Time for a Boycott!

[gridlore]

The City of Berkeley has gone too fucking far. A USMC Recruiting office opened on Shattuck Avenue in December 2006. It's mission is to attract recent college graduates to serve as officers.

"Code Pink" one of the shriller anti-everything groups in the area, went nuts.

The Berkeley City Council just passed two resolutions: One gave Code Pink a designated parking spot, right in front of the station. The second?

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.

The United States Marine Corps. Morons, if the Marines were coming to your town as "unwelcome intruders" y'all would currently be either dead or learning to love life as an EPW. Marine recruiters are complete professionals, and I say this as an old Army grunt!

But things get better.. Betty Olds, member of the Politburo for the PR of Berkeley actually said the following:

"I'm ashamed of my vote," said Councilwoman Betty Olds, who helped approve the parking spot but not the condemnation. "The protesters should have free speech - this is where Free Speech was born, after all - but to tell the Marines they are not welcome is shameful. If I had to do it again, I wouldn't even go for the parking spot."

Free Speech in this country was born at a place called Lexington and Concord. The rights enshrined in the First Amendment were won by force of arms, including those first Marines.

Amazing.

So, until both these resolutions are withdrawn and the City Council of Berkeley issues an apology to the USMC, I will not be spending a freaking dime in that city. That includes companies based in the den of weasels.

Let Bezekely know how you feel about this:

Contact information for the Berkeley City Council
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704
Tel: (510) 981-6900, TDD: (510) 981-6903
Office Hours: Monday - Friday 8 a.m. - 5 p.m., E-mail: clerk@ci.berkeley.ca.us

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.

You might also contact your national representatives and suggest that if Berkeley hates the federal government so much, they can do without federal money.

To be clear, I support Code Pink's right to be idiots in public. What is appalling is a city government attacking a branch of the military.

Comments

[sylvan.livejournal.com]

*Nod* I'm sure you'd be upset to know that activists up here have been trying to keep military recruiters out of the high schools except for a once a semester job faire. Of course this area has really embraced Lt. Aaron Watada and his message.

I think some of what the city of Berkeley is doing is ridiculous; however I'd love to see a city's (or state's) anti-discrimination laws challenge the whole absurdity of the military's current policies on gays. It still upsets me that at a time when we need people to join, we still discriminate. Of course, not having gone into the military action that we have might have helped too.

[eleri.livejournal.com]

keep military recruiters out of the high schools except for a once a semester job faire.

Myself, I don't see this as devaluing the military at all. Let it have access to potential 'employees', at the same rate and in the same way as any other company that might hire right out of highschool.

Back when I was still in HS, they were camped out at tables in the commons at least once a month, for a few days at a time. The same was not true for other businesses, and other job-hire type things were limited in when/where they could be seen.

[sylvan.livejournal.com]

I don't either, but the protests drawing attention to it were very anti-war and anti-military. I'm anti-war, but not anti-military. If we could trust our government more, I actually wouldn't be against brief compulsory military service.

i'm sure you'll correct me if i'm wrong....

[redc1c4.livejournal.com]

but wasn't Watada the one that was discovered to have been having an affair with the wife of one of his troops, and, after it was discovered, declined to go to Iraq because he was afraid he would be facing non UCMJ justice? i have *no* time for those who suddenly discover, after they've gotten what they want from Uncle Sam, that they are "opposed" to what he's asking them for. that's just bullshit.

as for the policy on gays et al, that's a function of Congress and the President. the one thing Bill could have done to redeem his sorry self in my eyes would have been to reverse that, but he didn't..... he had 8 years and did shit. i call bullshit.

for the record, & i've got witnesses, i think the whole policy is st00pid.

anyone who wants to serve, should be encouraged to.

Watada, and all the other cowards, should be given a fair trial and either life at hard labor or a firing squad upon conviction. NO ONE made them take the oath and sign the contract: only they allowed themselves to do so, and to lie, either at the beginning or at the end of the process. either way, the only sympathy i have for them is found in the dictionary: it's right between "shit" and "syphilis".

Harmony Church Rules.

Re: i'm sure you'll correct me if i'm wrong....

[sylvan.livejournal.com]

I don't know anything about an affair. Lt. Watada stated that he believed the war to be illegal and that, under the doctrine of command responsibility, it would make him party to war crimes so he refused to be deployed.

Re: i'm sure you'll correct me if i'm wrong....

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

The problem is the war. From the perspective of the UCMJ and the laws of land warfare, is not illegal. Based on lies, yes. Of questionable value, yes. But not illegal. Congress voted to authorize force, and the orders came down the chain of command. Lt. Watada was never issued an illegal order, which is the only defense he can claim. Not agreeing with policy is not an option open to serving military officers and enlisted men. We may think the mission is only slightly dumber than the President who ordered it, but our duty is to carry out that mission to the best of our ability.

[caerbannogbunny.livejournal.com]

Feh! In a generation or two when we have a military class and the liberals loose a lot of the access to it due to cultural differences then realize that the people in the federal government and law enforcement tend to come from the "military class"...

Maybe they will realize the error of their ways.

It's the mindset of people that are willing to assume responsibility and handle power in an orderly fashion that is an enabler for power...

...and that's what most soldiers have and many of them don't.

that could be ugly.....

[redc1c4.livejournal.com]

good thing i'll be dead before it's an issue.....

unless i should get excited now? %-)

Re: that could be ugly.....

[caerbannogbunny.livejournal.com]

Dude! It's been happening for a while already...

...I mean, quick poll:

How many of us vets have a father, uncle, grand-dad or more who are also vets?

Re: that could be ugly.....

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

A great number, but only my paternal grandfather was career, and that was in the British Army.

Re: that could be ugly.....

[caerbannogbunny.livejournal.com]

Some of the character traits that promote the ability to serve in the military sucsessfully are heritable and probably more common in people descended from soldiers...

Should be interesting.

The Morons In Action...

[zakueins.livejournal.com]

What's really tragic is that Berkeley is getting really grey these days. Hate going there, when I was younger it was an awesome place-they had just about everything I could ever want there.

some of the best summers i ever spent were in Berzerkley....

[redc1c4.livejournal.com]

back in the late 70's..... but things have changed. thank gawd the Marines haven't. Semper Fi! and what the penguin said. %-)

to quote a good friend of mine:
"If you're in the Army, it doesn't matter.. you have no soul, being a brainwashed killer. (I was told this by a very earnest young woman in Berkeley the other day. The look on her face when I asked why she was risking life and limb by angering a soulless killer was worth the lecture.)"

Harmony Church Rules!

"unwelcome intruders"?

[redc1c4.livejournal.com]

how about "Swift Intruders"? if the Marines are coming, this is how they'll be cruising up Shattuck. can you imagine the disturbance in the "force" this would cause? Go Marines! http://www.acu5.navy.mil/

personally, being an old Mech/Cav tread head, i'd say it's time for a Thunder Run. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGQxR1FXta8

yeah, i'm sure there's a way to make that a link... but before you dog me, can you generate a 10 digit grid? do you know why you should be able to?

Peace Out!

[pompe.livejournal.com]

Does the US military consider sexual orientation when hiring? Isn't that illegal?

[kengr]

Yes they do. And no, it's *not* illegal. That's why it's a pity that ENDA failed.

In *most* of the US, it's not illegal to discriminate based on sexual orientation. And in even more it's legal to discriminate based on gender identity.

http://www.nolo.com/article.cfm/objectId/E76BEBE6-E194-46C1-983629F17557E86D/111/259/283/ART/

[pompe.livejournal.com]

Wow. I mean, I'm just the cloistered Scando but it seems as gay awareness is fairly high in at least parts of the US and was so early. It wasn't that long ago being homosexual was still a crime here, as an example, and we didn't get our first openly homosexual government minister until 2006.

I had no idea America didn't have anti-discrimination laws based on gender identity.

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

We do have those laws, but they do not apply to the Armed Forces of the United States. Under the Constitution, Congress sets the laws that govern the military, and they comprise a parallel set of laws and codes. Being a service member means living under a different set of rules from civilians.

[kengr]

Doug, as I noted, we *don't* have such laws even for civilians. Only a few states have anti-discrimination laws that cover gays. And a few cities and counties in the states that don't have state laws. It sucks, but that's the way it is currently.

[kengr]

Remember, we've got multiple levels of laws in the US:

Federal: no protection for homosexual or transgendered
State: 17(?) states have laws that protect gays. far fewer protect TG
city/county: a number, but a rather miniscule fraction of the total

I happen to live in a city that's had antidiscrimination laws for a number of years. Though if you are pre-op TS you still can get in trouble for using the "appropriate" locker room.

I think we have a state-wide law taking effect soon. But we still have a law (amendment to the state constitution, passed by initiative petition and a followup vote) that makes it illegal for gays to marry. Though the courts just cleared a challenge to a new law allowing "domestic partnerships".

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

The Armed Forces operate under their own laws, set by Congress. Being GLBT is a bar to enlistment and cause for dismissal from the service.

Stupid policy, considering how it gets ignored when we have massive manpower requirements and enforced again when peace breaks out. Like Red, I say anyone who is physically and mentally able to handle the job should be allowed to serve regardless of race, gender, religion, or sexual orientation. This includes allowing women to try for combat arms slots.

[pompe.livejournal.com]

Interesting. How is it enforced? Do they actually ask a recruit if he or she is bisexual?

[gridlore.livejournal.com]

Yup. They asked me way back in 1983 and part of my downfall in the Army came when CID was investigating a "homosexual ring" at the 25th Infantry Division (Light).

Under Clinton we got "Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Don't Pursue" which is a sad joke.

The US military has never been on the cutting edge of social policy. The Army was segregated until 1948, and the only job for blacks in the Navy was mess steward. The USMC simply refused to enlist blacks. Harry Truman changed all that, but we're still sadly behind the times.

another song for ye

[(Anonymous)]

You know it.

Rodger Young
http://www.west-point.org/greimanj/west_point/songs/RodgerYoung.htm

Semper Fi from an old squid, doggie.

Bert R.
p.s.
I'm on LJ, but I do it so seldom I forgot my frimping password. Waddaya expect from a squid?