Some days, well…most days, I long for the day when I can tell someone that I live in some other state other then this Socialist haven called California. I guess I can be thankful I no longer live in the worst of the worst, the Bay Area:
As the right-wing blogosphere railed and a U.S. senator vowed financial retaliation against the Berkeley City Council for its effort to boot the Marine Corps out of town, three anti-war protesters ratcheted up pressure from the left by chaining themselves Friday to the front door of the downtown Marine recruiting office.
The demonstrators snapped their locks shut at 7 a.m. and spent the next 7 1/2 hours blocking the door, waving and chanting as hundreds of cars driving by honked in support. Finally, at 2:30 p.m., police snipped the chains and arrested them.
Two of the three were cited for blocking a business and released, and the third was booked into jail on an unrelated traffic warrant, police said.The demonstrators promptly said they would keep protesting outside the recruiting station at 64 Shattuck Square until the Marines leave Berkeley – which is what the City Council advised the service to do in a vote Tuesday night that called the Marines “unwelcome intruders.”
The council also voted to allow members of Code Pink, the protest group that helped organize Friday’s blockade, to park at a designated space in front of the recruiting office every Wednesday afternoon and operate a loudspeaker.
The council’s action apparently made Berkeley the first city in the nation to call for the ouster of a military recruiting station from its borders.
“We made really great statements by blocking the door,” said one of the three blockaders, 64-year-old Mary Ann Thomas of Oakland. “It’s time we became more articulate about what we’re doing.”
Maybe this would of worked on the dummies:
Sen. DeMint began to draft some legislation that will cut over 2 million dollars in earmarks to this city which I hope beyond hope he will be successful in enacting. The city of Berkeley has the right to act like jackasses. But in so doing they have NO right to our taxpayer dollars to fund their morally corrupt city.
Meanwhile Code Pink is starting a petition, which I have no doubt will be successful, that calls for recruitment centers to be subjected to a public hearing before opening. What else is subjected to this kind of hearing? Porn shops.
Sigh….
I heard a caller to a radio show this afternoon, I think it was the O’Reilly show with someone subbing for him, in which he offered to pay for all those kids who had decided to sign up in local Arizona towns shipped to Berkeley to actually sign the papers.
We need more ideas like that. But in the meantime make a call, send a fax, or send an email to voice your displeasure with these idiots:
CONTACTS
Mayor – Tom Bates
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704
Email: mayor@ci.berkeley.ca.us
TEL: (510) 981-7100
FAX: (510) 981-7199
TDD: (510) 981-6903
Office Hours: Mon-Fri 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
====================
CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS
====================
Linda Maio
Phone: (510) 981-7110
FAX: (510) 981-7111
Email: lmaio@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Darryl Moore
Phone: (510) 981-7120
Email: dmoore@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Maxwell Anderson
Phone: (510) 981-7130
Email: manderson@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Dona Spring
Phone: (510) 981-7140
Email: spring@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Laurie Capitelli
Phone: (510) 981-7150
Email: lcapitelli@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Betty Olds
Phone: (510) 981-7160
Email: olds@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Kriss Worthington
Phone: (510) 981-7170
Email: kworthington@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Gordon Wozniak
Phone: (510) 981-7180
Email: GWozniak@ci.berkeley.ca.us
City Auditor
Ann Marie
TEL: (510) 981-6750, TDD: (510) 981-6903
Office Hours: Mon-Fri, 8am-5pm
Email: auditor@ci.berkeley.ca.us
UPDATE
A petition has been started, check it out here and sign up. Full text:
To: The City Council, Mayor and City Manager of Berkeley, California
We, the undersigned, do register our complete outrage with the City of Berkeley for the recent resolutions that criticized our Marines, as part of an effort to harass the Marine Recruiting Center and chase all vestiges of the United States military outside of the city of Berkeley, California.
We take particular umbrage with the instructions given to the City Manager of Berkeley to tell the United States Marines that they are, “uninvited and unwelcome intruders.”
It is shameful for you to attack our military men and women who nobly and bravely serve this nation to protect our security and defend our freedoms and liberties. Those liberties include the right to Freedom of Speech, which you seem to believe should not be afforded to the members of the United States Marine Corps and service personnel in other branches of the Armed Forces.
I call upon you to immediately revoke the resolutions passed that defamed and insulted our U.S. Marines and issue a public apology to this nation, and in particular, the honorable and heroic men and women of the United States military.
See author page
Move to a different state, perhaps when of the few battleground/swing states where your Presdidential vote might actually have an impact.
Somewhere around 1967, my Mother stopped admitting she was a Berkeley grad and had grown up in the area as well. My Uncle said he also started only talking about his graduate education at CalTech and never mentioned he had a degree from Berkeley.
Heres the problem, 7.5 hours later they were arrested, 7.5 hours. I guess the only ones with rights in this country are the demonstrators. Every think is turning upside down, when is the next Reagan to come along.
Well, the entire bay area isn’t that bad. There are plenty of “W” stickers still on SUVs in Silicon Valley. Berkeley, though, has pretty much become a pit of moronic rich white people who grew up on Daddy’s trust fund and follow whatever happens to be the kewl trendy trend.
Have every recruit within 100 miles sign up at THAT station. That line should fill the sidewalk. I’m sure some of those private citizens will get code pinko to move.
I’m also hearing that they (others in the senate) are attempting to have the 2 million allocated directly to the Marine Corp. recruiting office (in Berkeley). “Smoke ’em while ya got em”
Semper Fi !
We need every phone number and email for the Berkley city government (sic) out on the blogs, especially any 800 numbers. Call the city (idiot) councel, home phones for the idiot councel members, the police (not 911), the fire depart, the tax office, the election office, the garbage collectors, everyone that has to do with the city. See a piece of trash in the street, call it in as a traffic hazard. Tie them up so bad they can’t do anything, not that a Berkley city employee does anything anyway.
Such cognitive dissonance on their part. For one thing, they believe that their city statute can trump federal law (no, not military policy -federal law) concerning DADT. Even more telling about their lack of understanding of the Constitution (don’t we all understand that it is specifically enumerated as the supreme law of the land?) is that Congress/federal government has the only authority to make laws compelling actions of the military sevices. Certainly, Berkley city statutes cannot assume precedence, because those powers/authorities were never theirs to begin with. Further, it seems that these elected officials don’t seem to understand the logic flow they are espousing: they denigrate the military and its being “evil” for its “non-inclusive and discriminating policy” about allowing gays to serve (again, notwithstanding the issue of it being federal law), yet at the same time they want to theoretically prosecute the military for the same – the end result of which would just as theoretically be an inclusive policy to allow gays to serve in this “evil” organization. I suppose that just enhances that issue of cognitive dissonance.
For another thing, the city has opened itself up to liability lawsuits now that it the mayor and city council have openly registered support for the actions we have seen by the Code Pink actions – with the specific support of city council. Any one of those who attempted to enter the recruiting station who may have received injury should now have the legitimate opportunity to sue the city for injuries received, including any loss of income from current employment as a result of such injuries.
Third, Title 18, US Code, Part I, Chapter 115, Section 2388a and b states the following (direct citation):
(a) Whoever, when the United States is at war, willfully makes or conveys false reports or false statements with intent to interfere with the operation or success of the military or naval forces of the United States or to promote the success of its enemies; or
Whoever, when the United States is at war, willfully causes or attempts to cause insubordination, disloyalty, mutiny, or refusal of duty, in the military or naval forces of the United States, or willfully obstructs the recruiting or enlistment service of the United States, to the injury of the service or the United States, or attempts to do so—
Shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than twenty years, or both.
(b) If two or more persons conspire to violate subsection (a) of this section and one or more such persons do any act to effect the object of the conspiracy, each of the parties to such conspiracy shall be punished as provided in said subsection (a).
This action by Code Pink and the Berkley City elected officials smacks of a violation under this law.
What do you think?
I heard that they scuffled with police. Let’s see, peace groups becoming violent. I love irony!
Pro-troops groups should request equal time and consideration from the Berkley City Council, and when they are refused, these groups should sue the city in Federal Court since they did not receive equal treatment.
MoveAmericaForward can file one suit
The American Legion can file another
The Patriot Guard riders can file another
etc and so forth.
This is so sad. I am calling as soon as possible to explain my hate about this situation. This is complete madness! And what makes it worse is that this is happening in America! I don’t give a fuck if this was a year ago…this pisses me off and I’m not going to take it anymore. Buy American, but avoid Berkley products as much as possible. Hopefully the city government can bankrupt as well. I’m ashamed to live in the same state as these morons. I hate this anti-America bullshit California supports. If we (So Cal) was separate from no cal, America would be better off.
I think that a couple of years in the military would do these kids some good. Prefferably in a warzone like Iraq so that they can see what the rest of the world is like. However, I do beleive that Don’t Ask Don’t Tell is evil. They should get rid of it.