I’m a Californian, and I’m thoroughly disgusted with this state and everyone connected with running it. It’s a beautiful state geographically, and the climate is grand, but the politics stink, the business environment is being destroyed and the education system is in the toilet.
As for personal freedoms and abiding by the Constitution of this country – well, forget it. From welcoming illegal aliens and giving them the rights of citizenship, to supporting sanctuary cities, to ignoring blatant crimes, to releasing prisoners from jail and rioting on the U.C. Berkeley campus preventing free speech – California is the place.
Remember, the Cal Berkeley campus was the home of the “Free-Speech Movement” in the 1960s – the scene of sit-ins and riots, anti-war mayhem followed by the issue of “free speech.” Supposedly, it was settled, and the idea of “free speech” existed there.
No.
Now, it’s the scene of riots and actual terrorism because students, area people and outsiders are opposed to conservative speakers being invited to speak on campus.
Local politicians order the police to “stand down” while the rioters go ahead with their blatant terrorism, destroying personal property, looting businesses and attacking all opposition.
Remember, politicians were elected to protect the entire population. They didn’t. The police were hired to enforce the law – but they were ordered by the politicians not to do that – just watch the mayhem.
The first big riot prevented a campus speech by former Breitbart Editor Milo Yiannopoulos. Leftists didn’t like his conservative point of view, plus his opinions on other inflammatory issues, and decided violence was the only way to stop him.
They did but they were aided by the Cal administration, which caved in and canceled the speech when objections were heard. As the rioting grew worse, the Berkeley government did nothing, and the police watched.
Then, the attitude of the administration and the leftists forced the cancellation of a long-scheduled speech on campus by David Horowitz. There was the usual excuse – because of the “threat of violence,” Cal could not secure safety for the speaker and the audience.
And now, it’s the issue of a speech by conservative writer and commentator Ann Coulter. It was long scheduled, too. But the school used its usual excuse and canceled it. Then it put such ludicrous demands on the where and how that Coulter fought back verbally. It’s gone back and forth, now with threats of a lawsuit by the group that invited her, the Berkeley College Republicans, and Coulter saying she’ll give her speech if she has to use a bullhorn to be heard.
The University of California president is Janet Napolitano, former governor of Arizona and former secretary of Homeland Security. You’d think she’d be tough on law and order. Uh, no. In fact, I haven’t seen one statement in the media from her. It’s as though she doesn’t exist, and my taxes help pay her salary. It’s infuriating.
We’re not talking peanuts when we consider the money passing through the U.C. system. The annual operating budget for the university system statewide is $28.5 billion. Yes, billion!
You’d think “free speech” would be something Californians would treasure, especially students on the Berkeley campus. It was there that the “Free Speech Movement” of the ’60s came to a head in ’64 and ’65 with sit-ins, mass demonstrations and riots – initially focusing on anti-war themes but morphing into the issue of “free speech,” meaning having the right to say and do anything and shutting down any opposition.
Students and administrators ran wild until Ronald Reagan was elected governor. Then in 1969, when students turned into a rioting mob, objecting to a plan to fence “People’s Park,” Gov. Reagan called out the National Guard – sending in 2,000 troops to maintain order, which they did but not until one death and many injuries. It took the strong hand of Reagan’s governmental decision to regain order.
Unfortunately, our governor, Jerry Brown, ignores all that. His only interest is controlling how we live our lives, attempting to control the climate, freeing convicted criminals from jail, building high-speed train systems that will bankrupt the state for years, wanting to build massive water tunnels to move water from north to south, bankrupting agriculture – and ignoring the failing infrastructure of existing dams and refusing to build new reservoirs, all the while raising taxes almost everywhere, especially on gasoline and all types of vehicles.
If you like that kind of politician, hang on. You’ll have your chance. This guy is still aiming at Congress and, ultimately, the White House. He wants to do to the country what he has done to this state – namely wreck it and support the destruction of law and order and free speech.
You remember that – it’s in the First Amendment to the Constitution:
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press, or the right of the people to peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
It’s simple. It works. It’s the law.
And California and Cal Berkeley don’t care.
But Ann Coulter does, and she’s willing to stand up for the rights of all of us.
We’ll see this week who wins this battle.
If Coulter wins, we all do. And so does our freedom.
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