They're trying to replicate what happened in the late 40s and 50s, when what had been a vibrant political left was crushed between two millstones. On one side, not only communists but anybody who could be described as a "fellow traveler" was demonized. On the other side, there were any number of safe, moderate-left organizations -- many of which eventually turned out to be CIA-sponsored -- into which progressives were diverted.
The result can be clearly seen in the labor unions, which lost their radical edge, their willingness to press for fundamental changes in the organization of American society, and even their ability to organize effectively -- and which settled instead for the promises of middle-class wages and good pensions and health benefits. And now, not only are those benefits being jerked out from under them, but the right is able to convince many union members or potential members that the advantages of belonging to a strong union aren't worth having the dues taken out of their pay.
Exactly the same strategy is being enacted now. Anarchists are being set up as today's communists -- painted as terrorists and violent thugs. This puts Occupy in a particularly difficult position, because if they defend the black bloc they risk being tarred with its alleged crimes, but if they attempt to purge it from their ranks, they're falling into the same trap that was sprung back in 1948.
And if they do that, the safe, friendly, moderate-left groups like MoveOn are ready to fold them into their own agenda of pushing for minor reforms that may put band-aids over some of the more glaring problems but will not fundamentally challenge the system.
The only way past the trap that I can see is for the Occupiers to be resolutely non-violent in their own public statements and positions, to make it clear that they will not tolerate having their actions sabotaged by vandals, but at the same time to resist demonization and guilt by association. It's a tricky balancing act, but I can't see any other path.
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