1968 Democratic Convention Chaos-Inevitable?

Both "The Chicago Convention: Furies in the Street" and "Continuity and Change In American Politics" do a good job of setting the stage for the 1968 Democratic Convention. They describe the candidates at the convention, the political decisions leading up to the convention, and what actually happened at the convention. It is mentioned that in addition to the issues of "law and order," the Vietnam War, and race issues that there were major changes to the structure of the Democratic Convention occurring in 1968. For example, the very nature of the Rules Committee was being challenged. It is important to remember that conventions in the political process are relatively new and not included in the Constitution. Therefore, aside from the important political and social issues that would unfold at the convention, the readings made me think that it was about time for the structure of the convention to be called into question. No wonder there was so much chaos! Thus, I believe that a combination of structural changes in the convention process when matched with the splintering of opinions within the Democratic party caused this inevitable "explosion" at the 1968 Democratic Convention. What do you think? Was this explosion of chaos inevitable or Mayor Daley and the Chicago police have taken precautions to prevent it?