Democracy?

Today I copy an e-mail from a friend in Arizona. I have stood with her in peaceful vigils along route 66. K's experience in her words:
Recently I attended a support rally in Prescott, AZ. for John McCain.
I carried a sign with a war torn child from Iraq and an Anti-War sign from Moveon.org.
Local police told me that I had a right to be singularly in the crowd and close to the stage.
I was within 15-20 feet of the stage where Mr. McCain was to speak.
There were 3 Navy/Army men in front of me, I went up to them and with every fiber of my being and told then that I loved them and what they were doing for our country and that I support THEM 100%, just not this war based on lies that we are currently involved in.
They thanked me for my gratitude and me belief in Democracy.
It has been proven without a doubt that this is a bogus war and completely unjust.
Not worth losing another soldier (4,320 & counting) or more Iraqi civilian's, CNN reports that over 650,00 Iraqis or more than 500 people a day are dying for a lie, that is innocent woman, children and men dying in a far worse regime than Saddam Hussein's.
Right away I began to experience hostility from McCain supporters.
I was promptly approached by McCain's security force and asked to leave the immediate surroundings. I told them that I had already spoken with the local police and had a Democratic right to be where I was. I was then informed that it was disrespectful to be in the area I occupied and once again was asked to leave.
When McCain appeared on stage and I held my signs up, I was promptly surrounded by at least three men physically pushing me and blocking my signs with theirs. Then the crowd of supporters turned fairly hostile, I was called a communist bitch and told to get the fuck out of there. Then the sign of the war torn child was ripped from my hands, and I felt myself being physically pushed through the crowd while threats and fowl comments were hurled at me.
My sign protesting the war was literally ripped from my hands and I was pushed physically out of his perfect little sphere of influence.
That means that people who were expressing their democratic freedoms were actually not being allowed to to do so…. Only perfect crowd-pleasing supporters were allowed within this sphere of influence that our so-called democratic media would be reporting on.
So do we live in a democratic society? I think not, the word empire come closer to mind.
Namaste"