Right, If you acknowledge them, they'll come back. But the thing is, if you don't acknowledge them, they'll also come back. Like you said, they are pumped up with self-righteousness, and they do it because they like to hear themselves talk and say they're right. Whether they get the response or not, they're still going to come back and try again, infinitely, because that's what they believe their goal is: To push the message until everyone on the planet aligns with it, or they die. Whichever comes first. And they believe that in doing so, they're doing god's work. The point is, they'll come back whether they get the response or not.

I heard a student at the very first preacher of this semester say he did it because it gave the preacher a focused channel onto him instead of yelling outward towards everyone, which I think is extremely admirable. But of course, this is regular acknowledgement. So there's a tradeoff there: do nothing and let people get yelled at, or step in and acknowledge and help other people out. Either way, they'll come back.

Now as an engineer, I have a very solution-focused mind, with the solution being {Religious people do not demonstrate on the oval}. Of course the most naive and easiest approach is to say "Preachers on oval will be shot" and walk up and shoot them in the face if they do. If that deters them and they stop => Solution achieved! If they do keep coming, they get shot, and eventually they'll all be dead, and there will no one left to do religious demonstration => Solution achieved! Either way, your solution is achieved, and all is well. Of course, this is without factoring many things including morality, legality, consequences, how murder is wrong, violation of school policy (I'm anti-gun so I'm not in favour of this method, I dont want guns on my university), And many many others. So of course, this is bad, and we have to think of a new way.

This is what I mean when I say "aggressively". Ignore-ance or simple acknowledgement will not get us to the solution we desire. If we want them to alltogether STOP, we need to send a message that If you try to do this, there will be negative consequences. I personally lean towards a student riot type deal, destruction of property (their signs), having students group up and restrain and drag these people off the oval, stuff like that is what I'd like to see. Beat them up a little. "We won't tolerate your shit". etc. One of the things I coined not too long ago is that "Our civilisation is killing us". We think we're being civilised by ignoring things and trying to stay calm and move on, but its doing far more harm to us, especially in the long run.

The other thing I can think up off the top of my head is to follow them home and attack them personally in other ways, but that's getting a bit far fetched, we all have homework and exams and class and stuff to worry about, dont have the time for that. Of course the preferred method, if we lived in a saner country/university would be to go through "official" outlets, but the fact the university/city of columbus tolerates this in the first place makes me laugh at the very idea.

If you have a better way of getting to the actual solution of {Religious people do not demonstrate on the oval}, let us know, lay it out there.