A Tiny Guide to Agent Provocateurs

A Tiny Guide to Agent Provocateurs
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This is intended as a short reference for common group assemblies. Agents targeting ecological activists or established autonomous communities will have more advanced practices which are beyond the scope of this text.

An agent provocateur is someone in the service of the state who joins a dissenting group or protest in order to, variously:

* Discredit the group from the outside by convincing others in the group to carry out illegal actions or violence
* Discredit the group from the inside by exploiting or creating internal divisions


Agents often:

* Act like zealots about the cause, yet seem to lack important kernels of understanding.
* Be trollin': keep discussions and action unproductive, debate theoretical issues at the expense of action, focus on ideas over stated concerns.
* Lack background connections or references; no one (with the exception of a possible partner) will know them.
* Create needless conflict both within groups and between group members.
* Observe individual group members rather than the group activity at hand.
* Gravitate toward people in the group who are dissatisfied, usually with the aim of spreading that dissatisfaction.
* Were former prisoners who do this work as part of a deal; these tend to jump from organization to organization in a relatively short time.
* Have unknown sources of income; a job that doesn’t match their spending, "freelancing", "savings".
* Provide gifts for key figures within the group, helping them build trust.
* Are uncomfortable discussing themselves.
* When confronted, get defensive and make accusations.


Equally as important as making sure our shared ventures are secure is making sure paranoia doesn't rule the day. Most of the characteristics listed here could quite easily apply to those who are immature, recently politicized, or emotionally imbalanced. If your group can exercise sound judgment calls and maintain a healthy atmosphere of group consensus, it will not easily fall prey to provocateurs.


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for the brothers and sisters of occupy wall street
and all the occupations
everywhere
#occupywallstreet #ows #occupyeverything