There was a time when your humble correspondent used to look forward to trips to the People’s Republik of Berkeley. Growing up in the Bay Area, it’s kind of hard to avoid. The city is a magnet for the detritus of humanity and as such it also lured those of us with a healthy curiosity about the human condition. That and there were always plenty of earnest leftwing shapely adorables running around who would do pretty much anything you liked if you lied to them and they thought you were a fellow traveler. You could also get a pretty good slice of pizza at Blondie’s or an even better hot dog at Top Dog back then. Since teenage boys almost always have either food or sex on their minds, Berkeley was a better place to be than say, Barstow. That said, judging from recent events in Berkeley it would appear that the human condition is lower than heretofore imagined. Having been exposed to angry leftists pretty much all of my life, I understand their need to vent and to engage in vituperative debate, devoid of facts or logic, with anyone who doesn’t completely agree with their statements or their agenda or who poses the slightest inconvenience to them. In this case, inconvenience might be characterized as forcing the individual leftist to actually think or to consider an opinion or activity divergent from their own. This is ironic considering the fondness among the faux sophisticates of the left for calling Conservatives, Nazis.

In reality it is the left that engages in Nazi-like tactics. Many of you are aware by now, the City of Berkeley has once again expressed through its elected representatives, its utter disdain for the United States of America. The City Council has passed a resolution calling the U.S. Marine recruiting station on Shattuck Ave. “unwelcome” and referring to the United States Marines therein as “intruders”. Protestors have chained themselves to the doors and otherwise obstructed the Marines inside from performing their job. That is to recruit tomorrow’s Marines today. Since subtlety is lost on the left, let’s examine some facts that your average commie-come-lately seems to forget. The current United States Military is an all-volunteer force. Young men and women who happen to believe in what America stands for and who think that we just might be on the right side of history are volunteering. They are volunteering to shoulder the burden of maintaining our precious freedoms in the face of an enemy as dedicated and insidious as any other we have faced in our collective history. They are volunteering to protect the very freedoms that the left abuses and mocks by its own actions. For you Marx-keteers out there, that means that no one is being drafted to go and fight in Iraq, those that do so, volunteer out of a sense of decency and honor and an acknowledgement that this is a necessary fight, and not one that we picked, but one that any legitimate American should be damned good and willing to finish.

By essentially closing down the business of the recruiting station, the left has, without due process, circumscribed the freedom of expression not only of the recruiters’ assigned to that particular station, but also of the potential recruits who might otherwise have found their way inside. What makes this farce even more absurd is that the left uses resolutions and actions of a duly elected town council to impinge on the work of legitimate Americans doing their duty to protect the rest of us. That would be the rest of us that actually live in reality and not the self-absorbed social construct that the left typically inhabits. Of course that same self-absorption allows radical leftwing town councils to issue resolutions relating to foreign policy that they are powerless to enforce but that make them feel good. As if they actually contributed something beyond the mindless slaughter of more trees towards a solution to a world crisis. It is this same self absorbed world view that allows petty tyrants on town councils to make the incredible determination that their resolutions supersede any constitutional consideration. This is how we end up with the infuriating spectacle of protestors shutting down a recruiting station and town councils voting to allow special parking permits for far left radical groups in front of the recruiting station.

Fortunately for legitimate Americans, there is a groundswell of outrage across the land at these latest displays of strong-arm tactics from the left. I can assure you my readers that I will never again willingly spend a dime in Berkeley. The next time I drive through it, I vow that it will be in a gas-guzzling SUV adorned with NRA and Right to Life bumper stickers. I’ll root for Stanford in next year’s Big Game and most importantly, I will pray everyday that the Big Marine in the sky will see fit to remake Berkeley as Sodom by the Bay, and treat it accordingly. Of course sometimes we are blessed enough to witness men and women acting as instruments of His will. I reckon a squad of Marines would be more than enough to stand down the mass of socialists in the Bay. Just keep the MREs and ammo coming. Now that would be entertaining, watching a squad of Marines defending their station against a mob of hippies. What would be even more entertaining would be to watch a wave of reinforcements coming to aid the Marines, and subsequently ridding us of the national suppurating abscess we call Berkeley.

Speaking of good sport, the Super Bowl is only hours away and it's been a month since I posted a recipe. It has become a Super Bowl tradition to attend the Pollack's annual Super Bowl Party and as usual I'll be supplying the meatballs. These are always a hit at the Pollack's parties and they sure as hell do make a fantastic sandwich. They're also great as leftovers with some egg noodles to sop up the Guiness gravy. I use Emeril Lagasse's garlic meatball recipe and substitute Guiness for amber beer. Using Guiness will necessitate adding milk to the gravy in order to tame the very bitter flavor you'll otherwise get with Guiness. Otherwise, you can play with this recipe endlessly and the meatballs always come out well, but you better love garlic....a lot...

1/2 pound ground veal
1/2 pound ground beef chuck
1/2 pound ground pork
1/2 cup finely chopped yellow onion
1/2 teaspoon finely chopped garlic
1/4 cup finely chopped green onions or scallions (green part only)
1 large egg
1/4 cup fine dried bread crumbs
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 teaspoon cayenne
16 small cloves garlic, peeled
1/4 cup bleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon Creole Seasoning (recipe follows)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups thinly sliced yellow onions
1 (12-ounce) bottle Abita amber beer or other amber beer
1 cup water

In a large mixing bowl, combine the ground meats, chopped yellow onion, chopped garlic, green onions, egg, bread crumbs, Worcestershire, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and 1/2 teaspoon of the cayenne. Mix well with your hands and form into 16 meatballs. Insert a garlic clove in the center of each meatball and pinch the meat around it. Combine the flour and Creole seasoning in a shallow plate. Roll the meatballs evenly in the flour mixture, tapping off any excess. Reserve any remaining flour.

In a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the meatballs and brown evenly, using a spoon to turn them. Remove the meatballs from the pan and set aside. With a wooden spoon, scrape the bottom of the pan to loosen any brown bits. Stir in the reserved seasoned flour. Stir constantly for 3 to 4 minutes to make a dark brown roux. Add the sliced onions and season with the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon cayenne. Cook, stirring constantly, until the onions are slightly soft, about 2 minutes. Slowly pour in the beer and water and mix well. Bring to a boil and return the meatballs to the skillet. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, for about 1 hour, until the gravy is thick, turning and basting the meatballs with the pan gravy about every 15 minutes. Spoon the gravy over the meatballs and place a few on a white roll....man that's good game day eatin' and I guarantee it's not something your average PETA supporter is going to get within a mile of...

Smilin' Paul Villa U.S. Senate 2010
cyber-Congressman, R-Reno
Proud Member of the Vast Right Wing Conspiracy and 2 SUV Family