I put this on the Tailhook Daily Briefing also:
"The Marines don't belong here, they shouldn't have come here, and they should leave..."
This is not a quote from some Afghani rebel, or some Iraqi insurgent. No, these are the words of the MAYOR! of Berkeley California (still a United States city last I checked...)
Seriously though, is anyone really surprised by this?
From the Contra Costa Times:
Berkeley Council Says Marine Recruiting Center is not Welcome
BERKELEY, Calif.—Local officials in this liberal city say it's time for the U.S. Marines to move out.
The City Council voted 8-1 Tuesday to tell the Marines their downtown recruiting station is not welcome and "if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome guests."...
Not surprising to many readers of my site, our Marines are pretty accustomed to the status of "Uninvited and Unwelcomed Guests". Seldom however is this the prevailing opinion anywhere between the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans!
But wait there's more!
...In a separate item, the council voted, also 8-1, to give protest group Code Pink a parking space in front of the recruiting office once a week for six months and a free sound permit for protesting once a week.
..."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....
I commented on another of my favorite blogger's site on this subject, "Wouldn't this equate to giving a 'Reserved' parking space to the Neo-Nazis outside of a synagogue?
The entire Bay Area of the great state of California has melded into a melting pot of pacifists and the more vile, "passive aggressive's" toward those who CHOOSE to defend the freedoms we all enjoy in our great nation.
Must be nice to relax in the Barko-Lounger of freedom provided by those who serve! And then snipe at those who do!
But alas I would not worry about our Brother's in Green. They are fairly used to, and conditioned to be amidst Hostile Situations!
I think Chesty said it best:
It is a good thing our Marines understand Semper Fidelis because the self proclaimed intellectuals of Berkeley obviously need to study up on their Latin.
Good Night Chesty Wherever You Are...
Its really disappointing to me how people act sometimes. I made a choice as a young man, not the one some people wanted me to, My own. I am glad I had somewhere to go locally. I never stopped loving the family and friends back home, and they all showed support and concern when I left, through bootcamp, my deployment to Okinawa, and when I deployed to Iraq. I needed that. Somehow it kept me going. I thank you guys.
I hear these things people are doing and saying and it makes me think... god I wonder who's out there now... sitting on post. I sure wish I could tell him, "Keep your head up man. I'm thinkin bout you."
And to those that changed their mind and just want to come home, Be strong... I'll have a cold one waiting for you. Because I know what its like. But whoever it is out there, I hope its not these peoples family or loved ones. The reason I say this is because its things like this that's killing them out there. Yeah they put themselves in the position, but its you all that bring us back. Your words and actions are very powerful, you move us. These people must be some kind of freedom fighters against the war, but what they don't see is me... their own. But they don't want to know that.
I believe they can be proud of us for standing up for something we believe in, Ironically just like them.
I don't know, maybe I,m just simple minded, hell maybe that's why I joined the Corps. I know I don't believe in some things for my own life. There's places I'd never go to because the services aren't for me. However I don't intend to impress my decisions and ideas so hard on others that I am trying to force them out of town. If a gay couple wants to get married, they may need a church. They're decision may conflict with some peoples beliefs or decisions, but those people have no right pushing them out of town, right? Its a life they want to live, and if they believe in it we should be proud of them and support them. Or just leave them alone, but remember that being against having a place to go to when making a life decision, you are defeating the original intention by being against the freedom of choice.
Posted by: CPL GARCIA R A | October 31, 2008 at 09:43 AM