After a highly publicized ordeal involving UC Berkeley and Ann Coulter, and after the latter insisted as recently as just a few hours before the time of this writing that she would speak at Berkeley irrespectively of the fact that administrators had done all that they could to prevent her from being heard, Ann has decided to…cancel her event.

"There will be no speech," she wrote in an email to Reuters. Two groups that originally planned on sponsoring her had backed out.  "I looked over my shoulder and my allies had joined the other team." Ann added: "I have no sponsor, no lawyer, no court order.  I can't vindicate constitutional rights on my own.  I was just supposed to give the speech."

Whether these were the only considerations that led a defiant Ann Coulter to reverse course as dramatically and abruptly as she did is questionable.  For the time being, they are also beside the point.  The points that are worth focusing on here are three-fold.