Berkeley: Individual With Strong Voice Makes Difference
March 26, 2008
Eagles!
This is the guy who started it all out there in LaLaLand–Berkeley, CA. What a testimony to the Power of One–the mustard seed that exploded into the outpouring of passion abetted by MAF, GOE, Brigade America, and EU in front of the USMC Recruiting Office in downtown Berkeley.
PLEASE read Brian Dennard’s guest column and accompanying letter to the Mayor of Berkeley HERE.
And, if you like, send Bruce Kesler an attaboy for inviting Brian to say his piece. Bruce is a great friend and fan of GOE.
Eagles forever!
Larry Bailey
Berkeley: Individual With Strong Voice Makes Difference
It doesn’t take big organizations or big money or a big name to make a difference in this world, especially so in a democracy.
A local San Diego businessman, Brian Dennard, proved that once again last month when he wrote a letter to the mayor and council of Berkeley to protest their vote that the Marine recruiting station “is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay,they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders,” at the same time rolling out a privileged red-carpet (appropriate color) for Code Pink protestors.
Brian Dennard’s letter quickly spread, and its clarity galvanized opinion.
Below, as a guest post for Democracy-Project, Brian Dennard writes how it happened and what it has led to. I spoke with Brian this afternoon. Over the decades, I’ve often seen similar to his surprise at how America responded to his letter. It isn’t special people, but ordinary people with a strong voice who make the difference. They are humbled in gratitude to discovering the depth of patriotism in America.
hey-hey, ho-ho, the Marines in Berkeley have got to go. That’ was the message from Berkeley’s City Council, which voted 6-3 tell the U.S. Marines that its Shattuck Avenue recruiting station “is not welcome in the city, and if recruiters choose to stay, they do so as uninvited and unwelcome intruders.” Additionally, the Marines were called “war criminals, assassins, and murderers at the meeting.
On Jan 31, 2008 I wrote a letter to the Mayor of Berkeley stating my position regarding his and the City Counsel’s position on the USMC recruiting station. In that letter (posted below), I informed the mayor of my intention to pull all of my business out of Berkeley and the immediate area. I emailed the letter directly to the mayor at the address supplied on the Berkeley City Council’s webpage.
I also blind copied a couple of Marine handball buddies. They passed that email/letter to the guys who play in the Semper Fi handball tournament at MCRD, who passed it along to their buddies, who passed it along to their buddies, etc.
In my wildest dreams I never envisioned the response I have received. I spent the first three weeks answering my cell phone acknowledging that yes, I really did write “THE” letter, and receiving personal thank you calls from Generals, Majors, Colonels, SGTs, PVTs, CEOs, COOs, talk show hosts, and everyday American Patriots. I received over 3000 calls in the first three weeks. I am privleged and honored to speak with the finest and best people America has to offer.
Likewise I spent the rest of those first weeks reading emails from the same sort of people. In three weeks, I received over 15,000 emails at my business and over 3000 at my home once my personal email somehow got posted on the web. At this point if you Google my name and Berkeley you have some 13,000 sites to choose from which tell the story of “the” letter.
I am humbled to a degree that is hard to state clearly. I am emotionally overwhelmed with the positive response to my letter and want to thank everyone who has called me or emailed me to state their support.
Subsequent to that overwhelming outpouring of support, I and two friends started up the website www.BrigadeAmerica.com . In response to the huge number of emails suppporting our boycott of Berkeley, I have been doing weekly radio interviews on Intel Radio’s Outside The Wire, Stardust Radio, Chandler’s Watch, KSFO, Roger Hedgecock, and am scheduled on Laura Ingraham. We have been to two of the major rallies in Berkeley, and I am due to be in Washington D.C. with the Gathering of Eagles on April 7th, then by invitation, on to New York for the annual USMC Law Enforcement gala at the Waldorf Astoria on April 10th.
My intention was never to shine the spotlight on me, it was to cause, to whatever degree I could, great fiscal discomfort to the city of Berkeley in retaliation to their un-American, cowardly and despicable stance that the US Marines are unwelcome, and uninvited intruders in their city.
If in my small way I helped light a fire that now appears to be blazing across the nation, I am proud of that, but I am more proud of the fact that I could , at a time when our heroes are fighting against those who would destroy us, help focus some attention to the vast debt, and undying respect, that we as a nation owe to the men and women of the United States Armed Forces.
Respectfully,
Brian G Dennard
THE Letter
Dear Mayor Bates, Jan 31, 2008
In that you and your city have chosen to gravely insult the brave men and women, who have indeed bought you that right with their blood, I am informing you that my company will no longer do business with any of our current suppliers located in the Berkeley,California metro area. In that my company is in international resort real estate development, and do business with and am associated with, developers and investors worldwide, I am informing all of my contacts, associates and patrons that we will no longer do any business of any sort with anyone living in the Berkeley area.In that we/MDG Resorts are currently building a state of the art mega-yacht marina, all of the suppliers of Marina equipment, all owners of Yachts , all suppliers of Yacht materials & supplies, all yacht brokers and all tangential yacht business purveyors will likewise be informed that we will not do any business whatsoever with anyone from the Berkeley area.
Likewise all suppliers of building materials, both interior and exterior, currently associated with any of our several resort developments (Brisamar 300+ villas and 200+ condos: Porto Hussong, www.portohussong.com 500+ condos, 180 slip mega-yacht marina) both of which I might add have international recognition by virtue of glowing reports in Robb Report, Wall Street Journal, Yacht World, Forbes.
I will likewise inform all of our investors, most of whom are very wealthy yacht owners, casino owners, high net worth international businessmen, of our decision to essentially boycott all products and providers located in, or associated with in any way whatsoever, Berkeley, Ca.
Trust me when I say that having been in the real estate development business for over 35 years, our list of contacts and associates is long and very, very impressive. We, and I personally, are going to recomend that they ALL along with us boycott your city, its purveyors, suppliers, and businesses and CHARITIES of every kind.
You have every right to choose to take the obnoxious anti-military stance you have taken, and as stated, that right was bought for you with the blood of better men than you.I too have every right to do all that I can to insure that your city suffers consequences arising from that obnoxious, sickening stance.
Cordially,
Brian G Dennard
Principal
Director
Meridian Development Group, LLC
619 807 2444
www.mdgresorts.com
www.portohussong.com
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I am SO looking forward to meeting this GREAT AMERICAN!
The letter was absolutely phenomenal.
Me and the rest of the guys at Ranger Up were so inspired by the absurdity of the situation that we created a shirt for the Marines in Berkeley. We are donating a boxful to the guys there and we hope you enjoy it.
http://rangerup.com/macorestbesh.html
Semper Fi!
The text of Brian’s letter needs to go to every member of the US Congress including the President. We have brave men and women deployed overseas protecting and defending us. The least we can do is stand up to the enemies that we have here at home. God bless our troops and may God watch over those that have paid the ultimate sacrifice!