Posted on 02/06/2008 11:51:35 AM PST by kellynla
KANSAS CITY, Mo., Feb. 4, 2008--The national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) is furious with the Berkeley, Calif., City Council, calling their actions “outrageous and idiotic” following their recent vote to give the boot to a U.S. Marine Corps Recruiting Station.
“The resolution is a direct insult to not only the Marines Corps, but also to all members of the nation’s armed forces,” said George Lisicki, national commander of the VFW, the nation’s largest organization of combat veterans. “Their recent actions represent a calculated effort to legalize harassment of one of our nation’s most elite military organizations. If there were ever a prize awarded for lack of appreciation and awareness for what our military has contributed to preserving our way of life, the Berkeley City Council would certainly win the trophy.”
The Berkeley City Council, on Jan. 29 by a vote of 6-3, told the Marines at the downtown recruiting station that they are not welcome in the city. Furthermore, by an 8-1 vote, the council voted to give anti-war groups the right to harass the Marines, even giving protestors a parking space in front of the recruiting station. The only council member to vote against both proposals was Gordon Wozniak, with council members Betty Olds and Kriss Worthington joining Wozniak in voting against the council’s resolution to boot the "unwelcome intruders."
“The city council leaders need to be reminded that all the freedoms we enjoy as Americans have been earned by generations of patriots who were willing to fight to protect the liberties we, as Americans, enjoy,” said Lisicki, a Vietnam War veteran from Carteret, N.J.
What Lisicki said also troubled him was the failure of city authorities to do nothing when Code Pink, an antiwar group who originated the complaint against the Marines, defaced the front door of the recruiting station by altering the sign “U.S. Marine Corps Officer Selection Office" to "U.S. Marine Corps Officer Assasination [sic] Office."
“If anyone has earned the right to have a presence in any community in this nation, it would be the U.S. Marines,” said Lisicki. “The Marine Corps is welcomed in every city and town across the America except for the City of Berkeley and by the Taliban and Al-Qaeda in Iraq and Afghanistan."
The national commander also is encouraging its 2.3 million members of the VFW and its Auxiliaries to e-mail or call city council members.
City of Berkeley 2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 TEL: (510) 981-6900, TDD: (510) 981-6903, FAX: (510) 981-6901 Office Hours: Monday - Friday, 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. E-mail: clerk@ci.berkeley.ca.us
Voted for Resolution Mayor Tom Bates E-mail: mayor@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7100 FAX: (510) 981-7199
Linda Maio E-mail: lmaio@ci.Berkeley Phone: (510) 981-7110 FAX: (510) 981-7111
Darryl Moore Email: dmoore@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7120
Maxwell Anderson E-mail: manderson@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7130
Dona Spring E-mail: spring@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7140
Laurie Capitelli E-mail: lcapitelli@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7150
Dissenting Votes: Betty Olds E-mail: olds@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7160
Kriss Worthington E-mail: kworthington@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7170
Gordon Wozniak E-mail: GWozniak@ci.berkeley.ca.us Phone: (510) 981-7180
ping
America's Marines in Rhode Island
America's Marines in Philadelphia
America's Marines at the Marine Corps Museum
America's Marines in Kentucky & Indiana
America's Marines in Nashville and Columbia
America's Marines in Denver and Leadville
oooooooooooooh the Berkeley businesses are already feeling the “heat” LOL
They have threatened to not pay their business taxes if Berkeley doesn’t rescind the vote.
Not just “permitting” harassment but openly facilitating it, such as by granting a special parking permit to Code Pink for RIGHT IN FRONT OF the Marine recruiting office. No one else can park there, but Code Pink can?
The citY council is filled with old hippies that reveled in tormenting their parents when they were children with tantrums like “SO I AM DOING DRUGS, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT, THROW ME OUT”!
Forget the condemnation, because they don’t care, and cut off all federal funding—this will get their attention.
The petition
We, the undersigned condemn the Berkeley City Council’s treasonous attack on US Marine Recruiters stationed in their city. We ask that Congress cut off funds from any and all municipal entity within the confines of the city of Berkeley, California, until such time as the city council withdraws it’s action.
The City Council has voted 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.”
The measure passed last week by a vote of 8-1.
The council also voted to explore enforcing a city anti-discrimination law, focusing on the military’s “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy.
In a separate item, the council voted, also 8-1, to give the Marxist 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.
http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/cutoffberkeleynow
“WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?”
We are going to “hit them in the wallet!”
And the Berkeley businesses have already notified the mayor & city council that they will not pay their business taxes unless and until they rescind this vote.
Has the City Council made any sort of statement other than that lame attempt on their website?
not that I know of...
I do know that there is at least one city council member(who voted against the measure) who is attempting to get the vote rescinded...
I received an email from him...
Berkeley sounds like a fine shore leave for several companies of off duty Marines. With orders to just “enjoy the sights, don’t harass the locals, but don’t let them try to intimidate or harass you, either.”
The liberals need to be taught that actions have consequences.
The public should be reminded of this again when election time comes around.
I can think of a hellofalot better places for leave than Berkeley! LMAO
That’s why we get so many Marines on leave in O.C.
“Your money is no good here, Marine!”
(A Marine would NEVER hear that in Berkeley/S.F.!)
The only thing a Marine could expect in Berkeley is getting arrested...something the Berkeley cops wouldn’t do to the protesters in front of the Marine Corps recruiting station who were forcibly blocking folks from entering!
Semper Fi,
Kelly
You can contact the Berkeley Chamber of Commerce here:
http://www.berkeleychamber.com/contact.php
Perhaps the Marines could follow the advice of W.T. Sherman and “Freely forage upon the land.”
Waiting for the next BIG-One in San FranSicko to come and remove Bezerkley.
Ping
Delivery of e-mail to the mayor’s office, Mayor@ci.berkeley.ca.us, failed. Looks like they got a LOT of mail!
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