[Rhodes22-list] Marines & Berkeley - More Political Scum

[Robert Skinner]

Sorry to hear about this stupidity - but it looks as 
though the Leathernecks picked a poor beachhead.

Any town that does not welcome the Marines does not 
deserve them.  What kind of dweeb confuses the loyal 
Marines with the leadership and policies that they are 
sworn to follow?

I, for one, am damned glad to have a fellow Marine 
next to me under any circumstances, whether or not we 
share political views.

/Robert

-------------------------------------------------------

Brad Haslett wrote:
> 
> Boys and girls, here is a perfect opportunity to solve our energy problem.
> I say we take spent nuclear fuel and dump it right smack in the center of
> Berkeley.  That, or pull every last federal dollar out of that scum infested
> city.  Brad
> 
> ----------------------------
> 
> Berkeley council tells Marines to leave
> By Doug Oakley
> 
> STAFF WRITER
> Article Launched: 01/30/2008 01:48:16 PM PST
> 
> Hey-hey, ho-ho, the Marines in Berkeley have got to go.
> 
> That's the message from the Berkeley City Council, which voted 8-1 Tuesday
> night to tell the U.S. Marines that its Shattuck Avenue recruiting station
> "is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as
> uninvited and unwelcome intruders."
> 
> In addition, the council voted to explore enforcing its law prohibiting
> discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation against the Marines
> because of the military's don't ask, don't tell policy. And it officially
> encouraged the women's peace group Code Pink to impede the work of the
> Marines in the city by protesting in front of the station.
> 
> In a separate item, the council voted 8-1 to give Code Pink a designated
> parking space in front of the recruiting station once a week for six months
> and a free sound permit for protesting once a week from noon to 4 p.m.
> 
> Councilman Gordon Wozniak opposed both items.
> 
> The Marines have been in Berkeley for a little more than a year, having
> moved from Alameda in December of 2006. For about the past four months, Code
> Pink has been protesting in front of the station.
> 
> "I believe in the Code Pink cause. The Marines don't belong here, they
> shouldn't have come here, and they should leave," said Berkeley Mayor Tom
> Bates after votes were cast.
> 
> A Marines representative did not respond to requests for comment.
> 
> The resolution telling the Marines they are unwelcome and directing the city
> attorney to explore
> ------------------------------
> ------------------------------
> issues of sexual orientation discrimination was brought to the council by
> the city's Peace and Justice commission.
> 
> The recommendation to give Code Pink a parking space for protesting and a
> free sound permit was brought by council members Linda Maio and Max
> Anderson.
> 
> Code Pink on Wednesday started circulating petitions to put a measure on the
> November ballot in Berkeley that would make it more difficult to open
> military recruiting offices near homes, parks, schools, churches libraries
> or health clinics. The group needs 5,000 signatures to make the ballot.
> 
> Even though the council items passed, not everyone is happy with the work of
> Code Pink. Some employees and owners of businesses near the Marines office
> have had enough of the group and its protests.
> 
> "My husband's business is right upstairs, and this (protesting) is bordering
> on harassment," Dori Schmidt told the council. "I hope this stops."
> 
> An employee of a nearby business who asked not to be identified said
> Wednesday the elderly Code Pink protesters are aggressive, take up parking
> spaces, block the sidewalk with their yoga moves, smoke in the doorways, and
> are noisy.
> 
> "Most of the people around here think they're a joke," the woman said.
> 
> Wozniak said he was opposed to giving Code Pink a parking space because it
> favors free speech rights of one group over another.
> 
> "There's a line between protesting and harassing, and that concerns me,"
> Wozniak said. "It looks like we are showing favoritism. We have to respect
> the other side, and not abuse their rights. This is not good policy."
> 
> Ninety-year-old Fran Rachel, a Code Pink protester who spoke at the council
> meeting, said the group's request for a parking space and noise permit was
> especially important because the Marines are recruiting soldiers who may die
> in an unjust war.
> 
> "This is very serious," Rachel said. "This isn't a game; it's mass murder.
> There's a sickness of silence of people not speaking out against the war. We
> have to do this."
> 
> Anderson, a former Marine who said he was "drummed out" of the corps when he
> took a stand against the Vietnam War, said he'd love to see the Marines high
> tale it out of town.
> 
> "We are confronted with an organization that can spend billions of dollars
> on propaganda," Anderson said. "This is not Okinawa here; we're involved in
> a naked act of aggression. If we can provide a space for ordinary people to
> express themselves against this kind of barbarity, then we should be doing
> it."
> 
> E-mail Doug Oakley at doakley at bayareanewsgroup.com
> __________________________________________________
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-- 
Robert Skinner  "Squirrel Haven" 
Gorham, Maine         04038-1331
s/v "Little Dipper" & "Edith P."