Something can’t devolve into nonsense if it started out as nonsense.
I don’t think the protests started out as nonsense. The initial protests began based on faulty information. Had that information been true, I think most people on Free Republic would have supported them at least on some level. The prospect of a cop shooting an unarmed, surrendering suspect in the back ought to outrage all of us. The government ought not be allowed to engage in such activities freely.
The problem though is that within a few days it became clear that the facts people were protesting over were not accurate. Michael Brown wasn’t innocent, he had just roughed out a store clerk while stealing cigarellos. He had tried to steal the officer’s gun and made at least some physical contact with the cop. Brown then took off before turning around to charge at the cop. Rather than obeying the cop and surrendering, Brown continued to move forward and was shot for his efforts.
With the actual facts in hand the continued protests become something else entirely. To continue protesting, you have to suspend belief in the uncontradicted facts of this case. They didn’t start out as something evil per se but they became that once it became clear that the protests were started over faulty accounts of the acts committed.