I awoke to the rumble of motorcycles. Walking to lunch, I discovered what was up: Hundreds of leather-wearing pro-war bikers, mostly veterans, have descended upon my town to protest Berkeley's refusal to accommodate Marine recruiters. They blast the country song, "Have You Forgotten," which has this anachronistic couplet: "And you say we shouldn't worry 'bout Bin Laden/ Have you forgotten?" — outdated, given Bush's statement six years ago about Osama: "I truly am not that concerned about him." Berkeley doves are probably more conscious of Osama than the administration is.
But in any event, I guess the Berkeley left can't complain too much about a pro-war, motorized Critical Mass. I, on the other hand, am slightly annoyed: One reason I put up with all the Trotskyists and Leninists around here is I at least have some sanctuary from the loud belligerent nationalists who inhabit much of the rest of the country. But on this day, Berkeley is crawling with both international socialists and hawkish activists who, unlike 70% of America, still support the Commander in Chief. (Then there's the onerous spectacle of police officers everywhere serving up the pretense of keeping order.)
Oh, and by the way, of course most Berkeley folks don't care about this, or the antiwar protests, either. The mainstream in this town is tragically apolitical when it comes to the national garrison state, and has been for many years.
