Talk show host Adam Kokesh has announced an ill-conceived plan for an armed protest march into Washington D.C. on July 4th:

"On the morning of July 4, 2013, Independence Day, we will muster at the National Cemetery...to march across the Memorial Bridge, down Independence Avenue, around the Capitol, the Supreme Court, and the White House, then peacefully return to Virginia across the Memorial Bridge. This is an act of civil disobedience, not a permitted event. We will march with rifles loaded and slung across our backs to put the government on notice that we will not be intimidated...This will be a non-violent event, unless the government chooses to make it violent. Should we meet physical resistance, we will peacefully turn back... If this page gets to 10,000 supporters by June 1st, and we have the critical mass necessary to pull this off (1,000 actual attendees) we will march. Please spread the word, share this event, and invite all your friends."

Anyone foolish enough to sign up for this has just identified himself as a potential "domestic terrorist" who deserves to have his weapons confiscated. In the unlikely event that the march actually proceeds, the participants should expect to be rounded up, arrested, and convicted of various Federal crimes. Be sure to "invite all your friends"!

Does anyone think that the marchers will simply be allowed to "peacefully retreat" after such a provocation? The security forces could just close off their escape route and arrest them after they cross into Federal territory. Or an agent provocateur in the crowd could fire a few shots, providing the excuse to mow down several of them as a warning to others. Remember the unarmed protester shot in the head at point-blank range a few months ago?

Attempting to prove that his followers "will not be intimidated" will have exactly the opposite effect on the general public. If someone "chooses to make it violent" as predicted, it will set off another month-long feeding frenzy for the corporate media sharks. The quivering masses glued to their TV sets will cry out for protection from the imagined threat, and the gun-grabbing legislators will be happy to oblige.

What else does he hope to achieve with this otherwise futile exercise? Who benefits?

Adam Kokesh is listed as a "talent" by Same Side Entertainment, which promises to "make your liberty event an experience to remember". According to their profile, he has a degree in psychology, spent one semester with a psych warfare unit in Iraq, was discharged from the military for a minor weapons offense, and has since become a professional agitator. Which "same side" is he on?

Beware of wolves in sheep's clothing, and self-promoting "libertarians" who wrap themselves in the flag.

The blurb for his podcast says: "We cover the headlines, what you can do about them, and whatever other crazy bullshit Adam feels like talking about". This stunt falls into the latter category, and hopefully most people will be smart enough to avoid stepping into it with both feet.

UPDATE: Mr. Kokesh has now upped the ante by calling for marches across the country to "demand" that state legislatures dissolve the Federal government:

"The American Revolutionary Army [sic] will march on each state capital to demand that the governors of these 50 states immediately initiate the process of an orderly dissolution of the Federal government... While there is risk in drastic action, the greater danger lies in allowing this government to continue unchallenged."

This is just a harmless symbolic protest -- as long as they leave the guns at home. Even so, be careful what you wish for. Suppose that a majority of the states actually agreed to hold a Constitutional Convention and dissolve the existing Federal government. What sort of collectivist tyranny would replace it? In a decadent, corrupt society entirely dependent on government handouts, a libertarian revolution is impossible.

UPDATE: It appears that Mr. Kokesh is either mentally disturbed or an agent working for the gun grabbers (or both). On July 4th, despite his failed plans for a protest march and with no visible supporters, he posted a YouTube video of himself loading a shotgun in front of the U.S. Capitol and making inflammatory remarks. A few days later, the police kicked in his door and arrested him.

UPDATE: After spending 4 months in jail, Kokesh was sentenced to two years probation for his publicity stunt, which he called "an error in judgement".