Mayor of Toledo to Marines: Leave Downtown

Mayor to Marines: Leave downtown
He says urban exercises scare people

Staff Sgt. Andre Davis talks to his commanding officer as he leaves the Madison Building after Mayor Carty Finkbeiner requested that the Marines leave the downtown location.
 
 
By JC REINDL
BLADE STAFF WRITER

A company of Marine Corps Reservists received a cold send-off from downtown Toledo yesterday by order of Mayor Carty Finkbeiner.

The 200 members of Company A, 1st Battalion, 24th Marines, based in Grand Rapids, Mich., planned to spend their weekend engaged in urban patrol exercises on the streets of downtown as well as inside the mostly vacant Madison Building, 607 Madison Ave.

Toledo police knew days in advance about their plans for a three-day exercise. Yet somehow the memo never made it to Mayor Finkbeiner, who ordered the Marines out yesterday afternoon just minutes before their buses were to arrive.

"The mayor asked them to leave because they frighten people," said Brian Schwartz, the mayor's spokesman.

"He did not want them practicing and drilling in a highly visible area."

So after a brief stop at a friendly base in Perrysburg Township, the Marines by early evening were back on their way home to Grand Rapids.

"I wish they would have told us this four hours ago," Staff Sgt. Andre Davis said.

Sergeant Davis, who traveled ahead of the five-bus convoy, stepped from his vehicle into downtown about 3:20 p.m. and was told by a city employee that the mayor wanted him and his soldiers packed up and out by 6 p.m.

Members of the 1st Battalion, 24th Marines have trained periodically in downtown Toledo since at least 2004 and most recently in May, 2006.

Past exercises have involved mock gun fights, ambushes, and the firing of blank ammunition.

The Marines' buses set a course for their battalion's Weapons Company headquarters in Perrysburg Township as soon as they heard of the mayor's decision.

The Reservists' visit was no surprise to Toledo police, who Tuesday issued a news release to media outlets on behalf of the Marines that asked Toledoans not to be startled by the sight of camouflaged soldiers toting M16 rifles.

Police officers were awaiting the Marines' arrival yesterday afternoon and had set up a roadblock at Madison Avenue and Huron Street.

"There was apparently a break in communication somewhere between the mayor and the police department," Mr. Schwartz said.

"Where that break was, we don't know yet."

Maj. Jeffrey O'Neill, the company's commanding officer, said he was disappointed by how events played out yesterday, especially because Toledo had been a gracious host for Marine exercises in the past.

"You can go to military ranges for live fire [exercises], but there's no way to duplicate the urban jungle unless you actually train inside a city," Major O'Neill said.

Mr. Schwartz said the Marines declined Mayor Finkbeiner's alternative offer for them to practice their urban patrol tactics inside the former Jones Junior High School, 550 Walbridge Ave.

Major O'Neill said he was not aware of such an offer.

A pair of Marines spent the better part of yesterday setting up the Madison Building with generators, heaters, radios, and food to become the unit's overnight headquarters.

After receiving the mayor's request to leave, they began the task of moving the equipment back into an armored Humvee.

Lance Cpl. Brandon Bukrey-McCarty, 22, recalled taking part in the company's 2006 urban patrol exercise in downtown Toledo.

He said he learned skills during that exercise that proved useful during the unit's deployment to Fallujah, Iraq, in 2006-2007.

"It was extremely helpful," Corporal Bukrey-McCarty said.

The training "got me used to looking up on rooftops, looking around every alley, every open door."

Sergeant Davis and other company leaders estimated the total cost of the aborted training exercise, including travel, at roughly $10,000.

Before he left downtown for Perrysburg Township, Major O'Neill said he was not sure what type of training, if any, his unit could undertake without access to downtown Toledo.

"But we're Marines," Major O'Neill said. "We'll adapt and overcome."

link

---

Office of the Mayor
Carty Finkbeiner
One Government Center
Toledo, OH 43604

E-mail the Mayor!

mayor.toledo@toledo.oh.gov

 

---

 

Toledo is not a place I will ever visit.... 

---

You really wonder how this so called mayor would react if it were a bush of terrorists marching into town or a fresh, across the border, horde of illegals coming in  to take the jobs Americans Won't Do.  Unbelievable!

I guess it's time to Berkleyize Toledo too.  No marines........NO FED FUNDING ! !   Simple solution that should apply to any and every community or institution in this country that receives my tax dollars.  If our military is not welcome in their cesspool, neither is my money.

Another typical douchebag bureaucrat as usual with No communications with his LOCAL chief of police.  Well isn't that special. I hope that happens as well when the real terrorists visit his chickenshit insigificant city someday, and hopefully the civilians will be so scared for real, that they might just do us all a favor and cap his sorry ars by accident maybe?  Now that would be very nice indeed ....

adapt and overcome ...

Semper fi arshole :(

sent him an email and let him know what an unamerican cocklebursucker I thought he was. Warned him that when he will need the marines they will remember - semper fi!

Wonder if he has run all of the illegal alien criminals out of town or just American citizens in the form of Marines? Shameful!

bull said: sent him an email and let him know what an unamerican cocklebursucker I thought he was. Warned him that when he will need the marines they will remember - semper fi!

I've never heard of one of those, but I'm sure that Mayor is one! 

---

...This should scare them more!!!! 

A picture is worth a thousand words.  Send this picture to the goony mayor as well as an email.

Kaksdesign said: A picture is worth a thousand words.  Send this picture to the goony mayor as well as an email.

 

..Done,...waiting for the "we don't reply to racist scare ploys".....and then I can send them a video from 9/11...as a reminder of what America is fighting....the killers who follow the koran,..and the idiots on our home turf.

BTW,..are you sure this is the correct e-mail?...It just came back!

Toledo was not on my "short list" of wonderful places to visit anyway -- but they should be cut-off from federal funding just like Berkeley, and any others that come along.  And when terrorists take out such a strategic target as Toledo, or the illegals come in droves, the military shopuld just let them have their way with Toledo.

If I had the glorious mayor's last name, I probably would have been born mad, too!

---

(CM) Jim from Texas said:

Toledo was not on my "short list" of wonderful places to visit anyway -- but they should be cut-off from federal funding just like Berkeley, and any others that come along.  And when terrorists take out such a strategic target as Toledo, or the illegals come in droves, the military shopuld just let them have their way with Toledo.

If I had the glorious mayor's last name, I probably would have been born mad, too!

 

.....LOLOL

Likewise Bull.  I emailed the Mayor and also sent a letter to the editor of the Toledo Blade.  My AZ Senator Kyl is also going to get a letter saying enough is enough and I'm sick and tired of my tax dollars being sent to cities and institutions that continuously slap our military in the face.  I doubt much will be done but I've got to blow off some steam.  First Oakland, then Berkeley, now Toledo, and others before that.  Berkeley received enough negative publicity and discussion of legislation to cut of Fed funding they at least issued an apology.  Get mad fellow FS contributors and swamp the Mayor with emails and the paper with letters...............wouldn't hurt to contact your Senators or Reps too.  

Here's a letter sent to the mayor of Berkeley:

Dear Mayor Bates,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>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 />

---

Where is General George S. Patton jr. when you really need him?

Michael S., that is exactly what we need to do although I don't have quite the leverage of Mr. Dennard.  Great Letter ! ! !  My letter to my Senator is in the mail.  It makes me sick to see how our military is treated on our own streets.  Thanks again for posting that letter.

THIS WILL MAKE YOUR BLOOD BOIL!!!!!!!

THE POLICE DO NOTHING!!!!

http://www.bayareanewsgroup.com/multimedia/iba/2008/player/?f=0131_codepink

 FORWARD THIS IN YOUR E-MAILS PLEASEEEEE!!!!!!

http://colbyfiles.blogs.foxnews.com/2008/02/01/berkeley-bashing-our-troops/#comment-4029

 

Well, since we're talking about Berkeley, too, here's some good info on that.  I just sent them a rude email.  I basically called them traiterous pansies.  Anyway, here's an email alert I received:

You may not be aware of the situation in Berkeley, California. The mainstream media has not been reporting on it. Here is the situation. The Berkeley City Council has told the Marine Recruiting Office to get out of Berkeley. Senator Jim DeMint of South Carolina has put together a video that shows you explicitly what the City Council members of Berkeley said about our Marines and the effort to force the recruiters to leave the city. They include comments from the Mayor who says that the Marines "don't belong here in Berkeley." These people aren't just against the war, they are against our soldiers who are fighting and dying in that war. The video also includes rebuttal by veterans of this nation who are outraged by the conduct of this city council. I hope you will send the letter and forward it to friends and family. The letters will go straight to the Mayor and City Council members.

Semper Fi Act 2008

Watch video.

Send email.

---