That Didn't Take Long

Hours after lamenting that local officials had poorly coordinated their failings with the introduction of my independent Infinonymity, I have been informed that the Ravenstahl administration may have addressed this oversight.

Several reports indicate that city officials attempted to prevent St. Patrick's Day parade participants from displaying signs decrying the recently imposed Allegheny County drink tax. In some cases, I have been told, the censors succeeded.

We need more information before proposing immolation of the offenders, but I have seen persuasive photographic evidence that at least some naughty paraders snuck political signs past any content police dispatched by the boy mayor.

UPDATE: It has been confirmed to my satisfaction that some paraders were required, at the starting line, to remove signs protesting the drink tax. The identity of the censors (and in particular whether they were government agents or, perhaps private "organizers" of the parade), however, has not been established. Censorship of this type -- based on content, because signs plugging candidates were everywhere -- is ugly regardless of its source, but private parties have a much greater right to be discriminatory jackasses than do government actors.