How the Palo Alto Brain Works

• According the Sunday's Daily News, "Ilona Konevski, mother of one of the protest organizers was at the scene to make sure her own son did not get arrested." How humiliating. Having lost the struggle to control her child, she turns attention to controlling the police.
• A group of high school aged girls attended the march and were noticeably taunting police. At one point they sat in the middle of University Avenue inviting confrontation. A reporter asked the girls if they were concerned about being arrested. The response reveals a surprising level of naivete; "Look at these faces...These are young female minors. They are not going to arrest us." Can we get a title IX ruling on that?
  
• In response to last May's anarchist march that got out of hand the Palo Alto police department brought in police from around the area to keep the peace. No arrests were made, no violence and no injury--except for someone who was pepper sprayed to avoid spooking a mounted officer's horse. Police made no attempt to prevent people from marching or speaking. So all is well that ends well right? Not according to one resident, "It's so over the top...you don't need horses and tear gas." Another said, "I don't feel protected, I feel intimidated (by the police). It's an overwhelming force." Forgetting that the point of having police is to prevent trouble, not having to round up more officers after the situation is out of hand.