I don't think showing up for a protest makes you a hero or anything, but are you telling people that it's just empty posturing and to not show up for the national US protests?
I thought they were better than nothing (and bitching on Twitter) but to each their own.
No, thats not what Im saying. Showing up on the mall is better than nothing, and much better than twitter, which is the equivalent of nothing.
But let's not pretend that using your day off to take selfies on the mall at a pre-planned and permitted event is the kind of mass protest that will lead to meaningful change.
I think it's also insulting to the people in Egypt, Thailand, Taiwan, Mexico, Brazil, etc etc who shut down their cities in the face of armed military police to suggest that American protests are anywhere close to on their level.
The 2011 protests in Egypt resulted in 846 people killed and over 6,000 injured.
The result was that the President resigned.
Real protest requires sacrifice. The last time Americans protested en mass was probably Vietnam.