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Contrast and Cross-section
February 14th, 2008The world has lately been watching Berkeley … from afar as one would watch bovine inflicted with “mad cow disease“, also know as rosieodonnellitus.
There has been a public tit-for-tat between anti-war protesters so intellectually bereft that they cannot separate policy makers from soldiers, and chose to protest outside of a Marine Corp recruiting center.
Fair enough. The Marine’s have the right to open a recruiting center wherever they like, and anti-war activists have a right to peacefully protest wherever they wish, including at the same recruiting center.
What went haywire was the Berkeley City Council, if I may indulge in redundancy. They decided to take sides in an otherwise peaceful-though-vocal disagreement. This caused a national uproar. Last Tuesday a confrontation between factions caused a tacit reversal of indignation by the city council.
I recycle all this news in order to illustrate an observation made by a friend of mine who was there, and observed both groups in action. Being a military vet, he was not unbiased in his assessment, but the starkness of the contrast between the festering post-hippie Berkeley dwellers “mentality” and the opposing Marine Corp supporters is vivid. My friend wrote:
The Code Pinkers and Co. were an eclectic bunch. One man wore a dress, many sported dreadlocks or other types of filthy hairdos and most were just plain scruffy. Their group was composed of a mix of leftover 60s radicals and brainwashed youth. Their discourse consisted mostly of invective and profanity. They seemed often confused as to just what the issue was that we were assembled for. On at least one occasion I smelled the cloying scent of weed wafting out of their crowd.
In contrast, our group consisted of a cross-section of normal America. There were men and women of all ages … There were veterans of many wars, from Korea to the current Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts … and there were college students and teenagers. Most were well dressed, quiet and cooperative. Most impressive to me were the students, both college and high school … They were well-spoken and courteous.
Left-of-center residents of Berkeley are perpetually amazed that the rest of the county thinks Berkeley is collectively nuts. Illustrative is that those opposed to the actions of the Berkeley City Council represent a large cross-section of America. Black, white, Hispanic, old, young. When a large cross-section opposes your beliefs, then you have to question your beliefs, at least in passing.
I know Berkeley, and I know they won’t.
In an innocent sort of way they are benignly introspective, and firmly believe their own hype. Collectively they are incapable intellectual growth in the political realm. Nothing short of strategic defunding, from both the national and state treasuries, will cause Berkley to quit being Berkeley.
The sooner the better.
I do admire soldiers, and anyone else, who are brave enough to give their lives to a cause that they believe in. But I think you do have to question the policy makers.
That upstanding, patriotic, ‘cross-section of normal America’ is responsible for choosing it’s leaders and their choice, I think, reflects their stupidity.
I suggest your friend inhales some of that ‘cloying scent of weed’ so that he can better engage in some ‘benign introspection’ and question the moral fibre of that well spoken, courteous ‘cross-section of normal America’