I was interested in the photos at the rally showing four men (EW, 8/15), all of whom were wearing sunglasses despite a significantly cloudy day, one was debasing the flag by wearing a flag-designed neckerchief around his mouth, and not one of whom had appropriate facial hair that would pass a military inspection.

I wondered for a bit why they would be wearing sunglasses. Maybe they thought they were cool, hiding their identity from the feds, or being heavily armed among those who were not. Maybe they all had the same ophthalmologist, but I concluded that if one spends most of his life in a cave, coming into the bright light of freedom might be blinding.

Michael S. Smith

Eugene