Karen Beck of MoveOn says she will call the police on #Occupy if their actions upset her

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124. You would be right if Beck came out of the Occupy movement -- but she doesn't

It's not unlike the situation here at DU. Somebody who has been around for years and has a proven track record can get away with saying things that would get a newbie tombstoned. This means that newbies have to watch their words more carefully, display humility, and not start speaking in terms of "us" vs. "them" before they've proven their credentials as one of "us."

That's how I see Beck. She isn't an Occupier. She's an outsider. She's the one whose statements about calling the cops on anyone who becomes violent are proposing to create a situation where some people are okay and others are outside the tent. She's the one who seems to be attempting to define Occupy as being about nothing more than "pointing out economic inequalities" -- which would exclude the anarchists, Marxists, and assorted rabble-rouses who are focused on a radical overhaul of the system.

I'll grant that it's possible the reporters completely distorted Beck's actual position. That she said to them, "We're trying to start a movement of our own that focuses on some of the same problems as Occupy but is less confrontational and appeals to a different demographic." And that the reporters had their hearts set on writing about "factions" within Occupy and distorted Beck's actual statements to fit their Procrustes Bed.

But under present circumstances, and given the negative reactions by some of the people who have attended 99% Spring's trainings, I would say suspicion lies with Beck and not with the reporters, unless proven otherwise.