CW #7. Rowdy town hall protestors hurt the opposition’s case.

Had the obnoxious shouting and disruption persisted through August, it might have backfired. Instead, it guaranteed press attention throughout the month, and magnified the impact of concerned Americans participating in democratic debate. I think the ensuing public policy debate is a good thing, and the obnoxious behavior early in August involved more people in that debate by generating news coverage.

I prefer thoughtful and impassioned yet civil debate to shouting. But democracy is sometimes impolite and raucus. A little shouting isn’t all bad if it eventually leads to impassioned debate, rather than just more shouting.