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thedrifter
03-21-03, 05:28 PM
American flag flies upside down, ribbons for troops trampled at UC Berkeley Protest <br />
Protesters: &quot;The most heinous attack on innocence&quot; <br />
Chancellor: Bush abuses history <br />
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Story by Steve Sexton...

thedrifter
03-21-03, 05:29 PM
But there was no word from the chancellor on whether the flying of the American Flag upside down right outside his office is more un-American than not dissenting from the President.

Students, faculty and staff on campus early yesterday morning saw the official flag of the university flying upside down—a sign of distress. Several witnesses, including Patriot staffers, said they saw the flag upside down, and other witnesses said it appeared a bag of garbage hung from the flag.

The university did take swift action to right the flag once it was pointed out to them. “As soon as we became aware of it, we changed it,” said John Cummins, the chancellor’s chief of staff.

But those who saw the flag upside down said they were utterly disheartened.

“I was shocked and dismayed by what I saw,” UC Berkeley student Philip Wilson told the Patriot. “ I saw our flag, the symbol of our freedom and honor, hung upside down with what looked like a bag of refuse attached to it.”

Chancellor Berdahl came out earlier this week with remarks opposing what was then a looming war in Iraq.

“I feel as though this is an unprecedented departure in American foreign policy: to launch an offensive attack on a sovereign nation that does not, even by the estimates of the administration, pose an immediate threat,” Berdahl told the Berkeleyan. “Nor has it attacked us directly. It really crosses a psychological threshold that we have never crossed before in our foreign policy. And it’s an important threshold insofar as it’s always easier to cross it again once it has been crossed.”

Saying that his remarks are not on behalf of the university, the chancellor also told the Berkeleyan that “this has been an historic turning point in American foreign policy, one that has left NATO in tatters and the United Nations seriously damaged — all the international institutions that have been built up since the Second World War.”

“It’s a radical departure, and I can’t help being concerned about it as an American citizen,” he said.

Today he penned a letter to the San Francisco Chronicle in which he alleged the Bush administration has abused the lessons of history in making their case for war.

His recent outspokenness on the Bush administration and the war in Iraq anger Dave Galich, president of the Berkeley College Republicans, who said the chancellor’s remarks serve to extenuate the imbalance of political discourse on the campus.

“He says he wants a balanced discourse,” Galich said. “But why come out with these remarks that just reinforce the dominant view on campus and serve to further alienate conservative students who are already intimidated from speaking up against professors or fellow students? It’s outrageous.”

---
Angel S. Brewer contributed to this report.


Sempers,

Roger

thedrifter
03-21-03, 05:30 PM
Fans boo The Star Spangled Banner

Posted: Friday March 21, 2003 12:50 AM

MONTREAL (AP) -- Fans booed during the playing of the U.S. national anthem before the New York Islanders' 6-3 victory over the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday night.

The sellout crowd of 21,273 at Bell Centre was asked to "show your support and respect for two great nations" before the singing of the American and Canadian national anthems.

But a significant portion of the crowd booed throughout The Star Spangled Banner in an apparent display of their displeasure with the U.S.-led war against Iraq. More than 200,000 people turned out for an anti-war demonstration in Montreal last Saturday.

"I'm sure there are a lot of people against the war, but some things people can't control," said New York's Alexei Yashin, who is from Russia. "They were probably showing what they feel about it."

Teammate Mark Parrish, a native of Bloomington, Minn., was upset hearing the boos.

"I came to the game pretty pumped up, but once I heard that it really got me going," Parrish said. "So I guess I can thank them a little bit for getting me more pumped up."


Sempers,

Roger