It was only a matter of time. We've all had the script for a while:

The New York Times prints this on the front of their website (which I assume means front page in print), an articled called Anarchists Emerge as the Convention's Wild Card. It's the same old same old. Here's what protest-busting Miami Mayor Timoney has to say:

"These guys are pretty sophisticated and just wait for opportunities,'' said Chief Timoney, who as a ranking officer with the New York police confronted anarchist demonstrations during the 1992 Democratic convention. "They are going to look to provoke the cops. It's all a game.''

I'll tell you what I'm worried about: I'm worried about Agent Provocateurs. I'm worried that the patriot act makes it legal to infiltrate political groups and that some people may be embedded to start trouble. This was documented in '68, and though there are very few paralells between NYC and Chicago, one would be remiss to remember the chaos without remembering that it was largely instigated by excessively aggressive police action and agents of the police and COINTELPRO.

I know the NYPD is going to be relatively mellow, their little display of arsinal notwithstanding. Most of them don't really like Bush all that much, so they sympathize with protesters generally. They're by in large not looking to bust heads or book people.

The question is whether there will be any mob action. I can see the smart black blockers running their calculated decentralization tacits, demonstrating how a few hundred people with cell phones and a few bicicles can bring a major metorpolis to a halt. These tactics are effective, but they don't make great television, so I don't expect a lot of media coverage.

All in all I think the hype is good for everyone on the left; it will lead to a bigger "let down" when the streets of NYC fail to flow red with the blood of the unbelievers. It will also let the protesters prove their tactical superiority. And maybe just maybe the naicent ties between regular liberal and the radical left will continue to strengthen, as we realize we have goals in common.