Hmm.
Towards a model for public protest
Suppose there's a phased continuum between:
A whiny crowd
A violent mob
An actual revolution
Contrariwise, a Totalitarian state tries to prevent the formation of whiny crowds in the first place.
This is implicitly based on an assumption about the speed of the phase change. The Totalitarian assumes that a crowd can quickly become a revolution and must be prevented, while the American assumes it takes time.
This begs for an analogy to temperature and pressure. Perhaps circumstances can be such that superheated public opinion will convert to revolution instantly.
Perhaps allowing a little yelling as a treat lets off steam, lowering the risk of revolution.
Anyway, when people say <The crowd demanded an outrageous political outcome>, I have to ask if the crowd is just whiny, or if they're actually a revolution.
Then we can suggest that the American attitude to free speech and assembly is to allow whiny crowds, but disperse them if they become violent mobs, well before there's any risk of actual revolution.