Anyone else smelling a rat relating to the LA demonstration violence?

[TommyT139]

1. Most common advice I've seen...

....has been "[wear] garb to conceal [your] identity and...[use] umbrellas to hide from security cameras."

Also on the list is to consider whether or not to bring your usual phone, and if so, lock it with a passcode, not just face or fingerprint. You cannot be compelled to give your password without a warrant, but cops can use your biometrics against you, as it were.

And this is good news: people are getting savvy about how even local police are using facial recognition to track who is at a protest. In Atlanta, the abuses surrounding "Cop City" show how bad it can get, and that wasn't even explicitly trumpian.

Using the fact that reasonable people disguise themselves as if it's evidence of them being plants or false flag operators does a disservice to those of us who wish to retain as much privacy and freedom as we can in these times.

That generalization will also make it harder to discuss tactics and keeping protests non-violent, with those protesters who are open to that.

Do outside instigators exist? Of course. (Remember: every accusation from trumpists is a confession.) But it's not about clothes or umbrellas, and it's not even always about rage in the face of fascism.