(April 14) – “As Washington prepares to deal with thousands of demonstrators staging something billed as a mobilization for global justice, the cities of Europe are getting ready for several days of ‘Mass Action and Mayhem’,” writes Peter Cook in today’s Globe and Mail.

“The rallying cry on Web sites used by such groups as People’s Global Action and Reclaim The Streets is that this year’s May Day — traditionally a day when Europe waves red flags — should mark the beginning of the end of capitalism, exploitation and the destruction of the planet. In London, police say they are taking seriously a threat to blow the roof off the Millennium Dome at Greenwich.

“Whether it is something to be proud of or not, London has a claim to having made random violence against capitalism and its institutions fashionable. On June 18 last year, ugly riots in London led to the wholesale destruction of nearby capitalist property, chiefly parked cars and shop windows, and to the police making 80 arrests.

“The rest, as they say, is history. From the broken glass of Threadneedle Street, it was but a short, strident march to the tear gas of Seattle (on the occasion of the World Trade Organization’s meeting in November) and to this weekend’s mass protests in Washington (heralding the start of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank spring meetings).

“Last summer in London, the authorities were not prepared for mayhem or for the presence in the streets of young activists who sincerely believe in Proudhon’s dictum that property is theft and therefore smashable. Now they, and every other civic authority, are. Just as ready too are the politicians. Many of them, particularly those of a Leftist persuasion, have quickly seen a bandwagon to be climbed upon. Naturally, they abhor violence. But they also think international organizations like the IMF and World Bank that have been theirs to command for many years are too elitist and even that they have encouraged an unfair distribution of the world’s trade and the world’s wealth.

“Such thinking is easy for the well off. And it is rich-world politicians and rich-world demonstrators that are behind the rhetoric and the riots. Perhaps the best response to the battle in Seattle came from Mexican President Ernesto Zedillo, who wondered about the determination of wealthy countries ‘to save developing countries from development.’