The Whole Point Was to Avoid Mob Violence

Two months after the January 6 Capitol riot, it’s now obvious that the threat of mob attacks on the government will continue to hang over the rest of the Biden years. That continuing threat was clear on March 4, America’s original Inauguration Day, when the House suspended business following rumors of another armed assault on the Capitol. This time, the mob never materialized, but, unfortunately, with many people continuing to embrace the false belief that the 2020 election was stolen, the question of whether and when online extremism will veer into mob violence again remains an urgent political concern. But where is the line between illegitimate mob violence and a legitimate act of political protest?

As it happens, this was a question the Founders thought about extensively. Their political and moral philosophy was based on what they considered a self-evident truth: Only by using our powers of reason to moderate our selfish, ego-based passions and emotions can we achieve the classical virtues—prudence, temperance, justice, and courage—necessary for personal and political self-government. A mob, by contrast, is animated