Some folks with a bit of experience with neo-Nazis offer some suggestions about how Olympia should respond to the NSM. From SR.com: Power of dignity:

The resisters to the Olympia hate rallies would do well to study the Kootenai County task force playbook.

Rather than confront haters directly, which would have provided recruitment fodder for them on the evening news, the late Bill Wassmuth, Tony Stewart, Norm Gissel and others counseled patience. One year, they encouraged Kootenai County residents to show solidarity against the neo-Nazi creed by tying ribbons at their homes and businesses. Another year, they collected statements from cities, counties and states around the Northwest in support of human rights. In the process, they supported victims of hate crimes and promoted legislation behind the scenes that ultimately led to the downfall of the Aryan Nations compound.

This makes sense to me. But it leaves unanswered what to do about the actual Nazi demonstrations. There will always be the problem that some people will show up, and then the shouting begins. Olympia needs a more organized response (involving humor, of course) that is ready on short notice to offer a coordinated counter-message to the NSM. It should be a low-tech solution, however. For example, what if everyone at the protest at the Capitol had just engaged in a giant game of freeze tag, instead of standing on the steps and yelling at the Nazis? I think that would have conveyed our message more effectively. Just think about what the King5 story would have looked like if 75 counter protesters were playing tag on the lawn in front of 8 Nazis standing on the steps? Then the story would have focused on the response much more than on the Nazis themselves.