I want to say there's nothing unusual about this, but it doesn't smell right.

they have been using this device for at least a century to control protest and undermine any attempt for justice and change.
Send in the agent provocateurs to cause trouble...and the cops are deep into it....it is all about control and they know how to do it....and no one in the media dare call them on it...because they are controlled too.
K&R

But no one thought to stop them, or call them on it? If a bunch of people show up at your informal football game and say "fuck football, let's go tip some cars over,", do you all just go follow them? Do you let them talk your friends into it?

They were almost certainly agents, and needed to be stopped immediately. Whose job is it, and what tools are legitimate?

edit: looking back, I don't intend this to be personal. Obviously someone there as a medic is doing more than their fair share already. But there were a hell of a lot of OTHER people there. What was their reaction to the "leaders"?

and metal rods. Live streamers were also threatened. Peaceful non-violent protesters will not arm themselves to battle agent provacatuers.

The police though, were well armed and did little to nothing.

like 3 day old fish.

so we can identify these people...

move away & put distance between them & your group

the rest went elsewhere.

jack-booted thugs

Looks like provocateurs, acts like provocateurs, all the way down to the way the uniformed cops were behaving around them.

Possibly cops, or maybe those scumfuck Pinkertons the banksters have been hiring lately.

Isn't there a puppy you can kick?

bless your heart.

Of course it will take a lot courage. Whistle blowers doing the right thing are more mistreated than they have been in decades.

We have social media now, so the media savvy young folks in OWS chapters everywhere should be screaming this info from the metaphorical rooftops, so that no one can go anywhere without hearing about it.

Put it on your Facebook pages. Twitter it. Post fliers about it. Write LTTEs. Blog it, and send the info to all the ploitical blogs you know--as well as to all the blogs or message boards you frequent that deal with other subbjects but that might be willing to ehar such news from regular posters.

Tell everyone you know in every way you know. Then, the next time somethinglike this happens, sspread the word some more.

Four Barrel Coffee ‏ @fourbarrel

#OWS #OSF Occupiers: you are at risk of being guilty by association. Even though they are the ones that co-opted and are joyriding the cause

fourbarrel #OWS #OSF Occupiers: we fully realize that "splinter factions" don't fully represent you and what you're fighting for.

Does make you wonder where, who, how this secret group organizes for events. Funny none of the Occupy people or GA's ever hear about violent plans ahead of time. I know if such plans were outlined at my town's GA's, there would be a lot of disagreement.

Then you can show that the GA is not party to the violence -- which sounds planned.

I have seen comments from some Mission people who felt business owners should shoot the protesters.

I smell divide and conquer here.

I could be duped.

But SFGate never was one for civilized commentary...

What's important is that it's being used to divide and conquer.

"I don't know any of those guys."

No fucking shit, they're anonymous.

Anonymous brings out the worst in people.

Thanks for providing this. I think anyone who reads it will understand what is being done there.

There is a lot of video online of globalization protests from toronto, pittsburgh,miami. There are always agents/plants that start violence either to make the movement look bad or to give an excuse to crack down. I don't know the answer but to be successful the movement needs some strategy that will work despite these hardball kinds of tactics by the other side.

I wonder if some of them could be private security hired by the banks? Hopefully there is a ton of video. And some of these people are going to be identified as plants.

But will it even matter if the average American watching on TV just sees the orgiginal headline story of the buring cars or whatever, but they never hear that it was really a setup?

Maybe there should be increased self policing or something? The worst thing is if innocent people are getting their stuff damaged by this.

Thanks to everyone out there protesting sensibly.

Tried and true, they will continue these tactics without a shade of doubt, as long as they work, much more effective than when they wear their uniforms and pepper spray and beat people.

if the vandals were cops, and the uniformed cops were in on it, that means the cops are clearly on the side of the 1%, which may be true for some, but certainly not all.
but literally hundreds of people would have to know that the guys were cops, and to leave them alone to do their dirty work. not one whistle blower????with proof?
They may not have been OWS'ers, but they are not cops either....

Uniformed cops don't necessarily need to know which individuals in the crowd are planted. They just would need to receive instructions like when to start and stop enforcing laws, and which ones. There is no reason not to believe it since in has been a common occurence at all the globalization protests. Plants have sometimes been seen getting dropped off or picked up by police, and caught on video.

all disruptors are plants from local police, FBI, CIA, right wing supported operatives, ect....
It makes us look dumb and nobody's buying it.
Let's face it, there are plenty of bored college kids that aspire to be anarchists, because it's sounds cool and it's something to do. Accusing some right wind government agency is kinda silly, don't ya think ?

Don't believe it if you don't want to, no big deal.

I agree with you that fixating on it doesn't get us anywhere, because the general public doesn't believe it or doesn't care. Like I said upthread, we need a strategy that will work even in the face of this kind of disruption, or a better way to counter it somehow.

I don't know the answer to that. Maybe there is no better way to counter it beyond what is already being done.

Yes some of these disruptors are not planted, but are just angry people and they mistakenly think this is a good protest tactic. Maybe some are, as you said, "bored college kids" who just think it's cool. Just say I rebuke you and move on.

Also I really wish people wouldn't use the word 'anarchist' as if it is synonymous with violence. Anarchists are mostly peaceful people.

I have had the pleasure to meet & converse with many anarchists since Occupy started. Their outlook & behavior has (for the most part) been exemplary. Even the term "black bloc" is thrown around carelessly. I have changed my mind about how I view these terms.

I hope in the future we (as a progressive community) will get a little informed about our brothers/sisters in the movement for social justice, and not demonize them as a group.

Many of the folks in Food not Bombs are anarchists and they bring free, great-tasting, healthy food out to Occupy's GAs on a regular basis. Just as an example.

I saw such terminology being used as a divide and conquer tactic, it's good that people recognize it's not a proper broad brush to use.

Occupy has been sustained by a lot of anarchists. FnB is a purely anarchist organization as well as ABC (anarchist black cross, ever get someone bringing milk to you to cleanse your eyes with mace, it's very likely ABC or someone trained by an ABCer, I've been involved in an ABC, it's a fantastic group when the cops get violent).

Yep.