...is it possible to have rational dialogue online? Can the internet serve a purpose other than to exist as a forum that polarizes public opinion by presenting only highly charged emotional content? Is it possible to access rational thinking while in the midst of crisis?

Charged statement #1: Navy veteran Christoper David may not have chosen the best time to approach federal agents, who were attempting to put a barricade that had been knocked down back up.

Charged statement #2: Anarchists have no business at BLM protests because their respective goals are not compatible, although the means (ground-up change) might share some similarities.

Final charged statement: The small number of anarchists who exist in Portland and have infiltrated the BLM movement are the result of a historical combination of unacknowledged white privilege, the failings of capitalism, and the following fact:

The PPB has historically served to fan the flames (and thus build up and strengthen) Portland's small anarchist minority by donning riot gear and parading through downtown in a deliberately intimidating fashion (multiple armored vehicles with 8-12 armed men literally hanging off the side) and assuming military formation while threatening and provoking a small population of peaceful protestors gathered outside of the downtown justice center. I've seen this happen numerous times over the 20 years I have lived in this city.

What I make of the above fact is that PPB needs to be re-built from the ground up and to set a nationwide example of what actual community engagement and social change looks like. Because the law and order approach is broken. And Mayor Wheeler may or may not be the best person for this job. Anyone care to discuss?