On Monday, at least 400 protestors stormed — or, more accurately, walked gently up to and tapped on the shoulder — the Canadian parliament building in Ottawa to protest the Keystone XL pipeline. Over 100 people were arrested, charged with trespassing, and barred from coming near the parliament building for a year. But everybody was REALLY, REALLY POLITE about it.
The Greenpeace-organized protest — which, like Tar Sands Action in the U.S., attracted several celebrities — was described by police as "orderly and peaceful." Protestors climbed over a police fence to swarm the building, but they lined up neatly to go over one at a time, using ladders (provided by the authorities!) and proper ladder safety. So Canadian! It's kind of a surprise that they didn't just stand outside Parliament and cough pointedly.
Natural Resources Minister Joe Oliver observed the polite protest and politely demurred, saying he "firmly believes that it is in our collective national interest for the pipeline to proceed."
