Collegiate Times

It is a common occurrence at Virginia Tech to see the Corps of Cadets marching to and from the Drillfield, engaging in training exercises on the Upper Quad and jogging around campus.

As far as I have seen and heard, they are a relatively welcome presence at Tech and in Blacksburg (aside from maybe the running and chanting past residence halls in the early morning hours). There are plenty of anti-war individuals on our campus and in our community, but it is hard to imagine an environment where activists chain themselves to our military residence halls and offices, slam red paint-drenched hands on the facilities' windows and yell anti-war and anti-military slurs at those in uniform.

These are exactly the kinds of activities taking place in Berkeley, Calif., at a military recruitment office.

After being called "uninvited and unwelcome intruders" by the Berkeley City Council, the recruitment office has continued to battle protestors who have been barricading themselves in front of the entrance. While this itself is an illegal activity, police officers have been told to "remain neutral," which is being interpreted to mean allowing protestors to break the law and infringe on individuals' rights.

The Berkeley City Council retracted the "uninvited and unwelcome intruders" statement but has failed to apologize and continues to lead the fight to get the recruitment office moved farther away from schools and residence areas in Berkeley. They have granted Code Pink, an organization of women seeking to end the war in Iraq and prevent future wars, a prime parking space in front of the office so that they can conveniently protest. The council has also encouraged other anti-war groups to apply for parking spaces so that they too can help force the recruitment office out of town.

Code Pink has been leading aggressive daily protests, which include people who scream "killer" at members of the military wishing to gain entry to the office. Others have set up caskets draped with American flags and hold signs reading "Bush = Hitler" and "all recruiters lie." Apparently for protestors from Code Pink and other activist organizations, free speech only works one way. The same brave group of male and female Marines who have protected our right to free speech (and right to protest) since its inception are being denied their own rights.

A telling example of this can be seen on a video from the protest posted on YouTube. Titled "More Chaos in Berkeley, Police Remain Silent and 'Neutral,'" shows the less-than-peaceful ranting of protestors and the forceful blocking of the recruitment office door.

While many Americans disagree with the Iraq War, protesters in Berkeley seem to have the wrong target in mind. The Marine recruitment center in Berkeley is not devoted solely to recruitment for Iraq. Furthermore, most of these individuals are instructed by higher-level officers to carry out their jobs of recruitment. Protesting this center shows that many of these individuals not only don't support our military, they also have no respect for other people's right to free speech.

We've all heard that dissent is patriotic and that a person can be against the war but support the troops. For some, this is the case. Many others, however, just hide behind these mantras and pretend as if their words and actions could be interpreted as anything but contempt for our military. For those who may have a hard time distinguishing between these kinds of actions, I'll lay out a few personal guidelines.

It is patriotic to question our government's actions in Iraq. It is not patriotic to burn American flags outside a military facility. It is patriotic to hope for and work toward peace. It is not patriotic to slander those recruiters who are merely recruiting for the Marine Corps. Although for most people this is common sense, it seems that many people have become disillusioned enough to think that anything to assist in ending the war in Iraq somehow qualifies as patriotic.

I do not believe in blind patriotism. I think most people agree that our government's actions constantly need to be evaluated and criticized when necessary. Protesting the war in Iraq by being disrespectful and hateful to military recruiters in Berkeley is not a demonstration of patriotism. It is about time these individuals stop masking their opinions with ideas about patriotism and military support, and start calling their actions what they really are -- not just anti-war, but anti-military.