Sam:	You know, this kind of protest does no good . . . it just makes the author look stupid and the things he protests against seem all the better.
Kris:	I agree it's in bad taste. It's easy to desecrate a symbol, but often that backfires. When you attack symbols, it simply polarizes people further.
Terri:	(shaking her head in disagreement) I see as a viable, non-violent way of venting anger. When millions of flag-waving Americans tacitly accept the torture and murder done by Imperial America across the planet, it makes me furious. What surprises me is that more people aren't protesting.
Tim:	(laughing) Hey, maybe you don't realize how superfluous you are. You do not matter a single iota. If you want to make a fool of yourself by protesting, who cares?
Kris:	A thing to remember is that people are not their actions. No matter how angry we feel about a given action, we shouldn't let hatred pollute our hearts. To resist to disagree with an idea or person is fine and often noble. However, to merely succumb to hate produces no positive alchemy. If you look at Donald Trump, you can see how base emotions can sometimes feed off of dark distrust, fear, and scapegoating. The real challenge is to love even when angry. Sometimes I manage to do that, but often I fail.