Saturday, February 16th 2008
$93,000 the cost of Berkeley’s Resolution
Security and crowd control around the Berkeley City Council meeting on Tuesday required spending $93,000. From the San Francisco Chronicle’s report:
About 140 Berkeley police officers worked at the protest, which drew more than 2,000 demonstrators from around the country, said Mary Kay Clunies-Ross, public information officer. There were four arrests, all misdemeanors.
The protest was over the City Council’s Jan. 29 statement that the Marines, who have a recruitment center downtown, are “unwelcome intruders.” After 3 1/2 hours of public comment and debate, the council voted early Wednesday to back down from the statement.
This money could have gone toward education or any number of services people say needs funding more then the military. Instead it was squandered as a result of a political statement the City Council backed down from. It also infuriated countless people and gave others a free parking space.
The City Council knew when it passed the original statement last month it would cause a stir. They are no strangers to political controversy and should have been very careful to articulate their stance of support the troops and stop the war, if that is what they wanted to say in the first place. Instead, the City Council opted to call the Marine recruiters “unwelcome intruders” and start a storm of public protest. I wonder, what is the next great piece of legislation to come out of Berkeley’s Peace and Justice Commission?
