Remember when Bill O'Reilly showed a video with palm trees in the background to imply that the pro-union protesters in Wisconsin were violent? Well, no palm trees were used during
this disturbing episode:
A participant in the daily, non-violent Solidarity Sing Along at the state Capitol suffered a broken tooth when he was punched in the face by one of two men who were draping a "Don't Tread on Me" flag over the heads of singers, the leader of the sing-along said.
State Department of Administration spokeswoman Carla Vigue said the singer who was punched, Michael J. Dickman of Madison, saw the two men draping the flag over others and came over and grabbed it. Dickman was cited by Capitol Police for disorderly conduct, she said.
Henry C. Rahr of Green Bay was arrested on a tentative charge of battery, and another man holding the flag, Eugene C. German, of Shorewood, Minn., also was cited for disorderly conduct, Vigue said.
There are a number of reports about what happened, two of which can be found in diaries by Kodiak54 and AnnieJo.
Given that this punching is apparently the first moment of violence in months of protests at the Wisconsin Capitol, we should take it as an isolated incident. At the same time, I understand the worries of people who are frightened by what often seems like a thinly veiled threat of violence behind right-wing protests in recent years. It can be scary stuff, but we must not be intimidated by it.