[Genuine Realist]

Or maybe I’m wrong.

This may be the only line I heartily agrte,]ee with you on most of your posts.  As others have pointed out, Trump has full control of the way his rallies conduct business and it's been a sh*tshow in each and every one of them.  Just the fact they mandate people wear masks behind him, where cameras point, and cares less about all the others off-camera show where his priorities are.

I'd also rather have less gatherings, period, but there's a big difference between static positions for hours between people not wearing masks, shouting and cheering, even when outside, and much more movement in marches with larger % of masked.  And if you had a study trying to pinpoint case rises from these protest events, I wouldn't be as reflexively dismissive because you're trying your very best to spin the unspinnable.  I particularly like your rationalization that the people at rallies would be at bars and tattoo parlors otherwise.  (See the previous discussion on k variable, size of crowds/duration, etc.)  I'm sure the seniors that went to the hospital in Omaha rally were bar hoppers.  And even if they were at bars, it'd likely be *local* bars and not events drawing people from a much wider area that rally goers then return to afterwards.

Epic rationalizations. The protests - actually the better word for 'largely peaceful'protests is 'riot'- are just another form of rally. There's a lot of standing in place. 

In any case, no one has tried to quantify the covid risk and spread. No academic would dare.

[Genuine Realist]

Or maybe I’m wrong.

This may be the only line I heartily agrte,]ee with you on most of your posts.  As others have pointed out, Trump has full control of the way his rallies conduct business and it's been a sh*tshow in each and every one of them.  Just the fact they mandate people wear masks behind him, where cameras point, and cares less about all the others off-camera show where his priorities are.

I'd also rather have less gatherings, period, but there's a big difference between static positions for hours between people not wearing masks, shouting and cheering, even when outside, and much more movement in marches with larger % of masked.  And if you had a study trying to pinpoint case rises from these protest events, I wouldn't be as reflexively dismissive because you're trying your very best to spin the unspinnable.  I particularly like your rationalization that the people at rallies would be at bars and tattoo parlors otherwise.  (See the previous discussion on k variable, size of crowds/duration, etc.)  I'm sure the seniors that went to the hospital in Omaha rally were bar hoppers.  And even if they were at bars, it'd likely be *local* bars and not events drawing people from a much wider area that rally goers then return to afterwards.

Epic rationalizations. The protests - actually the better word for 'largely peaceful'protests is 'riot'- are just another form of rally. There's a lot of standing in place. 

In any case, no one has tried to quantify the covid risk and spread. No academic would dare.