"Never interfere with your enemy when he is making a mistake." -- Napoleon

STAY AWAY FROM THIS WEEKEND'S DISRUPTIONS
The left got very lucky when the far right laid siege to the U.S. Capitol. The whole thing unfolded so fast that there was no time to organize counterprotests.

We should be thankful for that. There was no muddling of what occurred. Trump and his right-wing marauders reaped the blame.

This was a neofascist attempted coup, pure and simple. It was not left-wingers street-fighting with right-wingers.

Even the brief attempt by some on far-right media to blame antifa (if antifa even exists) fell flat

Next weekend there will be violent, disruptive actions at state capitols. Law enforcement, massively embarrassed by the security failure at the U.S. Capitol, will be out in force

The spectacle, and the story, will be right-wing thugs versus the police, getting busted. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

And we should keep it that way.

The last thing we need is left protesters challenging the right, or trying to help law enforcement, or just showing up to make a point—and becoming a target when armed thugs are kept away from government buildings.

This can degenerate all too quickly into a mutual riot, with culpability diffused and confused. The story is simple, and needs to stay that way—right-wing militias mounting more failed insurrections.

A few far-left groups will relish the moment to heighten the contradictions, bash the right, or provoke the cops. Please, no.
Napoleon put it well: "Never interfere with your enemy when he is making a mistake."

There are times to insist on our right to "take back the streets." This is not one of those times.

So stay home, follow it on TV or social media, and watch the far right overreach, get arrested, and take all the blame.

Robert Kuttner for The American Prospect