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January 31, 2008
Berkeley: Marines "Unwelcome, Uninvited Intruders"
The half vast editorial staff are delighted to announce that Day 2 of Berkeley, California's increasingly popular Swarming of the Moonbats (a fresh and funky local tourist attraction based on Pamplona, Spain's Running of the Bulls) is in full swing! Scores of brave moonbats are expected to hit the streets in noisy solidarity, determined to protect gullible American youth from the lying lies of The BusHitler and Dick Cheney's oil-grubbing capitalist cronies!
But more importantly, these courageous moonbats are doing the good citizens of Berkeley an important service by shielding them from the tiresome freedom of choice that comes with living in a pluralistic, democratic society! After all it can be so wearisome, having to read newspapers, listen to the alternatives, and evaluate the information provided before making a career choice. And what if one makes the wrong choice and decides to become a murdering traitor instead of a peace loving, responsible child of our Mother Gaia?
Nay, do not think of such an atrocity! It takes a village to raise a child.
Should the good people of Berkeley have to bear the oppressive weight of thinking for themselves! Not if the City Council has anything to say about it! Code Pink will relieve them of this odious burden. This is, after all, the true essence of "freedom" from fear:
Members of the Berkeley City Council showed their opposition to a Marine Corps recruiting office in Downtown Berkeley last night.Council members supported the two resolutions-one supporting anti-war protests and the other criticizing military recruitment practices-citing opposition to the war in Iraq, deceptive recruitment practices and the right to protest.
"By taking a stand against recruitment we are protecting the health and safety of our youth," said PhoeBe sorgen, a member of the Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission. "I see the protest as taking a proud and courageous stand."
Code Pink, a national anti-war grassroots organization, will be granted a parking spot for their regular Wednesday afternoon protests and will not need to apply for a sound permit for the next six months, under one resolution.
The other resolution more directly criticizes the presence of the center in Berkeley. The city manager was directed to send a letter to the U.S. Marine Corps saying they are "uninvited and unwelcome intruders" in the city.
In addition, the city attorney has been directed to investigate whether the city's anti-discrimination laws can be enforced at the center, based on the military's consideration of sexual orientation in hiring.
A bold and courageous stand indeed. The City Council will bravely show their utter condemnation of discrimination... by openly singling out the Marine Corps for discrimination and allowing city-sanctioned harassment intended to drive them from property they have rented. Melanie Morgan of Move America Forward comments:
"This whole thing strikes me as discriminatory against poor, middle class, people of color, both black and brown, who come out of the military more prosperous than when they went in," said Melanie Morgan, the chairwoman of Move America Forward, a grass-roots, pro-troops organization with more than a million members nationwide. Morgan also has a conservative talk show on KSFO."They are making it more difficult for these young people to succeed in society by denying them easy access to the military recruitment procedure," she said.
One such Marine was Sergeant Rafael Peralta, soon (if we are lucky) to be one of America's few Medal of Honor awardees. Sergeant Peralta's inspiring story has been covered here and here:
Sgt. Rafael Peralta didn't have to become a United States Marine. And he didn't have to go to war. That's just the kind of man he was.He joined the Marine Corps the day after he received his green card. On the walls of his bedroom, there were only three items: the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights and his boot camp graduation certificate. You can see the mind of this hero in his letters he diligently wrote home to his younger brother and sister. Before he left America, he wrote his 14-year old brother Ricardo,
"be proud of me, bro...and be proud of being an American."Ricardo and his sister would receive another letter from their brother:
"I was just doing my homework and there was a knock on the door," said Ricardo Peralta, 14. "The moment I saw them, I knew."In his letter to Ricardo, Rafael said he was doing something he had always wanted to do. He asked Ricardo to be proud of him because the Marines were making history in Iraq.
Rafael had been killed during an assault on Fallujah.
His body took most of the blast. One Marine was seriously injured, but the rest sustained only minor shrapnel wounds. Cpl. Brannon Dyer told a reporter from the Army Times, "He saved half my fire team."
Most Americans have never heard of Rafael Peralta, and they never will.
In past wars, he would have been a hero. His name would have been a household word, his deeds an inspiration to small boys, their eyes growing wide with amazement at his sacrifice. The chests of old men would have puffed out in pride. Crusty veterans would have stood a bit taller, remembering their own service. Women would have grown misty-eyed, and young girls would have laid flowers on his grave, wiping away a tear as they dreamed of handsome heroes.
But they will never hear of him - his voice has been silenced. The mainstream media does not consider the sacrifices of men like Sgt. Rafael Peralta "newsworthy". The mainstream media do not seem interested in talking to Sgt. Peralta's family. Instead, we get to hear about Cindy Sheehan all day, every day.
The word "respect" figures prominently in the rhetoric of the city council. Council members would like the Marine Corps to "respect" their wishes, yet they show little respect for the intelligence of their own citizens or the young men and women of this nation:
Berkeley Councilmember Dona Spring said she supports the wording of the initiative, but said she would prefer the issue be passed by council so it can be enacted faster rather than waiting for the initiative to be placed on the ballot in November."I think we should just go ahead and pass it," she said. "We can't take everything to the voters."
But some proponents are hesitant to pass the ordinance through the council because they feel it might be watered down by other council members.
It is not respectful of voter intent to pass initiatives behind closed doors, and it is not respectful of the intelligence of young men and women to deny them the opportunity to make free choices. The Constitution guarantees groups like Code Pink the right of peaceful assembly and the right to distribute literature countering any information they believe may be "deceptive". Certainly our information age, not to mention the liberal atmosphere of Berkeley, offers plentiful opportunities to rebut the Marine Corps message without trying to silence it entirely. To do so is not just misguided; it is downright un-American. One can't help but wonder what other establishments Berkeley would allow to be so treated?
The city council, which is backed by the activist group Code Pink, hopes the bi-annual Swarming of the Moonbats will succeed in driving the Marine Corps out of Berkeley forever:
While the proposed initiative would not have a direct impact on the current military recruiting center, Zanne Joi, a CodePINK activist, said she hopes it would create enough political pressure to drive it out of Berkeley."There are many other convenient places for the Marines to be where they are wanted. We are asking the military to respect the people of Berkeley," she said.
But do the people of Berkeley respect the rights of their own citizens to make free choices? It would seem not, if their idea of peaceful protest is to grant unusual exemptions to activist groups who have illegally defaced public property in the past with the intent of driving a legally sanctioned activity out of town on a rail. Is this the much vaunted "tolerance" and respect for alternative lifestyles we hear so much about from the progressive crowd? Judging from the quote of one local business owner, it doesn't sound that way:
Councilmember Gordon Wozniak, who voted against both resolutions, said perpetuating the conflict in front of the center would harm nearby businesses.Ziba Fanaian, manager of Z & S Beauty Studio, said the anti-war activists are disruptive when they create noise and block the sidewalk.
"Sometimes it is very crowded," she said. "It is not easy for us, for business."
But then, as another City Council member commented, apparently on the streets of Berkeley, not everyone has the right to equal access and equal protection of the law:
"The Marines ought to have better sense than to come here," Olds said.
In the city of Berkeley, apparently having the "correct" opinions matters a great deal. Otherwise, you get run out of town by an unruly mob the City Council.
Posted by Cassandra at January 31, 2008 06:31 AM
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Comments
I don't remember who said this but I thought it quite true..
The military volunteers to defend the rest of the country but they get paid to defend the Bay area...
Posted by: Carrie at January 31, 2008 08:54 AM
This is terrible. Now of age children will be forced to learn about the military on the street.
But there is always the Folsom Street Fair to take up the slack.
I wrote the east bay off a LONG time ago.
Posted by: Cricket at January 31, 2008 08:55 AM
Shame on you!
These brave warriors for peace can only defeat the BusHitler by fighting dirty!
Posted by: Ron Paul at January 31, 2008 09:33 AM
Yeah, a bunch of wimmin wearing pink. I am so scared...NOT. Since they have bent the roles of
gender equality, they had better not complain about police brutality.
They might get farther if they looked like Donna Reed or June Cleaver. Real moms
*snickering*
Posted by: Cricket at January 31, 2008 09:53 AM
It's ironic that Code Pink, a group against war, and San Francisco, a city against war, have, essentially, declared war on the Marines.
Isn't Code Pink against violence? Isn't defacing property, you know, violence?
Posted by: William Teach at January 31, 2008 10:05 AM
All forms of property are fascist tools of the Patriarchy used to oppress People of Cholor, transgendered wolves, and the working poor.
Therefore, destroying it is a liberating and beautiful act!
Fight the Power!!!!
Posted by: Medea Benjamin at January 31, 2008 11:31 AM
The Thunder Run has linked to this post in the - Web Reconnaissance for 02/01/2008 A short recon of what’s out there that might draw your attention, updated throughout the day...so check back often.
Posted by: David M at January 31, 2008 12:11 PM
"'By taking a stand against recruitment we are protecting the health and safety of our youth,' said PhoeBe sorgen, a member of the Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission. 'I see the protest as taking a proud and courageous stand.'"
Well, as they often like to beat us over the head....uhh, remind us, they are the adults and they're in charge now. They're only doing this.......
wait for it,......
heh
Posted by: Sly2017 at January 31, 2008 12:55 PM
"They might get farther if they looked like Donna Reed or June Cleaver. Real moms"Golly Wally,
That's not my mom. But she does remind me of that old lady pushing that shopping buggy all over town singing in a real loud voice.
Eddie says that he's going to do a San Andreas earthquake dance, so I think I'm going to go watch.
Bye...
Posted by: The Beaver at January 31, 2008 01:09 PM
"By taking a stand against recruitment we are protecting the health and safety of our youth," said PhoeBe sorgen, a member of the Berkeley Peace and Justice Commission. "I see the protest as taking a proud and courageous stand."
On the walls of his bedroom, there were only three items: the United States Constitution, the Bill of Rights and his boot camp graduation certificate.
Don't mind my tears. I'm happy.
Posted by: spd rdr at January 31, 2008 01:57 PM
As I said elsewhere... I get really REALLY mad on occasion. This is one of them.
"We are asking the military to respect the people of Berkeley"... These walking piles of human debris wouldn't know respect if it walked up and hit them in their pie-holes. Respect is not something that's given... it's earned. You cannot respect someone who does not respect you, ! So why should the USMC show you any freaking respect after you publically state the Marines are "uninvited and unwelcome intruders", you slack-jawed mouth-breathing waste of paternal genetic material?
Allow me to retort, oh city council. You are attempting to kick out the single most positive force for world peace and equality this forsaken blue dot has ever had? And why? "Because they're violent." Where do you morons think peace comes from? Flowers? Rainbows? NO! It comes from heavily armed men (and women, I don't want to offend my sisters here) who are willing to stand between your cowering third point of contact and the monsters who ARE OUT THERE that want you and everyone you know dead or enslaved. And unlike in your fantasies where the US Military is indistingushable from the Schutzstaffel, our troops have gone above and beyond in their attempts to protect the lives of civilians even at risk of their own lives.
Respect... Do something to earn some before DEMANDING it of better men (and women) than yourselves. The problem is, it is abundantly clear that the actual concept of respect is as far beyond your capacity for understanding as the concepts of honor, sacrifice, duty and courage.
Sorry folks... stupid people piss me off.
Posted by: MikeD at January 31, 2008 01:57 PM