Police State, Much?

There was a rally today of local union workers in downtown Toledo to show support for the embattled union of The Blade workers, the local newspaper. According to the news there were about 400 people there. They were surrounded by over 100 cops. Check out this picture of one of the nearby streets:



Now imagine that picture multiplied by a factor of ten, and you get some idea of how strong the police presence was.

Now I realize that just a few months ago, there was a large riot in the north end, sparked by a group of Neo-Nazis. And the police response to that was muffed at best, and downright incompetent at worst. But geez! That doesn't justify using the excuse of a presumably peaceful union rally into an excuse to turn downtown Toledo into a police state!

UPDATE (4/11/06, 2:00 p.m.) The Blade buried the story on page 7 of the Second News Section.