ftp.xmission.com/2014.06.ftp.xmission.com.tar/ftp.xmission.com/pub/lists/abolition-usa/archive/abolition-usa.9810

Internet Message Format | 1998-10-31 | 562KB

From: Janet Bloomfield <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) INDIA/PAKISTAN: How to send educational materials
Date: 01 Oct 1998 14:01:59 +0100 (BST)

APPEAL FOR EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS ON NUCLEAR ISSUES FOR GROUPS IN SOUTH
ASIA.

October Ist, 1998.

Dear Friends,
we have finally been able to co-ordinate with colleagues in India and
Pakistan for them to receive educational material from groups around the
world. The movement in South Asia for nuclear disarmament is growing and
this is something very practical that can be done to support it.

The main need is for educational material on nuclear weapons and nuclear
power, in the form of videos, slides, pamphlets, books, .... anything and
everything that can be used by activist groups directly or after
translation.
Material that can be used by schools and colleges would be particularly
welcome.

We are therefore putting out this appeal to groups everywhere asking for
them to donate whatever educational material they have, or are willing to
collect, buy etc. to help support South Asian peace movement activity.
Nobody is asking for money, nor should money be sent. If people want to
spend a little of their money to buy a video or a book that they can send,
that would be great.
Please forward this appeal to anyone you know of who may be able to help.
Thanking you in anticipation.

Yours in peace,
Zia Mian, M.V.Ramana and Janet Bloomfield.

p.s Abolition 2000 UK is preparing two packages of the same material, one
for our Indian contact and one for our Pakistan contact. Perhaps you might
consider doing the same.

FOR MATERIALS TO INDIA:
Praful Bidwai,  on behalf of MIND (MOvement in INdia for
Nuclear Disarmament) has agreed to take responsibility for handling any
material you have for them.
His address:
Praful Bidwai
1 Jaipur Estate
Nizamuddin East
New Delhi 110 013
Tel: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
e_mail: [e-mail]


FOR MATERIALS TO PAKISTAN.
The address to send material to in Pakistan is
Dr. Shahrukh Rafi Kahn
Executive Director
Sustainable Development Policy Institute
Peace Education Resources
P.O. Box 2342
Islamabad
Pakistan
Tel: + 92-51 278134,
SDPI is on the web at www.sdpi.org.

It would be very useful if the material could be in Pakistan in  time for
planned travelling exhibition of pictures from Hiroshima and hibakusha
(a-bomb witness survivors) testimonies (Dec 26-Jan 5) and the public
meetings in a number of cities probably around that time. There is also a
discussion of a national peace movement
conference to follow this up.


********************************************************

Janet Bloomfield
25, Farmadine, Saffron Walden, Essex, CB11 3HR, England.
Tel/Fax: [phone].
e-mail: [e-mail]



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From: Kathy Crandalll <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Interactive Action  Alert
Date: 01 Oct 1998 14:06:44 -0400

Nuclear Abolition Advocates:

Don't miss CNN's "Cold War Experience" Special web coverage
Go to: http://cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/experience/the.bomb/

You can join  discussions on topics such as:
Are you worried about Russia's nuclear arsenal considering that
country's political crisis?
Did the U.S. spend too much money to "win" the arms race?
Should research and developpment of nulcear weaponry continue?
What will be the next nuclear flashpoint?

Kathy


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Shundahai Network <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) our computers were down
Date: 01 Oct 1998 12:56:06 -0700

Hello Friends,


The day after "Bagpipe" was exploded our email computer exploded as well.

Unfortunately we lost over a years archive of computer email messages and

three months of our SHUNDAHAI E-NEWS and ACTION ALERT lists.


We were not following the golden rule of weekly back ups. Everyone

out there, please back up your work on a regular basis. And do not become so

dependant on your computer or email.


Anyhow we are just getting going here on a borrowed computer and will have to

switch everything over to our permanent computer once that becomes available.


If any one signed up on our SHUNDAHAI E-NEWS and ACTION ALERT since

August, could you please res-subscribe by sending a blank email message to

[e-mail] with "Subscribe SHUNDAHAI E-NEWS" or "Subscribe

ACTION ALERT" in the subject.


E-NEWS subscribers will receive a monthly newsletter of action alerts and updates

concerning  nuclear weapons and waste, Native rights, environmental, peace and justice issues.


ACTION ALERT subscribers will receive the monthly e-news as well as more detailed

action alerts throughout the month.


Your email addresses will be kept strictly confidential.


Thanks for all of your dedicated efforts!




><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<


                       SHUNDAHAI NETWORK

                 "Peace and Harmony with all Creation"

                5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV 89108-1304

<paraindent><param>out,out</param>
Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385

                     Email: [e-mail]

</paraindent>
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param>http://www.shundahai.org


</color></underline>            Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:


    Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to

    foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and


    Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) FOR CHICAGO MEETING; PLEASE REVIEW (2 of 3)
Date: 01 Oct 1998 13:53:06 -0700 (PDT)

Dear US Abolitionists (part 2),

    Following is the text of the Moorea Declaration, which was adopted by
consensus of the participants to the January 1997 annual meeting of
Abolition 2000 in Tahiti, as a supplement to the Abolition 2000 Statement.
(About 100 people from 20+ countries participated in the meeting. The Moorea
Declaration was drafted by NGOs from the Pacific Island nations.)  The
Moorea Declaration can help us in our outreach efforts to diverse
constituencies in the US.
-- Jackie
=====================================================================
Abolition 2000

MOOREA DECLARATION

Supplement to the Abolition 2000 Founding Statement

Adopted at the Abolition 2000 Conference, Moorea, Te Ao Maohi (French
Occupied Polynesia) 25 January 1997

    This conference reaffirms the commitments and the vision of the Abolition
2000 Founding Statement initiated in 1995 - the 50th  anniversary of the
atomic bombing of the people of Hiroshima and Nagasaki - to work for the
definite and unconditional abolition of nuclear weapons, and redress the
environmental degradation and human suffering that is the legacy of fifty
two years of nuclear weapons usage, testing, and production.

    However, this meeting, held in Te Ao Maohi a year after the end of French
nuclear testing, has highlighted the particular  suffering of indigenous and
colonised peoples as a result of  the production and testing of nuclear
weapons. The anger and tears of colonised peoples arise from the fact that
there was no consultation, no consent, no involvement in the decision when
   their lands, air and waters were taken for the nuclear build-up,  from
the very start of the nuclear era.

    Colonised and indigenous peoples have, in the large part, borne the brunt
of this nuclear devastation - from the mining of  uranium and the testing of
nuclear weapons on indigenous peoples land, to the dumping, storage and
transport of plutonium and nuclear wastes, and the theft of land for nuclear
infrastructure.

    The founding statement of Abolition 2000 states that "the participation of
citizens and NGO's in planning and monitoring the abolition of nuclear
weapons is vital."  We reaffirm this, in spirit and action, but also state
that indigenous and colonised peoples must be central to this process. This
can only happen if  and when they are able to participate in decisions
relating to      the nuclear weapons cycle - and especially in the abolition
of nuclear weapons in all aspects. The inalienable right to
self-determination, sovereignty and independence is crucial in      allowing
all peoples of the world to join in the common struggle to rid the planet
forever of nuclear weapons.

    Therefore this conference agrees that this Moorea Declaration becomes a
supplement to the Abolition 2000 Founding Statement.



   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) FOR CHICAGO MEETING; PLEASE REVIEW (3 of 3)
Date: 01 Oct 1998 13:53:09 -0700 (PDT)

Dear US Abolitionists (part 3),

    A national petition drive has been proposed by several groups as an element
of our US Abolition Campaign.  Following is the existing Abolition 2000
Petition, which was carefully thought through and circulated widely for
input before being finalized. This petition is already being used by local
Abolition groups around the US, and by many groups in other countries.  It
is currently the centerpiece of a national petition drive in France.
Amazingly, in just 3 months, groups in Japan collected 13 million signatures
on this petition! (Those signatures were presented to the President of the
NPT Preparatory Committee meeting in Geneva this spring.)  Note that point
#1 is relevant to both "dealerting" and stockpile stewardship; point #2
concerns the treaty;  and point #3 is useful in making the link between
nuclear abolition and issues of concern to other constituencies. -- Jackie
=====================================================================
ABOLISH NUCLEAR WEAPONS!

Abolition 2000 International Petition
Missiles to Sunflowers: A New Commitment for a New Century

       We call upon all states, and particularly the nuclear weapons states,
to make the following commitments:

     1. END THE NUCLEAR THREAT. End the nuclear threat by dealerting all
nuclear weapons, withdrawing all nuclear weapons from foreign soil and
international waters, separating warheads from delivery vehicles and
disabling them, committing to unconditional no first use of nuclear weapons,
and ceasing all nuclear weapons tests, including laboratory tests and
"subcriticals."

     2. SIGN THE TREATY. Sign a Nuclear Weapons Convention by the year 2000,
agreeing to the elimination of all nuclear weapons within a timebound framework

     3. REALLOCATE RESOURCES. Reallocate resources to ensure a sustainable
global future and to redress the environmental devastation and human
suffering caused by nuclear weapons      production and testing, which have
been disproportionately borne by the world's indigenous peoples.


Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________

Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________

Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________

Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________

Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________

Name:____________________________________________________Email*:______________

Address:______________________________________________________________________
*To sign the petition electronically go to
http://www.wagingpeace.org/intlpetition.html

        The results of this petition will be delivered to the United Nations
General Assembly, the United Nations Conference on Disarmament, the Nuclear
Non-Proliferation Treaty Review       Conferences, the Human Rights
Commission, and the governments of nuclear weapons states and nuclear
threshold states.

          Please return Abolition 2000 International Petitions to:
Abolition 2000, c/o Nuclear Age Peace Foundation, 1187 Coast Village Road,
Suite 123, Santa Barbara, CA 93108
Tel: [phone] ;  Fax: [phone]; E-mail: [e-mail]
Web site:  http://www.wagingpeace.org

   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) FOR CHICAGO MEETING; PLEASE REVIEW (1 of 3)
Date: 01 Oct 1998 13:52:58 -0700 (PDT)

Dear US Abolitionists (part 1),

    In preparation for the October 9 Organizing Meeting on a US Campaign for
Nuclear Weapons Abolition, and on behalf of the planning committee, I'm
posting the Abolition 2000 Statement for your review.  It is our assumption
going into this meeting, that the Abolition 2000 Statement reflects our
shared goals and vision for a US Abolition campaign, and thus forms the
basis for our cooperative strategizing and planning.

    As of September 28, 1998, 1,122 organizations in 76 countries have endorsed
the Abolition 2000 Statement.  In the US, 384 organizations have endorsed
the Statement, including major national groups such as Peace Action,
Physicians for Social Responsibility, American Friends Service Committee,
Pax Christi and Womens' International League for Peace and Freedom, and many
of their local chapters. It is likely that most, if not all of the groups
participating in the October 9 meeting, have signed the Abolition 2000
Statement.

    A quick overview: The Abolition 2000 Statement calls for immediate
negotiations on a nuclear weapons convention (treaty) that requires the
phased elimination of all nuclear weapons within a timebound framework, with
provisions for effective verification and enforcement.  It also outlines a
set of specific measures to be undertaken immediately and along the way to
abolition. (Note, for example, that point 4, "commence to withdraw and
disable deployed nuclear weapons systems," is relevant to the current
discussion of dealerting.  Also, note that the year 2000 is cited as the
target date for completion of the treaty, which will include a timetable for
disarmament, not the target date for the actual elimination of all nuclear
weapons.)

    The Nuclear Age Peace Foundation (NAPF) in Santa Barbara serves as the
clearinghouse for the Abolition 2000 Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear
Weapons, a task which includes updating and maintaining the list of
endorsing organizations.  You can see who's on the list and find lots of
useful information, action suggestions, and organizing tools by visiting the
NAPF's Abolition 2000 home page at: www.wagingpeace.org/abolition 2000

    I will post the Moorea Declaration, which was adopted as a supplement to
the Abolition 2000 Statement at the 1997 meeting in Tahiti, as well as the
Abolition 2000 Petition, in separate messages.  I look forward to seeing you
in Chicago! -- Jackie Cabasso
====================================================================
Abolition 2000
A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons

    In April 1995, during the first weeks of the  Non-Proliferation Treaty
(NPT) Review and Extension Conference at the United Nations in New York, NGO
activists from around the world recognized that the issue of  nuclear
abolition was not on the governments' agenda. Together they drafted the
following statement, which became the founding document of the Abolition
2000 Network. By now, over 1,000 NGOs on six continents have signed the
Abolition 2000 Statement, and the list is growing every day!

ABOLITION 2000 STATEMENT

         A secure and livable world for our children and grandchildren and
all future generations requires that we achieve a world free of nuclear
weapons and redress the environmental degradation and human suffering that
is the legacy of fifty years of nuclear weapons testing and production.

         Further, the inextricable link between the "peaceful" and warlike
uses of nuclear technologies and the threat to future generations inherent
in creation and use of long-lived      radioactive materials must be
recognized. We must move toward reliance on clean, safe, renewable forms of
energy production that do not provide the materials for weapons of mass
destruction and do not poison the environment for thousands of centuries.
The true "inalienable" right is not to nuclear energy, but to life, liberty
and security of person in a world free of nuclear   weapons.

         We recognize that a nuclear weapons free world must be achieved
carefully and in a step by step manner. We are convinced of its
technological feasibility. Lack of political will,      especially on the
part of the nuclear weapons states, is the only true barrier. As chemical
and biological weapons are prohibited, so must nuclear weapons be prohibited.

         We call upon all states particularly the nuclear weapons states,
declared and de facto to take the following steps to achieve nuclear weapons
abolition. We further urge the states      parties to the NPT to demand
binding commitments by the declared nuclear weapons states to implement
these measures:

1) Initiate immediately and conclude by the year 2000 negotiations on a
nuclear weapons abolition convention that requires the phased elimination of
all nuclear weapons within a timebound framework, with provisions for
effective verification and enforcement.*

2) Immediately make an unconditional pledge not to use or threaten to use
nuclear weapons.

3) Rapidly complete a truly comprehensive test ban treaty with a zero
threshold and with the stated purpose of precluding nuclear weapons
development by all states.

 4) Cease to produce and deploy new and additional nuclear weapons systems,
and commence to withdraw and disable deployed nuclear weapons systems.

5) Prohibit the military and commercial production and reprocessing of all
weapons-usable radioactive materials.

6) Subject all weapons-usable radioactive materials and nuclear facilities
in all states to international accounting, monitoring, and safeguards, and
establish a public international registry of all weapons-usable radioactive
materials.

7) Prohibit nuclear weapons research, design, development, and testing
through laboratory experiments including but not limited to non-nuclear
hydrodynamic explosions and computer       simulations, subject all nuclear
weapons laboratories to international monitoring, and close all nuclear test
sites.

8) Create additional nuclear weapons free zones such as those established by
the treaties of Tlatelolco and Raratonga.

9) Recognize and declare the illegality of threat or use of  nuclear
weapons, publicly and before the World Court.

10) Establish an international energy agency to promote and support the
development of sustainable and environmentally safe energy sources.

11) Create mechanisms to ensure the participation of citizens and NGOs in
planning and monitoring the process of nuclear weapons abolition.

    A world free of nuclear weapons is a shared aspiration of  humanity. This
goal cannot be achieved in a non-proliferation regime that authorizes the
possession of nuclear weapons by a      small group of states. Our common
security requires the complete elimination of nuclear weapons. Our objective
is definite and unconditional abolition of nuclear weapons.

     * The convention should mandate irreversible disarmament measures,
including but not limited to the following: withdraw and disable all
deployed nuclear weapons systems; disable and dismantle warheads; place
warheads and weapon-usable radioactive materials under international
safeguards; destroy ballistic missiles and other delivery systems. The
convention could also incorporate the measures listed above which should be
implemented  independently without delay. When fully implemented, the
convention would replace the NPT.
====================================================================
If your group or organization wishes to sign on to this  statement, please
send an e-mail stating contact name, organization name, address, fax,
telephone and E-mail address to:

 Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
 1187 Coast Village Road, Suite 123; Santa Barbara, California; 93108;
 Tel.: [phone]; Fax [phone];
 e-mail: [e-mail]
OR sign electronically at: http://www.wagingpeace.org/orgapledge.html





   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa)
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) the new abolition campaign
Date: 01 Oct 1998 20:28:21 -0700 (PDT)

Dear Peter Weiss et al,

re your:
> few additional thoughts:

>        2. Another necessary connection, which could greatly enlarge the
>circle, is with militarism; not just because of bloated defense budgets,
>which many people are against, but because the time has come to oppose
>war as an institution.

Yes!

>        3. Organize around specific projects: ... citizen
>inspections of nuclear weapon sites, support for Plowshares defendants.

& perhaps other defendants as well, when citizen inspections and other
forms of nonviolent direct action result in trial and/or jail.  I
appreciate recognition of the necessity to support those who risk arrest at
the hands of officials who don't yet understand international law.

>        4. Make Arundhati Roy's piece required reading.

Well, at least highly recommended. It is superb.  But 'requiring' anything
of THIS movement's participants would probably trigger some reflexive
rejection...! :-)

Jack



_____________________________________
                  the Nuclear Resister
                  "a chronicle of hope"
                      P.O. Box 43383
                    Tucson  AZ 85733
        - information about and support for
imprisoned anti-nuclear and anti-war activists -
        Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa, editors
                     [phone]
US$15/year/US$20 Canada/US$25 overseas
        - selections from current issue
          - updated prisoner addresses
            - & more can be read at:
   http://www.nonviolence.org/nukeresister
       * FREE SAMPLE ISSUE ON REQUEST *
(please supply a postal address for samples)
_____________________________________



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) The Peace-Industrial Complex
Date: 01 Oct 1998 20:32:56 -0700 (PDT)

One of the biggest obstacles to peace is the power of the
Military-Industrial Complex.  To bring about peace, we must convert it to
the Peace-Industrial Complex.  If defense contractors could make large
amounts of money at peaceful pursuits, they would no longer be opposed to
peace.  To do so, I propose that the following divisions be set up in the
Department Of Defense:

        I. Public Works Division to solicit bids from "defense contractors"
to build public transit systems in cities all over the U.S..

        II. Environmental Defense Division to solicit bids to build
anti-pollution systems and renewable energy systems, which the EDD would
then give to businesses and government agencies for free to stop them from
pollution.

        III. Anti-Crime Division to fight organized crime, using armies of
specially trained detectives, accountants, lawyers, and military personnel
to track down organized criminals.

I also propose that the U.S. Army reforest the Sahara and perform other
ecological missions.


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) How Peace Came To The World
Date: 01 Oct 1998 20:58:37 -0700 (PDT)

In 1986, the Christian Science Monitor published "How Peace Came To The
World" (edited by Earl Foell and Richard Nenneman), a collection of essays
about how peace can come to the world.  Have you read it?  Has a sequel been
written?


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) The Peace-Industrial Complex
Date: 02 Oct 1998 10:00:47 -0400

This is a great track to be exploring. If peace were $$profitable, we'd
have it.  Let's hear more ideas for moving in this direction. Rosalie Paul,
Peace Action Maine.




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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) News: Boeing $10 million fine for arms violations
Date: 02 Oct 1998 10:22:36 -0400

10/01/98- USA Today -- http://www.usatoday.com/news/nds16.htm

             Boeing accepts fine for arms violations

             SEATTLE - Boeing agreed to pay a $10 million fine
             over allegations it disclosed American technology
             secrets to foreign companies working with the
             aerospace giant on the Sea Launch commercial rocket
             project.

             The fine, the largest ever for violations of the Arms
             Export Control Act, will not stop a U.S. Justice
             Department criminal investigation into the allegations
             that Boeing shared technical information with Russian
             and Ukrainian partners in the project.

             Boeing neither admits nor denies the allegation,
             spokesman Tim Dolan said Wednesday.

             The $500 million project to launch satellites from a
             floating platform in the Pacific Ocean has been on
             hold since the allegations arose in July. Work will
             now resume, officials said, with the first launch as
             early as next year.

             The violations did not damage national security or
             harm U.S. foreign policy, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer
             quoted an unidentified source as saying.

             Part of the penalty - $2.5 million - will be used to set
             up a computer system so that government agencies can
             monitor all dealings among the Sea Launch partners.

             Boeing has a 40% stake in Sea Launch, and is overall
             project manager, but the technology primarily is that
             of other nations.

             The 3-year-old program, which has contracts for 18
             launches, will use a modified version of the Soviet
             SS-18 intercontinental ballistic missile to boost
             satellites into space from a platform positioned at the
             equator.

             By The Associated Press

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 02 Oct 1998 12:30:08 -0400

Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
network by State.

I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)

Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a parallel
PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to get some
friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us here.
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
15 East 26 St.
New York, NY  10010
212-726-9161(tel)
212-726-9160(fax)

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
of Nuclear Weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Norm Cohen <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 02 Oct 1998 13:03:55 -0400

Dear Friends,

     As someone working out in the trenches in southern New Jersey, I'd caution
you that while all of these ideas going by are fine for those who know about
abolition 2000, or care about nuke weapons, to the vast majority of "ordinary
joes" our issue just does not ring a chord with them (basically their eyes
glaze over and they start talking about some tangential issue like water
pollution). And this goes for the vast majority of local college students I
talk to.
     Let me toss out this suggestion: the only way to get our message out to
the masses is through the media, so would it be possible to copy what amnesty
intl, greenpeace, farm aid, etc have done so well: an internationally televised
special concert (or series) in late 1999 on a theme like "peace in the new
millenium" (something sexier than that). We must have contacts with musicians,
performers, networks, couldn't this be pulled off?
    This is not in any way to criticize the wonderful work we do; I've been in
it since 1981, many of you longer than that; its just a question of how we best
move from preaching to the choir to preaching to the masses.

Peace

Norm Cohen
Executive Director
Coalition for Peace & Justice
PO Box 2344 Cape May NJ 08204
609-886-7988
ASlater wrote:

> Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
> Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
> hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
> experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
> organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
> network by State.
>
> I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
> wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
> hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
> them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
> banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
> to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
> own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)
>
> Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
> was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a parallel
> PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to get some
> friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us here.
> Alice Slater
> Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
> 15 East 26 St.
> New York, NY  10010
> 212-726-9161(tel)
> 212-726-9160(fax)
>
> GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
> of Nuclear Weapons
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.





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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace Action - National Office <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 02 Oct 1998 11:27:18 -0700 (PDT)

Norm!
    Wonderful idea, I had a similar one myself and believe that such an
event would provide nice entertainment during our Congress next year in
New Mexico.

Bruce
 > From [e-mail]  Fri Oct  2 09:54:28 1998
 > Date: Fri, 02 Oct 1998 13:03:55 -0400
 > From: Norm Cohen <[e-mail]>
 > Organization: Coalition for Peace and Justice
 > To: [e-mail]
 > Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
 > References: <[e-mail]>
 > Sender: [e-mail]
 > Reply-To: [e-mail]
 >
 > Dear Friends,
 >
 >      As someone working out in the trenches in southern New Jersey, I'd caution
 > you that while all of these ideas going by are fine for those who know about
 > abolition 2000, or care about nuke weapons, to the vast majority of "ordinary
 > joes" our issue just does not ring a chord with them (basically their eyes
 > glaze over and they start talking about some tangential issue like water
 > pollution). And this goes for the vast majority of local college students I
 > talk to.
 >      Let me toss out this suggestion: the only way to get our message out to
 > the masses is through the media, so would it be possible to copy what amnesty
 > intl, greenpeace, farm aid, etc have done so well: an internationally televised
 > special concert (or series) in late 1999 on a theme like "peace in the new
 > millenium" (something sexier than that). We must have contacts with musicians,
 > performers, networks, couldn't this be pulled off?
 >     This is not in any way to criticize the wonderful work we do; I've been in
 > it since 1981, many of you longer than that; its just a question of how we best
 > move from preaching to the choir to preaching to the masses.
 >
 > Peace
 >
 > Norm Cohen
 > Executive Director
 > Coalition for Peace & Justice
 > PO Box 2344 Cape May NJ 08204
 > 609-886-7988
 > ASlater wrote:
 >
 > > Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
 > > Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
 > > hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
 > > experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
 > > organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
 > > network by State.
 > >
 > > I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
 > > wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
 > > hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
 > > them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
 > > banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
 > > to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
 > > own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)
 > >
 > > Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
 > > was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a parallel
 > > PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to get some
 > > friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us here.
 > > Alice Slater
 > > Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
 > > 15 East 26 St.
 > > New York, NY  10010
 > > 212-726-9161(tel)
 > > 212-726-9160(fax)
 > >
 > > GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
 > > of Nuclear Weapons
 > >
 > > -
 > >  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 > >  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 > >  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 > >  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
 >
 >
 >
 >
 >
 > -
 >  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 >  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 >  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 >  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) REGIONAL REPORTS FOR CHICAGO MEETING
Date: 02 Oct 1998 11:40:08 -0700 (PDT)

REGIONAL REPORTS FOR CHICAGO MEETING

Dear Chicago meeting participants,

    One day is a very short amount of time to plan a national campaign!  In
order to keep our agenda moving effectively, the planning committee would
like to encourage those of you with groups that are part of existing
REGIONAL abolition networks to present coordinated reports.  We are aware of
regional abolition networks in Michigan, Florida, Northern California,
Colorado, New England, and Metro New York. (Let us know if there are
others!) Rather than having each person report on their individual group's
"micro" activities*, we'd like to hear how the different regions are
organized, and a little bit about their priorities, plans, and activities.
People from a region might want to talk in advance about how to divide up
their presentation.
(Note: Don't worry -- if your group is not part of an existing network,
you'll still get to make a report.) The purpose of this reporting is inform
and inspire each other, and also to piece together a picture of our existing
"infrastructure"and resources and identify gaps.  Following are some
suggested questions to consider in planning your regional report:

*How do you define your region? (ie. geographical boundaries)
*How is your regional network organized? What's its history? (very brief)
*How many groups are involved?
*How often do you meet?
*What are your priorities?
*What kinds of activities are you involved in? (*Here's where you can give
examples of "micro"    activities)
*What resources/tools do you have to share? (eg. videos, t-shirts, sunflower
seeds, etc.)
*What are you planning for the future?
*Is there anything in particular that your region asked you to bring/propose
to the Chicago
  meeting?

    Thanks for your cooperation.  See you in Chicago. -- Jackie
   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 02 Oct 1998 20:04:35 EDT

Let me say again I would urge a name that doesn't need to be explained (Like
abolition 2000) and a single message, like Stop the War. What succeeded in
Vietnam was due in part to the simplicity and resonance of the message.

So much brain power is involved in thi s effor it would not seem beyond the
scope of people's capabilities to deal wih one of the first orders of
business, the name of the campaign.

Peace and health,

colby lowe

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From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Chicago: a few odds and ends for the mix
Date: 02 Oct 1998 18:38:23 -0700 (PDT)

Pamela Meidell has offered to synthesize the ideas and proposals posted on
the US abolition list-serve for presentation at the Chicago meeting.  Here
are a few odds and ends for the mix:

1) City resolutions -- A number of US cities (and many more in other
countries) have already passed resolutions supporting nuclear abolition.
(Check out the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation's Abolition 2000 website for a
list of cities, as well as a model resolution: www.wagingpeace.org/abolition
2000) While I wouldn't make pursuit of city resolutions a high priority in
isolation, it is an activity that can easily be built into other local
organizing efforts, in conjunction with town meetings, etc. For example, in
northern California, groups in different cities host the quarterly
gatherings of our regional Abolition 2000 network.  The local host group
tries to get their city to pass an Abolition resolution around the time of
our meeting.  So far we have succeeded in getting Oakland, Santa Rosa and
Davis, CA to pass abolition resolutions. In some cases (though not
neccesarily in our experience), the process of convincing a city to pass
such a resolution can provide an organizing and media opportunity in and of
itself.
        A related idea is to revitalize the Nuclear Free Zone (NFZ) movement
by going back to cities that passed NFZ ordinances in the 1980's and getting
them to reaffirm and update their positions by passing  abolition
resolutions. In addition, abolition resolutions might be "piggybacked" onto
new NFZ laws, which tend to focus on nuclear waste and transportation
issues.  Note that over the last few years, a large number of Native
American nations have declared themselves NFZs as part of their effort to
resist nuclear waste dumping on their lands.  Chuck Johnson, the former
director of Nuclear Free America has recently established the Nuclear Free
Zone Project, a clearinghouse for NFZ information, in Salem Oregon. His
e-mail address is: [e-mail]/phone: [phone]

2) Someone at our September northern CA Abolition 2000 meeting suggested
that we organize our US abolition campaign by Congressional District.  This
idea really captured my imagination, not only as a vehicle for supporting
specific candidates or legislation (although that could certainly be
useful), but more because of its potentially transformative nature. What I
mean is that, over time, by identifying or establishing a viable and visible
local abolition group in every Congressional District, we could invade every
"cell" of the body politic. I think I'm getting a little carried away with
my rhetoric, but I'm sure you get the idea....
   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Chicago and beyond: Food for Thought
Date: 02 Oct 1998 18:38:17 -0700 (PDT)

Greetings, USA Abolitionists,

        This message is from me, personally, not speaking on behalf of the
planning committee.  Thanks to Joseph Gerson for reminding us of the enormously
difficult political hurdles we face as we attempt to build a powerful US
movement
for nuclear abolition. I am inspired to re-post Betty Burkes' incredible speech
from our Oakland, CA Abolition 2000 conference in Feb. 1997 (below,
following this
message).

        On the subject of the year 2000, speaking only for myself, as one of
the principle drafters of the Abolition 2000 Statement I always viewed the
year 2000 as a goal or aspiration for the completion of negotiations on a
treaty to eliminate nuclear weapons within a timebound framework, rather
than as a "realistic" date.  What Abolition 2000 conveys to me is a sense of
urgency about the need for the nuclear weapon states to "start talking"
NOW!! If anything, the urgency has increased since 1995.  I strongly agree
with Joseph about the need to plan a long term campaign strategy, but I urge
us not to get hung up on the use of the year 2000 as a "marker."  (I'm not
ruling out a name change at some point -- how about, "Abolition NOW!") Perhaps
it would be useful to think of the remaining time before 2000 as a lead up to
the beginning of a "countdown" to abolition in the new millenium. After all,
after 2000 there are scheduled to be 999 more years beginning with 2_ _ _
(if we make it).  Looking at it that way, I'm sure we'd all agree that our
goal is Abolition 2000 rather than Abolition 3000! -- Jackie
Cabasso
===========================================================================
WHAT CAN ONE ABOLITIONIST MOVEMENT
LEARN FROM ANOTHER?

COMPARING ABOLITION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS
WITH ABOLITION OF SLAVERY

Text of speech delivered by Betty Burkes,  President of the U.S. Section of
WILPF, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, at the Northern
California Abolition 2000 Conference on February 22, 1997.

    I sincerely believe that the best thinking happens when we are fully
engaged in the process of discerning the questions, naming the challenges
they present to us personally and collectively, and then framing an inquiry
that allows us to think critically about the issues and finally to fully and
deeply, with our whole heart, journey beyond where we have erected barriers
and perhaps gotten stuck either in our hope that things will change or our
fear that they will not.

    Looking back to the past, to history, helps us make sense of the present
and is an opportunity to discover new possibilities for the future. I am
pleased to be here today among America's most dedicated deviants and
unshakably decent individuals whose willingness to accept individual and
collective responsibility, and whose impulse to act against injustice may,
someday, secure this planet for future generations.

    So what if anything does Abolition 2000 have to do with the Abolition
movement of the 1830's, 40's, 50's and 60's?  Is there a relationship
between the goals of that movement and Abolition 2000?  The Abolitionist
movement failed to secure the socioeconomic transformation of the nation
that it supposed the abolishing of slavery would conclude.  If the abolition
of nuclear weapons does not secure such a transformation in the power
relationships of the nation, then we will have failed to secure the peace
and security we all hope for.

    What can one Abolitionist movement learn from another?  First, the
Abolitionist movement was revolutionary and those involved embraced the
revolutionary realities of the anti-slavery agenda.  Herbert Aptheker holds
that the Abolition of slavery presupposed a revolution of power
relationships in America.  The institution of slavery was a major component
of the social, political and economic order in the U.S. and to attack
slavery was inescapably to call for extensive social change.

    It was a highly organized movement, with local, and national associations,
constitutions, publications, elected or appointed leaders and full-time
activists--professional revolutionaries.  They were women and men who, in
solidarity, defied the social and moral conventions of their times.  They
refused to accept the limitations and negative images society sought to
impose upon them.  Many of them left the safe and privileged comfort of
ignorance and thrust themselves into arenas.  They were clearly out of step
with their neighbors.

    Henry Thoreau mused that if an individual does not keep pace with her
companions, perhaps it is because she hears a different drummer.  "Let her
step to the music which she hears, however measured or far away."

    The Abolitionist movement was a black-white movement.  It was a male-female
movement.  It was fully conscious of its challenge to property rights and
was a fundamental challenge to the constructions of power and money.  Black
people were the first and most lasting Abolitionists, those who endured it,
survived it and combated it.  Without the initiative of the Afro-American
people, without their illumination of the nature of slavery, without their
persistent struggle to be free, there would have been no national
Abolitionist movement.  The participation of black people in every aspect
was indispensable to its functioning.

    Racism permeated slavery in the United States--characterized it, justified
it, and sustained it.  Racism permeates the culture of war and weapons in
the U.S. today, characterizes it, and sustains it.

    Abolitionists understood that the abolition of slavery was not just a moral
or ethical issue, but it had far reaching consequences for reorganizing and
reordering the social, political, and economic habits of America; that if
they were successful, it would revolutionize power relationships in America
forever.  They were not successful.  The Abolitionist movement is not to be
confused with the abolition of slavery. Slavery was abolished, but by order
of the government, not by the white abolitionists, not by blacks.

    Howard Zinn reminds us that it was Abraham Lincoln who freed the slaves,
not John Brown.  "In 1859, John Brown was hanged, with federal complicity,
for attempting to do by small-scale violence what Lincoln would do in large
scale violence several years later, without conscience or heart--end
slavery.  With slavery abolished by order of the government, the dominant
group could set limits to emancipation.  The ending of slavery did not lead
to radical reconstruction of national politics and economics, but a safe
one, in fact a profitable one.

    The emancipation following the end of slavery, was essentially a betrayal
of the abolitionist movement.  The ending of slavery did not bring justice
or freedom to the emancipated slave or to free blacks.  The persistence of
racism prevailed.  Power relationships did not change.

     One hundred years later, the civil rights movement began as an appeal to
white America's conscience and evolved into an insurrection that was
violently and successfully put down.  That is my fear for the Abolition 2000
movement, that we not be maneuvered out of our revolutionary vision for just
and environmentally sustainable communities.

    If nuclear weapons were abolished tomorrow, like slavery, by order of the
government, we would not have the radical reconstruction of national
politics and economics to ensure such communities.  The dominant group would
once again control and limit our emancipation from nuclear weapons, derail
what we seek through the Abolition 2000 movement.

    To realize a secure and livable world for our children and grandchildren
and all future generations, the stated goal of Abolition 2000, requires more
of us than achieving a world free of nuclear weapons.  Securing a livable
world for our children and grandchildren and all future generations requires
that we make some inquiry into the culture of war and violence we inhabit,
check out how we participate and are organized to acquiesce in our own
exploitation.  Like the Abolitionist movement of the 19th century, Abolition
2000 must be about reshaping the principle of power upon which our culture
is based.

    I want to read a quote from Starhawk's book, Dreaming the Dark.  "We must
shake up all the old divisions, like race, gender, class.  The comfortable
separations no longer work.  Though we are told that such issues separate;
that rape is an issue separate from nuclear war, that a woman's struggle for
equal pay is not related to a black teenager's struggle to find a job or to
the struggle to prevent the export of a nuclear reactor to a site on a web
of earthquake faults.  All these realities are shaped by the consciousness
that shapes our power relationships.  Those relationships in turn shape our
economic and social systems.  They are presently shaping the destruction of
the world."

    The institution of slavery was a major component of the social order in the
United States, and to attack slavery was inescapably to call for extensive
social change.  Nuclear weapons is a major component of the social order in
the United States now, and to attack them is a call for social change in the
world.

    We are a culture organized around death, killing, war, profit, and
violence, where power is based on the principle of power-over others. Power
over is the power of punishment, weapons, competition, the power of
annihilation that supports all the institutions of domination.  Nuclear
weapons serve the preservation and continuance of that culture.      As I
consider my involvement in this abolitionist movement of the 1990's, I ask
myself, "Is Abolition 2000 preparing to give leadership and study to
reordering this culture when we are successful in abolishing nuclear weapons?"

    One of the defining qualities of the Abolitionist movement was anti-racism.
Is that a defining quality of Abolition 2000?  Does it need to be? Have we
confronted our personal weapons of racism, classism, elitism, and
heterosexism in our movement to Abolish nuclear weapons?  We live in a
culture that glorifies war to the extent that the dominant class is even
willing to destroy the planet rather than chance the outbreak of
uncontrollable democracy.  How do I participate in destroying the planet?

    The slave-holding class possessed wealth far in excess of any other
property owning class prior to the Civil War.  They owned all the arms of
the federal government and controlled its domestic and foreign policy. This
economic and political domination assured the slave-holding class effective
control over the structures of the society.      The Abolitionist led a
movement whose basic claim was the termination of the bases of this power.
It meant the overthrow of the ruling class in the old way such a class can
be overthrown, by the elimination of the property upon which its power
rests.  In this case the ownership of human beings.

    The system of slavery, like the system of nuclear weapons, had needs that
conflicted with the ethical and moral views of the Abolitionist which
resulted in communities of Resistance.  It is in the wisdom and persistence
of those communities that our success rests.  Perhaps another question in
this inquiry is, do we activists against nuclear weapons have the courage to
revisit what the civil rights movement left undone?--To demand the
reorganization of power relationships in this country?  Are we willing to
take on the iron triangle of power, to resist the gang of three, the
Pentagon, the corporations and Congress?  After all, Alice Walker says that
Resistance is the Secret of Joy.  Abolition without revolution is our
failure to wrestle with the real issues of peace and freedom.

    We have all been deeply shaped by the culture we live in.  The attitude s
of war are embedded so deeply that we are rarely aware of them.  Only when
we know how we have been shaped by the structures of power in which we live
can we become the shapers.  Knowing our history is a beginning.

    With knowledge and insight, Abolition 2000 must abolish nuclear weapons by
we must also reorder the relationships of power in the world, in order to
secure our goal of a livable planet for our children, and grandchildren and
all future generations.

To reach Betty Burkes, please contact WILPF, 1213 Race St., Philadelphia,
PA, 19107 USA
Tel: [phone]; Fax: [phone]; E-mail: [e-mail]
   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Norm Cohen <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago: a few odds and ends for the mix
Date: 02 Oct 1998 23:28:48 -0400

Hey, maybe I'm missing something here. We've got Peace Action organized already
in, what is it, 27 states; there's WRL, there's the other active groups. Peace
Action is doing Peace Voter '98 work & will do PV 2000 work in many cd's and
certainly abolition is a major theme. So isn't this a framework already in
place?

Norm Cohen
Coalition for Peace & Justice
NJ CD2

Jackie Cabasso wrote:

> Pamela Meidell has offered to synthesize the ideas and proposals posted on
> the US abolition list-serve for presentation at the Chicago meeting.  Here
> are a few odds and ends for the mix:
>
> 1) City resolutions -- A number of US cities (and many more in other
> countries) have already passed resolutions supporting nuclear abolition.
> (Check out the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation's Abolition 2000 website for a
> list of cities, as well as a model resolution: www.wagingpeace.org/abolition
> 2000) While I wouldn't make pursuit of city resolutions a high priority in
> isolation, it is an activity that can easily be built into other local
> organizing efforts, in conjunction with town meetings, etc. For example, in
> northern California, groups in different cities host the quarterly
> gatherings of our regional Abolition 2000 network.  The local host group
> tries to get their city to pass an Abolition resolution around the time of
> our meeting.  So far we have succeeded in getting Oakland, Santa Rosa and
> Davis, CA to pass abolition resolutions. In some cases (though not
> neccesarily in our experience), the process of convincing a city to pass
> such a resolution can provide an organizing and media opportunity in and of
> itself.
>         A related idea is to revitalize the Nuclear Free Zone (NFZ) movement
> by going back to cities that passed NFZ ordinances in the 1980's and getting
> them to reaffirm and update their positions by passing  abolition
> resolutions. In addition, abolition resolutions might be "piggybacked" onto
> new NFZ laws, which tend to focus on nuclear waste and transportation
> issues.  Note that over the last few years, a large number of Native
> American nations have declared themselves NFZs as part of their effort to
> resist nuclear waste dumping on their lands.  Chuck Johnson, the former
> director of Nuclear Free America has recently established the Nuclear Free
> Zone Project, a clearinghouse for NFZ information, in Salem Oregon. His
> e-mail address is: [e-mail]/phone: [phone]
>
> 2) Someone at our September northern CA Abolition 2000 meeting suggested
> that we organize our US abolition campaign by Congressional District.  This
> idea really captured my imagination, not only as a vehicle for supporting
> specific candidates or legislation (although that could certainly be
> useful), but more because of its potentially transformative nature. What I
> mean is that, over time, by identifying or establishing a viable and visible
> local abolition group in every Congressional District, we could invade every
> "cell" of the body politic. I think I'm getting a little carried away with
> my rhetoric, but I'm sure you get the idea....
>    ********************************************
>        WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
>            1440 Broadway, Suite 500
>              Oakland, CA USA 94612
>               Tel: [phone]
>               Fax: [phone]
>                [e-mail]
>    ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
>    Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa)
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) 2000 election
Date: 02 Oct 1998 23:32:11 -0700 (PDT)

Alice Slater suggested:

> If none of them will do it, we need to get our
>own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)

 I admit electoral strategizing is not my forte, but I cannot believe
investment of organizing energy in this direction is warranted for year
2000 elections.  If a candidate were to embrace the abolition plank, OK,
support them as individuals,  but at this point it'd be a token candidate,
because barring reaction to catastrophe or a miracle, the abolition
movement is just not developed enough to be a meaningful constituency on a
presidential level .

Jack Cohen-Joppa
(personal views again)



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From: [e-mail] (Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa)
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: USA/Campaign Proposals for Chicago Abolition Conference
Date: 02 Oct 1998 23:32:05 -0700 (PDT)

Dear Joe Gerson & abolition-usa list,

Thanks, Joe, for your cogent comments & summary of collective thought.

Following is an intentionally parochial response & my contribution to a
conference I cannot attend.  If I could attend, I would hope to represent
what I am concerned will be the absent perspective of an advocate for
nonviolent direct action.

I respond to selected >quotes> from Joe's contribution.

>While civil disobedience actions can serve to enlighten and serve
>as a moral frame of reference(and spur)for the wider community,
>fundamental changes in national policy will come
>only when there is broad popular demand for such changes.

I agree that a "spur" is needed just for the reasons you cite: to enlighten
(educate) and as a moral frame of reference ("values").   I think
establishing these cornerstones comes at the _beginning_ & then continues
as part of the process of broadening "popular demand."  Tactically, in the
present state of our movement and the nation, I believe CD organizing and
the community building exercise of prisoner support would be good
investments for this movement at some EARLY point.  Are we personally as
serious as we claim the threat of nuclear weapons to be?  How unjust do we
really think nukes are?

We now have a US model of CD organizing and community building to learn
from in the School of the Americas campaign.  More than two dozen folks
were jailed for 6+ months, and the organizing for this November at Ft.
Benning indicates many more will again risk such consequences with a repeat
arrest, and perhaps 1,000 cross the line for the first time.

We're also seeing something bloom in Scotland & the UK, with the Trident
Ploughshares 2000 Campaign (who have a slightly better chance at the
millenium & the British arsenal, I believe)

& we have the developing international model of Citizen Weapons Inspection
Teams - palatable to the public perhaps because they represent civil
urgency, but not "lawlessness."  This model is proving flexible with many
practical variations (see current Nuclear Resister for recent action
summaries), some without risk of arrest, even.  All "experiments in truth."

>...in this case linked to a call for
>economic justice.

I agree - this is a critical link.  (At local school meetings I often feel
urged to shout about the theft of social resources for war that underlies
the budget fights.)

>Manifested hope and energies, unleash those of others.

Yes (& that's why I value that someone once said the Nuclear Resister was a
"chronicle of hope")

>It could also be built with the help
>of an "Abolition Summer" organizing project.

OK, but how about if we purposefully lay the ground while organizing that
many in our movement believe nuclear weapons to be ILLEGAL as well as
wasteful, inhumane, and immoral.  & some are prepared to act in a grand
American abolitionist tradition and not only refuse to be complicit,  but
also proactively uphold justice where the law is not yet doing so.  Explain
that while we build our movement, we'll also support people jailed for
persistent, conscientious efforts at education by trial.

re:
>C.  MANIFESTATIONS OF GROWING ABOLITIONIST POLITICAL POWER AND WILL
>...3) Coordinated and spontaneous local actions for abolition.

As I noted at the outset, my tactical thought is that these actions,
particularly as they might involve civil disobedience, seem to belong
BEFORE

>C.1) Town, City, State-wide (and eventually national) "walks for abolition"
and
>C.2) Coordinated Congressional lobbying/Electoral Strategies

and continue as part of developing broader support.

I visualise that a national organization of currently committed individuals
(we already have committed individuals nationwide) can publically prepare
and engage themselves in a widely coordinated nonviolent resistance
campaign leading up to and thru the millenium year,  pursuant to their
understanding of international law, and engage the courts with a persistant
risk of arrest &/or a principled noncooperation with the jurisdiction of
any court refusing to acknowledge international law.  We already have a
substantial body of literature at hand for eduational purposes on this
front.  Furthermore, outside supporters are vital to such a campaign,
providing a role for some who cannot risk jail or prison.

Who's to say it can't work?  In 50+ years, we have scarcely tried such a
thing.  Maybe now is the time.
Or maybe abolition can wait.

But the fact of the matter is that people of conscience are and will
continue to take these risks.  Will an organization asserting national
leadership build on this inertia of conscience or seek to ignore,
downplay, distrust, or dismiss it?

I imagine this not as the foremost activity of the evolving national
effort, but as an integrated and supported component.

Jack Cohen-Joppa
(These are my personal views - not those of the Nuclear Resister newsletter)


_____________________________________
                  the Nuclear Resister
                  "a chronicle of hope"
                      P.O. Box 43383
                    Tucson  AZ 85733
        - information about and support for
imprisoned anti-nuclear and anti-war activists -
        Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa, editors
                     [phone]
US$15/year/US$20 Canada/US$25 overseas
        - selections from current issue
          - updated prisoner addresses
            - & more can be read at:
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(please supply a postal address for samples)
_____________________________________



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From: Jan Harwood <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 02 Oct 1998 23:52:06 -0800

I agree we need a better name.  Just for starters, how about "No More Nukes"?
It's not elegant, but people understand it.



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From: "Ross Wilcock" <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 03 Oct 1998 10:16:01 -0400


For a short name you could consider "We Say No Nukes" see
http://www.pgs.ca/pages/nonukes.htm
Ross Wilcock
[e-mail]
http://www.pgs.ca/

-----Original Message-----
[mailto:[e-mail]] On Behalf Of Jan Harwood
Sent:    Saturday, October 03, 1998 3:52 AM


I agree we need a better name.  Just for starters, how about "No More
Nukes"?
It's not elegant, but people understand it.


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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 03 Oct 1998 11:27:45 -0400

Trouble with "No MORE Nukes" is more a Nuclear Freeze-type slogan (still
could be construed as meaning we could keep what we have).

How about "No Nukes"?

Ellen Thomas
[e-mail]


>I agree we need a better name.  Just for starters, how about "No More
>Nukes"?
>It's not elegant, but people understand it.
>

_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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From: [e-mail] (Daniel Fine)
Subject: (abolition-usa) ?? new Name ????. NO !!!!!!
Date: 03 Oct 1998 13:17:51 -0500

Believe new name would be a mistake:

(1) "Abolition" is an abiding categorical imperative, but I don't believe
many members or supporters ever really believed we would have a treaty
(NWC) in place by the year 2000. 2000 was and still is, and will remain a
symbol of a threshold, a passage, a new beginning, a new century, new
millennium etc. So 2000 remains meaningful and will still be after 2000 (as
is the Y2K bug).
To us, 2000 means struggle for abolition and steps on the journey, now and
in the 21st century.

(2) "Abolition" should never be abandoned, until we have abolition. The
word is unequivocal, declarative, morally uncompromising, and has powerful
resonance with the overriding moral human evil of the last century, (ie
slavery). We as individuals and groups are proudly "abolitionists". Will we
call ourselves and be known as "no nukists", "no more nukists" etc.

(3) "Abolition 2000" is provocative and attention-getting, especially
because it is not explicit and does NOT include reference to nuclear
weapons etc. Many people here ask, "what is that", and their query and the
answer is very re-inforcing. The 19th century movement and its adherents,
as they grew, were known as "abolitionist", not "slavery abolitionist".

Please think long and hard before a decision is made to change the name. We
have a proud and very constructive history (though not yet reaching our
goal). The founding date and events (eg 50th anniversary of Hiroshima and
Nagasaki; 1995 struggle to prevent unconditional extension of a failing,
and nuclear weapons-supporting NPT; fin-de-siecle of the terrible nuclear
century etc) were landmarks. The vision was tranformed into a movement. The
movement and hope and vision continue and grow. The founding name should
continue. The fact that we will not have a treaty by 2000 will be a goad
and reminder of the realistic need for a long struggle. Will we change the
name every five years as we continue?

Dan Fine
-"Abolition 2000: The Western Pennsylvania Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons"


PSR-Pittsburgh
-dedicated to the abolition of nuclear weapons



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From: [e-mail] (Robert Smirnow)
Subject: RE: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 03 Oct 1998 12:45:42 -0500 (CDT)



     This is slightly longer but I feel it's important to awaken people
to the ICJ decision of July 8, 1996 and get our strategy across. I
propose "Uphold International Law, No-Nukes."


      -Bill Smirnow
>
>
>For a short name you could consider "We Say No Nukes" see
>http://www.pgs.ca/pages/nonukes.htm
>Ross Wilcock
>[e-mail]
>http://www.pgs.ca/
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From:    [e-mail]
>[mailto:[e-mail]] On Behalf Of Jan
Harwood
>Sent:    Saturday, October 03, 1998 3:52 AM
>To:    [e-mail]
>Subject:    Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
>
>
>I agree we need a better name.  Just for starters, how about "No More
>Nukes"?
>It's not elegant, but people understand it.
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to
"[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>


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From: "Ross Wilcock" <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Words & Slogans
Date: 03 Oct 1998 14:39:25 -0400



I did not mean to suggest a replacement for the name Abolition 2000!

Dan Fine puts the case very well for stability - and points out a dangerous
ambiguity in what I wrote.

"We Say No Nukes" is a slogan with some graphics - to stimulate creativity.
http://www.pgs.ca/pages/nonukes.htm
An IPPNW Board member dreamed it - literally  - in Malaysia!
The graphics displayed were adopted by the Belgium to Faslane Peace March.
If anyone has material to share - please contribute!

The are already excellent multimedia variations on the abolition theme -
documents, books, documentaries - including CNN for example.  "Abolition" of
the "Cold War" was a major objective of the Better World Society - an
organization initiated by Ted Turner. Abolition of Slavery has been
discussed in comparison with n/ws.

Politically, progress needs strong grassroot support.  There is already a
great deal of multilevel support - the World Court, The UN General Assembly,
The Non-Aligned Movement - the voices of many great leaders and citizens -
well done! The US seems to have the most active antinuclear movement
worldwide. - But it is up against the biggest budget too!

To my mind, the Australian work on the Municipalities Declaration is very
promising - a majority of Australian municipalities are now committed to the
abolition of nuclear weapons - this is a very powerful political
statement! - but what is lacking in the other 179???

Rational choice is wiser than waiting or procrastinating in the face of
disaster - don't know where! - don't know when!

Unfortunately - this problem reaches to the heart of the political process -
what happens when "people" appoint representatives to the age old problem of
"governor and governed."  I think Leo Tolstoy's last message to mankind
 http://www.pgs.ca/pages/ltlmess.html ) puts this very well - and then
consider his  Law of Love and Law of Violence
 http://www.pgs.ca/pages/ltlllv.html  ).

The international order has not been functioning at all well in the last few
years. There have been genocides, mass murders and many failures to do the
right thing. Some "world leaders" have shown themselves as criminals and for
some reason there seems to be little will to make the International Criminal
Court work properly even for those already indicted.

So what changes are necessary for global human security - abolition of
nuclear weapons is a priority element - - but let us not be blind to other
needs and problems.

Hope this helps - good luck!

Ross Wilcock
[e-mail]

-----Original Message-----
[mailto:[e-mail]] On Behalf Of Ross Wilcock
Sent:    Saturday, October 03, 1998 10:16 AM


For a short name you could consider "We Say No Nukes" see
http://www.pgs.ca/pages/nonukes.htm




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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) ?? new Name ????. NO !!!!!!
Date: 03 Oct 1998 23:56:04 -0400

"No Nukes" is a slogan, "Abolition" is an imperative.

Ellen Thomas
_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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From: Jan Harwood <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 03 Oct 1998 22:15:50 -0800

You're right, Ellen Thomas.  I didn't like the "more" either.  How about
"No Nukes Now!"  Or "End Nukes Now". Or something that'll make a good
acronym, "End Nuclear Dementia."



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From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) How Peace Came To The World
Date: 04 Oct 1998 02:15:39 -0700 (PDT)

I have a BOOK called "How Peace Came To The World" (edited by Earl Foell and
Richard Nenneman and published by the Christian Science Publishing Society
in 1986), a collection of essays about how peace can come to the world.
Have you read it?  Has a sequel been written?  Below are some ideas from
that book:

I. Use the military budget for non-military purposes (pp65-67):

        A. A Public Works Division in the DoD to solicit bids to build mass
transit systems in U.S. cities.

        B. An Environmental Defense Division to solicit bids to build
anti-pollution systems, which the EDD would then give to businesses and
government agencies for free to stop them from polluting.  I would also have
the EDD solicit bids to build renewable, clean energy systems.

        C. An Anti-Crime Division to fight organized crime, using armies of
specially trained detectives, accountants, lawyers, and military personnel
to track down organized criminals.

II. Military integration between the U.S. and Russia (pp68-73).  Each
country would have a group of high-ranking military officials at the upper
levels of the other country's military.  This would greatly reduce the risk
of accidental war, facilitate verification of arms control agreements, and
facilitate cooperation in international crisis by facilitating
communications between the two nations.  The idea spreads to the rest of the
world, although it takes until 2004 for the Northern Ireland factions to
integrate, and until 2006 for Israel, Jordan, Egypt, and Syria to integrate
their militaries and set up a Palestinian homeland.

III. National Peace Council (pp128-135).  Congress sets up a National Peace
Council with the clear responsibility and accountability to achieve a
sustainable peace with other nations and with the earth itself.  It
parallels the National Security Council in rank and stature.  It reports
directly to the President, advises and assists him on all policies relating
to a peaceful and sustainable future, assists the President in coordinating
foreign policy decision relating to world peace, and serves as his forum for
national peace-securing issues.

IV. Civilian Defense Networks built by Greens in Europe (1990-1994)! (p157).
They practice total non-cooperation with invaders and uninhibited
fraternization with individual invaders as people.  Green arm-banded
marshall scatter through towns and countryside checking food supplies,
flexing communications networks and giving workshops on the above two
principles.  When the USSR invades Poland in 1994, the Poles copy the above
idea and so confound the Soviets that many of them defect.  Soon, the idea
of non-violent resistance spreads worldwide and abolishes war.

V. A computer network devoted to exchanging views on how to achieve world
peace (pp175-183).  The computer network is set up by the New Relations
Working Group in the mid-1980s, and is open to anyone who has a computer
terminal.  Thus any proposals which become popular on that network are
likely to receive a hearing among the public.  The network also has a
politician who asks of each idea "Who has the power to implement this? How
could they be motivated to do so?".  The people on the network also ask what
groups would benefit from implementing the idea, what groups could influence
policy makers, and how to deal with opposition from the military-industrial
complex.  They then search for a way to create a coalition to get the idea
implemented.  The people on the network find non-military missions for the
military-industrial complex, such as reforesting the Sahara.  Ideas pushed
by the peace network include a joint U.S./Russia trade center, a joint
U.S./Russia space station, diplomatic restraint when we aren't directly
involved in a Russian created problem, turning the ruble into a hard
currency, and "Minimum Assured Deterrence" (having just enough military
force available to protect ourselves so that the Russians don't feel
threatened).  Many politicians join the network to test ideas, obtain ideas,
and/or appeal for campaign contributions.

VI.  The peace network mentioned above also inspires the creation of a
conflict management industry which deals with everything from family
disputes to labor/management problems to international relations.  As a
result, conflicts become less likely to turn violent.

VII. Peace, INC. (pp186-189) A group of California business men set up
Peace, Inc in the mid 1980s to sell peace to the world, on the theory that
most of the world population desperately wanted peace and the superpowers
weren't giving it to them.  Peace, Inc sells stock to people who want to
help bring about peace, and uses the money to hire the best lobbyists and
publicists in the business. They get Congress to set up a NASA type agency
dedicated to eliminating weapons of mass destruction and bringing about
friendly relations between the U.S. and USSR.  The agency is funded with 10%
of the military budget and a 5% peace tax. Peace, Inc and the peace agency then:

        A. Study the nuclear safeguard systems of both nations, and discover
that the Soviet system is seriously flawed.  They then persuade Congress to
provide the Soviets with a new safeguard system, modern computers, and
modern communications equipment to reduce the risk of accidental war.  They
also study the launch-on-warning systems to both nations and find ways to
increase avenues of communications between the two nations.

        B. Hire Armand Hammer, Admiral Rickover, and Lee Iacocca to find
solutions to the political problems between the U.S. and USSR.  Those three
study the post-WWII behavior of the USSR and deduce that the Soviets "had
conducted their entire postwar policy from a position of isolation and
deep-seated fear of invasion".  The Nazi invasion had severely traumatized
the Soviets.  Hammer and Iacocca then organize global conferences (with 3rd
world nations involved for the 1st time) to find solutions to the
U.S./Soviet conflict and figure out how to abolish weapons of mass
destruction.  (I don't know what happened to Rickover).

VIII. At a 1985 Writer's Congress, the writers agree to oppose the danger of
war in their literary works (pp199-202).  This is called the "R" (for
responsibility) factor.  Soon, the "R" idea spreads to journalists,
commentators, film producers, newspaper publishers, and politicians.

IX. Sophomores For Peace! (pp211-220).  A retired physicist named Jerome
Pressman writes a letter to the President proposing that the U.S. and USSR
exchange their entire sophomore classes to generate goodwill between the two
nations and deter nuclear war.  The SOPH proposal quickly excites the peace
movement, churches, college students, and university administrators.
Economists calculate that the educational costs balance out and that the
only cost is that of flying the students between the two nations (estimated
at $200 a head).  I am certain that the airlines would also be excited at
the prospect of four million additional passengers a year (One million
students from each country twice a year).  The SOPH proposal also excites
the Soviet peoples.  Thus both sides soon accept the idea.  At the time of
the FIRST EXCHANGE, the U.S. and USSR exchange and destroy ten nuclear
weapons each.  The nuclear material is given to the UN. Each Russian bomb
structure is assigned to a large stadium and is "destructed" as major
musical groups perform a celebration of joy.  The same thing happens in
Russia.


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From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 04 Oct 1998 03:14:08 -0700 (PDT)

At 12:30 PM 10/2/98 -0400, ASlater <[e-mail]> wrote:
>Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
>Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
>hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
>experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
>organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
>network by State.
>
>I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
>wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
>hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
>them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
>banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
>to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
>own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)

General Lee Butler for President!

>Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
>was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a
>parallel PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to
get >some friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us here.

What is Zia's amendment proposal?


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From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 04 Oct 1998 11:47:47 EDT



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From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 04 Oct 1998 11:51:30 EDT

there is no material difference between "no more nukes" and "no nukes"
"what is it you don't understand? NO NUKES!"
good approach, but do we also mean nuclear energy plants
do we take that on
does this not take on npt article 4
does this give us support of world court
does it dilute or expand our constituency
is the term NO NUKES dated and associated with another time and culture
does the term reach the next generation which looks eyes defined by pop
culture upon political positions and cultural positions more than 5 years old
i do not know the answers to these questions
they are worth answering next week or sooner if you or anyone on this list has
clear answers
jonathan granoff

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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Name debate (response to Jonathan Granoff)
Date: 04 Oct 1998 14:32:12 -0400

At 11:51 AM 10/4/98 EDT, Jonathan Granoff <<[e-mail]> wrote:


<paraindent><param>left</param>>there is no material difference between
"no more nukes" and "no nukes"


</paraindent>Disagreement noted and disagreed with.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>"what is it you don't understand? NO
NUKES!"


</paraindent>Exactly.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>is the term NO NUKES dated and associated
with another time and culture


</paraindent>Perhaps.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>does the term reach the next generation
which looks eyes defined by pop culture


</paraindent>I don't think anyone has tried "No Nukes" for a very long
time; I haven't seen anyone producing those buttons.  It'll probably have
some sentimental value for over-50s, and the kids might go for it if some
jazzy 90's-tech buttons are produced.  Maybe the 30 year olds will think
of it contemptuously, but then again, maybe not.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>good approach, but do we also mean
nuclear energy plants


</paraindent>Eventually.  But to do that we have to start mass-producing
clean replacements.  If the arms industries are converted to such a
project, the job can get done with little extra cost, and can create a
whole new, vibrant, SELF-SUPPORTING industry, providing clean energy
(i.e. solar, wind, geothermal, hydrogen fuel cells, and no doubt a number
of others soon) and getting us all off the nuclear and fossil-fuel power
grids.  THEN we can feel safe about no nuclear weapons.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>do we take that on


</paraindent>Good question.  I've been talking about the above paragraph
in recent months, and getting very good response from all sorts of
people.


Ellen Thomas




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http://prop1.org | [e-mail]

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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Name debate (response to Jonathan Granoff)
Date: 04 Oct 1998 14:32:12 -0400

At 11:51 AM 10/4/98 EDT, Jonathan Granoff <<[e-mail]> wrote:


<paraindent><param>left</param>>there is no material difference between
"no more nukes" and "no nukes"


</paraindent>Disagreement noted and disagreed with.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>"what is it you don't understand? NO
NUKES!"


</paraindent>Exactly.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>is the term NO NUKES dated and associated
with another time and culture


</paraindent>Perhaps.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>does the term reach the next generation
which looks eyes defined by pop culture


</paraindent>I don't think anyone has tried "No Nukes" for a very long
time; I haven't seen anyone producing those buttons.  It'll probably have
some sentimental value for over-50s, and the kids might go for it if some
jazzy 90's-tech buttons are produced.  Maybe the 30 year olds will think
of it contemptuously, but then again, maybe not.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>good approach, but do we also mean
nuclear energy plants


</paraindent>Eventually.  But to do that we have to start mass-producing
clean replacements.  If the arms industries are converted to such a
project, the job can get done with little extra cost, and can create a
whole new, vibrant, SELF-SUPPORTING industry, providing clean energy
(i.e. solar, wind, geothermal, hydrogen fuel cells, and no doubt a number
of others soon) and getting us all off the nuclear and fossil-fuel power
grids.  THEN we can feel safe about no nuclear weapons.


<paraindent><param>left</param>>do we take that on


</paraindent>Good question.  I've been talking about the above paragraph
in recent months, and getting very good response from all sorts of
people.


Ellen Thomas




_______________________________


PROPOSITION ONE COMMITTEE

P.O. Box 27217, Washington, DC 20038 USA

202-462-0757 (phone) | 202-265-5389 (fax)

http://prop1.org | [e-mail]

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 04 Oct 1998 17:13:46 -0400

Jonathan:

Please see my answers below. I sent a somewhat lognger message to the
list last week, on the same subject.
                    Regards, Peter

[e-mail] wrote:
>
> there is no material difference between "no more nukes" and "no nukes"
> "what is it you don't understand? NO NUKES!"
> good approach, but do we also mean nuclear energy plants YES
> do we take that on YES
> does this not take on npt article 4 YES
> does this give us support of world court YES
> does it dilute or expand our constituency EXPAND, COSIDERABLY
> is the term NO NUKES dated and associated with another time and culture MAYBE, BUT SO WHAT? IT'S THE BEST TERM FOR THE JOB
> does the term reach the next generation which looks eyes defined by pop
> culture upon political positions and cultural positions more than 5 years old SEE ABOVE
> i do not know the answers to these questions
> they are worth answering next week or sooner if you or anyone on this list has
> clear answers
> jonathan granoff
>
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From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 04 Oct 1998 17:37:09 -0400

Alice et all:  OK, but let's not spend a lot of energy on a campaign for
a Presidential candidate who's not with us on abolition, i.e. let's find
or cultivate one who is.

Zia will be in Chicago, so you can ask him to explain his NPT amendment
proposal.
                    Peter

P.S. People should read "A Sinking Ruble Torpedoes Russia's Nuclear
Arsenal" on p.16 of the September 28 Washington Post Weekly. I haven't
checked to see if it's on their web site and I don't have a scanner;
sorry.

Timothy Bruening wrote:
>
> At 12:30 PM 10/2/98 -0400, ASlater <[e-mail]> wrote:
> >Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
> >Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
> >hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
> >experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
> >organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
> >network by State.
> >
> >I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
> >wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
> >hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
> >them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
> >banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
> >to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
> >own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)
>
> General Lee Butler for President!
>
> >Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
> >was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a
> >parallel PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to
> get >some friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us here.
>
> What is Zia's amendment proposal?
>
> -
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Military Spending by the U.S. and other nations
Date: 04 Oct 1998 18:48:08 -0700 (PDT)

I have read that the U.S. will spend $270.5 billion on defense this year.
What are the latest figures on military spending by Russia, China, U.S.
adversaries, and U.S. allies?


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) REGIONAL REPORTS FOR CHICAGO MEETING
Date: 05 Oct 1998 08:39:03 -0400

Jackie - Sue Broidy will have the information of Maine's Abolition 2000
work. Rosalie Paul, Peace Action Maine



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Shundahai Network <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Prayers for a great Chicago meeting!
Date: 05 Oct 1998 09:29:02 -0700

Dear Friends,


This is Reinard Knutsen with some personal thoughts on the upcoming Chicago meeting and the discussion that has taken place. These thoughts are not the official comments of Shundahai Network but of my self as an abolition organizer.


I hope that every one has a safe journey to Chicago and that the discussions are fruitful and the abolition movement comes out of the meeting energized and excited about the future.


On the name change discussion: I feel like this could be a major energy drain and a one day organizing meeting is not the time or place to effectively discuss this. I would advise that we keep "Abolition 2000" or mild change to "Abolition Now!" or "Nuclear Abolition Now!" I feel that we need to keep abolition in the title. We have worked hard over the past few years to make this a catch phrase and I even hear the mainstream media using this now days.


I feel like it is important to connect nuclear energy and nuclear waste to the abolition movement.


I feel like closing down the Nevada Test Site and halting stockpile stewardship and management programs should be as important as nuclear disarmament negotiations.


I feel that the groups and individuals who will be at the Chicago meeting are not exactly representative of the movement as a whole and that you remain open and accepting of all the different types of organizations and strategies involved.


I hope that you accept the strategies that do not involve electoral work as part of the big picture. I feel that we all have a part in this movement and that it should include public education and outreach, legislative lobbying and education, electoral strategizing and work, and nonviolent direct action. Not every one has to participate in all of these facets but at least we need to accept that other groups will be plugged in their own ways and capabilities.


As a person who believes in nonviolent direct action as an important part of  this movement, I hope that you can continue to be accepting of what many perceive as the "more radical fringe" of the movement. I hope that you will understand that we play a part in the abolition movement just as electoral groups.


And I truly hope that more people will decide that this issue is important enough that they are willing to take risks and make some sacrifices to see it through.


Please remember all of us gathering at the Nevada Test Site this coming weekend. We will be planning a huge creative and exciting gathering for Mothers Day weekend next year (may 7-10, 99). This gathering will celebrate and honor mothers and our connection to Mother Earth. It was the mothers that really provided the needed pressure to get the limited test ban treaty (though it should have been a (CTBT).  In your planning for 99 I hope that you will use this date as part of the larger campaign.


I wish and pray for success for all of our efforts.


Peace and love, Reinard

><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<


                       SHUNDAHAI NETWORK

                 "Peace and Harmony with all Creation"

                5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV 89108-1304

<paraindent><param>out,out</param>
Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385

                     Email: [e-mail]

</paraindent>
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param>http://www.shundahai.org


</color></underline>            Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:


    Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to

    foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and


    Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Nevada Desert Experience <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re:  (abolition-usa) Prayers for a great Chicago meeting!
Date: 05 Oct 1998 10:04:41 -0700 (PDT)

Dear Abolition Network,                October 5, 1998
This is David Buer, ofm at the Nevada Desert Experience just wanting to
underline, Reinhard's comments to the Abolition 2000 meeting in Chicago.
NDE
NDE has been working more closely with the Shundahai Network and Healing
Global Wounds these last few years to bring folks out to the Nevada Test
Site, many who risk arrest to protest the ongoing nuclear testing and
planned dumping of nuclear waste from around the country.  Also, NDE
would like to encourage the gathering in Chicago to consider helping
promote NDE's planned event for the new millennium.  From December 29,
1999 to January 2, 2000, NDE will host Millennium 2000, Walking the Ways
of Peace.  There will be workshops, theater, music, prayer and protest in
the NDE tradition.  We ask Abolition 2000 to endorse and promote this
event.  Tonight I leave for our Board Meeting where we will finalize much
of the event's schedule.  So we will soon be getting that information out
in flyers, camara ready ads and a brochure.  Please consider coming to
Millennium 2000, where we will have a candlelight procession onto the
Nevada Test Site at midnight, January 1, 2000.  Thanks for your
consideration.
            Sincerely,
                    David Buer, ofm
                    NDE Interim Director

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 05 Oct 1998 13:45:39 -0400

At the 1997 NPT PrepCom meeting in NY, Zia Mian, a Pakistani physicist at
Princeton, and a founding member of Abolition 2000, proposed to the delegates
at the prepcom during the NGO presentations that the NPT itself provides
for an
amendment process which should be used to amend the NPT to become a
negotiating
forum for a nuclear weapons convention.  I have his full proposal, if you
would
like to see it.
Alice Slater

>>>Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.
>>It
>>>was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a
>>>parallel PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to
>get >some friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us
>here.
>
>What is Zia's amendment proposal?
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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>
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
15 East 26 St.
New York, NY  10010
212-726-9161(tel)
212-726-9160(fax)

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
of Nuclear Weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 05 Oct 1998 15:37:47 -0400

Dear Friends,
When we organized Abolition 2000 in 1995, there was no speaking of the "A"
word.  One of the major accomplishments of the Network to date has been the
progress we can see in making abolition an idea whose time has come. Today, it
is in everyone's vocabulary--from Generals, to world leaders, to the tireless
grassroots campaigners.  I propose that we call ourselves the US Abolition
Campaign with some tag line beneath, ie to ban nuclear bombs, or some such,
but
keep Abolition in.  I hate to give up 2000--because I think it stands for the
millenium and has a certain excitement.  I'm not troubled by the
literalness of
whether or not we get a treaty by the end of 2000 or by 2001, 2002, or 2003.
It's certainly not a pipedream to me.  We have treaties to eliminate
biological
and chemical weapons--this is not an unrealistic goal.  But it looks like a
"deal breaker" so I'm willing to keep it at US Abolition Campaign. I just hope
we don't fritter away our time in Chicago deciding on a name.  There's so much
organizing we need to accomplish in our one day together.

I urge us also not to get hung up on whether the US Abolition Campaign
includes
nuclear power.  The Abolition Statement recognizes that the two are
"inextricably linked".  See the first two paragraphs of the statement below.
The statement also calls for the establishment of an international energy
agency for the promotion of safe clean sustainable energy.  India and Pakistan
have demonstrated all too well that we can't stop the proliferation of nuclear
weapons without getting a handle on nuclear power.  I think our campaign must
be focussed on getting the US President to be willing to negotiate a treaty.
Whatever we can do in our campaign to stop the production of nuclear materials
and nuclear pollution and to join forces with our friends on the civilian
power
side, can only help our Campaign. Indeed the separation of military and civil
issues was an artificial one and only served to keep us less empowered than if
we had all been viewing it as two sides of the same coin all along.
Regards, Alice Slater

>
> Abolition Statement
>          A secure and livable world for our children and grandchildren and
> all future generations requires that we achieve a world free of nuclear
> weapons and redress the environmental degradation and human suffering that
> is the legacy of fifty years of nuclear weapons testing and production.
>
>          Further, the inextricable link between the "peaceful" and warlike
> uses of nuclear technologies and the threat to future generations inherent
> in creation and use of long-lived radioactive materials must be
> recognized. We must move toward reliance on clean, safe, renewable forms
> of energy production that do not provide the materials for weapons of mass
> destruction and do not poison the environment for thousands of centuries.
> The true "inalienable" right is not to nuclear energy, but to life,
> liberty and security of person in a world free of nuclear   weapons.


Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
15 East 26 St.
New York, NY  10010
212-726-9161(tel)
212-726-9160(fax)

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
of Nuclear Weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Bob Tiller <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Comments in preparation for Chicago meeting
Date: 05 Oct 1998 15:57:23 -0400

Comments about Next Steps in the Abolition Campaign

by Bob Musil and Bob Tiller
Physicians for Social Responsibility (PSR)
October 1998

I.  PSR WILL SUPPORT THE FOLLOWING:

    Undertaking a major campaign for the abolition of nuclear weapons which
emphasizes additive efforts, not duplicative efforts.  The campaign
should include sharing of information, coordination of the initiatives
of various groups, a speakers bureau of prominent spokespersons, public
service announcements, possibly a nationwide toll-free telephone number,
and many other campaign activities.  The political objectives should be
clear but not rigid.

    Setting up a campaign structure, not a new organization.  We now have
many organizations doing solid work on abolition.  Linking us together
in a campaign would increase effectiveness and move us closer to the
goal.  We do not need to set up a new board, seek new grants, hire new
staff, find office space, and so forth.

    Setting up a campaign coordinating committee, not a management
committee.  In keeping with our judgment that we need a campaign, not an
organization, we believe that any ongoing committee should have
coordinating responsibility only.  Each major national organization with
grassroots activities should be represented on the coordinating
committee.

    Obtaining a coordinator, not a director nor a staff.  This coordinator
would coordinate the efforts of a "virtual staff," comprised of those
already working on abolition and would not hire additional staff.  This
coordinator would work with the coordinating committee, relying
primarily on telephone and e-mail communication.  This is based on the
model of the environmental "Green Group" that has one person to
coordinate the activities and initiatives of existing groups.

    Respecting the efforts of every individual and organization striving
for abolition of nuclear weapons.  Organizations working on such steps
as de-alerting, ending the Stockpile Stewardship program, and CTBT
entry-into-force should be welcome in the campaign for nuclear
abolition.

    Setting up a Web site for abolition with links to all other Web sites
and pages dealing with abolition.  The details of how this will work
need to be developed.

II.  PSR WILL UNDERTAKE THE FOLLOWING OVER THE NEXT 15 TO 18 MONTHS,
WHICH WE OFFER AS OUR CONTRIBUTION TO THE CAMPAIGN:

    Abolition Brochure: The abolition movement needs
easily-read-and-understood literature in order to build a broader base
and more popular support.  Presently there is a dearth of such popular
brochures.  Therefore, in early 1999 PSR will help to fill that void by
developing and distributing a popular, multi-color brochure about
abolition, covering the basic concepts and answering key questions,
including: why abolition is a reasonable and appropriate policy, how it
can be achieved, and so forth.  This brochure will be designed primarily
to educate the public on nuclear abolition and recruit people to join
the broad citizen effort.

    Abolition Slide Show:  In October 1998 PSR will complete production of
a slide show on abolition, which will be suitable for general audiences
as well as physicians.  It will include sections on the medical effects
of a nuclear attack, CTBT, de-alerting, and Stockpile Stewardship,
drop-in modules for special audiences, and concrete action suggestions
for every audience.  It will be available for purchase by anyone.

    Activist/Organizing Packet:  In order to facilitate the broad range of
abolition activities by physicians and other activists, PSR will produce
and distribute an activist/organizing packet on nuclear weapons.

    Field Organizer: If adequate funding is obtained, PSR will hire a new
staff person to work with PSR activists, chapters and other groups on
building grassroots support for abolition.  This new staff person would
(a) build relationships with physicians who have a mild interest in
nuclear weapons but have not so far become activists in grassroots
abolition work, and (b) perform additional recruitment and mobilization
with new constituencies and new individuals.

    Physicians Statement: We will circulate an international physicians
statement on abolition of nuclear weapons, first seeking sign-ons in the
U.S., then working with International Physicians for the Prevention of
Nuclear War to obtain sign-ons from doctors in other countries.  It will
be presented to the President of the U.S. and the leaders of the other
nuclear powers in some type of formal way.  We will also place it as an
advertisement in certain publications.

    Medical Society Resolutions:  Building on steps already taken in
1997-98, PSR will continue facilitating the adoption by state medical
societies across the country of a resolution calling for nuclear
abolition.

    Videos:  PSR will use two new videos as grassroots
education-and-organizing tools: one is the stirring speech on abolition
given by Gen. (Ret.) George Lee Butler to 300 participants at the 1998
PSR national conference.  The other is a Lifetime cable program about
the risks and dangers of nuclear weapons, featuring PSR's Executive
Director, Robert K. Musil.

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Joseph Gerson <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 05 Oct 1998 13:06:12 -0700 (PDT)

10/5

First, I am doubtful about putting our hopes on finding a presidential
candidate. If we could, that would be wonderful.

Having struggled with John Kerry when he was Lieutenant Governor of
Massachusetts in the mid-1980s, when he served as point man in Ted Kennedy's
efforts to make Boston the homeport for the nuclear armed Battleship Iowa
Task Force, and having met with him on several occasions during his reign in
the Senate, I am quite certain that he will not be a standard bearer for
abolition. A mass movement might eventually be able to win him over, but we
have to organize it first. These days he's more likely to run as "an old
Navy hand" than one of the co-founders of VVAW.

Joseph Gerson



At 03:14 AM 10/4/98 -0700, Timothy Bruening wrote:
>At 12:30 PM 10/2/98 -0400, ASlater <[e-mail]> wrote:
>>Thanks Peter for lots of great suggestions.  I think we need to come out of
>>Chicago organized as a national campaign geared to the 2000 elections.  I
>>hope we can come out of this meeting with a Campaign Manager, who has had
>>experience managing a US Presidential Campaign.  I think we need to
>>organize by Congressional Districts, and try to establish a minimum contact
>>network by State.
>>
>>I don't think Gore will have smooth sailing to the nomination.  In the
>>wings are Gebhardt, Wellstone, Kerry, and Bradley (who has been dropping
>>hints).  I hope we can set up a process at the meeting to reach each one of
>>them, and whoever else appears, and ask them to champion the abolition
>>banner--much like Gene McCarthy helped the country to organize politically
>>to end the war in Vietnam.  If none of them will do it, we need to get our
>>own candidate.(Jackson?, Brown?)
>
>General Lee Butler for President!
>
>>Internationally, the NPT will be meeting again in New York this spring.  It
>>was an utter disgrace last time.  Maybe this is the time to have a
>>parallel PrepCom and bring up Zia Mian's amendment proposal.  We need to
>get >some friendly governments to participate.  Perhaps MPI can help us
here.
>
>What is Zia's amendment proposal?
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>
>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: john burroughs <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) MEETING PROCESS SUGGESTIONS
Date: 05 Oct 1998 13:28:52 -0700 (PDT)

Here are some suggestions regarding the process for the October 9 Chicago
meeting, inspired partly by the fact that it is only a one-day meeting(!),
and also by experiences at similar meetings.

1.  Prioritize the initiatives to be discussed, and discuss only a few (say
three or four) in depth. We don't need to spend significant time on a long
laundry list of what has been done, is being done, might be done, we wish
would be done, and who is doing/will do these things. We can keep track of
various activities in ongoing communication. This meeting is an opportunity
to have in-person, creative, thorough discussion of a few projects. For
example, how could speaking tours best be organized to get the vision
across, reflect our diversity, find new audiences, etc.? Getting into
colleges/universities one way or the other seems important to me.

2.  Give adequate time and thought to coming out of meeting with minimal but
effective structure, communication, and continuity. I am concerned that this
topic apparently is last on the agenda. Too often I have seen this critical
matter discussed superficially at the end of a meeting. Perhaps at least
there could be an early presentation of ideas regarding structure and
continuity so they can be absorbed during the day and people are prepared to
discuss them. Thanks to Bob Tiller of PSR for his message addressing this
point among others. One issue: how will the US abolition organizer that
several groups are planning to hire relate to the campaign? Another: funding
for projects and any staff/office.

Looking forward to seeing you all -


        *********************************************
        John Burroughs
        Western States Legal Foundation
        1440 Broadway, Suite 500
        Oakland, California, USA  94612
        Tel: [phone]
        Fax: [phone]
        E-mail: [e-mail]
        Western States is part of Abolition 2000:
        A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons
        *********************************************


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) A Day Without the Pentagon
Date: 05 Oct 1998 16:29:07 -0400

Join internationally acclaimed artists and activists Odetta and Jaleo with
David Dellinger, Hala Maksoud, Allan Nairn, Mandy Carter, Daniel Ellsberg,
Pam Africa, Alyn Ware, Barbara Smith, Luis Nieves-Falcon, Clare Hanrahan,
David McReynolds, Greg Payton at A Day Without the Pentagon on October 19!

Buses are leaving from New York City on Sunday October 18 and Monday
October 19.  Reserve your ticket now.

Committees are also organizing in more than two dozen cities.  Next New
York City meeting, Tuesday October 6 at 6:30, 841 Broadway.  Call
212-228-0450 for more information.

See you at the Pentagon,

Chris Ney
**********
War Resisters League
339 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10012
212-228-0450
212-228-6193 (fax)
1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
[e-mail]
web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

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From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: Oct. 19th anti-militarism rally in D.C.
Date: 05 Oct 1998 21:25:45 EDT

In a message dated 10/5/98 8:02:13 AM Eastern Daylight Time,
[e-mail] writes:

<< Subj:     Re: Oct. 19th anti-militarism rally in D.C.
 Date:    10/5/98 8:02:13 AM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (Sue Wheaton)
 To:    [e-mail]
 CC:    [e-mail]

 Dear David McReynolds:

 This is to inform you that, by vote of the Alliance Council, the Alliance
 for Democracy endorses "A Day Without the Pentagon."

 Our Alliance chapter in the Washington area,  the Metro DC Alliance for
 Democracy, also voted to endorse the event and to send $35 for a table at
 it.  I am in touch with John Judge on that.

 If there is time, please add both the national and the DC Alliances to
 the list of endorsing organizations.

 Thank you and I hope to meet you on Oct. 19th.

 In alliance,

 Sue Wheaton
 Co-Chair
 Alliance for Democracy





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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Prayers for a great Chicago meeting!
Date: 05 Oct 1998 22:06:32 -0400

As somebody who can't be in Chicago this weekend, but who has made his
living as a trademark lawyer for the past 45 years, I have a small piece
of advice: DON'T CHANGE THE NAME! Any phrase that has acquired "name
recognition", as Abolition 2000 has, is a valuable asset which should be
jettisoned only for very good reasons. I haven't heard one in our chat
room so far. That doesn't mean you can't have buttons saying NO NUKES,
or NO NUKES - ABOLITION NOW. But the name of the campaign should remain.
                    Peter Weiss

Shundahai Network wrote:
>
> Dear Friends,
>
> This is Reinard Knutsen with some personal thoughts on the upcoming Chicago meeting and the discussion that has taken place. These thoughts are not the official comments of Shundahai Network but of my self as an abolition organizer.
>
> I hope that every one has a safe journey to Chicago and that the discussions are fruitful and the abolition movement comes out of the meeting energized and excited about the future.
>
> On the name change discussion: I feel like this could be a major energy drain and a one day organizing meeting is not the time or place to effectively discuss this. I would advise that we keep "Abolition 2000" or mild change to "Abolition Now!" or "Nuclear Abolition Now!" I feel that we need to keep abolition in the title. We have worked hard over the past few years to make this a catch phrase and I even hear the mainstream media using this now days.
>
> I feel like it is important to connect nuclear energy and nuclear waste to the abolition movement.
>
> I feel like closing down the Nevada Test Site and halting stockpile stewardship and management programs should be as important as nuclear disarmament negotiations.
>
> I feel that the groups and individuals who will be at the Chicago meeting are not exactly representative of the movement as a whole and that you remain open and accepting of all the different types of organizations and strategies involved.
>
> I hope that you accept the strategies that do not involve electoral work as part of the big picture. I feel that we all have a part in this movement and that it should include public education and outreach, legislative lobbying and education, electoral strategizing and work, and nonviolent direct action. Not every one has to participate in all of these facets but at least we need to accept that ot her groups will be plugged in their own ways and capabilities.
>
> As a person who believes in nonviolent direct action as an important part of this movement, I hope that you can continue to be accepting of what many perceive as the "more radical fringe" of the movement. I hope that you will understand that we play a part in the abolition movement just as electoral groups.
>
> And I truly hope that more people will decide that this issue is important enough that they are willing to take risks and make some sacrifices to see it through.
>
> Please remember all of us gathering at the Nevada Test Site this coming weekend. We will be planning a huge creative and exciting gathering for Mothers Day weekend next year (may 7-10, 99). This gathering will celebrate and honor mothers and our connection to Mother Earth. It was the mothers that really provided the needed pressure to get the limited test ban treaty (though it should have been a ( CTBT). In your planning for 99 I hope that you will use this date as part of the larger campaign.
>
> I wish and pray for success for all of our efforts.
>
> Peace and love, Reinard
> ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><><
>
> SHUNDAHAI NETWORK
> "Peace and Harmony with all Creation"
> 5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV 89108-1304
> Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385
> Email: [e-mail]
> http://www.shundahai.org
>
> Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:
>
> Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to
> foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and
>
> Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons
>
> ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><>< ><><
>
> - To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]" with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message. For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send "help" to the same address. Do not use quotes in your message.
>
> $*$*$*$*$ 3 LINES REFORMATTED BY POPPER AT igc.apc.org $*$*$*$*$



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) [Fwd: Nuclear legacy in Semipalatinsk]
Date: 05 Oct 1998 21:56:14 -0400

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Hi Peter,
I hope your talk with the South Asian journalists went well and that the
pamphlets arrived OK. I thought you might be interested in this horrifying
story about Kazakhstan.
Best,
Sanho


Sunday October 4, 1998    The Guardian (UK)=20

A secret nuclear tragedy=20

David Harrison reports from Kazakhstan, where the former Soviet test site
has left an awful legacy of diseased and deformed bodies=20

As a young man in the Fifties, Eleugazy Nurgaliev used to hear explosions
near his home in eastern Kazakhstan. He would feel the house shake and see
huge mushroom clouds rising menacingly above the vast steppe.

Puzzled and frightened, he asked what was going on. Officials assured him it
was 'important scientific research'. Far from being worried, they said, he
should be proud that such work was being carried out so near to Kainar, his
village in the foothills near the city of Semipalatinsk.

Many years and hundreds more explosions passed before Nurgaliev, now 67,
learnt that Semipalatinsk was the Soviet Union's site for testing nuclear
bombs. It was only then that he realised why he had suffered from a serious
skin disease since the early days of testing.

At least Nurgaliev is still alive. Thousands of other villagers and their
children have died from cancer, including rare forms of tongue and eye
cancer, as a result of radiation from the tests. Ninety per cent of
inhabitants are suffering from immune deficiency syndrome, according to the
latest figures.

Every family in the village has lost at least one member to cancer since the
tests started in 1949.

When doctors recognised the pattern of symptoms - tumours, weakened immune
systems - they called it 'Kainar syndrome'. But their Soviet masters forbade
them to link the diseases to the tests. Under Kremlin rules nobody could be
made ill by radiation. And Kainar was just one village.=20

A total of 470 tests were carried out at the site - 116 of them on or above
ground - and they have affected more than 1.2 million people still living in
the region.

According to a United Nations report, to be published this month, more than
100,000 people over three generations have been directly affected by
radiation; 67,000 receiving the heaviest doses have passed genetic defects
on to their children and grandchildren. Hundreds of thousands have suffered
from diseases ranging from cancer to mental illness. Last year, nearly
nearly 500 of every 1,000 babies born in Semipalatinsk, 100 miles from the
test site, had a defect or health problem. Forty-seven died.

The report, to be presented to the UN General Assembly next month, concludes
that immediate and long-term help is needed and urges rich nations to set up
an emergency conference to discuss raising $40 million to ease the crisis.

"This is a hidden catastrophe and it is time the world woke up to it," said
Herbert Bridgstock, the UN's co-ordinator in Almaty, the former capital of
Kazakhstan. "People notice sudden disasters but this one has lasted over 40
years and we are only just beginning to realise the scale of it. It is a
regional and global disaster."

Another UN official said: "This is like 116 Chernobyls. It is a consequence
of the Cold War and its aftermath. There is international responsibility to
sort it out."

The more obvious victims of the quest to perfect nuclear weapons can be seen
in and around Semipalatinsk, people of all ages with horrible deformities.
Yuri Kuidin, a photographer and anti-nuclear campaigner, has captured many
of them for his recently published book, Kazakhstan Nuclear Tragedy.

The pictures do not make comfortable viewing: a hideously deformed foetus,
now on display at a medical museum, children with grotesque growths on their
faces. The man born armless, who uses his feet to paint scenes of nuclear
horror. The calf with six legs.

The UN believes the book can help to highlight Kazakhstan's plight and plans
to distribute it at the General Assembly.

The UN report was commissioned 12 months ago when officials became aware of
the gravity of the situation. It was compiled by UN agencies, the Kazakhstan
government and more than 20 international experts from countries including
Britain, the United States, Japan and Russia.

It claims hospitals in Semipalatinsk cannot cope with even the most
immediate problems, because there is a shortage of beds and medicines, and
equipment is decades old. Most treatment is curative and stop-gap.

There is no money for prevention. Cases of breast and other forms of cancer
are increasing without a screening programme. The area has also seen huge
rises in the incidence of TB and Hepatitis A and B, linked to breakdowns of
the immune system.

Cancer rates are a third greater than elsewhere in Kazakhstan. Other health
problems include circulation, digestive, respiratory and non-cancer blood
diseases.

Infant mortality has grown 10-fold since 1950. Suicide rates, especially
among the young, have also increased, with impotence cited as a common
reason. The crisis has been made worse by appalling environmental and
economic problems - both part of the legacy of the Soviet nuclear bomb=
 industry.

"It is the combination of these crises - health, environmental and economic
- and the fact that they have grown over so many years, that makes this such
a terrible disaster," said Bridgstock.

Lakes and rivers were polluted and huge areas of land contaminated by the=
 tests.

The 352 underground tests, which started after the ground/atmospheric test
ban treaty signed with the US and Britain in 1963, did further damage,
opening huge fissures in the ground and allowing radioactive gases to
escape. 'Atomic lakes' such as Lake Balapan are among the consequences.

There are 'safe' areas in the region but research is needed to identify and
develop them. "Until that happens there will be uncertainty and fear," says
Bridgstock. That uncertainty - not knowing whether the water, the food, the
air are safe - is another factor behind the rise in mental health problems
and suicides in Semipalatinsk, according to the report.=20

It calls for a detailed land use programme and warns that changing the use
of the test site could release more radiation.

But if the presence of the test site devastated Kazakhstan, the end of
testing and the closure of the site in 1991 dealt the region an economic
blow , bringing unemployment - 400,000 people worked at the site - poverty
and massive social problems.

In the Fifties, the Soviet Union built a secret city 10 miles from the test
site. The city housed all the scientists, other experts and support staff
needed for the tests and its population grew rapidly.=20

The city's name was changed from Moscow-400 to Semipalatinsk-21, Konechnaya
and finally to Kurchatov, after Igor Kurchatov, the founder of the Soviet
nuclear industry.

His statue still stands in the town centre. Residents benefited from better
food and services than many other parts of Kazakhstan and the rest of the
Soviet Union.

But the price of comfort was secrecy: the city never appeared on maps.
Everybody who entered had to sign a statement pledging not to reveal
anything about it.

'The break-up of the Soviet Union means the region, which had previously
been at the geographical centre of a market of 340 million found itself
suddenly on the margins of a market of 17 million,' says the UN report. A
Kazakhstan official put it more bluntly: "The Soviets destroyed our country
twice."

The Kazakhstan government has no funds to tackle the crisis of
Semipalatinsk. Its resources are already stretched by demands from other
poor regions in a country the size of western Europe, where up to 80 per
cent of the population live below the poverty line. A project to move the
capital from Almaty, near China, to Astana, nearer Russia, is a further
drain on resources.

Russia says it would like to help but is preoccupied with the collapse of
its own economy. Possession of some of the world's largest remaining oil and
gas reserves offer Kazakhstan hope for the future but Western diplomats say
it will be at least 15 years before they start to generate serious wealth.

The first Soviet nuclear bomb was exploded on 29 August 1949 at
Semipalatinsk. "From that day the Soviet military-industrial complex waged
an undeclared war against the people of Kazakhstan," says Kuidin.

12 August 1953 saw the first thermonuclear device tested. Two years later
the physicist Andrei Sakharov, who later became a celebrated dissident, had
developed the hydrogen bomb. People who lived in nearby villages were given
no warnings about imminent tests and only those closest to the test area
were evacuated - to be returned between one and three weeks later.

For the first 14 years the scientists conducted tests of uranium, hydrogen
and plutonium bombs. The population had no protection from radiation and was
given no medical tests. Falling ill brought no guarantee of treatment. In
the notorious Anti-Brucellosis Dispensary Number 4 doctors watched patients
die from the effects of radiation before compiling secret reports for their
masters. Many documents were taken to Moscow, which has hindered research
into the problems.

After the 1963 test ban treaty the tests continued apace, at secret sites
known only as Site G, Site 300, Site Sh and Site M.

Now the Russians have gone and Kazakhstan is left with the consequences. The
weak have collapsed under the strain of living in a nuclear wasteland. Now
the strong are slipping too. 'People who were capable and contributing
citzens,' the report says, 'are now joining large numbers who have fallen
between the cracks, who are unable to support families or provide for their
own most basic needs and who can no longer turn for support to a government
in the midst of difficult economic reforms.'

"The message is clear," said one UN official. "The world can help these
innocent victims of the mad race for nuclear superiority. Or it can look the
other way."

  =A9 Copyright Guardian Media Group plc.1998 =20


***************************************************************************
Sanho Tree=20
Project Director,                        202/234-9382 ext. 266 (voice)
Citizen Truth Commision                  202/387-7915 (fax)
Institute for Policy Studies             202/234-6854 (home)
733 15th St., NW, #1020             E-mail: [e-mail]
Washington, DC 20005             Website: www.ips-dc.org
***************************************************************************


--------------521366C917CA3133153A785D--




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) MEETING PROCESS SUGGESTIONS
Date: 05 Oct 1998 22:35:40 EDT



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Daniel Fine)
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 05 Oct 1998 22:45:49 -0500

Alice: there is agreement in Pittsburgh on 2000, as well as "abolition". In
our promotion, publicity etc here, we have been using the following name
and tagline for more than a year:

"ABOLITION 2000 - A US and World Campaign for a nuclear weapon-free 21st
Century"

Dan Fine

>Dear Friends,
>When we organized Abolition 2000 in 1995, there was no speaking of the "A"
>word.  One of the major accomplishments of the Network to date has been the
>progress we can see in making abolition an idea whose time has come. Today, it
>is in everyone's vocabulary--from Generals, to world leaders, to the tireless
>grassroots campaigners.  I propose that we call ourselves the US Abolition
>Campaign with some tag line beneath, ie to ban nuclear bombs, or some such,
>but
>keep Abolition in.  I hate to give up 2000--because I think it stands for the
>millenium and has a certain excitement.  I'm not troubled by the
>literalness of
>whether or not we get a treaty by the end of 2000 or by 2001, 2002, or 2003.
>It's certainly not a pipedream to me.  We have treaties to eliminate
>biological
>and chemical weapons--this is not an unrealistic goal.  But it looks like a
>"deal breaker" so I'm willing to keep it at US Abolition Campaign. I just hope
>we don't fritter away our time in Chicago deciding on a name.  There's so much
>organizing we need to accomplish in our one day together.
>
>I urge us also not to get hung up on whether the US Abolition Campaign
>includes
>nuclear power.  The Abolition Statement recognizes that the two are
>"inextricably linked".  See the first two paragraphs of the statement below.
>The statement also calls for the establishment of an international energy
>agency for the promotion of safe clean sustainable energy.  India and Pakistan
>have demonstrated all too well that we can't stop the proliferation of nuclear
>weapons without getting a handle on nuclear power.  I think our campaign must
>be focussed on getting the US President to be willing to negotiate a treaty.
>Whatever we can do in our campaign to stop the production of nuclear materials
>and nuclear pollution and to join forces with our friends on the civilian
>power
>side, can only help our Campaign. Indeed the separation of military and civil
>issues was an artificial one and only served to keep us less empowered than if
>we had all been viewing it as two sides of the same coin all along.
>Regards, Alice Slater
>
>>
>> Abolition Statement
>>          A secure and livable world for our children and grandchildren and
>> all future generations requires that we achieve a world free of nuclear
>> weapons and redress the environmental degradation and human suffering that
>> is the legacy of fifty years of nuclear weapons testing and production.
>>
>>          Further, the inextricable link between the "peaceful" and warlike
>> uses of nuclear technologies and the threat to future generations inherent
>> in creation and use of long-lived radioactive materials must be
>> recognized. We must move toward reliance on clean, safe, renewable forms
>> of energy production that do not provide the materials for weapons of mass
>> destruction and do not poison the environment for thousands of centuries.
>> The true "inalienable" right is not to nuclear energy, but to life,
>> liberty and security of person in a world free of nuclear   weapons.
>
>
>Alice Slater
>Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
>15 East 26 St.
>New York, NY  10010
>212-726-9161(tel)
>212-726-9160(fax)
>
>GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination
>of Nuclear Weapons
>
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

PSR-Pittsburgh
-dedicated to the abolition of nuclear weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) MEETING PROCESS SUGGESTIONS
Date: 05 Oct 1998 22:45:22 EDT

there are at least two processes: one, the general and in depth critique of
the international nuclear industry, weapons complexes, ideology of dominance
through fear, and failure to change the paradigm of security from reliance on
military might while diminishing the importance of meeting human needs through
international cooperation to serving global real human security based on
environmental and social responsibility; and two, creating a simple
politically focused issue for the US political process that can function as a
challange and litmus test for every candidate.
the second is imperative at this point. it should be the moral test for every
office. nuclear abolition, yes or no. with or against. then, when and how
follows with much greater ease. the right did this with abortion. it is their
litmus test for moral legitimacy. they have been effective because they used
this simple test knowing that they could later tack on their entire agenda
around it. but only after clarification on this one simple issue.
are we willling as a movement to put nuclear abolition as a moral imperative
and put aside the important nuanced aspects of our message in order to create
the kind of mass movement coalitions we require to be effective?
we must place this issue before the rotary clubs, library associations, labor
unions, university professors in a simple morally compelling fashion.
keep
it
simple
sunflowers
jonathan granoff

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Prayers for a great Chicago meeting!
Date: 05 Oct 1998 23:41:40 EDT

I'm hoping that Chris Ney and I can draft some kind of "WRL input" for the
weekend, since we (and WRL's other key folks) can't be there, with the
pressure of the October 19th date pressing on us.

However I have noted Peter's suggestion and see the merit in it.  Clearly we
are not going to have "abolition 2000" for the year 2000. Miracles happen, and
I would rejoice in being proven wrong, but on a day to day basis we should not
plan with miracles as part of our budget.

I think Abolition 2000 is OK - in a sense, "20th Century Fox" (for old timers
like me) is only now facing the need to change its name (if Fox is even still
in business - I've lost track).  Their "brand name" worked for the better part
of a century.  If we take "Abolition 2000" to imply abolition in 2000 or any
year following, we can role with it. Changing names is confusing to people and
it takes a LONG time to get folks used to a new name. There is also - though
Peter didn't mention this - the problem of wills, with people leaving money to
one group or another to be used for "Abolition 2000".

I do think our agenda needs to be broadened but that should wait a day or two
until Chris and I have a chance to talk. Meanwhile I do hope a number of the
folks in Chicago will be joining us in Washington D.C.

Peace,
David McReynolds
War Resisters League
<< Date:    10/5/98 10:33:46 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (Peter Weiss)
 Sender:    [e-mail]
 Reply-to:    [e-mail]
 To:    [e-mail]

 As somebody who can't be in Chicago this weekend, but who has made his
 living as a trademark lawyer for the past 45 years, I have a small piece
 of advice: DON'T CHANGE THE NAME! Any phrase that has acquired "name
 recognition", as Abolition 2000 has, is a valuable asset which should be
 jettisoned only for very good reasons. I haven't heard one in our chat
 room so far. That doesn't mean you can't have buttons saying NO NUKES,
 or NO NUKES - ABOLITION NOW. But the name of the campaign should remain.
                     Peter Weiss
  >>

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 06 Oct 1998 00:26:18 EDT

I want to support Joe and others who are noting the problem with getting
involved in a Presidential campaign. Leaving aside the very tiny handful of
folks like myself who are socialists and unlikely to vote for a Democrat, I
would we have a larger handful of folks who are Republicans. Abolition 2000
should not become a partisan campaign, though it might well become a rougher
and tougher one. The Vietnam Peace movement "generated" the McCarthy and
Kennedy races - but we did not ourselves get involved in endorsing them.

At the Congressional level, OK, though even here I think there are lots of
risks to electoral action. Most of the heavy lifting in the Vietnam and Civil
Rights movement was done outside the electoral arena. A lesson we should not
overlook.

Fraternally,
David McReynolds

<< Subj:     (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
 Date:    10/5/98 4:10:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (Joseph Gerson)
 Sender:    [e-mail]
 Reply-to:    [e-mail]
 To:    [e-mail], [e-mail]

 10/5

 First, I am doubtful about putting our hopes on finding a presidential
 candidate. If we could, that would be wonderful.

 Having struggled with John Kerry when he was Lieutenant Governor of
 Massachusetts in the mid-1980s, when he served as point man in Ted Kennedy's
 efforts to make Boston the homeport for the nuclear armed Battleship Iowa
 Task Force, and having met with him on several occasions during his reign in
 the Senate, I am quite certain that he will not be a standard bearer for
 abolition. A mass movement might eventually be able to win him over, but we
 have to organize it first. These days he's more likely to run as "an old
 Navy hand" than one of the co-founders of VVAW.

 Joseph Gerson



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) MEETING PROCESS SUGGESTIONS
Date: 06 Oct 1998 00:56:25 EDT

there are at least two processes: one, the general and in depth critique of
the international nuclear industry, weapons complexes, ideology of dominance
through fear, and failure to change the paradigm of security from reliance on
military might while diminishing the importance of meeting human needs through
international cooperation to serving global real human security based on
environmental and social responsibility; and two, creating a simple
politically focused issue for the US political process that can function as a
challange and litmus test for every candidate.
the second is imperative at this point. it should be the moral test for every
office. nuclear abolition, yes or no. with or against. then, when and how
follows with much greater ease. the right did this with abortion. it is their
litmus test for moral legitimacy. they have been effective because they used
this simple test knowing that they could later tack on their entire agenda
around it. but only after clarification on this one simple issue.
are we willling as a movement to put nuclear abolition as a moral imperative
and put aside the important nuanced aspects of our message in order to create
the kind of mass movement coalitions we require to be effective?
we must place this issue before the rotary clubs, library associations, labor
unions, university professors in a simple morally compelling fashion.
keep
it
simple
sunflowers
jonathan granoff

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From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) MEETING PROCESS SUGGESTIONS
Date: 06 Oct 1998 00:56:58 EDT

if you think it worthwhile please distribute my comments, jonathan
if not, not

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From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) chicago strategy thoughts
Date: 06 Oct 1998 00:59:32 EDT

there are at least two processes: one, the general and in depth critique of
the international nuclear industry, weapons complexes, ideology of dominance
through fear, and failure to change the paradigm of security from reliance on
military might while diminishing the importance of meeting human needs through
international cooperation to serving global real human security based on
environmental and social responsibility; and two, creating a simple
politically focused issue for the US political process that can function as a
challange and litmus test for every candidate.
the second is imperative at this point. it should be the moral test for every
office. nuclear abolition, yes or no. with or against. then, when and how
follows with much greater ease. the right did this with abortion. it is their
litmus test for moral legitimacy. they have been effective because they used
this simple test knowing that they could later tack on their entire agenda
around it. but only after clarification on this one simple issue.
are we willling as a movement to put nuclear abolition as a moral imperative
and put aside the important nuanced aspects of our message in order to create
the kind of mass movement coalitions we require to be effective?
we must place this issue before the rotary clubs, library associations, labor
unions, university professors in a simple morally compelling fashion.
keep
it
simple
sunflowers
jonathan granoff

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago
Date: 06 Oct 1998 08:46:02 EDT

Hi,

Nuclear Aboliton Campaign?
On the grass roots level where I am trying to work now Abolition 2000has been
a hard sell..."What are you trying to abolish..the year 2000? I have been
asked.

Here in CT we have a very small group, all us old nuke freezers, and no young
people.
I am hoping that all you folks in Chicago keep the grassroots in mind. We will
need a critical mass of popular opinion for this to succeed.

Keep up al your good work,

Peace and health,

Colby

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews: Senator Allard Questions Radioactive Cleanup, Hearing
Date: 06 Oct 1998 09:40:13 -0400

http://www.denverpost.com/news/shat1003.htm

Allard presses EPA on Shattuck

By Jim Hughes
Denver Post Staff Writer

Oct. 3, 1998 - Reacting to reports that the Environmental Protection Agency
used an untested method to clean up radioactive waste at the Shattuck
Superfund site in south Denver, U.S. Sen. Wayne Allard on Friday fired off
a stern letter to EPA Regional Administrator Bill Yellowtail, letting him
know that Allard, who sits on the Senate's Environment and Public Works
committee, is watching.

At issue is whether to remove the 50,000 cubic yards of radioactive dirt
from the former radium-, uranium- and chemical-processing site at 1805 S.
Bannock St. In 1992, the agency decided to mix the waste with concrete and
fly ash and leave it in place.

The EPA earlier said that the method had been used extensively, but at a
press conference Thursday, an official called the cleanup method an
"evolving process'' and confirmed that it had not been used in a
neighborhood at a site with radioactive waste.

By weighing in Friday, Allard turned up the heat on Yellowtail, who has
requested a review of the Shattuck site but on Thursday refused to listen
to citizens' concerns.

"I've been following the Shattuck hazardous-waste issue, and I became
concerned, I think, when I read that (Yellowtail) actually wouldn't give
the residents an opportunity to speak,'' Allard said. "So I wrote a letter
encouraging him to give them an opportunity to have their say.''

In the letter, Allard threatened to seek hearings and legislative action if
the EPA didn't quickly answer the public's concerns regarding the Shattuck
site.

Yellowtail responded Friday that he had every intention of including the
public in his agency's study of what to do at Shattuck. He said he did not
think Thursday's press conference was the appropriate forum for a public
meeting.

"It never crossed my mind that yesterday would be the public meeting,'' he
said. "I'm sorry if the senator chose this opportunity to misread my
intentions. I will reassure him in my response to his letter that that was
certainly not
my intention.''

He said a public meeting on the matter will be scheduled by the end of
October.
_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews: Proposed Native American Burial Grounds, Radioactive
Date: 06 Oct 1998 10:59:47 -0400

Would be interested in knowing how native people feel about burying their
ancestors on radioactive sites.  Is this article true?

Ellen Thomas
[e-mail]

http://www.ohio.com/bj/news/ohio/docs/005359.htm

October 5, 1998 - Ohio.com On-Line

Indians suggest former uranium plant site could become burial ground

CINCINNATI (AP) -- The government should consider  making part of a former
uranium processing plant a burial ground for Indian remains, American
Indian groups suggest.

Cleanup of the 1,050-acre Fernald site, where uranium once was processed
for nuclear weapons production, is expected to continue at least through
2005. Future uses of the U.S. Department of Energy site are still up for
debate.

If the government adopts the burial plan, the remains of as many as 3,500
American Indians could be brought from all over Ohio to the site 18 miles
northwest of Cincinnati, Energy Department spokesman Gary Stegner said
Monday. Those would include remains that are now boxed in museums and
government warehouses.

``I think it's a very good chance this will happen. There's a lot of
community support for this,'' Lisa Crawford, a Fernald neighbor and member
of a community advisory council to the Energy Department, said Monday.

Indian remains found several years ago when workers were digging at Fernald
to install Hamilton County water system pipes were interred on the site.

``I think this is something everybody likes. It's morally and ethically a
good thing to do,'' said Mrs. Crawford, president of Fernald Residents for
Environmental Safety and Health.

An alliance of Indian tribes says the burial is appropriate for ancestors
whose remains are now stored for study.

``We think that Fernald is the answer to all the federal and state
problems'' with Indian remains, said Oliver Collins, co-chair of the Native
American Alliance and principal chief of the Taligee Cherokee Nation in
Scioto County.  ``And not just Fernald, but federally owned places like
this in every state in the country.

``In our culture ... if any part of the body, even the skeletal remains, is
not returned to Mother Earth, then our soul is not at rest. We are
interrupted in our journey to heaven,'' Collins said. ``That is a universal
belief in the Indian world.''

Scientists want to keep prehistoric remains for archaeological and
anthropological research.

``I understand both sides of the argument,'' said archaeologist Kevin Pape
of Gray & Pape, a consulting firm working at Fernald. ``I think that there
is a need to understand our collective heritage (through science) ... But
scientific study needs to be done with a care and sensitivity for the
people whose remains we are studying, and for the current-day native
Americans.''

The Energy Department has spent recent years soliciting public suggestions
for future uses of the Fernald site. Suggestions have included using it for
recreation and light-commercial purposes, such as an office park.

Department officials plan a hearing Oct. 13 to gather more suggestions. The
government may make a decision by the end of this year, although there is
no deadline, Stegner said.

Part of the site will permanently house some low-level radioactive wastes
in eight storage cells. One of the cells is already being filled, and two
others are being built. The most contaminated wastes are to be shipped to
Nevada or Utah for permanent disposal.



_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NPT Amendment proposal
Date: 06 Oct 1998 12:27:43 -0400

Dear Friends,
Below is Zia Mian's speech about amending the NPT which has been discussed on our network.  Alice Slater
--------------
NGO PRESENTATIONS TO THE 1997 PREPARATORY COMMITTEE
OF THE REVIEW CONFERENCE FOR THE NUCLEAR
NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY (NPT)

UNITED NATIONS HEADQUARTERS, NEW YORK

16 April 1997

NGO STATEMENT ON THE ABOLITION OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS

Presentation by Zia Mian
Sustainable Development Policy Institute, Pakistan
and
Center for Energy and Environmental Studies, Princeton University

Unlike government representatives, NGOs believe there is an enormous
indignity in speaking for others. Those who speak and
those who are silent are equally robbed of the dignity of speaking for
themselves. Here, there is no choice between indignity
and silence.

The historic role of NGOs in relation to states and governments has been
to set the agenda as part of what has now come to be
called civil society. As international relations play an ever greater
part in setting the context for states to act, the role of NGOs
has increasingly extended into inter-state issues. The one exception to
this process has been the issue of nuclear weapons.
From the very beginning, NGOs realised as the Nobel Prize winner George
Wald, who died a few days ago, put it, "There is
nothing worth having that can be obtained by nuclear war." They
understood that they would have to play an active part in
eliminating those weapons.

At the time of the NPT Review and Extension Conference in 1995 NGOs were
already taking up their responsibility to set the
agenda and thinking about what needed to come beyond the NPT. During the
Review Conference, it was realized that this next
step had to be nothing less than the elimination of nuclear weapons.
Otherwise, the indefinite extension of the Treaty would
amount to an indefinite extension of the nuclear age.

With this in mind, a global NGO network called Abolition 2000 was set
up. Its aim was to campaign for the elimination of
nuclear weapons. Abolition 2000, which now has the support of over 600
NGOs in six continents, called for the immediate
initiation of negotiations on a nuclear weapons convention for the
phased elimination of all nuclear weapons within a timebound
framework. What made it remarkable however was its absolute commitment
to the urgency of this goal. Recognizing that
negotiations can drag on for decades, because of a fundamental lack of
good faith on the part of those doing the negotiating,
Abolition 2000 called for the negotiations on such as a convention to be
concluded by the year 2000.

Following the indefinite extension of the NPT, there has been increasing
interest in these ideas. A growing number of states
have expressed their desire to see immediate negotiations on a Nuclear
Weapons Convention. There was, for example, last
December's General Assembly Resolution (A/RES/51/45 M), introduced by
Malaysia, that called on all states to begin
"multilateral negotiations in 1997 leading to an early conclusion of a
nuclear weapons convention prohibiting the development,
production, testing, deployment, stockpiling, transfer, threat or use of
nuclear weapons and providing for their elimination." This
resolution was supported by 115 states.

Similarly, there was the resolution introduced by Myanmar (A/RES/51/45
O). This called specifically for the "Conference on
Disarmament to establish on a priority bases, an ad hoc committee on
nuclear disarmament to commence negotiations early in
1997 on a phased programme of nuclear disarmament and for the eventual
elimination of nuclear weapons within a time-bound
framework through a nuclear weapons convention." This was supported by
110 states. There have been similar appeals by the
Non-Aligned Movement, the G-21 group of countries and the European
parliament.

Unfortunately, these resolutions and appeals have remained nothing more
than resolutions and appeals. Like all the earlier
resolutions in the General Assembly, dating back to the very first
resolution - which called for "the elimination from national
armaments of atomic weapons" - they have become well meaning statements,
expressions of hope rather than a way of initiating
a process for the kind of negotiations that would be required to abolish
nuclear weapons. They have been treated by the
nuclear weapons states as an irritant, and by the larger international
community as little more than a way of registering their
opinion.

We believe it is time for these opinions to be acted upon. Words are
cheap. It is the responsibility of all the states who have
supported these resolutions in the General Assembly and the Conference
on Disarmament to force negotiations upon those who
will not negotiate. Otherwise they are doing no more than standing on
the sidelines wringing their hands, they are providing
cover for those countries who have no intention of negotiating.

It does not matter how these negotiations start, or where they are held.
They can be started by the General Assembly, and held
in New York, or by the C.D. and held in Geneva. They can be though a
special conference, or an ad hoc group. What matters
is that they start. The same people will turn up to do the talking
whereever it is, and whatever it is called.

The challenge and responsibility to begin negotiations on a Nuclear
Weapon Convention could be taken up right here. This is,
after all, where it rightfully belongs. This is a group where every
member has agreed through Article VI to "pursue negotiations
in good faith on effective measures relating to... nuclear disarmament."

You also have the power to do so. Under Article VIII of the NPT it
requires only one party to submit an amendment to the
Treaty, and only one third of the parties to support it, for a
conference of all the parties to be convened to consider the
amendment. If this amendment was written so as to transform the NPT into
a Nuclear Weapons Convention, the conference
that would be called would de facto become a conference to negotiate the
Convention.

This process requires only one country to take a historic decision. It
does not even require all countries who have voted again
and again in the General Assembly for negotiations leading to a
Convention to vote the same way within the NPT. Few more
than half of them have to do so. They would however have pushed the
lever that would start the negotiating process for
everyone.

Every country would have to attend the conference. It would be
universal. Which country that has signed the NPT would stay
away? How would it justify staying away, especially when this would
amount to a violation of its commitment under Article VI?
How would such a country explain that it was not prepared to see nuclear
disarmament?

The countries that are not in the NPT, especially those like India,
Pakistan and Israel, who hide their nuclear weapons behind
demands for global or regional disarmament, would be faced with a simple
choice. They would have to sign the NPT and join
the conference to transform the NPT into a Nuclear Weapons Convention.
Otherwise, they too would be exposed as never
having had any intention of engaging in disarmament. With the whole
world watching the closing scenes of the nuclear age, no
country would be prepared to go it alone.

This is the challenge we put to you: begin work on the Convention now.
We don't care if you do it in the CD, or do it through
the General Assembly, or do it yourselves, just do it. Start now and
with a little of the good faith that has been missing all these
years, the next NPT Review Conference could be the Nuclear Weapons
Convention Conference.


---------------------


Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
15 East 26 St.
New York, NY  10010
212-726-9161(tel)
212-726-9160(fax)

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Coalition for Peace Action <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Comments in preparation for Chicago meeting
Date: 06 Oct 1998 12:34:45 -0400

Dear Bob and Bob,

Maybe we should call this the peace conspiracy of the Bobs! I appreciate
the clarity of your statement, and agree with almost all of it. My only
suggestion is that a slideshow is somewhat antiquated for a general
piece to promote a campaign. I recall we had an excellent one in the
late 70's for Mobilization for Survival, but a video or even a power
point computer presentation would seem much more appropriate to today's
technology.

Peace,

Another Bob

--
Rev. Robert Moore, Executive Director, Coalition for Peace Action
40 Witherspoon Street, Princeton, NJ  08542
[phone] voice, [phone] fax
[e-mail]





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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace Action - National Office <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 06 Oct 1998 09:35:13 -0700 (PDT)

I'm not sure that the point is necessarily to endorse any candidate.
Endorsements are, in my view, a recipie for getting burned further down
the road.  However, raising an issue in the context of an election can
be an effective means of generating movement.  It is an effort,
sometimes successful, to create an impression of one's campaign as a
constituency that must be reckoned with.

Sincerely,

Bruce
Peace Action
 > From [e-mail]  Mon Oct  5 21:28:15 1998
 > From: [e-mail]
 > Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 00:26:18 EDT
 > To: [e-mail]
 > Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
 > Sender: [e-mail]
 > Reply-To: [e-mail]
 >
 > I want to support Joe and others who are noting the problem with getting
 > involved in a Presidential campaign. Leaving aside the very tiny handful of
 > folks like myself who are socialists and unlikely to vote for a Democrat, I
 > would we have a larger handful of folks who are Republicans. Abolition 2000
 > should not become a partisan campaign, though it might well become a rougher
 > and tougher one. The Vietnam Peace movement "generated" the McCarthy and
 > Kennedy races - but we did not ourselves get involved in endorsing them.
 >
 > At the Congressional level, OK, though even here I think there are lots of
 > risks to electoral action. Most of the heavy lifting in the Vietnam and Civil
 > Rights movement was done outside the electoral arena. A lesson we should not
 > overlook.
 >
 > Fraternally,
 > David McReynolds
 >
 > << Subj:     (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
 >  Date:    10/5/98 4:10:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 >  From:    [e-mail] (Joseph Gerson)
 >  Sender:    [e-mail]
 >  Reply-to:    [e-mail]
 >  To:    [e-mail], [e-mail]
 >
 >  10/5
 >
 >  First, I am doubtful about putting our hopes on finding a presidential
 >  candidate. If we could, that would be wonderful.
 >
 >  Having struggled with John Kerry when he was Lieutenant Governor of
 >  Massachusetts in the mid-1980s, when he served as point man in Ted Kennedy's
 >  efforts to make Boston the homeport for the nuclear armed Battleship Iowa
 >  Task Force, and having met with him on several occasions during his reign in
 >  the Senate, I am quite certain that he will not be a standard bearer for
 >  abolition. A mass movement might eventually be able to win him over, but we
 >  have to organize it first. These days he's more likely to run as "an old
 >  Navy hand" than one of the co-founders of VVAW.
 >
 >  Joseph Gerson
 >
 >
 >
 > -
 >  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 >  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 >  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 >  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Bob Tiller <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Comments in preparation for Chicago meeting
Date: 06 Oct 1998 15:18:58 -0400

Yes, some folks do indeed find slideshows antiquated.  However, in many
circles -- e.g. grand rounds in hospitals -- slideshows are a preferred
pedagogical method.  So we are producing a slideshow, and we hope that
others in the abolition movement will find it useful.

Shalom,
Bob T.



Coalition for Peace Action wrote:
>
> Dear Bob and Bob,
>
> Maybe we should call this the peace conspiracy of the Bobs! I appreciate
> the clarity of your statement, and agree with almost all of it. My only
> suggestion is that a slideshow is somewhat antiquated for a general
> piece to promote a campaign. I recall we had an excellent one in the
> late 70's for Mobilization for Survival, but a video or even a power
> point computer presentation would seem much more appropriate to today's
> technology.
>
> Peace,
>
> Another Bob
>
> --
> Rev. Robert Moore, Executive Director, Coalition for Peace Action
> 40 Witherspoon Street, Princeton, NJ  08542
> [phone] voice, [phone] fax
> [e-mail]
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 06 Oct 1998 21:54:04 -0400

I agree - no endorsements. But if a candidate is willing to take a
really strong stand for abolition, we should let her/him know that we'll
get the word out to a humongous list.
                        Peter

Peace Action - National Office wrote:
>
> I'm not sure that the point is necessarily to endorse any candidate.
> Endorsements are, in my view, a recipie for getting burned further down
> the road.  However, raising an issue in the context of an election can
> be an effective means of generating movement.  It is an effort,
> sometimes successful, to create an impression of one's campaign as a
> constituency that must be reckoned with.
>
> Sincerely,
>
> Bruce
> Peace Action
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>  > From [e-mail]  Mon Oct  5 21:28:15 1998
>  > From: [e-mail]
>  > Date: Tue, 6 Oct 1998 00:26:18 EDT
>  > To: [e-mail]
>  > Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
>  > Sender: [e-mail]
>  > Reply-To: [e-mail]
>  >
>  > I want to support Joe and others who are noting the problem with getting
>  > involved in a Presidential campaign. Leaving aside the very tiny handful of
>  > folks like myself who are socialists and unlikely to vote for a Democrat, I
>  > would we have a larger handful of folks who are Republicans. Abolition 2000
>  > should not become a partisan campaign, though it might well become a rougher
>  > and tougher one. The Vietnam Peace movement "generated" the McCarthy and
>  > Kennedy races - but we did not ourselves get involved in endorsing them.
>  >
>  > At the Congressional level, OK, though even here I think there are lots of
>  > risks to electoral action. Most of the heavy lifting in the Vietnam and Civil
>  > Rights movement was done outside the electoral arena. A lesson we should not
>  > overlook.
>  >
>  > Fraternally,
>  > David McReynolds
>  >
>  > << Subj:      (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
>  >  Date:       10/5/98 4:10:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>  >  From:       [e-mail] (Joseph Gerson)
>  >  Sender:     [e-mail]
>  >  Reply-to:   [e-mail]
>  >  To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
>  >
>  >  10/5
>  >
>  >  First, I am doubtful about putting our hopes on finding a presidential
>  >  candidate. If we could, that would be wonderful.
>  >
>  >  Having struggled with John Kerry when he was Lieutenant Governor of
>  >  Massachusetts in the mid-1980s, when he served as point man in Ted Kennedy's
>  >  efforts to make Boston the homeport for the nuclear armed Battleship Iowa
>  >  Task Force, and having met with him on several occasions during his reign in
>  >  the Senate, I am quite certain that he will not be a standard bearer for
>  >  abolition. A mass movement might eventually be able to win him over, but we
>  >  have to organize it first. These days he's more likely to run as "an old
>  >  Navy hand" than one of the co-founders of VVAW.
>  >
>  >  Joseph Gerson
>  >
>  >
>  >
>  > -
>  >  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  >  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  >  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  >  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.



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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) chicago strategy thoughts
Date: 06 Oct 1998 22:33:36 -0400

Gut gesagt, JGG
                Peter

[e-mail] wrote:
>
> there are at least two processes: one, the general and in depth critique of
> the international nuclear industry, weapons complexes, ideology of dominance
> through fear, and failure to change the paradigm of security from reliance on
> military might while diminishing the importance of meeting human needs through
> international cooperation to serving global real human security based on
> environmental and social responsibility; and two, creating a simple
> politically focused issue for the US political process that can function as a
> challange and litmus test for every candidate.
> the second is imperative at this point. it should be the moral test for every
> office. nuclear abolition, yes or no. with or against. then, when and how
> follows with much greater ease. the right did this with abortion. it is their
> litmus test for moral legitimacy. they have been effective because they used
> this simple test knowing that they could later tack on their entire agenda
> around it. but only after clarification on this one simple issue.
> are we willling as a movement to put nuclear abolition as a moral imperative
> and put aside the important nuanced aspects of our message in order to create
> the kind of mass movement coalitions we require to be effective?
> we must place this issue before the rotary clubs, library associations, labor
> unions, university professors in a simple morally compelling fashion.
> keep
> it
> simple
> sunflowers
> jonathan granoff
>
> -
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) NucNews: Proposed Native American Burial Grounds, Radioactive
Date: 06 Oct 1998 21:56:30 -0400

Shouldn't this be up to the native people?
                        Peter Weiss

Peace through Reason wrote:
>
> Would be interested in knowing how native people feel about burying their
> ancestors on radioactive sites.  Is this article true?
>
> Ellen Thomas
> [e-mail]
> ---------------------------------------------------
>
> http://www.ohio.com/bj/news/ohio/docs/005359.htm
>
> October 5, 1998 - Ohio.com On-Line
>
> Indians suggest former uranium plant site could become burial ground
>
> CINCINNATI (AP) -- The government should consider  making part of a former
> uranium processing plant a burial ground for Indian remains, American
> Indian groups suggest.
>
> Cleanup of the 1,050-acre Fernald site, where uranium once was processed
> for nuclear weapons production, is expected to continue at least through
> 2005. Future uses of the U.S. Department of Energy site are still up for
> debate.
>
> If the government adopts the burial plan, the remains of as many as 3,500
> American Indians could be brought from all over Ohio to the site 18 miles
> northwest of Cincinnati, Energy Department spokesman Gary Stegner said
> Monday. Those would include remains that are now boxed in museums and
> government warehouses.
>
> ``I think it's a very good chance this will happen. There's a lot of
> community support for this,'' Lisa Crawford, a Fernald neighbor and member
> of a community advisory council to the Energy Department, said Monday.
>
> Indian remains found several years ago when workers were digging at Fernald
> to install Hamilton County water system pipes were interred on the site.
>
> ``I think this is something everybody likes. It's morally and ethically a
> good thing to do,'' said Mrs. Crawford, president of Fernald Residents for
> Environmental Safety and Health.
>
> An alliance of Indian tribes says the burial is appropriate for ancestors
> whose remains are now stored for study.
>
> ``We think that Fernald is the answer to all the federal and state
> problems'' with Indian remains, said Oliver Collins, co-chair of the Native
> American Alliance and principal chief of the Taligee Cherokee Nation in
> Scioto County.  ``And not just Fernald, but federally owned places like
> this in every state in the country.
>
> ``In our culture ... if any part of the body, even the skeletal remains, is
> not returned to Mother Earth, then our soul is not at rest. We are
> interrupted in our journey to heaven,'' Collins said. ``That is a universal
> belief in the Indian world.''
>
> Scientists want to keep prehistoric remains for archaeological and
> anthropological research.
>
> ``I understand both sides of the argument,'' said archaeologist Kevin Pape
> of Gray & Pape, a consulting firm working at Fernald. ``I think that there
> is a need to understand our collective heritage (through science) ... But
> scientific study needs to be done with a care and sensitivity for the
> people whose remains we are studying, and for the current-day native
> Americans.''
>
> The Energy Department has spent recent years soliciting public suggestions
> for future uses of the Fernald site. Suggestions have included using it for
> recreation and light-commercial purposes, such as an office park.
>
> Department officials plan a hearing Oct. 13 to gather more suggestions. The
> government may make a decision by the end of this year, although there is
> no deadline, Stegner said.
>
> Part of the site will permanently house some low-level radioactive wastes
> in eight storage cells. One of the cells is already being filled, and two
> others are being built. The most contaminated wastes are to be shipped to
> Nevada or Utah for permanent disposal.
>
> _______________________________________________________________________
>
> * Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
> _______________________________________________________________________
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Prayers for a great Chicago meeting!
Date: 06 Oct 1998 22:39:58 -0400

Dear David et all: The problem with dropping 2000, in addition to losing
the name recognition (see my previous message) is that it sends a signal
to the nuke warriors that we're willing to drop the timeframe. Very
dangerous! It puts us in the same box as the hypocrites in Washington
who say "sure we're for abolition, but it's going to take a long, long
time." And I say this is in full recognition of the fact that we're not
likely to get there by 2000.
                Peter

[e-mail] wrote:
>
> I'm hoping that Chris Ney and I can draft some kind of "WRL input" for the
> weekend, since we (and WRL's other key folks) can't be there, with the
> pressure of the October 19th date pressing on us.
>
> However I have noted Peter's suggestion and see the merit in it.  Clearly we
> are not going to have "abolition 2000" for the year 2000. Miracles happen, and
> I would rejoice in being proven wrong, but on a day to day basis we should not
> plan with miracles as part of our budget.
>
> I think Abolition 2000 is OK - in a sense, "20th Century Fox" (for old timers
> like me) is only now facing the need to change its name (if Fox is even still
> in business - I've lost track).  Their "brand name" worked for the better part
> of a century.  If we take "Abolition 2000" to imply abolition in 2000 or any
> year following, we can role with it. Changing names is confusing to people and
> it takes a LONG time to get folks used to a new name. There is also - though
> Peter didn't mention this - the problem of wills, with people leaving money to
> one group or another to be used for "Abolition 2000".
>
> I do think our agenda needs to be broadened but that should wait a day or two
> until Chris and I have a chance to talk. Meanwhile I do hope a number of the
> folks in Chicago will be joining us in Washington D.C.
>
> Peace,
> David McReynolds
> War Resisters League
> << Date:        10/5/98 10:33:46 PM Eastern Daylight Time
>  From:  [e-mail] (Peter Weiss)
>  Sender:        [e-mail]
>  Reply-to:      [e-mail]
>  To:    [e-mail]
>
>  As somebody who can't be in Chicago this weekend, but who has made his
>  living as a trademark lawyer for the past 45 years, I have a small piece
>  of advice: DON'T CHANGE THE NAME! Any phrase that has acquired "name
>  recognition", as Abolition 2000 has, is a valuable asset which should be
>  jettisoned only for very good reasons. I haven't heard one in our chat
>  room so far. That doesn't mean you can't have buttons saying NO NUKES,
>  or NO NUKES - ABOLITION NOW. But the name of the campaign should remain.
>                                         Peter Weiss
>   >>
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa)
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: Israel/ Report on Vanunu Vigil & Dimona Arrests
Date: 06 Oct 1998 20:15:03 -0700 (PDT)


INTERNATIONAL GROUP ARRESTED ATTEMPTING INSPECTION
OF ISRAEL'S DIMONA NUCLEAR WEAPONS PLANT

by Felice Cohen-Joppa

More than seventy anti-nuclear activists, ranging in age from children to
elders,  came together near Israel's Dimona nuclear facility on Tuesday
afternoon, September 22, the beginning of the Jewish New Year.  The
international demonstrators held signs and banners at the remote desert
site calling for nuclear disarmament and for the immediate release of
imprisoned nuclear whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu.

The demonstration, organized by the Israeli Committee for Mordechai Vanunu
and for a Middle-East Free of Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Weapons,
brought together Israeli activists and representatives of the international
campaign to free Mordechai Vanunu from the U.K., U.S., Norway, and
Australia. By the side of the road where they gathered, they could see the
large dome of the nuclear reactor.

Demonstrators called for the immediate closure of the reactor; that it be
opened to international supervision and inspection; and for an immediate
halt to the production of weapons of mass destruction in Israel.  Several
speakers addressed the gathering, including Nuri al-Ugbi, representing the
Bedouin population in the Negev area.  Al-Ugbi called the Dimona reactor "a
monster threatening all life in the region."

After the demonstration, when other participants had left, a small
International Citizen's Weapons Inspection Team began to walk along the
road towards the Dimona reactor, where they planned to carry out a
citizen's inspection for weapons of mass destruction.  They carried two
large banners with them which read, "Warning - Nuclear Weapons Made Here"
and "U.N. Arms Inspector Butler - Dimona Nuclear Weapons Plant, This Way."

Soon spotted and pursued by police officers, they attempted to continue
peacefully on their way while police insisted that they could not
demonstrate without a permit.  Wearing badges which read in English and
Hebrew "International Weapons Inspector," the team explained their mission
to the police and read their statement out loud.  They asserted that under
international law, they had a responsibility and obligation to carry out
their inspection, despite not having an Israeli permit to do so.

After awhile, when stopped from proceeding further, most of the citizen
weapons inspectors sat down and linked arms.  They continued to explain to
the police their purpose for being there: Dimona's connection to Israel's
nuclear arsenal, revealed to the world 12 years earlier by Dimona
technician- turned- whistleblower Mordechai Vanunu. The police tried to
convince the inspectors to leave, but they steadfastly refused.  Seven men
and three women were then taken in police vans to the station in the nearby
town of Dimona.  Arrested were Sam Day, Hal Carlstadt, Barry Roth, Eurydice
Hirsey, Felice Cohen-Joppa, Art Laffin, Scott Schaeffer-Duffy, John
Landgraf (all from the USA), David Polden (UK) and Ruth Haviv (Israel).

People supporting the inspection team soon joined them in the police
station.  During the four hours they were detained, the ten were warned of
various consequences:  they would be charged with demonstrating without a
permit and spend the night in jail until a judge could be found the next
day; they would be immediately deported, not necessarily to their country
of origin, except for the Israeli, who would go to jail; they would not be
allowed back in the country for a time period ranging from one year to
forever;  they would be sent to court at night without a lawyer.  During
questioning, the group consistently refused to sign papers, including an
agreement to not return to Dimona for 15 days.  Finally, they were told by
police that if they each gave a verbal agreement to not return for 15 days
to the site, they would be free to go.  When they refused this also, the
group was released anyway.  Authorities evidently decided to keep the event
as low key as possible.

The Dimona demonstration and citizen's weapons inspection action occurred
during a week-long international vigil calling for the release of Mordechai
Vanunu and a Middle East free of weapons of mass destruction.  Vigilers
held signs and banners and handed out leaflets at Ashkelon Prison, where
Vanunu has been held since 1986, at the Ministry of Defense, in front of
President Weisman's residence, at Prime Minister Netanyahu's office, where
petitions were delivered, and at the embassy of India, calling for India
and Pakistan to halt their nuclear arms race.  International delegates
joined with Israeli activists in several public meetings where nuclear
weapons and nonviolent direct action were discussed. A visit was also made
to Bedouin villages near Dimona.  Bedouin lands were confiscated in the
1950's to build the nuclear reactor.

At the end of the week, the new commander of Ashkelon Prison, Avraham
Lazarian, refused to let Vanunu's adoptive parents, Americans Mary and Nick
Eoloff, have a second brief visit before they returned to the U.S.
Lazarian, when assuming command 2 months ago, ordered that Vanunu's cell
door be closed except for two one-hour periods each day, when he can take
walks in the common yard.  In early September, Vanunu's mail was withheld
for two weeks after a verbal argument.

On October 13 is Mordechai Vanunu's 44th birthday.  Please send cards and
letters to him at Ashkelon Prison, Ashkelon, Israel.

For more information, contact the U.S Campaign to Free Mordechai Vanunu,
2206 Fox Ave., Madison, WI 53711, fax/phone [phone], email -
[e-mail] , website - www.nonviolence.org/vanunu

(Felice Cohen-Joppa is an associate coordinator of the U.S. Campaign to
Free Mordechai Vanunu and co-editor of the Nuclear Resister newsletter.)

[PHOTOS AVAILABLE - CONTACT FELICE AT 520-323-8697 OR  EMAIL
[e-mail]]

STATEMENT OF INTERNATIONAL CITIZEN'S WEAPONS INSPECTION TEAM
DIMONA, ISRAEL
SEPTEMBER 22, 1998

We have come to Dimona today as a citizen's inspection team in response to
the dictates of conscience and international law.

We have come to verify the presence of nuclear weapons and their
components, first reported 12 years ago by the nuclear technician Mordechai
Vanunu and confirmed by scientists, journalists and others familiar with
Israel's unacknowledged nuclear weapons programme.

If the production of the materials for such weapons at Dimona can be
verified, this would clearly fall within the purview of the United Nations
Security Council Resolution which calls for the elimination of weapons of
mass destruction not only in Iraq but throughout the Middle East.

In assisting in the upholding of international law we are also heeding our
obligations under the Nuremberg Principles which place on every citizen the
duty to prevent crimes against humanity.

Here, as in similar factories elsewhere in the world, the making of a
nuclear weapon is a crime against humanity.  It is the building of a global
gas oven.  Auschwitz showed what humans are capable of.  Hiroshima showed
how that capability threatened the survival of humanity.  Nuclear weapons
join Auschwitz with Hiroshima.

Today, we heed the prophet Isaiah, who called on us to beat swords into
ploughshares.  We honour the wisdom of Albert Einstein and Bertrand
Russell, who warned us of the suicidal consequences of a nuclear-armed
world.  We follow the example of the women of Greenham Common, who took
nonviolent collective action in the cause of peace.

We are Jews, Christians and people of no religion.  We are citizens of
Israel, the United States and Britain acting together as citizens of the
world.  All of us have acted against nuclear weapons or for peace in our
own countries and elsewhere.

We have chosen Dimona because we are in Israel to honour the sacrifice of
Mordechai Vanunu and to continue his work of nuclear disarmament.

We are acting now because this is the time chosen by citizens in many
countries to conduct inspections of nuclear weapons facilities.

We act in a spirit of mutual respect for all the people of this region,
knowing that they would be the first to suffer the disastrous consequences
of an explosion or other accident at this aging, uninspected reactor, as
occurred at Chernobyl.

And so, at the beginning of a new year, wishing peace, justice and security
to all people, we call upon you, our brothers and sisters guarding the
Dimona reactor, to assist us in this inspection.  And in doing so, we ask
you to set an example to Israel and all other countries to help to create a
nuclear-free world.

Thank you,
Sam Day, Hal Carlstad, Art Laffin, Ruth Haviv, Scott Schaeffer-Duffy,
Eurydice Hirsey, Felice Cohen-Joppa, John Landgraf, Barry Roth, David
Polden



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 07 Oct 1998 01:00:49 EDT

I absolutely and strongly agree with Bruce's point. It is one thing to get
trapped into the game of choosing one party over the other (you are then taken
for granted, among other things), and it is a very very different thing to
visit the candidates, ask questions at meetings, make it damn clear you are
registered and you do vote. (You don't have to say you rarely vote for a major
party - the thing is you vote).

It is foolish, I think, when the peace movement separates itself from the
broad political process.

Peace,
David McReynolds

In a message dated 10/6/98 12:39:32 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
[e-mail] writes:

<<
 I'm not sure that the point is necessarily to endorse any candidate.
 Endorsements are, in my view, a recipie for getting burned further down
 the road.  However, raising an issue in the context of an election can
 be an effective means of generating movement.  It is an effort,
 sometimes successful, to create an impression of one's campaign as a
 constituency that must be reckoned with.

 Sincerely,

 Bruce
 Peace Action >>

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Janet Bloomfield <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Solidarity greetings for Chicago meeting.
Date: 07 Oct 1998 12:48:02 +0100 (BST)

Dear Abolition Friends in the USA,
at the Abolition 2000 UK meeting on October 6th we were heartened to know
that you will be meeting in Chicago to establish a US Abolition Campaign.
We wish you every success in your efforts. Have a great meeting and we
look forward to working with you in the future.
Yours in peace and solidarity,
Janet Bloomfield on behalf of Abolition 2000 UK.


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Norm Cohen <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Chicago/President Candidates & John Kerry
Date: 07 Oct 1998 09:05:25 -0400

hey, isn't that what peace action does with peace voter '98?
norm cohen

[e-mail] wrote:

> I absolutely and strongly agree with Bruce's point. It is one thing to get
> trapped into the game of choosing one party over the other (you are then taken
> for granted, among other things), and it is a very very different thing to
> visit the candidates, ask questions at meetings, make it damn clear you are
> registered and you do vote. (You don't have to say you rarely vote for a major
> party - the thing is you vote).
>
> It is foolish, I think, when the peace movement separates itself from the
> broad political process.
>
> Peace,
> David McReynolds
>
> In a message dated 10/6/98 12:39:32 PM Eastern Daylight Time,
> [e-mail] writes:
>
> <<
>  I'm not sure that the point is necessarily to endorse any candidate.
>  Endorsements are, in my view, a recipie for getting burned further down
>  the road.  However, raising an issue in the context of an election can
>  be an effective means of generating movement.  It is an effort,
>  sometimes successful, to create an impression of one's campaign as a
>  constituency that must be reckoned with.
>
>  Sincerely,
>
>  Bruce
>  Peace Action >>
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.






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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Russian nukes overhaul (fwd)
Date: 07 Oct 1998 13:09:12 -0400

Dear Fellow Strategists,
Apologies if you've already seen the article below, but shouldn't we factor it
in to our planning as an opportunity to press our government to agree with
Russia to go way down immediately to several hundred warheads before they start
gearing up for a new arsenal?  Once this is done, negotiations could begin
immediately with the other nuke states--which is all the more reason to keep it
at Abolition 2000.  This may be a unique opportunity.

>---------- Forwarded message ----------
>Date: Tue, 06 Oct 1998 10:10:03 -0400
>From: Bill Robinson <[e-mail]>
>Reply-To: [e-mail]
>To: Abolition Canada <[e-mail]>
>Subject: Russian nukes overhaul
>
>WIRE:Oct. 6, 10:26 a.m. ET
>  FOCUS-Russian dep PM urges nuclear arms overhaul
>
>MOSCOW, Oct 6 (Reuters) - Communist Deputy Prime
>Minister  Yuri Maslyukov said on Tuesday Russia could no
>longer afford to  maintain thousands of nuclear warheads and
>needed a programme to  streamline and modernise its
>strategic forces.
>
>Maslyukov, in a statement quoted by Russian news agencies,
> said Russia could only afford several hundred nuclear
>warheads  at most and, with Soviet-era weaponry fast
>becoming obsolete,  must press on with START-2,
>START-3 and other arms limitation  treaties with the United
>States to preserve the nuclear balance.
>
>``The government and parliament should jointly agree a
> programme for re-arming the strategic nuclear forces,'' said
> Maslyukov, who is Prime Minister Yevgeny Primakov's first
>deputy  with reponsibility for economic affairs.
>
>``The state, in its present condition, does not have the  means
>to maintain their present quantitative level of several  thousand
>warheads,'' he said.
>
>``The maximum we can hope for is a level of several hundred
> nuclear warheads by around 2007 to 2010.''
>
>Under the 1993 U.S.-Russian START-2 accord, still
>awaiting  ratification by Russia's Communist-led parliament,
>both  countries agreed to cut the number of their nuclear
>warheads  from about 6,000 each to no more than 3,500
>each by 2007.
>
>But Maslyukov said that economic constraints meant that ``in
> seven or eight years not a single missile, submarine or
>bomber  from the Soviet era will remain in service.''
>
>He said the government should guarantee funding for a
> programme that from 2000 would add annually at least
>35-45  modern Topol-M missiles to Russia's armoury, bring
>into service  several new Yuri Dolgoruky-class nuclear
>submarines by the end  of the next decade, modernise the
>strategic command systems and  save the missile early
>warning and space systems from collapse.
>
>``We shouldn't be seduced by talk of strategic partnerships
> with one or other great power. Today's world is complex
>and  military force still plays a not insignificant role in it,''  said
>Maslyukov, a former head of Soviet central planning.
>
>Parliament has been stalling on ratification of START-2,
> saying the cost of decommissioning weapons was too great
>for  Russia to bear, but the Kremlin has already begun
>tentative  negotiations on a more sweeping START-3.
>
>Maslyukov said both treaties, as well as Russian insistence
> that the United States observe the 1972 Anti-Ballistic Missile
> (ABM) Treaty designed to limit anti-missile defences, were
> essential to maintaining the world armaments balance.
>
>``Only in this case would the preservation of a situation of
> mutual nuclear deterrence be preserved,'' he said.
>
>The Topol-M (Poplar) nuclear missile is also known as the
> RS-12M and is classified by NATO as the SS-27. The Yuri
> Dolgoruky, still under construction, is the first iFrom ???@??? Wed Oct 07
11:49:54 1998
>Message-id: <[e-mail]>
>X-UID: 000f3d4d
>Date: Tue, 06 Oct 1998 17:11:04 -0400
>Subject: Election win sparks Australian uranium rush (fwd)
>To: [e-mail]
>Cc: [e-mail]
>From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
>MIME-Version: 1.0
>Content-type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1
>Content-Transfer-Encoding: 8bit
>
>
>
>---------- Forwarded message ----------
Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment
15 East 26 St.
New York, NY  10010
212-726-9161(tel)
212-726-9160(fax)

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000: A Global Network for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Shundahai Network <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Nuclear weapons and nuclear energy - the links
Date: 07 Oct 1998 11:41:47 -0700



Nuclear weapons and nuclear energy - the links






Sender: [e-mail]



I promised people at the Paducah ANA meeting that I would put up on e-mail

the resolution adopted at a recent meeting of European affiliates of the

Intrnatonal Physcians for the Prevntion of Nuclear War.  Please note that

this is not an official IPPNW position.  The situation as regards nuclear

energy in IPPNW is about the same as it isin ANA.


Many people helped to draft this resolution.  I was one of them.


Arjun



This text was worked out by the participants of the IPPNW workshop in Basel

/ Switzerland on September 4/5 and is being introduced to  the IPPNW World

Congress in December 1998 by the following IPPNW affiliates:


IPPNW Germany

PSR / IPPNW Switzerland




Basel, September 5th 1998




Nuclear weapons and nuclear energy - the links



Bearing in mind that


- The acquisition of nuclear-weapons-usable materials is the most difficult

step in the making of nuclear weapons and the most important obstacle to

proliferation. Commercial reprocessing produces plutonium that can be used

to make nuclear weapons. The creation of a technical infrastructure and of

plutonium (and or uranium-233) is an inevitable accompaniment of the use of

nuclear energy, and large surpluses of weapons usable commercial plutonium

have been built up as a result.

Nuclear power makes proliferation more likely and verification more=
 difficult.


- All existing designs of nuclear reactors are vulnerable to accidents and

can become targets attack, for instance in conventional wars or due to

terrorism,  thereby creating an intolerable risk for health and environment.


- The commercial nuclear fuel cycle creates health risks for many

generations in a manner similar to nuclear weapons production.

There are far more satisfactory ways from the point of view of economy and

health to meet the world=EDs energy needs than nuclear energy.

Unless the industrialized countries of the West make a firm commitment to

phase out nuclear energy other countries are unlikely to give it up.


Be it resolved that IPPNW will work towards the following goals:


Reprocessing, both commercial and military, should be stopped.

No new nuclear power plants should be built or commissioned in any country

and existing nuclear power plants should be phased out at most by the end of

their current license periods.


Separated plutonium whether from commercial or military sources, should not

be used in nuclear reactors to generate energy.

Immobilization of plutonium should be used as the way to put all military

and all separated commercial plutonium stocks into non-weapons-usable form.


The financial, scientific and technological resources of society should be

used to meet energy needs in far more efficient and less dangerous ways than

nuclear power.=20



The first steps to be taken should include


Informing all IPPNW affiliates about the links between nuclear energy and

nuclear weapons.

At this crucial juncture, creating a project to work in coalition with other

groups to stop all military and commercial reprocessing.=20

Creating a project to analyze the health implications of use of nuclear

power as an energy source.



Costs:

None for IPPNW central office: Projects will be funded by the affiliates on

a voluntary basis.



**************************************************************************

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><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<


                       SHUNDAHAI NETWORK

                 "Peace and Harmony with all Creation"

                5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV 89108-1304 =20

<paraindent><param>out,out</param>                    =20
Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385 =20

                     Email: [e-mail]

</paraindent>                            =20
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param>http://www.shundahai.org


</color></underline>            Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:


    Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to=20

    foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and


    Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Mark Mebane <[e-mail]>
Date: 07 Oct 1998 15:09:22 -0500

ATTENTION CHICAGO MEETING ATTENDEES AND ALL INTERESTED PARTIES!

The following memo was drafted by David Cortright proposing specific
strategies for a U.S. Nuclear Abolition Campaign.  Your suggestions and
feedback are encouraged.  Also included is the October 9 meeting agenda
and directions to the NEW LOCATION for this meeting!!!  Peace be yours.
Mark Mebane
Fourth Freedom Forum

STRATEGIES FOR NUCLEAR ABOLITION

A Listing of Possible Activities and Opportunities for Joint Action,
and A Time Line of Events

STRATEGIES & ACTIVITIES

    The goal is to build a U.S. based organization for nuclear weapons
abolition within the overall framework of the global Abolition 2000
network.  The focus is bringing about a political change within the
United States in favor of nuclear weapons abolition.  The assumption is
that eliminating nuclear weapons will not be possible without a major
political change within the United States.

    The function of the proposed campaign will be to build grassroots
awareness and activism.  The campaign will employ a bottom-up strategy
that attempts to build an active political constituency for abolition at
the grassroots level.  The political initiative for abolition will not
come from within the Beltway but will require a great wave of grassroots
activism and concern.  Without an active and informed citizen's movement
for denuclearization, politicians will not act.   The goal of the
proposed campaign is to build the necessary level of citizen pressure to
change U.S. nuclear policy.

POLITICAL OBJECTIVES

    The goal of nuclear weapons abolition needs to be translated into
concrete proposals that can take various political forms: legislative
vehicles, platforms for presidential candidates, and propositions for
ballot support and petitioning.  The elements of the political plan
include:

    ù requiring the United States to negotiate in good faith for a
convention banning nuclear weapons,

    ù urging the United States to adopt immediate initiatives to reduce
nuclear weapons to minimal levels and proceed with no first use,
de-alerting, and other disarmament measures.

POSSIBLE CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES

    The following are suggestions for possible joint activities by
grassroots groups around the country.  The listing is not exhaustive.
    1. Building an abolition congress of civic organizations.  This concept
is elaborated in a separate memo, based on ideas developed by Jonathan
Schell, Pamela Meidell, and Celia Owens.  The idea is to invite all
manner of civic organizations to approve a simple resolution in favor of
nuclear abolition and to designate representatives within the
organization to participate in an ongoing abolition congress.

    2. Public television documentary.  Former CBS producer George Crile is
preparing a powerful two hour television documentary entitled, Sleep
Walking to Armageddon, which will be broadcast on Public Television
sometime in 1999.  The broadcast will feature expert commentary from
General Lee Butler and Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev.  The
State of the World Forum is providing substantial support for the
development of the documentary.  Broadcast of Sleep Walking to
Armageddon could be a significant moment of public engagement with the
nuclear issue and might serve as an opportunity for widespread action
and media commentary by grassroots groups.

    The State of the World Forum is planing to produce a National Town Hall
Meeting in conjunction with the documentary broadcast.  This national
event could serve as a catalyst for similar events and activities by
local groups.  Parallel efforts might be held in dozens of communities,
with groups using the opportunity to gain news coverage and appearances
on radio and television talk programs.  Local teach-ins and town
meetings might be organized and could be used as vehicles for promoting
active involvement in the Abolition Campaign.

    3. Outreach to colleges and universities.  A special effort could be
made to encourage debates, teach-ins, and conferences on college and
university campuses, as a way of engaging students and faculty in the
challenge of eliminating nuclear weapons.  A number of "flagship"
teach-ins could be organized at major universities, and a call could be
issued for other campuses to sponsor similar events.

    4. Outreach to the religious community.  Several initiatives are
already underway to build awareness and involvement within the religious
community.  More than one- hundred Catholic Bishops have signed a
statement initiated by Pax Christi.  A religious coalition in support of
the Comprehensive Test-Ban has been active.  Discussions have begun for
a possible series of religious events in Washington at the National
Cathedral and elsewhere.  These efforts should be supported and
strengthened.

    5. Introducing the nuclear abolition issue in town meetings.  In New
England, the American Friends Service Committee will be introducing the
abolition question in town meetings.  Abolition proposals have also been
adopted by a number of city councils in New Jersey and elsewhere.  These
efforts could be broadened to other communities.

    6. Raising abolition in the electoral debates.  Discussions have begun
about ways to elevate the visibility of the nuclear abolition issue in
the year 2000 Presidential primary debates.  Efforts are needed to link
these activities together in a coordinated attempt to demonstrate the
political viability of nuclear abolition.  Special projects might be
organized in Iowa and New Hampshire.  A debate or special educational
effort might also be launched in the South prior to the primaries there.

    7. Abolition walks.  The American Friends Service Committee in Vermont
sponsored a successful walk for nuclear abolition in August 1998.  Is
this an activity that can or should be repeated in other states?

    8. Nuclear abolition speaking tours.  General Lee Butler, Admiral
Stansfield Turner and other former government officials will make
appearances in various cities in the coming years that could be
coordinated with the activities of local abolition groups.  In addition,
the campaign might wish to sponsor other speakers as part of a
coordinated national campaign of public outreach.

    9. Petition drives.  The campaign might sponsor a nationally
coordinated petition drive, perhaps using existing Abolition 2000
declarations to demonstrate widespread support for elimination of
nuclear weapons.  These petition drives might be coordinated by
congressional districts and states, and the delivery of petitions
coordinated in such a way as to influence legislative proposals.

    10. Producing educational materials and designated website.  The
campaign might encourage participating groups to produce specific
educational pieces for use at the grassroots level or with particular
constituencies.  The production of different pieces could be coordinated
among the participating organizations with copies distributed to all
groups.  In addition, one or more groups might work together to create a
special website with links to other sites and sources of useful
information.

TIME LINE OF EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES

    The following are events and dates that may serve as opportunities for
coordinated abolition activity by the participating groups.  The list is
not exhaustive.

    February, 1999: Town Hall meeting in New York's Cooper Union, sponsored
by the Nation Institute.  Jonathan Schell helping to organize.  General
Lee Butler speaking.  Media coverage possible.  Need to build large
audience.

    March 1999: Proposal to introduce nuclear abolition issue in New
England town meetings.

    April 1999: NPT PrepCom meeting, New York.  Likely presence of
Abolition 2000 network.  Support and publicize the eight nation new
agenda appeal for nuclear abolition.  Organize press conference and
activities.

    April 24-25 1999: NATO 50th anniversary summit, Washington D.C.. Plans
developing for an alternative to NATO citizens event in Washington a few
days before the official 50th anniversary summit.  Opportunity to raise
questions about NATO's continued reliance on nuclear weapons, especially
its first use doctrine and nuclear sharing arrangements.

    May 11-16 1999: Hague Appeal for Peace, the Hague, Netherlands.  Ample
opportunities to press for nuclear abolition and network with activists
doing similar work in many other countries.

    December 1999: Proposed presentation of petitions to UN General
Assembly and Secretary General, hopefully coordinated with similar
petitioning in other countries.  The presentation might include a formal
request that each parliament pass a resolution urging negotiations for
the elimination of nuclear weapons.

    March 2000: Proposal for additional efforts to introduce nuclear
abolition propositions in New England town meetings.

    April / May 2000: NPT review conference, possibly in Geneva or New
York.  Major international event with significant possibility for
citizen involvement.  Critical moment for reflection on the future of
the nonproliferation regime and the need for disarmament.

    September 2000: UN "Millennium Assembly," major public event being
organized by the UN to commemorate the beginning of a new century and
millennium.  Discussions are underway with staff of Undersecretary
General for Disarmament Affairs Jayantha Dhanapala for a special
ceremony to recognize and celebrate those nations, such as South Africa,
that have given up the nuclear option.  A major opportunity for
significant public activities to call for a nuclear weapons free future.
************************************************************************
    Draft Agenda
    October 9 Organizing Meeting on a
    U.S. Campaign for Nuclear Weapons Abolition

1.    Opening remarks
    (10:00-10:30)

    Jackie Cabasso, Western States Legal Foundation
    Jonathan Schell, author, The Gift of Time & Fate of the Earth

2.    Update on process and discussions to date
    (10:30-11:00)

    Alice Slater, Global Resource Action Center
    David Cortright, Fourth Freedom Forum, Inc.

3.    Personal Introductions and reports on regional and local activities
    (11:00-12:30)

    * regional networks: (MI, FL, CA, CO, New England, Metro NY)
    * religious communities (Pax Christi, AFSC, FOR)
    * national affiliate organizations: (Peace Action, War
Resisters            League, Physicians for Social Responsibility, 20/20
Vision)

LUNCH (12:30-1:30)**
** thoughts for discussion of philosophical assumptions over lunch with
    Joe Gerson, Andy Lichterman and others.

4.    Discussion of opportunities for joint strategies and activities &
Small Group Session
    (1:30-4:00)

5.    Questions of structure, accountability, and future communications and
meetings
    (4:00-5:00)

ATTENTION: SITE CHANGE FOR MEETING!!!
DEPAUL UNIVERSITY'S MONSIGNOR JOHN J. EGAN URBAN CENTER, 243 S. WABASH
AVE. (CORNER OF WABASH & JACKSON, 1 BLOCK EAST OF THE ORIGINAL SITE)
9TH FLOOR, ROOM 9102

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Tracy Moavero <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) for chicago meeting
Date: 07 Oct 1998 14:21:55 -0700 (PDT)

A few words from the Peace Action International Office . . .

How will the US network relate to the international one? US progressive
movements sometimes reflect US culture in that talk about being "world
citizens" doesn't translate into talking to, listening to and working with
activists outside our borders. Let's not forget that what we're attempting
to set up is a campaign for national action on issues that are inherently
international.

Making coordination and regular information exchange a priority will help
keep the US campaign from getting isolated or represented in fragments. I
recommend the following:

1. One organization (preferably on the proposed coordinating committee) act
as international liaison for the campaign. That liaison can send short
monthly updates to the international listserver and/or regional and national
coordinators. While some activists already monitor the US listserver and
forward some postings to their national lists, I think an overview of our
activities would create a fuller picture of a *coordinated* US campaign.

In turn, that liaison can monitor what is going on elsewhere and send
updates to the US listsever or to the coordinating committee. I don't mean
the kind of issue information already found on the listservers, but strategy
and action plans. Also, the liaison could take questions from the committee
directly to national/regional coordinators so that the US campaign can
benefit from the expertise of those campaigns. Example: The discussion for
the Chicago meeting about a coordinating committee and about network vs.
organization already happened internationally three years ago. Looking at
the structures of the international and national campaigns could be useful.

Another example is the recent work around Jabiluka and Faslane, which have
brought a level of attention to our issues not seen in Australia and the UK
in a long time. While every country has a unique political culture, the US
discussions would surely benefit from the lessons of both international and
national campaigns (and vice versa).

2. I would also encourage the Chicago meeting (I am unable to be there) to
think about coordination with international work such as action days,
inspections, the May 1999 Hague-Brussels walk. Lets include these major
actions on our calendar, even if it's in italics to signify an overseas
event. Some international coordination has already happened, such as days of
actions at "sites of the crime", so we would just be building on that.

A few personal comments:
I'd like to make a pitch for Plain and Simple language. I love the PSR
proposal for an easy-to-read brochure. We're talking about activating the
"mile wide, inch deep" public support. To get a letter written or petition
signed, people don't need a lot of detail. I've sometimes been faced with
petitions or requests for letters on environmental or health care issues
that go beyond my knowledge, and that's frustrating. Even words we think of
as common, like "convention", can be unfamiliar to the people we wish to reach.

Also, I agree wholeheartedly with Jonathan Granoff's comparison to the
abortion issue. Neither side of that debate has moved the public with
detailed analysis of laws or procedures (with a few notable exceptions).
What motivates people in that debate is moral belief. Telling people that
the US is in violation of the NonProliferation Treaty or CTBT will not
motivate them to action. Hitting them with the insanity of the continued
reliance on nuclear weapons (and the money it is costing) will.

Lastly, didn't the Indigo Girls do an anti-Mobile Chernobyl tour? I remember
reading about it. They hooked up with Winona LaDuke and local activists in
the towns they played in. During the French nuclear tests rock musicians
including U2 (who have worked with Irish Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament),
George Michael, Jon Bon Jovi and others make protests during the MTV Europe
music awards in Paris. While the biggest names are hard to get, we should
think about potential allies. Once we're rolling as a national campaign,
we'll be more attractive to big names.

Though much as I like the Indigo Girls, it wouldn't hurt to work with
musicians who aren't white folkies, since that wouldn't do much to break any
peace movement stereotypes or help us diversify. As a younger activist, I
sometimes feel like I've taken a trip backwards in time at peace movement
events. Often what older activists hold near and dear doesn't speak to me.
(For some people, "no nukes" is stuck between pet rocks and bell bottoms.)
If we're serious about motivating younger people to act, and about diversity
for that matter, we need to be in tune with differences in culture. We'll
never create a strong abolition movement if we are seen as quaint and out of
touch.

Good luck in Chicago.

Tracy Moavero

******************************************
Tracy Moavero
Peace Action International Office
866 UN Plaza, Room 4053
New York, NY 10017-1822
USA
Tel.:  [phone]
Fax:   [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Web:   www.peace-action.org

Peace Action is a member of the International Peace Bureau and Abolition
2000: A Global Network for the Elimination of Nuclear Weapons, and has
endorsed the Hague Appeal for Peace


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Sally Light" <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Tri-Valley CAREs' Goals/Suggestions re: Chicago Conference
Date: 07 Oct 1998 21:00:33 +0100

Tri-Valley CAREs Goals/Suggestions
Chicago Conference on USA Abolition Campaign
October 9, 1998

Tri-Valley CAREs (Communities Against a Radioactive Environment), a
founding organization of Abolition 2000, makes the following general poin=
ts
about the goals and specific campaign issues to be addressed at the Chica=
go
conference:

Campaign Goals

    During discussions, we should keep in mind that both abolition and the
methods of achieving abolition are equally important.  To that end,
specific, practical suggestions are preferable, especially since the
conference is only one day long.  Further, we should state that the new
organization/network's mission is very similar to that of Abolition 2000.=
=20
In order to overcome the gap in public awareness and in media coverage
concerning abolition, public education/outreach and a media campaign will
be relevant to all we undertake.

Specific Campaign Issues

    Tri-Valley CAREs suggests that the following three areas should be the
primary foci of the new organization/network's campaigns:

Stop the Department of Energy's  "Stockpile Stewardship Program" (SSP).=20
Here, we can focus on HR 307, the Markey resolution which calls for SSP t=
o
be altered so that it oversees a shrinking US nuclear arsenal while the U=
S
actively pursues nuclear disarmament.  Also, we can develop strategies to
accomplish deep cuts in SSP's enormous budget.  Another goal would be to
organize against SSP in our communities and on campuses.
 =20
De-Alerting.
In this area, we should aim to achieve something concrete and meaningful =
by
2000, especially because of the risk of the computer screens going blank
when the year 2000 kicks in.

In addition to defining what we mean by "de-alerting," we need to come up
with successive de-alerting steps to be taken, e.g., what kind of notice
should be given. =20

In our discussions, we should keep in mind that removing warheads from
submarines may be the most politically difficult to accomplish because su=
bs
would be in port simultaneously and therefore vulnerable.
 =20
Abolition.
We need specific initiatives in this area.  Focusing on HR 479, the Wools=
ey
resolution (which mirrors the goals of Abolition 2000), is one idea.=20
Tri-Valley CAREs also suggests the following: recruiting celebrities, cit=
y
campaign, mayors' campaign, bringing in more groups, a "million man" styl=
e
march in Wash. D.C., and any other ideas we can develop.
 =20
Will Abolition 2000 Grassroots Groups "be left behind" by USA Campaign?

    Tri-Valley CAREs is concerned that groups, especially grassroots groups,
which cannot afford to send delegates to the Chicago conference or to
follow-up meetings, may be left out of the process, or become "outsiders"
in the future USA Campaign.  Therefore, in addition to making sure that U=
SA
Campaign's goals are "in sync" with those of Abolition 2000 as well as
having a close working relationship with Abolition 2000, USA Campaign
participants should also work to see that an "insider" =96 "outsider" spl=
it
does not occur. =20

In peace =85        Marylia Kelley                Sally Light
            Executive Director            Nuclear Program Analyst


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peter Weiss <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re:
Date: 07 Oct 1998 23:27:00 -0400

David et all: The plan sounds good, but please don't forget the legal
dimension and the international connections. Both of these were
essential elements in building the anti-Vietnam war movement; they can
play the same role here.

    Have a good meeting; regards, Peter

Mark Mebane wrote:
>=20
> ATTENTION CHICAGO MEETING ATTENDEES AND ALL INTERESTED PARTIES!
>=20
> The following memo was drafted by David Cortright proposing specific
> strategies for a U.S. Nuclear Abolition Campaign.  Your suggestions and
> feedback are encouraged.  Also included is the October 9 meeting agenda
> and directions to the NEW LOCATION for this meeting!!!  Peace be yours.
> Mark Mebane
> Fourth Freedom Forum
>=20
> STRATEGIES FOR NUCLEAR ABOLITION
>=20
> A Listing of Possible Activities and Opportunities for Joint Action,
> and A Time Line of Events
>=20
> STRATEGIES & ACTIVITIES
>=20
>         The goal is to build a U.S. based organization for nuclear weap=
ons
> abolition within the overall framework of the global Abolition 2000
> network.  The focus is bringing about a political change within the
> United States in favor of nuclear weapons abolition.  The assumption is
> that eliminating nuclear weapons will not be possible without a major
> political change within the United States.
>=20
>         The function of the proposed campaign will be to build grassroo=
ts
> awareness and activism.  The campaign will employ a bottom-up strategy
> that attempts to build an active political constituency for abolition a=
t
> the grassroots level.  The political initiative for abolition will not
> come from within the Beltway but will require a great wave of grassroot=
s
> activism and concern.  Without an active and informed citizen's movemen=
t
> for denuclearization, politicians will not act.   The goal of the
> proposed campaign is to build the necessary level of citizen pressure t=
o
> change U.S. nuclear policy.
>=20
> POLITICAL OBJECTIVES
>=20
>         The goal of nuclear weapons abolition needs to be translated in=
to
> concrete proposals that can take various political forms: legislative
> vehicles, platforms for presidential candidates, and propositions for
> ballot support and petitioning.  The elements of the political plan
> include:
>=20
>         =97 requiring the United States to negotiate in good faith for =
a
> convention banning nuclear weapons,
>=20
>         =97 urging the United States to adopt immediate initiatives to =
reduce
> nuclear weapons to minimal levels and proceed with no first use,
> de-alerting, and other disarmament measures.
>=20
> POSSIBLE CAMPAIGN ACTIVITIES
>=20
>         The following are suggestions for possible joint activities by
> grassroots groups around the country.  The listing is not exhaustive.
>         1. Building an abolition congress of civic organizations.  This=
 concept
> is elaborated in a separate memo, based on ideas developed by Jonathan
> Schell, Pamela Meidell, and Celia Owens.  The idea is to invite all
> manner of civic organizations to approve a simple resolution in favor o=
f
> nuclear abolition and to designate representatives within the
> organization to participate in an ongoing abolition congress.
>=20
>         2. Public television documentary.  Former CBS producer George C=
rile is
> preparing a powerful two hour television documentary entitled, Sleep
> Walking to Armageddon, which will be broadcast on Public Television
> sometime in 1999.  The broadcast will feature expert commentary from
> General Lee Butler and Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev.  The
> State of the World Forum is providing substantial support for the
> development of the documentary.  Broadcast of Sleep Walking to
> Armageddon could be a significant moment of public engagement with the
> nuclear issue and might serve as an opportunity for widespread action
> and media commentary by grassroots groups.
>=20
>         The State of the World Forum is planing to produce a National T=
own Hall
> Meeting in conjunction with the documentary broadcast.  This national
> event could serve as a catalyst for similar events and activities by
> local groups.  Parallel efforts might be held in dozens of communities,
> with groups using the opportunity to gain news coverage and appearances
> on radio and television talk programs.  Local teach-ins and town
> meetings might be organized and could be used as vehicles for promoting
> active involvement in the Abolition Campaign.
>=20
>         3. Outreach to colleges and universities.  A special effort cou=
ld be
> made to encourage debates, teach-ins, and conferences on college and
> university campuses, as a way of engaging students and faculty in the
> challenge of eliminating nuclear weapons.  A number of "flagship"
> teach-ins could be organized at major universities, and a call could be
> issued for other campuses to sponsor similar events.
>=20
>         4. Outreach to the religious community.  Several initiatives ar=
e
> already underway to build awareness and involvement within the religiou=
s
> community.  More than one- hundred Catholic Bishops have signed a
> statement initiated by Pax Christi.  A religious coalition in support o=
f
> the Comprehensive Test-Ban has been active.  Discussions have begun for
> a possible series of religious events in Washington at the National
> Cathedral and elsewhere.  These efforts should be supported and
> strengthened.
>=20
>         5. Introducing the nuclear abolition issue in town meetings.  I=
n New
> England, the American Friends Service Committee will be introducing the
> abolition question in town meetings.  Abolition proposals have also bee=
n
> adopted by a number of city councils in New Jersey and elsewhere.  Thes=
e
> efforts could be broadened to other communities.
>=20
>         6. Raising abolition in the electoral debates.  Discussions hav=
e begun
> about ways to elevate the visibility of the nuclear abolition issue in
> the year 2000 Presidential primary debates.  Efforts are needed to link
> these activities together in a coordinated attempt to demonstrate the
> political viability of nuclear abolition.  Special projects might be
> organized in Iowa and New Hampshire.  A debate or special educational
> effort might also be launched in the South prior to the primaries there.
>=20
>         7. Abolition walks.  The American Friends Service Committee in =
Vermont
> sponsored a successful walk for nuclear abolition in August 1998.  Is
> this an activity that can or should be repeated in other states?
>=20
>         8. Nuclear abolition speaking tours.  General Lee Butler, Admir=
al
> Stansfield Turner and other former government officials will make
> appearances in various cities in the coming years that could be
> coordinated with the activities of local abolition groups.  In addition=
,
> the campaign might wish to sponsor other speakers as part of a
> coordinated national campaign of public outreach.
>=20
>         9. Petition drives.  The campaign might sponsor a nationally
> coordinated petition drive, perhaps using existing Abolition 2000
> declarations to demonstrate widespread support for elimination of
> nuclear weapons.  These petition drives might be coordinated by
> congressional districts and states, and the delivery of petitions
> coordinated in such a way as to influence legislative proposals.
>=20
>         10. Producing educational materials and designated website.  Th=
e
> campaign might encourage participating groups to produce specific
> educational pieces for use at the grassroots level or with particular
> constituencies.  The production of different pieces could be coordinate=
d
> among the participating organizations with copies distributed to all
> groups.  In addition, one or more groups might work together to create =
a
> special website with links to other sites and sources of useful
> information.
>=20
> TIME LINE OF EVENTS AND OPPORTUNITIES
>=20
>         The following are events and dates that may serve as opportunit=
ies for
> coordinated abolition activity by the participating groups.  The list i=
s
> not exhaustive.
>=20
>         February, 1999: Town Hall meeting in New York's Cooper Union, s=
ponsored
> by the Nation Institute.  Jonathan Schell helping to organize.  General
> Lee Butler speaking.  Media coverage possible.  Need to build large
> audience.
>=20
>         March 1999: Proposal to introduce nuclear abolition issue in Ne=
w
> England town meetings.
>=20
>         April 1999: NPT PrepCom meeting, New York.  Likely presence of
> Abolition 2000 network.  Support and publicize the eight nation new
> agenda appeal for nuclear abolition.  Organize press conference and
> activities.
>=20
>         April 24-25 1999: NATO 50th anniversary summit, Washington D.C.=
. Plans
> developing for an alternative to NATO citizens event in Washington a fe=
w
> days before the official 50th anniversary summit.  Opportunity to raise
> questions about NATO's continued reliance on nuclear weapons, especiall=
y
> its first use doctrine and nuclear sharing arrangements.
>=20
>         May 11-16 1999: Hague Appeal for Peace, the Hague, Netherlands.=
  Ample
> opportunities to press for nuclear abolition and network with activists
> doing similar work in many other countries.
>=20
>         December 1999: Proposed presentation of petitions to UN General
> Assembly and Secretary General, hopefully coordinated with similar
> petitioning in other countries.  The presentation might include a forma=
l
> request that each parliament pass a resolution urging negotiations for
> the elimination of nuclear weapons.
>=20
>         March 2000: Proposal for additional efforts to introduce nuclea=
r
> abolition propositions in New England town meetings.
>=20
>         April / May 2000: NPT review conference, possibly in Geneva or =
New
> York.  Major international event with significant possibility for
> citizen involvement.  Critical moment for reflection on the future of
> the nonproliferation regime and the need for disarmament.
>=20
>         September 2000: UN "Millennium Assembly," major public event be=
ing
> organized by the UN to commemorate the beginning of a new century and
> millennium.  Discussions are underway with staff of Undersecretary
> General for Disarmament Affairs Jayantha Dhanapala for a special
> ceremony to recognize and celebrate those nations, such as South Africa=
,
> that have given up the nuclear option.  A major opportunity for
> significant public activities to call for a nuclear weapons free future.
> ***********************************************************************=
*
>         Draft Agenda
>         October 9 Organizing Meeting on a
>         U.S. Campaign for Nuclear Weapons Abolition
>=20
> 1.      Opening remarks
>         (10:00-10:30)
>=20
>         Jackie Cabasso, Western States Legal Foundation
>         Jonathan Schell, author, The Gift of Time & Fate of the Earth
>=20
> 2.      Update on process and discussions to date
>         (10:30-11:00)
>=20
>         Alice Slater, Global Resource Action Center
>         David Cortright, Fourth Freedom Forum, Inc.
>=20
> 3.      Personal Introductions and reports on regional and local activi=
ties
>         (11:00-12:30)
>=20
>         * regional networks: (MI, FL, CA, CO, New England, Metro NY)
>         * religious communities (Pax Christi, AFSC, FOR)
>         * national affiliate organizations: (Peace Action, War
> Resisters            League, Physicians for Social Responsibility, 20/2=
0
> Vision)
>=20
> LUNCH (12:30-1:30)**
> ** thoughts for discussion of philosophical assumptions over lunch with
>         Joe Gerson, Andy Lichterman and others.
>=20
> 4.      Discussion of opportunities for joint strategies and activities=
 &
> Small Group Session
>         (1:30-4:00)
>=20
> 5.      Questions of structure, accountability, and future communicatio=
ns and
> meetings
>         (4:00-5:00)
>=20
> ATTENTION: SITE CHANGE FOR MEETING!!!
> DEPAUL UNIVERSITY'S MONSIGNOR JOHN J. EGAN URBAN CENTER, 243 S. WABASH
> AVE. (CORNER OF WABASH & JACKSON, 1 BLOCK EAST OF THE ORIGINAL SITE)
> 9TH FLOOR, ROOM 9102
>=20
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.=
com"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

-
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Proposition One Committee <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Please Address This Proposal in Chicago?
Date: 08 Oct 1998 08:58:56 -0400

<center>PROPOSAL TO BUILD A GRASSROOTS MOVEMENT TO PRESSURE THE U.S.=20

POLITICAL SYSTEM FOR NUCLEAR WEAPONS ABOLITION

</center>

October, 1998


    We appreciate the opportunity to help build a strong U.S. abolition
campaign.  Regrettably, no one from our organization is able to attend
the October 9th meeting in Chicago.  However, we hope you will consider
this proposal as you evaluate and develop specific strategies and
activities for the creation of a broadly inclusive campaign that will
inject denuclearization and the elimination of nuclear weapons into the
political mainstream.


    FACTS:  The United States (1) was first to research, produce, test, and
deploy nuclear weapons, and first to use them against human targets, (2)
has led the world in the development and production of innovative nuclear
weapons and delivery systems throughout the nuclear age, and (3)
notwithstanding the NPT and CTB, continues to test, develop, and produce
new weapons systems.  No wonder the U.N. resolutions for a nuclear
weapons abolition convention are getting nowhere fast.


     We believe that as long as the nuclear weapons policy of the United
States remains unchanged, it is highly unlikely that anyone is going to
take suggestions for international abolition seriously. Much of the world
is snickering at the blatant NTP/CTB/Subcritical hypocrisy of the United
States, a major obstacle to using the NPT or CTB as tools for securing an
international convention on nuclear weapons.=20


    If we are to be practical, we must accept the fact that actions =85 not
simply resolutions =85 will be necessary to turn this problem around.  Zia
Mian alluded to this fact in his address to the NPT Preparatory Committee
at the U.N.:  "We believe it is time for these opinions to be acted upon.
Words are cheap. It is the responsibility of all the states who have
supported these resolutions in the General Assembly and the Conference on
Disarmament to force negotiations upon those who will not negotiate.
Otherwise they are doing no more than standing on the sidelines wringing
their hands, they are providing cover for those countries who have no
intention of negotiating."


  PROPOSED STRATEGY FOR MAJOR POLITICAL CHANGE WITHIN THE UNITED STATES


    Any meaningful strategy must necessarily go beyond educating,
outreaching, conferencing and mere talk in general.  A successful
strategy must be based on promoting some tangible, workable vehicle that
is actually capable of carrying an abolition movement to its desired
culmination. =20


    A strong foundation for exerting decisive political pressure on the
United States to abolish nuclear weapons was laid by U.S. Congresswoman
Eleanor Holmes Norton in 1994, when she introduced the Nuclear
Disarmament and Economic Conversion Act to the U.S. House of
Representatives. In essence, the bill would mandate that the U.S.
government to eliminate its' nuclear weapons if all other countries do,
and to redirect the nuclear weapons budget towards converting the nuclear
weapons industries and restoring the environment.


     An official government version of the 1997-98 version of the bill,
H.R. 827, can be accessed online at
http://thomas.loc.gov/home/thomas2.html -- type "H.R. 827" into the box,
and click "Search."  The text and a great deal more information is
available online at http://prop1.org/prop1/hr827ab.htm.  The text of=20
H.R. 827 appears at the end of this proposal.


    Obviously, if Mrs. Norton's bill becomes law it will send an
unmistakably clear message to the world that the United States is
actually sincere about trying to reverse the nuclear weapons program it's
been pursuing, and the strategic objective for achieving major political
change within the United States would be accomplished.  Unfortunately,
although Mrs. Norton has introduced the Nuclear Disarmament and Economic
Conversion Act three separate times (H.R. 3750 in 1994, HR. 1647 in 1995,
and H.R. 827 in 1997), thus far it has failed to gain enough political
support to make its way out of committee.  However, as the focus of a
broad based grassroots movement HR 827 could easily gain the widespread
political support.


PROPOSED TACTICS TO ACHIEVE THE STRATEGIC OBJECTIVE


    The following are suggestions for possible joint activities by
grassroots groups around the country.  The listing is not exhaustive.


    1.  Due to the existence of Mrs. Norton's Nuclear Disarmament and
Economic Conversion bill, the most obvious opportunity for grassroots
joint activity is banding together in support of this existing
legislation.  The only thing standing between Norton's bill becoming "the
law of the land" is lack of legislative support.  They only thing lacking
for legislative support is U.S. voter pressure upon congressional
representatives.


    2. Building voter initiative movements, similar to the Freeze
initiatives of the early 80's,  in states where Representatives won't
support the billwould impress upon the politicians that there is popular
support for the idea.


    3. The inclusion of abolition initiatives on ballots around the country
would guarantee that the subject would be center stage in the electoral
debates.=20


    4. Petition drives.  Although simple petitions do not usually carry
great weight with politicians in office, petitions that qualify voter
initiatives for the ballot have significant weight unto themselves.=20


    5. Producing educational materials and designated website would be
essential to any political movement.


    6. Public television documentary could feature commentary from experts
like General Lee Butler and Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev, as
well as economic authorities, who would explain how much the United
States has spent on its nuclear arsenal, and offer alternatives as to how
that money could have been spent.  A documentary of this nature could be
a significant moment of public engagement with the nuclear issue and
would serve as method of mobilizing public support for lobby and/or voter
initiative participation.


    7. Speaking tours by people like General Lee Butler, Admiral Stansfield
Turner, other former government officials, and nuclear, religious, or
economic authorities, building public exposure on issues of Nuclear
Disarmament and Economic Conversion.


    8. Outreach to colleges and universities.  A special effort could be
made to encourage debates, teach-ins, and conferences on college and
university campuses, as a way of engaging students and faculty in the
challenge of eliminating nuclear weapons, and enlisting them into
practical lobbying and electoral projects.  See, for example, the "Campus
Outreach  Project" and questionnaire at
http://prop1.org/prop1/outreach.htm.


    9. Outreach to the religious community would be a natural.  After all,
even most fundamentalist Christians agree Jesus wouldn't build a nuclear
weapon, and most fundamentalist Moslems agree that nukes aren't
acceptable for use in a jihad.=20


    10. Introducing the idea of abolishing nuclear weapons by outlawing them
in town meetings, is another way of stimulating participation in the
movement. Abolition proposals have already been adopted by a number of
city councils, providing a legislative vehicle to transform these
proposals into law would enlarge these efforts to have a practical
effect.


    11. Abolition walks. Long distance walks offer an activity that brings
people together, and almost assure media exposure.   Whether this is an
activity that can or should be repeated as a political tactic might be
considered in light of past successes and failures.


-


House Bill HR-827

[Presented February, 1997, by Congresswoman Norton]


105th CONGRESS, 1st Session

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

A BILL

H.R. 827


    To provide for nuclear disarmament and economic conversion in
accordance with District of Columbia Initiative Measure Number 37 of
1993.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,


SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE

    This Act may be cited as the "Nuclear Disarmament and Economic
Conversion Act".


SEC. 2. REQUIREMENT FOR NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT AND ECONOMIC CONVERSION.


The United States Government--


    1. shall disable and dismantle all its nuclear weapons and refrain
from replacing them at any time with any weapons of mass destruction;

    2. shall undertake vigorous good faith efforts to eliminate war,
armed conflict, and all military operations;

    3. shall actively promote policies to induce all other countries to
join in these commitments for peace on earth; and

    4. shall redirect resources that are currently being used for nuclear
weapons programs to use--

       (A) in converting all nuclear weapons industry employees,
processes, plants, and programs smoothly to constructive, ecologically
beneficial peacetime activities during the 3 years following the
effective date of this Act, and

       (B) in addressing human needs such as housing, health care,
education, agriculture, and environmental restoration.


SEC. 3. EFFECTIVE DATE.

    This Act shall take effect when the President certifies to the
Congress that all foreign countries possessing nuclear weapons have
established legal requirements comparable to those set forth in section 2
and those requirements have taken effect.


-


We would appreciate hearing your thoughts about this proposal. =20


Sincerely,


Thomas

Proposition One Committee

PO Box 27217, Washington DC 20038 USA

202-462-0757 (fax [phone])

[e-mail] -- http://prop1.org



_______________________________________________________________________


* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *

_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Regrets and Comments on the Chicago Abolition 2000 Meeting
Date: 08 Oct 1998 12:57:06 -0400


Dear friends:

Our input on the Abolition 2000 meeting in Chicago comes late, because we
are pressed hard by preparing for the October 19th "A Day Without the
Pentagon" demonstration in Washington.  Information about this project has
circulated widely on the abolition list and we hope that some of you who
gather in Chicago will also be able to join us at the Pentagon.

This weekend's meeting is extremely important and if it were not for this
large demonstration just ten days away we would be in Chicago and would
have earlier offered additional suggestions and/or comments.

We are very impressed with the high level of the correspondence and=
 enormously
impressed with how far Abolition 2000 has come since its inception.

We agree with those who have noted the links between nuclear weapons and
nuclear power -- while the main focus of Abolition 2000 is the weapons
system, it cannot avoid related questions of nuclear power.  This issue
seems to have been decided by earlier statements.

If we have reservations and questions about Abolition 2000 they would be on
the following areas:

. . .  Whatever we do about the name, we must realize that barring a
miracle we aren't going to have "Abolition by 2000."   We're in for a
long-term struggle and should not be fooled to think it will not be
resolved in the next two years.

. . .  It is a mistake to think about nuclear weapons in isolation from the
struggle to eliminate other weapons.  For one, it is a safe assumption the
US (and probably also Britain, France, China, Israel, and Russia) have
already made serious strides toward new categories of weapons that are
capable of inflicting tremendous suffering on people and the planet.
Whether we are talking about biological, chemical, bacteriological, or
technological weapons, it is safe and necessary
to assume that if we succeeded in abolishing nuclear weapons the job of
making the planet safe would not be done.  Abolition 2000 needs to
understand more clearly the relationship between nuclear and conventional
weapons, and the struggle to eliminate them.

. . .  The problems of the sale of conventional weapons and the extralegal
ways in which the US (and other governments) seek to achieve their aims --
by the CIA, by terrorism, etc. are deeply troubling and should somehow be
brought within the framework of Abolition 2000's goals or program.=20

. . .  Thus the arguments that have been raised about taking on the
institution of war itself, of linking our movement to a call for general
disarmament, must be considered seriously.  For us, those arguments are
very persuasive=97Abolition 2000 should find a way to relate to or
incorporate issues raised by the Hague Appeal and by Global Action to
Abolish War.

. . .  The links between the corporate interests of the US and its military
machinery are obvious.  A disarmed society would "look different" from an
armed society in many ways.  Consequently, there is potential for Abolition
2000 (and all of in the peace movement) to build alliances with other
social justice activists.

. . .  Finally, the most obvious (but often easily avoided) issue for those
of us who live in the US, is that we live in a world dominated by only a
single super power -- our own country.  That superpower is viewed by many
as a major threat.  Should it be any surprise that many nations are uneasy
seeing their fate and the fate of the world in the hands of a nation which
is not willing to pay its UN dues but is only too willing to bomb other
countries, without consultation or concern for international law.  The
problem of terrorism is one which starts to a great extent with our own
government.  To a great extent, the focus of Abolition 2000's work should
be on stopping the U.S. military machine even as it works toward universal
abolition.

We hope to see a number of you on October 19th and will certainly attend
future meetings and consultations.

Peace,

Chris Ney and David McReynolds, Disarmament staff for the War Resisters=
 League


**********
War Resisters League
339 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10012
212-228-0450
212-228-6193 (fax)
1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
[e-mail]
web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re:
Date: 08 Oct 1998 19:10:14 EDT

" A moral and political commitment to abolish the threat posed by nuclear
weapons demonstrated by:
    a. commencement of negotiations leading to a nuclear weapons convention
    b. a no first use pledge
    c. de-alerting of existing weapons"

The commencement could be demanded by the year 2000 so that we do not lose any
momentum of the name Abolition 2000. The above would keep us in line with the
NAC and other nations pushing forward. It is moreover: realistic, since we
claim no time frame to complete the process and practical, since the steps
suggested in and of themselves make the world safer immediately.

I cannot get to Chicago yet it makes me think of Crosby, Stills and Nash's
wonderful song. David Courtright's outline is very useful in my opinion. Of
particular interest is the idea of enlisting numerous organizations in civil
society to take a moral position on the issue and send delegations. This could
place the issue before labor unions, city councils, bar associatons,
university student councils, etc. Very very good idea.
Also, we can already, in my opinion, be reflecting on more media attractive
events. If we can gain a foothold in getting the issue clarified in the
political arena, especially if we can make it a moral imperative transcending
partisan and even national politics, I feel certain we will galvanize public
personalities to step forward with, as the call it, "buzz". This means it is
emotionally attractive to be personally associated with the issue.

Oh yes, there is a new coalition in Philadelphia called the Philadelphia
Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament. It is growing. It includes WILPF, Peace
Action, Friends, PSR, LAWS, ETC. and we will be having a town meeting. We are
essentially doing what David has suggested. So, that is a useful report. Of
course our city council has declared Philadelphia a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone,
unanimously on Oct. 17, 1997, and our mayor, Ed Rendell, was the first to sign
the State of the World Forum initited Statement of Mayors with a call for
elimination. However, we have not been able to translate this clear public
sentiment into a commitment by any of our congressional delegations, despite
lobbying efforts, of Cong. Woolsey's resolutions. There is just so much
pressure by the military establishment. There is so little cost in not moving
forward. If numerous civic organizations had this on their plate then it would
not be viewed as an interest group issue but as a moral issue. Then we win.

May God's love guide the process of building peace in the world and peace in
our hearts. Thank you for meeting and working with the good faith of
compassion.

Jonathan Granoff


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: Courtright's Right Ideas and Philadelphia Lessons
Date: 08 Oct 1998 19:14:34 EDT


" A moral and political commitment to abolish the threat posed by nuclear
weapons demonstrated by:
    a. commencement of negotiations leading to a nuclear weapons convention
    b. a no first use pledge
    c. de-alerting of existing weapons"

The commencement could be demanded by the year 2000 so that we do not lose any
momentum of the name Abolition 2000. The above would keep us in line with the
NAC and other nations pushing forward. It is moreover: realistic, since we
claim no time frame to complete the process and practical, since the steps
suggested in and of themselves make the world safer immediately.

I cannot get to Chicago yet it makes me think of Crosby, Stills and Nash's
wonderful song. David Courtright's outline is very useful in my opinion. Of
particular interest is the idea of enlisting numerous organizations in civil
society to take a moral position on the issue and send delegations. This could
place the issue before labor unions, city councils, bar associatons,
university student councils, etc. Very very good idea.
Also, we can already, in my opinion, be reflecting on more media attractive
events. If we can gain a foothold in getting the issue clarified in the
political arena, especially if we can make it a moral imperative transcending
partisan and even national politics, I feel certain we will galvanize public
personalities to step forward with, as the call it, "buzz". This means it is
emotionally attractive to be personally associated with the issue.

Oh yes, there is a new coalition in Philadelphia called the Philadelphia
Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament. It is growing. It includes WILPF, Peace
Action, Friends, PSR, LAWS, ETC. and we will be having a town meeting. We are
essentially doing what David has suggested. So, that is a useful report. Of
course our city council has declared Philadelphia a Nuclear Weapons Free Zone,
unanimously on Oct. 17, 1997, and our mayor, Ed Rendell, was the first to sign
the State of the World Forum initited Statement of Mayors with a call for
elimination. However, we have not been able to translate this clear public
sentiment into a commitment by any of our congressional delegations, despite
lobbying efforts, of Cong. Woolsey's resolutions. There is just so much
pressure by the military establishment. There is so little cost in not moving
forward. If numerous civic organizations had this on their plate then it would
not be viewed as an interest group issue but as a moral issue. Then we win.

May God's love guide the process of building peace in the world and peace in
our hearts. Thank you for meeting and working with the good faith of
compassion.

Jonathan Granoff


-
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 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) for chicago meeting
Date: 09 Oct 1998 00:14:11 EDT

Tracy,
It was nice to see your post on Chicago.  I've been very busy and I confess
that I've been deleting all posts about Chicago when faced with 60 messages to
read.  But of course I read yours.  Keep up the clear thinking and writing!!!

We've hired Therese Joseph from Youngstown to be Peace Voter state
coordinator.  We seem to have worked out a strategy to make the most of our
limited resources.  The candidates will be asked about CTBT and related
issues.   We've printed 16,000 voter guide in the Voinovich-Boyle race.  Just
waned to keep you posted on the local news.

peace and love,
Francis

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Date: 09 Oct 1998 17:58:43 -0400

PRESS ADVISORY

For Immediate Release    October 7, 1998

Contact: (on bus) John Reese [phone] (cell phone)=20
1-800-241-5654 (pager); Email: [e-mail]


ANTI-WAR ACTIVISTS BUS ACROSS U.S. TO SHUT DOWN THE PENTAGON
Community Groups Slate Demonstrations in Thirteen Cities

In a massive coordinated effort not seen since the Vietnam War, anti-war
activists are boarding a bus in Seattle, Washington today to travel to
Washington DC as part of the War Resisters League's (WRL) "Day Without the
Pentagon" on October 19th.=20

The Seattle community will launch the cross country tour with a rally and
bus tour of human services organizations.At this writing, the bus will stop
at gatherings in Olympia, WA (Oct. 9), Portland, OR (Oct. 9), Boise, ID
(Oct. 10), Salt Lake City, UT (Oct. 11), Boulder, CO (Oct. 12), Kansas
City, MO (Oct. 13), and Chicago, IL (Oct. 14), and 6 other cities along the
route to the nation=92s capitol

Among the riders=92 scheduled activities are:=20

October 12 --  joining a parade through the McDonald-Douglass complex in
St. Louis, MO

October 13 -- joining protesters to picket the military recruiting centers
in South Bend, IN

October 14 --  a vigil at the May 4th Memorial in Kent, OH,

Each event is intended to gather more voices to carry the message to DC
that the time has come to end the militarization of our culture.

The bus will reach Washington DC on October 19th, in time for riders to
join a nationally-coordinated nonviolent blockade and rally, entitled  "A
Day Without the Pentagon". Sponsored by The War Resisters League, NACC, and
over 100 other organizations, the purpose of the action is to demand that
the US drastically cut the bloated military budget in order to fund
pressing human needs instead.

John Reese from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia (NACC) points
out, "the military spends $1.7 BILLION a day.  That's $1.7 billion per day
to build bigger and better
bombs rather than build schools for our children, build homes for the
homeless or protect the environment. One day of Pentagon spending could fund
200 new elementary schools or house 136,000 homeless people or shelter and
counsel 56,000 battered women.  We can rebuild our natural and human
communities and provide for all our needs -- if we abandon our addiction to
militarism."
- more =96
-=20


 - 2 -

"Day w/o the Pentagon"
(cont=92d.)


Chris Ney, Disarmanent Program Coordinator of WRL, reasons, "we cannot
afford to dominate the world militarily and starve our needs at home.  The
Congress continues to load the
Pentagon budget with purchases military leaders don't want and don't need.
Meanwhile, medical care, housing, education and  the environment are all in
crisis due to lack of attention and funding.=20

This must change.  Civil disobedience at the Pentagon on October 19th will
highlight these themes."

ATTENTION NEWS EDITORS:  For more information (backgrounders, featured
participants, etc.) regarding "Day Without the Pentagon" activities between
16-19 October, contact Chris Ney in New York (tel. [phone]; email to
[e-mail])
Mackie McLeod in Washington D.C. (tel. [phone]; email to
[e-mail])







=20
END//








**********
War Resisters League
339 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10012
212-228-0450
212-228-6193 (fax)
1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
[e-mail]
web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Bus leaves Seattle for Pentagon Action october 19th
Date: 09 Oct 1998 18:11:16 EDT


 Subj:=09
 Date:=0910/9/98 6:01:57 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:=[e-mail] (War Resisters League)

 PRESS ADVISORY

 For Immediate Release=09=09Contact: (on bus) John Reese [phone] (c=
ell
 phone)
 October 7, 1998=09=09=091-800-241-5654 (pager); Email: [e-mail]


 ANTI-WAR ACTIVISTS BUS ACROSS U.S. TO SHUT DOWN THE PENTAGON
 Community Groups Slate Demonstrations in Thirteen Cities

 In a massive coordinated effort not seen since the Vietnam War, anti-war
 activists are boarding a bus in Seattle, Washington today to travel to
 Washington DC as part of the War Resisters League's (WRL) "Day Without th=
e
 Pentagon" on October 19th.

 The Seattle community will launch the cross country tour with a rally and
 bus tour of human services organizations.At this writing, the bus will st=
op
 at gatherings in Olympia, WA (Oct. 9), Portland, OR (Oct. 9), Boise, ID
 (Oct. 10), Salt Lake City, UT (Oct. 11), Boulder, CO (Oct. 12), Kansas
 City, MO (Oct. 13), and Chicago, IL (Oct. 14), and 6 other cities along t=
he
 route to the nation=92s capitol

 Among the riders=92 scheduled activities are:

 October 12 --  joining a parade through the McDonald-Douglass complex in
 St. Louis, MO

 October 13 -- joining protesters to picket the military recruiting center=
s
 in South Bend, IN

 October 14 --  a vigil at the May 4th Memorial in Kent, OH,

 Each event is intended to gather more voices to carry the message to DC
 that the time has come to end the militarization of our culture.

 The bus will reach Washington DC on October 19th, in time for riders to
 join a nationally-coordinated nonviolent blockade and rally, entitled  "A
 Day Without the Pentagon". Sponsored by The War Resisters League, NACC, a=
nd
 over 100 other organizations, the purpose of the action is to demand that
 the US drastically cut the bloated military budget in order to fund
 pressing human needs instead.

 John Reese from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia (NACC) points
 out, "the military spends $1.7 BILLION a day.  That's $1.7 billion per da=
y
 to build bigger and better
 bombs rather than build schools for our children, build homes for the
 homeless or protect the environment. One day of Pentagon spending could f=
und
 200 new elementary schools or house 136,000 homeless people or shelter an=
d
 counsel 56,000 battered women.  We can rebuild our natural and human
 communities and provide for all our needs -- if we abandon our addiction =
to
 militarism."
 - more =96
 -


  - 2 -

 "Day w/o the Pentagon"
 (cont=92d.)


 Chris Ney, Disarmanent Program Coordinator of WRL, reasons, "we cannot
 afford to dominate the world militarily and starve our needs at home.  Th=
e
 Congress continues to load the
 Pentagon budget with purchases military leaders don't want and don't need=
.
 Meanwhile, medical care, housing, education and  the environment are all =
in
 crisis due to lack of attention and funding.

 This must change.  Civil disobedience at the Pentagon on October 19th wil=
l
 highlight these themes."

 ATTENTION NEWS EDITORS:  For more information (backgrounders, featured
 participants, etc.) regarding "Day Without the Pentagon" activities betwe=
en
 16-19 October, contact Chris Ney in New York (tel. [phone]; email to
 [e-mail])
 Mackie McLeod in Washington D.C. (tel. [phone]; email to
 [e-mail])








 END//








 **********
 War Resisters League
 339 Lafayette St.
 New York, NY 10012
 212-228-0450
 212-228-6193 (fax)
 1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
 [e-mail]
 web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl >>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Clinton, Impeachment, and nuclear weapons
Date: 10 Oct 1998 22:23:31 -0700 (PDT)

Now that the House Judiciary Committee has started an open-ended impeachment
inquiry (meaning that the House can investigate Clinton for anything under
the sun), I believe that we should urge the House to investigate Clinton for
breaking international law by continuing to develop, test (4 subcritical
tests since last July 2), and produce nuclear weapons via the Stockpile
Stewardship Program in defiance of the World Court (which ruled in 1996 that
the nations of the world have an obligation to ban nuclear weapons), Article
6 of the NPT (which requires the nuclear states to move towards nuclear
disarmament), and the CTBT.


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Nuclear Disarmament and the 98 election
Date: 11 Oct 1998 13:38:04 -0700 (PDT)

I plan to contact various candidates in my district to ask them about their
nuclear weapons policy and urge them to support the abolition of nuclear
weapons, oppose Stockpile Stewardship, subcritical testing, and the NIF, and
support the CTBT. I got their e-mail addresses at the Project Vote Smart
webpage (http://www.vote-smart.org/).


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Bob Tiller <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re:
Date: 12 Oct 1998 09:38:51 -0400

You may want to reconsider your numbers.  The figure of $1.7 billion a
day for U.S. military spending must be too high.  I believe that current
military spending is about half of that figure.

I am very sympathetic with your efforts, but I don't think it helps our
cause to use inaccurate numbers.

Good luck with your October 19th work.  Due to a prior commitment, I
will not be able to participate.

Shalom,
Bob Tiller



War Resisters League wrote:
>=20
> PRESS ADVISORY
>=20
> For Immediate Release   October 7, 1998
>=20
> Contact: (on bus) John Reese [phone] (cell phone)
> 1-800-241-5654 (pager); Email: [e-mail]
>=20
> ANTI-WAR ACTIVISTS BUS ACROSS U.S. TO SHUT DOWN THE PENTAGON
> Community Groups Slate Demonstrations in Thirteen Cities
>=20
> In a massive coordinated effort not seen since the Vietnam War, anti-wa=
r
> activists are boarding a bus in Seattle, Washington today to travel to
> Washington DC as part of the War Resisters League's (WRL) "Day Without =
the
> Pentagon" on October 19th.
>=20
> The Seattle community will launch the cross country tour with a rally a=
nd
> bus tour of human services organizations.At this writing, the bus will =
stop
> at gatherings in Olympia, WA (Oct. 9), Portland, OR (Oct. 9), Boise, ID
> (Oct. 10), Salt Lake City, UT (Oct. 11), Boulder, CO (Oct. 12), Kansas
> City, MO (Oct. 13), and Chicago, IL (Oct. 14), and 6 other cities along=
 the
> route to the nation=92s capitol
>=20
> Among the riders=92 scheduled activities are:
>=20
> October 12 --  joining a parade through the McDonald-Douglass complex i=
n
> St. Louis, MO
>=20
> October 13 -- joining protesters to picket the military recruiting cent=
ers
> in South Bend, IN
>=20
> October 14 --  a vigil at the May 4th Memorial in Kent, OH,
>=20
> Each event is intended to gather more voices to carry the message to DC
> that the time has come to end the militarization of our culture.
>=20
> The bus will reach Washington DC on October 19th, in time for riders to
> join a nationally-coordinated nonviolent blockade and rally, entitled  =
"A
> Day Without the Pentagon". Sponsored by The War Resisters League, NACC,=
 and
> over 100 other organizations, the purpose of the action is to demand th=
at
> the US drastically cut the bloated military budget in order to fund
> pressing human needs instead.
>=20
> John Reese from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia (NACC) poin=
ts
> out, "the military spends $1.7 BILLION a day.  That's $1.7 billion per =
day
> to build bigger and better
> bombs rather than build schools for our children, build homes for the
> homeless or protect the environment. One day of Pentagon spending could=
 fund
> 200 new elementary schools or house 136,000 homeless people or shelter =
and
> counsel 56,000 battered women.  We can rebuild our natural and human
> communities and provide for all our needs -- if we abandon our addictio=
n to
> militarism."
> - more =96
> -
>=20
>  - 2 -
>=20
> "Day w/o the Pentagon"
> (cont=92d.)
>=20
> Chris Ney, Disarmanent Program Coordinator of WRL, reasons, "we cannot
> afford to dominate the world militarily and starve our needs at home.  =
The
> Congress continues to load the
> Pentagon budget with purchases military leaders don't want and don't ne=
ed.
> Meanwhile, medical care, housing, education and  the environment are al=
l in
> crisis due to lack of attention and funding.
>=20
> This must change.  Civil disobedience at the Pentagon on October 19th w=
ill
> highlight these themes."
>=20
> ATTENTION NEWS EDITORS:  For more information (backgrounders, featured
> participants, etc.) regarding "Day Without the Pentagon" activities bet=
ween
> 16-19 October, contact Chris Ney in New York (tel. [phone]; email =
to
> [e-mail])
> Mackie McLeod in Washington D.C. (tel. [phone]; email to
> [e-mail])
>=20
>=20
> END//
>=20
> **********
> War Resisters League
> 339 Lafayette St.
> New York, NY 10012
> 212-228-0450
> 212-228-6193 (fax)
> 1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
> [e-mail]
> web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl
>=20
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "majordomo@xmission.=
com"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.

-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) "Many bills die quietly in Congress" -- OBJECT!
Date: 12 Oct 1998 13:14:04 -0400

Editor, USA Today, via Online Feedback -

http://survey.usatoday.com/cgi-bin/feedback.cgi

Re: http://www.usatoday.com/news/washdc/ncssun06.htm

One of the important bills that died without a whisper in the 105th
Congress was HR-827, the "Nuclear Disarmament and Economic Conversion Act."
 This legislation has been introduced three times since 1994 by Del.
Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC).  It was first introduced because it had won
at the ballot box: it gained 56% of the vote in Washington DC in September,
1993.  For a handful of powerful people to sit on legislation of this
importance is undemocratic and shameful.  We hope that the 106th Congress
will be more wise.

More can be read about the bill at http://prop1.org/prop1/hr827ab.htm

Ellen Thomas
Proposition One Committee - http://prop1.org - 202-462-0757

10/11/98- USA Today

             Some bills died quietly in Congress

             WASHINGTON - It is the 105th Congress' wish list
             of rejects, the high-profile and little-known bills lost
             in the rush of the frantic last days of the legislative
             session.

             The more prominent include an $80 billion tax cut, a
             patients "bill of rights," sweeping overhauls of
             bankruptcy and financial services laws and a
             $1-an-hour increase in the federal minimum wage.

             With both houses heading toward adjournment, it is
             highly unlikely these measures, for all the attention
             they drew during the past two years, can make it
             through this Congress.

             Away from the political footlights, other measures
             died with little fanfare.

             Showing the muscle that a lone senator can flex under
             the chamber's rules, Tom Harkin, D-Iowa, was able to
             frustrate Silicon Valley. He blocked a vote on
             legislation to allow nearly twice as many
             computer-savvy foreigners and other high-skilled
             immigrants into the country next year after the measure
             was easily passed by the House.

             Another missed opportunity: the House last Thursday
             laid the groundwork for U.S. ratification of treaties
             designed to enhance copyright protections for
             musicians, filmmakers, writers and software
             developers who send their works over the Internet.
             These treaties have been signed by more than 100
             countries.

             A compromise measure had earlier been worked out
             with the Senate, but Senate passage and subsequent
             treaty ratification failed to follow. The reason wasn't
             immediately clear.

             Among other proposals that didn't make it:

                 A "flex time" bill that would apply to workers
                 earning hourly wages in the private sector. It
                 would have given them the same scheduling
                 options accorded to federal workers and some
                 management employees in private business, such
                 as "time-and-a-half" compensatory time off.
                 A bill to establish national standards for
                 class-action shareholder lawsuits against
                 companies. It would have restricted the ability of
                 investors to file such suits in state courts against
                 companies whose stock trades on major national
                 exchanges. Only minor differences were
                 apparently needed for its passage by both the
                 House and Senate, and the administration had
                 expressed support.

             By The Associated Press

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washdc/ncssun06.htm
_______________________________

PROPOSITION ONE COMMITTEE
P.O. Box 27217, Washington, DC 20038 USA
202-462-0757 (phone) | 202-265-5389 (fax)
http://prop1.org | [e-mail]

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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Oh, Amsterdam, Amsterdam
Date: 12 Oct 1998 13:42:58 EDT


 Date:          Sun, 11 Oct 1998 16:50:27 +0200 (IST)
 To:            [e-mail]
 From:          Colman Altman <[e-mail]>

 Oh, Amsterdam, Amsterdam
 -------------------------
 Just over a month ago there appeared a brief report in the Sueddeutsche
 Zeitung that a commission of inquiry had been set up by the Dutch parliament
 to investigate the inconsistencies revealed by a parliamentary committee
 examining, since April, the circumstances of the El Al Jumbo plane crash
 over Amsterdam 6 years ago. [It will be recalled that 43 people were killed
 and 233 apartments destroyed when an El Al plane carrying "among other
 things, rocket components and munitions" crashed into a workers' quarter in
 Amsterdam. It will also be recalled that on April 23, our Minister of
 Transport, Shaul Yahalom, reacting to reports that Holland had requested the
 despatch documents (te'udot mishloach) of the El Al plane, declared "On the
 plane there were no dangerous materials whatsoever, and even those bars of
 uranium that are routinely stored in (the wings of) Boeing 747-100 planes
 are depleted uranium which does no harm when it burns".] The chairman of the
 Dutch Labour party parliamentary faction is reported to have said: "I'm glad
 that the mystery surrounding the crash will now finally be solved. Too many
 questions have remained open, too much appears to have been hushed up or
 swept under the carpet." In the past a number of committees have conducted,
 unsuccessfully, similar investigations. The newspaper report adds that the
 Dutch government apparently did not wish to spoil its good relations with
 Israel, and in this connection it mentions that the plane's Black Voice
 Recorder was missing even though it was seen after the crash, crucial El Al
 witnesses were not interrogated, and important documents had apparently been
 'manipulated'. The Dutch government also "played down the fact that the
 Jumbo contained 282 kilograms of [depleted] uranium".

    The words of the renowned nuclear radiation expert, Shaul Yahalom,
 concerning the harmlessness of burning uranium smoke, even when inhaled by
 Dutch citizens, (see Ha'Aretz 24.4.98),  apparently did not convince the
 parliamentary commission of inquiry, and so, not surprisingly, returning
 home to the joys of Bibiland I find two reports in Ha'Aretz (4.10.98 and
 6.10.98) concerning the cargo of the unfortunate El Al Jumbo. The cargo, it
 seems, contained the chemical dimethyl methylphosphonate (to quote the Dutch
 NRC Handelsblad and Ha'Aretz), from which one could produce nerve gas, and
 was addressed to the biological institute in Ness Tsiona. From the Prime
 Minister's office, on the other hand, we learn that the chemical was
 intended to be used to test gas mask filters. This is denied by the
 manufacturers, who declare that the chemical delays combustion and is used
 as a fuel additive. The American manufacturers declared also that they were
 under the impression that the biological institute in Ness Tsiona conducted
 only civilian-scientific research [such as producing better fuel mixtures
 for your car], and not security research.

    Rather clumsy, no? Maybe the Dutch parliamentary commission will be
 satisfied by this revelation and close the inquiry. I suppose the cargo did
 contain this chemical, but what else did it contain?

    The Dutch M.P., Droop van Geisel, is reported to have told Galei Tsahal
 that documents, cassettes and video recordings, documenting the scene after
 the crash have disappeared. So let us recall what we wrote to the alef list
 on 25 Apr 1998, based on a reportage by Shlomo Abramovich in Yediot Aharonot
 (31.1.97). Abramovich reports that 8 hours after the crash a group of
 English-speaking people wearing white overalls arrived at the scene and
 searched the remnants of the plane for 5 hours. All rescue workers and even
 fire fighters were forcibly evacuated. All rescue operations were recorded
 on 42 police video cassettes. When members of the press later demanded to
 see the cassettes they were informed that the cassettes had been shredded.

    So what indeed did the plane's cargo contain that required such a
 determined government backed cover-up? We return to Abramovich's article.
 The sub-title reads: "4 years after the El-Al plane crash in the Bijlmeer
 quarter in Amsterdam the inhabitants are complaining of mysterious lung
 diseases, abortion of foetal monsters, birth of deformed babies and an
 awesome death rate of dogs, cats and birds". Doctors in the quarter spoke of
 the the sharp increase in the number of cases of lung and kidney problems,
 bone cancers, symptoms of heavy metal poisoning, general weakness and pains
 in the bones. The sub-title continues: "Was this caused by the hundreds of
 kilograms of uranium that burned in the quarter and penetrated into the
 lungs of the rescue teams and thousands of the inhabitants?"  The
 pathological symptoms described are not those of dimethyl methylphosphonate,
 are not those of nerve gas poisoning. They are classical symptoms of "Gulf
 War Syndrome", caused by the inhalation of (depleted) uranium oxide smoke
 particles (although even here the Pentagon claims that the malaise besetting
 the Gulf War ex-servicemen was due largely to the inhalation of nerve gas
 released when Iraqui bunkers containing stocks of nerve gas were bombed - so
 that after all the Iraquis and not the Pentagon are responsible). And "the
 number of victims of this mysterious disease is still increasing"
 (Sueddeutsche Zeitung), which is consistent with the picture of
 low-radioactivity uranium particles sitting in your lungs and bones.

    In my article to the alef list on 25 April I implicitly accepted the
 premise that the source of the depleted uranium that burned was in the wings
 of the El Al plane where it is routinely placed for purposes of
 stabilization. I wrote that maybe the Dutch authorities were doing their
 utmost to play down the incident because depleted uranium was used also in
 their KLM Boeings. But the magnitude of this ecological disaster, and the
 desperate efforts of the Dutch government to suppress all attempts to
 investigate the nature of the plane's cargo, leads one to believe that the
 cargo itself contained depleted uranium, probably in the form of armour
 piercing spearheads for anti-tank munition. Then everything makes sense.
 Holland is a member of NATO which has almost certainly introduced depleted
 uranium munitions into its anti-tank arsenal (following its proved efficacy
 in the Gulf War). And the last thing they need is a scandal that will
 demonstrate the ecological harmfulness of this new wonder weapon. So we're
 prepared to concede that we carried a nerve gas precursor (to test gas mask
 filters) in the El Al Jumbo. And maybe in the next war, aleinu letova, the
 Turkish army will test this new weapon against Syrian tanks.

 Happy Simchat Torah,

 Calman Altman

 P.S. For your notice:
 The Other Israel on site - http://members.tripod.com/~other_Israel/
 Gush Shalom on site - http://www.gush-shalom.org (Hebrew & English)
                                                 + a lot of interesting links!
  >>

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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re military spending
Date: 12 Oct 1998 13:42:55 EDT

Bob,

Thanks for your note. I also don't see how a $270 billion annual budget
translates into l.7 billion a day. It may be (and if so should be explaine=
d)
that this figure is arrived at by adding in the CIA and Black Budget spend=
ing
and the funds the goverment does not list - interest on past wars, veteran=
s
benefits, etc. (WRL, I should make very clear, not only supports the spend=
ing
needed to care for veterans but would certainly favor an increase in fundi=
ng
for VA hospitals, etc.).

I couldn't agree more that accuracy is one of our few weapons. In this cas=
e I
suspect but am not sure that the figure WRL uses is legitimately based on =
this
calculation, which is more accurate than that released by the government,
which doesn't want the full military cost to be known. I'm forwarding a cc=
 of
this to the WRL office so Ruth Benn can check it. (she is going frantic
preparing for our national conference this weekend and the rest of us beca=
use
of the 19th, so you may not get an answer).

Peace,
David McReynolds



<< Subj:=09 (abolition-usa) Re:
 Date:=0910/12/98 9:43:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:=[e-mail] (Bob Tiller)
 Sender:=[e-mail]
 Reply-to:=[e-mail]
 To:=[e-mail]

 You may want to reconsider your numbers.  The figure of $1.7 billion a
 day for U.S. military spending must be too high.  I believe that current
 military spending is about half of that figure.

 I am very sympathetic with your efforts, but I don't think it helps our
 cause to use inaccurate numbers.

 Good luck with your October 19th work.  Due to a prior commitment, I
 will not be able to participate.

 Shalom,
 Bob Tiller



 War Resisters League wrote:
 >
 > PRESS ADVISORY
 >
 > For Immediate Release   October 7, 1998
 >
 > Contact: (on bus) John Reese [phone] (cell phone)
 > 1-800-241-5654 (pager); Email: [e-mail]
 >
 > ANTI-WAR ACTIVISTS BUS ACROSS U.S. TO SHUT DOWN THE PENTAGON



 > John Reese from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia (NACC) poin=
ts
 > out, "the military spends $1.7 BILLION a day.  That's $1.7 billion per =
day
 > to build bigger and better
 > bombs rather than build schools for our children, build homes for the
 > homeless or protect the environment. One day of Pentagon spending could
fund
 > 200 new elementary schools or house 136,000 homeless people or shelter =
and
 > counsel 56,000 battered women.  We can rebuild our natural and human
 > communities and provide for all our needs -- if we abandon our addictio=
n to
 > militarism."
 > - more =96
 > -
 >
 >  - 2 -
 >
 > "Day w/o the Pentagon"
 > (cont=92d.)
 >
 > Chris Ney, Disarmanent Program Coordinator of WRL, reasons, "we cannot
 > afford to dominate the world militarily and starve our needs at home.  =
The
 > Congress continues to load the
 > Pentagon budget with purchases military leaders don't want and don't ne=
ed.
 > Meanwhile, medical care, housing, education and  the environment are al=
l in
 > crisis due to lack of attention and funding.
 >
 > This must change.  Civil disobedience at the Pentagon on October 19th w=
ill
 > highlight these themes."
 >
 > ATTENTION NEWS EDITORS:  For more information (backgrounders, featured
 > participants, etc.) regarding "Day Without the Pentagon" activities bet=
ween
 > 16-19 October, contact Chris Ney in New York (tel. [phone]; email =
to
 > [e-mail])
 > Mackie McLeod in Washington D.C. (tel. [phone]; email to
 > [e-mail])
 >
 >
 > END//
 >
 > **********
 > War Resisters League
 > 339 Lafayette St.
 > New York, NY 10012


-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: "Victor W. Sidel, MD" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Re military spending
Date: 12 Oct 1998 12:11:46 -0700 (PDT)

The figure of l.7 U.S. billion dollars a day is what the world spends for
military purposes.  The U.S. military expenditure is about 40% of that.  The
point that should be made is that the U.S. expenditure is greater than that
of the next 10 nations combined.  As other nations reduce their military
budgets and the U.S. does not, it appears that the U.S. military
expenditures will climb toward 50% of world military expenditures.

Victor Sidel, MD
Co-President, IPPNW



At 01:42 PM 10/12/98 EDT, [e-mail] wrote:
>Bob,
>
>Thanks for your note. I also don't see how a $270 billion annual budget
>translates into l.7 billion a day. It may be (and if so should be=
 explained)
>that this figure is arrived at by adding in the CIA and Black Budget=
 spending
>and the funds the goverment does not list - interest on past wars, veterans
>benefits, etc. (WRL, I should make very clear, not only supports the=
 spending
>needed to care for veterans but would certainly favor an increase in=
 funding
>for VA hospitals, etc.).
>
>I couldn't agree more that accuracy is one of our few weapons. In this case=
 I
>suspect but am not sure that the figure WRL uses is legitimately based on=
 this
>calculation, which is more accurate than that released by the government,
>which doesn't want the full military cost to be known. I'm forwarding a cc=
 of
>this to the WRL office so Ruth Benn can check it. (she is going frantic
>preparing for our national conference this weekend and the rest of us=
 because
>of the 19th, so you may not get an answer).
>
>Peace,
>David McReynolds
>
>
>
><< Subj:     (abolition-usa) Re:=20
> Date:    10/12/98 9:43:01 AM Eastern Daylight Time
> From:    [e-mail] (Bob Tiller)
> Sender:    [e-mail]
> Reply-to:    [e-mail]
> To:    [e-mail]
>=20
> You may want to reconsider your numbers.  The figure of $1.7 billion a
> day for U.S. military spending must be too high.  I believe that current
> military spending is about half of that figure.
>=20
> I am very sympathetic with your efforts, but I don't think it helps our
> cause to use inaccurate numbers.
>=20
> Good luck with your October 19th work.  Due to a prior commitment, I
> will not be able to participate.
>=20
> Shalom,
> Bob Tiller
>=20
>=20
>=20
> War Resisters League wrote:
> >=20
> > PRESS ADVISORY
> >=20
> > For Immediate Release   October 7, 1998
> >=20
> > Contact: (on bus) John Reese [phone] (cell phone)
> > 1-800-241-5654 (pager); Email: [e-mail]
> >=20
> > ANTI-WAR ACTIVISTS BUS ACROSS U.S. TO SHUT DOWN THE PENTAGON
>
>
>
> > John Reese from the Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia (NACC)=
 points
> > out, "the military spends $1.7 BILLION a day.  That's $1.7 billion per=
 day
> > to build bigger and better
> > bombs rather than build schools for our children, build homes for the
> > homeless or protect the environment. One day of Pentagon spending could
>fund
> > 200 new elementary schools or house 136,000 homeless people or shelter=
 and
> > counsel 56,000 battered women.  We can rebuild our natural and human
> > communities and provide for all our needs -- if we abandon our addiction=
 to
> > militarism."
> > - more =96
> > -
> >=20
> >  - 2 -
> >=20
> > "Day w/o the Pentagon"
> > (cont=92d.)
> >=20
> > Chris Ney, Disarmanent Program Coordinator of WRL, reasons, "we cannot
> > afford to dominate the world militarily and starve our needs at home. =
 The
> > Congress continues to load the
> > Pentagon budget with purchases military leaders don't want and don't=
 need.
> > Meanwhile, medical care, housing, education and  the environment are all=
 in
> > crisis due to lack of attention and funding.
> >=20
> > This must change.  Civil disobedience at the Pentagon on October 19th=
 will
> > highlight these themes."
> >=20
> > ATTENTION NEWS EDITORS:  For more information (backgrounders, featured
> > participants, etc.) regarding "Day Without the Pentagon" activities=
 between
> > 16-19 October, contact Chris Ney in New York (tel. [phone]; email=
 to
> > [e-mail])
> > Mackie McLeod in Washington D.C. (tel. [phone]; email to
> > [e-mail])
> >=20
> >=20
> > END//
> >=20
> > **********
> > War Resisters League
> > 339 Lafayette St.
> > New York, NY 10012
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>
>


-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
 "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.


-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews:  Shattuck Radioactive Cleanup - golf course-inspired?
Date: 12 Oct 1998 16:35:52 -0400

Good that somebody's paying attention in Denver.  Note the interests behind
this concern: it's getting publicity now, due to what?  Property values,
golf course?  Bearing in mind that what motivates people is devluation in
their own back yard, we should ponder how we can get through to the
comfortable people.  Check out HR-827, the "Nuclear Disarmament AND
ECONOMIC CONVERSION Act" (environmental restoration, anyone?).
http://prop1.org/prop1/hr827ab.htm

Ellen Thomas - [e-mail]

----------------
http://www.denverpost.com/news/shat1010.htm

Suit claims Shattuck costing Denver

By Mark Eddy
Denver Post Environment Writer

Oct. 10 - Denver has lost property tax revenue as a result
of the Shattuck radioactive waste dump, a lawsuit filed
Friday alleges.

"What I've alleged in the complaint is that Denver is in
fact damaged by the existence of that waste,'' said David
Rees, a lawyer who filed the lawsuit in Denver District
Court on behalf of city taxpayers.

The 50,000 cubic yards of radioactive waste at 1805 S.
Bannock St., site of the former Shattuck Chemical Co.
processing plant, has held down value of surrounding
property, including that of the Overland Golf Course.

"The property values in the Overland area are not rising
at the same rate as in other parts of the city, where
property values are skyrocketing, and that's because
people can't sell houses near a dump site,'' Rees said.

In his complaint, Rees claims that Shattuck - owned by
Salomon Inc., which is in turned owned by Citigroup Inc.
- violated terms of the Rocky Mountain Low-Level
Radioactive Waste Compact.

That law was passed to ensure that no state is unfairly
saddled with radioactive waste. Members of the compact
board met several weeks ago to decide if the Shattuck site
was subject to its jurisdiction, but no decision has been
made. Rees, who as an assistant attorney general for
Colorado helped draft the compact, contends that the
board has jurisdiction and that its rules were violated.

But an attorney for Shattuck, John Fraught, disagreed.
Fraught said the compact's authority was usurped by the
federal Environmental Protection Agency, which ordered
the radioactive soil entombed on the site.

"Congress has made it very clear that if EPA makes a
decision under (federal law), that, in fact, preempts any
decision of the compact,'' Fraught said.

The lawsuit asks the court to order the dirt - contaminated
with radium, uranium and heavy metals - moved to a
licensed facility.

"We are sick and tired of hearing the experts, bureaucrats
and politicians debate about whether having a radioactive
waste disposal site in Overland Park is a threat to public
health,'' Rees said.

"This case isn't about health; this case, like so many
environmental cases, is about money, power and political
influence.''

Gov. Roy Romer could order the waste removed with one
phone call, Rees said, because the compact is designed to
honor the wishes of the state where a problem exists.

Romer, who hadn't seen the lawsuit, couldn't comment on
the case, his staff said. The EPA and Colorado
Department of Public Health and Environment made the
decision in 1992 to mix the radioactive dirt with cement
and fly ash and create a monolith on the site. The city of
Denver, as well as residents of the neighborhood, have
fought that decision.

EPA last week ordered an independent panel, which is in
the process of being formed, to investigate the cleanup.

PROPOSITION ONE COMMITTEE
P.O. Box 27217, Washington, DC 20038 USA
202-462-0757 (phone) | 202-265-5389 (fax)
http://prop1.org | [e-mail]

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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews: George Bush and nuclear weapons, Oct. 11, 1998
Date: 12 Oct 1998 16:34:50 -0400

So, now Walter Pincus is making an nuclear arms reduction plea, using
George Bush as the standard.  I wonder whose idea that was?  Again it's
talk about reduction, rather than abolition.  Anyone want to reply?
Washington Post reply page:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/edit/letters/letterform.htm


http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/11/131l-101198-idx.html

Re-Read His Lips: Reduce Arms Now

By Walter Pincus

Sunday, October 11, 1998; Page C01 Washington Post

Seven years ago, President George Bush announced what
many experts consider the single most profound
reduction of nuclear weapons in arms control history and
one that some believe has yet to earn him the credit he
deserves.

With the Soviet Union collapsing, the Strategic Arms
Reduction Treaty (START I) then bogged down in the
Soviet parliament and President Mikhail Gorbachev
struggling to hold on to power, Bush ordered elimination
of thousands of U.S. tactical nuclear weapons,
deactivation of 450 land-based ICBMs and a halt to
Pentagon development of mobile single and
multiwarhead strategic missiles as well as an
air-launched, short-range ballistic missile. In Sept. 27,
1991, Bush made his move without prior notification to
Congress and with only a last-minute request to
Gorbachev to match it. In Cold-War vernacular, he
undertook unilateral arms reductions.

Comparable arms reduction pledges from Gorbachev
followed nine days later, in what some described as an
"arms race in reverse" that unquestionably reduced the
potential for accidental nuclear confrontation and helped
Gorbachev withdraw tactical nuclear weapons from
parts of the Soviet Union, which was beginning to break
apart. His action also laid the groundwork for the next
arms treaty, START II.

The situation today cries out for a Bush-like action.
Russia is in turmoil. Boris Yeltsin's hold on the
government is unsteady. Moscow's control over what
remains of that country's nuclear weapons and stockpile
of fissionable material has to be bolstered by, of all
people, the United States, but its overall security remains
questionable.

While START I is in force, START II is stalled in the
Duma even as the Russian strategic air and naval forces
scrounge for funds to maintain their land-based silo and
mobile ICBMs or their strategic nuclear submarines.

At a time when the Clinton administration is trying to
convince the Indian and Pakistani governments--as well
as other countries--that they should not build nuclear
weapons, the United States still maintains thousands of
warheads and strategic delivery systems, many of which
remain at a 15-minute-or-less alert with almost no
targets for them to aim at.

Like Bush, Clinton as commander-in-chief could order
deactivation of the 50 MX ICBMs now on alert, each
with 10 warheads; begin retiring half the 18 Trident
ballistic missile submarines that each have 28
sea-launched ICBMs; and open the safety switches of the
500 Minuteman III missiles, with three warheads each,
so that they would be temporarily immobilized.

It would be a stunning move that would greatly
strengthen our arguments against nuclear proliferation
and encourage the signing of the nuclear
non-proliferation treaty by nuclear nations, such as India
and Pakistan, which last month expressed receptiveness
toward the agreement.

What's to stop President Clinton from doing what Bush
did? Political realists would argue the obvious: that with
impeachment hanging in the air, the president was taking
a dramatic step to divert attention. But Clinton's
opponents and many in the media will say that about
everything the president does, whether it's air strikes in
Kosovo, a new step toward Middle East peace, even
taking a long-planned overseas trip.

Then there are the Republicans who not only dislike
Clinton but also firmly oppose taking any further arms
control steps with the Russians until they ratify START
II. They have pushed Congress to put language in the past
few Pentagon authorization bills, and the fiscal 1999
measure that would prohibit the spending of any funds to
dismantle U.S. strategic weapons under the treaty until
the Duma acts on it. In the new bill, those Republicans
also want a report on whether Gorbachev's promises to
Bush have in fact been carried out.

Several experts, including former senator Sam Nunn and
Brookings Institution arms control specialist Bruce G.
Blair, have suggested publicly that Clinton unilaterally
reduce the number of U.S. strategic land- and sea-based
ICBMs and remove hair-trigger alerts from the
remaining U.S. strategic missiles.

There is other support for unilateral action. Former
Defense secretary Robert S. McNamara, just back from a
non-governmental conference on disarmament in Russia
with that country's nuclear scientists, said a unilateral
U.S. reduction of strategic weapons is "exactly what I
think should be done." He said the Russians have turned
to a first-use of nuclear weapons strategy because their
armed forces have collapsed and they fear a U.S. first
strike. "They would respond," McNamara said of the
Russians, "because they know nuclear weapons are not
the answer to their problems."

McNamara said that he and others could put together a
package that would be acceptable to the Pentagon and to
Congress and which would elicit a favorable response
from the Russians.

Today, because of their financial troubles, the Russians
cannot sustain the 9,000 warheads on their strategic
silo-based and mobile ICBMs, nor the 2,000 more in
missiles on submarines. Gen. Vladimir Yakovlev, chief
of the Russian strategic rocket forces, said recently that
62 percent of Russia's ICBMs are beyond guaranteed
service life. Only two of their new mobile ICBMs have
been deployed and those were three years behind
schedule. Only 25 of 100 planned Blackjack strategic
bombers have been completed in the past nine years and
the largest number of them are rusting away in Ukraine.
When that country offered them for sale to Russia
recently, the Russians turned them down because they
did not have the funds required.

According to Blair, only two of Russia's 26 ballistic
missile submarines are on patrol and only one of three
planned new subs is actually under construction. Of six
Typhoon ICBM-equipped subs built in the last decade,
only three are still operational. Blair estimates that
usable Russian nuclear warheads could drop below
1,000 in less than 10 years.

Congress has recognized Russia's severe nuclear
weapons problems. In the new Pentagon authorization
bill, the legislators have provided funds to assist the
Russians in the dismantling of their missiles and
bombers as contemplated by the treaty, but not ours.

Bush's action came from a position of strength. It grew
out of his determination to do something bold as a
followup to the victory in Desert Storm and to keep his
momentum heading into the 1992 presidential election.
While vacationing at Walker Point, the president's
vacation home in Maine, Bush and his national security
advisor, Brent Scowcroft, talked about taking "sweeping
initiatives" in disarmament in the face of the breakup of
the Soviet Union, according to their newly published
book, "A World Transformed."

In language that President Clinton could employ, Bush
announced the reductions by declaring that "If we and the
Soviet leaders take the right steps--some on our own,
some together--we can dramatically shrink the arsenal of
the world's nuclear weapons . . . . America must lead
again, as it always has."

Senior Clinton national security and foreign policy
officials are looking for initiatives that could bring the
president to center stage here and abroad on substantive
issues. It could be a fitting challenge to Clinton's
persuasive powers, first within his administration and
then with the Congress.

A major, unilateral reduction of strategic warheads by
the world's strongest nuclear power, while a big gamble
for the president, would set an example worldwide.

Walter Pincus is a reporter on The Post's National staff.

REFRESHER COURSE

INTERMEDIATE-RANGE NUCLEAR FORCE
TREATY

Eliminated an entire class of nuclear weapons with a
range of between 300 and 3,400 miles. Entered into
force in June 1988.

STRATEGIC ARMS REDUCTION TREATY (START
I)

Cut of 30 to 40 percent in overall strategic nuclear
forces, including ICBMs, sea-launched ballistic missiles
and deployed heavy bombers. Entered into force in
December 1994.

STRATEGIC ARMS REDUCTION TREATY (START
II)

Further reductions in the most threatening weapons,
including multiple independently targetable nuclear
warheads. Would cut nuclear arsenals of United States
and Russia by two-thirds. Signed by both countries in
1993. Ratified by the U.S. Senate in January 1996. Not
yet ratified by Russian Duma.

COMPRENHENSIVE TEST BAN TREATY

Prohibits nuclear explosions, above ground or
underground. Negotiated in 1996. Signed by 150 nations,
including the United States, but so far ratified by 21, the
United States not among them.



_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews:  Carlsbad NM INVITED WIPP (Forbes, Oct. 19, 1998)
Date: 12 Oct 1998 16:45:06 -0400

Would you like a nuclear waste dump in your backyard?
Carlsbad, N.M. lobbied like hell to get one.

How Carlsbad got WIPPed

By William P. Barrett, Forbes Magazine, Oct. 19, 1998

FOR DECADES isolated Carlsbad, N.M. has basked in the fame of nearby
Carlsbad Caverns National Park, with its awesome underground stalactites
and stalagmites. Now it's getting another underground claim to fame: a huge
nuclear-waste disposal site.

Carlsbad's mayor and local businesspeople actually invited the federal
government to consider bringing the waste here. Why? They figured they
needed it for their economic growth.

Located 26 miles east of Carlsbad, the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant, or
WIPP, is a world first: a series of man-made tunnels 2,150 feet
underground, designed to accommodate radioactive waste.

Delighted to find a place that would accept nuclear waste, the U.S.
Department of Energy has poured $2 billion into this hole in the ground.
Much of the money has circulated through this town of 25,000. "No one had
any earthly idea how big this rascal could be," Don Kidd, Carlsbad state
senator and bank president, says approvingly.

Today, according to economic models, WIPP generates more than $150 million
annually for the Carlsbad economy, or about $6,000 per resident. A small
army of miners, contractors, technicians, federal bureaucrats, supervisors,
executives and vendors either live in or frequently visit the area. WIPP's
20-person communications team, for  example, tops the staff of 11
journalists on the local daily newspaper. Unemployment, a high 8.1%, would
be a lot higher without WIPP. New homes costing upwards of $200,000 are
going up in a town where older houses can be found for under $30,000.

So far WIPP is empty, though it was ready for business by 1988. Lawsuits
backed by out-of-town environmentalists have delayed its use. WIPP is now
supposed to receive its first waste next year. In the mine, dug through
ancient salt deposits, WIPP will ultimately hold a total of 850,000 barrels
of lightly contaminated items like tools and clothing-trucked in from ten
nuclear weapons facilities around the country.

In this rough region, where people have long worked the land, lived by
their wits, taken risks, hoped for luck and respected authority, most local
people welcome WIPP. It's a poor area where per capita income runs 28%
below the national average. Atomic bombs were perfected and first tested in
New Mexico, so the word nuclear probably didn't generate the same hysteria
here it did elsewhere.  Carlsbad has been hooked on Washington handouts for
a long time.  In the later 1800s U.S. Army troops cleared out Indians for
cattle-raising settlers who later founded the town of Eddy. In 1899 Eddy
renamed itself after the famous European springs at Karlsbad, hoping to
attract more settlers, but the area continued to get federal largesse.
Washington-financed projects rebuilt damaged irrigation systems and  tamed
the Pecos River. Congressional appropriations developed Carlsbad Caverns.
Natural resources outfits got cut-rate leases on federal lands.

It was Carlsbad that wanted WIPP. In 1972 the old Atomic Energy Commission
abandoned plans to build a nuclear dump near Lyons, Kans., amid botched
underground surveys and withering media coverage. On an out-of-town trip
Carlsbad state senator Joseph Gant Jr. read a wire-service story-by
chance-about the Lyons fiasco and got on the telephone to other Carlsbad
influentials. Mines harvesting potash, a key ingredient for fertilizer,
were closing, and Carlsbad seemed on the road to becoming another
Chihuahuan desert ghost town.

Within weeks these local movers and shakers were actively lobbying
astonished but wary federal officials, and they have never stopped. When,
in 1980, Jimmy Carter vowed to scrap the project, city fathers descended
upon Washington to lobby Congress and various federal agencies. Ronald
Reagan later acceded to their wishes and reversed Carter's decision.

Along the way the city fathers made sure Carlsbad would be well rewarded.
The feds agreed to move high-paying federal jobs to Carlsbad and to buy
lots of supplies locally-sometimes from city officials running side
businesses. They won funding to improve the 200-mile-long highway to a New
Mexico interstate from two lanes to four. The locals even got $33 million
in taxpayer money to build and support an environmental monitoring center
where residents can get free body scans for radioactivity. City schools get
used computers from Westinghouse, which runs WIPP for the feds.

The nuclear wastes have an estimated dangerous radioactive life of up to
240,000 years. If anything goes really wrong, Carlsbad could end up
abandoned, but these folks are used to taking chances.

_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Jackie Cabasso <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) RE CHICAGO: HAS ANYONE SEEN MY NOTEBOOK??
Date: 12 Oct 1998 18:01:27 -0700 (PDT)

Greetings, friends.  I seem to have left my notebook at the Saturday session
of the Chicago abolition conference.  It is a standard letter-size
spiral-bound notebook with a purple cover.  On the first page there's a long
list of things to do!  There was a also shiny purple University of Chicago
pen clipped to the cover. If you accidentally ended up in possession of my
"portable brain," please let me know!!  Many thanks. -- Jackie
   ********************************************
       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
             Oakland, CA USA 94612
              Tel: [phone]
              Fax: [phone]
               [e-mail]
   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Nevada Desert Experience <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re:  (abolition-usa) Re military spending
Date: 12 Oct 1998 20:59:42 -0700 (PDT)

Dear David,                    October 12, 1998
Greetings from Las Vegas.  I just returned from the board meeting of the
Nevada Desert Experience  in the San Francisco Bay Area.  Chris Montesano
is on our board.  Both Chris and I want to invite you to consider coming
to our turn of the millennium event at the Nevada Test Site.  From December
29, 1999 to Jan. 2, 2000 we plan to host 500-1000 folks for Millennium 2000:
Walking the Ways of Peace.  Already we have Bishop Gumbleton, Dr. Rosalie
Bertell and Dan Berrigan planning on attending.  More literature will be coming
out in the next months and you will probably be hearing soon from Chris, of
the Sheepranch Catholic Worker Farm and our Board.  Please seriously consider
being a part of our event.  In the meantime...keep on keepin on for peace in
New York, the Pentagon, etc.
        Sincerely,         David Buer, ofm
                    NDE Interim Director

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) EnviroNews:  Poplars clean pollution
Date: 13 Oct 1998 07:23:34 -0400

10/12/98 - USA Today - Science

             Phytoremediation: Poplars vs. pollution

             Cleaning up polluted industrial sites may not require
             billion-dollar government programs. Instead,
             scientists suggest, plant a poplar tree.
             Laboratory-designed hybrids of the fast-growing tree
             have been found to act like 100-foot straws that suck
             contamination from soil and ground water. This
             natural cleanup is inexpensive but takes several years
             to complete. Still unknown, however, is whether the
             chemical byproducts generated by the poplars really
             are less harmful, or if diluting them in the atmosphere
             only creates another hazard.
_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Joseph Gerson <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) RE CHICAGO: HAS ANYONE SEEN MY NOTEBOOK??
Date: 13 Oct 1998 06:09:50 -0700 (PDT)

10/13
Jackie,

        Sorry to read that you lost your notebook. I hope it turns up. That
would drive me nuts!
        Probably like you, I'm crushed with work, but if time allows (on
either of our ends) I'd probably benefit from a phone conversation with you
dissecting the politics of what happened in Chicago. (My assumption is that
our AFSC phones are not bugged, but we shouldn't do it by phone if there's a
chance that yours are: legacy of organizing against the war in Vietnam in
Arizona.)

        Good luck,
        J. Gerson



At 06:01 PM 10/12/98 -0700, Jackie Cabasso wrote:
>Greetings, friends.  I seem to have left my notebook at the Saturday session
>of the Chicago abolition conference.  It is a standard letter-size
>spiral-bound notebook with a purple cover.  On the first page there's a long
>list of things to do!  There was a also shiny purple University of Chicago
>pen clipped to the cover. If you accidentally ended up in possession of my
>"portable brain," please let me know!!  Many thanks. -- Jackie
>   ********************************************
>       WESTERN STATES LEGAL FOUNDATION
>           1440 Broadway, Suite 500
>             Oakland, CA USA 94612
>              Tel: [phone]
>              Fax: [phone]
>               [e-mail]
>   ********** Part of ABOLITION 2000 **********
>   Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>
>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Joseph Gerson <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) REGIONAL REPORTS FOR CHICAGO MEETING
Date: 13 Oct 1998 09:09:39 -0700 (PDT)

10/13
Hello Rosalie,

        The Chicago meeting was interesting. Hopefully I'll be able to get a
summary report out to our network in the next few days. In sum, it allowed
for quite a lot of communication and some debate about what is needed to
move ahead with a national campaign. An interim coordinating committe was
established for a six month period, with a mandate to call another more
representative and diverse group, and with more comprehensive campaign
proposals, so that the national campaign can be launched.

        I was surprised that word of the Maine town meeting campaign had not
reached Gordon Clark, the staff director (not sure of his formal title) at
Peace Action in Washington, D.C. I pressed for parent groups of all the
organizations working on the Vermont and Maine town meetings to amplify the
message that comes out of town meetings.

        More anon...

        With best wishes,

        Joseph Gerson



At 08:39 AM 10/5/98 -0400, Rosalie Tyler Paul wrote:
>Jackie - Sue Broidy will have the information of Maine's Abolition 2000
>work. Rosalie Paul, Peace Action Maine
>
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>
>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Update on information please
Date: 13 Oct 1998 14:28:16 -0700 (PDT)

>Date: Tue, 13 Oct 1998 09:16:12 -0400
>From: Lorna Howarth <[e-mail]>
>Subject: Update on information please
>Sender: Lorna Howarth <[e-mail]>
>To: "Press/Media Dept." <[e-mail]>
>MIME-Version: 1.0
>
>Dear Friends
>
>I am going to put a small piece in the next issue of Positive News about
>the work of Abolition 2000 and the Middle Power Initiative.  I need a
>little more information:
>
>Why is there no MPI network in the UK (UK was not listed as a coalition
>country)?
>Is there a UK Abolition 2000 working group, and if so, what are the contact
>details.
>
>Very much looking forward to hearing from you.
>
>Yours sincerely
>
>
>Lorna Howarth, Editor, Positive News
>



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) DWOP News coverage in Colorado Springs
Date: 14 Oct 1998 00:38:38 EDT



 Date:    10/13/98 3:10:56 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (Erica Kay)
 Sender:    [e-mail]
 Reply-to:    [e-mail]

          Thanks to those in Colorado Springs for making this stop fun and
     newsworthy and thank to Bill Sulzman for forwarding this report.

     And thank yous to you at other stops for your hospitality and helping
     create the tour's success.

     Erica
     in Seattle

          Here is a summary of the news coverage in the Colorado
         Springs Gazette, October 13.  The caption under a picture of a street
         theater scene reads: "Members of the Nonviolent Action Community of
         Cascadia-Seattle,Wash., perform street theater on the Colorado
College
         campus, Monday."

           The text of the article reads:"Carrying signs and a 15-foot silver
         model of a rocket, protestors opposed to military spending marched in
         Colorado Springs on Monday.
              About 20 people, some dressed in costumes, marched through
Colorado
         College and Acacia Park. They sang songs and performed skits urging
         disarmament of missiles.
              The march was inspired by six people from Seattle who stopped
here
         on their way to a protest in Washington, D.C., next Monday called 'A
Day
         without the Pentagon'.  More than 100 organizations are expected at
that
         rally.
             John Reese,a member  of the Seattle group, said the United States
         should stop making bombs and instead invest in education, health care
and
         housing.  The country should also stop selling weapons, Reese said.
              'We sell to country A, then country A goes to war with country
B.
         Now country A is our enemy, and we have to arm country B,' he said.
              The group plans to make 14 stops on its way to the Washington
         rally."


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From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) BUS REPORT
Date: 14 Oct 1998 00:53:02 EDT


 Subj:=09 BUS REPORT
 Date:=0910/13/98 8:27:09 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:=[e-mail] (John Reese)
 Sender:=[e-mail]
 To:=[e-mail]

 Report From the bus

 Tuesday, October 13, 1998

 We started the day in Kansas City, Kansas, with an early morning crowd of
about 20.  We
 held banners at a busy intersection and then gave a tour of the bus.  We =
had
channel 4,
 the local FOX affiliate, filming us but no interview.  We were interviewe=
d by
the local
 Pacifica station and a weekly newspaper.  The Kansas City folk were very
supportive and
 it was great doing a demo with them.

 In St Louis we drove through McDonnell Douglas.  Got a lot of looks and t=
hat
is about
 it.  We needed a break so we are at Mira=92s with AFSC to shower, eat and=
 then
move on to
 Chicago.

 For those in Chicago, South Bend and Kent it would be great if you could =
give
your local
 media a call.  We will be in Chicago at the Federal Building at noon on
Wednesday and
 then South Bend at 5 PM at Main and Colfax (not main and Washington).  Th=
en
on Thursday
 we will be in Kent, Ohio - noon at Kent State University Student Center
Plaza, 2 PM at
 the May 4th memorial, and 4 PM in downtown Kent at Main and Water St.

 We should arrive in Annapolis at 3 PM on Friday for the conference.  And =
of
course we
 will all be at the Pentagon on the 19th.

 We=92ll try to send a message from South Bend but may not be able to unti=
l we
get to Kent
 on Thursday.


 For Peace and Justice,

 the bus crew




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews: DOE Cleanup Program Criticized (NY Times 10/14/98)
Date: 14 Oct 1998 10:04:00 -0400

http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/w/AP-Energy-Cleanup.html

October 14, 1998 NY Times - AP Online

        Energy Dept. Program Criticized

        By The Associated Press

        WASHINGTON (AP) -- When officials at the
        Hanford nuclear site in Washington state sought a
        quicker way to test for soil contamination they turned
        to an Energy Department program that has spent
        hundreds of millions developing new technologies to
        be used at cleanup sites.

        Two experimental technologies developed by the
        department's Office of Science and Technology caught
        the officials' eyes. But they were quickly
        disappointed. That's because the methods had not been
        developed to work effectively in Hanford's arid soil.

        The wasted opportunity is symptomatic of the
        department's OST program, which has cost $2.5
        billion over the last decade but managed to find uses
        for fewer than one in five technologies it has paid to
        develop, according to a new congressional audit.

        The audit, made public Tuesday, criticized the
        program for underwriting possible cleanup
        technologies without consulting with the nuclear
        weapons sites that might benefit. It said many
        department weapons site project managers shun the
        OST program because they ``lack confidence in OST's
        ability to provide technical advice and assistance.''

        The General Accounting Office, the auditing arm of
        Congress, also criticized the program for failing to
        follow its own rules for deciding when to continue
        funding for experimental technologies.

        OST's adherence to its own procedures ``has been
        spotty in part because a rigorous application of its
        requirements might indicate that some projects should
        be terminated for reasons such as the lack of an
        identified customer'' within the department, GAO
        reported.

        Nearly 73 percent of OST's money for developing
        new cleanup technologies this year went to private
        industry or the department's private contractors, 20
        percent to the department's own labs and 8 percent to
        universities, officials estimate.

        The department wrote the GAO that it agrees with the
        audit findings. An official who oversees the program
        said Tuesday he believes it is moving toward making
        the technology development more efficient and
        tailored to the cleanup sites' needs.

        ``We're going to see more deployment of these
        technologies in the future. Some 200 of these projects
        that GAO studied are still under development,'' said
        Gerald G. Boyd, Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary
        for science and technology.

        But House Commerce Chairman Thomas Bliley,
        R-Va., whose committee investigated the program,
        said the audit reveals major faults in a well
        intentioned initiative that suffers from ``an unfocused
        and poorly planned effort.''

        ``DOE could save billions with innovative
        technologies if it could just clean up its act,'' Bliley
        said.

        The OST program has been under scrutiny for more
        than a year.

        The Associated Press reported in May 1997 that a
        Massachusetts company with ties to Vice President Al
        Gore got $33 million in development funds -- nearly
        all without bidding -- for its experimental technology.
        The department often approved new funds around the
        time the company, Molten Metal Technology, made
        donations to the Democratic Party, records showed.

        The AP reported that the company's lobbyist, former
        Clinton campaign manager and fund-raiser Peter
        Knight, arranged for company executives to meet
        privately with the assistant secretary overseeing the
        program. Knight also provided that official with
        complimentary tickets to a black-tie Democratic
        event.

        Knight, the company and Energy officials denied
        wrongdoing. The assistant secretary was investigated
        by Energy's inspector general and left the department.
        The department never hired Molten Metal Technology
        after its technology was developed, and it later filed
        for bankruptcy protection, officials said.

        The OST program was created in 1989 to underwrite
        development of new technologies to clean up the
        various sites used to create the massive U.S. nuclear
        weapon arsenal during the Cold War.

        The Energy Department program has underwritten 713
        potential cleanup technologies. The department says
        152 of them, or 21 percent, have been used at a
        department site at least once.

        The GAO, saying that figure is inflated, estimated the
        department deployed 88 to 130 technologies it had
        funded, a success rate of 13 percent to 18 percent.

        The rate for experimental technologies the department
        funded into later stages of development was higher,
        ranging from 28 percent to 45 percent. But GAO noted
        that still lagged behind the Environmental Protection
        Agency's 59 percent rate for a similar program. A
        Defense Department initiative averaged 38 percent.

_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Joseph Gerson <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) "Faustian Bargain"
Date: 15 Oct 1998 10:20:09 -0700 (PDT)

10/15
Dear Jackie,

        I picked up a copy of "A Faustian Bargain" at the Chicago meeting
and read it on the plane coming back. A fine piece of work, and very helpful.

        Could you please send me 15 copies, with a bill? If at all possible,
I'd like to have them by the 22nd so that I can take them down to New York
for a talk and a meeting I have there on the 23rd.

        My mailing address is 2161 Mass. Ave., Cambridge, Mass. 02140.

        Thanks,

        Joseph Gerson


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Janet Bloomfield <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: NPT/Hague Appeal strategy ideas (fwd)
Date: 15 Oct 1998 21:22:14 +0100 (BST)



---------- Forwarded message ----------
Reply-To: [e-mail]

Dear Friends,
I have had this on my computer for some time now wishing to respond
carefully.  I have had the pleasure of working within the Landmines
Campaign and have noted the care with which the International Campaign
to Ban Landmines  manages press opportunities and their strategy
generally.

The ICBL  did several things very well:
1.  they created their own group of media stars - survivors, deminers,
former military - and provide the media with a list of these people and
a very interesting description of each person and what type of personal
testimony that person can give.  They create not just one but a variety
of interesting  stories for the media by making available people to
them.  The list includes the contact information for that person
(whatever hotel they are in during their stay) and information on their
language capability.  I wonder if A2000 might be able to considerably
increase its appeal to the media by following a similar strategy?

Who would you have available in NY or Geneva to speak on the legal,
economic, health, physical effects, social effects of nuclear weapons
reliance?  Build a person-based and value-based story upon which the
media can work.

2.  They created their own experts  who responded to the anticipated
stumbling-blocks.  (Our would be dealing with questions such as "what
about terrorists"?)   Rae McGrath from the Mines Advisory Group almost
single-handedly took on the world media and US/UK militaries on the
utility of "smart" mines.  He was able to disprove their "intelligence"
and convince both the media and the diplomats at the treaty drafting
conference that they would not be an acceptable alternative.

3.  Rae  also taught the whole landmines campaign how to respond to the
stumbling blocks.    Put serious thought to the A2000 educational
campaign - all your campaigners need to be briefed.  You may wish to
distribute to them the new and excellent MPI briefing book.   The
campaigners around the world need to be able to respond to a call for
faxes to diplomats during key negotiating meetings.

3.  You need to find out in advance who is going to be attending the
meeting on behalf of the key international news sources, where they are
staying, and provide them with an interesting media kit.  Try to
organize a meeting with someone from A2000 who is well respected
internationally to engage the media person in a conversation about the
importance of the issue.  It will be the one-on-one contacts that will
build a network of interested media.  DON'T WHINE about lack of coverage
- just remain positive and sincere about the need for coverage of such a
critical issue.

4.  The media kit should have easily read backgrounders along with the
list of media commentators.  The same old factual info on landmines was
pumped out over and over - but it was picked up by the media because the
backgrounders  included stories of how the mines affected individuals or
communities.

Are you already doing this type of thing?

This suggestion also reflects the advice we received from a group of
national-level media people who attended the last meeting of the
Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.

5.  It is extremely important in an age of TV and glossy print that we
develop visuals/graphics to easily persuade people about the merits of
the cause.  Just a few ideas to inspire you:

**  How many children on crutches did you see during the landmines
campaign?  That campaign had at least 4 professional photographers
working with them.  At each conference, they put up photo displays in
areas where the diplomats passed by.

** The ICBL organized children's art contests (creating posters) and
asked diplomats and others to judge them.  The best 100 were displayed
in the hallway through which the diplomats passed for meetings.

**  There were posters and T-shirts created in almost every country to
advertise the campaign.  (It proved an amazing exhibit during the Treaty
Signing Conference!)

** They organized the huge pile of single shoes or boots from all over
Europe to symbolize the unneeded extra shoe or boot. (Shoe piles are
still being organized in 12 French cities to stress the need for French
legislation.)

**  The ICBL had children parade through the conference hall in Vienna
with a single shoe or boot.  These were very smart Gandhian tools -
something everyone, however poor, could likely participate in to show
their support for the campaign.

**They also at the start of the People's Treaty Signing event poured
26,000 pieces of metal shot into a metal garbage can to remind us of the
number of victims yearly.

** A 3 legged chair of about 8 feet in height was positioned outside the
UN to be removed only on the Treaty (being signed? or Entry into Force?)

3.  Strategically, they moved the discussion from one of military
strategy to one of humanitarian issues.  The ICBL was greated assisted
in this by the hosting by the International Committee of the Red Cross
of a meeting to consider the military utility of landmines.  I would
suggest you consider working closely with the Red Cross and take a
similar tack.  The Red Cross produced extremely professional educational
booklets with critical information that was widely quoted.  They were
considered probably the most reliable source of information.  We need
them on board.  The ICRC also is very skilled in humanitarian law
diplomacy and their skills would be useful here as well.

These are my personal views only.  I give my group affiliations only for
identification purposes.

I wish you all great creativity, energy and persistence in the journey
ahead.

Bev Delong
Co-Chairperson, Canadian Netowrk to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
National President, Lawyers for Social Responsibility




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 15 Oct 1998 18:33:08 -0700 (PDT)

<fontfamily><param>Times</param><bigger><bigger>Calling for Sunflowers


I am appealing to those of you who may have planted sunflowers this
year!


We want colored photos for our Website - particularly  of sunflowers
growing outside public buildings such as schools and churches.


We would also be most grateful for photographs and artwork relating to
sunflowers generally.


Please mail to me at the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation - we'll attribute
them and send them back.


Many thanks!

</bigger></bigger></fontfamily>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Grassroots News from Abolition 2000
Date: 15 Oct 1998 18:33:36 -0700 (PDT)

Grassroots News from Abolition 2000

Report on Meeting in Chicago, October 9th  1998

Chicago last weekend was full of excitement and energy, with thousands of
enthusiastic and committed people everywhere, eager to push themselves to
the limit for causes and ideals they believe in. I'm talking about the
Marathon, of course, which took place on the Sunday in brilliant sunshine
with the city skyline and blue lake as a superb backdrop.

Although on a much smaller scale, a similar energy and commitment was
apparent at the De Paul University where abolition activists from around
the country were hosted by Illinois Peace Action for two days of
deliberation.

Thank you Illinois Peace Action!  It was great to be with you  and great to
be in the heartland of the US.

The result is that we now have a US Campaign Interim Coordinating
Committee - which we will call ICC-USA, not to be confused with the
International Criminal Court or the Interim Coordinating Committee for
Abolition 2000 International.  This has been set up to plan the next steps
for a US
campaign to abolish nuclear weapons, with another
meeting suggested for Santa Barbara in January or early February.  More
details will be available soon.

Between now and then, important early steps can be taken to build a strong
US Abolition 2000 network. For example, I will start by personally
contacting an A2000 organizer in each state - and it will
be faster if we could hear from volunteers.  At the same time, each
organization should identitfy one person in their group - with email - who
will be the A2000 contact.  This will make communication more efficient and
lay an important foundation for future campaign activity.

I would like to remind everyone to check that their organization is listed
on the website and that you are on the abolition-usa listserve.  Details below!

Help us to turn Abolition 2000 from an activists' policy forum into a real
people's movement in the US.  The clock is ticking and time is running out -
there are only 808 days until the end of the year 2000.

Recap of Grassroots News from the October Sunflower

Municipalities

Derbyshire County Council, UK is the latest municipality to pledge its
support for Abolition 2000.  Our total is now 211!

The Municipal Resolution can be downloaded from
http://www.wagingpeace.org.ab2000city.html.  Or email [e-mail] and
I'll mail you a hard copy.

Petitions

*  1617 signatures arrived this month on petitions from WILPF in Santa Cruz
 - they table every Saturday and are to be congratulated on their
commitment. Thank you  Ruth Hunter for sending them in and all the wonderful
volunteers who make this happen. If we had this sort of commitment all over
the country, politicians would really have to sit up and take notice.

* Rick Springer, our intrepid activist riding around the world on his
bicycle, has recently sent us 66 signatures from Scotland, adding to many
more he has sent from other parts of the world.

*  Women for Peace in Berkeley have sent in 70 signatures - always good to
have those email addresses on the petition forms as we can respond with an
email acknowledgement and sign them up for The Sunflower.

*  Chad Johnson has sent in 660 from the Amherst-Northampton area.  This is
a wonderful response. Chad also photocopies the petition forms and sends
them on to Senators Kerrey and Kennedy. This is an effective way to use the
petitions and all organizations could do the same with their congressional
representatives as well.

*  Costa Rica sent us 18 signatures , with a wonderful letter from Mitzi
Stark of the Disarmament Group of Costa Rica WILPF. It is good to hear from
this peace-loving country which has no army and no nuclear weapons.  They
are an example to the world and we hope they will gain a louder voice on
nuclear issues.

Send in your Petition Totals please!

We are on the process of trying to establish where the petitions are and
how many signatures we have to date, so that we may keep a running total up
on our website. The latest edition of the IPPNW newsletter from New Zealand
gives their total to date as 52,000.  Great work!

We have just received 205 names signed up on the electronic petition form
on the website run by Ross Wilcock.  If anyone else has electronic totals to
send on, please let me know.  We have approximately 16,000 from the US so
far.  I promise an exact number in the next Sunflower!

Organizations who have joined the Network in September

* Physicians for Global Security - Czech Section of IPPNW

* Slovak Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War

* Civic Initiative for a Charter of European Security

* Latvian Human Rights Committee, Riga Latvia

* "Women for the Future" Ternopil, Ukraine

* Serbian Physicians for Peace in Begrade, Yugoslavia

* LA Catholic Worker

* A World of Difference.Inc from Victoria, Australia

* World Day of Actions for Abolition of Nuclear Weapons, Japan

Campus Resolution
The first Australian campus body to sign the A2000 Resolution is the
University of South Australia Student Association.  The resolution was
signed by the President, on 10 September 1998.

October Events:

October 16-19 War Resisters League Annual Conference Washington DC
October 19  A Day Without the Pentagon   [e-mail]
October 24  United Nations Day

Looking Ahead
Sunday, November 22 2 - 4:30pm
John F. Kennedy Library, Boston, MA

"Abolishing Nuclear Weapons"

Speakers: General Lee Butler (retired) James Carroll, author/columnist
and others to be announced

Cosponsored by the Massachusetts Chapter,
Lawyers Alliance for World Security.


>
>



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Tucson DWOP event / A Day Without Raytheon Missiles
Date: 15 Oct 1998 22:42:06 EDT

 Subj:     Tucson DWOP event / A Day Without Raytheon Missiles
 Date:    10/15/98 6:27:58 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (Jack & Felice Cohen-Joppa)
 To:    [e-mail]
 CC:    [e-mail], [e-mail]

         Tucson peace and justice advocates will join the national Day
 Without the Pentagon demonstrations with a peaceful vigil at the entrance
 to the Raytheon (formerly Hughes) missile production plant.

         Signs and banners declaring A Day Without the Pentagon - Tucson
 Without Raytheon Missiles will greet commuters on Monday afternoon, October
 19, from 3-4:30 p.m. at the intersection of Hughes Access Road and Old
 Nogales Highway.

         "The consolidation of several Raytheon Systems Co. sites this week
 has boosted Tucson's position as missile capital of the world.  Virtually
 every missile in the U.S. arsenal will soon be engineered and produced
 here," read the breathless lead of a recent article topping the Money
 section of the Arizona Daily Star.

         Pat Birnie, a member of the local chapter of the Women's
 International League for Peace and Freedom, observes "We are part of the
 community that considers Tucson a life-affirming place to live.  We welcome
 newcomers who contribute to a peaceful way of life locally and globally.
 We strongly object to the expansion of a business whose products are
 intentionally life-destroying.  The world is already far too heavily armed.
 It is not only a tragic waste of public moneys to build more missiles, but
 it is immoral to create these destructive devices."

         Last week's headlines threatening a reign of Tomahawk missiles on
 Yugoslavia, and the declaration of Tucson as 'missile capital of the
 world,' came in the wake of the (Tucson-made) cruise missile attack on west
 Africa's major pharmaceutical factory in Sudan.  It suggests a world we
 could do better without, so we ask what could Tucson Without Raytheon
 Missiles be?

         Organizations taking part in the demonstration include WILPF,
 Veterans for Peace, the Nuclear Resister, the People's Task Force to Ban
 Depleted Uranium, and others.



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) : Pacifica Covers A Day Without the Pentagon!
Date: 15 Oct 1998 22:42:04 EDT


 Subj:     Pacifica Covers A Day Without the Pentagon!
 Date:    10/15/98 5:23:20 PM Eastern Daylight Time
 From:    [e-mail] (War Resisters League)

 Good news from the folks at Pacifica and Democracy Now!

 I met with Amy Goodman and producer Jeremy Scahill and they have agreed to
 send reporters to make audio and video tapes of the rally and action.  What
 is more, these tapes (with the entire set of 12 AJ Muste Institute
 pamphlets) will be offered as a premium to the national Pacifica network
 during its fundraising drive.  At this time, these premiums are scheduled
 to be offered on Tuesday October 20 or Wednesday October 21.  Listen to
 your local Democracy Now and your local Pacifica station for coverage of "A
 Day Without the Pentagon."

 Chris Ney
 **********
 War Resisters League
 339 Lafayette St.
 New York, NY 10012
 212-228-0450
 212-228-6193 (fax)
 1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
 [e-mail]
 web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

 --

 "Red Youth" is the mailing list of the Young People's Socialist League
 (http://sp-usa.org/ypsl).

 The lefty.techsi.com server is not operated by the owners of the
 techsi.com domain.  Views expressed in this email do not reflect the
 opinions of TSI, its officers, customers, or minions.

 To unsubscribe, e-mail [e-mail]
     Subject: unsubscribe



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) bus update
Date: 16 Oct 1998 00:03:57 EDT

In a message dated 10/15/98 7:58:58 PM Eastern Daylight Time, can@drizzle.=
com
writes:
 From:=[e-mail] (John Reese)
 Sender:=[e-mail]
 To:=[e-mail]

 Seattle to Pentagon Bus Update


 Wednesday, October 14, 1998

 We made it to Chicago early this morning and parked near a park downtown =
at
about 4 AM.
  We got up early to prepare for the demo at the Federal Building.  When w=
e
got there, a
 little early, we started handing out flyers and a federal protective serv=
ice
person came
 out and told us that we had to have a permit to have any type of
demonstration -
 including handing out flyers!  We entered some dialogue with him about th=
e
constitution
 but it turns out that their building rules are above the constitution.  S=
o we
played the
 game and went into the federal building to apply for our permit to speak
freely and in
 the mean time did our leafleting and sign holding on the portion of the
sidewalk that
 was not federal property.  Surprisingly the Chicago police didn=92t come =
to
tell us we
 couldn=92t do it on their sidewalk without a permit.  When the officer br=
ought
down the
 permit he explained that we were denied the right to perform our skit.  S=
o we
did the
 speaking, sign/banner holding and leafleting from the federal property an=
d
the skit from
 the city property.  Fortunately we didn=92t have to hire a surveyor to
determine where the
 exact property line was.

 Thanks to the Eighth Day Center for Justice it was a good crowd and we ha=
nded
out lots
 of flyers.  It was great to have it downtown in an area with lots of peop=
le
around.  The
 bus got lots of attention as it circled around town with Rick, one of the
drivers,
 blasting out messages about pentagon greed and the need to fund human nee=
ds.
The kit
 went great and we hurriedly packed up so we could get to South Bend.

 At South Bend we parked directly in front of the recruiting centers - arm=
y,
navy,
 airforce and marines - they were all there at least until we got there!  =
As
soon as we
 pulled up the army recruiting center shut their blinds and locked the doo=
rs.
The navy
 and airforce soon did the same.  What are they afraid of?  The marines
decided to risk
 our presence and tough it out.  They seemed to enjoy our skit and were
laughing along
 with us from the comfort of their office.

 We didn=92t get any coverage in Chicago, but there was a story in today=
=92s South
Bend
 Tribune about the coming protest and they showed up to take photos of the
event.  There
 was also a local TV station (FOX channel 4) that interviewed us and got l=
ots
of footage.
  Lets hope that some of it gets shown.  At one point the TV reporter tota=
lly
lost it and
 the cameraman took over asking questions.  That=92s the second time that=
=92s
happened.
 Guess it=92s hard to have a comeback to the truth.  (Speak Truth to Power=
!)

 Thanks to Michiana War Resisters League for having us for dinner and help=
ing
with the
 turnout and the press.  It was great also too meet Ruth=92s mother.  The
cookies tasted
 great.


 Thursday, October 15, 1998

 Kent our last stop before Annapolis went good.  There was a crowd of abou=
t 50
students
 that came to listen to us talk about the pentagon and October 19th, as we=
ll
as a lot of
 extra good antimilitarism stuff.  There were marine recruiters on campus =
so I
had to do
 a brief soapbox about getting recruiters off campus.  The May 4th Task Fo=
rce
also spoke
 briefly.  They are trying to get some parking spaces closed off where som=
e of
the
 activities occurred on May 4th, 1970 when 4 students were killed and nine
wounded by the
 National Guard.  We went by the memorial after the rally.  It certainly
brought memories
 back for me.

 We had one reporter from the Akron Beacon Journal, one from the campus TV
station and
 one from the campus daily newspaper.  Today=92s Beacon Journal also had a=
 small
story with
 an announcement of the rally.  Thanks to Sue Jeffers and the May 4th Task
Force for
 helping to put this on.


 This will be the last email from the road.  I will send one more email ou=
t
after Oct
 19th.  Thanks to everyone that made this trip happen.  It has been amazin=
g
the positive
 response that the bus has gotten as we took our message to the interstate=
,
truck stops,
 and the cities.  As we drove down the interstate and through the cities a=
nd
towns we got
 lots of thumbs up and only a couple of negative responses..  Not that thi=
s is
any
 scientific poll, but it seems to me that most of the people we came in
contact with as
 we crossed the U.S. would be happy if the Day Without The Pentagon dragge=
d on
for the
 next hundred years or so..

 Check out the bus web page: http://applespider.com/dwop/  -  sorry no
pictures of the
 bus.  Will try to see what I can do when I get to DC.


 For Peace and Justice and to SHUT THE PENTAGON DOWN!

 John Reese





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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 16 Oct 1998 01:04:41 EDT

what a great idea, just plant sunflowers all over the place, vacant lots, open
fields, front yards etc. try to make it an "in" thing to do, this is a
wonderful and joyous plant. where can we get directions and seeds. directions:
like when to plant, what kind of soil is best etc. and where do we get easy to
grow seeds. what a great idea, please tell me how to get started and when is
best, jonathan granoff

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From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Grassroots News from Abolition 2000
Date: 16 Oct 1998 08:56:03 -0400

Please list me as email contact for Peace Action Maine. Thanks, Rosalie
Paul, Chair.



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From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 16 Oct 1998 08:58:17 -0400

Jonathan - Peace Action Maine is selling packets of sunflower seeds and
would be glad to supply you. Rosalie Paul, Chair



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From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Re: NPT/Hague Appeal strategy ideas (fwd)
Date: 16 Oct 1998 11:20:37 -0400

Dear Friends,
I thought our New York Abolition 2000 Committee should give some thought to the
message below.  The NPT PrepCom will be held in New York during the latter part
of April.  Perhaps we should be thinking about displays at the UN during the
PrepCom and gathering material.  Let's brainstorm about this at our next
meeting on Tuesday, November 17th, from 11:30 to 2:00 at GRACE (15 E. 26 St,
10th floor).  Minutes of our last meeting to follow.  Regards, Alice


>Date: Thu, 15 Oct 1998 11:32:20 -0600
>From: Delongs <[e-mail]>
>Reply-To: [e-mail]
>To: [e-mail], [e-mail]
>Subject: Re: NPT/Hague Appeal strategy ideas
>
>Dear Friends,
>I have had this on my computer for some time now wishing to respond
>carefully.  I have had the pleasure of working within the Landmines
>Campaign and have noted the care with which the International Campaign
>to Ban Landmines  manages press opportunities and their strategy
>generally.
>
>The ICBL  did several things very well:
>1.  they created their own group of media stars - survivors, deminers,
>former military - and provide the media with a list of these people and
>a very interesting description of each person and what type of personal
>testimony that person can give.  They create not just one but a variety
>of interesting  stories for the media by making available people to
>them.  The list includes the contact information for that person
>(whatever hotel they are in during their stay) and information on their
>language capability.  I wonder if A2000 might be able to considerably
>increase its appeal to the media by following a similar strategy?
>
>Who would you have available in NY or Geneva to speak on the legal,
>economic, health, physical effects, social effects of nuclear weapons
>reliance?  Build a person-based and value-based story upon which the
>media can work.
>
>2.  They created their own experts  who responded to the anticipated
>stumbling-blocks.  (Our would be dealing with questions such as "what
>about terrorists"?)   Rae McGrath from the Mines Advisory Group almost
>single-handedly took on the world media and US/UK militaries on the
>utility of "smart" mines.  He was able to disprove their "intelligence"
>and convince both the media and the diplomats at the treaty drafting
>conference that they would not be an acceptable alternative.
>
>3.  Rae  also taught the whole landmines campaign how to respond to the
>stumbling blocks.    Put serious thought to the A2000 educational
>campaign - all your campaigners need to be briefed.  You may wish to
>distribute to them the new and excellent MPI briefing book.   The
>campaigners around the world need to be able to respond to a call for
>faxes to diplomats during key negotiating meetings.
>
>3.  You need to find out in advance who is going to be attending the
>meeting on behalf of the key international news sources, where they are
>staying, and provide them with an interesting media kit.  Try to
>organize a meeting with someone from A2000 who is well respected
>internationally to engage the media person in a conversation about the
>importance of the issue.  It will be the one-on-one contacts that will
>build a network of interested media.  DON'T WHINE about lack of coverage
>- just remain positive and sincere about the need for coverage of such a
>critical issue.
>
>4.  The media kit should have easily read backgrounders along with the
>list of media commentators.  The same old factual info on landmines was
>pumped out over and over - but it was picked up by the media because the
>backgrounders  included stories of how the mines affected individuals or
>communities.
>
>Are you already doing this type of thing?
>
>This suggestion also reflects the advice we received from a group of
>national-level media people who attended the last meeting of the
>Canadian Network to Abolish Nuclear Weapons.
>
>5.  It is extremely important in an age of TV and glossy print that we
>develop visuals/graphics to easily persuade people about the merits of
>the cause.  Just a few ideas to inspire you:
>
>**  How many children on crutches did you see during the landmines
>campaign?  That campaign had at least 4 professional photographers
>working with them.  At each conference, they put up photo displays in
>areas where the diplomats passed by.
>
>** The ICBL organized children's art contests (creating posters) and
>asked diplomats and others to judge them.  The best 100 were displayed
>in the hallway through which the diplomats passed for meetings.
>
>**  There were posters and T-shirts created in almost every country to
>advertise the campaign.  (It proved an amazing exhibit during the Treaty
>Signing Conference!)
>
>** They organized the huge pile of single shoes or boots from all over
>Europe to symbolize the unneeded extra shoe or boot. (Shoe piles are
>still being organized in 12 French cities to stress the need for French
>legislation.)
>
>**  The ICBL had children parade through the conference hall in Vienna
>with a single shoe or boot.  These were very smart Gandhian tools -
>something everyone, however poor, could likely participate in to show
>their support for the campaign.
>
>**They also at the start of the People's Treaty Signing event poured
>26,000 pieces of metal shot into a metal garbage can to remind us of the
>number of victims yearly.
>
>** A 3 legged chair of about 8 feet in height was positioned outside the
>UN to be removed only on the Treaty (being signed? or Entry into Force?)
>
>3.  Strategically, they moved the discussion from one of military
>strategy to one of humanitarian issues.  The ICBL was greated assisted
>in this by the hosting by the International Committee of the Red Cross
>of a meeting to consider the military utility of landmines.  I would
>suggest you consider working closely with the Red Cross and take a
>similar tack.  The Red Cross produced extremely professional educational
>booklets with critical information that was widely quoted.  They were
>considered probably the most reliable source of information.  We need
>them on board.  The ICRC also is very skilled in humanitarian law
>diplomacy and their skills would be useful here as well.
>
>These are my personal views only.  I give my group affiliations only for
>identification purposes.
>
>I wish you all great creativity, energy and persistence in the journey
>ahead.
>
>Bev Delong
>Co-Chairperson, Canadian Netowrk to Abolish Nuclear Weapons
>National President, Lawyers for Social Responsibility
>

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 16 Oct 1998 18:49:32 -0400

Sue - you can find our sunflower cards on our website:
www.peaceactionme.org/samplecard.html
Let me know if you need "hard copy". Thanks, Rosalie, Peace Action Maine



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 17 Oct 1998 21:10:10 EDT

how much, who, how do I get them, thank you, Jonathan Granoff

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From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 17 Oct 1998 21:09:50 EDT



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Joan Russow)
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Buses for the Pentagon: seat for absentee supporters
Date: 18 Oct 1998 10:31:43 -0600

Chris

A suggestion: What about having a seat on the bus reserved for all your
supporters who cannot attend.

The Greem Party of Canada
and the Global Compliance Research Project
would like to be sitting on that seat on the bus.

Joan Russow
National leader of the Green Party of Canada
Co-ordinator of the Global Compliance Research Project



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Suzanne Pearce <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re:  (abolition-usa) Re: NPT/Hague Appeal strategy ideas (fwd)
Date: 18 Oct 1998 11:33:05 -0700 (PDT)

Dear Bev,

    Thank you for the great supply of creative thinking.  As we in
the MPI project work to create something as great as the landmines
campaign, every idea counts.  And thanks for the plug for the Fast
Track to Zero Nuclear Weapons!  We should talk more about distribution
ideas.   Best wishes,  Suzy Pearce


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From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 19 Oct 1998 09:12:11 -0400

Jonathan - If you'll send your postal address, I'll send you a few packets
at $1.00 each for your approval. Then I can send more if you want them.
They are organically grown seeds that could be planted anytime in warm
climes or in the spring in New England-like regions. Let me know. Rosalie
Paul, Peace Action Maine.



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 19 Oct 1998 09:12:11 -0400

Jonathan - If you'll send your postal address, I'll send you a few packets
at $1.00 each for your approval. Then I can send more if you want them.
They are organically grown seeds that could be planted anytime in warm
climes or in the spring in New England-like regions. Let me know. Rosalie
Paul, Peace Action Maine.



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Rosalie Tyler Paul <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Photos of sunflowers
Date: 20 Oct 1998 12:24:19 -0400

For Peace Action Maine's packets of sunflower seeds (to benefit our
Abolition 2000 work) please contact [e-mail]. Each packet of 10 organic
seeds costs $1.00. We will be glad to mail them around while supplies last.
They can be planted anytime in temperate climates and in the spring in New
England-like areas. Thank you.



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From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) DWOP
Date: 20 Oct 1998 19:54:03 EDT


  Dear folks.

  A grand action Monday morning.

  Below is some coverage of it. I've drafted a letter to the Washington Post
  and I'll send along a copy when its sent out.

  John Miller


  Demonstrators Unable to Close Pentagon
  Police Outnumber Protesters and Make 36 Arrests in Subdued Anti-War Event
  By Eric L. Wee and Josh White
  Washington Post Staff Writers
  Tuesday, October 20, 1998; Page B03

  Virginia state troopers were posted at every ramp near the Pentagon and
  police surrounded the building in preparation for an anti-war demonstration
  yesterday morning, but only a few dozen people showed up to "shut down" the
  place.

  Police arrested 21 protesters who plopped down on the floor in front of
  escalators leading from the Metro station into the Pentagon at 7 a.m. and
  began chanting, "The Pentagon is closed today!"

  It was billed as "A Day Without the Pentagon," a rally to protest what the
  activists say is excessive U.S. military spending. Later in the morning,
  about 300 demonstrators marched from Arlington National Cemetery to the
  Pentagon for a four-hour rally sponsored by the War Resisters League.

  Although organizers anticipated as many as 5,000 to 10,000 people, law
  enforcement officers far outnumbered demonstrators. Fifteen people were
  arrested for trying to cross police lines.

  During the morning action at the Metro stop, transit police arrested
  protesters for impeding the free flow of traffic, as commuters hurriedly
  stepped around them or looked on with disdain.

  "It's almost delusional," said David Holmes, 47, an accountant on his way
  to work in Alexandria, nodding toward a handcuffed protester. "That guy's
  sitting over there saying the Pentagon is closed, and obviously it's not."

  Several hundred law enforcement officers had converged on the area before
  dawn to ensure that protesters would not disrupt rush hour or block
  building entrances, said Virginia State Police spokeswoman Lucy Caldwell.

  At a news conference on Capitol Hill, one of the organizers, longtime
  activist Dave Dellinger, said the time for large public rallies had passed.
  "We have to commit civil disobedience . . . so the government will know and
  other people will know how evil the government is today," he said.

  Asked why the threatened rush-hour disruption did not materialize,
  Christopher Ney, the league's disarmament coordinator, said: "We're not
  interested in protesting commuters. We were interested in protesting the
  Pentagon."

  On the manicured lawn of the riverside entrance to the Pentagon, sporadic
  rain dampened the protesters. But for those who remained, the atmosphere
  was much like a concert, with music, dancing and some remnants of the
  1960s -- peace symbols, tie-dyed clothing. "The '60s is the '90s upside
  down," a guitarist sang to the crowd.

  Andrew Kennis, a student from New York City, was disappointed with
  the turnout but said organizers didn't have enough money to get the word
  out.

  "They wanted to encircle the building, but obviously we can't," Kennis said.
  "It's not because of lack of support; it's just a lack of resources."

  Kennis, like everyone at the event, arrived with specific grievances. He had
  plenty to say about East Timor. Cynthia Banas, a retired librarian from
  Vernon, N.Y., was there to protest about Haiti.

  At 2 p.m., the crowd became more aggressive and marched toward police
  officers lined up in front of the Pentagon, chanting, "How many people
  have you killed today?" Several protesters climbed up a small embankment
  and rushed the police line.

  Clearly not interested in arresting anyone, officers tackled those who broke
  through the line and carried them back.

  "Okay, let's go again," said Eric Weinberger, 66, of Boston. "I'm going to
  shut down the Pentagon. I'm going to bring peace to the world."

  Louise Franklin Ramirez, 93, of Manassas, tried to get arrested, but police
  would not accommodate her. Ramirez, a regular at Pentagon protests, said
  she just wanted to shake up the Defense Department.

  A Pentagon spokesman said that in the end, 15 protesters who continued
  to rush the police line were arrested by the Defense Protective Service,
  which guards the building.

  Daniel Ellsberg also tried to cross the police line, but the former
  government analyst who leaked the Vietnam-era Pentagon Papers was
  clearly frustrated by the police tactics.

  Said Ellsberg: "What does it take to get arrested around here?"

  Staff writers Patricia Davis and Sylvia Moreno contributed to this report.

  Anti-military protesters arrested at Pentagon
  06:11 p.m Oct 19, 1998 Eastern

  WASHINGTON, Oct 19 (Reuters) - Thirty-six demonstrators against U.S.
  military spending and America's military presence around the world were
  arrested at the Pentagon on Monday on misdemeanor charges of blocking
  entrances and trespassing.

  Metro transit police arrested 21 protesters when they blocked entrances at
  the Pentagon subway station during a day-long annual protest organised by
  the War Resisters League, a coalition of anti-military, human rights and
  environmental groups.

  Pentagon officials said another 15 were arrested by Defence Department
  police on trespassing and other charges at the River Entrance to defence
  headquarters.

          The subway station demonstrators were later released from Arlington
  County Jail and Pentagon officials said those arrested for refusing to
  disperse at the River Entrance would also be released after being processed.

  Several hundred demonstrators gathered on the Pentagon's grassy parade
  ground outside the River Entrance at mid-day for speeches and music. Among
  those addressing the crowd were peace activists Dick Gregory and Daniel
  Ellsberg.

  Ellsberg leaked thousands of secret documents known as ``The Pentagon
  Papers'' to the New York Times three decades ago. The documents,
  commissioned by then-Defence Secretary Robert McNamara, detailed the
  history of the U.S. role in Indochina from the Second World War until
  mid-1968.

  Ellsberg told the demonstrators that U.S. military spending of $250 billion
  a year was ``an obscenity.''

  Monday October 19 5:08 PM EDT
  Peace Activists Rally Near Pentagon

  WASHINGTON (AP) _ Several hundred peace activists, including comedian Dick
  Gregory, rallied near the Pentagon Monday
  to protest military policies and spending.

  Thirty-six were arrested without incident during the daylong event.
  Twenty-on were taken into custody early in the day at the Pentagon Metro
  station, allegedly for trying to block Defense Department workers from
  entering the building. The remaining 15 were arrested on charges they tried
  to block the Pentagon's entrance near the Potomac River, Pentagon
  spokeswoman Susan Hansen said.

  ``If the Pentagon had to plan what we did today, it would cost billions of
  dollars,'' Gregory told the rally, sponsored by the War Resisters League.

  Gregory said the Pentagon was ``drunk with power'' but that its missiles
  had no power. ``The missiles of love that we have ... they will win out.''

  A series of speakers addressed the group gathered in the rain on the
  Pentagon's parade field, normally used for formal welcoming ceremonies for
  visiting dignitaries.

  ``We say no to war, we say no to the war machine,'' one large poster read.
  ``Healthcare not warfare,'' said another.
  END

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From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Day Without the Pentagon / Analysis
Date: 21 Oct 1998 01:18:26 EDT

When I got into Washington DC late on Sunday afternoon, after the end of the
War Resisters League's 75th Anniversary Conference (which had been held near
but not in DC), there was a "Peace Fair" going on at the Wilson Center in the
heart of DC's Black community.  (That is in itself an inaccurate statement --
so much of the District is black that once you get out of the carefully
trimmed white areas you are in "the black district".)  One is struck by the
reality of Black Washington.  The poverty, the ruined stores, unpainted homes.
The Wilson Center itself, which was kind enough to host us, is in many ways a
shambles, badly in need of funds for a complete overhaul.

In the yard behind the Center there was a vigorous program of music by Black
entertainers.  While I was standing there -- the crowd wasn't massive, perhaps
a couple of hundred largely young people milling about - Dick Gregory came in,
and went up on the open air stage to give a pitch.  I ran into our Japanese
guests - Sachiko Mitsunaga (from Osaka) and a co-worker -- who had come all
the way from Japan to take part in the action.

There was a training program that evening for those planning to take risk
arrest the next day.  This was a little chaotic -- the Center had poor
acoustics and when you have over 200 folks, inevitably a few of them on their
own wave lengths, so to speak, maintaining order is hard.  But Joanne Sheehan,
new Chair of War Resisters International, did a fine job.

The first problem was the concept of the Affinity Group, which I don't want to
go into here at any length (it is basically the idea that instead of the whole
group following a single plan, which the police can easily block, a number of
smaller groups will make their own plans and act independently), but which
really works best when done with folks who have done it this way already.  The
"339 Affinity Group" (named after 339 Lafayette Street, headquarters of War
Resisters League) was made up of veterans - Grace Paley, Ed Hedemann, Riley
Bostrom, Jerry Coffin, etc. etc.  I had originally meant to be in this group
but was scheduled to take part in a press conference at 10 a.m. and to be a
speaker at the rally and because of that conflict I didn't join that group.
The arrest went off perfectly.  The group -- over twenty folks -- blocked a
subway entrance to the Pentagon, were all arrested about 5 a.m. and released
in time to make the rally.  (So I could have, as they say, "had my arrest and
spoken too").

However the other groups had in them people less experienced, and by the time
Monday came, found themselves badly outnumbered by police.

Because of the press conference I could not be on the March - Dave Dellinger,
myself, Matt Meyer, etc., took a cab directly to the Pentagon, walked up the
steps to the area right smack in front of the building - a relatively large
grassy area which some of the Japanese might remember because that is where,
in 1976, the Continental Walk for Disarmament and Social Justice held its
largely legal rally with only a few arrests (I just now realized that I was
arrested at that time, so when I told someone I had failed ever to be arrested
at the Pentagon that wasn't accurate).

We could see two things.  One, looked down we could see hundreds of
demonstrators with their banners moving toward the Pentagon.  Two, looking at
the Pentagon itself we could see row after row of cops.  Not hundreds, just
dozens, but others were, I assume, in waiting.  The morning traffic reports
had said that traffic might be delayed "because of protests at the Pentagon to
protest military spending" (so our political position made the traffic
reports!)

The day, which had promised to be warm and sunny, turned damp, with occasional
rain.  There were never more than about 500 folks there (I am guessing, I did
not do a crowd count).  I had thought, before the action, that if we got
between 500 and 1000 on a Monday we would be doing well - I think we did OK.

The bad thing was that we didn't have "masses."  The good thing was that we
had a solid group of young people, most of whom had never taken part in a
demonstration before.  And the program and the crowd were both a good
racial/cultural mix.

The organizers -- great credit goes to Chris Ney and Linda Thurston, working
from WRL staff, as well as to the Washington area folks who worked on this,
John Judge and others -- had secured a police permit for a legal rally to be
held directly on the small park right in front of the main entrance to the
Pentagon.  The loudspeakers were set up so that when the speeches began, the
speakers were addressing the Pentagon, and the police on the steps.

Odetta, Jaleo, David Dellinger, Mandy Carter, myself, Daniel Ellsberg, Hala
Maksoud, Pam Africa, Allan Nairn, Dick Gregory, Luis Nieves-Falcon, Barbara
Smith, Clare Hanrahan, John Kim, Sachiko Mitsuanga, Greg Payton, and Sonya
Ostrom were the speakers.  Odetta was absolutely terrific.  There were, I
think, some substitutions and additions - I am working from an old list.

About 2 p.m., and before the rally was over, the first move toward the
Pentagon began.  The police formed an absolutely solid line.  Daniel Ellsberg
tried to mount the steps on one side, and I was trying to mount them on the
other (both of us were part of larger groups, which at first had simply locked
arms to keep the police from removing us -- we tried to break through only
when it became clear we would not be arrested).  A few did manage to climb
over the wall itself, and if not thrown back by the police, to be arrested.

The scene looked like this:

                          Main Entrance to Pentagon
STEPS WALL////////////////////////////////////////////////////WALL  STEPS
                                      park area
                                 speakers platform

Since the wall was about four feet high, it was not easy to get over it.  And
on each side of the steps -- without trying to diagram it! -- were walls or
obstacles that left no room for maneuver.

When it became clear that most of us were not going to be arrested, the direct
action melted away.  I don't think more than a total of 50 people altogether
were arrested.

The rally came to an end by about 3 p.m. and I left the scene at about 5 p.m.

The strong points: The Washington Post had a two column story on this the day
before the rally.  C-SPAN covered the whole thing from beginning to end, and
then re-ran it later that day.  Pacifica Radio covered the whole thing and is
offering tapes of it as a premium. (I AM TOLD THAT TODAY A WHOLE HOUR OF
SPEAKERS IS BEING BROADCAST ON THE INTERNET WITH "REAL AUDIO" AT:
http://www.webactive.com/webactive/pacifica/demnow.html)

 So at that level it was a real public relations breakthrough.  (Linda
Thurston - and the Washington fellow - I could absolutely kick myself because
I don't have his name -- did a tremendous job on press.)  A new generation of
youth saw its first significant demonstration.  Folks came from a considerable
distance -- a bus came all the way from Seattle, 3,000 miles to the West.  My
old college friend, Maggie Phair, came with a couple of other Socialist Party
folks, from Los Angeles.  There were Quakers, Catholics, etc., from Boston to
Chicago to the South.  A real network of grass roots folks - Bruce Gagnan of
Florida was there.  Liz McAllister was there - I was amused watching her light
up a cigarette -- she is in every way but one so much tougher and stronger
than me, but my one advantage is that I was able to stop smoking.

We have now put the issue of military spending itself on the agenda, as
opposed to this budget item or that item.  Or simply limits on nuclear
weapons.  We have put the whole thing on the table.  Allan Nairn gave a
powerful presentation of the corporate link to the military, and in my own
remarks I pointed out that three socialist groups were among the endorsers --
the Socialist Party, Committees of Correspondence, and Solidarity, and
stressed the role of the corporations in directing our foreign policy.

The weaknesses.  Some would say this should be done "in house" but I think the
movement is strong enough we can put it forward here.  War Resisters League
did, indeed, conceive of the idea of the Day Without the Pentagon, starting
with last year's October 24th actions and continuing with this year's October
19th action at the Pentagon (there were supporting local actions elsewhere
which can be reported later).

However WRL did know that it cannot overturn the Pentagon or stop the military
spending and was torn between trying to build a true coalition and, because we
have not had a genuine action coalition for so long, finding it easier, given
the small staff (and to some extent a staff lacking in experience), to move
ahead on its own.  I think most of you with experience know that it is hard
enough to get agreement on a leaflet, a statement, a list of speakers, etc.,
even if you are dealing only with your own executive committee.  A true
coalition is a whole different ball game (and it is the next step, clearly).

The list of speakers reflects this - Mandy Carter, while she has her own solid
reputation as a Black and Gay/Lesbian organizer, came from (and is part of)
WRL.  I am on staff at WRL.  Greg Payton, while truly representing Black
Vietnam Vets (have you seen "Another Brother?"), is on the WRL National
Committee.  So that gives WRL three speakers out of the sixteen or so.
Missing was a representative of the trade union movement.  Missing was anyone
from the religious community.  I would say there were other omissions that a
stronger coalition might have rectified.

I am convinced WRL really wants to have this project "taken away," that it
wants to be part of a broad, serious challenge to the legitimacy of the
Pentagon.  And to do that it does have to accept the fact that while the point
of the tax resisters need to be heard, most of those in a broad movement will
not be tax resisters.  Clearly the demonstration on October 19th is a "feather
in the hat" of WRL.  Chris Ney, WRL's disarmament coordinator, is a new figure
on the disarmament scene, as is Linda Thurston (alas, she is moving on to take
another job next week)!  One of the real strengths of the October 19th action
was involvement of "other than the usual" peace folks -- reaching out in a
serious way to the Asian, Latino and African American communities.  (And this
was true not only on the 19th itself, but in the Peace Fair on the afternoon
of the 18th, held in a Black area with multi-cultural entertainers.)

The campaign for a "Day without the Pentagon" is not going away.  It generated
excitement across the country, as I know from the flood of email.  It needs to
work with, be part of, the Abolition 2000 campaign -- and of a broader,
inclusive thrust that will bring in trade unions.  I've been frank in my own
assessment of the event -- both its strength and its weakness -- and am
perhaps sticking my neck out in writing this without prior consultation with
my co-workers.  (The fact that I'm retiring from active staff of WRL at the
end of this year may give me a little leeway.)  I don't want to pull punches.
Yes, it would have been wonderful if there had been two thousand folks there,
or twenty thousand.  But 500+ on a Monday is not bad.  The links built are
real.  The message put forward included direct challenges to the corporate
structure and to the ideology of capitalism -- though this does not mean
everyone on the speaker's platform shared those challenges, my point is those
challenges were made.  There was a basic challenge to the concept of
militarism itself.  Any genuine coalition that will carry the struggle against
militarism to a successful conclusion will have to include a range of folks
from those openly pacifist, openly socialist, to those who are "openly
liberal."  I think Monday, October 19th was a good beginning.  It needs to be
more than a beginning.  Unless I'm very wrong, there will be an effort by WRL
to make sure that next time around the action, whenever and wherever, is not
seen as WRL but as "Peace Action / FOR / AFSC / Socialist Party / Black Vets /
Vietnam Veterans / Committees of Correspondence / Small Business for a Peace
Time Economy / etc.  AND WRL" action.  It would be good, next time around, to
have a Catholic Bishop on the speakers platform, or a contingent from Jews for
Racial Justice marching arm in arm, banner to banner, with an Arab American
contingent.  War Resisters League has every right to be proud of October 19th.
It needs also to learn from it, to transcend it.  Other groups in Abolition
2000 and in the peace and justice community need to see how much was possible,
and how much more would be possible if each of us took the risk of moving
toward a more direct and determined confrontation with the seat of terrorism
-- the Pentagon.

I can't close without thanking all who helped - both those who were there and
the many who sent their best wishes.

Peace,
David McReynolds




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From: Nevada Desert Experience <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re:  (abolition-usa) Day Without the Pentagon / Analysis
Date: 21 Oct 1998 05:34:32 -0700 (PDT)

Dear David                    October 21, 1998
Just want to let you know how much I appreciated your account of the Oct. 19
action.  Many of the organizing plus and minuses you mention we have
experienced organizing at the Nevada Test Site over the years.  NDE has had
events with 600 (1991); 500 (1995) and 325 (1997) over the last years.  We
are expecting 500-1000 for the Millennium 2000 event December 29, 1999 to
January 2, 2000.  Hope you will be there with us!

Also appreciated your comments about the need to get the religious community
involved.  That is one of our specialties!

    Sincerely        David Buer, ofm
                NDE Interim Director

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Re: advice
Date: 22 Oct 1998 12:24:24 -0700 (PDT)

>Date: Thu, 22 Oct 1998 08:11:44 -0500 (CDT)
>X-Sender: [e-mail]
>Mime-Version: 1.0
>To: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
>From: Donna &/or Tom Howard-Hastings <[e-mail]>
>Subject: Re: advice
>
>Dear Sunflower friends,
>In a week, I will be part of an academic conference panel and I will be the
>only member putting forth the abolition 2000 position. This is a featured
>panel for students from 25-30 participating Wisconsin colleges and
>universities and one of the other members of the panel will be the Consul
>General from India, J.C. Sharma. How would abolition 2000 address his
>probable position, which, I am assuming, will be similar to the recent
>article in Foreign Affairs justifying India's May tests as a way to
>challenge what they are calling "nuclear apartheid"?
>        Any talking points you can share are much appreciated.
>Tom Howard-Hastings, adjunct, Peace Studies, Northland College, Ashland WI
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>Laurentian Shield Resources for Nonviolence
>Donna & Tom Howard-Hastings
>12833E Hwy 13, Maple WI 54854
>715/364-8533
>[e-mail]
>call or write for our little catalog of books and
>resources that promote nonviolence
>Most recent: "Maternal Convictions,"
>by Michele Naar-Obed, $6 including postage
>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>

Sincerely,

Sue Broidy
Coordinator, Abolition 2000
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
1187 Coast Village Road
Santa Barbara CA 93108

Phone [phone]  FAX[phone]

Email: [e-mail]
Website http://www.waginpeace.org/abolition2000

To join the abolition-usa listerve, send a message (no subject) to
[e-mail]

To join the international abolition-caucus, send a message (no subject) to
[e-mail]



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail] (Robert Smirnow)
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Fwd: Re: advice
Date: 22 Oct 1998 15:29:48 -0500 (CDT)



      Dear Sue,
               The Indian General Consul is right, nuclear apartheid is
being practiced, although his intentions are not good ones-mostly it's
an excuse for the Indian government/people to do whatever they want.
The USA nor any other of the 7 nuclear powers [including Pakistan &
Israel] have the right to preach if they are not practicing. I would
concentrate on telling your audience that it is incumbent on them more
than anyone else to PRESSURE& PRESSURE & PRESSURE their Senators,
Congresspeople, etc to live up to the NPT  and abolish, hopefully in a
co-ordinated effort with other nuclear powers, declared or not,their
nuclear WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION. This can most effectively be
accomplished in a face to face or series of face to face meetings with
such Reps/Senators.THEIR REPS SHOULD BE TOLD THAT AN INTERNATIONAL
INSPECTION BODY SHOULD BE GIVEN THE POWER & MANDATE TO OPEN ALL NUKE
WEAPONS SITES TO THE WORLD IN THE USA, RUSSIA, FRANCE, UK, CHINA,
ISRAEL,PAKISTAN, & INDIA.JUST LIKE IN IRAQ.


    Peace/No-Nukes,
                   Bill Smirnow
>
>>Date: Thu, 22 Oct 1998 08:11:44 -0500 (CDT)
>>X-Sender: [e-mail]
>>Mime-Version: 1.0
>>To: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
>>From: Donna &/or Tom Howard-Hastings <[e-mail]>
>>Subject: Re: advice
>>
>>Dear Sunflower friends,
>>In a week, I will be part of an academic conference panel and I will
be the
>>only member putting forth the abolition 2000 position. This is a
featured
>>panel for students from 25-30 participating Wisconsin colleges and
>>universities and one of the other members of the panel will be the
Consul
>>General from India, J.C. Sharma. How would abolition 2000 address his
>>probable position, which, I am assuming, will be similar to the
recent
>>article in Foreign Affairs justifying India's May tests as a way to
>>challenge what they are calling "nuclear apartheid"?
>>        Any talking points you can share are much appreciated.
>>Tom Howard-Hastings, adjunct, Peace Studies, Northland College,
Ashland WI
>>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>Laurentian Shield Resources for Nonviolence
>>Donna & Tom Howard-Hastings
>>12833E Hwy 13, Maple WI 54854
>>715/364-8533
>>[e-mail]
>>call or write for our little catalog of books and
>>resources that promote nonviolence
>>Most recent: "Maternal Convictions,"
>>by Michele Naar-Obed, $6 including postage
>>~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
>>
>
>Sincerely,
>
>Sue Broidy
>Coordinator, Abolition 2000
>Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
>1187 Coast Village Road
>Santa Barbara CA 93108
>
>Phone [phone]  FAX[phone]
>
>Email: [e-mail]
>Website http://www.waginpeace.org/abolition2000
>
>To join the abolition-usa listerve, send a message (no subject) to
>[e-mail]
>
>To join the international abolition-caucus, send a message (no
subject) to
>[e-mail]
>
>
>
>-
> To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to
"[e-mail]"
> with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
> For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
> "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.
>


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Day Without the Pentagon--analysis
Date: 23 Oct 1998 09:54:42 -0400

Dear friends,

I'm writing in response to David McReynolds' analysis of Day Without the
Pentagon action on Monday October 19.  His immediate and thoughtful
analysis helped share the story with the larger disarmament movement and I
agree with the broad outlines of what he said.  As he noted, he wrote the
piece before checking with others so there are a few factual errors in his
analysis.  After discussing these errors with him, I'm sending this
correction:

1)    Turn-out for the rally was higher than David reported.  At 12:30, our
colleague Malkia M'Buzi Moore did a head count which totalled 750 people,
making the October 19 action the largest Pentagon action in a decade.

2)    Mackie McLeod is the Washington-based media consultant hired for this
event.  His hard work and media instincts helped us get the coverage we
received, including four hour live national broadcast on C-SPAN.

3)    The Sunday night event "Peace Without the Pentagon" and disarmament fair
was held at the Wilson Center or the Latin American Community Center in a
neighborhood which is predominantly Latino not African American.

Finally, a complete list of speakers will be sent in a subsequent post and
report.  All of us who worked on the action are tired (many of us came down
with colds on Tuesday) but satisfied that there is a political desire and
the organizational capacity to focus our demands for disarmament on the
heart of global militarism, even the Pentagon itself.

Peace,

Chris Ney
**********
War Resisters League
339 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10012
212-228-0450
212-228-6193 (fax)
1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
[e-mail]
web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Janet Bloomfield <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Abolition 2000 Report Card 1998
Date: 24 Oct 1998 17:50:06 +0100 (BST)

ABOLITION 2000 PROGRESS REPORT CARD
UNITED NATIONS DAY: OCTOBER 24, 1998.

For the last two years, we have issued an Abolition 2000 report card in
October, assessing progress toward a nuclear weapons free world. For the
third year, we pause again to take stock of the state of the Nuclear
World, and of efforts to abolish nuclear weapons. Looking at this year's
events in the context of the Abolition 2000 Statement offers a simple way
to make such an evaluation. This Report Card offers a brief assessment of
progress in the past year in the implementation of the 11 points of the
Abolition Statement. We offer it on United Nations Day, October 24, to
recall the initial promise of the UN Charter: "to save succeeding
generations from the scourge of war," keeping in mind our future
descendants, knowing that the elimination of nuclear weapons will go far
in fulfilling our promise to them.

1) Immediately initiate and conclude by the year 2000 negotiations on a
nuclear weapons abolition convention that requires the phased elimination
of all nuclear weapons within a timebound framework, with provisions for
effective verification and enforcement.

Report: In November 1997, Costa Rica submitted to the United Nations a
draft Nuclear Weapons Convention (treaty) to abolish nuclear weapons,
which was originally crafted by an Abolition 2000 working group of
lawyers, scientists and activists. In February of this year, over 100
former or current heads of state, and civilian leaders from around the
world, released a statement calling for de-alerting nuclear weapons and
other measures aimed at nuclear abolition. In Dublin, on June 9, eight
nations (Brazil, Egypt, Ireland, Mexico, New Zealand, Slovenia, South
Africa and Sweden), calling themselves the "New Agenda Coalition,"
launched a joint declaration on nuclear disarmament. The eighteen points
of the declaration "A Nuclear Weapons-Free World: The Need For A New
Agenda," outline the need for action for the abolition of nuclear weapons,
and concludes with the statement; "We, on our part, will spare no efforts
to pursue the objectives outlined above. We are jointly resolved to
achieve the goal of a world free from nuclear weapons. We firmly hold that
the determined and rapid preparation for the post-nuclear era must start
now." The Coalition will be presenting a resolution based on these ideas
at the 1998 General Assembly of the United Nations.

Despite the welcome establishment of the UN Department for Disarmament
Affairs last year, meaningful progress toward nuclear disarmament, let
alone abolition, has virtually come to a halt. Noting this impasse, UN
Secretary General, Kofi Annan, has asked for reports from all UN member
countries detailing their efforts toward nuclear abolition. These reports
are due by the end of the year.

A growing, world-wide, consensus for abolition has failed to move the
nuclear weapons states any closer to a nuclear weapons free world. With
every blocking tactic used by these states, the rift between people and
governments grows deeper.

Grade: 2 out of 10.

2) Immediately make an unconditional pledge not to use or threaten to use
nuclear weapons.

Report: China remains the only state with a public policy in place of no
first use. NATO, led by the US, continues to hold to a policy of nuclear
first use. Indeed Presidential Decision Directive 61, issued in December
1996, extends US nuclear policy to the use of nuclear weapons against
chemical and biological threats (and thus to third world nations, by
implication). The British Strategic Defence Review considered no-first use
but it was rejected in the final document.

Grade: 2 out of 10.

3) Rapidly complete a truly Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty (CTBT) with a
zero threshold and with the stated purpose of precluding nuclear weapons
development by all states.

Report: India's and Pakistan's nuclear tests, conducted in May, underlined
in dramatic fashion the failure of the current approach to nuclear
proliferation. The response of the "declared" nuclear weapons states was
to criticise and to impose sanctions. Although both countries have
recently indicated they would sign both the CTBT (and the NPT), the US,
Russia and China have yet to ratify the treaty. (So far, 21
countries have ratified the treaty; 44 are necessary before it enters into
force.)

Grade: -2 out of 10.

4) Cease to produce and deploy new and additional nuclear weapons
systems, and commence to withdraw and disable deployed nuclear weapons
systems.

Report: The question of whether India and Pakistan will put nuclear
warheads on missile delivery systems looms large. Israel and India are
both reportedly considering deployment of nuclear submarines. The US
continues with plans to replace the remaining C4 missiles with the D5
model on its fleet of 18 Trident submarines, for a total cost of $23.9
billion. The new government in the UK has made much of its reduction in
warheads but there are question marks over this. In September,
Britain rolled out is fourth Trident submarine, the HMS Vengeance.
However, the UK Trident's alert status has been reduced from minutes to
three days.

The need for urgency in efforts toward abolition grows in light of the
deteriorating situation in Russia. Russia's current economic problems are
compounding the discontent already growing in its nuclear establishment.
There have been staff walk outs in the closed nuclear cities of Arzamas-16
and Chelyabinsk-70 because of the non-payment of salaries. There are
serious question marks over the continued safety of Russia's nuclear
complex and the potential spread of its nuclear expertise around the
world. In October, Communist Deputy Prime Minister, Yuri Maslyukov, said
that Russia could only afford several hundred nuclear warheads at most
and, with Soviet-era weaponry fast becoming obsolete, must press on with
START-II, START-III and other arms limitation treaties with the United
States to preserve the nuclear balance. Why not just move directly to
abolishing them?

Grade: 2 out of 10.

5) Prohibit the military and commercial production and reprocessing of all
weapons-usable radioactive materials.

Report: Talks on a Fissile Material Cut-Off Treaty got off to a faltering
start in Geneva this summer but look like they will take a very long time.
The plutonium economy faces increasing opposition, exemplified by the
massive protests at Gorleben in Germany earlier this year. France's La
Hague facility was temporarily closed when it was revealed that its
transport casks have been in violation of safety standards for years. The
UK must decide this year whether to start up Mixed Oxide Fuel (MOX)
production. Most experts agree that this could be used in a crude nuclear
bomb. Despite a worldwide glut of uranium, the re-election of the Howard
government in Australia has reopened the issue of uranium mining in that
country. As a result, mining leases have been excised out of the world
heritage site of Kakadu National Park at Jabiluka in
Northern Australia, and the site is in grave danger (see also Moorea
Declaration).

On the positive side the new coalition Social Democratic/Green
government in Germany is committed to the end of nuclear power in that
country and will cease sending nuclear material out of the country for
reprocessing.

Grade: 4 out of 10.

6) Subject all weapons-usable radioactive materials and nuclear facilities
in all states to international accounting, monitoring, and safeguards, and
establish a public internationa weapons-usable radioactive materials.

Report: The UK made progress on transparency this year when it
published, for the first time, details of its stocks of plutonium. It
currently has 7.6 tonnes of plutonium and will cease to withdraw fissile
material from safeguarded stocks for nuclear weapons. No other progress.

Grade: 2 out of 10.

7) Prohibit nuclear weapons research, design, development, and testing
through laboratory experiments including but not limited to non-nuclear
hydrodynamic explosions and computer simulations, subject all nuclear
weapons laboratories to international monitoring, and close all nuclear
test sites.

Report: President Clinton responded to the news of Pakistan's nuclear
tests on 28 May 1998 by stating: "I cannot believe that we are about to
start the twenty-first century having the sub-continent repeat the worst
mistakes of the twentieth, when we know it is not necessary to peace, to
security, to prosperity, to national greatness or national fulfilment.."
His statement may have carried more conviction if the US were not
simultaneously conducting sub-critical nuclear tests. The latest,
codenamed Bagpipe, took place at the Nevada Test Site on September 25. Far
from being closed, test sites are still actively being used...

Meanwhile, at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California,
construction continues on the $5 billion National Ignition Facility
(NIF)-- the centerpiece of the US "Stockpile Stewardship" program. A new
report from the Institute of Energy and Environmental Research cites the
NIF (and its evil twin facility, the Laser Megajoule in Bordeaux, France)
as illegal under the CTBT.  (see also no. 3).

Grade: -3 out of 10.

8) Create additional nuclear weapons free zones such as those
established by the treaties of Tlatelolco and Rarotonga.

Report: Very little progess in the area of the creation of nuclear weapon
free zones. Prospects in South Asia have taken a negative course and the
Central European zone concept is stalled because of NATO expansion.

Grade: 0 out of 10.

9) Recognize and declare the illegality of threat or use of nuclear
weapons, publicly and before the World Court.

Report: In Rome this summer, intense negotiations took place on the
International Criminal Court's jurisdiction over the threat and use of
nuclear weapons, but produced no conclusions. Again NATO resisted any
mention of nuclear weapons. But the historic International Court of
Justice (ICJ) opinion of July, 1996 continued to inspire more and more
imaginative non-violent civil obedience actions from citizen's groups
around the world. Taking the ICJ decision directly to the world's nuclear
weapons facilities, "Citizen Inspection Teams" attempted to or succeeded
in inspecting NATO Headquarters in Belgium, Trident homeports in the US
and UK, Livermore and Los Alamos National Laboratories in the US, Dimona
in Israel, and sites in France and Germany. At the UK Trident base in
Scotland this summer, over 100 people were arrested for upholding the law.

Grade: 3 out of 10.

10) Establish an international energy agency to promote and support the
development of sustainable and environmentally safe energy sources.

Report: The Kyoto conference at the end of 1997 did very little to promote
renewable energy. We applaud, however, the fledging legal initiative to
draft a model statue to create an international sustainable energy agency.
The myth of nuclear power as the answer to global warming continues to be
promoted by those with a vested interest in the nuclear industry. The
serious implications of the Y2K computer crisis argues for the world wide
shutdown of all nuclear power stations, and thus highlights the ever more
urgent need for safe energy sources.
The potential for solar, wind and wave energy is growing with the price of
photo-voltaic cells dropping rapidly, and with deregulation of the utility
industry in the US and other northern countries.

Grade: 3 out of 10.

11) Create mechanisms to ensure the participation of citizens and NGOs in
planning and monitoring the process of nuclear weapons abolition.

Report: Despite the fact that the Abolition 2000 network has grown to over
1000 groups in 70 plus countries, NGOs still do not have a seat at the
table. At the NPT Preparatory Committee meetings held in Geneva this
spring, under the guise of the "enhanced review process," the Non-Aligned
Movement applauded the NGO presentations heard during a formal session of
the meeting. However, citizen groups were barred from all but the opening
and closing plenary sessions. So much for openness.
Despite these setbacks, NGOs are forging new efforts to ensure that the
voices of the people are heard. In this respect, we welcome the launch of
the Middle Powers Initiative, which has been acknowledged by the countries
of the New Agenda Coalition, and will be pursuing similar and parallel
goals. The international conference on nuclear disarmament put forward by
the Non-Aligned Movement at their meeting in South Africa offers another
opportunity for future work in this area. (see also no.9)

Grade: 2 out of 10

From the Moorea Declaration: "The anger and tears of colonised peoples
arise from the fact that there was no consultation, no consent,
involvement in the decision when their lands, air and waters were taken
for the nuclear build-up, from the very start of the nuclear
era....Colonised and indigenous peoples have, in the large part, borne the
brunt of this nuclear devastation.... We reaffirm... that indigenous and
colonised peoples must be central... in decisions relating to the nuclear
weapons cycle - and especially in the abolition of nuclear weapons in all
aspects. The inalienable right to self-determination, sovereignty and
independence is crucial in allowing all peoples of the world to join in
the common struggle to rid the planet forever of nuclear weapons."

Report: Although French nuclear testing in the Pacific ended in 1996, the
conflicting conclusions of two recent studies on their effects, released
in the past year, show that the controversy will remain for the
foreseeable future. Hiti Tau, the Maohi network of non-government
organisations based in Tahiti, released one study (in conjunction with the
World Council of Churches and Wageningen University, the Netherlands); the
other was released by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in
Vienna, Austria. The Hiti Tau study documents the testimony of 737 workers
at the French testing facilities since 1966, reveals the shocking
conditions employees were exposed to in their work, and calls for more
extensive epidemiological studies to be conducted. Local church leader in
Tahiti, Ralph Teinaore stressed: "This is only the first step of the work
that awaits us, so that justice can be done for the people of Maohi Nui
and the Pacific". The IAEA study, on the other hand, concludes that
radiation exposure was within established safety limits, and continued
study is not necessary.

The testing of the latest nuclear weapon in the US arsenal, the earth-
penetrating B61-11 (the warhead being replaced with Depleted Uranium), on
indigenous lands in Alaska this fall, took place over the protests of the
local people, as well as 190 citizen groups around the world in solidarity
with them.

In Australia, Energy Resources of Australia is currently attempting to
construct a controversial new uranium mine at Jabiluka, on a mining lease
carved out of the heart of Kakadu National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage
Site. The region's traditional owners, the Mirrar People, are fighting the
Jabiluka approvals process in the Federal Court, and environmental groups
have mounted a strong campaign against the mine. As we go to press with
this report, we await the outcome of high level inspection team from the
World Heritage Committee of UNESCO on October 25 to determine whether it
should be listed as 'World Heritage in Danger.' Both natural and cultural
criteria determined its World Heritage status: 196 sacred art sites dating
back to at least 10,000 BC are being adversely affected by the mining,
which also makes the sites less accessible to the Mirrar People, who
continue to practice their culture there.

Meanwhile, the Western Shoshone continue to assert their sovereignty
despite the US subcritical tests at the Nevada Test Site, and the siting
of a high level nuclear waste dump at Yucca Mountain, both within the
boundaries of their traditional lands. They have appealed to the European
Parliament to acknowledge their sovereignty.

Grade: 1 out of 10

Total grade: 16 out of 120

For comparison, the 1996 report card scored 31/110, the 1997 card, 27/110.
This year's report has plummeted to a record low of 16/120. (The
discrepancy in total points is due to the inclusion this year of the
Moorea Declaration.)

Conclusions: President Nelson Mandela reminded the world in his recent
speech that the very first resolution of the General Assembly, adopted in
January 1946, sought to address the challenge of "the elimination from
national armaments of atomic weapons and all other major weapons adaptable
to mass destruction." He went on to say: "We must face the fact that after
countless initiatives and resolutions, we still do not
have concrete and generally accepted proposals supported by a clear
commitment by the nuclear-weapons States to the speedy, final and total
elimination of nuclear weapons and nuclear weapons capabilities.... We
must ask the question, which might sound naive to those who have
elaborated sophisticated arguments to justify their refusal to eliminate
these terrible and terrifying weapons of mass destruction - why do they
need them anyway! In reality, no rational answer can be advanced to
explain in a satisfactory manner what, in the end, is the consequence of
Cold War inertia and an attachment to the use of the threat of brute
force, to assert the primacy of some States over others."

Mandela put his finger on the heart of the problem. The nuclear weapon
states may be committed on paper to nuclear elimination but in reality
they still find an advantage in possessing the means to destroy the world.
Little wonder that other states want to join the club!

1998 was a bad year for nuclear abolition. Next year will be the last year
of this century, and ten years since the Berlin Wall came tumbling down.
Some historians claim that the 20th century really began in 1914 and ended
in 1989...if that is the case, maybe the new century really started in May
this year when the deserts in India and Pakistan were wrenched by nuclear
explosions?

We conclude this year's report card with the words of Indian writer
Arundhati Roy, from her recent essay "The End of Imagination." They are a
challenge to us all.

"All I can say to every man, woman and sentient child in India, and over
there, just a little way away in Pakistan, is: take it personally. Whoever
you are - Hindu, Muslim, urban, agrarian - it doesn't matter. The only
good thing about nuclear war is that it is the single most egalitarian
idea that man has ever had. On the day of reckoning, you will not be asked
to present your credentials. The devastation will be
indiscriminate. The bomb isn't in your backyard. It's in your body. And
mine. Nobody, no nation, no government, no man, no god has the right to
put it there. We're radioactive already, and the war hasn't even begun. So
stand up and say something. Never mind if it's been said before. Speak up
on your own behalf. Take it very personally."

Janet Bloomfield and Pamela S. Meidell
October 24, 1998



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ike <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Abolition 2000 Report Card 1998
Date: 24 Oct 1998 19:28:05 -0400

Just a quick note to say that I find these report cards very helpful.

Thanks,
Ike Jeanes

Janet Bloomfield wrote:
>
> ABOLITION 2000 PROGRESS REPORT CARD
> UNITED NATIONS DAY: OCTOBER 24, 1998.
>
> For the last two years, we have issued an Abolition 2000 report card in
> October, assessing progress toward a nuclear weapons free world. For the
> third year, we pause again to take stock of the state of the Nuclear
> World, and of efforts to abolish nuclear weapons. Looking at this year's
> events in the context of the Abolition 2000 Statement offers a simple way
> to make such an evaluation.

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) International YouthPeace Week!
Date: 26 Oct 1998 14:07:08 EST

 Date:    10/26/98 1:00:54 PM Eastern Standard Time
 From:    [e-mail] (War Resisters League)

 October 26, 1998

 Dear Friend,

 YouthPeace is a program of the War Resisters League, yet it is so much
 more.   YouthPeace is a vision of what most young people want for
 themselves: peace with justice.  YouthPeace is also what advocates of youth
 rights work to achieve.  YouthPeace--as a vision, a goal, a need--is
 something everyone who wants to put an end to the militarization,
 oppression, and abuse of youth throughout the world must move toward.
 Observing International YouthPeace Week is one way to advance this work.

 Young people are plagued by the injustice of  violence and poverty,
 homelessness and insufficient (or no) education.  Hundreds of teenagers are
 herded into prisons daily.   On the streets, they suffer the devastating
 effects of gun violence, drug abuse, HIV/AIDS and teen pregnancy.
 Demoralized and destitute, youth often view the military as the only way
 out.   Outside the U.S., warfare has created child soldiers who are forced
 into armed conflict.  Whole communities of children, who attempt to be
 self-sustaining due to loss of family, are often forced into prostitution.

 A dynamic coalition of youth activists and advocates respond to these
 disturbing conditions by coming together to celebrate International
 YouthPeace Week.   For the past two years, for seven days after
 Thanksgiving, we have celebrated the enduring strength of young people
 while protesting the oppressive violence in their lives.

 If you care about the putting an end to the injustice suffered by youth in
 the US and around the world, if you are a young person who wants to work
 for peace, social change and human rights in your community; if you are an
 advocate who wants to address political, social and environmental issues
 that impact youth--you want to celebrate International YouthPeace Week!
 Join our coalition of organizations and individuals from November 27 to
 December 4, 1998, and demand  peace and justice for all youth through this
 global celebration of local initiatives.

 Please help us make this third year of International YouthPeace Week the
 largest observance yet by signing on as a sponsor/participating
 organization or individual.  If your organization has participated in the
 past, consider becoming an annual sponsor.  You will find a brochure and a
 list of past participating organizations attached.  You may contact
 YouthPeace at 800-WRL-YOUTH (800-975-9688) or 212-228-0450; fax:
 212-228-6193, email: [e-mail]; or write us at International
 YouthPeace Week/WRL, 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012.

 For Peace and Justice,


 Malkia M'Buzi Moore                    Vincent Romano
 YouthPeace Coordinator                Freeman Intern

 Attachments:
 Sponsor List
 YouthPeace U.S. Program

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 ---

  "I would no more teach children military training than teach them
  arson, robbery or assassination."
    --Eugene V. Debs

  Celebrate the ENDURING spirit of youth during a week of education and
  action FOR YOUTHPEACE AND JUSTICE

  Join a coalition of organizations and individuals-youth groups and
  youth activists, peace  and justice organizations, teachers, civic and
  social programs, religious organizations, international
  non-governmental organizations and young people the world over-who
  want to make peace and justice a global youth priority!
  _______________________________________________________________________

  International YouthPeace Week

  November 27 - December 4, 1998

  Sponsorship form

  __Yes! My organization is interested in sponsoring International
  YouthPeace Week.

  __ My organization cannot sponsor; however, we would like to endorse
  International YouthPeace Week.

  __ I would like to know what I can do as an individual for
  International YouthPeace Week.

  __ Please sign my organization up as an annual sponsor.

  __ I would like to order a YouthPeace Organizing Packet.

  Name
  Organization
  Address
  City                    State           Zip
  Telephone               Fax
  E-Mail

  Please return this form to:
  YouthPeace/War Resisters League
  339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012
  Phone: [phone]; Fax: [phone]
  E-mail: [e-mail]
  http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

  _______________________________________________________________________

  QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ON INTERNATIONAL YOUTHPEACE WEEK

  1. What is International YouthPeace Week?

  International YouthPeace week, held November 27 to December 4, 1998 is a
 global celebration of local initiatives by youth activists and advocates.
 This week was chosen to provide an annual platform for world-wide issues
 affecting children and youth through a coalition effort.  This is the third
  year that the message and time of the International Days to Protest War
 Toys,  which have been held the first two days after the US Thanksgiving
 holiday, was  expanded to give more time to protest the violence in young
 lives.   International YouthPeace Week is an opportunity for organizations
 and  individuals to work, through educational activities and political
 action, to  make peace and justice a part of every young person's life.

  2. What is the purpose of celebrating International YouthPeace Week
  and what are the issues involved in this observance?

  A broad range of organizations and individuals who share the War
  Resisters League's opposition to war and all its causes that impact
  our urban centers and rural regions-oppression, imperialism, domestic
  domination and neglect, genocide and economic warfare-are called on to
  celebrate the enduring spirit of our youth while engaging in dynamic
  nonviolent activism as youth activists or advocates.

  The international community is asked to support the recommendations of
  the Graca Machel study on the Impact of Armed Conflict on Children and
  to "encourage Governments to reduce their levels of militarization and
  to honor the commitments they made at the World Summit for Development
  to support the concept of human security by taking steps to shift the
  allocation of resources from arms and military expenditures to human
  and social development."

  Adopting the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the
  Child would mean that all governments would raise the age of
  enlistment to eighteen and end the forced military service of children
  and their participation in armed conflict. International YouthPeace
  Week is also a chance to work against child labor and demand
  sustainable development which will provide safe environments for all
  young people throughout the world.

  If you are an organization or individual that believes in working in
  coalition with others who are committed to social change through
  nonviolent action, it is imperative that you participate in
  International YouthPeace Week. National and international alternatives
  to the militarization of youth can be shared with new audiences during
  this week of YouthPeace programs and actions.

  3. What does sponsorship or endorsement of International YouthPeace
  Week require?

  Sponsorship means actively engaging in the act of YouthPeace by
  hosting a program or developing an action, sharing the message through
  mailings and other medium to your membership and affiliates.
  Sponsorship also means serving as a resource for other groups
  regarding International YouthPeace Week.

  Endorsement of International YouthPeace Week means lending your name
  to this important endeavor and publicizing it whenever possible.
  Endorsers are also asked to attend and promote International
  YouthPeace Week activities taking place in your area and participate
  in the petition drives attached to several of the issue areas.

  4. What are the seven issues for seven days of actions during
  International YouthPeace Week?

  Education and Action during International YouthPeace Week include:
  1. Educating consumers about the dangers of war toys by leafleting toy
  stores that carry war toys
  2. Constructing counter-recruitment displays and providing counseling
  in high schools and colleges where JROTC or recruitment vans are
  present
  3. Engaging young people in letter writing projects to International
  Prisoners for Peace as part of the War Resisters International Dec. 1
  Prisoners for Peace Day
  4. Protesting the death penalty for youth offenders by signing on to
  the Stop Killing Kids Project of the National Coalition to Abolish the
  Death Penalty
  5. Demanding an end to Child Labor by protesting companies who use
  children as a labor force
  6. Insisting that children stop being forced into armed conflict by
  having all governments adopt the Optional Protocol to the Convention
  on the Rights of the Child
  7. Creating forums to educate communities about the environmental
  hazards caused by nuclear and industrial waste.
  Plus whatever peace and justice issue your group is working on (land
  mines, AIDS education, etc.) during International YouthPeace Week.

  5. What are the activities and programs choices for organizations or
  individuals who engage in International YouthPeace Week?

  1. Holding nonviolent training sessions for young people (using peer
  trainers when possible) including nonviolent teen parenting sessions.
  2. Hosting YouthPeace forums-round table discussions by youth for
  youth.
  3. Sponsoring a YouthPeace Fair in your community and spreading the
  YouthPeace message through workshops, games, displays and information
  tables.
  4. Creating visual art and dramatic performances as well as poetry to
  share in exhibitions, theaters, wherever spoken word events are held,
  in schools, churches and the streets.
  5. Engaging religious communities by providing the YouthPeace Litany
  for their religious services held during International YouthPeace
  Week.
  6. Sharing the Graca Machel study on the Impact of Armed and the
  Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
  7. Advancing your organization's focus by holding a demonstration or
  leafleting action, hosting a forum, peace fair or arts event.

  6. Where will International YouthPeace Week observances take place?

  International YouthPeace Week will be celebrated throughout the United
  States with programs and actions taking place in the cities of San
  Francisco and Los Angeles California, Seattle Washington,  Washington
  DC, Detroit Michigan, Houston Texas and Atlanta Georgia, and
  throughout New York and New Jersey as well as Oregon and elsewhere.
  International programs will take place in South America, England,
  France, South Africa, Bosnia and more. The success of International
  YouthPeace Week depends on your participation.

  Will you help expand this list by signing on as a participating
  organization or individual?

  7. Where do I go for further information on International YouthPeace
  Week?

  Contact Malkia M'Buzi Moore
  YouthPeace Coordinator
  at the War Resisters League
  339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012
  or call  800-WRL-YOUTH or 212-228-0450
  fax [phone] or e-mail [e-mail]

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
 ---

  INTERNATIONAL YOUTHPEACE WEEK
  * * * Participating Organizations * * *

  International Sponsors:

  RLT--Palawan, Phillipines
  War Resisters International--London, England

  Endorsers:

  ASAFED--Lome (TOGO)
  IV Latin American Conference for Conscientious Objectors--Quito,
  Ecuador
  E. Cape Province Local Government--Eastern Cape Province, South Africa

  Sushanguve Local Government--Sushanguve, South Africa
  Mines Action Canada--Ottawa, Canada

  Participants:

  International Campaign to Ban Landmines--Maputo, Mozambique
  Volunteers Centre Zagreb--Zagreb, Hrvatska, Croatia

  U.S. Sponsors:

  AFSC/Latin America/Asia Pacific Youth Program--Portland, OR
  Black Veterans for Social Justice--Brooklyn, NY
  Coalition for Peace Action--Princeton, NJ
  Committee Opposed to Militarism and the Draft--San Diego, CA
  D.C. SCAR--Washington, DC
  Educators for Social Responsibility--Cambridge, MA
  Ethical Culture Society of Queens--Bayside, NY
  Fellowship of Reconciliation--Nyack, NY
  First Unitarian-Universalist Church--Houston, TX
  Gang Violence Bridging Project--Los Angeles, CA
  Global Kids--New York, NY
  Institute for Peace and Justice Families Against Violence Network--St.
  Louis, MO
  Jane Addams Hull House Assn.--Chicago, IL
  Kids Meeting Kids Can Make a Difference--New York, NY
  Latinos Unidos Siempre--Salem, OR
  Laurentian Shield Resource for Nonviolence--Maple, WI
  Los Angeles Alliance for Survival--Santa Monica, CA
  Multicultural Advisory Committee NYC Alternative, Adult, Continuing
  Ed. Schools and Programs--New York, NY
  National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty--Washington, DC
  Network of Black Organizers--New York, NY
  Peace Action Educational Fund--Washington, DC
  Peace for the Streets by Kids from then Streets--Seattle, WA
  Refuse and Resist--Tulsa, OK
  Rice Women's Alliance--Houston, TX
  Student Peace Action Network--Washington, DC
  Tenafly Middle School Community of Conscience Project--Tenafly, NJ
  Veterans for Peace, Maine Council--Winthrop, ME
  Women for Racial and Economic Equality--New York, NY
  Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, Metro NY--New
  York, NY
  Westchester People's Action Coalition--White Plains, NY
  WRFG Radio--Atlanta, GA
  YouthPeace Speakout--Hartford, CT
  Youth Task Force--Atlanta, GA
  Women's Action for New Directions, Metro Detroit--West Bloomfield, MI
  War Resisters League National Office--New York, NY
  Eugene Peaceworks/WRL--Eugene, OR
  Houston Nonviolent Action/WRL--Houston, TX
  INVERT/WRL--Monroe, ME
  New York City WRL--New York, NY
  Nonviolent Action Community of Cascadia/WRL--Seattle, WA
  Philidelphia WTR/WRL--Philadelphia, PA
  Root and Branch Collective--Ridgewood, NJ

  Endorsers:

  AFSC Youth Action--Seattle, WA
  AFSC Youth and Militarism Program--Philadelphia, PA
  Animal Connection--New York, NY
  Audre Lorde Project--Brooklyn, NY
  Creative Response to Conflict--Nyack, NY
  Episcopal Peace Fellowship--Washington, DC
  Fannie Lou Hamer Educational Organization--New York, NY
  First Presbyterian Church--Carlstadt, NY
  Future Leaders Network--Brooklyn, NY
  Indiana University Social Action Project--South Bend, IN
  Intercommunity Center for Justice--New York, NY
  International Health and Epidemiology Research Center--Sherman Oaks,
  CA
  Lawyers Committee on Nuclear Policy--New York, NY
  MADRE--New York, NY
  NYC War Tax Resistance--New York, NY
  The Painted Gourd Collective--Silver Spring, MD
  Physicians for Social Responsibility/NYC--New York, NY
  Seattle Buddhist Peace Fellowship--Seattle, WA
  STAR/Students Taking Action and Responsibilty--Philadelphia, PA
  Sundiata Acoli Freedom Campaign--Harlem, NY
  Urban Justice Center--New York, NY
  Women for Racial and Economic Equality--New York, NY
  YES--Northport, NY

  Participants:

  AFSC Southeastern Regional Office SAPE Program--Atlanta, GA
  Amnesty International, Southern Region--Atlanta, GA
  Broward Citizens for Peace and Justice--Hollywood,  FL
  CCCO--Philadelphia, PA
  The Lion and Lamb Project--Bethseda, MD
  Satellite Academy, Bronx Regional High School--Bronx, NY
  UNICEF/NGO Working Group on Children and Armed Conflict--New York, NY

  To join this list, please respond to this message at [e-mail].

  YouthPeace/War Resisters League, 339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012

  1-800-WRL-YOUTH or [phone]

 **********
 War Resisters League
 339 Lafayette St.
 New York, NY 10012
 212-228-0450
 212-228-6193 (fax)
 1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
 [e-mail]
 web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl



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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Kathy Crandall <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Fwd: HKH Foundation -- Peace Project
Date: 28 Oct 1998 14:50:13 -0500

Alice,
Thank you very much for forwarding this information. Could you please post the e-mail for HKH Foundation -For people
to send this form back to them directly (as requested in # 3).
Kathy

ASlater wrote:

> >Date: Tue, 27 Oct 1998 09:49:10 -0500
> >Subject: HKH Foundation -- Peace Project
> >To: [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [h][e-mail]_,
> > [e-mail], [h][e-mail]_,
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail], [e-mail],
> > [e-mail], [e-mail]
> >From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
> >
> >HKH Foundation (peace project)
> >c/o Blue Mountain Center
> >Blue Mountain Lake, NY 12812
> >
> >
>                                                 October
> >26, 1998
> >
> >Dear Development Director,
> >
> >The HKH Foundation, in collaboration with several other small family
> >foundations, is attempting to assemble an on-line directory of
> >grass-roots groups working on a variety of peace/disarmament
> >issues.  We would appreciate it very much if you could do us three favors:
> >
> >1.  Fill in the following information with your organizations name,
> >address, phone, fax, etc..  Under "Notes on organization" please explain
> >your organizations mission and/or purpose for quick reference.
> >
> >2. Since our list will attempt to include all groups which have a regular
> >coordinator, an established base/constituency and a newsletter or similar
> >means of consistent communication with that constituency, we would
> >appreciate it if you would send us a copy of what you produce and any
> >other information that would clarify the way in which you do your work.
> >
> >3. Could you send word to your network about this list, including a
> >sample of the information we are seeking so that we get a larger view of
> >who is out there doing what.  Please ask those to whom you send our
> >information to return it to us directly.
> >
> >MANY thanks for your assistance.
> >
> >Sincerely,
> >Amy Johnson
> >
> >Organization Name ______________________________________________
> >
> >Contact Name ____________________________________________
> >
> >Title ____________________________________________
> >
> >Address ____________________________________________
> >
> >City, State  Zip  ____________________________________________
> >
> >Phone ____________________________________________
> >
> >Fax  ____________________________________________
> >
> >Email  ____________________________________________
> >
> >Web Site  ____________________________________________
> >
> >Organization Notes  ____________________________________________
> >
> >                    ____________________________________________
> >
> >                    ____________________________________________
> >
> >                    ____________________________________________
> >
> >                    ____________________________________________
> >
> Alice Slater
> Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
> 15 East 26th Street, Room 915
> New York, NY 10010
> tel:  [phone]
> fax:  [phone]
> email:  [e-mail]
>
> GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, an international network working for a treaty to eliminate nuclear weapons.
>
> -
>  To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
>  with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
>  For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
>  "help" to the same address.  Do not use quotes in your message.




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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Shundahai Network <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) DOE Secretary meets with Las Vegas Groups
Date: 28 Oct 1998 19:53:48 -0800



For immediate release:                 Contact:         Rick Nielsen, 796-5662

October 28, 1998                Reinard Knutsen,647-3095

                        Judy Treichel, 248-1127


ENERGY SECRETARY HEARS LOCAL CONCERNS SAYS YUCCA DECISION WILL BE BASED ON SCIENCE, NOT POLITICS


Bill Richardson, newly appointed secretary for the Department of Energy (DOE), took time out from his busy schedule to meet with representatives from four local activist groups and the Western Shoshone Nation on Monday evening at McCarron Airport. Richardson heard concerns regarding nuclear activities conducted at the Nevada Test Site (NTS), the potential repository at Yucca Mountain, groundwater contamination, and Western Shoshone land rights under the 1863 Treaty of Ruby Valley.


Richardson said that he would tour both NTS and Yucca Mountain while here was here. Rick Nielsen, executive director of Citizen Alert engaged Richardson in a lively discussion regarding the suitability studies ongoing at Yucca Mountain and potential groundwater contamination. "I am here to

review the site to try and make an assessment," said Richardson. "I don't know now what the outcome will be, but I can say it will be based on science not politics."


The question of what would disqualify Yucca Mountain as a potential site was also posed by Nielsen. Richardson said that he did not have a specific answer, but stated that if the mountain was found to produce adverse impacts to humans or the environment it would not move forward. "It seems clear to me that there are going to be impacts," said Nielsen, "even DOE admits that, it appears to hinge on what is acceptable and to whom."


Judy Treichel of the Nevada Nuclear Waste Task Force presented Richardson with DOE documents that clearly show that department plans for Yucca Mountain will give people nearby doses of radiation from drinking water. "Any imposed dose is an adverse impact," said Treichel.


Ian Zabarte, representing Western Shoshone Chief Raymond Yowell, informed the Secretary that based on the Treaty of Ruby Valley, the DOE didn't legally own the land that comprises most of the NTS, including Yucca Mountain. "Yucca Mountain belongs to the Western Shoshone," said Zabarte. Zabarte also said that funding was needed for health studies related to the impacts of fall-out from nuclear testing on Native Americans.


Western Shoshone spiritual leader, Corbin Harney, told Richardson, "DOE has been poisoning our land and people since the fifties, you can't let this continue." Richardson said that he has encountered Native American impacts in recent visits at several other DOE weapons sites and is also concerned about their rights and treatment. The Secretary said he has appointed Chris Sterns, a Navajo, to be his point person to help address these concerns.


Other concerns discussed at the meeting included subcritical testing, moral and ethical responsibilities of nuclear weapons, the delay in a radiation standard for Yucca Mountain, funding for groundwater studies and state oversight, and public participation in the DOE decision making process. Reinard Knutsen of the Shundahai Network said, "The actions that the Shundahai Network take to get our message across are more radical because we have become disenfranchised by the public participation process."


Sister Rosemary Lynch, a Franciscan nun representing Pace Bene,  a local peace and non-violence organization, told the Secretary, "you must carefully consider the ethics and basic morality of the decisions that you are called on to make and have the courage to act accordingly."


-END-


Richard Nielsen,  Executive Director,   Citizen Alert,  Las Vegas  NV

[e-mail]        http://www.igc.org/citizenalert



><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<


                       SHUNDAHAI NETWORK

                 "Peace and Harmony with all Creation"

                5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV 89108-1304

<paraindent><param>out,out</param>
Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385

                     Email: [e-mail]

</paraindent>
<underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param>http://www.shundahai.org


</color></underline>            Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:


    Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to

    foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and


    Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<




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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Shundahai Network <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) New computer powerful, but won't end subcritical testing
Date: 29 Oct 1998 10:34:57 -0800



                                               Thursday, October 29, 1998


                                               New computer

                                               powerful, but

                                               won't end

                                               subcritical testing



                                                    Associated Press

                                                     WASHINGTON -- IBM has

                                               developed the world's fastest

                                               computer, which can perform enough

                                               complex calculations to maintain

                                               reliability of the nation's nuclear

                                               weapons without conducting actual

                                               bomb tests, U.S. officials say.

                                                     The supercomputer -- dubbed

                                               "Pacific Blue" -- was touted by the

                                               White House at an event highlighting

                                               technology developments.

                                                     But according to Jeff Garberson,

                                               a spokesman at the Lawrence

                                               Livermore National Laboratory in

                                               California, where the new

                                               supercomputer will be used, it will not

                                               replace subcritical nuclear experiments

                                               at the Nevada Test Site, 65 miles

                                               northwest of Las Vegas.

                                                     Those experiments, which use

                                               small amounts of plutonium and are

                                               designed to stop short of erupting into

                                               nuclear chain reactions, provide data

                                               about how the material behaves at

                                               detonation. That data is needed for

                                               computer models being developed for

                                               the stockpile stewardship program, he

                                               said.

                                                     "Just as subcritical testing is an

                                               important part of stockpile

                                               stewardship, so is developing new

                                               computers," Garberson said.

                                                     Built for the Department of

                                               Energy, the new IBM supercomputer

                                               can perform 3.9 trillion operations per

                                               second and simulate a nuclear bomb

                                               test, administration officials said

                                               Tuesday. Such high-speed calculations

                                               will enable U.S. scientists to maintain

                                               the reliability of atomic weapons

                                               stockpiles without having to conduct

                                               nuclear tests, which are prohibited by

                                               an international test ban treaty, the

                                               officials said.

                                                     In announcing the new

                                               supercomputer, Vice President Al

                                               Gore said, "This is a computer that will

                                               make Deep Blue green with envy. It's

                                               more than twice as fast as any other

                                               computer in existence today. It has

                                               enough memory to store every single

                                               book in the Library of Congress.

                                               Above all, it's fast."

                                                     Gore also announced that

                                               President Clinton will sign a bill to

                                               bolster copyright protection in

                                               cyberspace and another measure to

                                               connect 100 universities at speeds up

                                               to 1,000 times faster than the Internet.


                                                     "Just like the first Internet, the

                                               demonstration is going to be so

                                               powerful lots of people are going to

                                               say, `Well, I'm willing to invest,' " Gore

                                               said.

                                                     Pacific Blue runs 15,000 times

                                               faster and has 80,000 times more

                                               memory than the average desktop

                                               personal computer, the officials said.

                                               Complex calculations that normally

                                               would consume months of time -- even

                                               on advanced computers -- can be

                                               completed in just days with the new

                                               machine, they said.

                                                     While the main mission of the

                                               supercomputer is to ensure the safety,

                                               security and reliability of nuclear

                                               weapons, it could have other

                                               implications as well.

                                                     A high performance computer, for

                                               example, could provide more accurate

                                               predictions of climate changes and be

                                               used in improving the design of

                                               airplanes, the officials said.

                                                     Many recent major advances in

                                               drug development for health care have

                                               been driven by high-performance

                                               computers, too. Speedy calculations

                                               can be used to identify compounds

                                               that are likely to succeed in clinical

                                               tests, freeing scientists from having to

                                               try unnecessary combinations in the

                                               lab.

                                                    Staff writer Keith Rogers

                                               contributed to this report.


                                                Give us your FEEDBACK on this or

                                                           any story.


                                                  Fill out our Online Readers' Poll





><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
><<><< ><<><<


SHUNDAHAI NETWORK

"Peace and Harmony with all Creation"

<paraindent><param>out,out</param>5007 Elmhurst St., Las Vegas, NV
89108-1304

Phone:[phone] (FAX)647-9385

</paraindent>Email: [e-mail]

 <underline><color><param>0000,0000,fefe</param>http://www.shundahai.org


</color></underline>Shundahai Network is proud to be part of:


Healing Global Wounds Alliance, a multi-cultural alliance to

foster sustainable living and break the nuclear chain; and


Abolition 2000: A Global Network to Eliminate Nuclear Weapons


><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><< ><<><<
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Hisham Zerriffi <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) IEER Disarmament Resource
Date: 30 Oct 1998 09:37:59 -0500 (EST)

===================================================
        Disarmament/De-alerting Resource Available

The Institute for Energy and Environmental Research has just released a
double issue of its newsletter, "Science for Democratic Action," which
covers many aspects of nuclear disarmament and de-alerting.

This issue examines technical and other requirements for achieving enduring
nuclear disarmament; the role of treaties; de-alerting measures that can be
achieved before the end of 1999; and post-Cold War threats, such as
accidental nuclear war, black markets in nuclear materials, and research
that could lead to the development of pure fusion weapons.  Also presented
is an extensive plan for urgent, short-term, medium-term, and long-term
disarmament measures.

Articles in this issue:

    -Achieving Enduring Nuclear Disarmament
    -De-Alerting: A First Step
    -Treaties Are Not Enough
    -Pure Fusion Weapons?
    -The Nature of Post-Cold War Nuclear Dangers
    -The South Asian Nuclear Crisis
    -and more...

You will also find regular features of IEER's newsletter, such as "Dr.
Egghead" (a guide to nuclear jargon), and the Atomic Puzzler (a chance for
you to sharpen your technical skills and have some fun doing it).

The newsletter is free and is available from IEER. If you would like a
copy, ether reply to this message ([e-mail]), or call IEER at
301-270-5500.  You can also request bulk copies. This newsletter will be
posted on our website (www.ieer.org) in the next week or so.


************************************************************
* Hisham Zerriffi                                          *
* Project Scientist                Phone: [phone]   *
* Institute for Energy             Fax:   [phone]   *
* and Environmental Research       E-mail: [e-mail] *
* 6935 Laurel Ave. Suite 204       Web:    www.ieer.org    *
* Takoma Park, MD  20912                                   *
************************************************************


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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Day Without the Pentagon web coverage and speakers list.
Date: 30 Oct 1998 10:48:36 -0500

Dear friends,

Thanks to everyone who made "A Day Without the Pentagon" a great success on
October 19.  Four generations of activists rallied against this country's
skewed priorities that favor smart bombs over smart kids and that are
militarizing our police, prisons, and schools.

More than 750 people participated in the action, making it the largest
Pentagon demonstration in a decade.  Together, we said no to violence and
war in all its forms and yes to human needs, healthcare, housing,
education, jobs and community.  As you know, the speakers were broadcast
live nationwide on C-SPAN and we have received dozens of phone calls,
letters, and e-mail from people seeking more information about our efforts.
 In a subsequent e-mail, I forward the complete list of speakers.

A few days after the October 19 action, we received an e-mail from Mike
Flugennock.  He has constructed a webpage with photos, plus audio and video
from the action.  It's a great site and it captures some of the spirit and
energy of the day.  The information is posted below, I encourage you to
take a look.

Thanks again for making October 19 a great success.

Chris Ney
Disarmament Coordinator/Fundraiser

>http://www.sinkers.org/pentagon
>
>     "the commander-in-chief answers him, while chasing a fly,
>        saying 'death to all those who would whimper and cry!'
>                   then dropping a barbell, points to the sky,
>                 saying 'the sun's not yellow, it's chicken!'"
>
>
>                                                            --Bob Dylan.
>
>Contains fistfuls of fotos, sound bites and QuickTime clips from the
>October 19, 1998 demonstration at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, for an
>end to military spending and a conversion of recources to serve human
>needs. At least a thousand demonstrators (the Post says "a few dozen"! You
>tell me...) were addressed by such pro-peace stalwarts as Daniel Ellsberg
>("Pentagon Papers"), Dick Gregory, and Philadelphia MOVE's Pam Africa.
>
>Requires QuickTime for viewing of video clips, and RealVideo for viewing of
>streaming highlights of the day.
>
>Contains sound bites in .aiff as well as uncompressed .wav for any
>microbroadcast reporters who wish to use them for rebroadcast.
>
>Brought to you by Mike Flugennock's Mikey'zine, at http://www.sinkers.org
>
>
>"...you were caught with your hands in the till
>         but you still got to swallow your pill
>        as you slip and you slide down the hill
>         on the blood of the people you killed!" --John Lennon.
>_______________________________________________________________
>Mike Flugennock, [e-mail]
>Mike Flugennock's Mikey'zine, http://www.sinkers.org
>
>
>
**********
War Resisters League
339 Lafayette St.
New York, NY 10012
212-228-0450
212-228-6193 (fax)
1-800-975-9688 (YouthPeace and A Day Without the Pentagon)
[e-mail]
web address: http://www.nonviolence.org/wrl

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: ASlater <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) US ACTION ALERT
Date: 30 Oct 1998 16:09:14 -0500

Dear Friends,
Listed below is the simply outrageous response of the US delegation to the
New Agenda Coalition Resolution submitted in the UN General Assembly First
Committee.  Claiming their demonstrated commitment to nuclear disarmament,
the US neglects to mention the $4.4 billion it just voted to continue the
design and development of new nuclear weapons in the "stockpile
stewardship" program.  While chastising the NAC drafters for not mentioning
India and Pakistan's tests, they dare not mention the four US
"sub-critical" tests at the Nevada test site.  They find the call for
verification of nuclear disarmament measures "premature" while claiming we
can't dealert because of difficulties in verification.  They say they have
enough places to talk about nuclear disarmament while they busted up the
NPT PrepCom last May, in large part because they vetoed a South African
proposal merely to discuss nuclear disarmament.  They have also blocked
repeated efforts to establish an ad hoc committee in the Committee on
Disarmament to discuss nuclear disarmament. The talk is laced with
hypocritsy.

PLEASE WRITE TO CLINTON AND ALBRIGHT AND EXPRESS YOUR DISMAY AT THE
STALLING TACTICS OF THE US GOVERNMENT.  LET THEM KNOW THAT AMERICANS ARE
WATCHING THEIR ACTS IN THE UN AND THAT WE CARE ABOUT HOW THEY REPRESENT US.
 ASK THEM TO SUPPORT THE NAC RESOLUTION AND TO BEGIN IMMEDIATE NEGOTIATIONS
ON A TREATY TO ELIMINATE NUCLEAR WEAPONS!!  Eighty seven percen to all
Americans said they want a treaty to eliminate nukes, in a 1997 poll by
Celinda Lake's firm, Lake Soison, Snell.

President Bill Clinton
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave.
Washington, DC 20500
email: [e-mail]
fax: [phone]

Secretary Madeline Albright
2201 C St. NW
Washington, DC  20520
fax: [phone]


>Date: Thu, 29 Oct 1998 18:30:37 -0500
>Subject: UN 1st Cmte/US response to New Agenda res.
>Priority: non-urgent
>To: [e-mail]
>From: [e-mail] ([e-mail])
>
>October 29, 1998
>
>United States Delegation to the 53rd UN General Assembly First Committee
>
>Statement on Eight Nation Resolution
>
>"Towards a nuclear-weapon-free world: the need for a new agenda"
>
>I take the floor today to comment on the resolution entitled, "Towards a
>Nuclear Free World: The Need for a New Agenda," tabled by a group of eight
>nations. The United States delegation listened carefully to the discussion
>of this resolution on Tuesday and would like to comment on both that
>discussion and the text itself.
>
>In listening to the comments of its sponsors, we noted that while the
>resolution is one of the longest on this year's agenda, its supporters
>referred almost entirely to its first operational paragraph. They clearly
>consider that the heart of the resolution is its call for the nuclear
>weapon
>states to "demonstrate an unequivocal commitment to the speedy and total
>elimination of their respective nuclear weapons." I would have thought it
>unnecessary to demonstrate once again the commitment of the United States
>to
>nuclear disarmament, a commitment we undertook when we adhered to the NPT,
>but let me recall for others the steps we have taken and are taking in
>fulfillment of our Art. VI commitment. Some of the most important ones are
>described in resolution L.49 on bilateral nuclear arms negotiations and
>nuclear disarmament.
>
>To review those specifics, let me just point out that since the height of
>the Cold War, the U.S. has almost completely eliminated its non-strategic
>nuclear weapons, going from 15 Systems in 1971 to two systems today. We
>have
>eliminated more than 10,000 nuclear warheads from our military arsenal,
>along with more than 1,700 missile launchers and bombers under the INF and
>START I treaties. We have not conducted a nuclear weapon test explosion
>since 1992. We ceased the production of fissile material for nuclear
>weapons
>many years ago and have removed more than 200 tons of fissile material from
>our military stockpile. Once we have completed the next step in strategic
>arms control, as agreed by the U.S. and Russia, we will have made
>reductions
>of 80 per cent from Cold War peaks of deployed weapons. If this doesn't
>demonstrate a commitment to nuclear disarmament--in deeds. not words--I
>don't know what does.
>
>The logic of this paragraph also puzzles the United States. If the
>commitments we have already undertaken are sufficient, the world would gain
>nothing from their repetition. Alternatively, if the sponsors of the
>resolution do not consider those commitments trustworthy, why should we
>think they find another one more reliable?
>
>As I have noted, the sponsors of this resolution stress the first operative
>paragraph. But the U.S. takes seriously the entire resolution and urges
>this
>committee to consider all its provisions carefully. We have held our
>counsel
>while we waited to see what would emerge from the deliberations the eight
>held with other members of this body, but now that we see a more developed
>text we have decided to make our views known. The United States could
>support some of the ideas it expresses, but finds many more fundamentally
>misconceived or flawed in practice.
>
>Let me elaborate:
>
>--We reject the alarmist tone expressed in the first several preambular
>paragraphs. As ACDA Director and Under Secretary cf State Holum said to
>this
>committee a few weeks ago, the U.S. "identifies with the yearning for more
>progress--and with disappointment that the progress can be difficult and
>slow." This does not cause us alarm, however, but rather gives us the
>determination to work harder at the task of making more progress. What is
>alarming, but paradoxically not addressed explicitly in this resolution, is
>nuclear testing by India and Pakistan.
>
>--We have a similar reaction to the fourth preambular paragraph. The U.S.
>has had a long history of successfully controlling nuclear weapons and
>cannot accept the assertion that their mere existence leads to their use.
>There have, of course, been no instances in which nuclear weapons have been
>used for more than 50 years.
>
>Let me turn now to the operative sections of the resolution.
>
>It makes some useful points on the NPT, CTBT and related issues and we
>appreciate the revision of the paragraphs on cutoff to conform with the
>decision to start negotiations in the CD. On the other hand, we join others
>in pointing out that the call for the three non-members of the NPT to
>adhere
>to that agreement makes no mention of the recent tests by two of the states
>concerned.
>
>I have already discussed OP1. Let me repeat: the U.S. has made a commitment
>to nuclear disarmament. If that is not sufficient, we fail to see what a
>repetition would add.
>
>The resolution calls twice for the "seamless integration" of five-power
>negotiations into the current bilateral process. This sounds good, but what
>does it really mean? Have the sponsors considered the alternatives? Are we
>sure a five-power process would be most effective, or might there be
>parallel processes? TIc United States doesn't have answers to these
>questions now, and we suspect neither does anyone else, nor will they until
>the process has moved further along.
>
>In one of the few concrete proposals it contains, the resolution calls on
>the nuclear weapons states to de-alert those weapons. The U.S. has
>considered carefully this issue and has agreed with Russia on pre-launch
>notification of strategic launch vehicles and space launchers. However, we
>believe the wholesale adoption of de-alerting measures leads to
>instability.
>Because such measures are unverifiable, a situation could arise--similar to
>the August 1914 rnsh to mobilization--in which the potential that one
>country might quickly return to alert status could start a dangerous rush
>by
>all to do so, leading to greater instability. We have instead targeted our
>efforts at improving command and control systems--a more valuable approach
>than wholesale de-alerting.
>
>The U.S. finds the call for the IAEA to explore verification of a nuclear
>free world premature and will certainly not abdicate that responsibility
>when we are dealing with the total elimination of nuclear weapons. We
>suspect other states will not accept that idea either.
>
>The calls for the CD to create an Ad Hoc Committee on nuclear disarmament
>and for the convening of a nuclear disarmament conference--like much of
>this
>resolution--substitute more talk for concrete action. The U.S. has
>consistently described the problems with this proposal, especially the
>negative affect it would have on real nuclear disarmament reductions and
>talks with the Russian Federation. We believe there would be no purpose
>served by running the serious risk of slowing or even stopping this proven
>and productive disarmament process, and that position will not change. And
>in any case we already are fully engaged in nuclear disarmament discussions
>in multilateral fora. We discuss nuclear disarmament here, in the UNDC, in
>plenary sessions of the CD, in the NPT enhanced review process and
>potentially in an SSOD IV, should the international community agree to
>hold one.
>
>Finally, the U.S. considers the affirmation that a nuclear free world would
>require "a universal and multilaterally negotiated legally binding
>instrument..." completely premature. The U.S. believes it more important to
>concentrate on the practical measures needed before we reach that point,
>rather than considering now the legal form of an agreement.
>
>Let me conclude with some general comments. Although frustrated by the pace
>of progress on nuclear disarmament, we--and we expect many others--do not
>see the need to replace the existing agenda with a new one. We all know
>what
>has to be done to move us further along the path of nuclear disarmament.
>Those actions include:
>- the continuation of the destruction of strategic offensive weapons as
>provided for under START I;
>- the completion of ratification of the START II agreements and the
>beginning of START III negotiations;
>- the entry into force of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty;
>- the start of serious, good-faith negotiations on a treaty prohibiting the
>production of fissile material for nuclear weapons or other nuclear
>explosive devices;
>- the universalization of the Non-Proliferation Treaty.
>
>This is an ambitious agenda, but not an unrealizable one. Some seem to
>consider it already accomplished; we do not. It includes tasks for the
>United States and Russia, for the other nuclear weapon states, for NPT
>parties, for those countries that have not signed the NPT -- for the
>international community as a whole. If we could achieve it, we would have
>made decisive steps in the direction the eight nations call for.
>
>But what does this resolution include that will advance us in that
>direction? For the most part, it is an expression of concern that
>"something
>must be done." But apart from actions already under way and the call for an
>international conference on nuclear disarmament, what does it contain? And
>what will another international disarmament conference accomplish? In fact,
>it could well distract attention from the NPT review process and other
>established fora for negotiation and discussion of disarmament issues,
>while
>giving non-parties to the NPT another excuse for their failure to adhere to
>the Treaty.
>
>The United States urges the sponsors and others inclined to support the
>eight-nation initiative to reconsider their approach, which offers little
>beyond the exhortation to do something. The U.S. can suggest no panaceas,
>no
>easy ways forward. The process of nuclear disarmament is deliberate and
>painstaking. It takes advantage of opportunities for progress, when they
>arise.
>
>In our view, we don't need a new agenda, but a rededication to the agenda I
>have already outlined. It is a challenging agenda but an achievable one if
>we have the collective will to pursue it. It may not be a "new agenda" but
>it is a realistic one.
>*    *    *    *    *    *    *
>Roger Smith
>Network Coordinator
>NGO Committee on Disarmament
>777 U.N. Plaza #3B, New York, NY 10017, USA
>tel [phone]  fax [phone]
>[e-mail]    http://www.peacenet.org/disarm/
>

Alice Slater
Global Resource Action Center for the Environment (GRACE)
15 East 26th Street, Room 915
New York, NY 10010
tel:  [phone]
fax:  [phone]
email:  [e-mail]

GRACE is a member of Abolition 2000, a global network working for a treaty
to eliminate nuclear weapons.

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) SpaceNews:  Energy / Plutonium
Date: 30 Oct 1998 18:02:37 -0500

http://detnews.com/1998/technology/9810/29/10290037.htm

October 29, 1998, The Detroit News

Ann Arbor firm aims for Pluto
Advance Modular Power Systems supplies high-tech cells needed for distant
trip.

By Tom Henderson

    Huge rockets will launch NASA's deep-space missions early
in the next millennium, first to Europa, one of Jupiter's moons,
and later to Pluto.
    But once the ships have left Earth's atmosphere and are
hurtling away, all of their power needs will supplied by an
array of small batteries made by a small company in Ann Arbor
called Advance Modular Power Systems Inc.
    AMPS -- an offshoot of Ford Motor research in the 1970s --
was awarded the $20-million contract early last year and is
developing the prototype of the high-tech cells. Each cell will
provide 6 to 8 watts of power, with 200 watts enough to supply
all of the electrical needs of each deep space probe.
    The technology is called AMTEC, which stands for alkali
metal thermal to electrical conversion. Basically, AMPS'
power cells in the space probes will convert heat that is
supplied by plutonium into electrical power. AMPS' technology
won out over two other heat-to-energy technologies for NASA's
Advanced Radioisotope Power System (ARPS).
    Environmentalists protested NASA's launch earlier this year
of the Cassini space probe because it is powered by plutonium.
AMPS' technology dramatically reduces the amount of
plutonium needed and reduces the danger of environmental
problems in case of an explosion during launch.
    Currently, AMPS' cells convert about 15 percent of the heat
into electricity. The cells on board the deep-space probes will
convert up 40 percent of the heat into electricity. The company
is to have completed its design and begun testing on the
deep-space versions by November.
    "It's a real challenge for us," says George Levy, the
company's president and chief operating officer.

    It started at Ford

    The technology's roots go back to Ford Motor's labs, where
it was invented by Niell Weber and Joseph Kummer as part of
Ford's research into environmentally friendly battery
technologies. Thomas Hunt, a physicist who is now AMPS'
chief scientist and chairman, was part of Ford's research team.
    Hunt later took an early retirement with Ford's blessing and
left to develop a for-profit business based on the technology,
turning in 1989 to ERIM, then an Ann Arbor nonprofit incubator
of high-techs.
    In 1991, Hunt, Robert Novak of ERIM and Robert Sievers,
formerly of Westinghouse and now the company's
vice-president of engineering, founded AMPS.
    Ford has a royalty agreement with AMPS but no equity
position. AMPS has since extended and improved the
technology, having applied for six patents and written
disclosure for 12 more.
    Levy joined the firm in February 1996. Since then, growth
has been impressive. The company had 17 employees when he
joined. A year ago it had 40; today it has 80, including 14
doctorates. In 1997, the company was named the 13th
fastest-growing private company in Michigan, and made Inc.
Magazine's national list of the top 500 private firms.
    "Tom Hunt is a brilliant scientist" says Levy. "But he wanted
to make business decisions as a scientist -- when all the facts
are in. You can't do that in business. You have to act in an
entrepreneurial way, before all the facts are in."
    This December, the company, which currently is cramped
into 20,000 square feet in two buildings south of Ann Arbor,
will move into brand new, 38,000-square-foot headquarters in
the Ann Arbor Commerce Park on Varsity Drive.
    Thanks largely to the NASA contract, revenues will be about
$8 million this year, with profits of about $250,000. The
contract was for $20 million over 4 1/2 years, with $6.5
million in 1998. Revenue in 1997 was about $4.4 million, up
from $2.8 million in 1996.
    After earning his doctorate in chemistry from UCLA in 1968,
Levy joined General Electric. During his five years there, he
wrote Carbon-13 Nuclear Magnetic Resonance for Organic
Chemists for researchers and advanced students. It sold 10,000
copies, a rarity for such texts, and was translated into Spanish,
Russian and Japanese.
    That led to a teaching position at Florida State -- and then a
position as professor of science and technology at Syracuse
University, where he founded and later sold a computer
software company called New Methods Research Inc.

    Thinking of future

    While AMPS has flourished under government contracts, the
long-term business strategy calls for it to rely less on the
vagaries of government work and more on manufacturing and
selling cells in the public marketplace.
    To do that, AMPS must find a way to dramatically reduce
production costs. Currently, it is investigating a joint venture
with a Fortune 500 company -- the large firm is in the midst of a
four-month analysis of AMPS' technology -- that may come to
fruition early in 1999. If so, the joint venture will be housed in
the new quarters.
    Levy says if either party decides against a joint venture,
AMPS will fund a $1-million effort in 1999 to improve its
manufacturing abilities.

How AMPS' deep-space batteries work

    Each cell will create about 6-8 watts of electrical power and
be about 5 inches high and an inch and a half in diameter.
Coming up from the bottom will be eight or nine white ceramic
tubes wrapped in a metal called molybdenum.
    Heat -- supplied by plutonium -- is applied to the bottom of
the cell. The heat vaporizes sodium metal at the bottom of the
cell, the vapor then rising into the ceramic tubes. As the vapor
reaches the ceramic surface, electrons are freed, which run
along a wire that exits the cell, leads to the load and then
re-enters the cell. As the electrons flow along the wire, a
current is produced and power is delivered.
    The sodium vapor passes through the ceramic, is recombined
with the electrons, hits a condenser and is turned back into a
liquid. The liquid is sucked into a wick, returned back to the hot
spot and reheated, starting the process all over.
    The sodium metal will be recycled through the process seven
or eight times an hour.
    Because the cells have no moving parts, no vibrations, and
require no maintenance, they are extremely durable. Cells will
need to last about six years for a trip to Europa, one of Jupiter's
moons, and will need to last up to 15 years for a trip to Pluto.
The launch to Europa, which interests scientists because it
appears to have a large underground ocean and may support
life, is tentatively scheduled for 2003, with a launch to Pluto the
next year.

(Tom Henderson is a Metro Detroit free-lance writer.)

Comments?  http://data.detnews.com:8081/feedback/


----------------------------

http://www.nytimes.com/yr/mo/day/editorial/30fri3.html

October 30, 1998

NEW YORK TIMES - EDITORIAL OBSERVER / By PHILIP TAUBMAN

The Secret Space Race Behind John Glenn

    As John Glenn enjoys his second rendezvous with the cosmos, the country
is awash with nostalgia about the great space race with the Soviet Union,
one of the most memorable competitions of the cold war. If only the actual
rivalry more closely resembled the myths about it.

The truth is that by the time Mr. Glenn roared into orbit for the first
time, on Feb. 20, 1962, long after a Russian had circled the earth, the
United States was already winning a hidden and much larger race with the
Soviet Union over the military uses of space.

Though the public did not realize it then and has only a limited conception
now, the military competition cost more than the manned space program, was
far more important in influencing the course of the cold war and in many
ways provided the technology used in the Mercury and Apollo programs.

The secret space race could not claim the shimmering goal of sending a man
to the moon. It lacked the life-and-death consequences of every manned
flight, and sported no human face to make it accessible and inspirational
to citizens. But even more than the effort to reach the moon, it involved a
mobilization of scientific, industrial and military resources that has not
been attempted since.

The purpose from the outset in the early 1950's was to match Soviet
advances in the development of ballistic missiles and to produce technology
to gather information about Soviet military forces, especially nuclear
weapons and the bombers and missiles that carried them. The hope was to
avoid another surprise attack like Pearl Harbor and to keep ahead of Soviet
armaments.

Moscow successfully tested a hydrogen bomb in August 1953, less than a year
after the United States. The Soviet Union was soon building a new fleet of
long-range bombers and designing and testing missiles that could deliver
ever more compact and powerful nuclear weapons to Western Europe and the
United States. President Eisenhower, believing that space might become a
critical frontier for spying and warfare, quietly approved a series of
classified projects that eventually revolutionized American military
technology and provided much of the means for Mr. Glenn's flight.

The primary objectives were to build missiles that could deliver nuclear
warheads to targets in the Soviet Union and to develop planes and
satellites to survey and photograph Soviet airfields and missile bases
first from high altitude and later from space. The Soviet Union, of course,
placed the first satellite into orbit in October 1957. But Sputnik, though
an enduring, humiliating symbol of Russian superiority in space, was not a
spy satellite. It was secretly eclipsed in August 1960 by the first
American photo-reconnaissance satellite. Moscow did not get a similar
satellite into operation until July 1962.

The American satellite project, code-named Corona, was directed not by the
Pentagon but by the Central Intelligence Agency. It involved both the
placement in orbit of a sophisticated camera system and the return to earth
of the film in a special capsule designed to withstand the searing heat
produced during re-entry through the atmosphere.

This space achievement came eight months before Yuri Gagarin became the
first man in space, and 18 months before Mr. Glenn's mission. Much of the
technology developed for the Corona program was adapted for manned flights.

The public space race made for riveting scientific drama and great
individual and national accomplishment. But long before the United States
exceeded Soviet successes in manned flight, it had pulled ahead in
developing reliable missiles and sophisticated military spacecraft. In some
ways, the space race was over before Mr. Glenn blasted off.

 __________________________________


_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

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From: Sue Broidy <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Abolition 2000 Grassroots Newsletter November Issue
Date: 30 Oct 1998 16:27:57 -0800 (PST)

Abolition 2000 Grassroots Newsletter  November Issue

Presentation of 13 million Abolition 2000 Signatures to UN

On October 26, representatives of Soka Gokkai International presented the
13 million signatures on the Abolition 2000 petition to the United Nations.
At a Press Conference to mark this important and historic moment, Vernon C.
Nichols, President of the NGO Committee on Disarmament, said " I commend
Soka Gakkai International and its youth for the dedication shown by its
members in this magnificent work.  This is the kind of activity which
Abolition 2000 encourages."

Message to all Abolition 2000 activists

We are in the process of putting the Citizen Action Guide for Abolition
2000 on our website at
http://www.wagingpeace.org/abolition2000/citizens.html. We are also
preparing color posters in Pagemaker which we can email to you.  A three
fold flyer is also in preparation - again we want to make this easy for you
to download or receive by email or floppy disc.  Try our site - let us know
if it all works for you!  Above all - let's get this material out to the
wider world!

New Organizations Joining in October

Coalition for Peace and Justice, Cape May NJ
People for Peace, Roosevelt, NJ
World Peace 2000, Roosevelt NJ
Czech Peace Society, Prague Czech Republic
Amherst Vigil for Peace and Justice, Amherst, MA
The Interfaith Campaign for a Nuclear Free World, Los Angeles, CA


Petitions

I am hoping for updates from Europe on petition numbers - we had 12,500
reported from Austria some time ago and up to October 6, Le Mouvement de la
Paix in France had collected about 30,000 signatures.  Please report in so
we can keep a tally posted each month.

In the meantime, we congratulate Santa Cruz, California again!  It is
wonderful to receive another huge pile of signed petitions from Jan Harwood
- 1200 this month.  I  would like to get 1000 signatures from every part of
the US every month - please get the petitions out in your community and get
the numbers coming in to me so we can start to post some meaningful totals.
Remember - the way to go is for every signature you get, offer a blank
form.  If the person seems really committed ask them to copy it ten times
and keep it multiplying- a chain reaction!

More Representatives Sign Markey Resolution

We are very pleased to announce that Congresswoman Lois Capps, D Santa
Barbara, and Congressman George Miller have recently signed on as sponsors
of the Markey Resolution on Stockpile Stewardship. Capps and Miller join 12
other Representatives in supporting this resolution and when Congress
resumes work next year we will be asking people to urge their
representatives to sponsor this and the Woolsey Resolution (HR 479) again,
calling on Clinton to negotiate a treaty to eliminate nuclear weapons.

Another Campus Resolution Signed

We are very pleased to announce our first High School to sign the Campus
Resolution - the Student Body of the John Woolman School in Nevada City, CA.

News from the Tamilnadu UNA, in Madras, India

A recent signer to Abolition 2000, this organization has organized an
Appeal for Completing the Nuclear Weapons Convention by the year 2000.
Signed by children from a number of schools, the Appeal was sent to the
Prime Minister of India and to the UN Undersecretary General.
Congratulations on this initiative!  They also sent in another package of
signatures - 147 - to add to the India total of 250.

The Philadelphia Coalition for Nuclear Disarmament

This is a growing coalition and includes WILPF, Peace Action, Friends, PSR,
and LAWS. Their city council declared Philadelphia a Nuclear Weapons Free
Zone, unanimously on Oct. 17, 1997, and the mayor, Ed Rendell, was the
first to sign the State of the World Forum Statement of Mayors with a call
for elimination of nuclear weapons. However, they have not been able to
translate this clear public sentiment into a commitment by any of our
congressional delegations, despite lobbying efforts, of Congressional Rep.
Woolsey's resolution.

They have hired Therese Joseph from Youngstown to be Peace Voter state
coordinator and have worked out a strategy to make the most of their
limited resources. They have printed 16,000 voter guides in the
Voinovich-Boyle race and candidates will be asked about CTBT and related
issues..

The Interfaith Campaign for a Nuclear Free World

Father Chris Ponnet, St Camillus Pastor/Pax Christi Southern California, is
co-chairperson and sends word that the Interfaith Campaign "wishes to join
your efforts.  We support your statement.  We are Jews, Muslims, Catholics,
Protestants, Buddhists, Hindus and people of good will.  We were the Center
to Reverse the Arms Race during the 60-70-80s.   Events being planned:

November 1st at 7pm an Interfaith Service at the Southern California
Islamic Center on Vermont at 3rd Street in LA. And on November 2nd there
will be a press conference at 11am with Father Jim Lawson and a children's
choir from St Theresa Catholic School and the Islamic Center.  They are
also planning a Fall Conference with some major speakers.

Dutch Opinion Poll Rejects Nuclear Weapons

The Dutch sections of the IPPNW and the PENN network have recently
published the results of an opinion poll on NATO nuclear policy which they
commissioned. The Dutch government has stated repeatedly that it will not
distance itself from NATO nuclear policy. The results of the poll show that
a majority of the Dutch
population thinks differently.  The poll shows that Dutch membership of
NATO is not an issue -only 3% of the population is opposed to this - but
that the Dutch do want a different NATO nuclear policy, aimed at creating
a nuclear weapons-free Europe. About half of the population (46%) want NATO
to remove nuclear weapons from its arsenal, while 43% wants Holland to get
rid of its NATO nuclear It is a striking fact that the worries and opinion
of the Dutch public on nuclear weapons - in which there has been hardly any
change since the eighties - have not resulted in any public and political
debate on nuclear weapons. The Working Group Eurobomb and the NVMP want
greater emphasis to be given to the abolition of nuclear weapons in Europe
and the world in the debate about NATO expansion and on the new NATO
strategy.


Canadian Peace Assembly

This will take place in Winnipeg, Canada, November 6-8 , 1998
with the theme A World for Life, not War - An Agenda for Action.  The
Assembly is open to all peace supporters, community leaders, politicians
and media.  "Peace must be more than the absence of war. Our goal in the
Canadian Peace Assembly is to find how to win a world free of conflict, and
a peace which promotes the highest development of humanity - a culture of
peace."


Canadian Pugwash Statement

We welcome the statement issued by Canadian Pugwash, October 1998 which
reads in part:
The Canadian Pugwash Group calls on the Government of Canada to join the
growing worldwide movement for the elimination of nuclear weapons.  In
particular, the Group advocates two immediate and practical steps:
1. Give active support to the New Agenda Coalition (NAC), a new initiative
of eight middle-power states now pressing the nuclear weapons states to
commit themselves unequivocally to the elimination of nuclear weapons and to
demonstrate that commitment by immediate practical steps and negotiations
required for elimination.
2.  Press within the NATO councils for NATO to remove its nuclear weapons
from European countries and end reliance on nuclear weapons as essential to
the Strategic Concept.

Canadian Pugwash calls for an end to Canadian ambiguity and clear-cut
Canadian action to work for the elimination of nuclear weapons.   Such
action by the Government of Canada would be supported, as an Angus Reid
poll showed, by 92 percent of the Canadian people.

Call from WIND - Women Insist on Nuclear Disarmament

WIND is appealing for support especially in Germany,  Norway,
Japan and Italy and the  Netherlands for building pressure in these countries
for nuclear disarmament. The appeal is based on  the work of the New Agenda
Coalition -
the declaration made by Ireland, South Africa, Brazil, Egypt, Slovakia, New
Zealand, Sweden and Mexico on June 9, 1998. The next step of the New Agenda
Coalition is a resolution at the General Assembly.  WIND suggests a
strategy of building a center ground coalition for nuclear disarmament
should grow from this.

Books and Videos For Sale
"International Instruments of the United Nations" is  a compilation of
agreements, charters, conventions, declarations, principles, proclamations,
protocols and treaties which have been adopted by the United Nations from
1945-95.  Put together by Irving Sarnoff, founder of Friends of United
Nations, this book is essential for any serious student of the UN.  You may
order it from Friends of the UN tel [phone] fax [phone] at a
cost of $30.

A 1 hour/40 minute video of the   22 Northern California Abolition 2000
Conference is now available.  This highly successful conference, sponsored
by over 40 groups, took place at Laney College, Oakland.  The Northern
Abolition 2000 Network has been gathering for quarterly meetings ever
since.  The video features powerful and inspiring keynote addresses by
Pamela Meidell, then -Facilitator of the Global Network office of Abolition
2000; Dr. Michio Kaku, Professor of Physics, City University of New York;
Mpendulo Kumalo, South African Consul, Los Angeles; Alan Cranston, former
US Senator from California; Virginia Sanchez, Director Citizen Alert Native
American Program and Betty Berkes, President, US Section of WILPF as well
as the music of the Vukani Mawthu Choir, singing freedom songs form South
Africa.  A wonderful education and outreach tool, this video can be ordered
from Western States Legal Foundation, 1440 Broadway, Suite 500, Oakland CA
94612, Tel:[phone]:fax:[phone]; e-mail:[e-mail].
Price:$10 +$2 for postage.

We have been looking for background information for students wishing to
campaign against D of E and D of D funding for nuclear weapons research on
our campuses.  The best source of information is "Explosive Alliances" by
McKinzie, Cochran and Paine, Published by the Natural Resources Defense
Council Nuclear Program, 1200 New York Ave., NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC
20005. Telephone [phone]. Price $10.

International YouthPeace Week    November 27 - December 4, 1998

 For further information, contact Malkia M'Buzi Moore,  YouthPeace Coordinator
  at the War Resisters League  339 Lafayette St., New York, NY 10012
  or call  800-WRL-YOUTH or 212-228-0450   fax [phone] or e-mail
[e-mail]

Appeal to Abolition 2000 supporters

Please help us to build directories of the following, so we may post this
information on the Website for all to use;

1.  Speakers around the country - names, special interest, phone/email

2.  Artists,writers and performers who support peace - names, special
interest, phone/email

3.  Videos on nuclear weapons and abolition - title, cost, availability.

Send details to Sue Broidy at [e-mail].

(And of course, we still want photos, pictures, graphics  of sunflowers! )

Appeal for Volunteers for State contacts for Abolition 2000

I am starting to compile a list of Abolition 2000 contacts in every state
and overseas country. This not to formalize coordinators' positions but
simply to have a personal contact with someone on email who can be my first
call when looking for grassroots news, sending out  information, collecting
petition numbers and helping to give a picture of "who is doing what,
where, when and how."

So far I have California covered by Jackie Cabasso and myself, Rosalie
Tyler Paul in Maine, Steven Starr in Missouri, and Bob Moore for New
Jersey.  I am putting out calls and emails but it would be helpful if you
would volunteer.

Sincerely,

Sue Broidy
Coordinator, Abolition 2000
Nuclear Age Peace Foundation
1187 Coast Village Road
Santa Barbara CA 93108

Phone [phone]  FAX[phone]

Email: [e-mail]
Website http://www.waginpeace.org/abolition2000

To join the abolition-usa listerve, send a message (no subject) to
[e-mail]

To join the international abolition-caucus, send a message (no subject) to
[e-mail]



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 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) FWD: Re: SpaceNews:  Energy / Plutonium
Date: 31 Oct 1998 07:35:52 -0500

Reply-To: [e-mail]

<<
    Huge rockets will launch NASA's deep-space missions early
in the next millennium, first to Europa, one of Jupiter's moons,
and later to Pluto.
...
power cells in the space probes will convert heat that is
supplied by plutonium into electrical power.
>>

At the risk of being called (again) a "government scientist" or
something equally ugly, I offer the following OPINION:

All the concern about NASA's use of plutonium batteries has been
and is a bit silly.  It is a shame that (apparently former)
anti-nuclear weapons activists such as Michio Kaku and Helen
Caldicott have lent themselves to these antinuke reunions which
are profoundly embarassing to the community that fought the nuclear
power industry to a standstill and helped put the brakes on the
nuclear arms race but seems to have lost its vision under the
New World Order.  A few pounds of plutonium, exquisitely well
protected against being released into the environment in the
(admittedly very possible) event of a launch accident, are a
ridiculously irrelevant threat at a time when thousands of nuclear
weapons remain in the inventories of the major powers, Russia
teeters on the edge of chaos, the non-proliferation treaty regime
is threatened with collapse, the US remains committed to a path
that will result in evisceration of the ABM Treaty and deployment
of space weapons, and we face a new century laden with the
promise and threat of technologies many times more powerful than
even those we have today.  But there is apparently no appetite
to take on these very serious and scary issues.  Instead, it
seems the old antinukers would prefer to gather in Florida to
protest a symbol that probably everybody understands is of no real
consequence.  It is the very silliness of this gathering that
makes it attractive to people.  Meanwhile, the real storms are
quietly brewing...

Mark Gubrud


_______________________________________________________________________

* Peace Through Reason - http://prop1.org - Convert the War Machines! *
_______________________________________________________________________

-
 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
 For information on digests or retrieving files and old messages send
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Carole Gallagher <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Operation 11th Hour - Veterans Day demonstration in Washington DC
Date: 31 Oct 1998 07:57:41 -0500

OPERATION 11th HOUR
Hell, Healing and Resistance: Veterans Speak

RECLAIMING ARMISTICE DAY

"A profound  event, in keeping with the true spirit of Armistice."
-- Veterans for Peace National Headquarters

"I strongly support Operation 11th Hour. It is an exciting and important
event."
-- Ramsey Clark

"I endorse it wholeheartedly . . . a conscientious effort to speak
truth."
-- S. Brian Willson


November 11, 1998, 10 A.M. - 4 P.M.
The Washington Monument, Northwest Green
Constitution Avenue N.W. and 17th Street, Washington, D.C.

FOR INFORMATION, call Ron Landsel at [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Join us as combat veterans of the Gulf and Vietnam wars, well-known
authors, and peacemakers, Mike Boehm, John Dear, Daniel Ellsberg, Erik
Gustafson, Le Ly Hayslip, Fr. Richard McSorley, Charles Miles-Sheehan,
Fr. Philip Salois, Paul Walker, Howard Zinn, and many others, sharing
experiences of hell, healing and resistance.

Gather with us at the 60-foot "Armistice Memorial Wall."  Its powerful
artwork and heart-rending statistics are assembled especially for this
event. Spend an hour or the day in vigil and fellowship to bring deep
awareness to the true costs of valor and victim not cited on our
national monuments. Ring the bells of true Armistice at 11 A.M.  This
day now belongs to the voices of those who struggle to understand the
past as the key - for the future of our children and their planet.

Enjoy Nobel Prize nominee Thich Nhat HanH's play, "The Path of Return
Continues the Journey."  Gain deep insight into forgiveness and under-
stand why men actually fight and kill in war.

Over 100 million people have died in the wars of this bloodiest century
of human history. Forty-six million  died in World War II, three million
in Vietnam, and a million and a half in Iraq. Suicides among Vietnam
veterans now exceed war casualties. In the past decade alone, two
million children have been killed in wars, and three times as many have
been left permanently disabled. Let us pay true homage to that
incomprehensible loss. Let us honor the living in the spirit of
understanding, not denial.

According to the National Coalition for the Homeless, 40% of all
homeless men in the United States are veterans. Hundreds of thousands
suffer from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder. Approximately 100,000 Gulf
War veterans are now reporting incapacitating illnesses. Our nation's
young will not see these forgotten heroes in Veterans Day parades.

Millions will parade to war's drums on Veterans Day in honor of those
who served, yet Armistice Day (now Veterans Day) internationally
commemorated the end of world conflagration which left over 20 million
dead, wounded, maimed, and homeless. Since the 11th hour of the 11th day
of the 11th month, 1918, nations continue warring - destroying countless
lives and threatening the ecological balance of our planet. We face the
11th hour of our existence unless we respond. Come out and join with
veterans to reach the conscience of our nation. Help us to commemorate
our healing from, and resistance to, the hell of war, to release a force
for change. WE NEED YOUR HELP. PLEASE JOIN US.

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE:

10:00 - 10:15 A.M.        Introductory Remarks
10:15 - 10:45 A.M.        Veterans and Guests Speak
10:55 - 11:05 A.M.        11th Hour Silent Vigil
11:05 - 11:45 A.M.        Keynote Speakers
12:00 - 12:45 P.M.        Play: The Path of Return
  1:00 - 2:45 P.M.        Veterans and Guests Speak
  2:45 - 3:15 P.M.        Musical Performance
  3:15 - 3:45 P.M.        Guest Speakers
  3:45 - 4:00 P.M.        Closing Dedication

GUEST SPEAKERS (alphabetical order)

Mike Boehm, Vietnam Veteran, VAPP
Heather Dean, Washington, SOA Watch
John Dear, S.J., author, Executive Director, Fellowship of
Reconciliation
Daniel Ellsberg, Veteran, released Pentagon Papers
Erik Gustafson, Desert Storm Veteran, EPICenter, Board member of
National Gulf War Resources Center
Daniel Hallock, Author  of Hell, Healing, and Resistance: Veterans Speak
Le Ly Hayslip, Founder, East Meets West Foundation, Author of "When
Heaven and Earth Changed Place"
Richard McSorley, S.J., World War II Prisoner of War, Georgetown
University
Robert Moser, Author, "The New Winter Soldiers"
Jim Murphy, Educator, Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Inc.
Paul Walker, President, Veterans for Peace
Marvin Wingman, Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee
Howard Zinn, Author, A People's History of the United States


OPERATION 11th HOUR COALITION:

Arab-American Anti-Discrimination Committee
The Bruderhof Communities
East Meets West Foundation
The EPICenter
Fellowship of Reconciliation
Fredy Champagne, Viet Nam Friends
John Mulligan, Vietnam Veteran, author, Shopping Cart Soldiers
Maryknoll Office for Global Concern, Washington, D.C.
The School of the Americas Watch
Hugh Thompson, My Lai helicopter pilot awarded Soldier's Medal
Veterans for Peace, National Office
Vietnamese American Peace Project
Vietnam Veterans Against the War, Inc.
Vietnam Veterans of America Chaplains
Voices in the Wilderness

For information, to pledge support, or to register, call or fax:
Operation 11th Hour Committee
Ron Landsel
10 Hellbrook Lane
Ulster Park, NY 12471
Phone:  [phone]
Fax: [phone]

Media Contact:
Milton O'Connell
Phone:  [phone]
Fax:  [phone]


PLEASE DO NOT E-MAIL YOUR REQUESTS!  Thank you.

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 To unsubscribe to abolition-usa, send an email to "[e-mail]"
 with "unsubscribe abolition-usa" in the body of the message.
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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) NucNews: Soldiers fear anthrax shots, remember radiation tests
Date: 31 Oct 1998 18:11:46 -0500

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/WPlate/1998-10/30/059l-103098-idx.html

Dose of Explanation Comes With Anthrax Shots
Pentagon Campaigns to Overcome Some Soldiers' Health Fears About Vaccine

By Bradley Graham
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, October 30, 1998; Page A03

Lawyer Bill Boylan was never one to protest much, least of
all against the federal government. So it came as something
of a surprise, even to him, when he recently advised his son,
a 20-year-old Navy sailor, to refuse an anthrax vaccination
ordered by the Pentagon.

Searching for information about the vaccine from his home
in a Chicago suburb, Boylan had been alarmed by the
speeches and Internet reports of a small corps of critics
who have questioned the vaccine's efficacy, possible side
effects and quality control at the Michigan facility where the
medicine is produced.

"I couldn't care less if you compromised your military
benefits or GI bill or anything at all, if you decided to
decline to take the shots and received a penalty as a result,"
Boylan wrote in an electronic mail message to his son, Dan.
"I would prefer to have you home, healthy and with no ill
effects of any substance which the U.S. government injects
into you than to have you home, with benefits, and suffering
illness indefinitely."

Dan Boylan, a petty officer 3rd class aboard the aircraft
carrier USS Eisenhower en route to the Persian Gulf, said
his dad's advice reinforced his own concerns. Having
decided to reject the vaccine, he now faces likely discharge
from military service and joins at least 46 other service
members this year who have resisted the Pentagon's
inoculation plan, the first attempt to protect the entire
military against a germ warfare agent.

Although the refusals constitute a tiny percentage of the
96,000 troops who have begun receiving the vaccine,
defense officials acknowledge a broader unease among
military families about the initiative. A history of institutional
recklessness or indifference, involving such publicized cases
as radiation testing in the 1950s, use of Agent Orange in
Vietnam in the 1960s and the still-unexplained illnesses of
many veterans who served in the 1991 Persian Gulf War has
eroded trust in military leaders to look out for the health of
soldiers.

"There's enormous distrust of government," said Lt. Gen.
Ronald Blanck, the Army's surgeon general and the officer
responsible for managing the inoculation program.

The anthrax vaccine, licensed by the Food and Drug
Administration, has been used widely in the United States
since the early 1970s by veterinarians, laboratory
technicians, agricultural laborers and textile workers who
handle animal products that might contain the deadly anthrax
bacteria. Government scientists and independent experts
continue to vouch for the vaccine's safety and effectiveness.
Several scientific investigations have rejected any link
between the Gulf War maladies and the anti-anthrax shots
administered to about 150,000 U.S. troops who served in
the conflict against Iraq.

Nonetheless, critics of the Pentagon's vaccination program
suspect some link may exist. Their concerns were
reinforced by an FDA inspection of the Michigan
production plant in February that found "significant
deviations" from federal standards for record-keeping and
testing procedures.

"My son suffered headaches and tightness in his chest after
receiving his first anthrax vaccination," said Lori Greenleaf,
a licensed day care provider in Colorado who has become
one of the most outspoken opponents of the program.
Citing the FDA report and conversations with defense
officials, Greenleaf said the injections given last spring to her
22-year-old son, Eric Julius, and thousands of other service
members were drawn from a batch of vaccine produced in
1993 and improperly revalidated for use this year.

There are persistent questions, too, about the vaccine's
effectiveness. Since battlefield anthrax cannot ethically be
tested on people, much of the evidence about the vaccine's
ability to protect troops is indirect. Moreover, reports this
year that the Russians had developed both a multi-strain
blend and a genetically engineered strain of anthrax have
stirred scientific debate about the adequacy of the U.S.
vaccine to counter all anthrax threats.

In an interview, Blanck dismissed the military resisters as
insignificant in number. He said most either were looking for
some way out of military duty or had been deluded by
misinformation about the vaccine.

Defense Secretary William S. Cohen, speaking to a group of
business executives, joked recently that he and his deputy,
John Hamre, had received four of six required doses and
"no third eye has emerged." But to reassure troops about
the program, the Pentagon has mounted its own information
campaign using the Internet, brochures and individual
consultations.

And to be doubly certain the vaccine carries no serious
health risks, Blanck said he has taken the extraordinary step
of ordering a close watch on 600 vaccinated Army medical
personnel in Hawaii, noting any colds, headaches, lumps or
other possible side effects.

"We're recording everything that happens to them," the
general said.

Ultimately, Blanck said, the armed forces cannot tolerate
opposition to the inoculations if military discipline is to be
maintained. He defended the military's legal authority to use
force if necessary to vaccinate service members. In at least
one publicized case in June, an Army private fled Fort
Stewart in Georgia after a first sergeant threatened to strap
him down to receive a shot.

But Blanck said it was not Pentagon policy to conduct
forcible inoculations under "normal circumstances." At the
same time, he made clear that any member refusing the
vaccination could expect to be discharged.

"They've broken their contract with their terms of service,
which is to obey lawful orders," he said.

Anthrax tops the U.S. government's list of biological
warfare threats because it is considered the easiest germ
weapon to make and use. Anthrax can be produced in a dry
form that can be stored and ground into tiny particles. When
inhaled, the particles cause severe pneumonia and death
within a week.

Although no country is known to have released the bacteria
on a battlefield, the Pentagon has raised new alarms about
the prospect of biological attack from a host of hostile
states and terrorist groups. In particular, U.S. officials have
called attention to Iraqi attempts to stockpile anthrax
supplies and estimate that at least 10 countries can develop
germ weapons.

While the vaccine has existed for many years, more is
known about its ability to protect against cutaneous anthrax,
the usually nonlethal form that attacks the skin, than about
anthrax that is inhaled, the form that would threaten troops
in battle.

The only time the vaccine has been tested against anthrax
inhaled by humans was among mill workers in the late 1950s
and early 1960s, but that test population was not large
enough to be statistically meaningful. Studies using guinea
pigs have shown the vaccine defending only 20 percent of
the population against airborne anthrax spores. Tests with
rhesus monkeys, which are more similar to humans, were
more encouraging, showing a protection rate of 95 percent.

"What they've done is stretch the use of the vaccine against
a more sophisticated form of exposure, without clear
evidence it will work," said Tod Ensign, an attorney with
Citizen Soldier, an advocacy group in New York.

Defense officials acknowledge a better vaccine is possible
given modern methods of purifying the protein component
on which the medicine is based. But they insist that
administering some vaccine, particularly one already in use
for years, is better than leaving troops entirely defenseless
against an anthrax attack.

Relying only on antibiotics or antiserum to treat battlefield
victims would not be feasible, government experts say. As
for any new strains of anthrax that might appear, defense
officials remain confident the U.S. vaccine will prove
comprehensive because, they note, it is based on a single
protein component of the anthrax bacillus common to all
natural strains.

Regarding possible side effects, Blanck reported 11 cases
this year of adverse reactions to the vaccine, including fever,
itching and fatigue -- far fewer, he said, than occur with
other commonly administered vaccines for tetanus, typhoid
and whooping cough.

Blanck also said the production deficiencies cited by the
FDA had been resolved. "All were answered satisfactorily,
and the FDA has verified the safe and effective production
of the vaccine," he said.

The production facility is the sole plant for making the U.S.
vaccine. It remains closed for renovation and expansion
following its sale this year by the state of Michigan to a
private group, BioPort Corp., headed by retired Adm.
William J. Crowe, former Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman. In
the meantime, the Pentagon is drawing on a stockpile of
about 7 million doses, intending eventually to inoculate all
2.4 million active-duty and reserve personnel.

----------

Concerned about depleted uranium and Gulf War vets?

>

Dear Friends,

The Military Toxics Project (MTP) has recently set up a Listserve for
depletd uranium.  Anyone wishing to subscribe to the DU listserve type in
the TO:  [e-mail] and in the body of the text write
"subscribe"  (no "").  You should receive a message to confirm.  If there
are any problems contact MTP at [e-mail].

Thanks,
Tara Thornton
>
-----------------------



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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) a report from Seattle
Date: 31 Oct 1998 22:14:22 EST

Friends,

I think all of us wonder "how do we reach the grassroots". I'm sending on a
post from John Reese which is a very good example of that - a report of the
trip by bus from Seattle to Washington DC for the October 19th action.  (That
post will come - or should come - directly after this brief note. I'm
forwarding it as soon as I've sent this).

Peace,
David McReynolds

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-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) DWOP
Date: 31 Oct 1998 22:15:37 EST

In a message dated 10/31/98 1:25:49 AM Eastern Standard Time, can@drizzle.=
com
writes:

<< Subj:=09 DWOP
 Date:=0910/31/98 1:25:49 AM Eastern Standard Time
 From:=[e-mail] (John Reese)
 Sender:=[e-mail]
 To:=[e-mail]

 Here is a copy of an article that I have written for NACC's newsletter ab=
out
the bus and
 the day of.

 John Reese

 On October 19, 600 to 800 protesters gathered at the Pentagon for the War
Resisters
 League =93Day Without the Pentagon=94.  Seven of those that gathered at t=
he
pentagon came
 across the country on a media bus tour organized by NACC.  (see related
article or just
 leave the bus section as is.)

 The Day Without the Pentagon was a national action calling for an end to
militarization
 of our culture, major cuts in the post Cold War Pentagon budget, and fund=
ing
of human
 needs instead of the Pentagon.  Over 100 local and national organizations
endorsed and
 participated in the march and rally at the Pentagon.  This was the first
national march
 that focused on the Pentagon in over a decade.

 The bus left Seattle NACC on October 9th.  For the send-off the Bus made =
five
stops in
 Seattle (representing the five sides of the Pentagon) to pick up people f=
rom
 organizations promoting services - housing, health care, women's safety,
street youth
 support, education - that would benefit from the shut down of the pentago=
n.
There was a
 rally at the Seattle Central Community College, following the bus loop
through Seattle.

 No longer school bus yellow, sat parked outside the Real Change office
(newspaper and
 support for Seattle's homeless) for the beginning of the loop around Seat=
tle.
The now
 sky blue bus was not fully painted yet but the sun on the bus was far
brighter than the
 one hiding behind the clouds above us.  Passengers boarded here and conti=
nued
our
 penta-stop tour of Seattle's human service organizations.  We drove up to=
 our
last stop,
 Seattle Central Community College, to find the Pentagon's "General Wolf"
pushing aside
 our emcee (our favorite Seattle celebrity -and NACC staffer - Geov Parris=
h).

 The general demanded bigger, better bombs - and more opportunities to use
them.
 Fortunately he was surrounded by a human Pentagon with each of the five
corners
 representing areas of human needs that we would rather have funded than t=
he
war machine.
  Those in the corners quickly moved to action, using the rope that was
acting as
 "walls" of the pentagon to wrap up the "general" and remove him from his
soapbox.  The
 "corners" spoke up for housing, women, youth, the environment and educati=
on.
Sometime
 during this dismantling, the rain began but off to the east (towards DC) =
an
incredible
 double rainbow appeared.  Was it the sun on the side of the bus?

 The previous night, Megan, 16, died alone on the streets of Seattle.  Jel=
lo
and Janaea,
 two street youth traveling on the bus knew her.  More than a statistic to
them but Megan
 was also a victim of misdirected funding and priorities.  She was a victi=
m of
US
 military actions and inactions, like so many others we lose this way.  Th=
is
bus trip was
 for all those that have died and those that are dying and those that will=
 die
due to the
 misplaced priorities of our pentagon spending.

 The bus first headed to Olympia for some last minute work and then south =
to
Portland for
 a rally at the Federal Building.  The bus attracted a good bit of attenti=
on
as we drove
 through Portland.  After a great dinner at the Taj Majal Restaurant hoste=
d by
the Oregon
 Community War Tax Resisters, we got on the road to Boise.  In Boise, some
local youth go
 on board and for a ride to the Capitol Building for a brief rally and pho=
to
ops.  A half
 hour interview on KBOO radio in Portland was our first press coverage.

 On Sunday, the bus riders woke up about 100 miles north of Salt Lake City
with frost on
 the inside of the bus windows.  There was also a light frost on the groun=
d
but it warmed
 up quickly as we headed into Salt Lake City.  After gathering a small cro=
wd
at the
 Federal Building, the bus meandered through Salt Lake using the bus PA to
broadcast the
 shut it down message.  Once again, the bus drew lots of attention and
(perhaps not
 surprisingly) got a lot of  thumbs up.  At Liberty Park, we gave tours of=
 the
bus,
 handed out literature and talked to many in the crowd of about 100 people
there for the
 regular Sunday drum circle.

 The bus arrived in Boulder on Monday to meet Sachio (see related article?=
)
and the group
 putting on the Indigenous Peoples Day Rally.  Three local press people sh=
owed
up - KGNU,
 the Colorado Daily and the Boulder Weekly.  About 30 people attended the
rally which
 linked the military and a history of mistreatment of indigenous peoples
around the
 world.  Sachio rode with on the bus to Colorado Springs and then there wa=
s
fun march
 through town to Colorado College and then to Acacia Park doing great stre=
et
theater all
 the way.  The Colorado Springs Gazette was on hand for interviews.  The b=
us
passengers
 were then treated to a great meal at the Pikes Peak Peace and Justice
Commission office.

 On Tuesday, in Kansas City, Kansas, there was an early morning crowd of a=
bout
20 for
 banner holding at a busy intersection and then more tours of the bus.  Th=
e
local FOX
 affiliate filmed us and the Pacifica station and a weekly paper did
interviews.  Doing a
 demo with a group as supportive as the Kansas City folks was great.  In S=
t
Louis the bus
 drove through the McDonnell Douglas complex which certainly garnered a lo=
t of
looks.
 Mira with AFSC hosted us so everyone could shower and eat.

 The bus arrived in Chicago about 4 AM on Wednesday.  When the bus riders =
got
to the
 Federal Building for the noon demonstration and began handing out flyers =
a
federal
 protective service person stated that permit was required for any type of
demonstration
 - including handing out flyers!  After some dialogue with him about the
constitution the
 leafleters were informed that  their building rules are above the
constitution.  To play
 their game, a permit to speak freely was requested.  Meanwhile, leafletin=
g
and banners
 holding went on off federal property on the portion of the sidewalk that =
city
property.
  Surprisingly the Chicago police didn=92t come to demand a permit to be o=
n
their sidewalk.

 When the federal officer brought down the permit he explained that the
demonstrators
 were denied the right to perform a skit.  So, holding signs/banners and
leafleting
 occurred on federal property and the skit on city property.  Thanks to th=
e
Eighth Day
 Center for Justice, there was a good crowd and with lots of people taking
flyers.  It
 was great to have it downtown in an area with lots of people around.  The
bus got
 plenty of attention as it circled around town with, one of the drivers,
blasting out
 messages about pentagon greed and the need to fund human needs.  The skit
went great
 (its debut) and the caravaners hurriedly packed up for South Bend.

 In South Bend the bus was parked directly in front of the recruiting cent=
ers
- army,
 navy,  airforce and marines.  All were there at least until the bus arriv=
ed!
Just as it
 pulled up, the army recruiting center shut their blinds, locked the doors=
 and
left.  The
 navy and airforce soon did the same.  What are they afraid of?  The marin=
es
risked the
 caravaners  presence and toughed it out.  They seemed to enjoy the skit a=
nd
laughed with
 the crowd from the comfort of their office.  The day before the South Ben=
d
Tribune
 carried a story about the coming protest and they showed up to take photo=
s of
the event
 which went in the next day=92s edition.  A local TV station (FOX channel =
4)
interviewed
 one bus passenger and took lots of footage.  Thanks to Michiana War Resis=
ters
League for
 dinner and helping with the turnout and the press.

 Kent, our last stop before Annapolis, went well.  A crowd of about 50
students listened
 to speakers.  Marine recruiters were on campus at the time one speaker
addressed getting
 recruiters off campus.  The May 4th Task Force also spoke about their eff=
orts
to close
 off parking spaces where some activities occurred on May 4th, 1970, when =
four
students
 were killed and nine wounded by the  National Guard.  The bus riders went=
 by
the
 memorial after the rally.  There was one reporter from the Akron Beacon
Journal, one
 from the campus TV station and one from the campus daily newspaper (Kent
Stater).
 Thursday=92s (October 15th) Beacon Journal also had a small story with an
announcement of
 the rally.  There were also follow-up stories in the Akron Beacon Journal=
 and
the Kent
 Stater.  Sue Jeffers and the May 4th Task Force helped with the Kent even=
t.

 The positive response that the bus has got was amazing as it carried the
message to the
 interstate, truck stops, and cities.  Driving through the cities and town=
s,
there were a
 lot of thumbs up and only a rare negative response.  Not that this is a
scientific poll,
 but it seems like most people the caravaners came in contact with as they
crossed the
 U.S. would be happy if the Day Without the Pentagon dragged on for the  n=
ext
hundred
 years or so.  Thanks to NACC's many friends and supporters that helped ma=
ke
the Day
 Without the Pentagon bus tour a success. stops at 14 locations along the =
way
generated
 enthusiasm and visibility for the bus and the idea of closing the Pentago=
n
down.

 DWOP:

 An early morning action started the days events.  Twenty one people were
carried away by
 Metro Police for allegedly trying to block Defense Department workers fro=
m
entering the
 Pentagon at the Pentagon Metrostation.  They were released in about two h=
ours
and were
 later able to attend the rally at the Pentagon.

 For most of the crowd, the day began at 9:00 a.m. at Arlington National
Cemetery.  Here
 affinity groups continued to meet (some had formed the previous night) an=
d
Bread and
 Puppets prepared their giant cranes to lead the way.  Signs, banners and
other props
 were made ready for the one mile march to the Pentagon.  At 10 A.M. the c=
rowd
of 600 or
 so began their march to the Pentagon.  Escorted by dozens of police the c=
rowd
created
 quite the spectacle for commuters and the media.

 The rally began at 11 AM with speakers and music at the river side of the
Pentagon.
 Some of the speakers were Dave Dellinger, Daniel Ellsberg, Mandy Carter, =
Pam
Africa,
 Alan Nairn, David McReynolds, Luis Nieves-Falcon, Greg Payton, Barbara Sm=
ith
and Alyn
 Ware.  Youth Peace. Performers were also there as well as lots of good mu=
sic.
C-span
 covered the entire rally as well as many other media sources.

 With over 300 police surrounding the Pentagon the task of shutting it dow=
n
would prove
 to be impossible.  But about ten affinity groups were dedicated to doing
their best to
 have a Day Without the Pentagon.  At 1:50 PM about 200 people moved south
toward a 5
 foot retaining wall 100 feet from the river entrance.  About 50 police to=
ok
up position
 in a line between the protestors and the Pentagon.  The idea, worked out
during the day,
 was that two affinity groups would attempt to get to the Pentagon by stai=
rs
on each side
 of the retaining wall.  A third affinity group would attempt to go over t=
he
wall.

 I was with the Food Not Bombs affinity group that would try to go over th=
e
wall.  A
 dozen of us sat on a ledge just below the top of the wall.  The police th=
en
moved in to
 within a few feet of us and at that time it was announced that for violat=
ions
of
 international law and for it=92s role in the production of weapons of mas=
s
destruction, we
 were here to close down the Pentagon.  We then stood up and attempted to =
walk
toward the
 Pentagon but were pushed back by the police.  Two of us began to dive to =
the
ground on
 the pentagon side of the wall.  Practicing our best nonviolent non-
cooperation we were
 half carried half dragged down the steps to the other side of the wall.  =
We
new the
 preferred tactic of the police was not to arrest us but we were determine=
d to
test the
 limits of that tactic.  After 5 attempts to get through the police, two o=
f us
were
 finally arrested.  The command was given by a person in a black uniform
without any
 insignias.  He was a part of one of many different police forces (soldier=
s)
that were
 there to make sure that the pentagon=92s plans of death and destruction
continued.

 Within the next 15 minutes, four more were persistent enough to get arres=
ted
=96 one
 merely for waving a US flag upside down.  It was obvious that the police =
had
been
 ordered not too make any arrests.  Arrests make news and Pentagon officia=
ls
wanted to
 make this as much a non-news event as possible.  Nine more protestors wer=
e
arrested for
 blocking an access road to the pentagon.  Although we were all booked by =
the
Defense
 Protective Service, we were released and later found out that there would=
 be
no charges
 filed.

 All total 36 were arrested during the daylong event -  21 taken into cust=
ody
early in
 the day at the Pentagon Metrostation station and the remaining 15, arrest=
ed
on charges
 they tried to block two other entrances to the Pentagon.  About 100 had
committed to
 risking arrest.  Many others attempted to block the different entrances t=
o
the Pentagon
 but were carried or pushed out of the way even after repeated attempts to
shut the
 Pentagon down.

 In spite of the reality that we did not shut the Pentagon down, for a day=
 we
got the
 word out all across the country that the bloated military budget has got =
to
go.
 Combined with the media bus tour we reached thousands that would otherwis=
e
remain in the
 dark about the massive amount of money that the Pentagon drains form much
needed
 services thus in effect weakening this country   Because of this action w=
e
are one step
 closer to the dream of the day when the Pentagon will be not the symbol o=
f
war but a
 symbol of human  needs met; when the $1.7 billion is spent on health care=
,
education,
 the environment, housing and jobs.





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