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abolition-usa-digest     Monday, October 12 1998     Volume 01 : Number 029




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

Date: Thu, 8 Oct 1998 19:14:34 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re: Courtright's Right Ideas and Philadelphia Lessons

" 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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------------------------------

Date: Fri, 9 Oct 1998 00:14:11 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) for chicago meeting

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

Date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 17:58:43 -0400
From: War Resisters League <[e-mail]>
Subject: [none]

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

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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.

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

Date: Fri, 9 Oct 1998 18:11:16 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Bus leaves Seattle for Pentagon Action october 19th

 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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 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.

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

Date: Sat, 10 Oct 1998 22:23:31 -0700 (PDT)
From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Clinton, Impeachment, and nuclear weapons

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

Date: Sun, 11 Oct 1998 13:38:04 -0700 (PDT)
From: Timothy Bruening <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Nuclear Disarmament and the 98 election

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

Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 09:38:51 -0400
From: Bob Tiller <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re:

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]"
 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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------------------------------

Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 13:14:04 -0400
From: Peace through Reason <[e-mail]>
Subject: (abolition-usa) "Many bills die quietly in Congress" -- OBJECT!

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

Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 13:42:58 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Oh, Amsterdam, Amsterdam

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

Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 13:42:55 EDT
From: [e-mail]
Subject: (abolition-usa) Re military spending

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.

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

Date: Mon, 12 Oct 1998 12:11:46 -0700 (PDT)
From: "Victor W. Sidel, MD" <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: (abolition-usa) Re military spending

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.
>
>


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

End of abolition-usa-digest V1 #29
**********************************

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