If the police had just done that, none of this would have happened. Clearly, Benjamin and others are on an obsequious quest for legitimacy. As if that weren't bad enough, the accusations and recriminations from the grassroots guardians of order were replete with unfair and unprincipled misrepresentations. Many of those who rioted are just as dedicated, and give even more time to the cause of justice, than do the NGO-set. In reality, the well-behaved NGO's and the rock throwers exist on a continuum, part of a single movement.
Violence is tear gas, and rubber bullets fired at point-blank range.
Moreover, the grassroots guardians of order failed to acknowledge that the vandalism only started after the police opened fire with chemical agents and rubber bullets. In fact, some actually stayed open throughout. She should at least acknowledge the role that the balaclava-wearing youth played in the wild success of the demonstrations in Seattle. Because it works. The rioting in Seattle was an honest barometer of the outrage people feel towards the rapacious depredations of global capitalism.