"but I do remember the knee-jerk response of the redneck hardhat flag-waving superpatriot rightwing pro-war pigfuckers"

LOL! You and Robert are swimming together in a convex fishbowl. Everything you see is upside down and blown all out of proportion.

Anyone who's been hit by a big rock knows it enters the life threatening point. More than one US border patrol agent or Israeli border guard has been killed by rock throwers and those folks are accustomed to the rocks. Put some National guardsmen - the most unprepared, inexperienced branch in a life threatening situation and all you need is that one hit guardsmen to feel his life is in jeopardy and pull his trigger. And that will set off a chain reaction.

The LSD using, pot-smoking left-wing children of the "rightwing pro-war pigfuckers" (Which you and Robert are likely perfect examples) never realized that in "protest" lies the exact same hate, violence and anger that spur wars in the first place. You and Robert would make perfect soldiers - you have all the hate in the world bottled up inside waiting to be given form.

Protesters are mirror image reflections of soldiers. Equally full of hate, just twisted into a different manifestation.

The real pacifists, the real peace lovers - don't protest. They sit on their ass like Buddha and don't involve themselves in ANY conflicts - even verbal ones. They understand the evil in any such action.

;-)