[Solid]

Reaper, I do see anti-war rallies as controversial, and also prone (in historic cases) to degrade into violence. I tried to use anti-war rallies as an example of the potent and important ability of protest, not as an example of a good field trip.

Greenhat, the system of representation in most cases is adequate to serve public opinion. However, in some cases (as it would be if a tyrant was in power), the governmental bureaucracy through which representation must pass would become 'part of the enemy', therefore leading to methods of representation external to governmental mechanisms, such as rallies.

RL, here in London a congestion charge was levelled on 'the square mile'. There were minor, non-violent, and non-controversial rallies protesting its implementation. These kind of rallies are so non-controversial that they don't make the international news, so I couldn't find similar rallies in the US.

Solid