Corporate Overreactions And Nextdoor Panic: The Reston Riots That Never Were

Quick question for the elite crisis managers at Reston Town Center. Was this:

Absolutely necessary for this?

It's not like Wednesday's Black Lives Matter protesters were allowed to march at RTC, as like lots of the "public" spaces we think are ours to freely navigate it is private property and previous protesters, journalists, and just regular folks have been chased off for far less. Instead the group -- a diverse gathering about 30 strong or so, escorted by several county police officers on bicycles -- marched to Lake Anne Plaza, where despite the myriad temptations, widescale looting of pretzels and artisanal scones and dog treats notably did not happen.

Then folks on Nextdoor heard cars beeping later in the day and freaked out, not realizing it was the South Lakes High School drive-by graduation. (Nice pictures here, by the way.)

To be fair, we did see some serious vandalism in the wake of the march. Look away, ye faint of heart:

Since this is Reston, that last one probably stands for "All Clusters Are Beige." And lord, do we act like it sometimes.