blithely tosses aside several centuries of hard-won development toward a democratic society.
All states, including democratic states, use violence from time to time. Singh is quite right in pointing this out.
But, unlike totalitarian states, democracies agree to violence after many viewpoints are considered. It's not a personal, subjective decision by an individual citizen, but the sum of the views of millions of citizens and their elected representatives.
This means that democratic leaders like those in the G-8 do not act on a whim, or impulse, whatever the anti-G-8 crowd might believe. In general, they act in accordance with the will of the people. If they don't, then the people can vote them out at the next election.
Who elected the anti-globalization protesters at dozens of battle-scarred cities around the world? Nobody except themselves.
Ah, they say, but the democratic system is controlled by the ruling classes. We don't have a chance because the people are brainwashed and we, and only we, have the real truth. Their elitism and contempt for the intelligence of the average citizen is breathtaking, especially since it conceals itself under the cloak of speaking for "the people."
The protesters say they are "powerless" -- and many of them are, because they're still young. Generally speaking, power comes with education, age and qualifications. It's not handed out like Halloween treats; you have to work for it.
Many of those protesting in Calgary and Ottawa this week want the power, but offer no proof that they know how to use it responsibly. Indeed, the more disruptive their protests, the more they show they aren't responsible.
Protest is a democratic value, and rightfully so. Protest can spark democratic change, and has for centuries. But democratic protest is also non-violent protest that respects the rights of other citizens.
Last February, about 20,000 people demonstrated on the lawns of the B.C. legislature against the policies of the Gordon Campbell government. They made their point without a hint of violence -- had violence occurred, their cause would have been discredited.
This month, several young people with Victoria's Youth Employment Project invaded the office of Victoria-Beacon Hill MLA Jeff Bray -- and cleaned it, to protest funding cuts by Ottawa that may kill this very effective job-training program.
Because their actions were non-violent and positive, the message was more powerful than that of the gang that barricaded themselves in Bray's office in April.
Democracy isn't perfect; nor are the G-8 leaders. But they do not head fascist states, as many demonstrators seem to believe. Nor are the police who are assigned to protect the world's leaders fascist bullies. If protests are truly peaceful and respect the rights of other people, including those at the G-8 meetings, the police will not need to intervene.
In a democracy, those who dislike their government's policies are free to organize peaceful protests, and join or even form political parties to make changes. Persuade a majority of Canadians your views are valid, and you will succeed. This isn't raising the bar too high; it's happened throughout history in democratic societies.
As it is, protests that turn violent just persuade the majority that the protesters' views can't be rationally defended.
The protesters in Calgary and Ottawa this week will make far more of an impact, and persuade far more people that their views are intelligent and worth considering, if they keep their actions peaceful.
Shutting cities down is a violent act, not a peaceful act. It is not legitimate protest in a democracy.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. NoNonsense English offers this material non-commercially for research and educational purposes. I believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C § 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner, i.e. the media service or newspaper which first published the article online and which is indicated at the top of the article unless otherwise specified.