Berkeley Eases Anti-Marines Stance(BOYCOTT BERKELEY!)

myway.com ^ | Feb 13, 7:11 AM (ET) | MICHELLE LOCKE

[kellynla]

BERKELEY, Calif. (AP) - City council members who were criticized for telling Marine recruiters they don't belong here have moderated their position, saying they oppose the Iraq war but support the troops.

The Berkeley City Council voted two weeks ago to send a letter to a downtown recruitment station advising the Marines they were not welcome.

After a marathon session that stretched into early Wednesday, the council decided against sending the letter, saying it recognizes recruiters' right to be in Berkeley. The council members say they still strongly oppose the war and the recruitment of young people, but "deeply respect and support" the men and women of the armed forces.

Some on the council had pushed for issuing an apology. Others rejected that, saying they just wanted to clarify their position.

[kellynla]

Not good enough.

If Berkeley doesn't support the war then Berkeley doesn't support the troops.

Semper Fi, Kelly

[kellynla]

ping

[ari-freedom]

Berkeley is extremely liberal? Who knew?

[A Balrog of Morgoth]

And take the federal funding for their organic gourmet school lunch program.

[Judith Anne]

Berkeley’s behavior in a time of war is despicable.

[Judith Anne]

It is the soldier, not the reporter,
Who has given us freedom of the press.
It is the soldier, not the poet,
Who has given us freedom of speech.
It is the soldier, not the campus organizer,
Who has given us the freedom to demonstrate.
It is the soldier,
Who salutes the flag,
Who serves beneath the flag,
And whose coffin is draped by the flag,
Who allows the protester to burn the flag.

—Admiral Jeremiah Denton

[Non-Sequitur]

After a marathon session that stretched into early Wednesday, the council decided against sending the letter, saying it recognizes recruiters' right to be in Berkeley. The council members say they still strongly oppose the war and the recruitment of young people, but "deeply respect and support" the men and women of the armed forces.

Then I assume they're also going to cancel the Code Pink reserved parking and the open right to protest that they gave them? I honestly don't know if the Berkeley City Council looked more stupid when they passed their original motion or whether they look more stupid now.

[Virginia Ridgerunner]

City council members who were criticized for telling Marine recruiters they don't belong here have moderated their position, saying they oppose the Iraq war but support the troops.

I guess they want us all to forget about the accompanying oral statements they made calling the Marines both "gangsters" and the government's "hired killers." Is THAT supporting the troops?

[o_zarkman44]

A proposed cut off of Federal Funds got their attention.
No real apology.
Keep the pressure on the commie enclave.

[ConorMacNessa]

Amen to that, Kelly!

[usmcobra]

You cannot support the troops if you don’t support their enlistments and dare I say it the introduction to the very high standards of excellence that our military holds it’s young men and women to.

Every time they say they oppose this war the basis of their reasoning is pot marked with tales of criminal acts by the very same troops they say they support.

Be it Code Pink or the Berkley city council the root of all of their protests is always the same, they hate our troops and if given enough time to speak on it will reveal their reasons every time.

That’s why this backing off means nothing, because nothing has changed, They will force the Marines out eventually.

The next time it will be some code inspector finding fault with a coffee pot in the Marines office that is in violation of some code that will cause it to be shut down.

Mark my words, this is no victory, the trenches are just now being dug for a long battle.

[AlphaOneAlpha]

This latest action is nothing more than a cheesy, disingenuous backpedal forced upon Berkeley because of the public backlash and threats of action that would hurt the city financially. So, the backpedal is unacceptable and the sheepish slink-away a gutless apology of convenience.

[yldstrk]

Back in the USSR..don’t know how lucky you are, babe....

[JimRed]

Remove all federal funding from Berkeley (and San Francisco and Ithaca as well); they are obviously the enemy among us.

[NavyCanDo]

I stayed up way past my bed time just to watch the endless parade of nuts having their 1-minute of say each before the city council. Quite a number of people that supported the Marines also spoke. What an amazing difference between the two people. One group clean cut nice looking, America loving people that you would love to have as neighbors - and the other 70 year old cranky hateful old witches in pink t-shirts, anarchist dressed in black and airhead girls with silly names like Fawn Rainforest.

[PubliusMM]

Sorry...this statement from the council rings hollow. They’ve made their statement. Now it’s time for the public to respond.

You cannot support the troops without supporting their efforts on behalf of freedom, around the world.

[LouAvul]

the council decided against sending the letter, saying it recognizes recruiters' right to be in Berkeley

They're whores. All full of steam until somebody's gonna make them pay for their convictions.

Kalifornistan is a good place for them.

[MeanGreen2008]

You can’t say those things to the troops and then claim to support them.

[clamper1797]

Kalifornistan is a good place for them

We true native hard core conservative Californians don't want nor deserve them.

Don't forget where this site is from ....

[pepperdog]

What a pathetic bunch! Really dedicated to their cause aren’t they? They’ve established their price, it’s around $2 million, cheap in todays economy...but then you are still getting what you pay for. How insane their little mantra “We Support the Troops, But Not the War”, again hoping to hide behind a slogan and be spared any criticism from the great unwashed masses. So ignorant that they can’t figure out not supporting the war means less money for the troops thereby endangering them.