//Of course not, but our bodies have.//

No, we did not evolve from monkeys. Monkeys and humans share a common ancestor. It probably looked a bit like a lemur.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/sci/tech/1935558.stm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_of_primates

Yes, Nathan. It's all 'rights' with no obligations or respect for others with some people. There is no automatic right to protest for anyone. I don't know what the law is these days, but people used to have to apply for a permit to demonstrate or protest.

'No, we did not evolve from monkeys. Monkeys and humans share a common ancestor. It probably looked a bit like a lemur.' you are a joking Toni. How could anyone be do daft? And you of all scoff at miracles.

There's a difference between standing up for what you believe in, and helping a cause. With the direction I see protest movements going, it seems that standing up for a cause is all that matters. Then protests and counter protests are a thing where the only point is to stand up for your beliefs and stand against those who believe otherwise.

Protesting is becoming less about being nonviolent, and more about trying to intice a violent reaction to "get the message accross." I'm betting the protesters in the restruant were suprised they weren't fought. But expected something to happen.

I have taken part in many protests over the years, and surprise surprise the level of violence has been small. By far the worse levels have been the result of heavy handed action by the police. The worse I ever experienced was during the Vietnam War protests of the late 60's early 70's. Police acting at the behest of the state would arrest protesters on mass, often assisted by "special constables" in the form of neo-nazi's and others from the extreme right.

The thing is that protests don't achieve anything. The moratoriums referred to by Paul didn't stop the Vietnam war; talks between Richard Nixon and the Chinese government did that. All the marching and violence caused nothing but more division and hatred between those for and against a civil war the West should never have been involved in: one which the enemy, communism, won. Those of us against the war made a fuss about Whitlam pulling out and stopping conscription (of young men only) but it had nothing to with protesting and the notorious Prof. Brian Medlin. It was stopped, after the damage was done, by an agreement between an American president and an old communist Chinaman. The only effective protests we of the hoi polloi have is one lousy vote every three years, and most of us don't use that properly.