Our grassroots group, Maine Voices for Palestinian Rights, has tried in multiple ways for two years to engage Sen. Angus King regarding Israel’s false narrative and brutal policies. We focused on King, since we believed he would entertain new information and alter his heretofore-ardent support of Israel. We were wrong.

There is now an effort to brand the filibuster as inherently an instrument of hatred and repression. The filibusters of civil-rights legislation in the mid-20th century are justly notorious, but the tactic has often been used to progressive ends, most recently thwarting as much of Trump’s legislative agenda as possible.

So said Cherokee County Sheriff’s spokesman Jay Baker by way of explaining last week’s mass shootings at three Atlanta-area massage parlors.