It's True.
Money does talk.
Money does talk.
Berkeley Backs Off on Banning Marines
As six Republican senators devised a plan to yank $2.3 million in federal funding for Berkeley programs (the Semper Fi Act of 2008), the mayor of the famously liberal city apologized Wednesday for his hard stance against a Marine recruiting center.
... At their Tuesday council meeting, leaders will discuss scrapping a letter that might be perceived as targeting the center or the Marines. The letter said that the recruiting center was not welcome on Shattuck Avenue and that the Marines were uninvited and unwelcome intruders.
So, before the $2 million was in jeopardy, it was appropriate to call the US Marines 'intruders'?
... Bates said the city didn't mean to offend anyone in the armed forces and the focus should have been on the war not the troops.
"There's really no correlation between federal funds for schools, water ferries and police communications systems and the council's actions, for God's sake," said Bates, a retired U.S. Army captain (and major ass). "We apologize for any offense to any families of anyone who may serve in Iraq. We want them to come home and be safe at home."
...The Republican plan would give the funds, intended for a school lunch program, UC Berkeley and ferry service, to the Marines instead.
"Patriotic American taxpayers won't sit quietly while Berkeley insults our brave Marines," said one of the senators.
...Last week the council passed resolutions giving CodePink a place to park out front (of the recruiting office). Some have said that meant the city giving was giving the group a place to continuously protest the Marines.
"What they have done in Berkeley is they have set aside a parking spot and in my opinion a public right of way, a public transportation corridor, specifically for a private organization -- in this case CodePink -- to harass and annoy the United States Marine Corps and their recruiting efforts. We think that playing around and having an agenda with the public right of way is subject to ramifications. There is $2.3 million in proposition 1B transportation dollars. We think that should be in jeopardy."
"I was under the impression that we have the right of free speech," said Xanne Joi of Code Pink. "To me, I thought free speech meant you get to say what you want without recrimination."
Well, Xanne, that applies to everyone, including the Marines and their supporters, not just CodePink-o.
Berkeley City Councilman Gordon Wozniak extended an olive branch to the Marines. He went to breakfast with a recruiter Thursday morning. "Berkeley is supposed to celebrate diversity and free speech and we welcome homeless people here. We welcome illegal immigrants. We give them sanctuary. We should welcome the Marines. I mean they're basically dedicating their lives to protect their country."
The city of Berkeley 'celebrates free speech' -unless you support the military; 'welcomes homeless people and illegal immigrants' - but the not the U.S. Marines.
Ann Cooper with the Berkeley Unified School District wants both sides to play nice. "Senators sitting 3,000 miles away are trying to take food away from the children of Berkeley," said Cooper. "Why? Because the Marines and the city aren't playing nice -- and that's just not OK."
Oh yeah, $243,000 for the Chez Panisse restaurant to provide gourmet organic school lunches - featuring such dishes as Comté cheese soufflé with mâche salad, Meyer lemon éclairs with huckleberry coulis, and Chicory salad with creamy anchovy vinaigrette and olive toast, to the Berkeley School District.
And don't forget the $975,000 for the Matsui Center for Politics and Public Service at the University of CA-Berkeley because, god knows the papers of Congressman Robert Matsui need cataloging.
I have a better idea for that money - scholarships for the children of Marines.
Hey, Ann, why don't you residents of Berkeley elect some new, non-Moonbat council members who will 'play nice'?
“This is a free country. The city of Berkeley can do what it wants to do,” Rep. John Campbell, R-Calif., told Newsmax correspondent Kenneth R. Timmerman in a conference call with conservative bloggers at the Heritage Foundation.
“Just don’t have the rest of the country subsidize them.”
BTW, would you believe the city of Berkeley has a "PEACE & JUSTICE COMMISSION"? Barking Moonbats
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